IMPROVED APPARATUS FOR THE MANUFACTURE OF LAMPBLACK
Year: 1874

page_text: LETTERS PATENT to Alexander Melville Clark, of 53, Chancery Lane,
in the County of Middlesex, Patent Agent, for the Invention of
"IMPROVED APPARATUS FOR THE MANUFACTURE OF LAMPBLACK."-A com-
munication from abroad by John Rogers, of the City, County, and
State of Now Vonk United States of America.
PROVISIONAL SPECIFICATION left by the said Alexander Melville
Clark at the Office of the Commissioners of Patents, with his
Petition, on the 16th January 1874.
I, ALEXANDER MELVILLE CLARK, of 53, Chancery Lane, in the County
5 of Middlesex, Patent Agent, do hereby declare the nature of the said
Invention for "IMPROVED APPARATUS FOR THE MANUFACTURE OF LAMPBLACK,"
to be as follows:
1

page_text: and thus made immediately effective at a point where heretofore no air
admission took place in a lampblack furnace.
The air is constantly admitted through an opening into the chamber
beneath the grate while the contents of the pan are on fire, such air
being then drawn up through the grate by the suction and rarefaction
caused by the flame into contact with the latter to affect it in the proper
manner.
The Invention also consists in making the shell or furnace which
embraces the combustion chamber with double walls, the inner of which
is perforated on a line about on a level with the pan, while the outer is
also perforated at suitable places, so that the external air may be
admitted into the space between the double walls and thence projected
in a series of radial horizontal currents towards the flame. The
horizontal currents will thus mingle with the upright currents, deflecting
the latter centrally inward and causing the top of the flame to bo
powerfully affected, the double walls protecting the apparatus against
any undue loss of heat.
For enabling the proper sweeping of the grate I provide an opening
through the furnace, said opening being fitted with a door. Another
opening is provided at the side or front of the furnace and about on a
level with the pan, through which the latter can be conveniently
removed and replaced. A fourth opening in the furnace above the
level of the pan is for the purpose of admitting fuel to said pan, and is
also fitted with a door.
5 SPECIFICATION in pursuance of the conditions of the Letters Patent
filed by the said Alexander Melville Clark in the Great Seal Patent
Office on the 27th June 1874.
TO ALL TO WHOM THESE PRESENTS SHALL COME, I, ALEXANDER
MELVILLE CLARK, of 53, Chancery Lanc, in the County of Middlesex,
0 Patent Agent, send greeting.
WHEREAS Her most Excellent Majesty Queen Victoria, by Her Letters
Patent, bearing date the Sixteenth day of January, in the year of
our Lord One thousand eight hundred and seventy-four, in the thirty-
seventh year of Her reign, did, for Herself, Her heirs and successors,,

page_text: give and grant unto me, the said Alexander Melville Clark, Her special
licence that I, the said Alexander Melville Clark, my executors, adminis-
trators, and assigns, or such others as I, the said Alexander Melville
Clark, 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
"IMPROVED APPARATUS FOR THE MANUFACTURE OF LAMPBLACK," a communica-
tion to me from abroad by John Rogers, of the City, County, and State
of New York, United States of America, upon the condition (amongst
others) that I, the said Alexander Melville Clark, my executors or
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 Alexander Melville Clark, do hereby
declare the nature of the said Invention, and in what manner the same is
to be performed, to be particularly described and ascertained in and by
the following statement, reference being liad to the accompanying Sheet
of Drawings, and to the letters and figures marked thereon (that is to
say) :-
The object of this Invention is to produce in an apparatus for con-
verting the dead oil of tar, petroleum, rosin, or other hydrocarbons or
resinous substances into lampblack, such a sufficiency of air admission
that the carbon contained in said substances may all be obtained in
condition for use, and the Invention is especially intended to be available
for the manufacture of lampblack to be used in printing ink.
Apparatus for the same purpose heretofore has been made either to
admit no air beneath the vessel containing the burning matter, and thus
to have only a horizontal draft, if any, or else to have an artificial draft
forcing air against the under side of the afore-mentioned vessel, and
thereby having too violent an upward current.
#
Now this Invention chiefly consists in so constructing the lampblack
furnace that a natural vertical air current will be created all around the
:

