Improvements in Valve Apparatus suitable for the Feed Water Mechanism of Steam Engines, and for other Purposes.
Year: 1893

page_text: Date of Application, 28th Oct., 1893
Complete Specification Left, 25th July, 1894-Accepted, 1st Sept., 1894
PROVISIONAL SPECIFICATION.
[Communicated from abroad by CHARLES CAMPBELL WORTHINGTON, of
Irvington, in the State of New York, United States of America,
Mechanical Engineer.]
Improvements in Valve Apparatus suitable for the Feed Water
Mechanism of Steam Engines, and for other Purposes.
I HENRY EDWARD NEWTON of The Office for Patents, 6 Bream's Buildings,
Chancery Lane in the County of London, Patent Agent, do hereby declare the
nature of this invention to be as follows:-
This invention relates more particularly to controlling the supply of steam,
either to the feed pump of a steam engine, or to the hot well for heating the feed
water, but the invention is also applicable for other purposes, in which the control
of fluids is required, and the nature of. such applications will be obvious from the
following description.
To this end, the invention consists in a special construction of cut-off apparatus,
by means of which the supply of steam to the feed pump can be automatically
controlled from the hot well, and the steam used for heating the water in the well
will be controlled by the water therein, so that the steam received will depend
upon the amount of water to be heated, means being also provided for cutting out
the automatic control, if desired.
In carrying out this invention with respect to feed pumps, the pump receives the
supply of water from the hot well through a suction pipe, or from an independent
supply through another suction pipe, and delivers to the boiler through a force pipe,
the suction pipes being controlled by throttles, so that either may be used. Steam
is supplied to the engine of the pump through a valve chest presently to be described,
and the exhaust steam from the pump is preferably conveyed to the hot well, to heat
the water in the hot well. The condensed steam from the condenser and air pump
of the engine, or from the radiator coils, enters the hot well, and cold water may
also be introduced through suitable pipes.
It is desirable that the exhaust steam from the pump entering the hot well,
should be finely divided, so as to mix more quickly and thoroughly with the water
in the hot well, and also to prevent concussion. For this purpose, the end of the
exhaust pipe enters a receiver within the hot well, the walls of which are finely
slotted or perforated, and the receiver is preferably filled with gravel, or other
suitable material, to aid in distributing the steam.
The automatic control valve device consists of a valve chest of such a
construction that the steam supply may be controlled automatically from the
inside of the hot well, tank, or reservoir, and by hand from the outside; this
valve chest being formed preferably of a plug screwed into the wall of the hot
well, tank, or reservoir which construction avoids all necessity for packing joints.
This plug is constructed outside the chest to receive the two pipes, and is provided
with a steam passage forming a direct connection between the pipes and with a
steam passage connecting therewith, and controlled by a single way valve or cock
which is connected to a float, so as to be controlled thereby in the usual manner,
the valve being closed as the supply in the hot well, tank, or reservoir, falls below,
or rises above, a certain point, and opened as the level of the water changes.
The passages are controlled by a two-way valve or cock actuated by a handle

