IMPROVEMENTS IN APPARATUS EMPLOYED IN THE MANUFACTURE OF SALT
Year: 1873

page_text: LETTERS PATENT to Thomas Bright Wilson, of Manchester, in the
.
County of Lancaster, for the Invention of “IMPROVEMENTS IN APPARATUS
EMPLOYED IN THE MANUFACTURE OF SALT."
Scaled the 29th April 1878, and dated the 11th March 1878.
PROVISIONAL SPECIFICATION left by the said Thomas Bright Wilson
_ at the Office of the Commissioners of Patents, with his Petition, on
the 11th March 1873.
I, THOMAS BRIGHT WILSON, of Manchester, in the County of Lancaster,
do hereby declare the nature of the said Invention for "IMPROVEMENTS
IN APPARATUS EMPLOYED IN THE MANUFACTURE OF SALT," to be as follows:-
In my improved arrangement the heat necessary for evaporating the
brine water is obtained from the combustion of fuel in a separate furnaco
and chamber, from which chamber the heated products of combustion,
are forced by a steam jet under one or more evaporating pans containing
brine. The heat is imparted to the brino, and the cooled gases aro
allowed to escape into the air by a short pipe regulated by a valve or
damper, the necessity for a tall chimney being dispensod with.

page_text: I construct a furnace or fire-box fitted with air dampers, fire-door, and
fire-bars, and I place a double coned or straight pipe or flue so as to
communicate between this firc-box and a combustion chamber lined with
fire-brick or other refractory material, and I connect the combustion
chamber by an opening or fluc supplied with a damper to the space
under the pans to be boiled. A steam nozzle is placed in the double
coned or straight flue above mentioned, and supplied with steam by pipes
from a boiler which may be placed on the fire-box, and the steam may
be superheated by an arrangement of pipes in the fire-box. The jet of
steam is regulated by a cock between the boiler and the nozzle. The
double coned flue has its wide end opening into the fire-box, is contracted
to a small diameter a little distance therefrom, and expands again out-
ward into the combustion chamber, and in the said flue I arrango pipes
regulated by dampers or cocks for the admission of air to the combustion
chamber.
SPECIFICATION in pursuance of the conditions of the Letters Patent,
filed by the said Thomas Bright Wilson in the Great Scal Patent
Office on the 11th September 1878.
TO ALL TO WHOM THESE PRESENTS SHALL COME, I, THOMAS
BRIGHT WILSON, of Manchester, in the County of Lancaster, send
greeting.
WHEREAS Her most Excellent Majesty Queen Victoria, by Her
Letters Patent, bearing dato the Eleventh day of March, in the year
of our Lord One thousand eight hundred and seventy-three, in the
thirty-sixth year of Her reign, did, for Herself, Her heirs and successors
give and grant unto me, the said Thomas Bright Wilson, Her special
license that I, the said Thomas Bright Wilson, my executors, adminis-
trators, and assigns, or such others as I, the said Thomas Bright Wilson,
my executors, administrators, and assigns, should at any time agree with,
and no others, from time to time and at all times thereafter during the
term therein expressed, should and lawfully might make, use, exercise,
and vend, within the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland,
tho Channel Islands, and Isle of Man, an Invention for "IMPROVEMENTS
IN APPARATUS EMPLOYED IN THE MANUFACTURE OF SALT," upon the condition
(amongst others) that I, tho said Thomas Bright Wilson, my exccutors

page_text: or administrators, by an instrument in writing under my, or their, or
one of their hands and scals, should particularly describe and ascertain
the nature of the said Invention, 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 montlis next and immediately after the date
of the said Letters Patent.
NOW KNOW YE, that I, the said Thomas Bright Wilson, do hereby
declaro the nature of the said Invention, and in what manner the same
is to be performed, to be particularly described and ascertained in and
by the following statement and accompanying Drawings (that is to
say):-
In my improved arrangement the heat necessary for evaporating the
brino water is obtained from the combustion of fuel in a separato furnaco
and chamber, from which chanber the heated products of combustion
are forced by a steam jet under one or more evaporating pans containing
brino. The heat is imparted to the brine and the cooled gases aro
allowed to escape into the air by a short pipe or chimney regulated by
a valvo or damper, the necessity for a tall chimney being dispensed
with.
I construct a furnace or fire-box fitted with air dampers, fire-door, and
fire-bars, and I place a double coned or straight or other pipe or fluo so
as to communicate between this fire-box and a combustion chamber
lined with fire-brick or other refractory material, and I connect the
combustion chamber by an opening or fluo supplied with a damper to
the spaco under the pans to be boiled. A steam nozzle is placed in tho
double coned or other flue above mentioned, and supplied with steam by
pipes from a boiler, which may be placed on the fire-box, and tho steam
may be superlicated by an arrangement of pipes in the fire-box. The
jet of steam is regulated by a cock between the boiler and the nozzle.
The double coned flue has its wido end opening into the fire-box, is
contracted to a small diameter a little distanco therefrom, and expands
again outward into the combustion chamber, and in the said flue I
arrange pipes regulated by dampers or cocks for the admission of air to
the combustion chamber if required.
Such being the nature and object of my said Invention I will now
proceed to describe more in detail tho manner in which the same is to
bo or may be performed or carried into practical effect; and in order

