Improvements in Freezing and Refrigerating Machines.
Year: 1887

page_text: Date of Application, 6th Jan., 1887
Complete Left, 6th Oct., 1887
Complete Accepted, 8th Nov., 1887
PROVISIONAL SPECIFICATION.
Improvements in Freezing and Refrigerating Machines.
I, HENRY ALBERT FLEUSS of 59 and 60 Tower Chambers, Moorgate Street, in the
City of London, Engineer, do hereby declare the nature of this invention to be as
follows:-
In freezing and refrigerating machines, in which liquid is frozen or cooled by a
portion of it being vaporized by means of a vacuum aided by the absorption of the
vapour by sulphuric acid I form the vessel which is to contain the acid of a stoneware
or glass jar coated outside with a metal jacket and with paraffin or such like substance
run between the two so that the jar if of stoneware is rendered perfectly air tight,
and in either case accidents which might arise from the breaking of the jar are
avoided as even if the jar be broken the acid cannot escape from the metal jacket.
By holding the acid in a vessel of stoneware or glass and keeping it under ordinary
circumstances from coming into contact with lead of which the vessels have heretofore
been made and also by making the agitator by which the acid is agitated of stoneware
or glass no smell of acid vapour passes off from the machine when it is being worked
whereas heretofore when the vessel and agitator have been made of lead fumes have
arisen from the acid owing to its acting slowly upon the metal.
For large machines the glass or earthenware jar may simply be enclosed within a
leaden vessel without running in paraffin between them.
When it is desired that the machines shall be capable of cooling or freezing liquid
in a number of decanters at the same time I provide the pipe which passes from the
acid vessel with a detachable tube having a number of nozzles branching from it
each fitted with a tap so that a decanter or vessel may be applied to each or any of
the nozzles as may be required. The detachable tube I connect to the main nozzle
on the pipe from the acid vessel by means of a flexible connection.
When the liquid to be cooled or frozen is contained in a glass beaker or other
vessel I obtain a more perfect air-tight joint between it and the cover by which it is
covered over by using a water seal in addition to elastic material interposed between
the two this I do by springing over the outer circumference of the beaker an elastic
ring of vulcanized india rubber just around its upper edge and by forming the ring
so as to project up above the top edge of the beaker so as to form around it a shallow

page_text: cup into which a small quantity of water may be poured after the top edge of the
beaker has been held up to and against its elastic seat or washer. The advantage of
making the cup of vulcanized india rubber is that when the liquid in the beaker or
vessel has been sufficiently cooled or frozen the india rubber may be bent downwards
and the water in the cup so allowed to flow away before the beaker is removed. In
this way the water used for making the seal is prevented from flowing down onto
the ice in the beaker as the beaker is being removed.
For small machines I in some cases form the jar or vessel used for containing the
acid with an inner chamber extending downwards from the top into the acid and
open at the bottom so that acid may rise up into its lower end. Above the acid I
provide a ledge around the interior of the inner vessel on to which 1 place the vessel
containing the liquid to be cooled or frozen and below this ledge I form an opening
through which air can be withdrawn from the inner chamber into the space between
the chamber and the outer jar. In this way vapour passing off from the liquid has to
pass downwards through the inner chamber until it is brought into close contiguity
with the acid. The top of the inner chamber is closed over with a suitable air tight
lid and at the top of the jar a socket is formed to receive the end of a pipe passing
to the vacuum pump.
The jar and pump may both be mounted on a rocking bed.
This bed may be
provided at one end of its rockers with moveable legs which can be turned up to
put them out of action when the bed is to be rocked or can be turned downwards
and made to bear upon the ground at the times when it is desired to work the pump.
In working the apparatus a vacuum would first be formed in the interior of the
jar by working the vacuum pump-the moveable legs would then be turned up out
of the way and a rocking motion given to the bed to keep the acid agitated so as
constantly to bring fresh acid to the surface to absorb the vapour brought in contact
with it.
The piston rod of the pump may be worked up and down directly by a handle
secured to its upper end.
Dated thin atl
1007

