IMPROVEMENTS IN GAS HOLDERS, GAS PURIFIERS, AND OTHER APPARATUS USED IN THE MANUFACTURE AND DISTRIBUTION OF GAS FOR ILLUMINATION
Year: 1868

page_text: LETTERS PATENT to William Henry Westwood, of the Firm of
Westwood and Wrights, of Dudley, in the County of Worcester,
Manufacturers, for the Invention of "IMPROVEMENTS IN GAS HOLDERS,
GAS PURIFIERS, AND OTHER APPARATUS USED IN THE MANUFACTURE AND
DISTRIBUTION OF GAS FOR ILLUMINATION."
Sealed the 24th November 1868, and dated the 10th June 1868.
PROVISIONAL SPECIFICATION left by the said William Henry West-
wood at the Office of the Commissioners of Patents, with his
Petition, on the 10th June 1868.
I, WILLIAM HENRY WESTWOOD, of the Firm of Westwood and
Wrights, of Dudley, in the County of Worcester, Manufacturers, do
hereby declare the nature of the said Invention for "IMPROVEMENTS IN
GAS HOLDERS, GAS PURIFIERS, AND OTHER APPARATUS USED IN THE MANUFACTURE
AND DISTRIBUTION OF GAS FOR ILLUMINATION," to be as follows:-
Gas holders, gas purifiers, and other apparatus used in the manu-
facture and distribution of gas for illumination as ordinarily made are

page_text: liable to corrosion and decay by the action of the sulphur, naphthaline,
and other matters contained in the gas, and the ordinary method of
making the joints of the said gas holders, purifiers, and apparatus is
so imperfect as to occasion great loss of gas by leakage at the said joints.
My Invention has for its object the prevention of the corrosion and
leakage of gas holders, gas purifiers, and other apparatus used in the
manufacture and distribution of gas for illumination.
My Invention consists, firstly, in coating or covering with lead or an
alloy of lead the wrought or cast iron of which the said gas holders, gas
purifiers, and apparatus are made, so as thereby to protect the said
wrought or cast iron from the corrosive action of the sulphur and other
matters contained in the gas.
My Invention consists, secondly, in the following method of forming
the joints of gas holders and apparatus used in the manufacture and
distribution of illuminating gas composed of plates or sheets of
iron. When the plates have not been coated all over with lead or an
alloy of lead I coat the edges and those portions of the sides near the
edges with lead or an easily fused metal or alloy. The coating may.
be effected either by immersion of each edge of the plates two or three
inches deep in a bath of the melted metal or alloy, or the said metal
or alloy may be applied in any convenient manner. After the plates
have been put together and rivetted I solder the overlapping edges
together either by fusing the metal or alloy on the edges of the plates
by a gas or other blow pipe, or by the use of solder and a soldering iron,
or by any other convenient process; there is thus produced a perfectly
continuous metallic junction which effectually prevents leakage. When
the plates have been coated with lead or an alloy of lead their edges
may be soldered in a similar manner. Where the plates are neither
wholly coated nor coated on their edges I make the junctions of the
plates tight in either of the following ways, that is to say, I either
put a tape or strip of soft metal or alloy between the edges of the
plates and parallel thereto, which tape or strip is compressed between
the edges of the plates when they are rivetted together, and forms a
gas-tight joint; or I put one or more wires of soft metal or alloy
between the edges of the plates; or I coat those portions of the plates
which come into contact when the plates are rivetted together with a
coating of soft metal or alloy and place one or two hard metallic wires
between the plates. When the said plates are rivetted together the

