Improvements in and Apparatus for Distilling or Cracking and Gasifying Hydrocarbon Oils and the like.
Year: 1893

page_text: Date of Application, 5th July, 1893
Complete Specification Left, 4th May, 1894-Accepted, 5th July, 1894
PROVISIONAL SPECIFICATION.
Improvements in and Apparatus for Distilling or Cracking and
Gasifying Hydrocarbon Oils and the like.
We, HENRY MALCOLM CALDWELL of 8 Russell Square in the County of
London Gentleman and EDWIN TATHAM and JAMES ERNEST TATHAM both of
Colfe Lodge, Lewisham Hill, Lewisham in the County of Kent Engineers do
hereby declare the nature of our invention to be as follows:-
This invention has for its object to provide means whereby the subjecting of
hydrocarbon oils and the like (we will refer to them as oils) for cracking and
gasifying them can be carried on in a more efficient manner than hitherto.
According to this invention the oils are subjected to heat in retorts or vessels
which are heated to different temperatures and the products are led into a condenser
provided with separate compartments or chambers in which the products of
distillation are condensed separately according to their different specific gravities or
boiling points the compartments or chambers of the condenser being connected with
the heating vessels or retorts so that the heavier of the said products pass back into
the hottest retorts or vessels and the lighter of the said products pass into the
retorts or vessels which are subjected to a lesser temperature than those into which
the heavier products pass so that the products are again cracked or gasified in a
most advantageous manner. The condenser is preferably arranged above the
retorts or vessels so that the products pass by gravity into the said retorts or vessels
from the condenser.
The retorts or vessels are preferably arranged in the furnace or heater at an
angle with their higher ends connected to a rising pipe or passage leading up to
the condenser the lower part of which is divided into different compartments from
which the products pass back into the hotter retorts or vessels as aforesaid. The
inlets for the condensed products back into the retorts or vessels are preferably
continued into the retorts or vessels from the upper end to near the lower end.
Take for example a furnace having three retorts therein. The oil from the supply
tank passes into the upper retort which is farthest from the fire and consequently
is subjected to the lowest degree of heat and therein the said oil is gasified at a low
temperature and the heavy gases produced therein are led by the uptake into the
condenser where they are cooled and the heavier condensed products pass from the
first chamber of the condenser to the lowest retort which is nearest the fire and
consequently is subjected to the highest temperature and they are therein again
cracked or gasified. The lighter condensed products pass from the next chamber
of the condenser into the intermediate retort which is subjected to an intermediate
temperature and they are again gasified and so the process goes on continuously.
In this arrangement the hottest retort or vessel re-retorts the heavier condensed
products the least heated retort or vessel retorts the original oil and the
intermediately heated retort or vessel re-retorts the lighter condensed products.
The number of the retorts or vessels and of the chambers in the condenser may
be varied according to requirements and there may be any desired number of
retorts or vessels in each of the sets which are submitted to the different
temperatures.
Dated the 5th day of July 1893.
J. H. JOHNSON & Co.,
47, Lincoln's Inn Fields, London, W.C., Agents.

page_text: COMPLETE SPECIFICATION.
Improvements in and Apparatus for Distilling or Cracking and
Gasifying Hydrocarbon Oils and the like.
We, HENRY MALCOLM CALDWELL, of 8 Russell Square, in the County of
London, Gentleman, and EDWIN TATHAM and JAMES ERNEST TATHAM, both
of Colfe Lodge, Lewisham Hill, Lewisham, in the County of Kent, Engineers, 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:
This invention has for its object to provide means whereby the subjecting of
hydrocarbon oils and the like to distillation (we will refer to them for brevity as
oils), for cracking and gasifying them, can be carried on in a more efficient manner
than hitherto. According to this invention the oils are subjected to heat in retorts,
or vessels, which are heated to different temperatures, and the products are led into
a condenser provided with separate compartments, or chambers, in which the
products of distillation are condensed separately according to their different specific
gravities, or boiling points, the compartments, or chambers, of the condenser being
connected with the heating vessels, or retorts, so that the heavier of the said
products pass back into the hottest retorts, or vessels, and the lighter of the said
products pass into the retorts, or vessels, which are subjected to a lesser temperature
than those into which the heavier products pass, so that the products are again
cracked, or gasified, in a most advantageous manner. The condenser is preferably
arranged above the retorts, or vessels, so that the products pass by gravity into the
said retorts, or vessels, from the condenser.
