Improvements in or connected with Smoke Consuming Hydro-carbon Furnaces.
Year: 1896

page_text: Date of Application, 8th Sept., 1896
Complete Specification Left, 4th June, 1897-Accepted, 10th July, 1897
PROVISIONAL SPECIFICATION.
Improvements in or connected with Smoke Consuming Hydro-carbon
Furnaces.
I, LOUIS ERNEST FRAIPONT of 16, Rue Drouot, Paris in the Republic of France,
Engineer, do hereby declare the nature of this invention to be as follows:-
My invention has for its object an improved arrangement of furnace for burn-
ing, in a complete, practical and consequently economical manner, various gaseous
combustibles, such as coal gas, oil gas, water gas, poor gas, and any gaseous
combustible, generally formed from any suitable hydrocarbon.
The apparatus consists of the combination of a series of pipes made of metal or
other suitable fire resisting material according to the nature of the gas employed
for conveying the gas to the various points where it is to be utilized.
These pipes are placed between two floors formed of fire resisting slabs or tiles
held up and connected to the masonry of the furnace by any suitable means such
for instance as flat iron strips supported at the sides by angle irons. The upper
floor is formed of slabs or tiles in the shape of ordinary fire bricks having a
cylindrical hole in the centre, a cylinder surmounted with a flanged cap being
inserted in the hole. This cylinder and its flanged cap are preferably made of
fire clay, or other suitable refractory material, and may be constructed in one
piece or in two separate pieces. In certain cases where gas is used, the tempera-
ture of combustion of which is not very high, the small cylinder may be dispensed
with, and the hole in the fire brick may be simply surmounted with the flanged
cap hereinbefore mentioned.
The lower floor is itself composed of fire bricks similar to those of the upper
floor, but perforated with a large number of small holes of cylindrical or other
suitable shape.
The pipes which bring the gas are provided with nozzles placed exactly below
and in the axis of the cylindrical openings of the bricks of the upper floor.
The gas is brought to each of the distributing pipes by a suitable main pije
from which these pipes branch off, a suitable tap on the main governing each of
these pipes and thus enabling any suitable number of them to be shut off at will.
The gas escaping from the nozzles with which the pipes are provided is injected
into the little cylinders previously mentioned inserted in the openings in the
bricks of the upper floor. On coming in contact with these cylinders, which are
always maintained at a very high temperature by the heat produced by the com-
bustion itself, the gas is brought to a red heat. The draught of the furnace also
causes a certain quantity of air, which may be regulated at will, to be drawn
through the small openings in the lower floor.
This lower floor is itself brought to a very high temperature in consequence of
radiation from the upper floor which is at a red heat. The air is thus heated by
coming in contact with it, and this heating is increased by its coming directly in
contact with the upper floor. As however the air drawn in by the draught can
only pass through the incandescent cylinders of the upper floor, its speed there is

page_text: considerable, and as this speed is suddenly checked by the flanged cap which covers
the opening in the cylinder, there results a very energetic admixture of the air
and gas, forming a compound which ignites immediately by coming in contact
with the incandescent flanged cap.
The object of the cap is thus essentially to produce an intimate and complete
mixture of the combustible gas with the air, and to ignite this mixture on its
emerging from the cylinders or openings of the upper floor. It has further the
advantage of deflecting the flame downwards, of preventing it forming a solid
jet and as the burners may be placed in somewhat close proximity one to another,
the flames of the different burners will encounter one another and become com-
pletely intermingled, thus favourising the combustion of any gas which may have
remained unconsumed.
The result of the various arrangements of the apparatus as a whole is
1. That the gas is heated before use to a very high temperature, firstly in the
supply pipes themselves which are heated by the radiation from the upper floor
and then by direct contact with the incandescent cylinders of this floor.
2. That the air necessary for the combustion of this gas is itself heated to a
very high temperature by its passage through the orifices of the lower floor.
5. That by the special arrangement of the burners an energetic churning
together and absolutely intimate mixture of the gas and air is obtained.
4. That the proportions of gas and air may be regulated very exactly so as to
obtain a complete combustion without any excess of air.
5. That the arrangement of the furnace prevents the formation of a solid jet.
6. That the strength of the furnace may be regulated at will by lighting a
larger or smaller number of the burners, thus affording the following advantages
Instantaneous setting in action, facility of regulation, complete utilisation of all
available calorics consequent on the use of a minimum quantity of air, total
suppression of all the destructive effects of flames in the form of a solid jet, and
absolute consumption of the smoke arising from the fact that all the air necessary
for combustion is forced to pass through the small cylinders or burners.
The forms, dimensions, proportions and accessory parts may be varied and any
suitable material employed for their construction without affecting the principle
of the invention.
Dated this 7th day of Santambor 1896
W. P. THOMPSON & Co.,
Of 6, Lord Street, Liverpool, Agents for the Applicant.
COMPLETE SPECIFICATION.
Improvements in or connected with Smoke Consuming Hydro-carbon
Furnaces.
I, LOUIS ERNEST FRAIPONT of 16, Rue Drouot, Paris in the Republic of France,
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 has for its object an improved arrangement of furnace for burn-
ing, in a complete practical and consequently economical manner, the various
gaseous combustibles, such as coal gas, oil gas, water gas, oor gas, and any gaseous
combustible generally formed from any suitable hydrocarbon.
The apparatus is shown in the accompanying drawings,
Figure 1 being a longitudinal sectional elevation;