page_text: that the same may be clearly understood I have annexed hereunto a
Sheet of Drawings illustrative thereof, and have marked the same
with figures and letters of reference corresponding with those in the
following explanation thereof.
Fig. 1 is a longitudinal section of the apparatus taken vertically
through about the line 1-2 in Fig. 2. Fig. 2 is a front view of the
feeding end of the same.
Fig. 3 is a horizontal scction taken through the line 3-4 in Fig. 1,
and Fig. 4 is a transverse vertical section through about the line 5-6.
Similar letters of reference denote the same parts in all the Figures.
The boiler A, which is in this case placed above the furnace, is supplied
with water by an injector or pump, and is fitted with steam and water
gauges, scum cock, fusible plug, and safety valve, the steam from which
latter may
be utilized under the salt pan B by means of the pipe C.
Steam is taken from the boiler by the pipe D (regulated by the cock E),
and passes the furnace, where it becomes superheated to the nozzle F,
whence it escapes in a jet into the coned pipe G made of fire-clay,
causing a keen draught and forcing the products of combustion under
the pan B. The aperture of the nozzlo F is varied according to the size
of the furnace and the pressure of steam.
I find that a nozzle % of an inch diameter supplied with steam at a
pressure of twenty pounds to the square inch will cause a vivid com-
bustion in a furnace with a grate four feet square. The fire-clay coned
pipo G may be horizontal or inclined, as shown, so as to direct the hot
gases against the bottom of the evaporating pan B. H, H, is the com-
bustion chamber lined with fire-brick. This chamber has an arched roof
and leads by a truncated cone O to the flue G. I, I, are mixing
partitions made of fire-brick, with openings as shown. J, J, is the
furnace, cased with four cast-iron plates and lined with fire-brick. ´A
fire-brick arch K, K, is built across the furnace, and arched slits or
openings L and M are left in the lining of the furnace above and below
the arch for the passage of the smoke and gases to the combustion
chamber. P, P, is a hopper made of iron plates fastened by a bracket R, R,
to the front plate of the furnace. Q. Q, is a strong iron door turning in
bearing brackets 8, 8, (Fig. 2) for retaining the coal or fuel in the hopper
when closed and for admitting the same to the furnace when open. This
- door is made strong and worked by a powerful lever T, T, fixed at one

page_text: end of the axis of the door in order to crush any lumps of coal or fuel
that might provent it from closing. U and V are doors for arranging
the fire and clearing the grate from clinker. Small apertures W, W,
(Figs. 2 and 3) closed by iron blocks are left for convenience of clearing
out the corners of the grate. The larger fire-bars X, X, are removable
for the same purpose. When this is done the steam is shut off by the
cock E, E, and the chimnoy damper is closed to prevent the admission
of cold air under the pan.
.
Fig. 5 shows a vertical section of the furnace applied underneath the
evaporating pan when steam is supplied to soveral furnaces by a soparato
boiler. The steam from the boiler passes along the main pipo Y (shown
in section, and is brought through the furnace by the branch pipe Z, Z,
so as to superheat it on its passage to the nozzle F. An arch may be
thrown over the furnace in place of the boiler shown in Fig. 1, and the
ash-pit is entered from the front instead of at the side.
In working my improved arrangement I prefer to feed the furnace
with fuel through a hopper P, as shown in the Drawings. The fuel falls
in a heap on the fire lying on the bars much thicker at the charging end
than at the front. The moro volatile gases and smoko riso quickly from
the fresh fuel at the top of the heap and pass over the arch K through
the opening L into the combustion chamber. Horo they are met by tho
current from the thin part of the fire which passes through the opening M
under the arch K. The thin part of the fire allowing more air to pass
through than is sufficient to burn the carbon into carbonic acid gas,
this heated air mixes with the unconsumed smoke and gases of tho
upper current in the intensely heated combustion chamber and mixing
partitions; the smoke and gases ignite and become consumed.
When the more volatile gases from the fresh fuel aro driven off the
upper coal is pushed forward on to the thin part of the fire, and a fresh
charge introduced through the hopper P. The quantity of fuel burned
in a given time can be regulated by the steam jet F, and in this manner
the brine can be kept at any required temperature. From the combus-
tion chamber H, II, the gasos pass to the jet F, and are forced by the
steam under the pans B, B; a pressure greater than that of the atmo-
sphere is obtained, thus allowing no cold air to be drawn through
crevices in the supporting brickwork. The steam assists in heating the
pan, and arrangements are made for taking the condensed water away.
•

page_text: The gases may be passed under one or more pans until cooled down,
when they are allowed to escape into the atmosphere through a short
pipe or chimney, the chimney being used to convey them the height
necessary for their diffusion into the atmosphere, and not for the purposes
of draught.
"
This Invention is also equally applicable to brick pans having a metal
tube passing through the brine, in which case the fire-clay coned pipe G
is connected to one end of the metal pipe.
Having now described the nature and object of my said Invention,
together with the manner in which the same is to be or may be per-
formed or carried into practical effect, I wish it to be understood that I
claim as my Invention the combination of the furnace, combustion
chamber, and double coned or other flue, with the steam jet for forcing
the combustion, all substantially as herein-before described and repre-
sented by the Drawings annexed.
In witness whereof, I, tho said Thomas Bright Wilson, have here-
unto set my hand and seal, this Eighth day of September, in
the year of our Lord One thousand eight hundred and seventy-
Witnessed by,
GEORGE DAVIES, C. E.,
Patent Agent,
Manchester.
THOMAS BRIGHT WILSON. (L.S.)