CERTAIN IMPROVEMENTS IN THE MEANS OF CONSUMING SMOKE, PARTS OF WHICH IMPROVEMENTS ARE ALSO APPLI- CABLE TO THE GENERATING OF STEAM
Year: 1850

page_text: TO ALL TO
HOM THESE PR
SHALL COME, I, WILLIAM
HARGREAVES, junior, of Bradford, in the County of York, send greeting.
WHEREAS Her most Excellent Majesty Queen Victoria, by Her Royal
Letters Patent under the Great Seal of the United Kingdom of Great Britain
and Ireland, bearing date at Westminster, the Eighteenth day of April One
thousand eight hundred and fifty, in the thirteenth year of Her reign, did, for
Herself, Her heirs and successors, give and grant unto me, the said William
Hargreaves, junior, my exors, adiñiors, and assigns, Her especial license, sole
privilege and authority, that I, the said William Hargreaves, junior, my exors,
admiors, and assigns, and such others as I, the said William Hargreaves, junior,
my exors, adñiors, or assigns, should at any time agree with and no others,
from time to time and at all times during the term of years therein expressed,
should and lawfully might make, use, exercise, and vend, within England,
Wales, and the Town of Berwick upon Tweed,. within the Islands of Jersey,
Guernsey, Alderney, Sark, and Man, and also within all Her said Majesty's
Colonies and Plantations abroad, my Invention of "CERTAIN IMPROVEMENTS IN
THE MEANS OF CONSUMING SMOKE, PARTS OF WHICH IMPROVEMENTS ARE ALSO APPLI-
CABLE TO THE GENERATING OF STEAM;" in which said Letters Patent there is
contained a proviso obliging me, the said William Hargreaves, junior, by an
instrument in writing under my hand and seal, particularly to describe and
ascertain the nature of my said Invention, and in what manner the same is to
be performed, and to cause the same to be enrolled in Her Majesty's High
Court of Chancery within six calendar months next and immediately after the

page_text: date of the said in part recited Letters Patent, as in and by the same, reference
being thereunto had, will more fully and at large appear.
NOW KNOW YE, that in compliance with the said proviso, I, the said
William Hargreaves, junior, do hereby declare that the nature of my said
Invention, and the manner in which the same is to be performed, are described
and ascertained by the Drawing hereunto annexed, and forming part thereof,
and the words and figures following, that is to say:--
The nature of this Invention, and the principle of construction which forms
the basis thereof, consist in certain new mechanical combinations and arrange-
ments of parts hereafter mentioned and described, constituting machinery or
furnace apparatus whereby the means of consuming smoke or carbon and other
impurities evolved in the combustion of coal or other fuel when used in boiler
furnaces, or in any other description of furnace suitable for such apparatus,
and thereby to increase the power of fuel, and thus economise heat and effect
a saving in the consumption of coal, and consequently the cost attendant upon
the working of steam machinery or other motive power; and further in this
my said Invention, as described for the above two-fold purpose of consuming
smoke and economising fuel, I also combine various mechanical arrangements
of parts of the apparatus which are applicable to the purpose of generating
steam, such parts not having been used or applied heretofore in the same
manner in common furnaces or those wherein the consumption of smoke was
a primary object.
In proceeding to describe my said Invention and apparatus, as drawn and
set forth in the plan, elevation, section, and details hereunto attached and
referred to throughout and in connection with this Specification, and for the
clear understanding of the various parts thereof, I here set forth the following
detailed references to the various mechanical parts of which the aforesaid
machinery or furnace apparatus is composed, and which said detailed references
and Drawings together are fully sufficient for the construction of my said
Invention in all its parts and details for the purpose of obtaining the results in
practice set forth in the title of this my said Invention, and as hereafter
exemplified in the description contained in this Specification under the heads
corresponding with the title, viz, consumption of sunoke, and generation of
Here follow the references to the Drawings by
steam, and economy of fuel.
letters marked thereon for the purpose herein-before explained.
D. STAR

