IMPROVEMENTS IN THE MANUFACTURE OF GAS
Year: 1884

page_text: CUTIE LELE
DEVICATION.
I ARTHUR WILLIAM LOVELL REDDIE of the Office for Patents, 6 Bream's
Buildings, Chancery Lane in the County of Middlesex, Patent Agent do hereby
declare the nature of my invention for "IMPROVEMENTS IN THE MANUFACTURE
OF GAS," and in what manner the same is to be performed, to be particularly
described and ascertained in and by the following statement :—
Spent bone-black which has been employed in filtering vaseline, lubricating oils
and other hydrocarbon products, rotains a considerable quantity of oil or hydro-
carbon matter, the quantity varying from ten to thirty per cent of the weight of
the oil or product filtered according to the care with which the bone black is
drained.
The oil or hydro-carbon matter retained by the bone-black has heretofore either
been burned up and thus destroyed and lost in the process of revivifying spent
bono-black, or has been recovered in the form of oil by distillation.
The object of my invention is to utilize the oil or hydro-carbon matter contained
in the bone-black in the manufacture of gas, and when my invention is carried out
with bone-black which has been used for filtering, the bone-black will be revivified
by the heat to which it is subjected to convert the contained oil into gas; while,
when the invention is carried into effect with bone-black which has been a second
time used for filtering, the removal of the hydro-carbon matter enhances the value
of the spent-bone black, and it will find a more ready sale.
My invention consists in an improvement in the manufacture of gas by subjecting
bone-black charged with oil or hydro-carbon matter to a heat sufficient to vaporize
the hydrocarbon matter and convert it into a permanent gas.
The invention also consists in an improvement in the art of manufacturing gas,
consisting in moving or conveying bone black charged with oily or hydro-carbon
matter through a heated retort from a point of entrance to a point of delivery,
and in taking off between said two points the permanent gas evolved from the
bone-black.
Fig: 1 is a vertical section of an apparatus for the purpose above described.
Fig: 2 is a horizontal section thereof on the dotted line a Fig: 1 and
Fig: 3 is a vertical section of an apparatus of modified form, also for carrying
out my invention.

page_text: Similar letters of reference designate corresponding parts in the several Figures.
Referring first to Figs: 1 and 2, A designates a retort which is enclosed within
a heating chamber B. As here shown the heating chamber B is formed of
brickwork a having a fire brick or fire clay lining b, and the retort as well as the
lining b may be made of tiles or slabs of fire clay or other refractory material, or
the lining may be thus constituted and the retort itself made of metal. When
made of tiles or slabs of refractory material the tiles or slabs may be formed with
tongues and grooves provided for fitting them together so as to produce close joints,
as is well known in structures of this class.
As here shewn the retort A and its surrounding chamber B are rectangular in
transverse section, but they may be of other form if desired.
C designates a furnace having the usual fire and ash pit doors o d, and grate
bars e, and froin this furnace the heated products of combustion pass into the lower
part of the heating chamber B, and rise therein around the retort A, the smoke
finally escaping at f on the side of the heating chamber opposite the inlet.
At the top of the retort is an inlet for bone-black surmounted by a hopper D in
which is arranged a feeding cylinder E which may be rotated and which is provided
with ribs which carry the wet oily mass of bone black downwards and into the
retort continuously and uniformly. The bone black falls upon the upper of a
series of shelves or plane surfaces g which are inclined in opposite directions
alternately, and may be built into the retort or removably supported upon
projections h¹ at the sides of the retort, the shelves in the latter case being
provided with downward projections * which come behind the projections ¹ and
prevent the inclined shelves from sliding off their supports.
At the bottom of the retort is an outlet i for the bone black, and F is a cooler
into which it is delivered and from the lower and cooler portion of which the bone
black is delivered.
The feed of bone black into the upper part of the retort, and the withdrawal of
the bone black from the cooler, after a considerable quantity has been deposited
therein may be uniform and the operation will then be continuous.
From the upper part of the retort A extends a gas outlet j, and as the bone black
runs down and falls from shelf to shelf it becomes more limpid and any oil or
hydrocarbon contained in it is evolved in the form of a permanent gas and escapes
through the pipe j. No purifying is needed because of the action of the bone black
upon the oil before it is evolved into gas.
The running of the bone black down each shelf, and its fall from one shelf to
another affords ample opportunity for the free escape of the permanent gas therefrom,
and it may be conducted direct to the gas holder.
The apparatus shown in Fig: 3 comprises a heating chamber B formed by
brickwork a, and a fire brick lining b, and within which is arranged the retort A¹
consisting as here shown of a spiral trunk or worin supplied with bone black at
the upper end by a hopper D and rotary feeder E, and having its lower end
continued to a sufficient distance to deliver the contents in a cool state.
The bone black passing downward through the retort is subjected to great heat
from a furnace C, c, d, e, and the waste products of combustion pass away through
an oultet or escape f at the side of the chamber B opposite the inlet from the
furnace.
The gas evolved from the bone black in its downward passage passes away
through the pipe to the gas holder, not here shown.
If desired other pipes like, j may lead from different convolutions of the helical
or spiral retort A¹, and so take the gas off more freely.
I am aware it is not new to employ bone black as a filtering material for hydro-
carbon matter or oils, and to recover the hydrocarbon matter remaining in the
bone black by subjecting the bone black to a process of distillation whereby the
hydrocarbon matter will be recovered in the form of oil. Such process I do not
claim as of my invention,

page_text: In carrying out my invention I subject the bone black to a heat sufficient not
only to vaporize the hydro-carbon matter but also to fix the vapors and convert
them into a permanent gas which may be used without further "fixing" for
illuminating purposes, and
Having now particularly described and ascertained the nature of my said
Invention and in what manner the same is to be performed I declare that what
I claim is:-
1 The improvement in the art of manufacturing gas consisting in subjecting
bone-black charged with oil or hydro-carbon matter to a heat sufficient to vaporize
the hydro-carbon matter and convert it into a permanent gas substantially as
herein described.
2nd The improvement in the art of manufacturing gas, consisting in moving or
conveying bone-black charged with oily or hydro-carbon matter through a heated
retort from a point of entrance to a point of delivery, and in taking off between
said two points the permanent gas evolved from the bone black substantially as
herein described.