the Manufacture of Ice.
Year: 1886

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the Manufacture of Ice.
I, EDMUND TAYLOR of Woolahra, near Sydney in the Colony of New South
Wales Technical Chemist 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:-
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This invention has been devised almost mainly in order that the condensation
and expansion of ammonia may take place in an apparatus so arranged that its
action as a cold producer is, nearly continuous, and in order that the freezing tanks
or boxes for absorbing heat in refrigerating chambers may be. quickly and easily
cleared of snow or ice which forms on the outer surfaces..
In that class of refrigerating machines in which one vessel being used alternately
as a boiler and an absorber, the action is intermittent., I provide two such vessels
each of which acts in turn as a boiler and as an absorber, by which means I am
enabled to approximate very closely to continuous action and further I provide an
auxiliary to two such, vessels by which I am enabled to approximate still more
closely to continuous action and at the same time to increase the absorbing powor
of the absorber.
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a.
To the freezing tanks or boxes of refrigerating chambers I apply a perforated
gutter around their upper edges which is intermittently supplied with a strong
solution of brine that runs or trickles down the sides of the boxes washing from
them accumulated snow or ice and is then returned to the reservoir from which it
was supplied.
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In order that my invention may be clearly understood I will refer to the
accompanying drawings. Fig. 1 is an elevation partly in section and Fig. 2 is a
plan of a refrigerating machine and chamber according to my invention. A and B
are two cylinders each of which acts alternately as a boiler and absorber each
being connected to the condenser D and to a worm Z in the freezing box E which
is placed in the chamber N N. In each of the cylinders A and B is a worm A
and B¹, through which are passed steam and cold water alternately. When the
steam is being passed through worm A¹ or B¹ the cylinder A or B as the case may
be acts as a boiler and when cold water is being passed, it acts an absorber."
The condenser D is surrounded by a cold water casing DEF F are coil pipes'
connecting the cylinders A and B with the condenser D and passing through a
tank C which contains cooling water to cool the ammonia vapour before it reaches
15.
3
4.
from.
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KJO DO terna

page_text: the condenser.
G is a pipe connecting the condenser with the worm Z in the
freezing box E and H H are pipes connecting the worm Z with the cylinders A
and B respectively and terminating within a few inches of the bottom of each
cylinder. I are steam pipes leading from a steam boiler to the worms in the
cylinders A and B respectively and J J¹ are water pipes also connected with the
game worms. K. K¹ are two exhaust valves through which the cooling water and
the condensed steam may pass away. M is a cylinder standing in the cold water
in the tank C. This, which may be called a "mixer," is used as an auxiliary cooler
and for increasing the absorbing power of the cylinders A and B when they are
respectively used as absorbers.
A separate "mixer" might be used with each cylinder. if desired. L is an ice
mould standing in each of the freezing boxes E to illustrate how the apparatus
may be used for making ice. The freezing box E is a tank which may be of sheet
iron rivetted, containing a cooling medium such as a strong solution of salt which
has a lower freezing point than water. This brine being rapidly reduced in tem-
perature when the machine is put in operation takes up heat from the air in the
chamber N or from the water in the ice box E and conveys it to the ammonia
that is evaporated in the worm Z. On the upper part of the outside walls of the
box E are fixed perforated sloping shelves E' holding a half round open gutter O
perforated along its bottom with small holes about an inch apart. A strong.
solution of brine is intermittently supplied from the box Q by the pump R through
the pipe S to the gutter O and this after distributing itself flows down the sides
of the box E on to the sloping plate T washing with it snow or ice that may be
on the sides of the box E. The whole flows back into the; box Q which contains
a superfluity of salt.
By removing the snow or ice from the sides of box E I can attain a lower
temperature and a drier atmosphere than when the snow or ice is allowed to
remain or has to be scraped off. UU are glass gauges to shew the level of the
liquid in the cylinder B and in the condenser D.
The mode of operating is as follows -The cylinders A and B are each charged
with a quantity of strong liquid ammonia. Steam is then turned on to worm A¹
after the valve A' in the pipe F between the cylinder A and the condenser D has
been opened full, all the other ammonia valves being closed.
A current of cold water is kept flowing through the tank C, the worm B' in the
cylinder B and the condenser tank D¹.
.
The heat of the steam gradually drives the ammonia over through the pipe Fin
to the condenser D where it condenses The valve G in the pipe G between the
condenser and the worm Z is now opened slightly, the valve B³ in the pipe H¹
leading into B is opened full and the liquid ammonia which passes through valves G¹
becomes vaporised again in the worm Z, and then passes on to be absorbed in the
cylinder B after having reduced the temperature of the brine in the box E, which
reduction of temperature is communicated to the ice box or to the interior of the
cooling chamber N'N. When the bulk of the ammonia is thus driven out of A,
the valve A leading into the mixer M is opened. The supply of steam is now
changed from worm. A¹ to worm B¹, and the supply of cooling water from worm B¹
to worm A¹ after closing the valve B³, and thus the cylinder A becomes the absorber
and the cylinder B the boiler.
The valve A is now opened and the weak cooler liquid which was forced
through the valve A into the mixer flows back into the cylinder A causing a
vacuum and increasing the power of cylinder A. as an absorber. The operation is
now repeated using the cylinder B as the boiler and the cylinder A as the
absorber.
The ammonia may be passed repeatedly backwards and forwards between the
cylinders as described requiring only a small supply to make up for leakage.
Obviously hot air or other gas or vapour might be used instead of steam to effect
the evaporation of the ammonia, and a cooling medium other than brine might be
employed in the freezing and other tanks.

page_text: Having now particularly described and ascertained the nature of my said
invention and in what manner the same is to be performed I declare that what
I claim is:-
1. In a refrigerating machine operating by the alternate vaporisation and con-
densation of a volatile fluid, the combination of two vessels each arranged to act
alternately as boiler and absorber with a condenser and a freezing tank or box, so
that the refrigerating process may be carried on in an approximately continuous
manner, substantially as herein described and illustrated by the drawings.
2. The combination of the auxiliary cooler or mixer M with the boilers and
absorbers, substantially as herein described and illustrated by the drawings.
.
3. In combination with a freezing tank a perforated gutter supplied with strong
brine to run or trickle down the sides of this tank, substantially as and for the
purposes herein set forth.
Dated this 11th day of November 1886.
ABEL & IMRAY,
Agents for the Applicant,
28, Southampton Buildings, London, W.C.