page_text: pian, and
Figure 3, a semi-transverse section; whilst
Figures 4, 5,. 6 and 7 are details.
The apparatus consists of the combination of a series of pipes A made of metal
or other suitable fire resisting material according to the nature of the gas employed
for conveying the gas to the various points where it is to be utilised.
These pipes are placed between two floors BC formed of fire resisting slabs or
tiles held up and connected to the masonry of the furnace by any suitable means
such, for instance, as flat iron strips supported at the sides by angle irons 6,
as shown in the drawings. The upper floor B is formed of slabs or tiles in the
shape of ordinary fire bricks having a cylindrical hole B' in the centre, a
cylinder I surmounted with a flanged cap D, Figures 4 and 5, being inserted in
the hole. This cylinder and its flanged cap are preferably made of fire clay, or
other suitable refractory material, and may be constructed in one piece or in two
separate pieces. In certain cases where gas is used, the temperature of com-
bustion of which is not very high, the small cylinder may be dispensed with, and
the hole B' in the fire brick may be simply surmounted with the flanged cap D'
hereinbefore mentioned, see Figures 6 and 7.
The lower floor C is itself composed of fire bricks similar to those of the upper
floor, but perforated with a large number of small holes c of cylindrical or other
suitable shape.
The pipes A which bring the gas are provided with nozzles a placed exactly
below and in the axis of the cylindrical openings B3 of the bricks of the upper
floor.
The gas is brought to each of the distributing pipes by a suitable main pipe
from which these pipes branch off, a suitable tap A on the main governing each
of these pipes, and thus enabling any suitable number of them to be shut off
at will.
The gas escaping from the nozzles a with which the pipes A are provided is
injected into the little cylinders I previously mentioned inserted in the openings
in the bricks of the upper floor. On coming in contact with these cylinders, which
are always maintained at a very high temperature by the heat produced by the
combustion itself, the gas is brought to a red heat. The draught of the furnace
also causes a certain quantity of air, which may be regulated at will, to be drawn
through the small openings c in the lower floor C.
This lower floor is itself brought to a very high temperature in consequence of
radiation from the upper floor which is at a red heat. The air is thus heated
by coming in contact with it, and this heating is increased by its coming directly
in contact with the upper floor. As however the air drawn in by the draught can
only pass through the incandescent cylinders of the upper floor, its speed there
is considerable, and as this speed is suddenly checked by the flanged cap which
covers the opening in the cylinder, there results a very energetic admixture of
the air and gas, forming a compound which ignites immediately by coming in
contact with the incandescent flanged cap.
The object of the cap is thus essentially to produce an intimate and complete
mixture of the combustible gas with the air, and to ignite this mixture on its
emerging from the cylinders or openings of the upper floor. It has further the
advantage of deflecting the flame downwards, of preventing it forming a solid jet,
and as the burners may be placed in somewhat close proximity one to another,
the flames of the different burners will encounter one another and become com-
pletely intermingled, thus favouring the combustion of any gas which may have
remained unconsumed.
The result of the various arrangements of the apparatus as a whole is
1. That the gas is heated before use to a very high temperature, firstly in the
supply pipes themselves which are heated by the radiation from the upper floor,
and then by direct contact with the incandescent cylinders of this floor.

page_text: 2. That the air necessary for the combustion of this gas is itself heated to a
very high temperature by its passage through the orifices of the lower floor.
3. That by the special arrangement of the burners, an energetic churning
together and absolutely intimate mixture of the gas and air is obtained.
4. That the proportions of gas and air may be regulated very exactly so as to
obtain a complete combustion without any excess of air.
5. That the arrangement of the furnace prevents the formation of a solid jet.
6. That the strength of the furnace may be regulated at will by lighting a
larger or smaller number of the burners, thus affording the following advantages--
Instantaneous setting in action, facility of regulation, complete utilisation of all
available calorics consequent on the use of a minimum quantity of air, total
suppression of all the destructive effects of flames in the form of a solid jet and
absolute consumption of the smoke arising from the fact that all the air necessary
for combustion is forced to pass through the small cylinders or burners.
The forms, dimensions, proportions and accessory parts may be varied and any
suitable material employed for their construction without affecting the principle
of the invention.
Having now particularly described and ascertained the nature of my said inven-
tion and in what manner the same is to be performed, I declare that what I
claim is :-
A smoke consuming furnace enabling a rational and compléte combustion of all
the gaseous combustibles arising from all kinds of hydrocarbons to be effected,
characterised by the combination of an arrangement of double floors between
which pass gas supply pipes fitted with suitable nozzles, the said floors being
perforated, the upper one with openings having flanged caps by which the inflamed
gas escapes and is distributed, and the lower one with small apertures serving to
provide the air necessary for combustion; the whole substantially as hereinbefore
described and shown as an example in the accompanying drawings.
Dated this 3rd day of Tune 1807
W. P. THOMPSON & Co.,
Of 6, Lord Street, Liverpool, Agents for the Applicant.