Heat Accumulator for Locomotives.
Year: 1896

page_text: Date of Application, 16th Nov., 1895-Accepted, 6th Mar., 1897
Heat Accumulator for Locomotives.
I, WASILY KOUZNEZOFF of Miasnizkaja Haus Woronina Moscow, Russia,
Engineer, 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:-
The present invention relates to an apparatus for increasing the working capacity
of the old type of six-wheeled locomotive and to enable same to perform its work
with more certainty and regularity than is the case at present.
The old type of six-wheeled locomotive is, as is known, not suitable for present
day requirements, and alterations of the cylinders, heating surface, and other parts,
have not made it suitable. The locomotive must practically always be worked at
full power, cannot vary its load with any saving and wastes an enormous amount
of fuel.
The radical way to remedy the defect is, of course, to replace the locomotives
by new ones of modern type, but this way is out of the question on a many lines on.
account of the money and time necessary; it is in such cases where my invention
will have practical worth, since I increase the working power of the locomotive
by a very simple apparatus which needs only a small outlay as regards cost.
The idea of my invention is that it is not necessary to use the whole of the
beating surface when the locomotive is standing in a station, or running down'
gradients and also, to a certain extent, when on the level; a certain amount of
power can be saved here, and when it is arranged for this power to be stored.
for application when the locomotive is mounting a gradient, the working capacity.
of the locomotive becomes thereby increased.
To carry out my invention it is not necessary to enlarge the boiler, but merely
to connect same to an accumulator or accumulators which can be carried on the.
boiler itself or on the tender as convenient.
.I will now explain the apparatus in detail with reference to the accompanying
drawings in which:
Fig. 1 is a cross section and
Fig. 2 a longitudinal elevation of my apparatus.
A is a reservoir or accumulator which is suitably located on the boiler proper,
or the tender as convenient, and which is connected with said boiler by means of
three tubes a, b and c. These tubes can be differently arranged if desired to
correspond to any alteration of the position of the accumulator and are closed or
opened by means of cocks such as a', 6' or e'. Tube passes from the accumulator
into the boiler proper and below the water-level of same, whilst tube e connects the
accumulator with the dome, and tube a the accumulator with one of the injectors.
Of course, if there is sufficient room, there can be two accumulators instead of one,
the connecting tubes being arranged to correspond.
The mode of operation of my invention is as follows: When the locomotive
stops at a station or siding, or when it is travelling where a certain amount of
steam only is necessary, the cock a¹ is opened in order that the injector may blow
out the air in the accumulator. The cock 6' is then gradually opened in order that
water can pass from the boiler to the reservoir and when steam begins to issue
from the injector, the cock al is closed again as the air has then been removed
from the accumulator. After sufficient water has passed from the boiler to the

page_text: accumulator (and the level of which can be seen by means of the water-gauge d)
the cock b¹ is closed and the cock c¹ then opened in order to let steam into the
accumulator. The cock c¹ remains open until the accumulator is emptied in the
locomotive shed.
In travelling up gradients where the water-level in the boiler drops to the lowest
limit, the cock 6 is opened until sufficient heated water has passed from the
acccumulator back into the boiler so as to raise the water-level in the latter to the
necessary height, and when the top of the gradient has been reached, the said
water-level in the boiler is kept at the height required by means of the injectors
after the cock b' has been closed. The filling of the accumulator with heated
water is then effected as before, viz. the cock c¹ is shut, the cock al opened, and, as
soon as steam begins to issue from the injector, cock al is closed and cock bopened:
When there is sufficient water in the accumulator, cock b' is also closed and cock c
opened. The steam which passes from the cock a¹ can be used for feeding the
boiler by means of the injectors and also for heating the water in the tender.
From the foregoing it will be evident that the apparatus not only supplies
heated water when most required without any extra cost for the heating of same up
to the temperature corresponding to ordinary steam pressure, but it also prevents
the waste of steam for the working of the injectors in feeding the boiler from the
tender. The volume of water in the accumulator represents the difference between
the highest and lowest limit of water-level in the boiler and the effect of the
accumulator is therefore to double the working power of the water. Further,
seeing that the-conditions with regard in the heating surface are the same in all
locomotive boilers, and that it is difficult to construct boilers for the different types
of locomotives which will give a maximum amount of power, my invention would
appear to be of practical worth in new or modern types of locomotives.
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) An apparatus for increasing the working power of locomotives, and especially
old locomotives, without the construction of same having to be altered substantially
as shown and described.
2) In an apparatus for increasing the working power of locomotives, the com-
bination of an accumulator or accumulators A with the boiler, its dome and
injectors, substantially as and for the purpose shown and described."
3) In an apparatus for increasing the working capacity of locomotives, the
combination of the accumulator or accumulators, the boiler, its dome and injectors
with tubes a, b and c and cocks a', b¹ and c', substantially as and for the purpose
described.
Dated this 16th day of November 1896
E. EATON,
Agent for Applicant.