page_text: view of the door or hopper end of the furnace. A, A, the boiler; B, B, B,
the main feed pipes; B*, B*, the escape pipe or eduction pipe; C, C, C, the
hopper, and shows the hopper ends; D, D, D, pipes for generating steam, fed
from the side pipes; E, E, E, branches from feed pipes to side pipes; F, F, F,
side pipes, and feeding the pipes D, D; G, G, G, the fire bars moving horizon-
tally; H, H, lever for moving the fire bars G towards the hopper C, and
backwards; I, I, levers for supporting the ends of the bars G; K, K, a cross
arm for connecting lever I with the principal lever L; L, L, the principal
lever worked by a connecting rod and crank L*; M, the furnace door; N,
brickwork for retaining the fuel till properly consumed; O, a doorway for
getting out the ashes forced over the brickwork by the bars; P, a brick arch
for the flame to pass over. a, a, pinions fast upon the shaft i, lifting the racks
and door b; b, b, racks cast to the bottom door of the hopper; c, c, top door
or plate bolted to the hopper ends; d, d, the feeder moved by the bars G;
e, e, e, lugs cast upon the bars G for moving the feeder; f, f, a plate connecting
the hopper ends; g, g, a dead plate bolted to the side pipes; h, a beam for
connecting the side pipes; i, the pinion shaft; j, j, j, lugs cast upon the side
pipes to bolt the beam h to; k, k, legs cast upon the side pipes for carrying
the pedestals 1; 1, 1, pedestals for levers; m, the ash-pit; n, a platform for
the fireman; o, a shaft and chain to lift the furnace door.
Having by the above detailed table of references explained the several
mechanical parts contained in the formation and construction of the machinery
or apparatus composing this my said Invention, as generally applicable to
steam boiler furnaces, it is proper to explain that this my said Invention can
be adjusted in point of magnitude so as to meet various requirements, and any
extent of power to be put in operation. And, moreover, I have adjusted the
proportions, forms, substances, and principles for connecting the parts that will
fully carry out my Invention with proper economy of cost, durability, and con-
sistency of application, so that the Drawing and description as referenced
will form a proportional scale or modulus for its universal construction. The
materials of which I construct the various parts are in accordance with
the general custom followed out in furnaces; wrought iron pipes I prefer
for the pipes marked D, and for the service and feed pipes in connection.
The remaining portions as described or inferred in the table of references to
be of cast iron, or as usually made of wrought iron, are intended should be of
the best iron or any other suitable metal commonly applied to such respective
purposes.
0
I will now proceed to describe the application and principle of this my said
Invention, as set forth in the title thereof; and, firstly,-

page_text: For this purpose I construct the furnace, as shewn and described, with a
hopper or feeder attached in front at C, in connection with the furnace door M,
and for the purpose of rendering the process of feeding the furnace regularly
and by a means commonly termed self-acting, but properly the result of certain
mechanism for communicating such action.
To the pinion shaft i are attached the pinion wheels a, a, motion being
communicated thereto by an eccentric crank attached to the elongated end
indicated by the arrow in Figure 3; the racks and door 6 are thereby raised
so as to admit of a certain quantity of fuel being forced or shaken out of the
hopper C and deposited in front of the feeder d upon the dead plate g. This
rotary motion is moderated by the length of the eccentric orank, and adjusted
to the requirements of the furnace to be fed and power to be raised. The fuel
thus deposited on the dead plate g is then forced forward on the bed of bars G
by a similar rotary motion given to the bars G by the principal lever L, com-
municated to the lever H by the cranked eccentric L*, which said motion
being communicated to the lugs e, e, cast upon the bars G, move forward the
feeder d upon the dead plate g, and thus a continuous supply of fuel from the
hopper is obtained. The process of feeding from the hopper by the mecha-
nical apparatus herein described ends with the delivery on to the furnace bars
G by the action of the feeder d, as described; the hopper is supplied with coal
by the fireman continually as the consumption goes on. The shaft and chain
O serve to raise the furnace door M worked by a cranked handle. The coal
thus deposited on the furnace bars G and gradually entering into combustion,
is, by the continual action of the feeder d and bars G, carried by degrees
equally and evenly over the whole surface to the extreme end of the furnace,
and finally driven over the brick banker or retaining wall at N into the ash-
pit O, during which operation the smoke-consuming process is in full action,
and is obtained and carried on in the following manner and by the following
mechanical means and appliances. Referring to the plan, Figure 2, the whole
surface of the furnace bars G is exhibited, forming the bed on which the coal
enters into combustion, and on which the smoke-consuming process is carried
on; the form of the said bars is also exhibited in section, Figure 3, and
together exhibits the length and width of the interstices between them through
which a portion of the ashes fall into the pit m; the bars also have solid ends
or bearings working against each other, as shewn at a*. The bed of bars thus
described are supported in place, as shewn, by the levers H, K, I; the under
side of the bars G are provided with ears b*, which take the cross head of the