The retorts or vessels, are preferably arranged in the furnace or heater at an
angle, their higher ends being connected to a rising pipe, or passage, leading up to
the condenser, the lower part of which is divided into different compartments from
which the products pass back into the retorts or vessels as aforesaid. The inlets,
for the condensed products back into the retorts, or vessels, are preferably continued
into the retorts, or vessels, from the upper end to near the lower end. Take for
example, a furnace having three retorts therein. The oil from the supply tank
passes into the upper retort, which is farthest from the fire, and consequently is
subjected to the lowest degree of heat, and therein the said oil is gasified at a low
temperature and the heavy gases produced therein are led by the uptake into the
condenser where they are cooled and the heavier condensed products pass from the
first chamber of the condenser to the lowest retort, which is nearest the fire, and
consequently are subjected to the highest temperature and they are therein again
cracked, or gasified. The lighter condensed products pass from the next chamber
of the condenser into the intermediate retort which is subjected to an intermediate
temperature and they are again gasified and so the process goes on continuously.
In this arrangement the hottest retort, or vessel re-retorts the heavier condensed
products, the least heated retort, or vessel, retorts the original oil, and the
intermediately heated retort, or vessel, re-retorts the lighter condensed products.
The number of the retorts, or vessels, and of the chambers in the condenser, may
be varied, according to requirements, and there may be any desired number of
retorts, or vessels in each of the sets which are submitted to the different
temperatures.
In order that our invention may be clearly understood we will further describe
the same with reference to the accompanying drawings.
Figure 1 is a front elevation and Figure 2 is a transverse section of an apparatus
constructed according to our invention.
Figure 3 is a sectional elevation of a device for automatically cutting off the
supply of oil to the distilling retorts or vessels.

page_text: A is a bench of retorts, or vessels, in which the oil is cracked and gasified; the
said retorts being arranged in tiers a b c d one above another and preferably
inclined as shown in Figure 2. These tiers of retorts are so arranged as to be
heated to different degrees of temperature the lowermost tier a, which in the
arrangement shewn is nearest the furnace, being heated to the highest temperature
the next tier 6 above, being heated to a lower temperature, the next tier c, above.
the tier 6 being heated to a still lower temperature, and the tier d being heated
to the lowest temperature. We have shewn four tiers of retorts in the bench A. but-
we do not restrict ourselves to this number of tiers nor, to the number of retorts
shewn in each tier. B is a tank, or vessel containing the oil to be cracked and
gasified which oil passes from the said tank by a pipe e, provided with a cock f to-
regulate the supply. The oil is conducted by the pipe e into feeding devices C
(one of which is shewn in section in Figure 3 and is hereinafter more fully
described) from which it passes by pipes ex, into the upper ends of the top tier d
of retorts in the bench A and is conducted by pipes to the lower ends of the said
retorts as shewn for example at ex* in Figure with regard to the retort a. In
the retorts d, the oil is cracked, or partially distilled, the gas thus generated passing
therefrom by the outlets g, into a pipe h communicating with an ascension pipe i
which leads to a condenser in which the heavy products from the distillation of the
oil deposit. The condenser is situated above the bench of retorts and consists of a
vessel D arranged horizontally and divided by partitions & into separate compart-
ments E F G the number of compartments depending upon the number of tiers of
retorts in the bench A. Into the first compartment E dips the ascension pipe i into
which compartment also dips the two ends of an inverted U pipe H one leg of
which communicates by a branch with the pipe i whilst the other leg of the said
pipe H communicates by a branch with one leg of a similar inverted U pipe H*
dipping into the compartment F in the vessel D. The other leg of the pipe H"
communicates by a branch 13 with one leg of an inverted U pipe H³ dipping into
the third compartment G in the vessel D whilst the other leg of the said pipe H³ is.
in communication by a branch and pipe I with a gas holder or with a meter K
through which the gas passes from the condenser to a gas holder. The heavier
products, which pass with the gas from the retorts, deposit in the compartment E
of the condenser and pass therefrom by a pipe e² into feeding devices C*
and thence by pipes f* into the bottom tier à of retorts in the bench A
which are subject to the greatest heat. In these retorts the said products
are again distilled the gas generated passing from these retorts by outlets g'
into a pipe 2 leading to the ascension pipe and thence to the condenser
as before. The next lighter products of the distillation deposit in the compart-
ment F of the condenser and pass therefrom into the pipe 2 by which they
are conducted to feeding devices C³ and thence by pipes f3 into the retorts b which
are not heated to so high a temperature as the retorts a. The gas generated by
the redistillation of the products in these retorts b passes therefrom by the outlets m
into the pipe n communicating with the ascension pipe i through which the gas.
