IMPROVEMENTS IN FURNACES
Year: 1865

page_text: LETTERS PATENT to Robert Cassels, Ironmaster, of Glasgow, in the
County of Lanark, North Britain, and Thomas Morton, Manager of
the Motherwell Iron Works, in the same County, for the Invention of
"IMPROVEMENTS IN FURNACES
ני
Sealed the 27th April 1866, and dated the 31st October 1865.
PROVISIONAL SPECIFICATION left by the said Robert Cassels and
Thomas Morton at the Office of the Commissioners of Patents, with
their Petition, on the 31st October 1865.
We, ROBERT CASSELS, Ironmaster, of Glasgow, in the County of Lanark,
North Britain, and THOMAS MORTON, Manager of the Motherwell. Iron Works,
in the same County, do hereby declare the nature of the said Invention for
"IMPROVEMENTS IN FURNACES," to be as follows, that is to say:-
This Invention relates to improvements designed to render furnaces of
various kinds more economical in fuel, more efficient and manageable than
hitherto, and less productive of smoke.
An important application of the Invention is in the case of puddling furnaces
and reheating furnaces, such as are used in the manufacture of malleable iron,
as in this application the quality of the iron is improved, whilst the waste is
reduced.
The Invention consists simply in the introduction of a hanging bridge
in the furnace or space in which the fuel is burned, this hanging bridge being
employed to separate the green or fresh fuel from the incandescent fuel, and
to cause the air which supplies the combustion to pass downwards through the-

page_text: fuel on its way to the hotter part of the furnace. The fuel is introduced into
the space outside of the hanging bridge either through a hopper in the roof or
through a door in the side or end, and is gradually raked forward under the
banging bridge as its consumption proceeds. The bottom of the furnace may
be close, but it is preferred to make it with fire-bars, as usual, the fire-bars
being placed as close together as possible, and the ash-pit is made close all
round, and with doors at the back, which are closed in order to reduce the
inlet of air through the fire-bars to a minimum. Small doors may be arranged
in the ash-pit, doors to admit a regulated amount of air if found desirable.
With these arrangements a very intense and complete combustion is obtained,
and as it is got with a diminished supply of air there is very much less
tendency to oxidise the iron, hence its improved quality and the diminished
waste.
The improvement is obviously applicable to most kinds of furnaces, and
with similar results as regards efficiency, economy of fuel, and prevention of
SPECIFICATION in pursuance of the conditions of the Letters Patent, filed
by the said Robert Cassels and Thomas Morton in the Great Seal
Patent Office on the 28th April 1866.
TO ALL TO WHOM THESE PRESENTS SHALL COME, we, ROBERT
CASSELS, Ironmaster, of Glasgow, in the County of Lanark, North Britain,
and THOMAS MORTON, Manager of the Motherwell Iron Works, in the same
County, send greeting.
WHEREAS Her most Excellent Majesty Queen Victoria, by Her Letters
Patent, bearing date the Thirty-first day of October, in the year of our Lord
One thousand eight hundred and sixty-five, in the twenty-ninth year of Her
reign, did, for Herself, Her heirs and successors, give and grant unto us,
the said Robert Cassels and Thomas Morton, Her special licence that we,
the said Robert Cassels and Thomas Morton, our executors, administrators,
and assigns, or such others as we, the said Robert Cassels and Thomas
Morton, our executors, administrators, and assigns, should at any time
agree with, and no others, from time to time and at all times there-
after during the term therein expressed, should and lawfully might make,
use, exercise, and vend, within the United Kingdom of Great. Britain
and Ireland, the Channel Islands, and Isle of Man, an Invention for
IMPROVEMENTS IN FURNACES," upon the condition (amongst others) that we,
the said Robert Cassels and Thomas Morton, our executors or administrators

