IMPROVEMENTS IN APPARATUS FOR DRYING AND HEATING AIR follows
Year: 1884

page_text: We JAMES ANDREW RAMSEY MAIN of 54, Gordon Street Glasgow in the County
of Lanark Engineer and JOHN DICK of 218 Saracen Street Possilpark, Glasgow in
the County of Lanark, Engineer, do hereby declare the nature of the said Invention
for IMPROVEMENTS IN APPARATUS FOR DRYING AND HEATING AIR
follows:-
" to be as
This Invention has for its object improvements in apparatus for drying and if
desired also for heating air by passing it amongst granulated or broken pumice
stone, charcoal, or other equivalent porous material which material prior to being
placed in the machine or apparatus is treated with a solution of Calcium chloride
or other well known air drying agent and then submitted to the action of heat so
as to evaporate the moisture and leave the pores filled with the said agent or the
said agent may be filled into the pores in a dry state or used without the porous
material. The improved apparatus consists of a wheel or disc in the hollow or
trough shaped rim of which the said drying agent is contained the said rim being
composed of wire cloth or perforated metal or partly of metal and partly of Asbestos
cloth or other fabric. The wheel is mounted on a shaft or spindle revolving in
bearings and after being charged with the absorbent the rim is so fitted into a seat
or slot formed in the pipe through which the air is conducted to the apparatus that
the air passes or is drawn or forced through part of the rim and the absorbent
material therein contained the air being thereby deprived of its moisture.
side of the wheel opposite the seat a stove or heat chamber is constructed or placed,
the said stove having a vertical recess extending across the greater part from back
to front. Between the sides of the recess the charged part of the wheel rim revolves
slowly so that the parts of the absorbent rendered damp by the moisture withdrawn
from the air are exposed to the heat whereby the moisture is evaporated and passes
off through a funnel or flue.
At the
A twin valve is or may be provided in conjunction with the apparatus by
operating which the dried air may be conducted through a coil or other pipe or

page_text: pipes to be heated by the said stove or passed direct to where it is to be used, the
said valve enabling the operator to regulate the temperature as required by sending
the whole or any part of it through the coil or other pipe or direct as desired.
The apparatus hereinbefore described whilst applicable generally for purposes
wherein dry air heated or not is required is especially applicable for employment in
conjunction with apparatus for withering and drying the leaf of the tea plant in
the manufacture of tea.

page_text: We, JAMES ANDREW RAMSEY MAIN of 54 Gordon Street, Glasgow, in the County
of Lanark, Engineer, and JOHN DICK of 218 Saracen Street, Possilpark, Glasgow,
in the County of Lanark, Engineer, do hereby declare the nature of the said
invention for "IMPROVEMENTS IN APPARATUS FOR DRYING AND HEATING AIR,"
and in what manner the same is to be performed, to be particularly described
and ascertained in and by the following statement:-
Our said Invention has for its object improvements in apparatus for drying air
by passing it amongst granulated or broken pumice stone, charcoal, or other
equivalent porous material treated with calcium, chloride, or other well known
drying agent, the air being subsequently heated if desired.
As shown in part side elevation and part vertical section at fig. 1, in part end
elevation and part transverse section at fig. 2, and in part plan and part horizontal
section at fig. 3, of the drawings appended hereto, the apparatus constituting our
invention consists of a wheel A, a fire grate or furnace B, and beat chamber C, a
series of pipes D, and a fan or exhaust apparatus E.
The wheel or disc A, has a bollow or trough shaped rim divided into segments
or compartments the two sides of the rim having perforations all round leading into
and from the contained space and which perforations may as seen at a, fig. 3, be at
one side made in the metal constituting the rim and at the other side in a
removable metal ring, or the sides of the trough shaped rim may be composed of.
wire cloth, or partly of metal and partly of asbestos cloth or other permeable fabric.
The wheel A, is keyed on a spindle b, carried on bearings c, and having at one
end a worm wheel d, geared with a worm screw e, keyed or formed on a spindle f,
supported in bearings g, on a standard or stool h, fig. 2. The spindle f, is also
furnished with fast and loose pulleys i, so that the wheel A, may be slowly rotated
or instead of the arrangement shown any other suitable means of rotating the said
wheel may be adopted.
The compartments in the trough shaped rim of the wheel A, are filled with
broken or granulated pumice stone, charcoal, or other equivalent porous material
which material is, prior to being placed in the said compartments, treated with a
solution of calcium chloride or other well known air drying agent and then
submitted to the action of heat so as to evaporate the moisture and leave the pores
filled with the said agent; or the said agent may be filled into the pores in a dry
state or used in the compartments of the hollow rim of the wheel A, in a dry state
without the porous material.
The hollow rim of the wheel is at one side of the spindle b, fitted into a
chamber F, made as seen at figs. 2, and 3, on, or so as to communicate with, the
pipe D, through which the air to be treated is conducted to the apparatus and so
that by the action of the fan E, the air is drawn through the perforated side of one
or more of the compartments of the said rim and through the absorbent material
contained in the said compartment or compartments, the air being thereby deprived
of its moisture or comparatively speaking dried, thereafter again passing into the
pipe D.