page_text: levers H, I, which work therein by the adjustment of said levers, as minutely
shewn; in the table of references it is fully explained. The furnace bars G are
moved in a horizontal direction by the levers H, I, K, L. The said levers
I, I, K, L, obtain their motion directly from the principal lever L worked by
a connecting rod and cránk L*, as before described, and thereby gives the
horizontal motion herein described to the furnace bars G; and by the revolu-
tion of the crank and lever aforesaid an oscillating motion is given to the
whole bed of bars, regulated in its action by the stroke of the crank. The
mechanical movement thus explained, combined with the minuteness of
the interstices between the furnace bars, which keeps the coal longer in the
furnace before it is sufficiently calcined to fall through into the ash-pit, and
also the continual oscillating motion carried on by the entire bed of furnace
bars, as explained, breaking up and grinding the fuel, is the means I pursue to
accomplish the perfect combustion of the coal; smoke, carbon, and other gases
evolved therefrom. It is by thus being retained in the furnace a longer period
by my adjustment of bars with narrow interstices than in the common method,
and the oscillating motion of the bars G constantly going on, which prevents
the formation of clinker by vitrification, and also continually breaks up the
coal, in the manner commonly understood by stoking, together with the sharp
and rapid under current of air that drives through the narrow interstices, and
by the regular and equalized quantity of coal that is spread at all times over
the surface of the furnace, that I accomplish this said purpose of my Invention,
namely the consumption of smoke, and the more perfect combustion of fuel
obtained thereby. To give facility to the onward distribution of the fuel over
the furnace bars, I fix the bed of bars G at an inclination or slope, as indicated
by the red line x, x, in Figure 1, which adjustment greatly assists in practice
the aforesaid purposes of this my said Invention. The slope of the brickwork
N for retaining the fuel till properly consumed, and the height of the brick
bridge P, which being carried up closely to the boiler, keeps back and prevents
the flames passing out too quickly, is also a means in combination with the
foregoing detailed process that I use, to accomplish more perfectly the con-
sumption of smoke and combustion of fuel.
:
I now proceed to describe the second part of this my said Invention as
herein specified, namely, the generating of stean by the application of
a portion of the apparatus herein-before described, and forming part of the
furnace, together with other apparatus in addition thereto for the purpose
of raising or generating steam.. The mechanical appliances which I adopt
for this purpose are more especially the cranked pipes D, D, D, placed over the
furnace bars, and are used in conjunction with and fed from the side pipes

