Improvements in and in Connection with the Method of and Apparatus for Cooling or Condensing Vapours.
Year: 1888

page_text: Improvements in and in Connection with the Method of and
Apparatus for Cooling or Condensing Vapours.
I, WILHELM SCHMIDT of 8, Plantagenstrasse at Halberstadt, Prussia, German
Empire, Engineer do hereby declare the nature of this invention to be as follows:-
My invention of improvements in the method of cooling or condensing vapours
and in the apparatus relating thereto, relates to conducting the vapour to be cooled
or condensed into a condensor, in which are two different sets of tubes; in the ono
set, steam to heat the tubes is admitted, and into the other set the vapour to be
cooled or condensed is conducted, while water or any other evaporative fluid is
brought in contact with the tubes, in which the vapour to be cooled or condensed is.
These tubes being surrounded and connected together by felt or any other suitable
material which absorbs the water or other evaporative fluid.
The operation of cooling or condensing is as follows:
If gas or air is passed over the surface of a liquid, the gas or air will absorb
particles of the fluid in a vapourous form. The gas or air must be heated sufficiently,
that it can absorb steam enough, so that if the gas is cooled again, the steam therein
is condensed. This condensation must take place if the process shall work as
intended. By the evaporation of the fluid, a high. degree of cold is formed in the
tubes or chambers surrounded by this liquid, which can be used for condensing, ice-
making and cold-air making purposes.
Essential in this process is this saturation of the gas or air during its passage over
the surface of the fluid; more heat is being contineously added to it, although its
ability for retaining the moisture remains, and the vapour or air receives a large
degree of moisture.
•
Besides this warming of the vapour or air volume, which is an essential characteristic
of the process, and of great importance to the successful result of the process;
another point of importance is, that this moistened gas volume after being freed
from its inoisture is again heated and becomes moistened again as before described.

page_text: fluid from which it extracts the heat.
15 mentER to a migher temperature than that of the
The condensed vapour from the gas. or air is led back again by means of a pump to
be again evaporated and to moisten the gas or air again.
Reference being had to the accompanying drawings, which form part of the
specification.
Figs. I & II show the working of this process in a refrigerating apparatus, and is
composed of the refrigerator or box a, which contains a refrigerating-worm a
this worm is connected to the chamber n of the condenser g by the two pipes a¹ & a²;
into this chamber n open the tubes k, which are closed at the other end. These
tubes, which are the cooling or condensing tubes are lagged with felt or other similar
material, & are placed in vertical rows, and the tubes in each alternate row being
joined together by strips of felt e¹ or other similar substance.
The condenser is supplied with a second chamber in which the tubes /, which
are closed at the other end, open. The chamber is supplied with two branches b&c;
steam enters by the branch band fills the tubes h in which it is condensed, and the
water flows off through c:
The condenser is provided with a branch at the bottom and a branch o at the
top, and is connected by the pipes and o' to the worin s, which is contained in the
vessels, into which cold water is led through the branch c', and passes off, after
having cooled the moistened air or gas in the worms as warm water at b. is a
branch to which are fitted the spray pipes fff;fis a branch on the pipe, d which
is connected by the pipe f³ with the branch f'; protecting plates t are placed over
the heating pipes h.
2
Steam of a very low pressure is admitted at b which has a temperature of about
60° Celsius; it heats the tubes, and also warms the air which enters at d, at a
temperature of about 5° Celsius; this air passes between the tubes h and k. At the
same time ether, ammonia, or other suitable liquid drops from out the spray pipes
fff on to the protecting plates and is thus conducted only to the rows of felt-
covered tubes, and drops from tube to tube, moistening on its way the felt.
By the ascending warmed air (which is heated to about 20°) part of the liquid on
the felt is evaporated and mingles with the air in the form of steam; by this evaporation
of the liquid which surrounds the tubes, a great cooling of the tubes & takes place,
and by the air being constantly heated on its passage upwards, by coming into
contact with other heated tubes a continual evaporations takes place from the tubes k
which are placed one above the other.
By means of this constant heating of the air and absorption of the liquid by the
same, the air becomes so moistened and of such a temperature, that when the
air is afterwards cooled or brought to the same temperature of the ether or ammonia ;
the ether or ammonia which is held in suspension is abstracted therefrom to a great
extent.
The temperature of the saturation point can be raised higher than the temperature
of the ether or ammonia, a possibility, which allows of the moistened air to be
cooled, and to give out its moisture again, by a liquid of a higher temperature than
that of the original liquid (ether, ammonia etc.) Thereby is the energy of the cooling
in the worms heightened.
