IMPROVE-" MENTS IN THE PROCESS AND APPARATUS FOR GENERATING STEAM WITHOUT WITHOUT. COMBUSTIBLE MATTER EXCEPT IN ACCIDENTAL CASES
Year: 1855

page_text: LETTERS PATENT to Henri Dembinski, General, of Rue Joubert 8, in the
City of Paris, in the Empire of France, for the Invention of "IMPROVE-"
MENTS IN THE PROCESS AND APPARATUS FOR GENERATING STEAM WITHOUT
PROVISIONAL SPECIFICATION left by the said Henri Dembinski at the
Office of the Commissioners of Patents, with his Petition, on the 29th.
June 1855.
I, HENRI DEMBINSKI, General, of Rue Joubert 8, in the City of Paris, in'
the Empire of France, do hereby declare the nature of the said Invention for
"IMPROVEMENTS IN THE PROCESS AND APPARATUS FOR GENERATING STEAM WITHOUT.
COMBUSTIBLE MATTER EXCEPT IN ACCIDENTAL CASES" to be as follows:-.
My Invention consists of producing heat to generate steam by bringing
different metals in alternate contact, the boiler or apparatus being so con-,
structed as to have a great heating surface. The heat thus produced by the
contact.or friction of metals may be applied for all purposes where heat is!
required to produce steam, which steam may be used to obtain any mechanical,
motion which is now obtained by water power, or by any other liquid, or
Auid

page_text: SPECIFICATION in pursuance of the conditions of the Letters Patent, filed
by the said Henri Dembinski in the Great Seal Patent Office on the
28th December 1855.
TO ALL TO WHOM THESE PRESENTS SHALL COME, I, HENRI
DEMBINSKI, General, of Rue Joubert 8, in the City of Paris, in the Empire
of France, send greeting..
WHEREAS Her most Excellent Majesty Queen Victoria, by Her Letters
Patent, bearing date the Twenty-ninth day of June, in the year of our Lord
One thousand eight hundred and fifty-five, in the nineteenth year of Her reign,
did, for Herself, Her heirs and successors, give and grant unto me, the said
Henri Dembinski, Her special licence that I, the said Henry Dembiński, my
executors, administrators, and assigns, or such others as I, the said Henri
Dembinski, 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, the
Channel Islands, and Isle of Man, an Invention for "IMPROVEMENTS IN THE
PROCESS AND APPARATUS FOR GENERATING STEAM WITHOUT COMBUSTIBLE MATTER
EXCEPT IN ACCIDENTAL CASES," upon the condition (amongst others) that I, the
said Henri Dembinski, by an instrument in writing under my hand and seal,
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 months next and
immediately after the date of the said Letters Patent.
NOW KNOW YE, that I, the said Henri Dembinski, do hereby declare the
nature of my said Invention, and in what manner the same is to be per-
formed, to be particularly described and ascertained-in and by the following
statement and accompanying Drawings, that is to say :--
My Invention consists of the construction and arrangement of apparatus
and the application of certain means to obtain or generate steam-for-the-pro-
duction of motive power without combustion.
The principle of my said Invention is based upon obtaining the necessary
heat to produce steam from any suitable liquid by the use of iron or any other
suitable metal, either by friction or percussion with other substances, keeping
the friction material permanently heated and partially elastic, and applying the
steam so obtained for the various purposes of motive power.
The nature and details of my said Invention will be clearly understood

page_text: by reference to the accompanying two Sheets of Drawings and the letters of
reference thereon.
Fig. 1 is a view of part of my improved apparatus for accomplishing this
object; and Fig. 2, a transverse section of the same. A, A, A, A, represent
an oblong table, made of iron or other suitable metal, moving backwards
and forwards on the rollers B, B, B, B. The said table is formed at each end
or point of friction in the form of a> to slide in grooves, as shewn at 5, 5, 5, 5,
or it may be made to work backwards and forwards by rack and pinion. I
also fix the metal bars 3, 3, 3, 3, to the traversers '4, 4, 4, 4, which act as breaks;
which traversers, made of wood or other suitable material, are in contact. with
the cushion 0, 0, filled witli air, and covered with some strong material, as
canvas, linen, ticking, &c.; the said table passing under any body or substance,
or being compressed between two bodies, will force the bars 3, 3, 3, 3, to pass
with encreased power, and compress" on one side the cushion O, O, and rub in
the other direction against the body which resists them. The breaks 5, 5, 5, 5,
are intended to prevent the bars having too much play, and to allow the table
to pass with facility under the body to be rubbed.. The edges of this friction
body should be rounded, so that the bars may not sustain any other resistance
than the necessary friction.
'
I will now describe the application of this my Invention to produce steam.
G, G, G, G, represent a tubular steam vessel; but I do not use the tubes of the
said vessel as fire flues but as water tubes, causing the water or other fluid to
pass through theni, and then return to be submitted again to the action of heat;
and thús keep up à continuous circulation. The parts D, D, D¹, D', are those
against which the bars exercise their friction, which parts being heated put
the water or fluid in a state of ebullition and force it to rise (or in the shape
of steam); but as the said 'fluid (or steam) lias no other outlet except the
openings 2, 2, of the tubes 2, 21, and 23, and as these openings are hermetically
scaled in the solid bottom H, H; the fluid (or steam) traverses the said 'tubes,
and coming in contact with the orifices 22, 23, which are fixed in a second
bottom j, j, turning in the common reservoir E, E, from whence it descends,
as marked or indicated, on the parts D, D, and D','D', which are rubbed, and
thus produces a fresh heat. This circulation proceeds in a regular manner,
and causes the fluid (or steam), after having traversed the tubes, to return and
present itself again to the focus of heat or point of friction, as seen in Fig. 2;
where the water descends along the inner surface of the vessel; but not passing
freely against the parts D, D, and D', D', it is forced to descend along the
plate F, F, then to ascend, as shown at i, i, and distribute itself_over_the_whole

