CERTAIN IMPROVEMENTS IN CONDENSERS FOR STEAM ENGINES, AND IN PUMPS FOR WORKING SUCH CONDENSERS, OR FOR LIFTING WATER FROM DEEP MINES, AND FOR ANY OTHER USE TO WHICH PUMPS ARE APPLICABLE
Year: 1858

page_text: LETTERS PATENT to James Dredge, of the Parish of Walcot, in the City
of Bath, and County of Somerset, Civil Engineer, for the Invention of
"CERTAIN IMPROVEMENTS IN CONDENSERS FOR STEAM ENGINES, AND IN PUMPS
FOR WORKING SUCH CONDENSERS, OR FOR LIFTING WATER FROM DEEP MINES,
AND FOR ANY OTHER USE TO WHICH PUMPS ARE APPLICABLE."
Sealed the 17th December 1858, and dated the 25th August 1858.
PROVISIONAL SPECIFICATION left by the said James Dredge at the
Office of the Commissioners of Patents, with his Petition, on the
25th August 1858.
I, JAMES DREDGE, of the Parish of Walcot, in the City of Bath, and County
of Somerset, do hereby declare the nature of the said Invention for "IMPROVE-
MENTS IN CONDENSERS FOR STEAM ENGINES, AND IN PUMPS POR WORKING SUCH
CONDENSERS, OR FOR LIFTING WATER PROM DEEP MINES, AND FOR ANY OTHER USE
TO WHICH PUMPS ARE APPLICABLE," to be as follows:-
This Invention consists, firstly, in substituting cold water cisterns, which are
not exposed to atmospheric pressure, to be employed with condensers for steam
engines in place of those now in use, and it is here proposed to effect it by
constructing them in such condensers of annular or any other form, so that
they may surround the chamber or chambers of such condensers wherein the
steam is condensed.

page_text: Secondly, in substituting for the usual mode of supplying water for con-
densers, &c., a method of forcing the water into such cisterns, and from them
into the steam chamber or chambers, in its passage from the engine or engines,
and to extract it thence, together with any air, &c., that may be generated in
working such condensers, by means of certain force pumps, which are here
proposed to be employed in connexion with the said cisterns and steam
chambers of such condensers for effecting these objects.
And, thirdly, this part of the Invention consists in the manner of con-
structing and arranging the several parts of which these pumps are composed,
which consist of two and fourfold-acting force pumps. The former comprise
two corresponding barrels, which are fixed parallel with each other, and
connected at one extremity by a pipe or other means for preserving a
continuous passage between them; at the other extremity one of these
barrels is closed by means of a solid cover, whilst the other, in which a solid
piston is fitted, is closed with a cover and stuffing box through which the piston
rod works; and close to these covers a suction and an ascending pipe, with two
inlet and two outlet valves, are fixed to the said barrels; but two suction and
two ascending pipes may be applied to the same pump, also a foot valve to
each suction pipe; and in the latter it consists of twice the number of such
parts, which are constructed and are arranged in same manner as herebefore
stated, excepting in one particular, namely, this pump will require but one
suction and one ascending pipe when it is applied to common purposes, but
for any particular employment two, three, or four suction, and as many
ascending pipes, may be applied to the same pump. The mode of using these
pumps by steam or any other power is by means of and in connection with
levers, beams, or cranks, &c., as other pumps are worked.
SPECIFICATION in pursuance of the conditions of the Letters Patent, filed
by the said James Dredge in the Great Seal Patent Office on the
5th February 1859.
TO ALL TO WHOM THESE PRESENTS SHALL COME, I, JAMES
DREDGE, of the Parish of Walcot, in the City of Bath, and County of Somerset,
Civil Engineer, send greeting.
WHEREAS Her most Excellent Majesty Queen Victoria, by Her Letters
Patent, bearing date the Twenty-fifth day of August, in the year of our
Lord One thousand eight hundred and fifty-eight, in the twenty-second year
of Her reign, did, for Herself, Her heirs and successors, give and grant

