IMPROVEMENTS IN APPARATUS FOR THE MANUFACTURE OF ARTIFICIAL FUEL AND FOR OTHER SIMILAR PURPOSES
Year: 1877

page_text: LETTERS PATENT to John Henry Johnson, of 47, Lincoln's Inn Fields, in the
County of Middlesex, Gentleman, for the Invention of "IMPROVEMENTS IN
APPARATUS FOR THE MANUFACTURE OF ARTIFICIAL FUEL AND FOR OTHER
SIMILAR PURPOSES." A communication from abroad by Albert Michel Jouët
Pastré, Manager of the Société Nouvelle des Forges et Chiantiers de la Mediter-
rannée, of Paris, in the Republic of France.
Sealed the 28th August 1877, and dated the 16th March 1877.
PROVISIONAL SPECIFICATION left by the said John Henry Johnson at
the Office of the Commissioners of Patents on the 16th March 1877.
JOHN HENRY JOHNSON, of 47, Lincoln's Inn Fields, in the County of Middlesex,
Gentleman. "IMPROVEMENTS IN APPARATUS FOR THE MANUFACTURE OF ARTIFICIAL
FUEL AND FOR OTHER SIMILAR PURPOSES." A communication from abroad by
Albert Michel Jouët Pastré, Manager of the Société Nouvelle des Forges et Chantiers
de la Mediterrannée, of Paris, in the Republic of France.
This Invention relates to apparatus for the manufacture of artificial fuel in
which rotating mould tables are employed, and the blocks of fuel are produced in
succession and are being continuously ejected from the moulds, and it consists,―
1st. In the application to such apparatus of hydraulic pressure.
2nd. In the application to such apparatus of steam presses constructed upon
what is known as Mazeline's system.
3rd. In arranging compressing apparatus, when two or more rotating mould tables
are employed, so as to admit of the successive delivery of the products on one and
the same side.
In carrying out the 1st part of the Invention, the apparatus employed may be
single or double, and it is applicable to manufactured products of all dimensions.
In order to render the application of hydraulic compression practicable, it is
necessary to have a supply of water under pressure obtained from waterworks or
by means of an ordinary or specially constructed pumping arrangement.
It is preferred to employ for this purpose an arrangement similar to the apparatus
known as Mazeline's without the steam cylinder and the parts for effecting the
compression. These parts are replaced by a receiving distributor for receiving and

page_text: distributing water under a pressure which may be raised to a hundred atmospheres
or more, and supplying the water under pressure by mechanism varying according
to circumstances, and which may consist of an eccentric and levers suitably arranged
with a view to ensuring the compression being effected at the requisite time and as
often as necessary by means of a hydraulic ram.
By means of the arrangement herein-before described there may be obtained a
requisitely high or low pressure, varying according to the nature of the coal, resins,
pitch, or coal tars, or other constituents of the fuel, that is to say, according to the
composition of the material employed, the constant intensity of which pressure is in
no way diminished at the termination of the period of compression, but remains the
same for the whole duration of the manufacturing process.
In carrying out the second part of the Invention, which consists in the application
of steam presses constructed according to what is known as Mazeline's system,
a powerful pressure is produced, variable at will, according to the requirements of
the manufacture.
This part of the Invention has for its object, rendering available the advantages
of hydraulic compression without the aid of a special system of machines and pumps,
an accumulator being provided in case the said machines for making the blocks are
not situate near a supply of water under existing pressure.
The stean cylinder and the group of parts effecting the compression in the press
known as Mazeline's are replaced by a steam cylinder situate directly over the
plunger of a pump having a long stroke and in communication with the lower end
of a hydraulic press.
In descending the piston of the steam cylinder, the rod of which is formed by the
prolongation of the plunger of the pump, forces the water into the press; when it
re-ascends, the same water returns towards the pump; a valve box, herein-after
described, enables the compressing action to be maintained constant and its intensity
to be regulated at will. The steam takes effect on the upper side of the piston
only; a small steam cylinder, the piston of which is connected by a rod to the
piston of the large cylinder, and the under part of which is in constant communication
with the steam induction pipe, causes the whole system to ascend as soon as the
steam is allowed to escape from the large cylinder. The distribution of the steam is
effected in the same manner as in apparatus of the Mazeline type.
