Improvements in Steam and Water Turbines.
Year: 1898

page_text: Date of Application, 12th Sept., 1898-Accepted, 10th Dec., 1898
COMPLETE SPECIFICATION.
Improvements in Steam and Water Turbines.
We, GEORG MONTAG, of 144, Mittelstrasse, Mannheim, Merchant, and
FRIEDRICHI HÜTER, Builder, and MICHAEL KARB III, Builder, both of Lamper-
theim, Hessen, in the Empire of Germany, 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;
The object of this invention is a turbine which may be used for water as well
as for steam and the characteristic features of which are that instead of its vanes
or paddles being as hitherto rigid and motionless, they are now made resilient
or are supported by springs so as to yield to a certain extent to the water or steam
jets as soon as struck by the same.
The resiliency of the vanes is desirable for steam as well as for water turbines
but more particularly for the first mentioned class, while the peripheral speed
of the water wheel in water turbines can never be practically regulated to corre-
spond accurately with the velocity of the outflow of water, so that the working
is impaired frequently by rather injurious losses of strokes, and for steam turbines
it is compulsory on practical grounds and in consequence of the extraordinary
velocity with which the steam rushes out of the nozzle, to remain as regards the
peripheral speed of the turbine wheel far below the limit which ought to be
reached in consideration of the high velocity of the outflow or discharge of steam.
The result of this important deviation of the peripheral speed of the turbine from
that indicated by theory, is a loss of strokes and hence a corresponding and
important decrease of the work which the escaping steam should perform. To
remedy these losses of strokes which as above stated are particularly great for
steam turbines, the vanes are according to this invention so constructed that they
each form a spring or are supported by springs. The vanes will now be able to
perform the work indicated by theory although the turbine rotates much slower
than before and they will recoil or deviate to a certain extent from the shock of
the steam as they pass before the outlet opening of the latter, that is to say, that
they will move as quickly as indicated by theory under the influence of the steam
shock at the moment when they pass before the outlet nozzle. The vanes do
do not transmit to the turbine in consequence of their resiliency and at the moment
of their recoil the full force of the steam shock, but as they spring back into the
original position after the release of the steam pressure, the power produced by the
receding motion of the vanes of the turbine corresponds at the same time to
the peripheral power directed in the sense of the rotation of the
turbine wheel by the aid of which the turning momentum imparted by the steam
proper is greatly enhanced. Probably the turning momentum imparted or exerted
by the steam to or upon the turbine wheel will be in a direct ratio with the intensity
of the reacting power produced by these springs as compared with turbines of
older construction.
In the accompanying drawings, Fig. 1 is an elevation of this new or improved
turbine. Figs. 2 to 5 show different manners of constructing the spring vanes
or paddles such as will be hereinafter more fully set forth.

page_text: A is the turbine wheel and a are the resilient vanes or paddles, c is the steam
nozzle and d the steam pipe, e is the turbine wheel shaft which transmits, by
the aid of the toothed gearing f, motion to the front wheel mounted on the
shaft g.
From this shaft g the power produced by the turbine can be transmitted
to any suitable machine. "In Fig. 2, the vanes or paddles a are supported by one
or more helical springs one end of which is fixedly secured to the paddle, while
the other end is similarly fixed to the turbine wheel. The spiral spring allows
the paddle to move in the same manner as if it were hinged, but it brings it always
back to the same position. In the arrangement shown in Fig. 3 that part of the
paddle which is nearest to the crown of the turbine wheel A is much more slender
so that it can be bent like a spring blade or flat spring. The free end of this
slender vane part becomes subsequently thicker so as to be used for fixing the
vane to the crown of the turbine wheel A. The paddles may be formed of two
parts so that the free edge may possess some mobility relatively to the other edge
which is connected with the turbine wheel. Fig. 4 shows another kind of paddle
construction, wherein the two parts of the paddles or vanes are connected together
by a hinge and are held by the spring in their normal position. I is a flat
spring. Each end of this flat spring can be rivetted to one of the two parts of
the vane and paddle, without impeding to any appreciable extent the resiliency
thereof. The vanes or paddles may also be made in two parts in the manner
illustrated in Fig. 5, wherein each vane or paddle part or half forms a segment
of a circle or a cylindrical section. Each circular segment can be fixed by means
of a hinge n to the lateral cheek m of the turbine wheel; the springs imparting
the necessary resiliency to the vane or paddle parts or halves and holding them
in a normal position.
Having now particularly described and ascertained the nature of our said
invention, and in what manner the same is to be performed, we declare that what
we claim is:-
connection
1. A turbine for water and steam characterized by the resilient
between the vanes or paddles a of the turbine wheel A and the latter wheel, so
that they can deviate or recoil from the water or steam jet to a certain extent
for the purpose of avoiding loss of strokes, shocks or impacts which are caused by
the discrepancy between the velocity of the outflow of the pressure producing
fluid and the rotary speed of the turbine wheel.
2. A turbine such as above claimed characterized by the thinning out of the
part of the turbine vanes or paddles which is nearest the turbine wheel A in such
a manner that they can spring in the direction of the periphery of the wheel.
3. A turbine such as above claimed, characterized by the connection with the
wheel A of the vane or paddles' a by means of spiral springs i (Fig. 2).
4. A turbine of the kind above claimed characterized by the division into two
or more parts of the vanes or paddles a, all the vane or paddle parts being con-
nected together by a resilient joint (Fig. 4).
5. A turbine such as above claimed characterized by the bipartite arrangement
of the vanes or paddles, each part being supported by a separate spring and being
movably secured to the lateral check m of the turbine wheel.
Dated this 10th day of September 1898.
CRUIKSHANK & FAIRWEATHER,
Chartered Patent Agents,
62, Saint Vincent Street, Glasgow,
Agents for the Applicants."