IMPROVEMENTS IN STEAM GENERATORS
Year: 1875

page_text: LETTERS PATENT to Henry Stracey Barron, of Langdale Road,
Greenwich, in the County of Kent, Engineer, for the Invention of
"IMPROVEMENTS IN STEAM GENERATORS."
Sealed the 28th March 1876, and dated the 21st October 1875.
PROVISIONAL SPECIFICATION left by the said Henry Stracey Barron
at the Office of the Commissioners of Patents, with his Petition,
on the 21st October 1875.
I, HENRY STRACEY BARRON, of Langdale Road, Greenwich, in the
County of Kent, Engineer, do hereby declare the nature of the said
Invention for "IMPROVEMENTS IN STEAM GENERATORS," to be as follows:-
My Invention is designed to produce an easily constructed vertical
steam generator, which shall present ample heating surface in pro-
portion to the extent of grate or combustion surface, so as to utilize to
the best advantage the whole of the heat generated beyond what may

page_text: be needful for promoting combustion. For this purpose I construct the
generator with a fire-box in the form of the frustum of a conc com-
municating at its upper part with a chamber or drum of larger diameter,
which in turn is connected at its upper part by tubes (provided with
removeable plugs) with an annular smoke box around the steam dome
or upper portion of the generator, and communicates at its lower part
This
through other suitable tubes with an annular chamber below.
annular chamber communicates by other tubes with the annular smoke
box. These tubes form stays between the upper and lower end plates
of the main liquid and steam containing portion of the generator, and
pass up through other tubes which connect the upper and lower portions
of the chamber or drum at top of the fire-box, so that annular spaces for
the upward passage of liquid and steam in the body of the generator aro
established between the tubes of the chamber or drum and those con-
necting the upper and lower ends of the generator. By this arrangement
the products of combustion will pass up within the conical fire-box into
the chamber or drum (which may be arranged to dip at its lower end
around the upper portion of the conical fire-box), down the tubes from
the lower end of the chamber or drum just mentioned into the lower
annular chamber; thence through the tubes connecting the two ends
of the main body of the generator into the annular smoke box, and
away.
Where a greater amount of heat is being generated than is required
for the heating surface enumerated in this explanation of the operation
of my improved generator the plugs may be adjusted or wholly with-
drawn, or plugs with escape openings may be used so as to allow a
portion of the products of combustion to pass directly by the tubes from
the upper part of the chamber or drum at top of the fire-box into the
annular smoke box.
When the chamber or drum at top of the fire-box is made to dip I
sometimes provide tubes through it for the circulation of liquid, said
tubes serving also as stays between those portions of the upper and
lower parts of the chamber or drum situated between the dip and the
fire-box.
10 1 1

page_text: the lower end of each of the tubes leading from the lower part of the
chamber or drum situated at top of the fire-box with the lower end of
one of the tubes which connect the two ends of the main body of the
generator.
I provide plates and tubes for guiding the currents of steam and
liquid within the generator.
The crown of the chamber or drum at top of the fire-box may be
arranged with pendent water tubes, such as those known as "Field's."
Steam generators constructed according to my Invention will offer
peculiar facilities in the way of accessibility for examination, cleaning,
and repair. The outer casing or shell may be removed so as to reveal
the whole of the interior by removing the bolts of the base joint and the
nuts of the upper ends of the tubes whose ends pass through the crown
plate of the generator.
My generator may be advantageously employed where a large amount
of power is required to be generated within a limited space, as, for
example, in steam launches, steam fire engines, et cætera.
I propose in some cases to combine with my improved generators
apparatus for heating by means of oil or gas, for which the peculiar
arrangement of the heating surface, as herein-before described, will
present many advantages.