In this machine the pressure under which the block is moulded is rendered.com-
stant by means of a valve box having a safety valve with lever and counterweight;
the pressure at which this valve will rise may be adjusted at will, and the pressure
of the water in the pump cannot exceed the amount of pressure indicated by the
valve.
The volume of water delivered by the piston of the pump is calculated in such a
manner as to be more considerable than the volume which the press is capable of
containing when acting on the most compressible materials for making the blocks,
and hence it results that at each stroke of the piston, the water being inevitably
subjected to a pressure corresponding to the load of the safety valve, the latter is
lifted and a portion of the water escapes. The small quantity of water thus passed
by the valve is conducted by means of a pipe to a reservoir of any suitable form
situate above. After the compression the steam piston lifts the hydraulic piston to
the same height as when the preceding stroke was commenced, the plunger of the
press redescends to its initial position, and the space included between these two
parts, which would only be partially filled with water in consequence of the working
of the safety valve, is replenished by the employment in the valve box of a loose valve
which allows water to re-enter the apparatus from the reservoir through the same
pipe as served for the passage of the water passed through the safety valve at the
end of the compression. It should be observed that the reservoir contains a small
supply of water in excess, so as to provide against losses from leakage.
In order to prevent dangerous concussions, the lower part of the pump and the
upper part of the small steam cylinder are provided with cushions of india-rubber;
the small steam cylinder is also furnished with a cover perforated with holes, placed

page_text: at some distance from the end of the stroke of the small piston in such a manner
that a small quantity of air is confined between the piston and the end of the
cylinder and compressed before the piston strikes the cushion. In this apparatus
the degree of compression may be varied at will; it is of the required power; its
constant intensity, so long as there is no advantage in modifying it, ensures a
uniform and completely satisfactory manufacture of the products.
The third part of the Invention consists in arranging compressing apparatus
when two or more rotating mould tables are employed, so as to admit of the suc-
cessive delivery of the products on one and the same side. Heretofore double
machines of this description have been constructed with connecting rods attached
to one and the same crank on the driving shaft, and it being necessary, in order to
avoid straining the one shaft of the double machine to have a successive and not
simultaneous production, it was found convenient to deliver the blocks alternately
on the right and on the left.
The object of this part of the present Invention is to effect the delivery of the
products on one and the same side. For this purpose a shaft is employed with as
many cranks as there aro mould tables with intermediate connections. Assuining
that two mould tables are employed, the shaft is provided with two cranks with an
intermediate connection, and two reciprocating arins or connecting rods are attached
to the respective cranks, the same being situate on one and the same side; conse-
quently the rotating motion of the mould tables, which in the machines as previously
constructed took place in the same direction, takes place by this arrangement in
opposite directions, which admits of the successive delivery of the products on one
and the same side and upon waggons running on a single line of rails.
It is obvious that the apparatus may also be employed for moulding and pressing
bricks or blocks to be employed for other purposes than fuel.
SPECIFICATION in pursuance of the conditions of the Letters Patent filed by
the said John Henry Johnson in the Great Seal Patent Office on the 14th
September 1877.
JOHN HENRY JOHNSON, of 47, Lincoln's Inn Fields, in the County of Middlesex,
Gentleman. "IMPROVEMENTS IN APPARATUS FOR THE MANUFACTURE OF ARTIFICIAL
FUEL AND FOR OTHER SIMILAR PURPOSES." A communication from abroad by
Albert Michel Jouët Pastré, Manager of the Société Nouvelle des Forges et Chantiers
de la Mediterrannée, of Paris, in the Republic of France.
The said Invention relates to apparatus for the manufacture of artificial fuel in
which rotating mould tables are employed, and the blocks of fuel are produced in
succession, and are being continuously ejected from the moulds, and it consists,-
1st. In the application to such apparatus of hydraulic pressure.
2nd. In the application to such apparatus of steam pressure according to what is
known as Mazeline's system in combination with hydraulic pressure.
3rd. In arranging compressing apparatus, where two or more rotating mould
tables are employed, so as to admit of the successive delivery of the products on one
and the same side.
And in order that the said Invention may be fully understood, I shall now
proceed more particularly to describe the same, and for that purpose shall refer to
the several Figures on the annexed Sheets of Drawings, the same letters of reference
indicating corresponding parts in all the corresponding Figures.