The moistened air which escapes at o, which has a temperature of 20° is led
through the pipe o' to the worm where it is cooled by the water in the tank s¹ down
to a temperature of about 5° by which the ether or ammonia, which it contained in
suspension is condensed. .
The condensed ether or ammonia and cooled air, are forced by the pump w into
the pipe d d; the air is returned into the condenser and again heated, while the
liquid in d¹ as well as the liquid which passes out from 3 are forced by means of a
pump or other means into f¹, from which it drops over the tubes & again.
By this evaporation of the liquid (ether, ammonia etc.) which has a temperature of
about 5° a large amount of heat will be extracted from the tubes k and the ether
vapour, or ammonia-vapour contained therein will be condensed. By this extraction

page_text: of heat the ether or ammonia vapour will be condensed and the condensed ether or
ammonia falls into the chamber and from that into the pipe a' and so into the
worm a³.
-
This condensed ether or ammonia will have a temperature of about 5° and is
used for refrigerating purposes..
.
The liquid surrounding the worm a³ in the tank a gives part of its heat to the
worm a³ and so to the ether or ammonia contained therein, and is at the same time
cooled; the ether or ammonia is thus evaporated and passes through the pipe a³ into
the chamber n to be again condensed in the tubes_k.
Thus the ether, air, and cooling or condensing fluid pass in a continual circuit.
This process of returning and reusing of the vapours can be used for different
purposes of condensation, cooling and so on.
It can also be used as shown in figs. III & IV for the gaining of work in a motor
by letting the heated air, which has absorbed steam, expand in the cylinder of an
engine..
This arrangement can be understood by reference to the figs, III & IV. A motor
is provided with an expansion cylinder M and compression cylinder P.
The compression cylinder P is supplied with air at atmospheric pressure through
the pipe and the air is compressed to about 3 atmospheres and is discharged
through the pipe d' and branch into the space i of the apparatus g. The air rises
from the space i and is warmed by passing the tubes h, which are connected with the
chamber ; this heated air evaporates the fluid, which surrounds the tubes k. The
heated air, which is increased in quantity by the evaporated fluid, flows out of the
space through o o' into the expansion cylinder M of the motor in which it
expands from 3 down to 1 atmosphere. After its expansion it enters the top chamber n
through the pipe o, and enters the tubes and flows back through the tubes k.
Outside the tube the fluid, which is evaporated flows. So the moistened air in the
tubes is cooled and the steam is partially condensed. The condensed water or other
liquid and air passes then into the chamber n', from here into the tubes k' and back
through the tubes into the chamber n², and so on till the cooled air and liquid
arrives in the chamber n' from out of which the water is conducted away through f;
the air passes through the branch of and pipe o into the compression-cylinder P
again, to bo again compressed; the water which flows out of f, and also that which
flows from fis raised by a pump into f1 and so into the pipes f³.
Two or more of these apparatus can be united and work in connection with each
other.
Fig. V shows two of these apparatus joined together.
The following is a description of the method of the working when two are joined
together.
The tank a is filled with liquid ether, (or other suitable liquid); in the same and in
the pipe a, chainber n, and in the cooling tubes ka temperature of
10° prevails.
The air or gas enters the space i at a temperature of - 5° and is warmed to 20° by
the tubes h, which contain air of a température of 40°. This warmed air absorbs
sicam from the volatile fluid, which surrounds the tubes k in the felt; and thus the
ether vapour contained in the tubes k is condensed as in fig. 1. The mixed air and
steam pass off through o¹ and arrive in the chamber » (with a temperature of 20°),
enter the tubes ³, and flow back through the tubes h² as in figs. III & IV, and pass
through the chamber to the chamber the air being cooled and the steam
condensed during their passage through the tubes. The condensed steam passes off
at and the air is forced back into the apparatus by the pump or fan w through
the pipe d'; the air and fluid have been cooled during their passage to a temperature
of 5º
1
P
The air is
the steam
There circulates a second volume of air in the apparatus g' which enters the
space at a temperature of +5°, and rises between the tubes k¹.
warmed by the tubes into which steam is conducted from the chamber
entering p at p and after circulating through the tubes passes off at
air evaporates the liquid which surrounds the tubes has in figs. I & II. The
the heated

page_text: tubes are thus greatly cooled and so the air volume which circulates in them is
cooled as described.
The air when it arrives in the space 1, after being heated to 40°, and being
moistened, passes off through 61 into the chamber v of the apparatus g, and circulates
through the upper tubes and into the chamber v¹, and so on through v² v³,
warming the ascending air in g until it arrives in the chamber c from which it is
forced into the worms by means of the ventilator w¹.
