Improvements in Structures and Apparatus for Drying Bricks.
Year: 1893

page_text: COMPLETE SPECIFICATION.
Improvements in Structures and Apparatus for Drying Bricks.
I, MAX WOLFF, of No. 3152 Calumet Avenue, in the City of Chicago, County
of Cook, State of Illinois, 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:-
My invention relates to structures and apparatus for drying bricks of the kind
made by ordinary brick machines or by hand and which are introduced into the
drying kiln in a moist or plastic condition. The object of the invention is to
produce a successful hot air drier for drying bricks embodying the general
principles of the most approved form of hot air lumber driers but so altered as to
adapt it for the peculiar requirements of bricks, the fact being that the most
successful hot air lumber drier is incapable of drying bricks.
In its general character the brick drier herein shown and described comprises
an oblong drying chamber provided with inclined longitudinal tracks on which
run cars carrying the bricks to be dried, piled thereon with openings between
them, and an air-heating chamber arranged beneath the drying chamber and
containing steam pipes for heating the air which is to dry the bricks. Car loads
of bricks are introduced at one end of the drying chamber and are, at intervals of
time, moved forward in the chamber as they are gradually dried, others that have
been dried being at the same time discharged at the opposite end of the drier.
The air outlet of the drying chamber is a chimney, usually placed at the end of
the drier at which the car loads are received.
In successful lumber driers the current of hot air through the drying chamber
is most effective when it is mainly horizontal, and it is a distinctive advantage in
the drying of lumber that the moisture-laden air on its passage to the chimney
shall pass through the piles of lumber nearest the chimney and last admitted. I
have found that the successful drying of bricks requires the direct reversal of
these conditions and also that a much greater amount of heat or of hot air is
needful in brick drying than in successful lumber drying.
For the purpose of securing the desired modification in the direction of the air
currents, and of more effectively, uniformly and thoroughly heating the air, I
provide, first, a heating chamber for the steam pipes which extends beneath nearly
the whole length of the drying chamber and is open throughout its length at the
top, and secondly, means for introducing the air to be heated in subdivided bodies
at numerous points beneath the heating pipes and through substantially the entire
length of the air-heating chamber; while for the purpose of preventing the
moisture-laden air from coming into so intimate contact with the moister bricks
near the receiving end of the chamber as to harmfully soften them, I provide an
enlarged passage beneath the cars or brick piles at that part of said chamber.
These features of construction and the resulting mode of operation of the
invention will be better understood from the accompanying drawings and the
following description thereof.
In said drawings,
Figures 1 and 2 together constitute a longitudinal section of the drier and its
subjacent air-heating chamber; Figure showing the receiving end and Figure 2
the discharging end of the apparatus.
Figure 3 is a longitudinal section, on a larger scale, of that part of the air-
heating chamber which is beneath the discharging end of the drier.
Figure 4 is a horizontal section of a portion of the drying chamber, showing in
plan view one part of the heating apparatus and the tracks and general structure
of the bottom of the drying chamber.

page_text: Figure is a vertical, transverse section in the live 5-5 of Figure 1, taken just
inside the inner wall of the chimney and looking towards the outer wall of said
chimney.
Figure 6 is a vertical, longitudinal section, enlarged, of a portion of the floor of
the air-heating chamber, showing the continuous inlet passage for the air and the
arrangement of openings from said passage into the space occupied by the steam
heating pipes.
Figure 7 is an enlarged transverse section of the heating chamber, showing
details of construction by which the steam heating pipes are made always accessible
for prompt and convenient repairs.
Figure 8 is a plan view showing a desired arrangement of the steam pipes and
headers of a successful air-heating apparatus.
Figure 9 is a side view of a detail of the construction shown in Figure 8.
A (Figures 1 and 2) represents a drying chamber which will usually be 100 feet
or more in length, and B a subjacent air-heating chamber extending nearly the
entire length of the former or say about three-fourths the length thereof, measuring
from the discharging end of said drying chamber. The chamber A has any
desired number of rail tracks A' arranged lengthwise thereof, as indicated in
Figures 4 and 5, said tracks being somewhat inclined downwardly from the receiving
to the discharging end of the chamber in the usual way, to facilitate the movement
by hand of cars or trucks thereon loaded with bricks. Over the heating chamber
said tracks A¹ are supported upon longitudinal beams A2 which rest upon
uprights C that rise from longitudinal sills D. The entire space between each
pair of rails A¹ forming a track over the heating chamber is open, only that fixed
cross beams connect the beams A2 at the ends of the sections of the heating pipes,
and readily removable cross-braces E are let into said beams A2 over said pipes.
