Improved Apparatus for Making Gas from Oils, Fatty Substances, and other material.
Year: 1892

page_text: Date of Application, 10th Mar., 1892
Complete Specification Left, 9th Dec., 1892-Accepted, 21st Jan., 1893
PROVISIONAL SPECIFICATION.
Improved Apparatus for Making Gas from Oils, Fatty Substances,
and other material.
JULIUS MOELLER, Manager 51 Barrow Road Streatham Common London S.W.
do hereby declare the nature of this invention to be as follows:
My invention consists in an arrangement whereby I produce from oil or other
fatty substances, gas, in a more effective and economical manner than any other
apparatus yet devised for manufacturing illuminating gas from similar products.
To obtain these results I use two cast or wrought iron retorts of equal length
and diameter which I connect through a U piece of equal diameter at their ends.
Both retorts are fixed on the same level parallel and the fire underneath is arranged
in such a way that these two retorts can be brought to a red heat and of an equal
temperature throughout.
It is essential that the retorts should be connected so that a free passage for
the gas made can be secured, so that no obstruction can occur inside the retorts.
Whereas up to tlie present inoinent the oil has been introduced by letting it
drop on the bottom or on the sides, or on the top of the retorts from a syphon
tube fixed in front of the retorts, instead of this I arrange an oil holder, in such a
way that it stands in connection with an air tank into which I compress atmospheric
air up to 20 lbs per square inch.
I apply this pressure upon the oil contained in a separate tank, and from this oil
tank a small tube provided with a set screw for adjustment leads into the first
retort.
On connecting the pressure tank with oil tank and opening the screw valve on
the tube spoken of, the air presses the oil through a small orifice opened through
the set screw into the first retort which it enters, not as a solid body but in a spray,
and this retort being red hot the oil introduced is vaporised before going into
contact with the walls of the retort by the radiant heat.
From the first retort, the gas thus produced goes through the connection tube and
passes into the second retort which has an equal heat to the first, and this heat I
utilise to fix the gas produced in the first retort in such a way that it becomes a
permanent gas..
After leaving this retort I carry the gas through a combined scrubber, washer
and cooler. This latter is constructed in such a way that the bottom part is a
circular vessel having a screw like partition. The gas enters in at the outside of
this screw and through the screw windings to the centre which has a hole in the
upper cover.
This vessel I fill partly with water, and the gas being forced through the screw-
like windings is purified from all heavy substances such as tar and all other
impurities; on the top of this vessel I have a cylindrical tank situated over the hole
leading from the centre of the screw partition chamber.
This second vessel I fill with pumice stone and this has the object of cleansing
the gas from tarry particles by bringing it in contact with the porous pumice stone
which retains all further impurities the gas may contain.
Around this second tank I hang a bell shaped holder which again is surrounded on
its sides by a tank filled with water, in such a way that the water from the outside
tank cannot go into the inside tank containing the pumice stone.
From the tank
containing the pumice stone the gas passes, now purified, on to the holder.
This gas holder is of the ordinary description.

page_text: The action of this combined washer and scrubber is as follows -
The gas entering at the bottom part is first washed and cooled. It is further
cleansed in passing through the pumice stone and cooled by the water contained
in the cylindrical tank on the top of which is a funnel and syphon into which
water is poured which washes down the tar, which goes to the bottom tank,
swimming on the top of the water, and when a certain amount of this tar has
collected, there is a syphon tube in the centre part through which the excess of tar
can be drawn off and fresh water added in the top bell through the syphon shaped
tube which always retains a surplus of water so that it is always sealed against an
escape of gas.
.
This apparatus answers in all cases where oils are used for the production of gas,
but in case fatty substances of a solid nature have to be employed, I melt these fats
before introducing them into the retorts.
London dated this 7th day of March 1892.
JULIUS MOELLER.
COMPLETE SPECIFICATION.
Improved Apparatus for Making Gas from Oils, Fatty Substances,
and other material.
I, JULIUS MOELLER of 51 Barrow Road, Streatham Common, London, 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 relates to apparatus for the rapid and economic production of
inflammable gas from oil, or from molten fats or other liquids capable of producing
inflammable gas, as I shall describe referring to the accompanying drawings.
Fig. 1 is a side view, Fig. 2 is a plan and Fig. 3 is a vertical section of the air
compressor and reservoir, Fig. 4 is a side view and Fig. 5 is a plan of the retort
furnace and gas purifier and holder; Fig. 6 is a sectional plan of the retort furnace.
Fig. 7 is a vertical section of the gas purifier and Fig. 8 is a sectional plan on a b
of Fig. 7.
By means of a hand pump A. I compress air in a receiver B to a pressure of
about 20 lbs. per square inch. B₁ is a pressure gauge and B2 is a valve in a pipe
leading from the receiver B to the oil reservoir C on the oil in which the air
pressure acts forcing it from the reservoir C by a pipe C furnished with a cock or
valve to the retort D. This retort is a tube bent to U form laid horizontally in
a furnace over a fire maintaining both limbs of the retort at about a red heat. The
oil enters the one limb of the retort through a small orifice from which it issues as
a jet of spray. This in passing along the one limb of the retort becomes vaporised,
and the vapour in returning along the other limb is converted into gas which passes
by a pipe D D¹ to a compartment E' at the bottom of the purifier E. In the
compartment E which is charged with water there is a partition of volute shape
forming a narrow channel along which the gas has to pass through the water
towards the centre (as indicated by the arrows in Fig. 8) depositing on its way
tar and other impurities which can from time to time be withdrawn by a bent
tube E. From the centre of the compartment E' the gas rises through a mass
of wet fragments of pumice stone, becoming scrubbed on its way to the bell E
whence it passes by a pipe F to a floating gas holder of ordinary kind. Water is
from time to time supplied to the scrubber E' by a pipe E' bent so as to form a
liquid seal.
I have shewn the reservoir C in its simple form as suited for liquid oils. When
fatty matters requiring to be melted or when some of the heavier oils are used, the
reservoir C is heated either by a fire or it may be by a steam jacket when steam is
available.

page_text: 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:
Apparatus for the manufacture of oil gas, consisting of an air compressing pump
and receiver communicating with an oil reservoir, a U shaped retort into one limb
of which enters a pipe from the oil reservoir terminating in a small orifice, and
from the other limb of which a pipe leads to a purifier consisting of a volute
passage charged with water and above it a scrubber containing wet pumice stone,
all arranged and operating substantially as described.
Dated this 9th day of December 1892.
ABEL & IMRAY,
Agents for the Applicant.