page_text: an annular chamber d. This annular chamber d communicates by other
tubes e with the annular smoke box f surrounding the steam dome or
upper portion g of the generator. The tubes e form stays between the
upper and lower end plates h, i, of the main liquid and steam containing
portion of the generator, and pass up through other tubes k which
connect the upper and lower portions of the chamber or drum b, so that
annular spaces for the upward passage of liquid and steam in the body
of the generator are established between the tubes e and the tubes k.
1, 2, are "Field" tubes, each consisting as is well known of an outer
tube expanded into the tube plate by a taper mandrel, the upper end
of the tube being open to the water space of the boiler, and the lower
end closed, and an inner tube open at both ends, its lower end not quite
reaching the bottom of the outer tube, and its upper end provided with
a trumpet-shaped deflector; m, n, o, are annular plates or tubes for
guiding the currents of steam and water. In the above-described
arrangement of steam generator the products of combustion pass up
within the conical fire-box a into the chamber or drum b, down the
tubes c into the lower annular chamber d, thence through the tubes c
into the annular smoke box f, and away.
Fig. 5;
Fig. 5 is a central vertical section of a modification of the above-
described steam gencrator; Fig. 6 is a horizontal section taken in the
line G, H, of Fig. 5; Fig. 7 is a like section in the line I, K, of
Fig. 8 is a similar section taken in the line L, M, of Fig. 5. In this
arrangement the chamber or drum b is at its upper part connected with
the annular smoke box f by tubes p provided with removeable plugs q,
which when a greater amount of heat is being generated than is required
for the heating surface provided in the arrangement shewn in Fig. 1,
may be withdrawn to allow of the passage of a portion of the products
of combustion through the tubes p; or the plugs may be made with
escape openings so as to allow a portion of the products of combustion
to pass directly by the tubes p from the upper part of the chamber or
drum into the annular smoke box f; ", r, are tubes through the
chamber or drum for the circulation of water, which tubes serve also
as stays.

page_text: section in the line P, Q, of Fig. 9; Fig. 12 is a similar section in the
line R, S, of Fig. 9. In this arrangement the fire-box is much shorter
than in the preceding arrangement, the dip being dispensed with, and
long "Field" tubes depend from the centre of the crown of the chamber
or drum into the fire-box. The arrangement will be readily understood
from the Drawing.
The construction of my generator may furthermore be modified by
dispensing with the lower annular chamber d, and connecting by a
U tube the lower end of each of the tubes c leading from the lower part
of the chamber or drum b with the lower end of one of the tubes e which
connect the two ends of the main body of the generator.
Steam generators constructed according to my Invention offer peculiar
facilities in the way of accessibility for examination, cleaning, and repair.
The outer casing or shell may be readily removed so as to reveal the
whole of the interior by removing the bolts of the base joint s and the
nuts of the upper ends of the tubes e and p, whose ends pass through
the crown plate of the generator.
My generators may be advantageously employed where a large amount
of power is required to be generated within a limited space, as, for
example, in steam launches, steam fire engines, et cætera.
The peculiar arrangements of the heating surface, as herein-before
described, present important advantages for the use of oil or gas as fuel
when burners are employed, as the forms of the fire-boxes are assimilated
to the form of an ordinary argand lamp chimney, and ample surface is
provided for utilizing the heat.
Having described the nature of my said Invention, and explained the
mode of carrying it into practical effect, I desire to have it understood
that I do not intend to make any claim to any of the individual parts
herein-before described or referred to, apart from the application and use
thereof in manner and for the purposes herein-before explained; but I
do claim as of my Invention,―
The combination of parts constituting the improved steam generator,
constructed, arranged, and operating as shown in and described with
reference to Figs. 1, 2, 3, and 4 of the accompanying Drawings.

page_text: I also claim the arrangement shewn in Figs. 5, 6, 7, and 8.
•
I also claim the arrangement shewn in Figs. 9, 10, 11, and 12.
In witness whereof, I, the said Henry Stracey Barron, have here-
unto set my hand and seal, this Twentieth day of April, in the
year of our Lord One thousand eight hundred and seventy-
six