The worms is surrounded with water in the tank s which enters at 2 at a
temperature of 5° and flows out at 3 with a temperature of 9°. The air volume is
thus cooled to 10° and part of the steam which it contains is condensed. The cooled
air and fluid flows out at and joins that from d* which flows out of g. The fluid
is conducted to the pipes fff by means of a pump or other means and sprinkled
over the tubes h² and again evaporated. The air which is now freed from the steam
enters the space of the apparatus g¹ and is heated and moistened again.
Figs. VI & VII show an apparatus, the same as described in figs. I & II but
differing in the use of the apparatus, while the operation is the same. There the
process is used for heating a boiler and is as follows:
The tubes (fig. VI) are heated by steam from the chamber v which enters at b,
and flows out at c. A volume of air enters the space from the pipe d; the air
ascends between the tubes h & k, and is heated from the tubes and is moistened by
evaporating water or other fluid from the felt-covered tubes as described in the first
apparatus.
in
This warmed and moistened air rises into the space and then into the tubes /',
which it ascends, and returns down the tubes 2 heating the latter, and the water,
which surrounds them in the boiler gt. The steam thus formed rises into the top H.
The moistened air, from which in heating the water the moisture is abstracted, and the
water therein falls on the plate t; and the water is conducted to the tubes k to be
again evaporated.
་
The steam formed in H is conducted off at o and can be used at will. The exhaust-
steam from this manner of using the steam, for example from an engine enters at a²
and is condensed in the tubes & in consequence of the evaporation, which takes place
outside them; the condensed water escapes at a¹.
The cooled air freed from its moisture, which gathers in m, is forced by the fan wo³
into the space again through the pipe w*.
Dated this 10th day of April 1888.
WILHELM SCHMIDT.
By A. Kuhnt & R. Diessler,
38, Alexander Str., Berlin, C., Germany,
Attorneys.

page_text: Apparatus for Cooling or Condensing Vapours.
I, WILHELM SCHMIDT of 8, Plantagenstrasse, Halberstadt, Prussia, German Empire,
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 of improvements in the method of cooling or condensing vapours
and in the apparatus relating thereto, consists in conducting the vapour to be cooled
or condensed into a condenser, in which are two different sets of tubes; in the one set
steam to heat the tubes is admitted, and into the other set the vapour to be cooled or
condensed is conducted, while water or any other evaporative fluid is brought in contact
with the tubes, in which is the vapour to be cooled or condensed. These tubes being
surrounded and connected together by felt or any other suitable material which
absorbs the water or other ovaporative fluid.
The operation of cooling or condensing is as follows:
If gas or air is passed over the surface of a liquid, the gas or air will absorb
particles of the fluid in a vaporous form. The gas or air must be heated sufficiently,
that it can absorb steam enough, so that if the gas is cooled again, the steam therein
is condensed. This condensation must take place if the process shall work as intended.
By the evaporation of the fluid a high degree of cold is formed in the tubes or chambers
surrounded by this liquid, which can be used for condensing, ice-making and cold-air
making purposes.
Essential in this process is the saturation of the gas or air during its passage over the
surface of the fluid; more heat is being continually added to it, although its ability
for retaining the moisture remains, and the vapour or air receives a large degree of
moisture.
Besides this warming of the vapour or air volume, which is an essential characteristic
of the process, and of great importance to the successful result of the process, another
point of importance is, that this moistened gas volume after being freed from its
moisture is again heated and becomes moistened again as before described. It is
natural that this gas volume is heated to a higher temperature than that of the fluid
from which it extracts the heat.
The condensed vapour from the gas or air is led back again by means of a pump to
be again evaporated and to moisten the gas or air again.
Reference being had to the drawings, which were left with the provisional
specification:
Figs. 1 & 2 show the working of this process in a refrigerating apparatus, which is
composed of the refrigerator or box a which contains a refrigerating worm a³; this
worin is connected to the chamber n. of the condenser g by the two pipes a' and a²;
into this chamber n open the tubes k, which are closed at the other end. These tubes,
which are the cooling or condensing tubes, are lagged with felt or. other similar

page_text: material and are placed in horizontal rows, the tubes in cach alternate row being
joined together by strips of felt e¹ or other similar substance.
The condenser g is supplied with a second chamber » into which open the tubes 4,
which are closed at the other end. The chamber is supplied with two branches b
and c; steam enters by, the branch and fills the tubes in which it is condensed,
and the water flows off through c.