page_text: COMPLETE SPECIFICATION.
Improvements in Freezing and Refrigerating Machines.
I, HENRY ALBERT FLEUSS of 59 and 60 Tower Chambers, Moorgate Street in the
City of London, Engineer, do hereby declare the nature of this invention and in
what manner the same is to be performed to be particularly described and ascer-
tained in and by the following statement :-
In freezing and refrigerating machines in which liquid is frozen or cooled by a
portion of it being vaporized by means of a vacuum aided by the absorption of the
vapour by sulphuric acid I form the vessel which is to contain the acid of a stoneware
or glass jar coated outside with a metal jacket and with paraffin or such like substance
(preferably equal parts of paraffin and pitch) run between the two so that the jar if of
stoneware is rendered perfectly air tight. The stoneware is best without glaze on the
outside and in either case accidents which might arise from the breaking of the jar are
avoided as even if the jar be broken the acid cannot escape from the metal jacket.
By holding the acid in a vessel of stoneware or glass and keeping it under ordinary
circumstances from coming into contact with lead of which the vessels have bereto-
fore been made and also by making the agitator by which the acid is agitated of stone-
ware or glass no smell of acid vapour passes off from the machine when it is being
worked whereas heretofore when the vessel and agitator have been made of lead
fumes have arisen from the acid owing to its acting slowly upon the metal causing
decomposition of the acid.
For large machines the glass or earthenware jar may simply be enclosed within a
leaden vessel without running in paraffin between them.
When the liquid to be cooled or frozen is contained in a glass beaker or other vessel
I obtain a more perfect air-tight joint between it and the cover by which it is covered
over by using a water seal in addition to elastic material interposed between the two-
this I do by springing over the outer circumference of the beaker an elastic ring of
vulcanized india rubber just around its upper edge and by forming the ring so as to
project up above the top edge of the beaker so as to form around it a shallow cup
into which a small quantity of water may be poured after the top edge of the beaker
has been held up to and against its elastic seat or washer. The advantage of making
the cup of vulcanized india rubber is that when the liquid in the beaker or vessel has
been sufficiently cooled or frozen the india rubber may be bent downwards and the
water in the cup so allowed to flow away before the beaker is removed.
In this way
the water used for making the seal is prevented from flowing down onto the ice in the
beaker as the beaker is being removed.
For small machines I in some cases form the jar or vessel used for containing the
acid with an inner chamber extending downwards from the top into the acid and
open at the bottom so that acid may rise up into its lower end. Above the acid I
provide a ledge around the interior of the inner vessel on to which 1 place the vessel
containing the liquid to be cooled or frozen and below this ledge I form an opening
through which air can be withdrawn from the inner chamber into the space between

page_text: the chamber and the outer jar. In this way vapour passing off from the liquid has
to pass downwards through the inner chamber until it is brought into close contiguity
with the acid. The top of the vessel is closed over with a suitable air tight lid and
at the top of the jar a socket is formed to receive the end of a pipe passing to the
vacuum pump.
The jar and pump may both be mounted on a rocking bed. This bed may be
provided at one end of its rockers with moveable legs which can be turned up to put
them out of action when the bed is to be rocked or can be turned downwards and
made to bear upon the ground at the times when it is desired to work the pump.
In working the apparatus a vacuum would first be formed in the interior of the
jar by working the vacuum pump-the moveable legs would then be turned up out of
the way and a rocking motion given to the bed to keep the acid agitated so as
constantly to bring fresh acid to the surface to absorb the vapour brought in contact
with it.
The piston rod of the pump may be worked up and down directly by a handle
secured to its upper end.
The above improvements are illustrated in the drawing hereunto annexed.
Figure 1 is a vertical section of a vessel suitable for being used in machines such as
are described in the specification of a prior Patent granted to me No. 2408 in the
year 1886 for containing the acid used.
The vessel shewn in Figure 1 is of earthenware enclosed in a metallic jacket and
with paraffin and pitch or such like substance run between the two. The outer jacket
may conveniently be made of ordinary tin plate soldered together to the required
form the jacket being made to fit as closely as possible to the vessel. When the
earthenware vessel has been enclosed within such a jacket they are heated to a tempera-
ture above the melting point of the paraffin or material that is to be run between the
two and melted paraffin and pitch is then poured in from the top.
Figures 2 and 3 shew a side and edge view of an agitator of earthenware suitable
for being used for agitating the acid contained in the acid vessel of a freezing machine
such as is described in the Specification of my before mentioned Patent. It is formed
of a plate of earthenware with two holes through it on to which is cast a block of
lead with a brass, gunmetal or copper axis extending from it as shown.
Figure 4 shows a vertical cross section of one side of the upper part of a glass beaker
or other vessel and lid with an india rubber ring X surrounding the upper part of the
vessel so that a small quantity of water may be retained around the india rubber
ring Y which is placed between the lid and the top of the vessel and a perfectly air
tight joint be so more readily obtained. Figure 5 is a cross section of one side of an
india rubber ring of the form I use.
Figure 6 is a vertical section of a freezing or refrigerating machine in which the
acid containing chamber is formed in one piece with the chamber for containing the
liquid to be cooled or frozen. Preferably I form them in one piece of earthenware
and enclose them as shown within a metallic jacket and run paraffin and pitch between
as above explained.
A is the jar or vessel for containing the acid-B is the inner chamber formed as
shown to descend from the top of the chamber A and dip into the acid contained in
the lower part of this chamber-C is a ledge formed around the interior of the
chamber B on to which may be placed the vessel D used for containing the liquid to
be cooled or frozen. E is a perforated vertical partition extending across the part of
the vessel A which is below the ledge (). It passes through slots on opposite sides of
the lower part of the chamber B. The chamber A with the partition E across can
first be moulded in plastic earthenware material and the chamber B moulded separately
and then introduced within it and united to it at the top prior to the whole being
burnt or fired. G is an air pump made as described in the specification of my former
Patent herein before mentioned except that the piston is worked up and down by a
handle fixed directly to its rod. The pump is connected to the top of the vessel A by
a pipe H which has a bend in it as shewn to render it flexible-The pipe at its end
carries a leaden stopper to fit into a socket formed to receive it-The joint is

