Improvements in and Apparatus for the Manufacture of Gas from Petroleum or other Oil or the like.
Year: 1895

page_text: Date of Application, 9th Aug., 1895
Complete Specification Left, 11th May, 1896-Accepted, 11th July, 1896
PROVISIONAL SPECIFICATION.
Improvements in and Apparatus for the Manufacture of Gas from
Petroleum or other Oil or the like.
I, WILLIAM FOULIS of 45 John Street Glasgow, in the County of Lanark,
Civil Engineer do hereby declare the nature of my invention to be as follows:-
My invention has for its object to provide means whereby gas can be readily, and
economically obtained from petroleum, or other oil, or like material. According
to my invention I provide a retort, or retorts, and means for heating it, or them,
and means for introducing the material from which the gas is to be generated in
such a form, or manner,
that the said material becomes vapourized, or in great
part vapourized without coming in contact with the hot internal surfaces of the
retort or retorts.
I prefer to use two retorts, which should be arranged vertically, these retorts
being provided with means for heating them by surrounding them with a casing
into the space enclosed by which casing, and surrounding the retorts, a heating
Baffles should be
agent is introduced, preferably gases from a gas producer.
inserted into the said space to cause the producer gases to take a circuitous path
to give good heating effect and openings for a secondary air supply may be provided
at intervals to admit air as required which by controlling the combustion of the
gases regulates the temperature at various parts of the retort.
The material to be gasified is admitted at the top of the first retort preferably
(where oil or other liquid is used) by means of an inlet pipe and nozzle through
which the liquid is injected against a plate or disperser so that it is broken up into
a sufficiently fine spray to enable it to be vapourized, or in great part vapourized
before it, or any considerable quantity of it can come into contact with the heated
inner surfaces of the retort. The vapour partly gasified in the first retort, passes
into the second retort in which the conversion into gas is completed. The heating
gases are preferably admitted at the upper end of the space surrounding the first
retort and pass therefrom into the lower part of the space surrounding the second
retort the vapours or gases generated from the material under treatment passing
from the upper end of the first retort into the upper end of the second retort,
and leaving the latter at the lower end so that the heat is applied in such a way as
to most advantageously effect the conversion of the material into gas.
Dated this 9th day of August 1895.
JOHNSONS & WILLCOX,
47 Lincoln's Inn Fields, London, W.C., Agents.
COMPLETE SPECIFICATION.
Improvements in and Apparatus for the Manufacture of Gas from
Petroleum or other Oil or the like.
I, WILLIAM FOULIS, of 45 John Street Glasgow, in the County of Lanark,
Civil Engineer, do hereby declare the nature of this invention and in what manner
the same is to be performed to be particularly described and ascertained in and
by the following statement :-
My invention has for its object to provide means whereby gas can be readily, and

