IMPROVEMENTS IN APPARATUS FOR SUPERHEATING STEAM
Year: 1859

page_text: LETTERS PATENT to John Campbell Evans and Peter Soames, of the
Morden Iron Works, East Greenwich, in the County of Kent, Engineers,
for the Invention of "IMPROVEMENTS IN APPARATUS FOR SUPERHEATING
STEAM."
Sealed the 22nd September 1859, and dated the 26th March 1859.
PROVISIONAL SPECIFICATION left by the said John Campbell Evans
and Peter Soames at the Office of the Commissioners of Patents,
with their Petition, on the 26th March 1859.
We, JOHN CAMPBELL EVANS and PETER SOAMES, of the Morden Iron Works,
East Greenwich, in the County of Kent, Engineers, do hereby. declare the
nature of the said Invention for "IMPROVEMENTS IN APPARATUS FOR SUPERHEATING
STEAM," to be as follows:-
Our Invention consists in superheating steam in connection with tubular
boilers by the aid of a number of superheating steam pipes, arranged in a
peculiar manner in front of the tube plate. These superheating pipes are
severally placed opposite to the blank portions of the tube plate, that is,
between the ranges or rows of tubes; and in order that the ends of the boiler
tubes may be left perfectly free to be caulked or to be cleansed when requisite,
and the draft maintained unimpeded, we propose when pipes of large area are
required, to make them of a flattened section, but when large steam pipes are

page_text: not absolutely requisite, we use round pipes of sufficiently small diameter to
lie within the intervening blank spaces in the tube plate without protruding in
any way over the mouths of the boiler tubes. The superheating pipes com-
municate at each extremity with a steam chamber, situate on opposite sides, or
surrounding the ends of the series of boiler tubes. The steam on its way to
the cylinders is conducted by a pipe or pipes from the boiler to one of the
chambers above referred to, passes thence through the series of superheating
pipes in front of the tube plate, where its temperature is considerably elevated
by the heated air and gases from the furnace, enters the second chamber, and
is finally conveyed therefrom direct to the cylinder; or the steam may bo
superheated by passing through a tubular chamber or chambers heated by a
fire separate from that by which the steam is generated; or it may be passed
through a vessel containing oil or other fluid, the boiling point of which is
above 300 degrees; or it may be passed through a tube or tubes surrounded by
such fluid, which vessel may be heated by a separate fire, or by the fire which
generates the steam; or a fusible metal may be used, the melting point of
which is below 500 degrees; or the steam may be superbeated by passing it
.through hollow fire bars or through the bearers of the same; or through the
bridgo, which should be made hollow for that purpose; or a vessel may be
placed behind the bridge through which the steam may be passed.
SPECIFICATION in pursuance of the conditions of the Letters Patent, filed
by the said John Campbell Evans and Peter Soames in the Great Seal
Patent Office on the 26th September 1859.
TO ALL TO WHOM THESE PRESENTS SHALL COME, we, JOHN
CAMPBELL EVANS and PETER SOAMES, of the Morden Iron Works, East
Greenwich, in the County of Kent, Engineers, send greeting.
WHEREAS Her most Excellent Majesty Queen Victoria, by Her Letters
Patent, bearing date the Twenty-sixth day of March, in the year of our Lord
One thousand eight hundred and fifty-nine, in the twenty-second year of Her
reign, did, for Herself, Her heirs and successors, give and grant unto us,
the said John Campbell Evans and Peter Soames, Her special licence that we,
the said John Campbell Evans and Peter Soames, our executors, administrators,
and assigns, or such others as we, the said John Campbell Evans and Peter
Soames, our 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

page_text: within the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland, the Channel Islands,
and Isle of Man, an Invention for "IMPROVEMENTS IN APPARATUS FOR SUPER-
HEATING STEAM," upon the condition (amongst others) that we, the said John
Campbell Evans and Peter Soames, our executors or administrators, by an
instrument in writing under our hands and seals, or under the hand and seal
of one of us, 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 we, the said John Campbell Evans and Peter
Soames, do hereby declare the nature of our said Invention, and in what
manner the same is to be performed, to be particularly described and ascer-
tained in and by the following statement, reference being had to the accom.-
panying Drawings and to the letters and figures marked thereon, that is to
say:-
Our said Invention relates to certain peculiar constructions and arrangements
of apparatus for superheating steam, and consists, according to one modification,
in superheating steam in connection with tubular boilers by the aid of a number
of superheating steam pipes arranged in a peculiar manner in front of the
tube plate. These superheating pipes are severally placed opposite to the
blank portions only of the tube plate, that is to say, between the ranges or
rows of boiler tubes, and in order that the ends of these tubes may be left
perfectly free to be caulked or cleaned when requisite, and the draught main-
tained entirely unobstructed, we propose when superheating pipes of large
area are required, to make them of a flattened section, so that they will lie
within the intervening blank spaces in the tube plate without protruding in
any way over the mouths of the boiler tubes. These superheating pipes com-
municate at each extremity with a steam chamber or chambers surrounding or
enclosing the ends of the group of boiler tubes, or placed one on each side
thereof. The steam on its way to the cylinders is conducted by a pipe or
pipes from the boiler to one of the chambers herein-before referred to, passes
thence through the series of superheating pipes in front of the blank portion of
the tube plato, where its temperature is considerably elevated by the heated
air and gases froin the furnace, enters in this highly heated state the second
chamber, and is finally conveyed therefrom direct to the cylinder or cylinders.
According to another arrangement for superheating steam we propose to pass
the steam to be superheated through a tubular chamber or chambers heated by
a fire separate from that by which the steam is generated, the additional heat
being obtained from the external surfaces of the tubular flues which pass

