IMPROVEMENTS IN SELF-ACTING RETORTS FOR THE DISTILLATION OF SOLID SUBSTANCES
Year: 1884

page_text: We BERNARD PEARD WALKER Consulting Engineer, Birmingham, and JAMES
ALFRED BERESFORD BENNETT, Science Master King's Heath, in the County of
Worcester, do hereby declare the nature of our invention for IMPROVEMENTS IN
SELF-ACTING RETORTS FOR THE DISTILLATION OF SOLID SUBSTANCES to be as
follows:-
Our invention relates to retorts constructed in accordance with Letters Patent
No 3358 in which the material to be acted upon, is made to traverse the length of
the retort, by the action of a screw into the threads of which the material is
supplied from a box or hopper, It is found that in distilling certain substances the
action of the apparatus is impeded by the adhesiveness of the material at a certain
stage of the process of distillation, which causing the material to stick to, and
travel round with the screw thread, instead of moving in a longitudinal direction
only, thus causing increased friction, and interrupting the action of the machine,
This defect is overcome by our present invention by use of which the material is
prevented from being carried round by the screw through the interposition of
obstacles which form stops or detents, and at the same time are free to move in the
direction of the longitudinal axis of the screw so as to permit the forward motion
of the screw thread. Parallel with the propelling screw, we place a second one,
having the same pitch and direction of threads and arrange the same, so that its
threads shall lie between those of the propelling screw, and we also arrange a disc
or wheel the circumference of which is formed into cogs to correspond, and work
with the thread of the second screw. The turning of the screw gives rotation to
this disc and the cogs clear out any adhering matter that may have been carried
round by either screw this disc or worm wheel revolves within the walls of
a pocket attached to the tube in which the screw revolves The beforementioned
screws revolve so that the relative position of their threads is maintained through-
out, the material therefore being carried in a longitudinal direction by the first or
propelling screw but cannot travel round its axis as it would in that case come in
contact with the threads of the second screw or cogs of the disc, if desirable we

page_text: make the second screw pass the whole length of the retort parallel with and
engaging throughout its threaded portion, with the first or propelling screw
but preferably we make it sufficiently long to extend only through that portion of
the retort in which the material becomes adhesive from the action of heat during
the process of distillation.
We BERNARD PEARD WALKER Consulting Engineer of 1 Brighton Place Alcester
Road Moseley near Birmingham and JAMES ALFRED BERESFORD BENNETT Science
Master King's Heath in the county of Worcester do hereby declare the nature of
our invention for IMPROVEMENTS IN SELF ACTING RETORTS FOR THE DISTILLATION
OF SOLID SUBSTANCES and in what manner the saine is to be performed, to be
particularly described and ascertained in and by the following statement :-
We will describe the mode in which our invention is carried out by referring to
drawings.
Fig. 1 is sectional elevation of supply end of retort.
Fig. 2
Fig. 3
Fig. 4
cross section through axis of clearing disc.
Elevation showing feeding and clearing screw.
End elevation showing mode of driving the clearing screw.
Fig 1 is a sectional elevation of the portion of one of our retorts next the supply
bunker vide N° 335-1883.
The material to be operated on is supplied to the apparatus at A and is propelled
through the length of the retort B by the action of the screw or worm C to which
rotation is given by suitable machinery-Extending along the upper portion of the
retort B (so far as to include that distance in which the material becomes and
remains adhesive from the action of the fire) is a groove or pocket D the walls of
which are continuous with those of the retort vide fig. 2 which shows a cross
section of the retort and screw at D¹.
Within the groove we place one or more discs mounted on axes-E and having
notches in their periphery into which the threads of the screw C take so as to turn
the discs round as the screw revolves.
It will be evident that any matter becoming adherent to the screw will be
removed and hindered from being carried round by coming in contact with the
opposing surface of the disc. Hence the material must travel onward with the
revolution of the screw.
In some cases particularly when the matter causing adhesiveness by its partial
fusion is required to traverse a considerable portion of the length of the retort, we
place inside the retort and parallel with the screw C a second or clearing screw C₁
fig. 3 the threads of which occupy the spaces of the first or driving screw and
are so shaped as to nearly fill these spaces as shown in the drawing.

page_text: These screws are connected with cog wheels F so that they revolve together and
the threads of screw C¹ form a constant obstacle to any material that may adhere
to the threads of the driving screw C and so be carried round with it.
The section of the retort when the clearing screw is used is made elliptical or
otherwise to admit the two screws-The clearing screw may be placed above or
beside the feeding screw.
Having now particularly described and ascertained the nature of our said
invention and in what manner the said is to be performed we declare that what
we claim is substantially the arrangements shewn in which any material adhering
to the feeding screws used in retorts for the purpose of propelling materials to be
distilled through their length is detached from the threads of the screw by the use
of either a clearing screw having its threads corresponding with the spaces of the
feeding screw and revolving along with it, or by a disc turning by the action of the
screw threads as described.
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