IMPROVEMENTS IN OBTAINING OIL AND OTHER PRODUCTS FROM MINERALS AND IN APPARATUS THEREFOR
Year: 1883

page_text: LETTERS PATENT to John McCulloch, General Manager, and Hamilton
Macvicar, Furnace Manager, of Calderbank Iron Works in the County of
Lanark North Britain for an Invention of IMPROVEMENTS IN OBTAINING
OIL AND OTHER PRODUCTS FROM MINERALS AND IN APPARATUS THEREFOR
OIL AND OTHER PRODUCTS FROM MINERALS AND IN APPARATUS THEREFOR
PROVISIONAL SPECIFICATION left by the said John McCulloch and
Hamilton Macvicar at the Office of the Commissioners of Patents on the
28th December 1883.
JOHN MCCULLOCH, General Manager, and HAMILTON MACVICAR, Furnace
Manager, of Calderbank Iron Works, in the County of Lanark, North Britain,
"IMPROVEMENTS IN OBTAINING OIL AND OTHER PRODUCTS FROM MINERALS, AND
IN APPARATUS THEREFOR
"
This Invention has for its object to obtain oil and other products from minerals
in a better and more economical manner than heretofore, and improved apparatus
is employed in carrying it out.
Vertical retorts are used for obtaining the oil and other products by destructive
distillation but these retorts are made of considerably greater height or length than
those hitherto in use, and the minerals are made to descend down through them in
a practically continuous manner so that each portion is acted upon very gradually
and slowly. The height of the retorts may be fifty feet or even more; and it may
be mentioned that a disused smelting furnace. has been availed of for experimentally
testing the Invention. In consequence of the increased height of the retorts and
of the gradual and effective action on the minerals a better quality of oil is
obtained and the oil and other products are more abundant the minerals being
more thoroughly exhausted.
The retort structure is of a circular form in plan, according to one modification
and within the outer wall there are four inner circular walls forming three annular
spaces with a central circular space. The annular spaces next the innermost and
the outermost walls are for the ascent of ignited or highly heated gases; and the
annular space between these two gas spaces forms the retort space which is divided
Prion B11

page_text: "waste
"
into four or other convenient number of segmental compartments by radial walls.
Feeding hoppers and valves are provided at the tops of the retort compartments
through which to introduce the minerals, and the bottom of each compartment is
made with inclined sides leading down to an outlet for the ashes or residue which
may be removed at short intervals through a water seal or in any other convenient
way. Beneath the retort compartments and partly between the inclined bottoms
combustion chambers are formed which communicate at their upper parts with the
gas spaces on the outer and inner sides of the retorts; and into these chambers
combustible gas is led being obtained from gas producers; or where available the
or residuary combustible gases from blast furnaces may be used, or other
available gas, including the permanent gas separated from the products obtained
from the retorts themselves. The necessary air for burning the gas is supplied to
the combustion chambers the quantities of gas and air being regulated by suitable
valves. The ignited gases passing up the gas spaces produce the strongest heat in
the lower parts of the retort compartments, and the heat becomes gradually
moderated towards the upper part. With this arrangement the fresh mineral at
the top is acted on by a comparatively low heat which is the best for obtaining
the lighter oil in good quality; and as the mineral gradually descends it is acted
on by the increasing heat suitable for driving off its less volatile constituents. At
the lower parts of the retorts steam is introduced to assist in the now well
understood manner is getting off the ammonia and in decomposing the more
difficultly obtainable carbon. The highly heated gases or vapors fromed in the
lower parts of the retort compartments may be allowed to pass up through the
fresh minerals at the top so that these may be acted on by the heat; or the various
volatile products may be drawn off from the retort compartments at two or more
different levels. The volatile products are to be led in the usual way to condensers
and other apparatus for the separation and recovery of the various products.
At the tops of the gas spaces the gases are led into the central space, those from
the outer spaces passing through flues in the radial walls, and the gases may
descend through the central space to an underground flue leading them to a
chimney, or they may be at once discharged from the top of the central space or
of a chimney rising up from it.
SPECIFICATION in pursuance of the conditions of the Letters Patent filed
by the said John McCulloch and Hamilton Macvicar in the Patent Office on
the 27th June 1884.
JOHN MCCULLOCH, General Manager, and HAMILTON. MACVICAR, Furnace
Manager, of Calderbank Iron Works, in the County of Lanark, North Britain
"IMPROVEMENTS IN OBTAINING OIL AND OTHER PRODUCTS FROM MINERALS AND
IN APPARATUS THEREFOR
"
3
Our said Invention has for its object to obtain oil and other products from 4
minerals in a better and more economical manner than heretofore, and improved
apparatus is employed in carrying it out.
Vertical retorts are used for obtaining the oil and other products by destructive
distillation, but these retorts are made of considerably greater height or length