Between adjacent tracks are fixed floors F upon which the workmen may walk in
passing through the drying chamber or in moving the car loads of bricks forwardly
thereon. The ceiling A³ of the drying chamber is substantially parallel with the
tracks A¹. Each end of the drying chamber A is closed by a number of vertically
sliding, counterweighted doors G severally appropriated to open and close the
passage for cars upon the track over which it is placed. H is a chimney for the
discharge of air from the drier. As here shown and as preferably constructed,
said chimney is situated at the extreme receiving end of the drying chamber and
opens broadly from the ceiling of the latter. When thus placed, vertically sliding
doors Gare employed in extension of the inner vertical wall of the chimney and
arranged to rise therein, being counterweighted like the doors G, as for example,
by ropes (Figure 5) attached to their upper ends and trained over suitable
pulleys and provided with suitable weights at any convenient point either within or
without the chimney.
The air-heating chamber B is provided throughout its length with a floor B¹
having numerous openings through it for the inlet of air to be heated. It is con-
veniently made of transverse boards placed apart upon the longitudinal sills D,
between which sills are provided longitudinal air passages D'. These main air
passages D' are open to receive air from outside the drier at the discharging end
of the latter, preferably by means of a prolongation B2 of the pit which forms the
air heating chamber, said prolongation of the pit forming substantially a cold air
"header" for the supply of cold or outer air to each of the various passages D
beneath the heating chamber. Beginning near the air induction end of said heating
chamber, the floor boards b are separated from each other by spaces which
desirably increase gradually in width towards the opposite end of said floor, as
clearly indicated in Figure 6.
Above the floor 13' is placed the steam heating apparatus I, the pipes of said
apparatus being arranged lengthwise of the air-heating chamber and between the
posts CC which support the two rails A¹ of each track, as indicated in Figures 4
and 7. The heating apparatus is composed of pipes of convenient length and
occupies substantially the entire length of the chamber or pit B. While other

page_text: In
constructions than that shown will serve, I point out, as a convenient. and pre-
ferred construction and arrangement of the steam heating pipe system, that more
particularly indicated in plan in Figure 8, and in side elevation in Figure 3.
this system I are transverse supply headers, 12 transverse return headers, and
I groups of return-bend coils connected into both 1' and 12, as shown in side view
in Figures 1, 2 and 3. I is a main supply pipe connected centrally with each of
the supply headers 1', and I is a receiving header connected with each of the
return headers 12 by a pipe 1' having a valve 17. J is a pump connected with the
receiving header 15 by a pipe J' having a valve J2, and J³ is a pipe connecting
the pump J with the boiler, not shown. I is a pipe connected by branches with
each of the supply headers I¹ and also leading into the receiving header I' through
the valve 1, and 10 is a blow-off pipe leading from the receiving header I' to the open
air and provided with a valve I'¹¹ In the heating apparatus provided with the
connections above pointed out any desired pressure may be maintained within the
coils and the water of condensation returned to the boiler, so that practically no
waste of heat is suffered. When the apparatus is to be repaired or closed down,
the entire contents may be blown out through the blow-off valve 1". In the
regular operation of the system the valve 1° will of course be closed.
The air heating chamber is desirably provided in its otherwise closed end wall B³
with a door B extending across its receiving end for occasional use.
The drying chamber is also desirably provided with a shed K at its receiving
end and a similar shed K' at its discharging end, the former serving to protect car
loads of brick waiting to be inserted into the drier, and the latter as a tempering
chamber for the car loads last discharged, in which they may be protected from
winds and rain and allowed to cool more slowly and therefore with less liability
to check. Said shed K¹ will be enclosed at its sides and will preferably have doors
at its outer end.
L is one of the numerous cars employed for transporting the bricks through the
drying chamber, said chamber being full of cars when in complete operation.