page_text: SPECIFICATION in pursuance of the conditions of the Letters Patent,
filed by the said William Henry Westwood in the Great Seal Patent
Office on the 4th December 1868.
TO ALL TO WHOM THESE PRESENTS SHALL COME, I, WILLIAM
HENRY WESTWood, of the Firm of Westwood and Wrights, of Dudley,
in the County of Worcester, Manufacturers, send greeting.
WHEREAS Her most Excellent Majesty Queen Victoria, by Her
Letters Patent, bearing date the Tenth day of June, in the year of
our Lord One thousand eight hundred and sixty-eight, in the thirty-
first year of Her reign, did, for Herself, Her heirs and successors,
give and grant unto me, the said William Henry Westwood, Her special
licence that I, the said William Henry Westwood, my executors,
administrators, and assigns, or such others as I, the said William Henry
Westwood, 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 "IMPROVEMENTS IN GAS HOLDERS, GAS PURIFIERS, AND OTHER APPARATUS
USED IN THE MANUFACTURE AND DISTRIBUTION OF GAS FOR ILLUMINATION," upon
the condition (amongst others) I, that the said William Henry West-
wood, 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 immediately
after the date of the said Letters Patent.
NOW KNOW YE, that I, the said William Henry Westwood, do
hereby declare the nature of the said Invention, and in what manner the
same is to be performed, to be particularly described and ascertained in
and by the following statement thereof, that is to say :-
Gas holders, gas purifiers, and other apparatus used in the manu-
facture and distribution of gas for illumination as ordinarily made are

page_text: liable to corrosion and decay by the action of the sulphur, naphthaline,
and other matters contained in the gas, and the ordinary method of
making the joints of the said gas holders, purifiers, and apparatus is
so imperfect as to occasion great loss of gas by leakage at the said joints.
My Invention has for its object the prevention of the corrosion and
leakage of gas holders, gas purifiers, and other apparatus used in the
manufacture and distribution of gas for illumination.
My Invention consists, firstly, in coating or covering with lead or an
alloy of lead the wrought or cast iron of which the said gas holders,
gas purifiers, and apparatus are made so as thereby to protect the said
wrought or cast iron from the corrosive action of the sulphur and
other matters contained in the gas. I prefer to effect the coating by
immersing or partly immersing the plates, sheets, or other parts in a
bath of melted lead or alloy of lead, or other convenient means may be
employed.
My Invention consists, secondly, in the following methods of forming
the joints of gas holders and apparatus used in the manufacture and
distribution of illuminating gas composed of plates or sheets of iron.
When the plates have not been coated all over with lead or an alloy
of lead I coat the edges and those portions of the sides near the edges
with lead or an easily fused metal or alloy. The coating may be effected
either by immersion of each edge of the plates two or three inches deep
in a bath of the melted metal or alloy, or the said metal or alloy may
be applied in any convenient manner. After the plates have been put
together and rivetted I solder the overlapping edges together either by
fusing the metal or alloy on the edges of the plates by a gas or other
blowpipe, or by the use of solder and a soldering iron, or by any other
convenient process.
The manner in which I prefer to carry this part of my Invention
into practice is as follows:-The edges of the sheets or plates having
been punched are cleaned either by grinding or other mechanical means
or by chemical means, such as immersion in acid or other pickle. The
cleaned edges are afterwards coated with lead or an alloy of lead to a
breadth of about two and a half inches. The rivets to be used in
securing the coated edges of the plates together are treated and coated
with lead or an alloy of lead in a similar manner. The edges of the
sheets are next placed together and rivetted in the usual way. I next
take a blow pipe supplied with ordinary illuminating gas and a stream

page_text: of compressed atmospheric air and project the ignited mixture upon the
rivetted joints, by which means the lead or alloy of lead between the
sheets or plates of iron and also that upon the rivets is fused or melted,
and the said parts are thereby soldered together. I also take a portion
of solder, such as lead or an alloy of lead and tin in any convenient
proportions, and apply it along the edges of the sheets and rivet heads
or wherever else it may be necessary; there is thus produced a perfectly
continuous metallic junction which effectually prevents leakage. When
the plates have been wholly coated with lead or an alloy of lead according
to the first described part of my Invention their edges may be soldered
in a similar manner. In case any of the joints made and soldered
together as described become leaky or unsound they may be readily
repaired by the use of the blow pipe and solder in the manner before
described. Where the plates are neither wholly coated nor coated on
their edges I make the junctions of the plates tight in either of the
following ways, that is to say, I either put a tape or strip of soft metal
or alloy between the edges of the plates and parallel thereto, which tape
or strip is compressed between the edges of the plates when they are
rivetted together and forms a gas-tight joint; or I put one or more
wires or ropes of soft metal or alloy between the edges of the plates;
or I coat those portions of the plates which come into contact when
the plates are rivetted together with a coating of soft metal or alloy
and place one, two, or more hard metallic wires or wire ropes between
the plates. When the said plates are rivetted together the said wires
or ropes become embedded in the said soft metal and form a gas-tight
joint.
The manner in which the joints of gas holders and similar apparatus
are made will be readily understood by an examination of the accom-
panying Drawing, where Figure 1 represents a section of a joint made
according to the first described method, a, b, being the joined edges of
the sheets or plates, and c, d, the soft metal coatings; e is the rivet
for rivetting the edges a, b, together, the rivet e being coated with soft
metale; when the parts have the positions represented in Figure 1
they are ready to be soldered together.
Figure 2 represents a section of a joint made according to my
Invention in which a strip or tape of soft metal or metallic alloy is
rivetted between the edges of the plates to be joined; the soft metal