Figure 1, Sheet 1, of the accompanying Drawings is a side elevation, Figure 2 a
corresponding plan, and Figure 3 an end elevation, all partly in section, of an
apparatus for moulding and compressing by hydraulic pressure according to the
first part of the said Invention.
The full lines in the Drawing represent a single mould table with its accessories,

page_text: and the dotted lines show the additional table and parts required to form a double
machine. The blocks are pushed out of the moulds 1 of the mould table A by a
continuous action, whilst the moulding and compression are effected by an inter-
mittent action. The compression is obtained by means of hydraulic pressure, as
herein-after more fully described.
In order to render the application of hydraulic compression practicable, it is
necessary to command a supply of water under pressure obtained from waterworks,
or by means of any ordinary or specially constructed pumping arrangement.
The apparatus shewn in Figures 1, 2, and 3 resembles in its general arrangement
that known as Mazeline's, an example of which is described in the Specification to
Letters Patent No. 128900, granted to William Edward Newton, dated May
Twenty-fourth, One thousand eight hundred and sixty. In carrying out this part of
the present Invention, however, the steam cylinder and the parts used according to
that arrangement for effecting the compression are replaced by a distributor B
receiving water through a pipe F, under a pressure which may be raised to a
hundred atmospheres or upwards, and supplying the same to a ram A¹ through
valves b actuated by any suitable mechanism.
In the arrangement shewn in the Drawing, this mechanism consists of an
eccentric K¹ mounted on a central vertical shaft K, and connected by means of
levers k to the valves b of the distributor B in such a manner as to admit the water
under pressure to the ram A, and thus cause the latter to rise at the proper time
and compress the block of fuel contained in that one of the moulds 1 for the time
being above it by acting on a plunger-2, forming a moveable bottom to the mould
in the usual manner.
By means of the arrangement hercin-before described there may be obtained a
requisitely high or low pressure varying according to the nature of the coal, resins,
pitch, coal tars, or other constituents of the fuel, that is to say, according to the
composition of the material employed, the constant intensity of which pressure is
not diminished at the termination of the period of compression, but remains the
same for the whole duration of the manufacturing process, whereby a uniform
satisfactory result is obtained.
The second part of the said Invention is illustrated in Sheet 2 of the accom-
panying Drawings, in which Figure 4 is a side elevation, Figure 5 a corresponding
plan, and Figure 6 an end view, all partly in section, of an apparatus for the
manufacture of artificial fuel with the improvements applied thereto.
This part of the said Invention consists in the application of an improved
arrangement of the steam presses used in what, is known as Mazeline's system, in
combination with hydraulic power, whereby a powerful pressure is produced, variable
at will according to the requirements of the manufacture.
The combination of known arrangements forming the subject of this part of the
said Invention has for its object the obtaining in machines for making blocks of
artificial fuel in which rotating mould tables are employed, and in which the
action of moulding is intermittent and the delivery continuous.
The advantages of hydraulic compression without involving the necessity for
employing supplementary engines and pumps, and an accumulator in case the said
machines for making the blocks are not situate near a supply of water under
existing pressure. For this purpose the steam cylinder and the group of parts for
effecting the compression as ordinarily employed in machines constructed according
to the Mazeline system are replaced by a steam cylinder L situate directly over the
plunger O of a pump having a long stroke and in communication with the lower
end of a hydraulic press A¹. The cylinder L contains a piston L³, the rod M. of
which is formed by the prolongation of the plunger O, the descent of which forces
the water into the press; when the plunger re-ascends the same water returns to the
pump, a valve arrangement herein-after described being provided in order to secure
a uniform degree of pressure and enable its intensity to be regulated at will.
Steam is admitted to the upper side of the piston L only, but a small steam
cylinder E is provided having its lower portion in constant communication with

page_text: the steam supply, the piston E¹ of which cylinder is connected by a rod E³ to the
piston L of the large cylinder L, so that both the steam piston L' and the plunger O
are elevated as soon as the steam is allowed to escape from the large cylinder L.
The distribution of the steam is effected in the manner usually adopted in apparatus
of the Mazeline type.
