Improvements in Apparatus for Utilizing the Waste Heat of Gas Engines.
Year: 1888

page_text: Date of Application, 18th Dec., 1888
Complete Specification Left, 16th Sept., 1889-Accepted, 19th Oct., 1889
PROVISIONAL SPECIFICATION.
Improvements in Apparatus for Utilizing the Waste Heat of
Gas Engines.
I, DAVID DAVIES, of Crumlin, near Newport, in the county of Monmouth,
Mechanical Engineer, do hereby declare the nature of this invention to be as
follows:-
My invention relates to apparatus for utilizing the waste heat contained in the
exhaust gases of gas engines whereby an economy in fuel is effected in the production
of gas for such engines.
In carrying out my invention I provide one or more continuous acting heat
regenerators for intercepting the heat contained in the exhaust gases as it passes
from the engine and conducting a large percentage of the said heat back again to the
gas producer.
The ends or covers of the outer casing of the heat regenerator are by preference
made of two pieces each having a central half round recess or opening to receive
the necks of a bell-mouthed inlet and outlet for the exhaust gases. The disc or
table of each bell-mouth is less in diameter than the inside of the casing to allow
air to freely pass around them and the top side of the disc or table of the bottom
bellmouth is formed with a grooved recess to receive a spigot on the underside
of horizontal heat intercepting trays made to fit the inside of the casing and cast
with a circular ring or spigot on the lower side with a corresponding larger recess
on the upper side of the table to receive the spigot of the next tray above it with its
metallic, asbestos oxide or other cement joint.
The holes in the tables are not opposite one another and therefore the hot gases
as they pass upwards communicate their heat to the horizontal heat intercepting
trays against which they impinge and the cooling surface for the gases which
also conducts the heat given up to the heating surface for the air is very
effective.
The heat given up by the gases is conveyed by conduction through the horizontal
perforated tables and vertical spigots of the trays to the air chambers or spaces
formed between the outside of the spigot and the inside of the wall of the outer
casing.
The cold air entering at the top surrounds the gases passing out from the central
chambers through the top bellmouth and passes through the perforated trays and
takes up from each successive outer chamber downwards the heat which the gases
have parted with on their passage upwards through the central chambers and when
the air has arrived at the bottom chamber it is at its highest temperature and is
drawn off therefrom by steam jet or other means and forced into the gas producer
for making new gas.
The regenerator can if required be heated to working temperature before starting
by any suitable means. The heat intercepting trays may be formed of perforated
plates, or of wire netting.
I can if required use a pair of heat regenerators, that is to say, two plain
regenerators with inlet and outlet flanges for attaching pipes thereto; the perforated
heat intercepting trays are made of metal or fire clay plain or dished with a washer
or ring between them to form intermediate cooling surfaces for hot gases and heating
surfaces for cold air in the chambers between the trays.
The pair of regenerators are connected at one end by means of a branch tee pipe
having a central valve chest fitted with a two way valve for the purpose of allowing
the hot exhaust gases to pass into one end of the cold regenerator and to admit the

page_text: cold air into the hot regenerator. The other ends of the regenerators are fitted with
a corresponding duplicate valve chest and valve for the purpose of allowing the hot
air to pass to the steam jet or injector which draws it off and forces it into the gas
producer for making fresh gas and also for allowing the cold gases to pass to the
chimney. As these two valves are connected to one link they can be reversed at
certain intervals for the purpose of reversing, the direction of the currents of hot
gases and cold air. The cold air can if necessary be forced through the regenerators
by air pressure or fan blast.:
Dated the 18th day of December 1888
G. F. REDFERN & Co.,
4, South Street, Finsbury, London, Agents for the Applicant.
COMPLETE SPECIFICATION.
Improvements in Apparatus for Utilizing the Waste Heat of
Gas Engines.
I, DAVID DAVIES, of Crumlin, near Newport, in the county of Monmouth,
Mechanical 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 :-
My invention relates to apparatus for utilizing the waste heat contained in the
exhaust gases of gas engines whereby an economy in fuel is effected in the production
of gas for such engines.
For this purpose I provide one or more continuous-acting heat-regenerators for
intercepting the heat contained in the exhaust gases as it passes from the engine
and conducting a large percentage of the said heat back again to the gas
producer.
In the accompanying drawings
Figure 1 is a vertical section of an apparatus for utilizing the waste heat of gas
engines the said apparatus being constructed according to my invention and arranged
to act singly and in a vertical position.
Figure 2 is a plan, and
Figure 3 is a horizontal section taken on the line A B of Figure 1.
Figure 4 is a longitudinal elevation, and
Figure 5 is a horizontal section of a double apparatus arranged to work horizontally
and shewn in connection with a gas producer.
Similar letters in all the figures indicate similar parts.
Referring to Figures 1, 2 and 3, a is the outer casing or cylinder of the
continuous-acting heat-regenerator, and b, c are the ends or covers of the said casing
of the heat regenerator made by preference of two pieces as clearly shown in
Figure 2, each piece having a central half round recess or opening d to receive
the necks e, f of a bell-mouthed inlet g and outlet / respectively for the exhaust
gases coming from the gas engine not shewn in the drawing. The disc or table i
of each bell-mouth is less in diameter than the inside of the casing a to allow air
entering through an opening; in the top cover 6 to freely pass around the discs i.
The top side of the disc or table i of the lower bell-mouth 9 is formed with a
grooved recess k to receive a spigot on the underside of the lowermost perforated
horizontal heat-intercepting tray m of a series made to fit the inside of the casing a.
Each of the trays m is made with a circular recess n on its upper side to receive
the spigot of the next tray m above it, provided with a joint of metallic, asbestos,
oxide or other cement.
The holes o in adjacent trays m are not opposite one another and therefore the 5
hot gases from the gas engine entering at g communicate their heat as they pass
upwards, to the central portion of the horizontal heat-intercepting, trays m against
which they impinge.