page_text: by an instrument in writing under our, or their, or one of their hands and
seals, should particularly describe and ascertain the nature of the said In- .
vention, and in what manner the same was to be performed, and cause the
same to be filed in the Great Seal Patent Office within six calendar months
next and immediately after the date of the said Letters Patent.
NOW KNOW YE, that we, the said Robert Cassels and Thomas Morton, do
hereby declare the nature of our said Invention, and in what manner the same.
is to be performed, to be particularly described and ascertained in and by the.
following statement in writing, reference being had to the accompanying
Drawings, that is to say :-
Our said Invention relates to improvements designed to render furnaces of
various kinds more economical in fuel, more efficient and manageable than
hitherto, and less productive of smoke. An important application of our
Invention is in the case of puddling furnaces and reheating furnaces, such as
are used in the manufacture of malleable iron, as in this application the
quality of the iron is improved whilst the waste is reduced.
And in order that our said Invention and the manner of performing the.
same may be properly understood, we have hereunto appended a Sheet of
explanatory Drawings to be herein-after referred to, and representing a
puddling furnace with our improvements applied to it.
Figure 1 is a plan, Figure 2 is a side elevation, partly in vertical section,
and Figure 3 an end elevation, partly in vertical section.
Our said Invention consists simply in the introduction of a hanging
bridge A in the furnace or space B in which the fuel is burned; this hanging
bridge being employed to separate or keep back the green or fresh fuel from
the incandescent fuel, and to cause the air which supplies the combustion to
pass downwards through the fuel on its way to the hotter part of the furnace.
This hanging bridge A is a modification in the form of the roof C, and the
furnace builder will have no difficulty in making it when constructing the
lining and roof of fire-brick in the ordinary way. The fuel is introduced into
the space D at the outer side of the hanging bridge A, either through a
hopper E in the roof, as shown, or through a door in the side or end, and it is
gradually raked forward under the hanging bridge as its consumption proceeds.
The hopper E is provided with a sliding door or damper G, which can be
closed, or partially closed, to stop or regulate the ingress of air, as may be
required. The damper is formed with a rack H, with which there gears a
pinion on a shaft I, having a handwheel J on one end. The fuel is raked
forward by means of a bar or rod introduced at an opening in the side, and
indicated by dotted lines. at K. The bottom of the furnace B may be close,

page_text: but we prefer to make it with fire-bars L, as usual, the fire-bars being placed
as close together as possible; and the ash-pit M is made close all round, and
with doors N at the back, which are closed in order to reduce the inlet of air
through the fire-bars to a minimum. We find it advantageous to place a few
fire-bars crossways at the inner end of the furnace B, as shown at P, and we
provide a small door Q, indicated by dotted lines in Figure 2, in the side for
access to clean or remove these bars. The introduction of these cross bars P
at the inner end of the furnace renders it unnecessary to remove the main
bars L so frequently as in ordinary furnaces, and there is thereby prevented a
great portion of the waste of fuel which ordinarily arises from having to
partly empty the furnace when the bars require removal.
is
With the arrangements herein-before described a very intense and complete
combustion is obtained, and as it is got with a diminished supply of air there
very much less tendency to oxidise the iron, hence its improved quality and
the diminished waste. Our improvement is obviously applicable to most kinds
of furnaces, and with similar results as regards efficiency, economy of fuel, and
prevention of smoke.
Having thus particularly described our said Invention, and the manner in
which the same is to be performed, we have to state that we do not restrict
ourselves to the precise details herein described or delineated, but that what
we believe to be novel and original, and claim as the Invention secured to us
by the herein-before in part recited Letters Patent is, the constructing of a
furnace with a hanging bridge arranged to hold back the fresh fuel from the
incandescent fuel, and to cause the air for combustion, or some of it, to pass
down through the fresh fuel, substantially as herein-before described.
In witness whereof, we, the said Robert Cassels and Thomas Morton,
have hereunto set our hands and seals, this Twenty-seventh day of
April, in the year of our Lord One thousand eight hundred and
sixty-six.
Witness,
EDMUND HUNT,
Patent Agent,
Glasgow.
ROBT. CASSELS.
(L.S.)
THOMAS MORTON. (L.S.)