A CERTAIN IMPROVED METHOD OF PRODUCING ILLUMINATING PROVISIONAL SPECIFICATION
Year: 1866

page_text: LETTERS PATENT to William Glassford Walker and Robert Fiazer
Smith, both of Kilmarnock m the County of Ayı, North Britain. for
the Invention of "A CERTAIN IMPROVED METHOD OF PRODUCING ILLUMINATING
PROVISIONAL SPECIFICATION left by the said William Glassford Walker
and Robert Frazer Smith at the Office of the Commissioners of Patents,
with then Petition, on the 12th July 1866
We, WILLIAM GLASSFORD WALKER and ROBERT FRAZER SMITH, both of
Kilmarnock, in the County of Ayı, North Britain. do hereby declare the
nature of the said Invention of "A CERTAIN IMPROVED METHOD OF PRODUCING
ILLUMINATING GAS,' to be as follows that is to say
This Invention, which has for its object the production of a gas specially
The appa-
designed for illuminating purposes, may be described as follows
atus ordinarily employed at gas works for producing gas from coal in the
usual way is employed, but in heu of using coal as the ougin from which
the gas is evolved. a quantity of peat or other suitable porous material capable
of itself of generating gas on the application of heat is saturated with shale
oil or petroleum or other mineral hydrocarbon, the block of material so
saturated are placed in the the ordinary retort and heat is applied when the oil
Грим 9/1

page_text: штирт
and the naturally combined hydrocarbons of the porous materials are driven
off in the form of an incondensible illuminating gas
It may be mentioned that the production of gas from minerals oil is not new,
but that when formed it is found to speedily condense. but that our Invention
specially relates to the production of illuminating gas at a cheaper rate than
what is obtained from coal, fiom blocks of material of the kind herein-before
described impregnated before being placed in the retort with a mineral by dio-
carbon It may also be added that the gas so produced is less combined with
sulphur than common coal gas, consequently requning a much less quantity
of lime for purification
Another very great advantage resulting from the production of gas in the
manner now described is the saving of time over and above what would be
required for the production of coal gas
SPECIFICATION in pursuance of the conditions of the Letters Patent. filed
by the said William Glassford Walker and Robert Frazer Smith in the
Great Seal Patent Office on the 11th January 1867
TO ALL TO WHOM THESE PRESENTS SHALL COME, wc, WILLIAM
GLASSFORD WALKER and ROBERT FRAZER SMITH, both of Kilmarnock, in the
County of Ayr, North Bituin, send greeting.
WHEREAS Her most Excellent Majesty Queen Victoria, by Her Letters
Patent bearing date the Twelfth day of July, in the year of our Lord One
thousand eight hundred and sixty-six, in the thirtieth year of Het reign,
did, for Herself, Her heirs and successois, give and grant unto us, the
said William Glassford Walker and Robert Fiazer Smith, Iler special
license that we, the said William Glassford Walker and Robert Frazer Smith
our executors, administrators, and assigns, or such others as we, the
said William Glassford Walker and Robert Fiaze Smith, our executors.
administrators, or assigns. should at any time agree with. and no others,
from time to time and at all times thereafter duing 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 "A CERTAIN IMPROVED METHOD OF PRO-
DUNING ILLUMINATING GAS," upon the condition (amongst others) that we, the
said William Glassford Walker and Robert Frazer Smuth, by an instrument
In wilting under our hands and seals, should particularly describe and ascei-
tain the nature of the said Invention, and in what manner the same was to

page_text: be performed, and cause the same to be filed in the Great Seal Patent Once
within six calendar months next and immediately after the date of the said
Letters Patent
NOW KNOW YE, that we, the said William Glassford Walker and
Robert Frazer Smith, do hereby declare the nature of our said Invention,
and in what manner the same is to be performed. to be particularly
descubed and ascertained in and by the following statement. that is to
say
-
Our said Invention, which has for its object the production of a gas specially
designed for illuminating purposes consists as follows The apparatus
ordinarily employed at gas works for producing gas from coal in the usual
way is employed, but in lieu of using coal as the origin from which the gas
Is evolved, a quantity of peat or other suitable porous material capable of
itself of generating gas on the application of heat, is saturated with shale oil
01 petioleum or other mineral hydrocarbon, the material so saturated 18
placed in the ordinary retort and heat is applied, when the oil and the
naturally combined hydrocarbons of the porous material are diven off in the
form of an incondensible illuminating gas
It may be mentioned that the production of gas from mineral oils is not
new, but when formed it is found to speedily condense, but that our Inven-
Lion specially relates to the production of illuminating gas from the kind of
material herein-before described. impregnated before being placed in the retort
with a mineral hydiocarbon It may also be added that the gas so produced
1s less combined with sulphur than common coal gas consequently requiring
a much less quantity of lime for purification
Another very great advantage resulting from the production of gas in the
manner now described is the saving of time over and above what would be
required for the production of coal gas
And in order that our said Invention may be properly understood, we now
proceed more particularly to describe the system, mode, or manner in or
under which the same is or may be used on practically carried into effect in
manner following, that is to say, by peat we signify that substance or com-
bination of substances generally known by such appellation in ordinary
phraseology. it being compounded of various vegetable materials, usually
mosses, and certain species of acquatic plants in different conditions of decom-
position Occurring in the natural state peat contains about 75 per cent of
water, and after being dried in the open air in the usual way its composition
averages 30 per cent of water, 42 per cent of volatile matter and (twenty-
eight) 28 per cent of coke in the 100 parts. In this air-dried state the peat

