IMPROVEMENTS IN STEAM BOILERS OR GENERATORS.”
Year: 1873

page_text: LETTERS PATENT to George Horner and Adam Dobson, both of
Belfast, in the County of Antrim, Ireland for the Invention of
"IMPROVEMENTS IN STEAM BOILERS OR GENERATORS.”
PROVISIONAL SPECIFICATION left by the said George Horner and
Adam Dobson at the Office of the Commissioners of Patents, with
their Petition, on the 7th June 1873.
We, GEORGE HORNER and ADAM DOBSON, both of Belfast, in the
County of Antrim, Ireland, do hereby declare the nature of the said
Invention for "IMPROVEMENTS IN STEAM BOILERS OR GENERATORS," to be as
follows:-
:-
According to our Invention we fit one or more tubular water heaters
Such heater consists of a
within the flues of any ordinary flued boiler.
cylindrical shell with internal tubes. It is fixed longitudinally in the
boiler flue, with a space all around between it and the sides of the flue,
and communicates with the water space of the boiler by pipes, so that

page_text: is available as heating surface in addition to the sides of the flue. The
said heater may be of cylindrical or other shape, and one or more may
be fitted in the same flue.
We also make the fire-bars hollow for the purpose of admitting and
heating the atmospheric air, which is conveyed by a flue to the space or
spaces between the said heaters or elsewhere. A valve or damper can
be so fixed as to close and prevent the admission of the atmospheric air
when not required.
We further provide one or more tubular economisers or water heaters,
placed horizontally or otherwise, the heated air passing through the
tubes and round the outside of the shell. The said economisers or water
heaters are filled with water and fixed in such a position that the heated
water may be pumped into the boiler. To accomplish this we propose
having two cisterns, one to receive the cold or condensed water from
whatever source it may come, and to fill the economisers or water
heaters with water; the second or hot water cistern to receive the hot
water from the economisers or water heaters. A force pump or other
apparatus is provided to force the water into such boilers, which may
require it. Many other contrivances may be applied to fill such
economisers or water heaters with water in place of said cisterns.
We also provide pipes and taps, so arranged as to bring in steam of
sufficient pressure to clean the outer side of the tubes, which are inside
the shell of the economisers or water heaters, by causing a good
circulation of the water, which will stir up the mud, taps or cocks being
provided to carry off this mud. By this means we propose preventing
the scale or sediment from accumulating on the outer side of the tubes
and the inside of the shell of the said economisers or water heaters.
This will only require to be done to suit circumstances.
We further provide one or more fans so placed in the flue or flues as
to draw the soot through the inside of the tubes and the outside of the
shell of the economisers or water heaters, thus preventing the soot or
other sediment accumulating in the same.

page_text: SPECIFICATION in pursuance of the conditions of the Letters Patent,
filed by the said George Horner and Adam Dobson in the Great
Seal Patent Office on the 6th December 1873.
TO ALL TO WHOM THESE PRESENTS SHALL COME, we, GEORGE
HORNER and ADAM DOBSON, both of Belfast, in the County of Antrim,
Ireland, send greeting.
WHEREAS Her most Excellent Majesty Queen Victoria, by Her
Letters Patent, bearing date the Seventh day of June, in the year
of our Lord One thousand eight hundred and seventy-three, in the
thirty-sixth year of Her reign, did, for Herself, Her heirs and successors,
give and grant unto me, the said George Horner and Adam Dobson, Her
special licence that we, the said George Horner and Adam Dobson, our
executors, administrators, and assigns, or such others as we, the said
George Horner and Adam Dobson, 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, within the
United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland, the Channel Islands,
and Isle of Man, an Invention for "IMPROVEMENTS IN STEAM BOILERS OR
GENERATORS," upon the condition (amongst others) that we, the said
George Horner and Adam Dobson our executors or administrators, by an
instrument in writing under our, or their, or one of their hands and
seals, 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 George Horner and Adam Dobson,
do hereby declare the nature of our said Invention, and in what manner:
the same is to be performed, to be particularly described and ascertained,
in and by the following statement, reference being had to the Sheet of
Drawings hereunto annexed, and to the letters and figures marked
thereon (that is to say) :—
Our Invention of improvements in steam boilers and generators relates,
first, to providing one or more tubular water heaters, or more properly
speaking, steam generators, within the flues of a flued boiler. The said

