Improvements in or relating to Heat-accumulators for Steam Boilers.
Year: 1898

page_text: Date of Application, 14th June, 1898-Accepted, 8th Oct.,
1898
COMPLETE SPECIFICATION.
Improvements in or relating to Heat-accumulators for Steam
Boilers.
A communication from WASILY KOUZNEZOFF, of Miasnizkaja Haus, Woronina,
Moscow, in the Empire of Russia, Engineer..
I, PAUL ALEXANDER BOULANGER, of Sparrow Wick House, Mundon, in the
County of Essex, Gentleman, 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:-
This invention has reference to improvements in “heat accumulators" of the
kind described in the Specification of prior Letters Patent No. 25756 of 1896
granted to W. Kouznezoff, its object being to enable the accumulator to operate
automatically.
An automatic accumulator of the kind hereinafter described does not in any
way complicate existing feed apparatus, to which it can be added; nor does it
prevent the existing apparatus from being operated independently of the
accumulator in the ordinary manner if desired.
In the accompanying drawings
Figure 1 is a side elevation partly in section, showing a portion of the fire-box
end of a locomotive boiler with an accumulator and its appurtenances applied to
it according to the present invention,
Figure 2 is a rear view of the boiler partly in section on the line 2--2 of
Figure 1.
Figure 3 is a diagrammatic side elevation of a locomotive fitted with an alter-
native arrangement of accumulators in the manner hereinafter explained,
Figure 4 being a transverse section on the line 4-4 of Figure 3.
Like letters indicate like parts throughout the drawings.
With reference first to Figures 1 and 2, it will be seen that on the boiler A
is mounted the accumulator B, a vessel for accumulating, under the circum-
stances detailed in the Specification of the aforesaid prior Letters Patent, a
reserve of water at high temperature for use when the engine ordinarily would
be pressed for steam. C is an injector of any convenient construction, arranged
to feed the boiler from the usual sources in the usual manner.
D is a casing containing four valves E, F, G, H. Two of the valves, E and F,
are carried on the same spindle J; the valve F controls the principal supply of
steam to the injector, taken from the top of the accumulator B by way of a pipe K
which extends therefrom as illustrated and opens into the casing 1) below the
seating D5 of the valve; the companion valve E which operates simultaneously
with the valve F and takes its bearing on the seating D¹ in the casing controls
another supply of steam to the injector by way of the tubes D2, D3, D4 which
lead to the injector from the steam space of the boiler. The combination of the

page_text: valves E F and spindle J constitutes a duplex valve permitting simultaneous
control of both the supplies of steam to the injector.
In order that the major portion of the steam supply to the injector may be
derived not from the boiler but from the accumulator, the amount of opening
provided for the passage of steam directly from the boiler to the injector should be
less than is customary; the opening may or may not be provided with a valve.
In the example illustrated this opening is controlled by a valve G having its
seating at the junction of the tubes D³, D³.
The remaining valve, which is lettered H, takes its seating upon that end of
the pipe K which opens into the casing D, and serves to shut off communication
between the accumulator and the pipe 1 leading to the injector, or to regulate
when necessary the flow of steam from the pipe K to the pipe D independently
of its regulation by the valve E before referred to.
The valve E and that portion of the casing 1) which contains it is the valve
which ordinarily would be employed in the situation of the valve G to control the
issue of steam to the injector in the ordinary manner; to apply the heat accumu-
lator to an engine thus fitted it is only necessary to put the valve E in the position
in which it is at present shown, and to insert between it and the boiler the
remainder of the casing 1) containing the valves F G and H.
Within the accumulator B is a water-controlled valve L operated by a float M
so as to automatically stop water from flowing out at the upper part of the accumu-
lator to the injector by way of the pipe K. In the example illustrated the float
is carried by an arm 1 pivotted in the end of the accumulator and connected by
a rod L' with the valve L. The arm M is fixed upon the spindle Me which forms its
pivot and is extended through the side of a cap B' at one end of the accumulator,
so as to operate by means of an arm M³ and a rod M* a rocking lever N N
pivotted within the cab, one arm N¹ of the rocking lever being moved over a
graduated scale O by the float M in the rise and fall of the latter with the
variation of water-level in the accumulator, and thus enabling the driver to ascer-
tain at any moment the level of the water therein. Instead of the moving index-
lever just described, gauge-glasses, gauge-cocks or other devices capable of afford-
ing a like indication may be employed.
A pipe P in which is a valve P₁ affords communication between the bottom
of the interior of the accumulator and a point within the boiler below the
intended lowest working level of water in the latter, say within four inches of
the top of the fire-box, in a railway locomotive boiler of the ordinary English
type and size. Q is a pipe in which is a valve Q affording communication
between the upper portion of the interior of the accumulator and a point within
the boiler situated at about say seven inches above the top of the fire-box, in a
boiler of the size above mentioned. This pipe is hereinafter termed the
equalising pipe."
61
To ensure the automatic operation of the apparatus the valve G is so set to
admit boiler steam to the injector C, the quantity of steam thus admitted being
only a portion of that which is required for operating the injector, the remainder
and larger portion being derived, upon the simultaneous opening of the valves E
and F, from the accumulator by way of the valve E, the accumulator being
assumed for the purpose of this explanation, to be empty of water. The subse-
quent operation of the injector under the action of the supply of steam derived
from the two sources aforesaid is readily controllable by the operation of the
duplex valve E FJ alone without the necessity for interference with the
valves G and H. The operation of the injector consequent upon the opening of
the duplex valve raises the water level in the boiler A and as soon as the water
thus supplied to the boiler reaches the lower end of the equalising pipe Q, the
valves QP being open, (the latter only slightly so, to check any tendency of
the water to return from the accumulator under slight or momentary variations
of pressure in the boiler), the continued operation of the injector will reduce
the pressure of steam within the accumulator B as compared with that existing