page_text: may be adapted for the purpose of forming part in the carrying out of our
Invenuon, although to produce better results we prefer that it should be more
perfectly dued or desiccated in order that it may be capable of absorbing a
maximum quantity of oil The oil which it is preferred to employ for the pur-
pose of carrying out this Invention is that which is commercially known as
"shale oil, it being obtained from the destructive distillation of certain of the
shales and coals at a low temperature, or that which is known as petioleum may
be employed in lieu of the pieceding oil In place however of any of the
oils herein-before mentioned a part of our Invention consists in using the
oil distilled from peat itself, either separately distilled or as forming part of
the process of illuminating gas production under the present Invention
Although under this present Invention we include the use of the foregoing
oils in their crude condition, that is previous to subjection to any process of
distillation, still we desne it to be understood that we prefer the utilization
of that portion remaining over after the spuit and portions known as
burning oil" have been separated In our experiments carried out for the
purpose of perfecting this Invention we find that ordinary an-died peat
containing 30 per cent of water or thereabouts is capable of absorbing about
50 per cent of its weight of the oil herein-before referred to in order.
however, to provide for incicased absorption we prefer the oil to be heated to
a temperature of about 120° Fahnenheit After the absorption has taken
place the oil-charged peat is allowed to drain and cool, after which it may
be handled and packed away in stacks like coal Jt is usually piled without
any appreciable loss of the oily matter This oil-charged peat may be used
alone in the reloits for producing the illuminating gas, or it may be mixed
with peat which has not been soaked in the oil From the average of many
experiments we find that a mixture of 1 ton or 240 gallons of shale oil and
2 tons of peat produces 61,000 cubic feet of gas, or an average of about
20 000 feet per ton of mixture It is to be understood that we do not limit
ourselves to the foregoing proportions of admixture The gas produced is
of high illuminating power, and contains from 11 to 17 per cent of hydrocarbons
absorbable by fuming sulphuric acid 'After production the gas does not
tend to condense into oils again, and after attaining the mean temperature and
piessure it may be kept as long as ordinary coal gas A great advantage
which this Invention possesses consists in the fact that no change is required
in the plant at present employed in existing gas works to enable it to be
carried out, as the mixture is changed into the retorts in the ordinary manner.
It, however, it happens that the oil used contains a considerable proportion
of spuitous and highly volatile ingredients, we prefer the employment of a

page_text: charging scoop shaped similar to the aperture of the retort The oil-charged
peat is introduced into this scoop and the scoop is then pushed to the
retort The scoop being fitted with a piston this is pushed forward by means
of the handle attached to it. and the oil-charged peat is deposited on the
hotter part of the retort After this is effected the scoop is instantly with-
drawn, and the retort door closed up and Inted before any flame can escape
from the retort mouth The use of the scoop now referred to forms
no part of our Invention and provided heavy oils are used. which being less
volatile than the lighter ones any departure from the ordinary mode of
charging is unnecessary
With icference to the temperature to be employed
for converting the materials into gas, we do not limit ourselves to any par-
Licular temperature, but we recommend that what is ordinally known as a
white heat should be employed, our experiments at this temperature having
yielded satisfactory results both as regards the quality and quantity
of the gas
The water present in the peat has an important bening in the
reaction taking place at the exalted temperature we prefer to employ. for
without the water held in the peat, or that which is produced from the elements,
oxygen and hydrogen, contained in its woody fibic, no permanent gas can be
produced
Another advantage to be produced from the adoption of this Invention
Is the saving of time effected as the whole of the gas passes over in about
one hour and a half in place of four hours as when coal is used as the gas
producing material For the reason that no sulphur compounds are present
in the gas made under this Invention, less expense is incurred in purifying it,
the amount of lime required averaging little more than a fourth of that used
for purifying ordinary coal gas From the complete absence of bisulphide of
carbon no sulphuric acid is produced in the combustion as is ordinarily the
case with coal gas The secondary products are of high valve, and on that
account the absolute cost of the gas itself is diminished there being always
a ready market for these products
in the mains there may be extracted sulphate of ammonia, acetic acid, and
methylic alcohol or wood spuits, from the tai there may be extracted
burning oil, pitch. and paraffin, or this ta may be used for admixture with
the peat to be used for producing the gas, whilst the carbonaceous residuum
or coke left in the retort is valuable for sanitary purposes and sugar refining
acting respectively as a deodorizer and disinfectant or as a substitute for the
animal charcoal at present employed
For instance, from the liquor condensed
Having now described the nature of our said Invention, and the manner
in which the same is or may be used or practically carried into effect, we

page_text: would observe, in conclusion, that what we consider novel and original, and
therefore claim as the Invention secured to us by the herein-before in pait
lecited Letters Patent is,-
Fnst the manufacture or production of gases for illuminating purposes as
heiein-before described, or any mere modification thereof
Second the utilization of naturally or artificially dried peat charged with
oil by absorption, the oil oi oils used being either in a heated or cold state, the
absorption or charging of the peat being effected prior to the charging of the
refort as her ein-before described
Thud, the use in addition to the oil-charged peat of a proportion of peat
not artificially charged with oil in the production of illuminating gas, the
natural gases of the uncharged peat being given off with those of the oil-
charged peat, as herein-before descubed. or any mere modification thereof
In witness whereof, wa, the said William Glassford Walker and Robert
Fazei Sun, have incum out of hand and seals this Eighth
day of January, One thousand eight hundred and sixty-seven
WILLIAM GLASSFORD WALKER (15)