page_text: strip or tape is marked f, and the plates between which it is rivetted are
marked g, h.
Figure 3 represents a section of a joint made according to my
Invention in which a soft metallic wire or cord or wire rope marked
is rivetted between the edges of the plates k, l, to be joined.
Figure 4 represents a section of a joint made according to my
Invention in which two or more soft metallic wires or cords or wire
ropes i, i, are rivetted between the edges of the plates k, l, to be joined.
In the arrangement, Figure 3, a depression is made in the plate k in
the process of rivetting, in which the metallic wire or cord or wire rope /*
embeds itself, and in the arrangement, Figure 4, a depression is made in
each of the plates k, l, during the process of rivetting, in which
depressions the wires, cords, or wire ropes i, i, embed themselves.
Figure 5 represents a section of a joint made according to my
Invention in which two (or more) hard metallic wires, cords, or wire
ropes m, m, are embedded in a coating of soft metal or alloy marked n
on the edges of the plates k, l, to be joined. In addition to the em-
bedding of the hard metal wires in the soft metal coating n the said
coating may be fused in the manner herein-before described so as to
solder the edges together.
Having now described the nature of my Invention, and the manner
in which the same is to be performed, I wish it to be understood that
I do not limit myself to the precise details herein described and
illustrated; as the same may be varied without departing from the nature
of my Invention; but I claim as my Invention of improvements in gas
holders, gas purifiers, and other apparatus used in the manufacture and
distribution of gas for illumination,-
Firstly. Coating or covering with lead or an alloy of lead the wrought
or cast iron of which the said gas holders and like apparatus are made
for the purpose and as herein-before described.
Secondly. Making the joints of the said gas holders and like apparatus
composed of plates or sheets of iron gas-tight by coating the parts to
be joined with lead or other easily fused metal or alloy and soldering
together the overlapping edges, substantially as herein-before described
and illustrated in Figure 1 of the accompanying Drawing.
Thirdly. Making the joints of the said gas holders and like apparatus
composed of plates or sheets of iron gas-tight by means of a tape or strip

page_text: of soft metal or alloy placed between the edges of the plates to be joined,
substantially as herein-before described and illustrated in Figure 2 of the
accompanying Drawing.
Fourthly. Making the joints of gas holders and like apparatus
composed of plates or shects of iron gas-tight by placing one or more
wires, cords, or wire ropes of soft metal or alloy between the edges of
the plates to be joined, substantially as herein-before described and
illustrated in Figures 3 and 4 of the accompanying Drawing.
Lastly. Making the joints of gas holders and like apparatus composed
of plates or sheets of iron gas-tight by coating the edges of the plates
to be joined with a coating of soft metal or alloy, and embedding hard
metallic wires, cords, or wire ropes in the said soft metal coating,
whether the soft metal coating be soldered together or not, substantially
as herein-before described and illustrated in Figure 5 of the accom-
panying Drawing.
In witness whereof, I, the said William Henry Westwood, have
hereunto set my hand and seal, this Third day of December,
in the year of our Lord One thousand eight hundred and sixty-
eight.
0
Witness,
GEORGE SHAW.
WILLIAM HENRY WESTWOOD. (L.S.)