page_text: space, touching the parts rubbed; it then re-enters 2, 21, and 22. If I am
short of fluid to heat, and have, nevertheless, a large quantity of heated sur-
face, I fill the pipes 2, 21, and 22, and all the space destined for water or fluid,
with sand, small pieces of iron, or any body not dissolvable in boiling water.
This sand or other material will take the place of fluid, forming a reservoir of
heat, and the fluid to be heated coming in contact with the parts rubbed will
become itself the best preserver of heat. I have even found that water mixed
'with pulverized mustard will preserve heat longer than pure water, so that
other substances may be employed with advantage if they are not of a nature
to injure the metal.
I will now describe my method of using different fluids to produce steam
for motive power, such as water, rectified spirits, ether, chloroform, or any
mixture or compound thereof, to facilitate evaporation; for it is evident by my
process I can employ inflammable liquids which cannot be used under the ordi-
nary plans now in use. Water in proportion as it is in contact with the
rubbed parts will acquire a heat of some hundreds of degrees; or spirits of
wine, which vaporises at sixty degrees, will give steam so strong that part of it
will become capable in a cylinder of giving very powerful motion to the
rubbers, as well as movement to machinery for motive power. K, K, repre-
Şent the space in the vessel where the steam passes; it enters there by the
openings L, L, and leaves the vessel to give motion to the openings M, M. I
give two escapes for the steam in order to divide the vessel into two parts, as
shewn by the dotted lines O, O. To prevent the metal parts rubbed being
injured by wear and tear, I fix, by means of screws or similar contrivance, the
strong metal plate 6, 6, at the bottom of the vessel, or the part to be-rubbed,
and as the friction bars are separate or moveable pieces, all the parts can be
changed or replaced as they are worn out without any inconvenience. I
recommend-the-steam-vessel to be-wider than high, as seen in Fig. 2.
Fig. 3 shews another form or construction of the parts to be rubbed. The
table A, A, is here placed in a manner to rub the bottom and two sides of the
steam. vessel, but I do not confine myself to this particular shape of the vessel,
nor to the backward and forward motion of the table, as a circular or other
motion will answer the purpose. My chief object is to construct apparatus
necessary for causing friction, by making the cushion inflated with air and
placed against. the bars which rub together with elasticity. The female
screws Z, Z, serve to tighten or relax the inflated cushion as desired to give
more or less-friction...
.:
Having thus explained.my system of friction, I will now describe my method

page_text: +
of obtaining a large quantity of caloric from metal by percussion, the mechanism
of which is shewn in Figs. 4 and 5. N, N, represent a wheel composed of
ten parts, forming as many rings of equal dimensions, and strongly bound
together. These rings have all ten teeth, as seen at 7, 7, 7, which bite on the
flutings or cogs 8, 8, of the cylinders. These cylinders, besides the flutings or
cogs in contact. with the teeth, and which fill all their diameter, have also in
their length. other flutings or cogs alternately, that is to say, the cylinder has
parts plane and parts fluted, or teethed on the same section of its circum-
ference. When the wheel N, N, is put in motion, the cylinders 8, 8, 8, turn
quickly. Close to these cylinders are formed the square shanks 9, 9, 9, the
extreme ends of which rest on the air-filled cushion O; 0, the extremities
11, 11, 11, forming the head of a hammer on the bottom of the vessel, as seen
at P, P. These shanks are also fluted in a part of their height on the side
which faces the cylinders 8, 8, which is accomplished when the fluted part of
any cylinder is placed against the fluted or toothed part of the shank, which
forces it to descend and compress the cushion O, O; afterwards, when it
reaches the plane part of the cylinder, the shank not being any longer held,
strikes with a certain force the bottom part P, P. The quick speed of the
wheel N, N, in proportion with its diameter and with that of the cylinders 8, 8,
determines the number of blows struck by each turn of the wheel. The
dimensions are thus absolutely determined by the power we wish to obtain,
same as in the friction machine; therefore it is unnecessary to give any scale
of proportions for the different mechanical parts. In order to keep the shanks
constantly in the required direction, I place between their heads and the cylin-
ders 8, 8, the strong plate Q, Q, see Figs. 4 and 5. I pierce this plate with
as many holes as there are shanks, see 10, 10, 10, so that they cannot be moved
except in the said holes; or I can use two similar plates instead of one, and
place the second under the cylinder 8, 8.
Figs. 6 and 7 represent a modification which I make at the bottom part P, P,
by constructing it so as to have as many cavities or holes as there are heads
of shanks, by which each shank will strike in a cavity or hole, and therefore
compress the air, which will necessarily give a great developement of heat.
Another mode of producing steam by these means consists of dipping the
openings of the pipes 2 and 21 in a bed of fusible metal, as pewter, for
example. The percussion or friction will dissolve this metal, and also any
contained in the said pipes, which will thus form powerful heated surfaces for
the evaporation of the liquid. The pipes 2 and 21 are firmly fixed in the
bottom part R, R, which forms the separation between the metal in fusion