In this machine the pressure under which the block is moulded is rendered
constant by means of a valve and valve box constructed and arranged in the
following manner:- is a safety valve with a lever and counterweight a'; the
pressure at which this valve will rise may be adjusted at will, and the pressure
of the water in the pump cannot exceed the amount of pressure indicated by the
valve. The parts are so arranged that the volume of water delivered by the pump
plunger shall be greater than the volume which the press is capable of containing
when acting on the most compressible materials for making the blocks, whence it
results that at each stroke of the plunger, the water being inevitably subjected to a
pressure corresponding to the load of the safety valve, the latter is lifted and a por-
tion of the water escapes. The small quantity of water thus passed by the valve is
conducted by means of a pipe to a reservoir of any suitable form situate at a
higher level, but not shown in the Drawing. After the compression the steam
piston lifts the plunger of the pump to the same height as when the preceding
stroke was commenced, the ram of the press descends to its initial position, and the
space included between these two parts, which would only be partially filled with
water in consequence of the loss through the safety valve a, is replenished by the
employment in the valve box of a loose valve which allows water to re-enter the
apparatus from the reservoir through the same pipe v as served for the escape of
the water passed through the valve a at the end of the compression. The reservoir
contains a small supply of water in excess, so as to provide against losses from
leakago.
In order to prevent dangerous concussions, the lower part of the pump and the
upper part of the small steam cylinder E are provided with cushions of india-rubber;
the small steam cylinder is also perforated at c with holes placed at a suitable
distance from the end of the cylinder, so that a small quantity of air is confined
between the piston and the end of the cylinder and compressed before the piston
strikes the cushion.
In this apparatus the degree of compression may be varied at will; it is of the
required power; its constant intensity, so long as there is no advantage in modifying
it, ensures the production of articles of a uniform and completely satisfactory
character and quality. The dotted lines represent the duplicate parts forming a
double machine, as in Sheet 1.
The third part of the said Invention consists in arranging the compressing
apparatus when two or more rotating mould tables are employed so as to admit of
the successive delivery of the products on one and the same side.
Heretofore double machines of this description have been constructed with con-
necting rods attached to one and the same crank on the driving shaft, and it being
necessary in order to avoid straining the single shaft of the double machine.to
arrange the apparatus so that the blocks are produced successively in lieu of simul-
taneously, it was found convenient to deliver the blocks alternately on the right and
on the left hand sides.
According to this part of the present Invention the delivery of the products is
effected on one and the same side by the employment of a shaft with cranks equal
in number to the mould tables, and having intermediate connections.
The application of this part of the said Invention, to a machine constructed
according to the Mazeline system with two mould tables is illustrated in
Figures 7 and 8, Sheet 1, of the accompanying Drawings. Figure 7 is an elevation,
and Figure 8 a corresponding plan, both partly in section. The shaft K is provided
with two cranks Z, Z, with an intermediate connection Y, and two reciprocating
arms or connecting rods X, X¹, are attached to the crank Z, Z', respectively. The
said arms or rods actuate the mould tables in the usual manner by engaging in

page_text: notches W, W provided for their reception, but being situate on one and the same
side of the machine; the rotating motion of the mould tables, which in the machine
as previously constructed took place in the same direction, takes place, by this
arrangement, in opposite directions, which admits of the successive delivery of the
products on one and the same side, and upon waggons running on a single line of 5
rails.
It is obvious that the apparatus may also be used for moulding and pressing
bricks or blocks to be employed for other purposes than fuel.
Having now described and particularly ascertained the nature of the said Inven-
tion, and the manner in which the same is or may be used or carried into effect, I 1
would observe in conclusion that what I consider to be novel and original, and
therefore claim as the Invention secured to me by the herein-before in part recited
Letters Patent is,-
First. The employment in apparatus of the description herein set forth of
hydraulic pressure, substantially in the manner and for the purposes herein-before 1
described and is illustrated by Figures 1, 2, and 3, Sheet 1, of the accompanying
Drawings.
Second. The employment in apparatus of the description herein set forth of
steam and hydraulic pressure in combination, substantially as and for the purposes
herein-before described, and as illustrated by Figures 4, 5, and 6, Sheet 2, of the 2
accompanying Drawings.
Thirdly. Arranging apparatus in which two or more rotating mould tables are
employed in such a manner that the moulded and compressed articles are delivered
on one and the same side of the machine, substantially as herein-before described
and illustrated by Figures 7 and 8, Sheet 1, of the accompanying Drawings.
In witness whereof, I, the said John Henry Johnson, have to this my Speci-
fication set my hand and seal, this Thirtieth day of August, One thousand
eight hundred and seventy-seven.
2