page_text: economically obtained from petroleum, or other oil, or other like material (I will
refer to it as oil) from which gas can be generated. According to my invention
I provide a retort, or retorts, and means for heating it, or them, and means for
introducing the oil in such a form, or manner, that the said oil becomes vapourized,
or in great part vapourized without coming in contact with the hot internal surfaces
of the retort, or retorts.
I prefer to use two retorts, arranged vertically, these retorts being provided
with means for heating them by surrounding them each with a casing or enclositre
into the spaces enclosed, by which casings, and surrounding each of the retorts, a
heating agent is introduced; preferably gases from a gas producer. Baffles should
be inserted into the said spaces to cause the producer gases to take a circuitous path to
give good heating effect and openings for a secondary air supply may be provided at
intervals to admit air as required which by controlling the combustion of the heating
gases regulates the temperature at various parts of the retort and with the same
object an outlet can be provided leading from the space around the first retort to
an outlet chimney or flue so that a portion of the heating gases can be withdrawn
from that space without passing into the space surrounding the second retort.
The oil to be gasified is admitted from the upper part of the first retort preferably
by means of an inlet pipe and nozzle through which the oil is injected against a
plate or disperser so that the said oil is broken up into a sufficiently fine spray or
mist
to enable it to be vapourized, or in great part vapourized, before it, or any
considerable quantity of it, can come into contact with the heated inner surfaces of
the retort. The vapour of oil, partly gasified in the first retort, passes into the
second retort in which its conversion into gas is completed. The heating gases
may be admitted at either end of the space surrounding the first retort and pass
therefrom into the reverse end of the space surrounding the second retort; the
vapours or gases generated from the oil under treatment passing say from the
upper end of the first retort into the upper end of the second retort, and leaving
the latter at the lower end, or otherwise, so that the heat is applied in such a way
as to most advantageously effect the conversion of the oil into gas.
"
The accompanying drawings represent in vertical section in Figure 1 and plan
in Figure 2 an apparatus constructed in accordance with my invention. Figure 3
is a section of the pipe and attachments by which the oil is fed into, and distributed
in, the retort. A is a gas producer, or other suitable heater, and B and C are two
retorts. Surrounding the retorts B and C are casings or enclosures B³ C³ leaving
spaces B C between their interiors and the outsides of the retorts. The space B
is connected to the heater A by the passage D controlled by the damper d and the
spaces B and C are connected by the passage E. The passage F from the
space C2 leads to an outlet chimney or flue and is controlled by the damper f
H' are passages from the space B2 also leading into an outlet chimney or flue and
these are capable of being opened, closed and controlled by the dampers h.
Baffles b and c are arranged in a helical manner in the spaces B³ C so as to cause
the products of combustion from the heater A to take a circuitous path through
the said spaces B³ C. Air openings are made at 2 controllable by dampers or
valves to admit air to the spaces B C to regulate the temperature as required at
various parts of the retorts. The air is preferably conveyed through channels
formed in the casings so that the said air as it passes in the direction shewn by the
arrows becomes heated before it enters the said spaces B³C². These air channels may
be arranged in any suitable way. In the drawing the channel in connection with
the opening is formed between the outlet passages H2 from the space B2 and the
channel from the opening c is led half way round in the top of the casing of the
retort C³. G is an inlet tube in connection with the oil supply pipe G2 and having
at its end which enters the retort B a nozzle g opposite to which is a dispersing
plate or surface H by which the oil is broken up into a fine spray for the purpose
aforesaid. G³ is a pipe provided with a cock g' for allowing air to readily escape.
The oil tube is preferably surrounded by a bad conductor of heat as at l. The
vapour of the oil passes from the first retort B by the passage I into the second

page_text: retort C in which the conversion into gas is completed and it leaves the second
retort by the passage J.
The heat of any suitable part of the apparatus or of the escaping gas may be
utilized to heat the incoming oil for example the outlet pipe ; may be surrounded
by a casing K provided with a connection at k to which a pipe in connection with
the pipe G is attached.
By manipulating the dampers which control the air inlets at 6 and the
dampers which control the outlets from the space B' the temperature at the various
parts of the apparatus can be regulated as desired.
I have shewn only two air inlets to the spaces around the retorts but I may
use any number desired. I may also use more than one retort such as C if
desired.
Having now particularly described and ascertained the nature of my said inven-
tion and in what manner the same is to be performed, I declare that what I
claim is :-
1. In the manufacture of gas from petroleum, or other oil, or the like; the
introduction of the material from which the gas is to be generated in such a
manner, as herein before explained, that the material becomes vapourized, or in
great part vapourized, or the gas is generated from it, without its coming into
contact with the hot internal surfaces of the retort, or retorts.
2. In apparatus for the manufacture of gas from petroleum, or other oil, or the
like; a retort, or retorts, provided with an outer casing enclosing
a space for the
heating agent and with inlets for a secondary air supply with or without an
outlet or outlets for a portion of the heating gases from the space surrounding the
first retort when two or more are used substantially as and for the purpose
herein before described.
3. In apparatus for the manufacture of gas from petroleumn, or other oil, or the
like; an inlet therefor provided with a nozzle and with an air escape pipe, and a
disperser so arranged as to disperse the petroleum, or other oil, or the like, in
the retort; substantially as, and for the purpose, herein before described.
4. In apparatus for the manufacture of gas, from petroleum, or other oil, or the
like; retorts, each surrounded by a casing for the passage of the heating agent from
a heater. and means for admitting a secondary air supply to the spaces surrounding
the retorts, and means for spraying the petroleum, or other oil, or the like, in the first
retort, and communications from the first retort to the other retort, or retorts, so
that the vapours, generated in the first retort, pass through the succeeding retort, or
retorts; substantially as, and for the purposes, hereinbefore described.
5. The arrangement and combination of parts constituting an apparatus for the
manufacture of gas from petroleum, or other oil, or the like; substantially as
hereinbefore described, and illustrated in the accompanying drawings.
Dated this 11th day of May 1896
JOHNSONS & WILLCOX,
47 Lincoln's Inn Fields, London, W.C., Agents.