IMPROVEMENTS IN STEAM ENGINES, MORE PARTICULARLY WITH REFERENCE TO VALVES FOR REGULATING THE ESCAPE OF WASTE WATER, INJECTION, AND VACUUM
Year: 1875

page_text: LETTERS PATENT to Henry Percy Holt, of Royal Insurance Buildings,
Leeds, in the County of York, Civil Engineer, for the Invention
of "IMPROVEMENTS IN STEAM ENGINES, MORE PARTICULARLY WITH REFERENCE
TO VALVES FOR REGULATING THE ESCAPE OF WASTE WATER, INJECTION, AND
VACUUM."
Sealed the 26th October 1875, and dated the 16th June 1875.
PROVISIONAL SPECIFICATION left by the said Henry Percy Holt
at the Office of the Commissioners of Patents, with his Petition,
on the 16th June 1875.
I, HENRY PEROY HOLT, of Royal Insurance Buildings, Leeds, in the
County of York, Civil Engineer, do hereby declare the nature of the
said Invention for "IMPROVEMENTS IN STEAM ENGINES, MORE PARTICULARLY
WITH REFERENCE TO VALVES FOR REGULATING THE ESCAPE OF WASTE WATER,
INJECTION, AND Vacuux," to be as follows:-
"
The object of the first part of this Invention is to remove "priming
or condensed water from steam engine cylinders, and consists in pro-

page_text: viding an arrangement of valve or valves in communication with the ends
of interior of cylinder, which valve or valves are constructed in such a
manner that they are opened by "stored" or accumulated power on
the falling of pressure in the cylinder below a given point, but are
closed by the rising of pressure in the cylinder above a given point, &
This is accomplished by a valve or valves constructed to open by the
action of gravity, springs, or both combined, against the pressure in
oylinder when it falls, and to close with the pressure when it rises.
These valves are also constructed to open by gravity, springs, or both
combined, with or in the direction of the pressure in cylinder, and to 1
close against the pressure by counteraction of pressure in the cylinder
on the surface of a piston or other equivalent medium of a greater area
than the valve, but in any case the novelty of this part of the Invention
consists in closing the valves by pressure in the cylinder in lieu of
opening, as in the ordinary method.

page_text: .
The second part of this Invention refers to an apparatus consisting of
a cylinder or india-rubber bellows, with elastic sides, having usually
metallic ends, one of which is fixed and the other loaded to about 12 lbs.
per square inch by means of weights or springs; the interior of this
cylinder is in communication with the condenser, consequently any
variation in the vacuum causes the bellows to expand or contract; this
motion is communicated to regulate the quantity of injection water, and
the controlling gear of the cylinder working the air pump, thereby a
constant vacuum is maintained with a minimum of injection, and p
to work the air pump.
power
For small engines, in lieu of the bellows, a large mercurial syphon
vacuum guage is used, having a float in the short leg, the variation of
which is used to regulate the injection and vacuum, as above.
SPECIFICATION in pursuance of the conditions of the Letters Patent,
filed by the said Henry Percy Holt in the Great Seal Patent
Office on the 16th December 1875.
.
TO ALL TO WHOM THESE PRESENTS SHALL COME, I, HENRY
PEROY HOLT, of Royal Insurance Buildings, Leeds, in the County of
York, Civil Engineer, send greeting.
⚫ WHEREAS Her most Excellent Majesty Queen Victoria, by Her.
Letters Patent, bearing date the Sixteenth day of June, in the year of
our Lord One thousand eight hundred and seventy-five, in the thirty-
eighth year of Her reign, did, for Herself, Her heirs and successors, give.
and grant unto me, the said Henry Percy Holt, Her special licence,
that I, the said Henry Percy Holt, my executors, administrators,
and assigns, or such others as I, the said Henry Percy Holt, my
executors, administrators, and assigns, should at any time agree with,
and no others, from time to time and at all times thereafter during the
term therein expressed, should and lawfully might make, use, exercise,
and vend, within the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland, the
Channel Islands, and Isle of Man, an Invention for "IMPROVEMENTS IN
STEAM ENGINES, MORE PARTICULARLY WITH REFERENCE TO VALVES FOR RÉGULATING
THE ESCAPE OF WASTE WATER, INJECTION, AND VACUUM," upon the condition
(amongst others) that I, the said Henry Percy Holt, my executors or

page_text: administrators, by an instrument in writing under my, or their, or one
of their hands and seals, should particularly describe and ascertain the
nature of the said Invention, and in what manner the same was to be
performed, and cause the same to be filed in the Great Seal Patent
Office within six calendar months next and immediately after the date
of the said Letters Patent.
NOW KNOW YE, that I, the said Henry Percy Holt, do hereby
declare the nature of my said Invention, and in what manner the same
is to be performed, to be particularly described and ascertained in and
by the following statement :-
""
"
The object of the first part of this Invention is to remove “priming'
or condensed water from steam engine cylinders, and consists in pro-
viding an arrangement of valve or valves in communication with the
ends of interior of cylinder, which valve or valves are constructed in
such a manner that they are opened by " stored or accumulated
power on the falling of pressure in the cylinder below a given point, but
are closed by the rising of pressure in the cylinder above a given point.
This is accomplished by a valve or valves constructed to open by the
action of gravity, springs, or both combined, against the pressure in
cylinder when it falls, and to close with the pressure when it rises.
These valves are also constructed to open by gravity, springs, or both
combined, with or in the direction of the pressure in cylinder, and to
close against the pressure by counteraction of pressure in the cylinder
on the surface of a piston or other equivalent medium of a greater area
than the valve, but in any case the novelty of this part of the Invention
consists in closing the valves by pressure in the cylinder in lieu of
opening, as in the ordinary method.