page_text: The heat given up by the gases is conveyed by conduction through the horizontal
perforated trays m and vertical spigots of the trays to the air chambers or spaces p
formed between the outside of the spigots and the inner side of the outer casing a.
The direction of travel of the air through the apparatus is indicated by dotted
arrows and that of the gases by the full-line arrows, and by following the course
of the said arrows it will he clearly seen that the cold air entering through jat
the top surrounds the gases passing out from the central chambers' through the
top bell-mouth h, passes downwards through the perforated trays m and takes up
from each successive outer chamber the heat which the gases have parted with
on their passage upwards through the central chambers 7 and when the air has
arrived at the bottom chamber it is at its highest temperature and is drawn off
therefrom through a pipe by a steam jet or other means and forced into the gas
producer to assist in making fresh gas.
P
The regeneration can if required be heated to working temperature before starting
by any suitable means. The heat intercepting trays may be formed of perforated
plates, as shown, or of wire netting.
I can if required use a pair of heat-regenerators, as illustrated in figures 4 and 5,
that is to say, two plain regenerators a, a having inlet and outlet pipes s and t
respectively attached to the covers b, c thereof; the perforated heat-intercepting
trays m are made of metal or fire clay plain as shown or dished and provided with
distance pieces u between them so as to utilize the trays m as cooling surfaces for
the hot gases and heating surfaces for the cold air alternately as hereinafter
described.
The regenerators a, a serve alternately to receive the hot gases from the engine
and the cold air to be heated and to enable this to be accomplished the pipes s, s
of the pair of generators a, a are connected by means of a branch tee pipe having
a central valve chest to fitted with a two-way valve x for the purpose of allowing the
hot exbaust gases coming from the gas engine through the pipe v to pass into one
end of one regenerator and at the same time of admitting the cold air entering at e¹
into the same end of the other regenerator. The other pipes t, t of the regenerators
are connected with a similar valve chest y and valve for the purpose of allowing
the hot air from one regenerator to pass to the steam jet or injector a¹ which
draws it off and forces it into the gas producer b' for making fresh gas and also
for allowing the cold gases from the other regenerator at the same time to pass
through the outlet c¹ to the chimney not shown in the drawing. As these two
valves are connected to one link d¹ they can be reversed at intervals for the
purpose of alternately directing the currents of hot gases and cold air into the
regenerators.
The cold air can if necessary be forced through the regenerators by air pressure
or fan blast.
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.) Apparatus for utilizing the waste heat of gas engines consisting of a heat
regenerator furnished with a number of perforated trays provided with spigots and
corresponding recesses so as to form a series of central chambers and a series of
outer chambers, the hot waste gases passing through the former and air to be heated
by the said gases passing in an opposite direction through the latter substantially as
and for the purpose hereinbefore described and illustrated in Figures 1, 2 and 3 of
the accompanying drawings.
(2.) The employment for utilizing the waste heat of gas engines, of a pair of heat
regenerators fitted with internal perforated plates or their equivalents and with
suitable valves and pipes so arranged as to alternately allow the hot gases from the
gas engine and the cold air to be heated to pass through the two regenerators
alternately and to be respectively discharged and introduced into a gas producer,

page_text: substantially as hereinbefore described and illustrated in Figures 4 and 5 of the
accompanying drawings.
(3.) The improved apparatus herein before described with reference to figures 1 to 3
and to figures 4 and 5 of the accompanying drawings.
Dated the 16th day of September 1889.
G. F. REDFERN & Co.,
4, South Street, Finsbury, London, Agents for the Applicant.