The condenser g provided with a branch at the top, and is connected by the
pipes and o¹ to the worms, which is contained in the vessel s¹, into which cold
water is led through the branch c', and passes, off, after having cooled the moistened
air or gas in the worm s, as warm water at ; f is a branch to which are fitted the
spray pipes ffff is a branch on the pipe d which is connected by the pipe 3
with the branch; protecting plates are placed over the heating pipes h.
Steam of a very low pressure (0.2 Atms pressure) is admitted at b which has a
temperature of about 60° Celsius; it heats the tubes hh, and also warms the air which
enters at d, at a temperature of about 5° Celsius; this air passes between the tubes /
and k. At the same time ether, ammonia or other suitable liquid drops from out the
spray pipes fff2 on to the protecting plates t and is thus conducted only to the rows
of felt-covered tubes h, and drops from tube to tube, moistening on its way the felt.
By the ascending warmed air (which is heated to about 20°) part of the liquid on the
felt is evaporated and mingles with the air in the form of steam; by this evaporation
of the liquid which surrounds the tubes, a great cooling of the tubes le takes place, and
by the air being constantly heated on its passage upwards, by coming into contact
with other heated tubes, a continual evaporation takes place from the tubes which
are placed one above the other.
By means of this constant heating of the air and absorption of the liquid by the
same, the air becomes so moistened and of such a temperature, that when the air is
afterwards cooled or brought to the same temperature of the ether or ammonia; the
ether or ammonia which is held in suspension, is abstracted therefrom to a great
extent.
The temperature of the saturation point can be raised higher than the temperature
of the ether or ammonia, a possibility, which allows of the moistened air to be cooled,
and to give out its moisture again, by a liquid of a higher temperature than that of
the original liquid (ether, ammonia etc). Thereby the energy of the cooling in the
worms is heightened.
The moistened air which escapes at o, which has a temperature of 20°, is led through
the pipe o' to the worms where it is cooled by the water in the tank s down to a
temperature of about 0, by which the ether or ammonia, which it contained in
suspension, is condensed.
The condensed ether or ammonia and cooled air are forced by the pump we into the
pipe d d the air is returned into the condenser and again heated, while the liquid in
das well as the liquid which passes out from f³ are forced by means of a pump or
other means into f, from which it drops over the tubes k again.
By this evaporation of the liquid (ether, ammonia etc.) which has a temperature of
about 5° a large amount of heat will be extracted from the tubes and the ether-
vapour or ammonia-vapour contained therein will be condensed. By this extraction
of heat the ether or ammonia-vapour will be condensed and the condensed ether or
ammonia falls into the chamber 'n and from that into the pipe a' and so into the
worm a³.
.
This condensed ether or ammonia will have a temperature of about 5° and is used
for refrigerating purposes.
The liquid surrounding the worm a³ in the tank a gives part of its heat to the
worm a³ and so to the ether or ammonia contained therein, and is at the same time
cooled; the ether or ammonia is thus evaporated and passes through the pipe a' into
the chamber n to be again condensed in the tubes k.
Thus the ether, air and cooling or condensing fluid pass in a continual circuit.
This process of returning and reusing the vapours can be applied to different
'purposes of condensation, cooling and so on. ::

page_text: It can also be used as shown in figs. III & IV for the gaining of work in a motor
by letting the heated air, which has absorbed steam, expand in the cylinder of an
engine.
This arrangement can be understood by reference to the figs. III & IV. A motor
is provided with an expansion cylinder M and compression cylinder P.
The compression cylinder P is supplied with air at atmospheric pressure through
the pipe o and the air is compressed to about 3 atmospheres and is discharged through
the pipe d and branch d into the space i of the apparatus g. The air rises from
the space and is warmed by passing the tubes h, which are connected with the
chamber; this heated air evaporates the fluid, which surrounds the tubes k. The
heated air, which is increased in quantity by the evaporated fluid, flows out of the
space through o o' into the expansion cylinder M of the motor in which it expands
from 3 down to 1 atmosphere. After its expansion. it enters the top chamber n
through the pipe o², and enters the tubes and flows back through the tubes k.
Outside the tubes the fluid which is evaporated, flows. So the moistened air in
the tubes is cooled and the steam is partly condensed. The condensed water or
other liquid and air passes then into the tubes and back through the tubes & into
the chamber n, and so on till the cooled air and liquid arrives in the chamber n
from out of which the water is conducted away through f; the air passes through
the branch of and pipe o into the compression-cylinder P again, to be again com-
pressed; the water which flows out of fand also that which Hows from f³ is raised
by a pump into and so into the pipes f
Two or more of these apparatus can be united, and work in connection with each
other.