page_text: than those hitherto in use, and the minerals are made to descend down through
them in a practically continuous manner so that each portion is acted upon very
gradually and slowly. The height of the retorts may be fifty feet or even more;
and it may be mentioned that a disused smelting furnace has been availed of for
experimentally testing the Invention. In consequence of the increased height of
the retorts, and of the gradual and effective action on the minerals a better quality
of oil is obtained and the oil and other products are more abundant, the minerals
being more thoroughly exhausted.
And in order that our said Invention and the manner of performing the same
may be properly understood we hereunto append a sheet of explanatory drawings
to be hereinafter referred to and representing an example of our improved apparatus
together with a modification of some parts thereof.
Figure, 1, on the accompanying sheet of drawings is a vertical section as taken
through the centre of the apparatus, and figure, 2, is a cylindrical vertical section
of a small part as developed on a plane; whilst figure, 3, is a horizontal section.
Figure, 4, is a vertical section of the lower part of the apparatus as modified. In
these drawings the same reference numerals are used to mark the same or like
parts wherever they are repeated.
The retort structure is of a circular form in plan, and within the outer wall
there are, as seen in the horizontal section figure, 3, four inner circular walls, 5, 6,
7, 8, forming three annular spaces, 9, 10, 11, with a central circular space, 12. The
annular spaces, 11, 9, next the innermost and the outermost (internal) walls are
comparatively narrow and are used for the ascent of ignited or highly heated
gases; and the annular space, 10, between these two gas spaces forms the retort
space which is divided into six or other convenient number of compartments by
pairs of radial walls formed with flue spaces, 13, between them. Feeding
hoppers, 14, and valves, 15, are provided at the tops of the retort compartments, 10,
through which to introduce the minerals; and the bottom of each compartment, 10,
is made with inclined sides leading down to an outlet casing, 16, at the bottom.
Each outlet casing, 16, is formed with an upwardly inclined discharge mouth; 17,
and is filled with water sufficiently to form a seal, whilst a screw, 18, is provided
for discharging the ashes or residue either continuously or intermittently, this
screw being driven by gearing which is not shown but which may be of any
convenient kind,
Beneath the retort compartments, 10, and partly between the inclined bottoms,
combustion chambers, 19, are formed (being indicated by dotted lines in figure, 3)
and communicate at their tops with the gas spaces, 9, 11, 13, on the outer and
inner sides and between the retorts, 10, and into these chambers, 19, combustible
gas is led by branches, 20, from a main, 21, which extends round the building.
This combustible gas may be obtained from gas producers; or where available, the
"waste
or residuary combustible gases from blast furnaces may be advantageously
used, or other available gas, including the permanent gas separated from the
products obtained from the retorts themselves. The necessary air for burning the
gas is supplied to the combustion chambers, 19, by passages, 22, and the quantities
gas and air are regulated by suitable valves.
of
"
The ignited gases passing up the gas spaces, 9, 11, 13, produce the strongest
heat in the lower parts of the retort compartments, 10, and the heat becomes
gradually moderated towards the upper part. With this arrangement the fresh
mineral at the top is acted on by a comparatively low heat which is the best for
obtaining the lighter oil in good quality; and as the mineral gradually descends
it is acted on by the increasing heat suitable for driving off its less volatile
constituents. At the lower parts of the retorts steam is introduced to assist in
the now well understood manner in getting off the ammonia, and in decomposing
the more difficultly obtainable carbon. The highly heated gases or vapors formed
in the lower parts of the retort compartments may be allowed to pass up through
the fresh minerals at the top so that these may be acted on by the heat; or the
various volatile products may be drawn off from the retort compartments at two

page_text: or more different levels. The volatile products are to be led in the usual way
to condensers and other apparatus for the separation and recovery of the various
products.
At the tops of the gas spaces, 9, 11, 13, the heating gases are led through cross
flues or ports, 23, into the central space, 12, and may descend through the central
space to an underground flue leading them to a chimney; or they may be at once
discharged from the top of the central space, 12, or from the top of a chimney
rising up from it.
Instead of having a number of separate combustion chambers (19) as shown in
figures 1, 2, and 3, there may be a single central combustion chamber, 24, as
shown in figure, 4, This combustion chamber, 24, is separated from the central
space, 12, by an arched roof, 25, just below which there are ports, 26, for leading
the ignited gases into the flue spaces, 9, 11, 13. The combustible gas enters the
central combustion chamber, 24, by a pipe, 27, and air is admitted by a number of
valved openings, 28. The used gases may pass off from the tops of the flue
spaces, 9, 11, 13, by a number of separate small chimneys; we however prefer to
lead them downwards through flues, 29, formed between the ascending flues, 9, and
the outside of the building so that the heat they may still possess may be utilised
in maintaining the temperature of the building. The descending flues, 28, may at
their lower. ends communicate in any convenient way with flues leading to a
chimney. When using a single central combustion chamber, 24, in this way, the
action of the heat on the several retorts may be regulated separately as regards
each retort by building suitable vertical partitions in the ascending flues, 9, 11, 13,
and by providing dampers or valves in the several descending flues, 28.
Having thus particularly described our said Invention and the manner of
performing the same we have to state that we do not restrict ourselves to the
precise details herein described or delineated but that what we believe to be
novel and original and claim as the Invention secured to us by and in terms
of the herein before in part recited Letters Patent is :--
1. The improved process for obtaining oil and other products from minerals
and consisting in subjecting the minerals in long vertical retorts of at least forty
feet in height through which retorts they descend slowly, to gradually increasing
heats which are most intense at the lower parts of the retorts, whilst steam is
introduced at the lower parts, all substantially as hereinbefore described.
2. The construction of retorts and heating flues herein before described and shown
in the accompanying drawings.
In Witness whereof I, the said, John McCulloch, on behalf of myself and the said
Hamilton Macvicar, have hereunto set my hand and seal this twenty-fifth day of
June in the year of our Lord One thousand eight hundred and eighty-four.
JOHN MCCULLOCH (ra)