Improvements in Brick Drying Chambers.
Year: 1896

page_text: PROVISIONAL SPECIFICATION.
Improvements in Brick Drying Chambers.
I EDWIN THOMAS of 49 Orsett Road, Grays Essex do hereby declare the
nature of my invention to be as follows:-
My invention relates to improvements in brick kilns and has for its object to
provide means whereby such kilns are heated by means of steam or hot water.
For this purpose I construct the walls of my improved kiln hollow or having a
channel or channels running wholly or partly throughout their interiors and into
which I introduce steam or hot water to heat the interior of the kilns.
I also form the floor of a porous composition composed of fine shingle, coal ashes
(spent coal) sand and cement.
This floor is laid upon and supported by brickwork so arranged as to form spaces
or perforations, through which the steam, admitted beneath the floor, passes up to
and distributes its heat through the latter.
These bricks rest upon a solid floor which is constructed with a slight camber or
dip in the centre whereby it will hold a certain amount of water or condensed
steam, the amount of such water being regulated by means of a rim arranged
around the mouth of a trap or overflow pipe running underneath the floor.
The hollow walls and floor are built in sections so that each day's output may be
dried separately.
The pipes for heating the walls pass around the interior thereof and are
connected to a steam boiler or the exhaust pipe of a steam engine. They are
connected to the interior or channels in the walls by branch pipes provided with
valves for regulating the amount of steam or hot water fed to a portion or the
whole of the said channels.
Steam or hot water may be fed to the floor by two or more channels running
underneath or communicating with the reticulated brickwork supporting the floor.
This improved floor may thus form a complete condensing tank for an engine,
and it can be heated with either the exhaust or live steam thereof.
As my improvements are capable of some slight modification without departing
from the principle of this my invention I do not restrict myself to the precise form
or placement of the parts thereof.
Dated this 7th day of February 1896.
J. B. FLEURET,
5 Hatton Garden, London, Agent for the Applicant.
Improvements in Brick Drying Chambers.
I, EDWIN THOMAS, of 49, Orsett Road, Grays, in the County of Essex, 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:-
My invention relates to the construction of chambers for use in drying bricks
by means of steam prior to the firing of the same in a kiln, the chief objects of my

page_text: invention being to cheapen the construction of such chambers and to utilize the
steam heat more effectively than heretofore.
According to my invention instead of employing steam heating pipes as has
heretofore been usual I make the floor of the drying chamber with a space beneath
it and I admit the steam into this space which forms a condenser so that all the
heat contained in the steam is utilized. I also arrange that the lower surface or
floor of the said space shall be waterproof so that the water of condensation will
be retained beneath the floor, a trap being provided for allowing the water when it
reaches a certain level to flow off.
In some cases I find it advantageous to make the walls of my drying chamber
hollow and to provide means for passing steam through them.
To enable my invention to be fully understood I will describe the same by
reference to the accompanying drawings, in which :-
Figure 1 is a sectional plan view shewing a drying floor constructed according
to my invention; and,
Figure 2 is a transverse vertical section of the same on the line 2-2 Figure 1:
Figure 3 is a vertical section drawn to a larger scale than Figures 1 and 2
illustrating the construction of the floor; and,
Figures 4 and 5 are other views hereinafter referred to illustrating the construction
of the floor."
a is my improved floor, b, b are the walls of the chamber and c is the roof, which
latter, as shewn in the drawings, is of ordinary construction and covered with
matchboarding or the like in order to prevent the conduction of heat through it,
but which may be in the form of brick arches.
In constructing the said floor I advantageously proceed as follows:-I form a
suitable concrete bottom d, Figure 3, preferably dipping towards the centre and
upon this floor I lay rows of bricks e, e edgewise, as shewn in Figures 3 and 4, the
bricks of each row being separated by a distance of three inches or the thickness
of a brick and the adjacent rows by a distance of six inches so that from centre to
centre there is a distance of nine inches, that is to say, the length of a brick.
Upon these rows of bricks e, e are placed other bricks f, f flatwise, as shewn in
Figure 3 and in Figure 4 which is an underside view of the two series of bricks.
Upon these bricks f,f and transversely thereof are laid bricks g, g edgewise, the
said bricks forming a continuous surface as shewn in Figure 5. Upon this
continuous surface I lay concrete or composition advantageously composed of fine
shingle, coal ashes, sand and cement such layer of composition being indicated by
the letter h in Figure 3.
Along the centre of the lower floor d I arrange a channel or channels such as
shewn at i in Figure 2 and by dotted lines in Figure 1 which enables or enable the
floor to be drained when desired.
The steam, which is preferably exhaust steam from the engine used for driving
the pug mills and the other machinery of a brick yard, is led into the space
beneath the floor by any suitable means, for instance, by a pipe which is indicated
by the dotted linej in Figure 1. When, however, the heat from the exhaust
steam is not sufficient, I provide for introducing live steam from the boiler by a
pipe indicated by the dotted line k.
1,1 are the spaces which I sometimes form in the walls which spaces are also
adapted to have exhaust or live steam introduced into them if required.
In Figure 1 m, m indicate branch connections, between the pipe j and the said
spaces in the walls for introducing exhaust steam and n indicates a pipe for live
steam which, as shewn in Figure 1, extends around the walls of the drying
chamber and is provided with branch pipes o, o for conveying the steam into the
hollow walls.
As hereinbefore stated the water of condensation is retained in the space
beneath the floor as this water contains a considerable quantity of heat which
serves for maintaining the heat of the chamber at such times as no steam is being
introduced into the floor space or hollow walls.

page_text: A trap such as a D-trap is arranged in a suitable position so that when a certain
level is reached the water of condensation can overflow, and cocks are provided in
connection with the channels i, i for drawing off the water of condensation should
it for any reason be allowed to get cold.
If desired the space beneath the floor may be divided into a series of sections.
into any one of which steam may be introduced independently of the others so as
to permit of heating the part of the floor corresponding with any section without.
heating the other parts.
It will be understood that suitable cocks or valves are provided for regulating
the flow of the steam to the several sections.
P, P, Figure 2, are openings in the walls for allowing the escape of steam from
the bricks being dried, but louvres or other suitable ventilating devices may be
used for the purpose.
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. A brick drying chamber the floor of which is constructed with a space beneath
it into which steam can be introduced, the floor of the said space being made
waterproof to permit of the water of condensation being retained, substantially as
described.
2. In a drying chamber constructed with a space beneath the floor for receiving
steam and capable of retaining the water of condensation, the arrangement of
hollow walls into which steam can also be introduced, substantially as described.
3. In a drying chamber wherein the floor has a space beneath it for receiving
steam and capable of retaining the water of condensation, constructing the said
floor substantially in the manner described by reference to Figures 3, 4 and 5 of
the accompanying drawings.
Dated the 9th day of November 1896
G. F. REDFERN & Co.,
4, South Street, Finsbury, London, Agents for the Applicant.