page_text: unto me, the said James Dredge, Her special licence that I, the said
James Dredge, my executors, administrators, and assigns, or such others
as I, the said James Dredge, 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 "CERTAIN
IMPROVEMENTS IN CONDENSERS FOR STEAM ENGINES, AND IN PUMPS FOR WORKING
SUCH CONDENSERS OR FOR LIFTING WATER FROM DEEP MINES, AND FOR ANY OTHER
USE TO WHICH PUMPS ARE APPLICABLE," upon the condition (amongst others) that
I, the said James Dredge, my executors or administrators, by an instrument
in writing under my, or their, or one of their hands and seals, 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 imme-
diately after the date of the said Letters Patent.
NOW KNOW YE, that I, the said James Dredge, do hereby declare
the nature of my said Invention, and in what manner the same is to be
performed, to be particularly described and ascertained in and by the following
statement, reference being had to the Drawings hereunto annexed, and to
the letters and figures marked thereon, that is to say :-
of
My improvements in the construction of condensers for steam engines, and
pumps for working them or for any other purpose, have for their object a
means of augmenting the power of condensing engines, of simplifying their
construction, and consequently of effecting great economy of fuel; and also of
simplifying and of increasing the utility of force pumps to a greater extent
than has yet been obtained by any of the varied contrivances which have
hitherto been constructed.
Now, in the first place, to effect these objects, I employ cold water cisterns,
which are not exposed to atmospheric pressure, instead of those now in use
in condensing engines, and I construct them respectively in the said condenser,
around or in connection with a chamber in which the steam is condensed in
The form of the said
its passage from the steam cylinder of the engine.
condenser, cistern, and chamber may be cylindrical or of any other shape
whatever that may be found to answer best in practice.
Secondly, I substitute for the usual mode of injecting cold water into con-
densers for effecting the condensation of steam, a method of forcing it into
them by means of certain "double and four-fold acting force pumps ;" and
I effect this object by employing one of the former or one of the latter,

page_text: respectively, in connection with the said cistern and condensing chamber of the
condenser, which the water is forced up into the said cistern, and from
which it overflows into the condensing chamber amid the steam, for the
purpose of condensing it in its passage from the cylinder of the engine, to
which the condenser is connected, and the condensed water at the same
instant is extracted from the chamber, together with any air, &c., that may be
generated in working it, by means of the same pump; and whilst the pump is
taking in another supply of cold water for the same purpose, it ejects the
condensed water, &c., that it had just before extracted from the condensing
chamber; moreover, the double-acting force pump will force the water into,
and extract it from the condenser once at every second stroke of the piston of
the steam cylinder, but the four-fold acting force pump will perform the same
twice in the same time.
And thirdly, in reference to the said force pumps, I construct and arrange
the several parts of which they are composed, and connect them to the said
condensers respectively in the following manner:-First, I construct the
double-acting vertical force pumps, each of two corresponding barrels or
cylinders which I fix parallel with each other, at some distance apart or close
together, and join them by a pipe or other means, at the lower extremity, for
preserving a continuous water way or passage between them, and at the top
I close one of the said barrels by a solid cover, and the other barrel in
which a piston or plunger is fitted, close with a cover and stuffing box,
through which the piston rod works, and near to these covers I fix to the said
barrels, and in connection with them, a valve box, which contains two inlet
and two outlet valves, leading to and from the said barrels, and also I connect
one suction and one ascent pipe to the said valve box. But two suction and
two ascent pipes may be applied to the same pumps, with a foot valve to
one of the suction pipes; in this case the valve box would require to be
divided into four compartments, viz., two below and two above the valves.
Second, I construct the said four-fold acting force pumps respectively of
twice the number of such parts as I have above described, and I range
them in the same manner as I have heretofore stated, excepting in one
particular point, namely, that not more than one suction and one ascent pipe
will be required when the pump is employed for common purposes. But
when it is required for particular uses, such, for instance, as jointly to effect
two or more objects, as for an air and liquor pump to a condenser for steam
engines, &c., two or four suction and ascent pipes must be used with it, and
the divisions in the valve box must correspond to the number of suction and
ascent pipes employed; but if either of these said pumps are employed

page_text: separately as air and liquor pump to a condenser, neither in such case will
require more than one suction and one ascent pipe to each pump. In the
instance of using these pumps in a horizontal position with condensers for
steam engines or otherwise, a communication between the two barrels must be
provided at the ends, which are closed with a cover and stuffing box respec-
tively, before described, and the valve box and ascent and suction pipes are
fixed at the other end and between the four barrels. The pumps can be
worked by any of the usual mechanical means of which other pumps are
worked, by steam, or any other power.
And finally, my Invention consists in ranging and fixing the said condensers
with either of the said pumps in connection with the cylinder of a steam
engine, to effect which I place the former near the cylinder, and the top of it
just under the level where the steam issues from it, and I connect them at this
point with a pipe, as a means for conveying the steam into the condenser, and
the pump I place under the beam of the engine, or near any other suitable
part of it which will work it most conveniently, and the top of the valve box of
the pump I fix on a level with the bottom of the condenser, and both the
pump and the condenser I fix to a solid foundation. Now in case of using
the double-acting force pump, I employ a suction pipe between the well or
source whence the cold water is obtained, and connect it to the under part of
the valve box which is contiguous to the pump barrel, in which the solid
piston is fitted, and the ascent pipe I fix to the valve box, over the outlet valve
of the same barrel, which I also connect to the condenser at the point near
where the steam enters it, and to the bottom of the condenser I fix another
pipe which I connect to the side plate of the valve box below the inlet valve of
the other barrel (there being a division in the valve box between the two
barrels), and lastly I connect an ascent pipe to the valve box over the outlet
valve of this same barrel, which may be led to feed the boiler, or be carried up
to any convenient height for discharging the condensed water, &c. When I
employ for the same uses one of the aforesaid four-fold acting force pumps, I
employ the same number of similar pipes and in the same manner, but twice
the number here enumerated and described may be applied to such pump for
performing the same operation, but the valve box must be again divided to
suit the number of pipes used.'
DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS.