page_text: At the opposite side of the spindle b, the furnace or fire grate B, is situated and
at one end thereof is the stove or heat chamber C, in the side of which next the
wheel a vertical or curved recess 7, is made to receive the rim of the wheel as seen
more particularly at fig. 3. In this recess the wheel A, revolves slowly so that the
compartments containing the absorbent rendered damp by the moisture withdrawn
from the air passing through the chamber F, are exposed to the heat from the
furnace B, whereby the contained moisture is evaporated and passes off through a
funnel or flue communicating with the said recess l, or through an opening or
openings in the top or other part thereof.
The air inlet pipe D, is made with two branches one of which (D') leads direct
to the fan or exhaust apparatus E, that is to say, when the dried air does not
require to be heated for the purpose in which it is to be used, it passes direct from
the pipe D, to the fan and is thereby discharged but when it is required to heat
the air or part of it instead of so passing direct it is led by the branch and pipe or
coil D2, through the stove C, wherein it is heated thence passing to the fan or
exhauster E.
To so reverse the current the branches D1, D2, are furnished with valve boxes m,
containing valves connected to the lever n, which is centred on a pillar o, provided
with a bracket o', in a slot in which a pin works and by tightening the hand nut r,.
on the said pin the lever n, and with it the valves are retained in their adjusted
position; or other equivalent or well known means of reversing the air current or
of adjusting and retaining the valves may be used.
The apparatus herein before described whilst applicable generally for purposes
wherein dry air heated or not, is required is especially applicable for employment
in conjunction with mechanism for withering and drying the leaf of the tea plant
in the manufacture of tea, and it is to be understood that in drying air for
employment in the said manufacture, we do not confine ourselves to the exact
arrangement shown as it is manifest that the apparatus may be very considerably
varied without departing from the main or essential features of the said Invention.
Having now particularly described and ascertained the nature of our said
Invention and in what manner the same is to be performed we declare that what
we claim is.
First The general arrangement and combination of parts constituting the
improved apparatus hereinbefore described and shown on the drawings annexed
hereto for drying and heating air.
Second A wheel or disc with a hollow or trough shaped and perforated rim
divided or not into compartments (or equivalent apparatus) containing an air
drying agent alone or in conjunction with a porous material as and for the purpose
set forth with reference to the appended drawings.
Third The combination of the wheel or disc A, (or its equivalent) chamber F,
furnace or fire grate B, and heat chamber or stove C, as and for the purposes
described with reference to the accompanying drawings.
Fourth In the manufacture of tea the use of apparatus for drying air by
passing it over or amongst calcium chloride or other well known air drying agent.
Dated this twenty fifth day of Fah 100%
GEO. M. CRUIKSHANK,
135, Buchanan St., Glasgow,
Agent.