page_text: and the liquid which produces steam. In thus construction the tubes should
pass in advance above the upper point, or above the top of the steam vessel,
as experience proves that iron draws and radiates heat best when the upper
part is not dipped in the liquid.
Fig. 8 represents an improved mode of condensing steam, particularly appli-
cable to the use of spirits of wine or other expansive liquid, but which may
be also useful to assist the fire in ordinary boilers, as it will avoid incrustation,
the same fluid being always presented to the action of the heat: In this,
Fig. 8, C, C, C, C, represent a steam boiler; T, T, a strong plate, placed the
whole length of, the boiler, and, which divides it in two compartments to
separate the contents, so that the steam and liquid can never mix. 12, 12,
and 121, 12, are two steam cylinders, of which the piston 13, 13¹, are put in
motion by steam from a different division. These pistons move alternately,
and the steam is confined to the space W, W, 'where it collects, as I place
here a second bottom 14, 14, and 14, 14', which occupies the space of steam
only requisite for one stroke of the piston. When the motion of the machine
requires that one piston should cease to act, it is necessary to condense the
steam which works it, which result I obtain by means of the pulley 16, '16,
which open the cylinder tap 17, and shuts on one side the entrance to the
steam under the piston, and opens at the same time a passage to the liquid
contained in the boiler; that is to say, this fluid, being forced by the steam
which it produces, escapes by the opening 18, descends into the reservoir or
refrigerator 19, rises in traversing the pipe 20, and "discharges itself under the
piston 13, where it condenses the steam; then when the cylinder tap turns, it
causes the liquid to return into the same boiler from whence it was taken.
When these operations are finished, as seen at the piston 13, they recommence,
as seen at piston 131, and follow the same, operations as seen at 181, 191,
-and 20%. The important-point in this part of my improvements is to refrigerate
the liquid between its departure from 18 to 181 and its entrance by the taps
17 and 17. The quantity of fluid necessary to condense steam being resolved
upon, it is necessary to calculate the diameter of the pipes 18 and 18¹, to use
the best means of refrigerating the liquid; but as these are numerous, and un-
necessary, I will only state that the hot liquid should always be placed above
the cold liqued, so that the hot liquid passing in 18 and 18¹ does not flow
freely into the reservoir 19 and 19¹, but is forced to rise along the plate 21
and 21, and passes to the top of the liquid contained in the reservoir, so that
the fluid which rises in the tubes 20 and 20¹ reaches these tubes at the lowest
point or bottom of the reservoir. If I use worms to replace the reservoirs,

page_text: their turnings must follow the same system. 24 and 24' represent the driving
shaft, which receives motion from the piston and regulates that of the pullies.
25 and 25¹ are the bearers of the pullies which give motion to wheels or other
mechanical contrivance. 26, 26¹, and 26" are supports of the driving shaft,
which may be made of wood or similar material, if désirable, as there can be
no danger of fire.
A further addition or improvement on my said Invention consists in sur-
rounding the tubes with some thick texture, as felt, for instance, which will
cause the heat to radiate much better, and produce from 60 to 70 per cent.
more caloric, but of course such casing must not be used on tubes filled with
fused metal.
Having thus fully described the nature and particulars of my said Invention,
I desire it to be distinctly understood that I do not confine myself to the exact
details herein set forth, as such may be varied or modified without departing
from the principle thereof; but I claim the production or generation of steam
without combustion by friction or percussion, the construction and arrange-
ment of apparatus for obtaining this result, and the mode or method of con-
densing steam thus produced, as such improvements are herein described, and
illustrated in the accompanying two Sheets of Drawings.
In witness whereof, I, the said Henri Dembinski, have hereunto set my
hand and seal, this Twenty-seventh day of December, in the year of
our Lord One thousand eight hundred and fifty-five.
HENRI DEMBINSKI. (L.S.)
Signed, sealed, and delivered by the within-named
Henri Dembinski, in the presence of
POLD,
3, Rue de la Bourse, Paris.