passes to the condenser. The lightest products of distillation deposit in the next
compartment G of the condenser and pass therefrom by the pipe o into feeding
devices C and from thence by the pipes p into the retorts c which retorts are not
heated to so high a temperature as the retorts 6 they being situated in a cooler
part of the furnace. The gas generated by the redistillation of the products in these
retorts passes therefrom through the outlets into the piper and thence through the
ascension pipe to the condenser. Instead of the outlets g g2 m q and the
pipes h²n and r being situated on top of the retorts as shewn they may be
arranged on the undersides so that the products of distillation will be caused to
descend in passing from the retorts. The whole of the gas passes from the condenser
by the pipe I into the meter K and is conducted therefrom by a pipe X to a gas holder
or it may pass to a gas holder direct. The deposited products may pass direct
from the vessel D of the condenser into the pipes e² and o or as shewn in Figure 2
they may pass from the vessel D into another similarly divided vessel D³ with

page_text: which the pipes e² ² and o are connected. A regulated supply of oxygen may be
admitted to the apparatus to mix with the products of distillation in the condenser
in their passage from the retorts to the condenser. A convenient arrangement for
supplying the oxygen consists of a meter L operated from the meter K by means
of an endless chain M passing round sprocket wheels N and O fast on the axes of
the meters the relative sizes of the wheels N and O being regulated according to
the proportion of oxygen required to be mixed with the products of distillation.
Oxygen enters the meter L by the pipe P and passes out therefrom by the pipe Q
which conducts it into the interior of the ascension pipe to mix with the products
of distillation passing through the said pipe.
A feeding device is provided for each retort the said device consisting of a
vessel C (see Figure 3) into which the oil from the tank B or the deposited
products from the condenser D (as the case may be) enters and passes through a
tube S depending from the bottom of the vessel into an outer or surrounding tube
or chamber T. The oil and products pass from the tube, or chamber T at the
upper end thereof into a pipe U (the pipes marked e* p ƒ³ and ƒ* in Figure 1)
leading to the interior of the retort with which it is connected. Inside the vessel
is a float or inverted bell V upon which rests one arm of a weighted lever s carried
on the axis of a cock t on the pipe e (or the pipes e fo as the case may be)
by which the oil, or the like, is conducted into the vessel C. Should the outlet
from the retort become choked the gas will ascend by the feed pipe U and by
pressing on the liquid will cause the float to rise and turns the cock t until the
weight on the lever S overbalances and closes the cock so as to cut off the supply
of liquid to the vessel. The pipes 2nr and h through which the gas passes from
the retorts to the ascension pipe i and also the pipes efo and e which conduct the
oil and the deposited products of distillation into the feeding devices C C² C³
and C are provided with stop cocks so that by these means any one, or more, of
the retorts, or any one, or more, of the tiers of retorts, may be shut off when
required.
Having now particularly described and ascertained the nature of our said
invention and in what manner the same is to be performed, we declare that what
we claim is :-
1st. Distilling or cracking and gasifying hydrocarbon oils and the like by
subjecting the hydrocarbon oil or the like and the deposited products of distillation
from the oil to different degrees of heat, according to their specific gravities, in
retorts or vessels which are heated to different temperatures substantially as
herein before described.
2nd. In apparatus for distilling or cracking and gasifying hydrocarbon oils and
the like the combination with retorts or vessels, in which the distilling and
gasification is effected of a condenser having separate compartments into which the
heavy products of distillation deposit according to their different specific gravities
and pipes or passages for conducting the deposited products from the said com-
partments into retorts heated to different degrees of temperature the heaviest
deposited product being conducted to the hottest retort or retorts the next lighter
deposited product being conducted to the retort or retorts heated to a lower
temperature (the next lighter product being conducted to the retort or retorts
heated to a still lower temperature) and so on substantially as hereinbefore
described and illustrated by the accompanying drawings.
Dated this 4th day of Mar 1901
JOHNSONS & WILLCOX.