Year: 1887

page_text: Date of Application, 29th Mar., 1887.
Specification Accepted, 6th May, 1887.
We, ALPHRANZO ANDERSON HARWOOD of Scottdale in the county of Westmoreland
and State of Pennsylvania, Machinist, and MELISSA DIANA VAN TASSEL. of Pittsburgh
Allegheny County State of Pennsylvania, Dressmaker 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:-
The object of our invention is to provide a new and improved apparatus for
generating gas by mixing hot air, oil, and superheated steam.
The invention consists in the peculiar construction and arrangement of parts, as will
he hereinafter fully described, and pointed out in the claims.
Reference is to be had to the accompanying drawing, forming a part of this
specification, in which the figure represents a vertical cross-section of our
improvement.
.
The furnace A, of suitable construction, is provided with the usual fire-place, B, and
the boiler C. A retort, D, is situated in the fire-place B, above the grate-bars E, and
is attached at the ends to the hollow shafts F and F¹, respectively, which shafts have
their bearings in the side walls, A', of the furnace A. The hollow shaft F is provided
on the outside of the furnace A with the pulley G, by means of which the retort is
rotated. The stationary pipe H passes through the shafts F and F, and through the
retori D, and is provided on the part in the retort with the curved branch pipes I and
the intermediate deflecting and retarding plates or disks, J. The apertured H¹are
formed in the periphery of the pipe H, near one end of the retort D, and a partition, H²,
is placed. into the pipe H, near the apertures H'.
To one outer end of the stationary pipe H is secured a head, L, into the upper end
of which leads the pipe M, coiled in the walls of the furnace, passing through the
air-space in the furnace, and connecting with the dome of the boiler C, so that the
steam from the boiler C, passing through the pipe M, is superheated when it reaches
the head L.
The pipe N enters the head L on the side opposite to that on which the pipe M
enters said head, and is connected with the pump O, which forces a continuous stream
of oil into the pipe N and into the head L.

page_text: The pipe is connected with the centre of the head L, and is coiled around the
fire-place in the side walls of the furnace A, and it connects at its other end with a
fan or air-compressor, Q, which forces a constant stream of air (which is heated by its
passage around the fire-place of the furnace) into the head L.
It will be seen that the superheated steam, the hot air, and the oil, pass at the same
time into the head L, and are forced into the pipe H, which discharges into the
revolving and heated retort D.
•
The steam, air, and oil are thoroughly mixed in the revolving retort D, and the
generated gas passes through the opening H into the pipe H, and out of the same at
its outer end.
The gas generated by this method can be used for various purposes.
We are aware that it is old to generate gas from an admixture of a hydrocarbon,
steam, and heated air, and we are also aware that a revolving retort is old, and we
therefore do not claim such inventions. In our apparatus we employ a retort which
revolves around a stationary pipe provided with radial pipes extending to within a
short distance of the inner surface of the retort, and with deflecting and retarding
plates or dises between the radial pipes, whereby the steam, air, and oil will be
thoroughly mixed and heated. By our construction, also, the mixture of steam, air,
and oil being delivered into the retort through the radial pipes against the inner
surface of the same, it is greatly protected from the heat, and consequently will last
much longer.
Having now particularly described and ascertained the nature of our said invention,
and in what manner the same is to be performed, we declare that what we claim is :-
1. In an apparatus for generating gas, the combination, with a furnace, a retort
journalled in the same, and means for revolving the retort, of a pipe for conducting
steam, air, and oil in the retort, extending through the said retort, and provided with
radial pipes, and intermediate deflecting and retarding plates or discs, substantially
as herein shown and described.
2. In an apparatus for generating gas, the combination, with a furnace, a retort
journaled in the same, and means for revolving the retort, of a pipe for conducting
steam, air, and oil into the retort, extending through the said retort, and provided
with radial pipes, intermediate deflecting and retarding plates or discs, a partition
at one end of the retort, substantially as herein shown and described.
3. In an apparatus for generating gas, the combination of a furnace, à retort
journalled in the same, means for revolving the retort, a pipe extending through the
retort and provided with radial pipes, intermediate deflecting and retarding plates or
discs, apertures near one end of the retort and a partition near the apertures, and
pipes for conducting superheated steam, hot air, and oil into the pipe, extending
through the retort, substantially as herein shown and described.
4. An apparatus for generating gas, consisting of the furnace A, the retort D,
mounted therein, means for revolving the retort, the pipe H, constructed as described,
and extending through the retort, the head L, attached to the said pipe, and the steam,
hot-air, and oil pipes M N P, connected with the said head I, the pipes M and N being
located in the walls of the furnace, substantially as described.
Dated this 50th day of March 1907