Improvements in or relating to Retorts for the Distillation of Shale and other Bituminous Substances, or for the Caloining of Ironstone, Lime, or other Substances, also applicable to Gas Producers.
Year: 1895

page_text: Date of Application, 6th Apr., 1895-Accepted, 24th May, 1895
COMPLETE SPECIFICATION.
Improvements in or relating to Retorts for the Distillation of Shale
and other Bituminous Substances, or for the Caloining of Ironstone,
Lime, or other Substances, also applicable to Gas Producers.
We, JAMES BRYSON, of Pumpherston Oil Works, Pumpherston, in the County
of Midlothian, Engineer, JAMES JONES of Dalmeny Oil Works, Dalmeny, in
the County of Linlithgow, Managing Director, and WILLIAM FRASER, of
24 St. Vincent Place, Glasgow, in the County of Lanark, Managing Director of
The Pumpherston Oil Co. Ltd. all in Scotland, 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 to improvements in, or relating to, retorts for the distilla-
tion of shale and other materials; or for the calcining of ironstone, or other
substances; said improvements being also applicable to gas producers and the like,
and forms modifications of as well as additions to the invention described in the
Complete Specification of our former application for Letters Patent No. 8371 of
27th April 1894.
The principal object of our present invention is to so arrange the parts of the
retorts, whereby we are enabled to provide a retort which after being heated and
started requires practically no fuel to keep it going owing to the great amount of
heat generated in the retort by means of the effectual decomposition of the carbon
contained in the waste material by means of one or more jets of steam (which may
be superheated) being passed into the retort as near the outlet or discharge door of
the retort as possible, thus utilizing all, or nearly all, the heat contained in the
waste material within the retort, thus saving labour, time and expense, as well as
wear and tear of the retort.
But in order that our said invention may be more readily understood and easily
carried into effect, we will proceed to describe the same with reference to the
accompanying drawings.
Figure 1 is a part sectional elevation, Figure 2 a part sectional end elevation and
Figure 3 a part sectional plan of a double bench of retorts (though only one is
shewn) for distilling shale showing one form of our improvements.
and
Figures 4, 5, and 6 are similar views showing another form of our improvements,
Figure 7 is a sectional elevation of a gas producer having our improvements
attached.
Referring to the said drawings which illustrate retorts used for the distillation of
shale, we may construct the retorts A, A' as circular or rectangular retorts having
their lower ends a formed as a taper, or diminished in diameter, so as to facilitate
the downward passage of the material being treated. To ensure of the said
downward passage of the material within the retort, we provide means whereby
the material within the retort is kept intermittently, continuously, or nearly so, in a
state of agitation or downward movement; that is to say, when applied to
rectangular retorts we mount at the lower end of the retort A, Figures 1, 2 and 3,
a table B having a raised up or sloping portion C, in such a manner, as to support
the material within the retort A. The said table B has mounted above it below
the raised portion C two suitably shaped scrapers or push plates D capable of
being moved to and fro by means of the T shaped lever E, which is in turn

page_text: actuated by the reciprocating rods or links F. The scrapers or push plates D are
so formed, or shaped as shown, that on being reciprocated to and fro a certain
amount, of the material resting upon the table B and raised portion C is swept
over the sides of the table B into the hopper or outlet chamber G mounted
underneath.
Or as is shewn in retort A'; Figures 4. 5 and 6, we may employ a flat table H
having a single reciprocating scraper or push plate J mounted above it as shewn,
and actuated in a similar or like manner to the double push plates in retort A.
It will thus be seen, that, by the use of the foregoing, arrangements of supporting
table and push plate or plates, the material within the retort will be kept in a state
of, agitation.and the waste material will be intermittently, continuously; or nearly
so, transferred from the retort into the hopper or outlet chamber before it becomes
fluxed or dandered, and it will be seen from the drawings. that the steam pipe or
pipes Kfor-emitting the jet or jets of superheated or other steam into the retort
is,, or are so arranged as to enable the steam to pass up-and-around- the edges of
the supporting table or plate and thence. up the retort so as to effectually decompose
the carbon in waste material during its upward progress, and so generate sufficient,
or nearly sufficient, beat as to enable the use of fuel to be dispensed with after the
retort has been heated and started.
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In applying our present invention to gas producers and the: like, we prefer to
employ the arrangement shewn in Figure 7 of the drawings, in which L is the
producer, B the circular table, C the revolving arm or scraper, F the ratchet and
pawl driving arrangement, all as described in our "former application already
referred to, and E-is the hopper and M the steam pipe; though we may employ
any of the other modifications of the table and scraper or pusher hereinbefore or
formerly described; the whole thus forming a gas producer in which the tendency
of the material to flux or dander is prevented and in which the ashes and clinker
are intermittently, continuously, or nearly so, removed and discharged without
interfering with the production of gas in the producer.
It will be noticed from the drawings that the supporting tables are formed with
one or more slots, holes or openings, so as to enable a push or stirring rod being
used when desired
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now particularly described and ascertained the nature of our said inven-
tion, and in what manner the same is to be performed, we declare that what we
claim is
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1st. In retorts for the distillation of shale and other bituminous substances, or
for the calcining of ironstone, lime or other substances, forming the retorts with a
tapered or contracted lower end having an outlet hopper with supporting table and
movable scraper or push plate or plates, with the steam -pipe arranged below such
table, whereby a retort is produced in which the material within it is. prevented
fromifluxing or dandering during the treatment; said arrangement also enabling
all or nearly all of the carbon contained in the waste or partly treated material to
be decomposed for utilization in heating the retort, and so practically dispensing
with the use of other fuel, substantially.as hereinbefore described and shown in
the accompanying drawings.
2nd. The arrangement and construction of the hopper G supporting table, B,
reciprocating scrapers or push plates D, and their connections, whereby the material
or substance being treated in the retort.is intermittently, or continuously or nearly
80, discharged from the retort, substantially as herein before described and shown in
Figures 1, 2 and 3 of the'accompanying drawings.
3rd. The modification of the foregoing, consisting of the flat table H with
reciprocating scraper or push plate J, and their connections, substantially as
hereinbefore described and shewn in Figures 4, 5 and 6 of the drawings:
4th: In gas producers and the like, providing a supporting table and inoveable
scraper; whereby the material being treated, is kept in agitation and so prevented

page_text: from fluxing or dandering in the producer and the ashes and clinker removed and
discharged without interfering with the production of gas from the producer,
substantially as hereinbefore described and shown in Figure 7 of the drawings.
Dated this 5th day of April 1895.
JOHNSONS,
115, St. Vincent Street, Glasgow, Applicants' Agents.