Improvements in the Purification of Illuminating or Heating Gases.
Year: 1890

page_text: COMPLETE SPECIFICATION.
Improvements in the Purification of Illuminating or Heating
Gases.
I, WALLACE CORODON ANDREWs, of 2 Cortlandt Street, City, County and State
of New York, United States of America, Gentleman, 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 the purification of illuminating and heating gas.
Heretofore in the purification of gas, the gas las either been led over solid purifying
material lying quiescent in a compact body, or has been passed through such. In
the former case the purifying material soon becomes coated superficially by a product
or by products absolutely inert so far as purification is concerned formed with the
purifying material by a substance or by substances chemically separated from the
crude gas, and soon hecomes fouled superficially by deposits therefrom; while in
the latter case the purifying material soon becomes coated and fouled internally by
the same means the gas making channels and these channels becoming lined with the
inert product or products and with the deposits. In either case perfect purification
soon ceases allowing much of the impurities of the gas to pass on, and in both cases
the great bulk of the purifying material employed is kopt from operation. The only
remedy has been at necessity of stoppage of the current of gas or deflection of the
same to another purifier and at great expenditure of labor and loss of time, either
frequently to supply new purifying material or to turn or stir up the old to present
new surfaces. The gas has also been passed through a shower of lime water; but
wet purifiers are troublesome and the gas has subsequently to be dried.
The objects of the present invention are to overcome these difficulties to make the
operation continuous, and thoroughly and directly to purify gas in a simple, practical,
efficient and comparatively inexpensive manner.
With these objects in view the invention resides in the process of purifying gas
which consists in passing the gas in contact with and through solid purifying material,
in a state of agitation or through a shower or stream of purifying material in a finely-
divided condition whoreby the active surface of the purifying material is greatly
increased the entire body of purifying material present at any one time is offered for
action upon the gas and new surfaces are constantly presented; furthermore the
invention resides in the process of purifying gas which consists in passing the gas
through a body of purifying material alternately in a state of rest and under
agitation; and finally the invention resides in a process of purifying gas which
consists in passing the gas through successive layers of purifying material and
moving the layers progressively against the gas discharging the last layer as spent
and re-supplying fresh material at will.
It is obvious that my invention may be carried into effect in many different ways
and I do not wish to be understood as being confined to any specific form of embodi-
ment in this application; but in the accompanying drawings I show a form of apparatus
which will serve tofillustrate the operation of the invention.
In the accompanying drawings;-
Fig. 1 is a side elevation of a gas purifying apparatus capable of carrying my
invention into effect with a portion of the side broken away to show some of the
interior parts; Fig. 2 is a plan view of the apparatus with the top removed; and
Fig. 3 is a perspective view of one of the details of construction.
In the exercise of my invention lime or other suitable purifying material may be
agitated or caused to move vertically, horizontally, or in any other direction, in a
closed compartment through which gas to be purified is passed; the purifying
material may move in the compartment in one or more streams or showers, either

page_text: simultaneously or in sequence or may be agitated in bulk and the agitation and
showering may be simultaneous. In the illustration which I give in the accompanying
drawings the purifying material is placed in several separate layers in with a casing
and all the layers inay be caused gradually to fall simultaneously or one or the other
may be caused to take a lower position the falling being effected by the construction
of the support upon which the layer rests and by agitation.
In these drawings A designates a casing the bottom of which is formed with
hoppers B B closol by a valve a. At each end of the casing and within the same, aro
rigilly attached rows of slats or arms C placed in tiers, the tiers being of suitable
distance apart and across the casing are rows of horizontal shafts D D projecting
from the side of the casing through suitable stuffing-boxes, likewise placed in tiers
and nearly in horizontal plane respectively with the rows of rigid arms C and being
each provided with a crank of any suitable size say about one foot in length. Euch
shaft D is provided with a series of transverse eyes, apertured lugs, or loops d and in
those eyes are held series of movable arms, slats or cross-pieces Di D' of hard wood,
metal or other suitable material preferably enlarged at the centre and there held by
being driven into the eye. The shafts D'are provided with cranks or other devices E
and to the cranks of ench row of shafts are attachel rods F which may have levers F
for operating them. It will be clear that as one of these rods F is moved by its lovor
all the shafts of that particular row will be rocked and as the shafts are rocked the
movable arms will be oscillated. Each row of shafts may be rocked separately or
their rods may be so connected as to rock two or more of them simultaneously.
When movable arms or cross-pieces D₁ are in a horizontal positior they are in the
same horizontal plane with the fixed arm and the outer portions of the arms of the
outer shafts form with the fixed arms and the inner portions of the arms of the outer
shafts form with the outer portions of the arms of the adjoining shafts and so on
mutually in each row a grating or open platform to support a layer of purifying
material. The gas inlet pipo is designated by the lotter G; while the gas-outlet pipe
is designated by the letter H. The gas-outlet pipe is of course beyond the first layer
of purifying material.
I indicates a removable cover.
It is preferred to have the horizontal shafts in each row about two and a half foot
apart and to have the movable arms slightly less than five feet in length with about
an inch and a half space between adjoining strips.
The operation is as follows
Gas entering the lower part of the casing passes upward through the lower layer of
purifying material and so on to the outlet. Either continually or when the passing
gas is recognized by suitably situated pet-cocks, to bo wanting in requisite purity,
one, more or all of the rows of shafts will be rocked and the purifying material will
be agitated and fall in a shower or stream to trap the appropriate impurities of the
gas. Fresh purifying material is supplied from the top as desired and thus successive
layers are fed forward. It will be obvious that the lowest layer of purifying material
will first become inert and foul since this layor is first met by the crude gas and is
supplied from the other layers all of which have exorted a purifying effect. Con-
sequently this layer will be dumped into the hoppers and thence may be removed at
convenience.
Should it be desired to leave the purifying material quiescent during the passage
of the gas the bottom layer of purifying material will be discharged into the hoppers
when it becomes saturated with impurities, tho shafts D D being rocked or shaken for
that purpose; but the bottom layer inay first be disposed of and then the shafts of all
the other layers being rocked each layer of purifying material will be lowered and
this done a fresh layer of material will bo supplied at the top.
By this construction a great saving of labor is effected and a much larger quantity
of gas than usual can be purified in proportion to the ground space occupied since
not only is a great quantity of material immediately presonted in active form but as
the tiers of purifying material may be in any number and-be successively discharged
a purifier may be of great height thus taking the place of my separate purifiers.

page_text: Having now particularly described and ascertained the nature of my said inven-
tion and in what manner the same is to be performed, I declare that what I
claim is :-
1. The process of purifying gus which consists in passing the gas upwardly
through a body of solid purifying material the purifying material being alternately
at rest and moving in a shower progressively downward during the passage of the gas
substantially as described.
2. The process of purifying gas which consists in passing the gas upwardly
through successive layers of solid purifying material and moving the layers of solid
purifying material and moving the layers in a shower progressively against the gas
discharging the last layer as spent and re-supplying fresh material at will substantially
as described.
1000
W. P. THOMPSON & BOULT,
Agents for the Applicant.