page_text: pan in which the oil of tar or other matter is burned, and thus the flame
be supplied with just so much air as will be necessary to properly con-
vert into lampblack the products of the combustion. It is well-known
that too much air admitted to the flame prevents the deposition or even
the formation of lampblack, whereas an insufficiency of air favors the
production of charcoal or unconsumed matter, also reducing the quantity
of lampblack obtained by allowing a natural draft to be produced by
the flame itself, so that the more powerful the heat and the larger the
bulk of the flame the more plentiful will be the supply of air (whereas
less air will at once follow a smaller flame) the operation is made self-
regulating and automatic in the supply of the exact quantity of air
required.
I attain the above-mentioned result by placing the pan in which the
matter to be burned is contained upon horizontal bars within a shell or
furnace which has ample air admission beneath the above bars, and an
escape of usual construction for the products of combustion above the
pan. Beneath the pan supporting bars and above the air admitting
opening is a perforated plate or grate by which the current of air
ascending to the pan is cut and divided into several small currents, said
plate or grate also serving to receive any clinkers or solid matter that
may drop out of the pan.
The Invention consists, secondly, in constructing the pan of annular
form with a central upwardly projecting perforated pipe which is open at
the bottom, and through which air is admitted to the middle of the
flame, and thus made immediately effective at a point where heretofore
no air admission took place in a lampblack furnace.
The Invention also consists in making the shell or furnace which
embraces the combustion chamber with double walls, the inner of which
is perforated on a line about on a level with the pan, while the outer is
also perforated at suitable places, so that the external air may be
admitted into the space between the double walls and thence projected
in a series of radial horizontal currents towards the flame.
horizontal currents will thus mingle with the upright currents, deflecting
the latter centrally inward, and causing the top of the flame to be
properly affected.
The
In the accompanving Drawing Figure 1 is a vertical central section of

page_text: Figure 2, indicating the plan of section. Figure 2 is a horizontal
section of the same on the line k, k, Figure 1.
Similar letters of reference indicate corresponding parts in both
Figures.
A represents the pan on which the liquid or resinous substance from 5
which the lampblack is to be produced is burned. This pan rests upon
two or more horizontal bars a, a, which are by suitable means firmly
built into a furnace B. This furnace may be of cylindrical or other
form, built of brick or other material, and has at its upper part a
suitable chimney connection 6 for receiving the products of combustion 1
and detaining the lampblack.
Some distance beneath the bars a, a, is built into the furnace Ba
horizontal perforated plate or grate C, which will detain larger pieces
falling from the pan and allow smaller pieces to pass through down-
wardly; d is an air opening to the furnace beneath the grate C, which
can be more or less opened by means of a door e. Air is constantly
admitted through this opening d into the chamber beneath the grate,
while the contents of the pan are on fire, such air being then drawn up
through the grate by the suction and rarefaction caused by the flame
into contact with the latter to affect it in the proper manner.
For enabling the proper sweeping of the grate I have provided
another opening f through the furnace, said opening being closed by a
suitable door unless the grate is to be swept. 9 is another opening in
the side or front of the furnace, and about on a level with the pan A
through which the pan can be conveniently removed and replaced. This
opening is also closed by a proper door when not required. A fourth
opening in the furnace above the level of the pan is for the
purpose of
admitting fuel to the pan, and is also covered by a door when not
needed.
The pan A is as I prefer to make it of annular form, with a central
air pipe projecting upwardly as shown. This pipe i is open at the
bottom and perforated at the sides to admit air to the centre of the
flame.

page_text: air currents are admitted to the flame, the double walls of the furnace
meanwhile protecting the apparatus against an undue loss of heat.
Having described the nature of the Invention, and the manner of
performing the same, I declare that what I claim as the Invention to be
protected by the herein-before in part recited Letters Patent is,-
First. An apparatus for producing lampblack consisting of the furnace
B, having the bars a, a, perforated plate or grate C, and the air opening
d beneath the grate, all arranged substantially as herein shown and
described.
Second. The combustion pan A of a lampblack apparatus made
annular with a central perforated air pipe i, substantially as herein
shown and described.
Third. The lampblack furnace B made with double walls l, m, which
are perforated at n and o respectively, substantially as and for the
purpose herein shown and described.
In witness whereof, I, the said Alexander Melville Clark, have here-
unto set my hand and seal, this Twenty-seventh day of June, in
the year of our Lord One thousand eight hundred and seventy-
four.
Witness,
HY. SWALES,
53, Chancery Lane,
London.
A. M. CLARK. (L.S.)