page_text: further made perfectly air tight by means of a soft cement such as a mixture of bees
wax and oil is a cover for closing over the top of the vessel.
K is a washer of india rubber placed below it to make an air tight joint-this is
further ensured by keeping the india rubber wet-L is a stop cock on the cover, by
which and by a flexible pipe coupled to it the liquid to be frozen can be introduced in
small quantities at a time. The cock L also allows of the vacuum within the apparatus
being destroyed when it is desired to take off the lid. The vessel A and pump G are
fixed to a bed plate M on the under side of which are two parallel curved rockers N.
O is a stirrup piece which can be turned down into the position shewn to make it
serve as a supporting leg-F is a narrow slit cut in the lower part of the vessel B
through which air may be withdrawn from the interior of this vessel and be allowed
to pass over the acid and to the air pump-It is formed on the side opposite to that
on which the socket for receiving the stopper I is formed in order that the air so
withdrawn may be kept in close proximity to the acid for as long a time as practicable
before it can pass to the air pump.
The apparatus is worked in the following manner.
Supposing the object be to freeze water, a small quantity is placed in the vessel D
the cover Jis applied and the pump is worked the foot then being placed in the
stirrup O. When a sufficient vacuum is obtained the stirrup is turned up out of the
way and the apparatus is rocked to agitate the acid and keep it well mixed.
Afterwards pumping is recommenced and if desired more water is from time to
time admitted and so on. The air in the vessel B and the vapour from the liquid in
the vessel D finds its way down around the sides and beneath the bottom of the
vessel D and so the acid and from thence the dried air passes to the pump.
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 freezing and refrigerating machines in which liquid is frozen or cooled by a
portion of it being vaporized by means of a vacuum aided by the absorption of the
vapour by acid the construction of the vessel which is to contain the acid of earthen-
ware or glass with an outer jacket of metal and with paraffin and pitch or like
substance run between the two-or with an outer jacket of lead.
2. In freezing and refrigerating machines in which liquid is frozen or cooled by
a portion of it being vaporized by means of a vacuum aided by the absorption of the
vapour by acid the means substantially as described with reference to Figures 4 and 5
for obtaining a tight joint between the vessel containing the liquid to be cooled or
frozen and the lid which covers it.
3. In freezing and refrigerating machines in which liquid is frozen or cooled by a
portion of it being vaporized by means of a vacuum aided by the absorption of the
vapour by acid the construction of the vessel which is to contain the acid in one
piece with an inner chamber which is to contain the liquid to be cooled or frozen
substantially as described.
4. The construction of the acid agitator of earthenware or glass substantially us
described with reference to Figures 2 and 3.
'
5. The construction of freezing and refrigerating machines substantially as herein
before described with reference to Figure 6.
Total this 4th dane of October 1887
CARPMAEL & Co.,
Agents for the Applicant.