These cars fill the drying chamber laterally with the exception of very narrow
spaces between them, and their preferably slatted bottoms of the usual construction
are sufficiently elevated above the tracks to afford room beneath them, when
between the receiving end of the drier and the adjacent end of the air-heating
chamber, to allow free passage of moisture-laden air beneath them on its way to
the chimney. Said cars are also of the usual "double-deck " construction by
which the bricks may be piled upon them high enough to only well clear the
ceiling of the drying chamber, said bricks being piled openly so as to afford
numerous spaces or passages throughout the car load to allow the hot air to come
into contact with all the individual bricks in the load.
In the operation of the drier the end doors of the drying chamber A are closed
and the doors G' at the inner margin of the chimney are lowered to about the
level of the bottoms of the cars so as to form an outlet passage for moisture-
laden air adjacent to the floor of the drying chamber. The door B at the
receiving end of the air-heating chamber is also closed and the air to be heated
finds ingress through the longitudinal passages D' and the vertical passages or
openings through the floor B' of the air-heating chamber. By means of the
great extent of the heating apparatus and the distribution of the openings in
the floor beneath all parts of that apparatus, all the air admitted is caused to rise
vertically in contact with the heating pipes and therefore becomes highly and
thoroughly heated. Its ascent into the drying chamber is facilitated by the
entire absence of flooring beneath the cars, while its ascent between the cars is
largely prevented by the presence of the flooring F between the adjacent tracks
and beneath the spaces between the cars. The air therefore continues to ascend
in a substantially vertical direction through the car loads of bricks with but
slight or slow movement toward the exit end of the drying chamber, and as it
becomes burdened with moisture taken from the bricks, it descends to give place to
hotter and dryer air, and in this condition finds its way out of the drying chamber

page_text: mainly through the space provided beneath the cars or trucks. The newly
introduced car loads of brick are, therefore, not further softened by the passage of
moist air through them but are slowly heated and put in readiness to be subjected
to the higher heat which they encounter as they pass later over the air heating
coils. The cross-braces E, being held loosely in gains cut in the track beams A²,
are easily lifted out of place over any section of the heating apparatus requiring to
be repaired and an entire coil may be disconnected from the headers and bodily
lifted out without disconnecting its members. The work of repairing may therefore
be entirely done outside the pit and manifestly with great convenience and facility,
a consideration of much importance in view of the extent of the heating apparatus
and the liability of some portion thereof to require attention. When the repairs
are completed and the section returned, the renovable cross-beams E are replaced
and the tracks are again thereby firmly supported ready for the heavy loads which
they are required to carry.
The construction set forth is found to be highly effective for rapid and successful
brick drying by hot air and its efficiency is due to the distribution of the incoming
air beneath all points of extended heating apparatus and the unobstructed passage
afforded to the air currents directly and vertically into the superjacent car loads
of openly-piled bricks. In the location of the chimney at one end of the drying
chamber this result is also in part produced by the provision of sufficient space
beneath the trick piles through which the moisture-laden air may escape to the
chimney without further softening the newly introduced bricks, already usually as
moist as they may be and stand.
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:
:-
1: In a hot-air brick drier, the combination with the drying chamber provided
with track rails for cars carrying bricks to be dried, of the subjacent air heating
chamber extending the greater part of the length of the drying chamber and open
substantially throughout its length to the latter, steam heating pipes occupying the
air heating chamber and air passages beneath the air heating chamber having
openings into all parts of the latter, whereby the air is more thoroughly heated,
and is caused to rise directly into the brick piles, substantially as set forth.
2: In combination with the drying chamber, the subjacent air heating chamber
having a floor provided with numerous small openings leading from main air
passages beneath it; longitudinal track rails for cars carrying the bricks to be
dried; and floors between adjacent tracks, the spaces between the rails of the same
track being open, and steam pipes arranged lengthwise of the drier and beneath the
said open spaces.
3: The combination with the drying chamber A and air heating chamber B, of
the floor B having numerous distributed openings leading from main air supply
passages D', posts C rising from the floor B₁ and carrying beams A², track rails A¹
on said beams, floors F between tracks, movable cross-pieces E between the rails
of the same track, and steam pipes arranged lengthwise of the drier beneath the
removable cross pieces, substantially as described.
Signed at Chicago, Illinois, this 15th day of April 1893.
MAX WOLFF.
D. Young & Co.,
11 & 12, Southampton Buildings, London, W.C.,
Agents for the Applicant.