page_text: requiring the use of a governor; they are opened by gearing from the
crank shaft at the proper time, and close automatically when the engine
runs at the proper speed.
In order to avoid possibility of accident through an unusual rush of
water into the cylinder these arrangements of waste water valves may
be used in combination with relief valves which are opened by any
unusual increase of pressure in the ordinary manner.
In some cases to lessen the duty of these valves on the cylinders an
outlet for water is provided on the steam chest, the opening and closing
of which is regulated by the temperature of the accumulated water
being lower than that of the steam due to the pressure acting on a
vessel containing any expansive fluid or liquid; this vessel is provided
with a piston or elastic diaphragm connected to a gridiron slide valve
or cock, which is opened or closed by the expansion or contraction of
the apparatus above named. This may likewise be attained by the
expansion and contraction of metal rods or coils, the motion of which is
imparted to a gridiron slide valve or plug cock through the medium of
multiplying levers.
The second part of this Invention refers to an apparatus consisting of
a cylinder or india-rubber bellows, with elastic sides, having usually
metallic ends, one of which is fixed and the other loaded from about 12
to 14 lbs. per square inch by means of weights or springs; the interior
of this cylinder is in communication with the condenser, consequently
any variation in the vacuum causes the bellows to expand or contract;
this motion is communicated to regulate the quantity of injection water,
and the controlling gear of the cylinder working the air pump, thereby
a constant vacuum is maintained with a minimum of injection, and power
to work the air pump.
For small engines in lieu of the bellows a large mercurial syphon
vacuum guage is used having a float in the short leg, the variation of
which is used to regulate the injection and vacuum, as above.
In order to render the foregoing description more clearly understood I
herewith append Drawings, Figs. 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, and 7, in which the
reference letters are as follows:-
Fig. 1. a, connection from cylinder; b, drain valve, which is opened
against the exhaust pressure by means of spring c, and allows water to

page_text: escape; d, set screw to adjust spring to exhaust pressure; e, to waste,
which in high-pressure non-condensing engines is the atmosphere, and
in condensing engines the condenser; f, chamber room steam side;
g, chamber room exhaust side; h, external casing.
Fig. 2. a, connection from cylinder; b, drain valve; c, drain valve 5
guide and spindle; d, beat or faced piston for opening drain valve against
exhaust pressure; e, chamber supplied with steam from chest by means
of pipe f; 9, 9, escape valve kept closed by steam in chamber e, e, when
the engine is running, but which falls open when the engine stands;
h, h, passages from drain valves; i, k, passages to waste; j, chamber on 10
steam side; 1, 2, external casing.
Fig. 3 shows a double valve in one casing. a and a³, connections
from the opposite ends of the cylinder; band 6', drain valves; c, springs
for opening both drain valves when the engine stands; d, d, tail ends
of valves, which abut on each other, and insure the exhaust end valve 15
opening when steam comes on to close the admission end valve; e, e,
passages to waste, as before; f,f¹, passages to valves; g, g, exhaust
chamber; h, h, casing with screw bonnets for access to valves which are
guided in the same.
Fig. 4. a, pipe connecting with condenser; b, expansive cylinder; 20
c, c, dead weights; d, connecting link; e, lever on shaft of controlling
gear for admission of injection and regulating the speed of air pump; ƒ
spring to regulate variation of position of e according to the vacuum.
Fig. 5 shows a drain valve combined with an ordinary spring escape
valve a; h, h, connection from cylinder; b, drain valve; c, d, adjusting 25
spring and set screw; e, e, f,f, escape chamber; 9, 9, escape valve kept
closed by spring i, i; j, j, casing; k, connection to waste, as before.
Fig. 6. a, connection from condenser; b, b, mercurial syphon; c,
float; d, lever driving shaft communicating with injection valve and
gear regulating the speed of air pump.
Fig. 7 is a drain valve opened by gravity. a, connection from
cylinder; b, b, drain valve and piston working in casing 9, 9; c, c, steam
passages for closing valve; d, d, chamber on steam side; e, f, chamber
on waste side. The valve b, b, is made of sufficient weight to fall during
the exhaust stroke and when the engine stands.
30
35

page_text: Having now described and particularly ascertained and shewn the
nature of the said Invention, and the manner in which the same is or
may be used or carried into effect, I wish it to be understood that I do
not confine or restrict myself to the precise details which I have shewn,
described, or referred to, as many modifications and variations may be
made therefrom without deviating from the principles or main features
of the said Invention; but what I consider to be novel and original and
therefore claim as the Invention secured to me by the herein-before in
part recited Letters Patent is,-
Firstly. The arrangement of valves to open against the exhaust pressure
in steam engine cylinders by means of gravity, springs, pistons, or other
equivalents for permitting the escape of water from cylinders during the
exhaust stroke, and to close by the higher pressure of live steam at the
admission to prevent waste of the same; these valves are also open when
the engine is standing.
I
Secondly. The use of valves of larger dimensions on the same principle
for admitting and exhausting steam from the cylinder, in which case no
governor is required on the engine.
Thirdly. The apparatus for regulating the admission of injection water
to steam engine condensers, and for regulating the speed of the air pump
to maintain a good vacuum in condensers where a separate engine is
used to drive the air pump, as described and shown on the foregoing
descriptions and Drawings.
In witness whereof, I, the said Henry Percy Holt, have hereunto
set my hand and seal, this Fifteenth day of December, in the
year of our Lord One thousand eight hundred and seventy-five.
Witness,
JOHN STEVENSON.
HENRY PERCY HOLT. (L.S.)