page_text: outside the hot well, tank, or reservoir, and constructed so as to connect the two
pipes through one passage and valve in one of its three positions. The steam
supply to the hot well, tank, or reservoir, may be made dependent upon the
automatic control of valve and, float, or it may be made constant and independent
of this automatic control, or the steam supply cut off by turning the handle into
the proper one of its three positions.
The supply of steam for heating the water in the hot well is also controlled by
the float, so that as the water falls below a certain point, the heating steam is cut
off by the automatic valve.
It will be seen that the valve and float arrangement, provided with means for
cutting out the float so as to make the steam supply independent of the automatic
control or cut it off, is of general application in all cases in which it is desired to
control a steam supply automatically, and at the same time make the supply
constant, or cut it off independently of the automatic control, and that while the
pump is connected to and controlled from its tank or reservoir, so that the steam
supply is cut off as the water level in the tank changes. The same construction
of compound valve apparatus is applicable when the tank is a receiver for the
pump, in which case the supply may preferably be cut off as the water in the
receiver rises, and other applications of the invention are obvious.
The above described construction may be varied readily by those skilled in the art,
without departing from the invention, and it is not intended to limit the invention
to the exact form of any of the devices herein referred to.
Dated this 28th day of October 1893.
NEWTON & SON,
Agents for the Applicant.
COMPLETE SPECIFICATION.
Improvements in Valve Apparatus suitable for the Feed Water
Mechanism of Steam Engines, and for other Purposes.
I HENRY EDWARD NEWTON of The Office for Patents, 6 Bream's Buildings,
Chancery Lane in the County of London, Patent Agent, 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 :-
This invention relates more particularly to controlling the supply of steam,
either to the feed pump of a steam engine, or to the hot well for heating the feed
water, but the invention is also applicable for other purposes in which the control
of fluids is required, and the nature of such applications will be obvious from the
following description.
To this end, the invention consists in a special construction of cut-off apparatus
by means of which the supply of steam to the feed pump can be automatically
controlled from the hot well, and the steam used for heating the water in the well
will be controlled by the water therein, so that the steam received will depend
upon the amount of water to be heated, means being also provided for cutting out
the automatic control, if desired.
In the accompanying drawings the invention is shown as applied to a feed
pump for steam engines,
Fig. 1 being an end elevation of the hot well and pump;
Fig. 2 a plan view of the same; and
Fig. 3 a central longitudinal section of the hot well.
Figs. 4, 5, and 6, are detail cross sections of the valve construction, showing the
parts in different positions, and
Fig. 7 is a detail section of the valve construction on the line 7-7 of Fig. 4.
A is a hot well, tank, or receiver. B is the pump, receiving its supply from the

page_text: hot well A through suction pipe C, or from an independent supply through suction
pipe C, and delivering through force pipe D, the said suction pipes being
controlled by throttles 9, so that either may be used. Steam is supplied to the
pump through pipe E connecting through a valve chest presently to be described,
with steam supply pipe F, and the exhaust steam from pump B is preferably
conveyed to the hot well A by a pipe G, to heat the water in the hot well. The
condensed steam from the condenser and air pump of the engine, or from the
radiator coils, enters the hot well through pipe H, and cold water may be
introduced through pipe I.
J is the usual gauge on the outside of the hot well, and K a pipe for the escape
of air and steam.
It is desirable that the exhaust steam from pump B entering the hot well through
pipe G, should be finely divided, so as to mix more quickly and thoroughly with
the water in the hot well, and to prevent concussion, and for this purpose the end
of pipe G enters a receiver N within the hot well, the walls of which are finely
slotted or perforated, and the receiver N is preferably filled with gravel or other
suitable material, to aid in distributing the steam.
The automatic control valve device consists of a valve chest of such a con-
struction that the steam supply may be controlled automatically from the inside of
the hot well, and by hand from the outside, this chest being formed preferably, as
shewn, of a plug L screwed into the wall of the hot well, which construction avoids
all necessity for packing joints. This plug L is constructed outside the chest to
receive the two pipes E, F, and is provided with a steam passage forming a direct
connection between the pipes and with a steam passage 11 connecting therewith,
and controlled by a single-way valve or cock a, which is connected to a float M, so
as to be controlled thereby in the usual manner, the valve being closed as the
supply in the hot well falls below a certain point, and opened as the water rises.
The passages 10, 11, are controlled by a two-way valve or cock b, actuated by a
handle 12 outside the hot well, and constructed so as to connect the pipes E, F
through the passage 11 and valve a in one of its three positions, and either to form
a direct connection between the pipes through passage 10, or to cut off com-
munication between the pipes E, F by closing passage. 10 in its other positions.
Thus, the steam supply pipes E, F may be made dependent upon the automatic
control of valve a and float M, or the steam supply may be made constant, and
independent of this automatic control, or the steam supply cut off by turning the
handle 12 into the proper one of its three positions.
When
The positions of the handle 12 are shown in full and dotted lines in Figure 3,
and the corresponding positions of the valve in Figures 4, 5, and 6. When the
handle 12 is vertical, as shown in full lines in Figure 3, the valve b is in the
position shown in Figure 4, and the steam supply is controlled by valve a.
the handle is thrown a quarter way round into the horizontal position_shown in
dotted lines in Figure 3, the valve b is in the position shown in Figure 5, and the
steam supply is constant, and independent of the automatic control. With the
handle 12 thrown downward from the last position, as shown in the dotted lines in
Figure 3, valve 6 is in the position shown in Figure 6, and the steam is cut off. By
this simple construction, the steam supply for the pump may be controlled
automatically from the hot well, or when it is desired to run the pump B
independently of the hot well, the suction pipe C is closed, and pipe C¹ opened by
throttles 9, and the steam supply made independent of the float M, by turning the
single valve b, thus enabling the pump B to be readily thrown into commission for
a constant delivery, when desired.
It will be seen that the supply of steam for heating the water in the hot well is
controlled from the latter, so that as the water falls below a certain point, the
heating steam is cut off, by reason of the action of the automatic valve in cutting
off the supply of live steam to the steam pump B, and that the steam is never
admitted when the water is low in the hot well. By my construction also, in

