IMPROVEMENTS IN GALVANIC BATTERIES
Year: 1886

page_text: Date of Application, 29th Apr., 1886.
Complete Left, 30th Dec., 1886.
Complete Accepted, 29th Apr., 1887.
SYDNEY FERRIS WALKER Electrical Engineer 195 Severn Road Canton Cardiff.
I do hereby declare the nature of my invention for IMPROVEMENTS IN GALVANIC
BATTERIES to be as follows :-
An Improved method of generating Electrical Currents for Telegraphic and other
purposes, by means of Galvanic Batteries..
I use for the positive Element-Zinc or any other Oxidisable metal.
For the negative Element I use Carbon, Platinum or any other convenient one that
will not readily combine with sulphur, and in combination with the Carbon or
platinum plate I use sulphur either in the form of granules contained in a porous vessel
in the form of flour or powder or I may simply dip the plates or a part of them in
the sulphur.
For the exciting liquid, I use either Salammoniac, or dilute Sulphuric Acid, or any
liquid that will dissolve the Sulphuretted Hydrogen and the Carbon Bisulphide that
are formed during the working of the Battery.
SYDNEY FERRIS WALKER.

page_text: Improvements in Galvanic Batteries.
I, SYDNEY FERRIS WALKER, Electrical Engineer, of 195 Severn Road, Canton,
Cardiff, 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 :-
My invention relates to an improved method of generating electrical currents for
telegraphic and other purposes, by means of a galvanic battery of approximately the
form known as Leclanche's, and it is designed to give an economical current, to give
notice when the battery is nearly worked out, and in which the exciting agent shall to
a certain extent be reconstituted by the decomposition of the polarising agent.
For the negative element of the cell I take a porous pot, stand a capped carbon
plate therein, and fill in the space around with a suitably proportioned mixture of
carbon and sulphur, both free from dust, pure, and crushed to pieces of the size of a
pea or small bean, the cell being closed with pitch in the usual way. My proportions.
vary from equal amounts of carbon and sulphur to one of sulphur to four of carbon,
but a very convenient proportion is one of sulphur to 2 of carbon. This filled porous
cell is immersed in a solution of salammoniac, common salt, sulphuric acid or hydro-
chloric acid, zinc being the positive pole. The sulphur acts as a depolariser, and
neutralises the hydrogen gas delivered at the negative plate forming sulphuretted
hydrogen. A series of reactions now take place which I believe to be as follows, when
the battery is excited by salammoniac.
First, the zinc combines with the chlorine and hydrogen with the sulphur.
Next the zinc from the zinc chloride combines with sulphur from the sulphuretted
hydrogen, the hydrogen and chlorine liberated combining to form hydro-chloric acid.
Next. The ammonia and hydro-chloric acid combine to form salammoniac.
The zinc sulphide would fill the porous pot and stop the access of the sulphuretted
hydrogen to the zinc chloride, and then the sulphuretted hydrogen will begin to come
away and indicate by its odour when the battery is nearly worked out.
In place of packing with carbon and sulphur I might form an agglomerate plate."
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 :-
The construction of a galvanic cell in which sulphur and carbon suitably proportioned
form the depolarising agent in combination with the other elements constituting a cell
of the Leclanché type.
Dated this 30th day of December 1886
FELL & WILDING,
1; Queen Victoria Street, London, E.C.,
Agents for the Applicant.