page_text: within the boiler A, the latter. pressure then causing hot water from the boiler
to ascend through the pipes P and Q into the accumulator which it will fill. By
the time that the water has risen sufficiently high in the accumulator to charge it
fully the float M will be raised to the highest limit of its travel into the upper
one of the two positions indicated by dotted lines, carrying with it the valve L
and shutting off the principal supply of steam to the injector C which as before
stated is derived from the accumulator thereby stopping the issue of steam from
the latter and also the rise of heated water thereinto. The action of the injector
may be continued if the feed is to be maintained, with the aid of steam from the
boiler alone by way of the valve G; afterwards the injector may be stopped
when necessary.
As soon as the water level in the boiler A falls below the lower end of the
equalising pipe Q the steam above the surface of that water has free access to
the upper portion of the interior of the accumulator B, and renders the pressure
therein equal to that in the boiler; the heated water stored in the accumulator
consequently passes down the pipe P back from the accumulator B into the
boiler A, the, float M falling with it and re-opening the valve L so as to put the
accumulator into readiness for further charging as soon as the injector is again
operated.
$
The water-controlled valve may be dispensed with, in which case care must be
taken to stop, by hand, the flow of steain by way of the pipe K as soon as the
accumulator is full.
Since the feeding of the boiler by the injector and the automatic filling of the
accumulator are carried out mostly while the boiler is not being hard driven,
the operation untilises heat which otherwise would be wasted; conversely, the
automatic return of the heated water into the boiler takes place when most needed,
that is to say at times when the boiler is being hard driven and when consequently
the water level tends to fall.
Although an injector C hereinbefore described by way of example is preferred,
any exhauster capable of exhausting steam and air from the upper part of the
accumulator through the pipe K for the purpose described may be substituted;
in such case the steam exhausted thereby might be delivered into the side-tanks
or tender tanks instead of being employed in the feed-water injector.
In the case of boilers which have no room for the heat accumulator on the top,
and also in other cases when convenient, the accumulation of heat may be carried
out with the aid of cylindrical tanks 13 arranged in the manner illustrated in
Figures 3 and 4 on both sides of the boiler A, the tanks lying between two
horizontal planes one of which is on a level with the top of the cylindrical portion
of the boiler A and the other on a level with the lowest limit to which the water
in the boiler is to be worked. Both the tanks B are connected with the boiler
by pipes B2 B3, the pipes B³ connecting the tops of the tanks with the steam space
of the boiler, and the pipes B3 connecting the bottoms of the tanks with the
water space of the boiler. This construction permits of a great increase in the
water capacity of the steam generator, thus increasing the efficiency of the boiler.
The filling of the tanks B with heated water from the boiler A and the passing of
the stored water back into the boiler will occur automatically.
Having now particularly described and ascertained the nature of the said inven-
tion and in what manner the same is to be performed, I declare that what I
claim is:-
1. The combination with a boiler of an automatically-operating "heat
accumulator."
2. In an automatically-operating "heat accumulator” an equalizing-pipe
arranged to control in the manner described the charging and discharging of the
accumulator.
3. The combination with a boiler of a "heat accumulator" an exhauster a

page_text: water-controlled valve between the exhauster and the accumulator and an
equalizing-pipe all arranged and operating substantially as and for the purpose
described.
4. In an automatically-operating "heat accumulator" the combination with a
float controlling a valve between the exhauster and the accumulator of an indicator
operated by the float.
5. In an automatically-operating "heat accumulator" means to simultaneously
control by a single action the aforesaid two supplies of steam to the injector.
6. In an automatically-operating "heat accumulator " a duplex valve such
as E FJ substantially as and for the purpose described.
'
7. In an automatically-operating "heat accumulator" the combination with
the duplex valve described of valves G and H for the purpose described.
8. The complete automatically-operating "heat accumulator" substantially as
described and illustrated in Figures 1 and 2 of the accompanying drawings.
Dated this 14th day of June 1898
BOULT & WADE,
Agents for the Applicant.