Fig. 5 shows two of these apparatus joined together..
The following is a description of the method of the working when two are joined
together.
The tank a is filled with liquid ether (or other suitable liquid); in the same and in
the pipe a, chamber n and in the cooling tubes ka temperature of-10° prevails.
The air or gas enters the space i at a temperature of -5° and is warmed to 20°
by the tubes, which contain air of a temperature of 40°.
This warmed air absorbs steam from the volatile fluid, which surrounds the tubes k
in the felt 'and thus the ether vapour contained in the tubes is condensed as in
fig. I.
The mixed air and steam pass off through o¹ and arrive in the chamber r (with
a temperature of 20°) enter the tubes and flow back through the tubes h² as in
figs. II & IV, and pass through the chamber to the chamber ; the air
being cooled and the steam condensed during their passage through the tubes. The
condensed steam passes off at 7 and the air is forced back into the apparatus
the pump or fan i through the pipe d'; the air and fluid have been cooled during
their passage to a temperature of -5°.
by
There circulates a second volume of air in the apparatus g' which enters the
space at a temperature of +5°, and rises between the tubes. The air is
warmed by the tubos into which steam is conducted from the chamber p the
steam entering p at p¹ and after circulating through the tubes passes off at
heated air evaporates the liquid which surrounds the tubes as in figs. I & II. The
tubes are thus greatly cooled and so the air volume which circulates in them is
cooled as described.
v
the
The air when it arrives in the space 1, after being heated to 40°, and being
moistened, passes off through into the chamber of the apparatus g, and circulates
through the upper tubes hand into the chamber v', and so on through v² 23,
warming the ascending air in g until it arrives in the chamber c from which it is
forced into the worms by means of the ventilator w¹.
The worms is surrounded with water in the tank s which enters at at a
temperature of 5° and flows out at s with a temperature of 9°. The air volume is
thus cooled to 10° and part of the steam which it contains, is condensed. The cooled
air and fluid flows out at d³ und joins that from d which flows out of g¹. The fluid

page_text: is conducted to the pipes fff by means of a pump or other means and sprinkled
over the tubes 12 and again evaporated. The air which is now freed from the steam
enters the space of the apparatus g' and is heated and moistened again.
Figs. VI & VII show an apparatus, the same as described in figs. I & II but
differing in the use of the apparatus while the operation is the same.
Here the process is used for heating a boiler and is as follows:
The tubes (fig. VI) are heated by steam from the chamber which enters at b,
and flows out at c. A volume of air enters the space i from the pipe d; the air ascends
between the tubes h and k and is heated from the tubes and is moistened by
evaporating water or other fluid from the felt-covered tubes as described in the
first apparatus.
This warmed and moistened air rises into the space and then into the tubes h',. in
which it ascends, and returns down the tubes heating the latter, and the water,
which surrounds them in the boiler g. The steam thus formed rises into the top H.
The moistened air, from which in heating the water the moisture is abstracted, and
the water therein falls on the plate t ; and the water is conducted to the tubes & to be
again evaporated.
'
The steam formed in H is conducted off at o and can be used at will. The exhaust-
steam from this manner of using the steam, for example from an engine, enters at a²
and is condensed in the tubes & in consequence of the evaporation, which. takes place
outside them; the condensed water escapes at a¹.
The cooled air freed from its moisture, which gathers in m, is forced by the fan w³
into the space i again through the pipe w¹.
Having now particularly described and ascertained the nature of my said Inven-
tion, and in what manner the same is to be performed, 1 declare that what I
claim is:
1) The method of cooling or condensing vapours: by heating a volume of and
gas
bringing it into contact with an evaporative fluid of a lower temperature (than the
gas) from which it extracts the latent heat, and using the fluid from which the heat
is constantly extracted as a cooling or condensing medium; and then recooling the so
moistened gas from which the moisture is abstracted, and then reheating and moisten-
ing the gas in a circuit, substantially and for the purpose as described.
2) The method of cooling or condensing vapours by heating a volume of gas and
bringing it into contact with an evaporative fluid from which it extracts the heat and
using this liquid from which the heat has been extracted as a cooling or condensing
medium; and then recooling the moistened gas by a second evaporative fluid, which
(this second evaporative fluid) is absorbed by other heated gases, the latter serving as
heating medium in the first instance the fluids and gases in both instances describing
separate cycles, substantially and for the purpose as described.
Dated Berlin, this 9th day of January 1889.
By A. KUHNT & R. DEISSLER,
38, Alexander Strasse, Berlin C., Germany,
Agents for Applicant.