Improvements in Intermittent Siphons.
Year: 1888

page_text: ate of Application, 1st Aug., 1888
Complete Specification Left, 31st May, 1889-Accepted, 6th July, 1889
PROVISIONAL
SPECIFICATION.
Improvements in Intermittent Siphons.
I, ROGERS FIELD, of No. 4 Westminster Chambers, Victoria Street, in the County
of Middlesex, Engineer, do hereby declare the nature of this invention to be as
follows:-
:-
When a siphon is employed to discharge intermittently the contents of a tank which
is supplied by a slow flow of liquid into it there is great difficulty in starting the
siphon action, especially if the supply is very small, as the liquid merely flows in a
small stream down the longer limb of the siphon without effecting sufficient dis-
placement of the air to bring the siphon into full action.
My invention relates to a construction of siphon whereby this difficulty is overcome,
that is to say when the level of liquid in the tank is raised to a certain point, the
addition of a very small quantity causes the siphon to start into action.
For this purpose, I employ a siphon of the annular kind consisting of a bell or deep
basin placed inverted over the discharge pipe or longer limb of the siphon, so that the
liquid flows up the annular passage between the bell and the discharge pipe and
overflows into the latter, the lower end of which is immersed in liquid.
1 make this bell of a diameter at the bottom considerably greater than the
discharge pipe and taper it upwards to a smaller diameter at the level of the upper
month of the pipe, above which it is completed in the form of a dome.
To the upper mouth of the discharge pipe I apply an adjutage or mouth piece of
the following description.
Internally it has the form of a frustrum of a hollow cone having its upper month
as large as the discharge pipe and its lower mouth of less diameter. The upper edge.
of this adjutage is level for about one quarter of its circumference and for the rest of
its circumference is made of a lower level being about th of an inch lower at each
extremity and sloping down to a depth of about of an inch at its middle. In the
central line of this deepest part of the mouth a portion of the conical wall of the
adjutage is prolonged downwards in the form of a spout, and 1 prefer to perforate
this prolonged part, so that, when liquid begins to flow over the lowest part of the
edge of the adjutage, some of it flows down on the outside as well as on the inside of the
spout. The effect of this form of adjutage is that a very small overflow, in fact a mere
succession of drops expels a sufficient quantity of the air contained in the discharge
pipe and hell to cause the level of the liquid within the bell to rise; this rise increases
the overflow into the discharge pipe and expels a further quantity of air, which again
causes a still larger rise and overflow and thus brings the siphon into full action.
Besides employing a bell and an adjutage such as I have described, I find it in
many cases advantageous to provide the outlet mouth of the discharge pipe with an
appliance for facilitating the action of a small overflow in expelling the air.
For this purpose, I cut at the lower mouth of the discharge pipe several small
notches the inner edge of each notch being sharp as a chisel, and the outer side
of the material of the pipe where the notch occurs sloping outwards and upwards.
When a little air is expelled by a small overflow of liquid into the discharge pipe,
it finds its way through one or other of these notches and bubbles up through the
liquid in which the lower mouth of the pipe is immersed.
The air being thus discharged outside the pipe, the pressure within the pipe and bell
is so far reduced that the liquid rises within the bell and overflows in larger quantity
into the discharge pipe, thus producing the action above stated.
Dated this 1st day of Angust 1888.
ABEL & IMKAY,
Agents for the Applicant.