page_text: F connected to the main feed pipes B, B, for the purpose of generating
steam.
Referring again to the Drawing and table of references, the whole of my
said Invention for the generating of steam as developed and contained
therein are the following parts, namely, from the boiler A depends a supply
of water by the main feed pipes. B, B, which supply the side pipes F, which
communicates with and feed the-generating pipes D, D; E, E, E, are branches
from feed pipes B, B, to side pipes F, F, which can also be fed at either end,
causing a current of water to pass through them. The whole of the tubular
mechanism and appliances hercin referred to and set forth in this second part
of my Invention by the Drawing, the references, and description herein con-
tained, are the means I apply for the purpose of raising or generating steam
as connected with this my said Invention, and in exemplification thereof, it
is only requisite to point out the main features, namely, the generating pipes D
being completely in connection with and immersed in the fuel when in com-
bustion, such said pipes or tubular apparatus being fed from and connected
with the main boiler A, will contain a certain number of cubic inches of water,
which by this Invention are brought to boiling point long before any portion of
water contained in the main boiler A, and by progressive ascension thereto, and
a repeated replacement by less rarified fluid, to be also brought to boiling point,
and in like manner ascending to the main boiler A, until the whole contents
have passed through the furnace. Such circulation of the contents of the
boiler through the burning fuel in manner set forth is a more speedy process
for generating of steam than by the application of heat only to the under side
of the boiler, or within the boiler, or as applied in the various ways and
forms now practised, and upon which this my said Invention constitutes an
improvement.
And connected with the first and second parts of this my said Invention,
as herein-before described and set forth, and a consequent result therefrom,
forms the third part of this Specification, that is to say, the economy of fuel
arising from the full developement of the two first parts of this Invention,
namely, for consuming of smoke and generating of steam by the process
herein fully detailed, which first part or process by the peculiar construction
and details of the furnace for consuming the smoke and calcining the fuel is
in effect bringing into combustion an increased quantity of fuel over and
above that obtained by other furnaces from a given weight of coal.
Having thus fully set forth and disclosed the whole of this my said
Invention by means of the Drawing and Specification herein contained,
and the manner in which I put in practice and construct the several parts

page_text: thereof, and I have not, to the best of my knowledge and belief, withheld any
part thereof, or of the manner in which I put the same in practice, and
although I have been particular to shew and describe the various details of the
forms, and construction as practised by me, yet I wish it to be distinctly under-
stood that I do not confine myself to the various details lierein mentioned, as
the whole of the furnace bars may be made hollow instead of being made
solid, and become part of the apparatus for generating of steam; and, if more
convenient, the furnace bars can be made stationary, and the feeder d can be
made to move by a crank or eccentric, or any other suitable motion, so as to
give the desired result of feeding for consuming the smoke and saving the
fuel; and I also wish it to be distinctly understood that I intend by the
foregoing Specification and Drawing to set forth the principle only of this
Invention, reserving to myself such immaterial variation of form and con-
struction of the parts as practice may suggest, without departing from the
principle of construction upon which this Invention is based, so long as the
peculiar characters of either part of my Invention be retained; but what
I claim is,
First, I claim as my Invention the general arrangement, form, and con-
struction of the furnace as relates to the smoke-consuming process, and the
mechanical arrangement of feeding and distributing the coal evenly over the
Also
surface of the bars by the process fully described and set forth.
the mechanical arrangement, as explained, to obtain the horizontal traverse of
the furnace bars. Also the form of said bars, both to admit of said motion
and their arrangement as to the interstices between them, and the inclination
of the bed of bars G to a fall, as described. The whole of this said recited
claim appertains to my Invention for consuming smoke.
Secondly, I claim as my Invention the form and construction of hollow
tubes, as arranged in this my said Invention, for containing water for gene-
rating of steam, being the arrangement of tubes or pipes in the positions she wn
over the furnace bars for generating of steam, and the feed pipes and side pipes
in connection therewith; forming the whole arrangement as explained and set
for th for generating steam. This said recited claim appertains solely to my
Invention for generating of steam.
Thirdly, I claim as my Invention the economy in the consumption of fuel
required for working steam boiler furnaces, as explained in the first part of my
Invention, and resulting from the consumption of carbon, smoke, and all other
gasses, combined with the economy in the consumption of fuel resulting from
and explained in the second part of my Invention, obtained by the more
peedily raising the water in the boiler to boiling heat, whereby steam

page_text: generated with a less quantity of coal than in the ordinary method, and as
heretofore practised.
In witness whereof, I, the said William Hargreaves, have hereunto set
my hand and seal, this Eighteenth day of October, in the year of our
Lord One thousand eight hundred and fifty.
WILLIAM
(L.S.)
HARGREAVES.
AND BE IT REMEMBERED, that on the Eighteenth day of October, in
the year of our Lord 1850, the aforesaid William Hargreaves came before
our said Lady the Queen in Her Chancery, and acknowledged the Specification
aforesaid, and all and every thing therein contained and specified, in form
above written. And also the Specification aforesaid was stamped according to
the tenor of the Statute made for that purpose.
Enrolled the Eighteenth day of October, in the year of our Lord One
thousand eight hundred and fifty.