page_text: Figs. 1 and 2 represent an elevation and outside plan of a four-fold action
vertical pump, and Figs. 3 and 4 a longitudinal section and sectional plan.
The arrangement of the barrels and valves will be seen in these Figs., where
a and a represent the barrels in which the piston 6 works, and c, c', the
cylinders without pistons. The water way between these barrels is shewn at d
in Figs. 3, 4, 5, and 7; e, f, Figs. 1, 3, are the suction and ascent pipes
respectively, and these lead to and from the valve box g. There are 8 valves,
4 inlet and 4 outlet, the arrangement of which is shewn in Figs. 3, 4. The
sides of the valve box are shewn in Drawing closed in by separate plates h, h,
fastened together by bolts i, i, running transversely through the valve box g.
The valve box may be secured to the barrels by four strong bolts as in
Drawing at k, k.
Figs. 8, 9, 10, 11, and 12, are different views of a four-action horizontal pump.
In these Figs. the same letters refer to similar parts as in the vertical pumps
just described. In this case the communication must be at the top of the
barrels under the stuffing box, as at d, Fig. 12, but in the case of the vertical
pump, the communication must be at the bottom, as at d, Fig. 7.
In this arrangement the two pistons may be worked by one rod which would
pass through the valve box, as shewn by dotted lines in Fig. 10.
Fig. 13, 14, 15, 16, 17, shew a two-action pump; in this case only 2 barrels
instead of 4 are used, and but half the number of valves, that is 4 instead of 8.
In the case of these pumps the valve box may be cast with the barrels and the
sides closed as shown in the vertical and horizontal pumps.
same letters refer to similar parts.
Here also the
Fig. 18 shews the divisions in the valve box when 4 suction and 4 ascent
pipes are employed. The valve box is here divided into 4 compartments by
the partitions l, m, running transversely and longitudinally through the box,
thus entirely separating each pair of valves.
Fig. 19 is a foot valve to be placed in the suction pipe to regulate the weight
of the volume of water when the source from which it is drawn is less than
32 feet from the pump.
Fig. 20 is a side elevation of a condenser with a four-acting pump as above
described attached. Fig. 21 is a plan; Fig. 22 an end elevation; Fig. 23
a longitudinal section; and Fig. 24 a sectional plan. a is the cold water
cistern in which the condenser b is placed; c is the steam pipe leading from
the cylinder of the engine to the condenser b; d is the suction pipe leading
from the well, and e is the ascent pipe to the condenser; f. f, are perforations
through which the cold water from the well is forced in spray amongst the

page_text: steam as it passes into the condenser b; g is the suction pipe which carries
the water, condensed steam, &c., back into the pump, whence it is forced
up the ascent pipe h, and may be employed to feed the boiler, if desired.
Fig. 25 shews a horizontal, and Figs. 26 and 27, a two-action pump,
applied to the condenser.
Now I desire it to be understood that I do not confine myself in the con-
struction of condensers, cold water cisterns, and condensing chambers, to any
particular form, nor in the construction of the barrels or any other parts of
which the pumps above mentioned and described are composed, to any
particular dimensions, nor to any particular kind of material of which the
said condensers shall be constructed; nor do I confine myself to any particular
dimensions in proportioning such pumps, condensers, cisterns, and condensing
chambers to the cylinders of steam engines; but that which I do claim as my
Invention consists,―
Firstly, in the application of confined cisterns with condensers for steam
engines, and of constructing them in such condensers or in connection with
them, so as to answer the same purpose.
Secondly, in the method of forcing the water into such cisterns and con-
densers by means of the force pumps which I have herein described.
Thirdly, I claim the application of said pumps to any purpose, whether it be
for raising water from wells, mines, &c., or for fire-engines, ships' pumps,
domestic uses, or in short to effect any object for which pumps are required.
And fourthly, I claim the manner of ranging and fixing the said pumps
in connection with the said condensers and steam cylinders of engines,
namely, that of placing the pump under the bottom level of the condenser for
working it.
In witness whereof, I, the said James Dredge, have hereunto set my
hand and seal, this Fourth day of February, in the year of our
Lord One thousand eight hundred and fifty-nine.
JAMES DREDGE. (L.S.)