page_text: COMPLETE SPECIFICATION.
Improvements in Intermittent Siphons.
1. ROGERS FIELD, of No. 4 Westminster Chambers, Victoria Street, in the County
of Middlesex, Engineer, 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:-
When a siphon is employed to discharge intermittently the contents of a tank
which is supplied by a slow flow of liquid into it there is great difficulty in starting
the siphon action, especially if the supply is very small, as the liquid merely flows
in a small stream down the longer limb of the siphon without effecting sufficient
displacement of the air to bring the siphon into full action.
My invention relates to a construction of siphon whereby this difficulty is overcome,
that is to say when the level of liquid in the tank is raised to a certain point, the
addition of a very small quantity causes the siphon to start into action.
For this purpose I employ a siphon of the annular kind consisting of a bell or
deep basin placed inverted over the discharge pipe or longer limb of the siphon, so
that the liquid flows up the annular passage between the bell and the discharge
pipe and overflows into the latter, the lower end of which is immersed in liquid. I
make this bell of a diameter at the bottom considerably greater than the discharge
pipe and taper it upwards to a smaller diameter at the level of the upper mouth
f the pipe, above which it is completed in the form of a dome.
.
To the upper mouth of the discharge pipe I apply an adjutage or mouth piece of
the following description.
Internally it has the form of a frustrum of a hollow cone having its upper mouth as
large as the discharge pipe and its lower mouth of less diameter. The upper edge of
this adjutage is level for about one quarter of its circumference and for the rest of its
circumference is made of a lower level being about th of an inch lower at each
extremity and sloping down to a depth of about of an inch at its middle. In
the central line of this deepest part of the month a portion of the conical wall of the
adjutage is prolonged downwards in the form of a spout, and I prefer to perforate
this prolonged part, so that, when liquid begins to flow over the lowest part of the
edge of the adjutage, some of it flows down on the outside as well as on the inside of
the spout. The effect of this form of adjutage is that a very small overflow, in fact a
mere succession of drops expels a sufficient quantity of the air contained in the
discharge pipe and bell to cause the level of the liquid within the bell to rise; this rise
increases the overflow into the discharge pipe and expels a further quantity of air,
which again causes a still larger rise and overflow and thus brings the siphon into
full action.
Besides employing a bell and an adjutage such as I have described, I find it in many
cases advantageous to provide the outlet mouth of the discharge pipe with an appliance
for facilitating the action of a small overflow in expelling the air.
For this purpose, I cut at the lower mouth of the discharge pipe several small
notches the inner edge of each notch being sharp as a chisel, and the outer side of the
material of the pipe where the notch occurs sloping outwards and upwards.
When a little air is expelled by a small overflow of liquid into the discharge pipe,
it finds its way through one or other of these notches and bubbles up through the
liquid in which the lower mouth of the pipe is immersed. The air being thus
discharged outside the pipe the pressure within the pipe and bell is so far reduced that
the liquid rises within the bell and overflows in larger quantity into the discharge
pipe, thus producing the action above stated.
Fig. 1 of the accompanying drawings is a vertical section of a siphon according to
my invention. Fig. 2 is a sectional plan. Figs. 3 and 4 are respectively a side view
and a section of the lower end of the discharge pipe shewn to an enlarged scale. The
siphon consists of the outer limb or bell A which is contracted and domed at the
top, and the inner limb B which preferably, as shewn in Fig. 2, is set somewhat

page_text: eccentric in A in order to give ample room for upward flow of liquid on the side
where it first flows over the lip of the adjutage.
The outer limb or bell is kept in position by three wings C projecting from the
inner limb. The adjutage D is of conical form, a portion d of its upper edge
extending through a third or a fourth part of the circumference is level and the
remainder is made somewhat lower, sloping down to its deepest part in the middle
opposite the higher portion. In order to set the higher portion d level a gauge pin d¹
is provided on the opposite side of the adjutage.
On that side of the adjutage where the edge is lowest a portion of the cone is carried
down as a spout d' preferably perforated as shewn at d. At the lower edge of the
limb B are cut several notches 6, the metal in each notch being cut to chisel shape so
as to present a sharp edge on the inside.
Having now particularly described and ascertained the nature of this inven-
tion and in what manner the same is to be performed, I declare that what I
claim is :-
1. In combination with the inner limb of a bell siphon an adjutage constructed and
operating substantially as described.
2. Providing notches in the lower edge of the descending limb of a siphon,
substantially as and for the purpose set forth.
3. An intermittent siphon consisting of the bell A, the pipe B with its adjutage D
and its notches b, arranged and operating substantially as described.
Dated this 31st day of May 1889.
ABEL & IMRAY,
Agents for the Applicant.