Improvements in Salt Evaporators.
Year: 1894

page_text: Date of Application, 11th Sept., 1894-Accepted, 13th Oct., 1894
COMPLETE SPECIFICATION.
Improvements in Salt Evaporators.
I, THOMAS CRANEY, of 624 Harrison Street, Bay City, Michigan, United
States of America, Manufacturer 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 :-
The invention consists in the peculiar construction, arrangement and combination
of the heating chamber, the settling chamber, the evaporating chamber and the
vacuum making apparatus connected with said evaporating chamber.
Further in the settling leg applied to the settling chamber and the conveyor
connecting with the foot of the said leg, and further in the peculiar construction,
combination and arrangement of the various parts, all as more fully hereinafter
described.
In the drawings,
Fig. 1 represents a vertical, central section through my improved grainer, partly
in elevation.
Fig. 2 is a horizontal section thereof through line xx, the discharge pipe from
the condenser being omitted.
Fig. 3 is an enlarged side elevation of the foot of the settling leg, and the
conveyor tube.
Fig. 4 is a plan view partly in section showing the supporting frame and tension
device for the upper end of the conveyor.
Fig. 5 is an enlarged elevation of the manhole cover.
Fig. 6 is a vertical, central longitudinal section therethrough, and
Fig. 7 is a diagram elevation.
A is the cylindrical casing in the lower end of which are secured the heads B
and C.
D is a large central tube or passage between the heads, and E are a series of
smaller tubes arranged around the central tube and extending between the heads.
Between these two heads is formed the heating chamber; steam being admitted
thereto at any suitable point will entirely fill the space around the pipes, finding
exit through the drain pipe F at the bottom thereof.
Secured to the lower end of the casing A is a tapering casing G forming below
the heating chamber the settling chamber H.
1 is the evaporating chamber formed above the heating chamber, and having
the conical cap or top J, which connects into the vapor pipe K leading to any
suitable condenser L.
The exit pipe F passes through the settling chamber H and to the outside
through a pipe M in the side thereof, the two being connected by a bent flexible
metallic connecting pipe N which takes up any expansion or contraction between
the parts, and at all times maintains a tight joint without the necessity of packing,
which would be required in an ordinary slip joint.
The settling chamber H terminates in a settling leg O, which at its lower end
connects with the inclined conveyor tube P, preferably rectangular in cross section,
having a suitable rail P' for the upper run of the conveyor chain, not shown.
This conveyor chain passes at its lower end over a sprocket wheel Q and at
its upper end over a sprocket wheel Q' which is journalled in the sliding frame R,
which is adjusted by means of the screw S, the frame R being supported on the
stationary frame S¹.

page_text: The lower end of the conveyor chute is provided with a semi-circular cap or
cover T, shown in Fig. 3.
Half bearings a are formed in the lower end of the conveyor chute, and corre-
sponding half bearings in the cap T for the shaft c of the sprocket wheel Q, so
that by removing this cap or cover the sprocket wheel may be removed and any
sediment in the lower end of the chute thoroughly cleaned out.
To further assist in cleaning the apparatus, I arrange the inlet nipples Tat
opposite side of the lower end of the elevator chute controlled by valves T'. At
suitable points in the casing, as shown by dotted lines, are manholes U provided with
suitable manhole covers U¹. These manhole covers are provided with central
lugs d apertured to receive bolts e which pass through the clamping leverf hinged
to lugs g formed upon the casing of the man-hole frame. In this manner it will be
seen that the manhole is pivoted to the clamping lever and may be opened by
swinging the lever on its pivot and at the same time perfectly adjust itself to a
seat. The outer end of the lever is bifurcated to receive the swinging bolt h
provided with a clamping nut i.
The parts being thus constructed the apparatus is supplied through the supply
pipe with a suitable amount of brine up to the level shown in the evaporating
chamber 1, the height of the liquid being determined by the gage V.
Steam being admitted into the heating chamber and the condenser being set in
operation, a vacuum is formed in the evaporating chamber, the brine is boiled, the
salt crystals. being formed and settling into the settling chamber H, thence
through the leg O to the foot thereof and carried by the conveyor to the top
where it is delivered into any suitable receptacle.
The arrangement of the small circulating tubes E and the large circulating
tube D is such that the brine will circulate through these pipes, being heated as it
passes upward, and will pass downward through the tube D in the center, thus
maintaining a constant circulation and ensuring the perfect heating of the brine
with rapid evaporation of the water.
Another important feature of my invention is the condenser which is Bo
constructed as to perform its work with a minimum of power. The conical
condensing chamber L provided with a water discharge pipe m from the lower
end thereof through which the water flows, the lower end of the pipe m being
sealed in any suitable manner such as in the tank n.
In the previous state of the art such a condenser has been used but in connection
with an elevated tank, such as shown in dotted lines at o, in which case the cold
water for the condenser was first pumped into the elevated tank, and from thence
fed by gravity into the condenser, the work required of the pump being to
elevate the water from the source, such as a suitable well to the water level of
the tank.
In place of this arrangement I use the construction shown in Fig. 7 in which
p, is a suitable pump, for instance a centrifugal pump as shown in the drawing,
focated in a well below the condenser.
9 is a discharge pipe from the pump leading directly into the upper end of the
condensing chamber and subjected to the low pressure therein. Now after the
vacuum is formed in the evaporating chamber, which may be done by any suitable
vacuum pump feed water is supplied through the pipe q into the condenser, the
vapor from the evaporating chamber will be condensed by the inflowing water and
flow with such water through the discharge pipe m.
As the upper end of the discharge pipe is subjected to the low pressure in
the vacuum chamber or condenser, the atmospheric pressure will tend to raise the
water in the pipe and thus the work required of the pump will be only sufficient
to elevate the water from this elevated level of the fluid in the pipe to a point
where the same enters the condensing chamber, thus reducing the work of the
pump to a minimum. The centrifugal pump I have shown is provided with a
vertical shaft at the top of which is a suitable pulleys through which the motion
may be communicated to the pump through any suitable source of power.

page_text: Having now particularly described and ascertained the nature of my said inven-
tion, and in what manner the same is to be performed, I declare that what I
claim is :
The combination with the casing A, of the escape pipe K leading from the top.
thereof, the condenser L into the top of which the pipe enters, the vertical
discharge pipe m leading from the bottom of the condenser, a water seal at the
lower end of the discharge pipe, an unbroken or continuous supply pipe q leading
into the top of the condenser, its lower end extending down to a point near the
base of the apparatus and located in a suitable water supply, and a pump at or near-
the lower end of the supply pipe for forcing the water through the same.
Dated this 25th day of July 1894.
THOMAS CRANEY.
Haseltine, Lake & Co.,
45, Southampton Buildings, London, W.C., Agents for the Applicant..