page_text: which the steam for heating the water in the hot well is taken from the feed pump
delivering water from the hot well, a single float and valve controls both the action
of the pump and the admission of heating steam.
It will be understood that the special valve and float arrangement, provided
with means for cutting out the float, so as to make the steam supply independent of
the automatic control, or cut it off, is of general application in all cases in which it
is desired to control a steam supply automatically, and, at the same time, make the
supply constant, or cut it off independently of the automatic control, and that while
the pump has been shown as connected to, and controlled from its supply tank, sO
that the steam supply is cut off as the water in the tank falls, the same construction
is applicable when the tank is a receiver for the pump, in which case the supply
would be cut off as the water in the receiver rises, and other applications of the
invention are obvious. The construction shown may be varied readily by those
skilled in the art without departing from the invention, and it is not intended to
limit the invention to the exact form of any of the devices shown.
Having now particularly described and ascertained the nature of the said inven-
tion and in what manner the same is to be performed, as communicated to me from
abroad, I declare that what I claim is :-
1. The combination with a hot well, tank, or a receiver, a feed pump, and steam
supply pipe for said pump, of a valve apparatus constructed to control the supply
pipe automatically by a float in said tank, or be controlled by hand, to make the
steam supply constant, or cut it off, independently of said float, substantially as
described.
2. The combination with a hot well, tank, or receiver, a feed pump, and steam
supply pipe for said pump, of a pipe for conducting the exhaust steam from said
pump to the hot well for heating the feed water, a float in said hot well, and a
valve actuated by said float, to increase the steam supply, as the water in said
hot well rises, and diminish the steam supply as the water in said hot well falls,
substantially as described.
3. The combination with a hot well, tank, or receiver, and feed pump, of a pipe
through which the steam for heating the water in said hot well passes, a float
in said hot well, and a valve controlling said pipe, and actuated by said float, to
increase the amount of heating steam as the water in said hot well rises, and
diminish the amount of heating steam, as the water in said hot well falls,
substantially as described.
4. The combination with a hot well, tank, or receiver, and feed pump, of a pipe
through which the steam for heating the water in said hot well passes, a valve
controlling said pipe, and means for actuating said valve in accordance with the
level of the water in said hot well, and operating to increase the amount of heating
steam as the water in said hot well rises, and diminish the amount of heating steam,
as the water in said hot well falls, substantially as described.
5. The combination with a tank and pump connected therewith and a steam
supply pipe for said pump, of a valve controlling said pipe, and controlled by a
float in said tank, and a hand valve constructed to cut out the float-controlled
valve, and to open or close communication through the steam pipe, independently
of said valve, substantially as described.
6. The combination with tank A, of pipes E, F, and a valve chest connecting
said pipes, valve a controlled by float M in said tank, and controlling connection
between said pipes, and two-way hand valve b, constructed to connect pipes E, F,
through said valve a, or independently thereof, or to close communication between
said pipes, substantially as described.
7. The combination with tank A, of a valve chest consisting of plug L secured
in the wall of said tank, steam passages 10, 11, in said plug, valve a controlling
said passage 11, and controlled by Hoat M in said tank, and hand valve & controlling
passages 10, 11, substantially as described.

page_text: 8. A valve chest consisting of a plug provided with passages 10, 11, and adapted
to receive the pipes to be connected, and having valve a and two-way valve b
controlling said passages, substantially as described.
Dated this 24th dex of July 1894.
NEWTON & SON,
Agents for the Applicant.