page_text: through the chamber. We also propose to superheat steam by passing
it through pipes contained within a closed vessel partially filled with oil or
other fluid, capable of being raised to a sufficiently high temperature to
impart the requisite amount of heat to superheating pipes which are im-
mersed therein, such fluid being heated either by a separate fire or by the
same fire which generates the steam; or in lieu of a liquid a fusible metal
may be employed, the melting point of which is below five hundred degrees
Farenheit.
And in order that our said Invention may be fully understood, we shall now
proceed to describe and refer to the several explanatory Figures on the annexed
Sheet of Drawings.
Figure 1 represents a front elevation of a marine engine boiler with one
arrangement of our superheating apparatus attached thereto; and Figure 2 is
a corresponding longitudinal vertical section of the same. a is the shell of
the boiler; b, b, are the boiler tubes; and c, c, are our flattened superheating
pipes (shewn more clearly in Figure 2) placed transversly across the front of
the tube plate, and lying each within and opposite to the blank portions of the
same, so as not to protrude over the mouths of the tubes. These super-
heating pipes may be made round at each extremity for the facility of screwing
or otherwise fastening them into the respective steam chambers d and e,
disposed one on each side of the group of tubes. Suitable pipes in connection
with these chambers serve to convey the steam from the boiler, say, to the
chamber d, and from the chamber e to the cylinder or cylinders. Figure 3
represents a vertical section of the tubular chamber berein-before referred to.
a, a, is the outer shell of the chamber, and 6 is the fire-place or furnace, the
draught of which is through the group of tubular flues c, c, which open at the
top into a chimney or funnel d. . The steam to be superheated is conveyed
from the boiler by the pipe e, which conducts it to the interior of the chamber
a, when by coming in contact with the highly heated tubes or flues c, c, its
temperture is considerably elevated, and it passes off in a superheated state
by the pipe f to the cylinder or cylinders of the engine.
Figure 4 represents a vertical section of another arrangement of super-
heating apparatus; and Fig. 5 is a transverse vertical section of the same,
whereby the requisite degree of heat is imparted to the steam pipes through
the agency of a highly beated fluid, by which means all chances of the burning
of the superheating pipes is obviated. In this Figure a, a, represents the
outer shell or casing of a closed vessel or chamber provided with a number of
tubular flues b, b, which extend from the fire-place or furnace c to the smoke
chamber d opening into the chimney. c. Across this chamber or vessel is

page_text: disposed a series of superheating pipes f. f. opening at each extremity into the
casings g, h, which are securely rivetted to the opposite sides of the vessel, and
are of sufficient area to enclose the entire group of superheating pipes. The
vessel having been partially filled with fluid so as to entirely cover the steam
pipes, the fire is lighted, and the temperature of the fluid raised sufficiently
to impart the required degree of heat to the superheating pipes. The
steam to be superheated is conveyed from the boiler to the superheating pipes
by the pipe i, and passes thence by the pipe k in a highly heated condition to
the cylinder or cylinders. Although we have represented the vessel a in
Figure 4 as being heated by a separate fire of its own, we propose in some
enses to utilize the heat of the inain boiler furnace for that purpose.
In conclusion, we may observe that we are aware that steam has been super-
heated by passing it through pipes contained within the smoke boxes or uptakes
of boilers, but such pipes have always been found from their construction and
arrangement to interfere not only with the draught or thoroughfare of the
boiler tubes, but their presence has also offered great obstruction to the
clearing and caulking of such tubes by lying across their mouths, and, there-
fore, we lay no claim to such an arrangement, but what we consider as new
and as the Invention secured to us by the herein-before in part recited Letters
Patent is-
1st, the peculiar arrangement of superheating pipes in tubular boilers, as
herein-before described.
2nd, the superheating of steam by passing it through a chamber heated by
a separate and distinct fire of its own, as herein-before described.
. 3rd, the superheating of steam by passing it through a pipe or pipes, sur-
rounded by a highly heated fluid or molten metal contained in a suitable
vessel or chamber, heated either by a separate and distinct fire of its own or
by the same fire which generates the steam as herein-before described.
4th, the general constructions and arrangements of apparatus for super-
heating steam, as herein-before described and illustrated by the Drawings.
In witness whereof, I, the said John Campbell Evans, on behalf of
myself and the said Peter Soames, have hereunto set my band and
seal, this Twenty-sixth day of September, in the year of our Lord
One thousand eight hundred and fifty-nine.
JOHN CAMPBELL EVANS.
(L.S.)