A Voltaic Battery Cell with Hot Air Depolarisation.
Year: 1898

page_text: "
PROVISIONAL SPECIFICATION.
A Voltaic Battery Cell with Hot Air Depolarisation.
1
I, HENRI DE RUFZ DE LAVISON, of 42, Boulevard Maillot, Neuilly sur Seine
(Seine); France, Engineer, do hereby declare the nature of this invention to be
us follows:
-
This invention relates to a voltaic battery cell in which depolarisation is effected
by a current of hot air, blown in at the base of the positive electrodes and
ascending along their surfaces.
The cell consists of zinc plates arranged between copper plates. Each of the
zinc plates is enclosed in a porous. casing such for instance as parchment paper,
within a frame of insulating material such for instance, as celluloid, which is
kept about 5 millimeters away from the copper plates by bands of caoutchouc
or other insulating material.
Under each of the copper plates is fixed a tube of any material perforated
with fine holes very near each other. Each of these tubes is connected at one
end with an upright tube communicating with a general supply tube at the top
of the battery.
When the cell is heated above 30° C., best to about 60° C. air is blown in by
the perforated tubes, this air immediately acquiring the temperature of the
surrounding liquid, and whether it oxidises the plates or whether it, so to speak,
intercepts the hydrogen in its passage, it powerfully contributes to depolarisa-
tion, or in a weak cell it effects it entirely.
In a powerful cell there should be a quantity of copper sulphate to maintain
the strength of the liquid electrolyte to 2 or 3 per cent. of sulphate. The copper
sulphate is contained. in a reservoir at one side communicating with the battery
by adjustable holes at the top and bottom.
The liquid employed contains from 25 to 5 per cent. by volume of sulphuric
acid.
A cell having 10 zinc plates each about 15 cm. broad and 19 cm. high and con-
taining 9 litres of liquid gives 50 ampères at 1 volt, 100 ampères at 09 volts
and 200 ampères at 06 volts, this last condition being maintained for 4 hours
with the same liquid.
The quantity of copper sulphate consumed is about one third of that which
would be expended in an ordinary Daniell cell. There is no sensible deposit of
copper on the zinc by reason of the weakness of the solution of copper sulphate.
Any number of cells may be connected in parallel or in series, the current
being conducted by bars at the top for the zinc and the copper.
Dated this 25th day of July 1898.
ABEL & IMRAY,
Agents for the Applicant.

page_text: A Voltaic Battery Cell with Hot Air Depolarisation.
I, HENRI DE RUFZ DE LAVISON, of 42, Boulevard Maillot, Neuilly sur Seine
(Seine), France, 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;-
This invention relates to a voltaic battery cell in which depolarisation is effected
by a current of hot air blown in at the base of the positive electrodes and
ascending along their surfaces.
Fig. 1 of the accompanying drawings is a vertical section of a cell containing
3 zinc and
copper plates.
Fig. 2 is a horizontal section, Fig. 3 is a transverse section and Fig. 4 is a
plan.
Fig. 5 shews the arrangement of each negative electrode enclosed in a porous
case supported by an insulating frame.
The cell consists of zinc plates A arranged between copper plates B. Each
of the zinc plates A is enclosed in a porous casing C, such, for instance, as parch-
ment paper within a frame B of insulating material such, for instance, as cellu-
loid, which is kept, about 5 millimetres away from the copper plates by bands H
of caoutchouc or other insulating material.
Under each of the copper plates B is fixed a tube E perforated with fine holes a
very near each other.
The holes a may have a diameter of one tenth or two tenths of a millimetre,
and may be about 1 or 2 millimetres apart.
Each of these tubes E is connected at one end with an upright tube F com-
municating with a general supply tube G at the top of the battery.
When the cell is heated above 30° C., but to about 60° C., air is blown in by
the perforated tubes E, this air immediately acquiring the temperature of the
surrounding liquid, and whether it oxidises the plates or whether it, so to speak,
intercepts the hydrogen in its passage, it powerfully contributes to depolarisa-
tion, or in a weak cell it effects it entirely.
In a powerful cell there should be a quantity of copper sulphate to maintain
the strength of the liquid electrolyte to 2 or 3 per cent. of sulphate. The copper
sulphate is contained in a reservoir R at one side communicating with the bat-
tery by adjustable holes at the top and bottom.
The liquid employed contains from 25 to 5 per cent. by volume of sulphuric acid.
A cell having 10 zinc plates each about 15 centimetres broad and 19 centi-
metres high and containing 9 litres of liquid gives 50 ampères at 1 volt,
100 ampères at 0.9 volts and 200 ampères at 0'6 volts, this last condition being
maintained for 4 hours with the same liquid.
The quantity of copper sulphate consumed is about one third of that which
would be expended in an ordinary Daniell cell.
There is no sensible deposit of copper on the zinc by reason of the weakness
of the solution of copper sulphate.
Any number of cells may be connected in parallel or in series, the current
being conducted by bars at the top for the zinc and the copper.
The porous materials and dimensions of the different parts of the cell may
be varied as well as the connection of the elements according to their intended
purpose.

page_text: Having now particularly described and ascertained the nature of this inven-
tion and in what manner the same is to be performed, I declare that what I
claim is:
A voltaic battery with hot air depolarisation arranged as described the depolari-
sation being effected by fine jets of air injected into the liquid through fine
holes of a tube placed at the base of each positive (copper) electrode and coming
from a general conduit of compressed air and moving along both faces of the
electrode, the battery being in the first place heated to a temperature of 30°
to 60° C.
Dated this 16th 1.
1900