page_text: generators each consist of a cylindrical shell fitted with internal tubes.
It is fixed longitudinally in the flue, with a space all round between it
and the sides of the flue, and communicates with the water space of the
boiler by pipes, so that the products of combustion will pass through
said tubes as well as along the flue and round the generator, whereby
the whole surface of the generator and its tubes is rendered available as
additional heating surface, thus causing a rapid circulation, which will
prevent in a great measure incrustation or the accumulation of sediment
so injurious to boilers. Moreover the tubes being comparatively thin
at once transmit the heat to the water by which they are surrounded,
and steam is therefore generated with great rapidity, and a corresponding
saving in fuel is effected. These generators may be cylindrical or of any
other shape, and one or more may be fitted in the same flue.
The second part of our Invention consists in fitting one or more
tubular economisers or feed-water heaters, horizontally or otherwise, in
the flue, by which the gases of the boiler flues are carried to the
chimney. These economisers or feed-water heaters consist of a shell
fitted with tubes like the generators before described, the heated gases
or products of combustion passing through the tubes and over and round
the outside of the shell in which they are fixed, the said economisers or a
water heaters being filled with water, which when heated is supplied to
the boiler. For this purpose we provide two cisterns, one to receive the
cold or condensed water, from whatever source it may come, and to fill
the economisers or water heaters with water; the second or hot water
cistern, to receive the hot water from the economisers or water heaters.
A force pump or other apparatus is provided to force the water into such
boilers as may require it. Many other contrivances may be applied to
fill such economisers or water heaters with water, such as for instance
forcing it through the economisers direct to whatever boilers may require
it. By means of these economisers or water heaters we are enabled to
utilize as much as possible the heated gases, which otherwise would
escape by the chimney, thus still further economising fuel.
We further provide pipes and taps to bring in steam of a sufficient
pressure to clean the tubes and the inside of the shell of the economisers
or water heaters by causing such a circulation of the water as will stir;
the mud, taps or cocks being so arranged as to carry off this mud.
By this means we prevent the scale or sediment from accumulating on
up

page_text: the tubes and on the inside of the shell of the said economisers or water
heaters. This will only require to be done occasionally.
The third and last part of our Invention relates to the arrangement of
one or more fans in connection with the flue or flues, and so arranged
as to augment the draught and draw the soot or other deposits through
the flues and through the tubes of the economisers and generators, thus
preventing any accumulation of these deposits and doing away with the
necessity for using scrapers and other expensive appliances for cleaning
the said economisers and generators. If it is found that the suction
from the fan or fans is not sufficient to keep the economisers, generators,
and flues effectually clean, we bring a pipe from the fan or fans to the
fire-box or to any other convenient position in the flues, so that by
blowing through from the front the soot is disturbed and is more easily
removed by the suction of the fan or fans.
In the accompanying Drawings we have illustrated the various
improvements constituting the several parts of our Invention as applied
to an ordinary flued boiler.
Figure 1 shows a horizontal section of a two-flued boiler made com-
formably with our Invention.
Figure 2 is a longitudinal section of boiler with end elevation of
economisers and cisterns.
Figure 3 is a half front end elevation and half transverse vertical
section of the boiler.
Figure 4 is a longitudinal elevation of the economisers and fan, and a
section of chimney and cistern.
The first part of our Invention is illustrated in Figures 1, 2, and 3;
C is a boiler with internal and external flues B, B, B³, B¹, in which are
placed the generators A. These generators are provided with internal
tubes a, placed longitudinally in them, and fixed in tube plates at each
end. These generators communicate with the water space of the boiler
by the tubes 6, which are bolted to the extremities of the generators A,
and to the top and bottom of the internal flues B, B, or to the outer
shell of the boiler in the external flues B', as the case may be. The
generators A, A, A, A, are so much smaller in diameter than the flues
in which they are placed as to leave a space all round and permit a
portion of the smoke or gases from the furnace to pass between them

page_text: and the sides of the flues, while the remainder passes through the small
tubes a of the generators. Thus the entire surface of the generators
and their tubes is rendered profitable for heating purposes in addition to
the boiler surface exposed in the flues.
The economisers or feed water heaters which form the second part of
our Invention are shown in Figures 1, 2, and 4. In the arrangement
shown in the Drawings there are four of these economisers D, D, placed
two by two, the one over the other (but they may be otherwise arranged
to suit the dimensions of the flue), the upper and lower economisers
being connected by the pipe d. These economisers D, D, are placed in
the flue E, and like the generators are fitted with tubes. They are filled
with water supplied from the cold water cistern F by a pipe or pipes e.
The gases from the flue B, B, pass over and round the economisers D, D,
and through the tubes on their way to the chimney K, thus heating the
water, which ascends through one or more pipes finto the hot water
cistern G, from whence it is supplied to the boilers as they require it by
means of a force pump or other suitablo apparatus, or it may be passed
direct to the boilers without employing any cisterns, but we prefer the
former arrangement, as the economisers not being required to sustain
the boiler pressure (which they would if no cisterns were employed), we
may make them of very much thinner metal so as to transmit the heat
much more rapidly to the water.
The manner in which steam is passed through these economisers for
the purpose of cleaning them and preventing the accumulation of
sediment, is shown in the end elevation of economisers and cisterns 2
Figure 2; g is a pipe connected to the end of the boiler C, and which
communicates with the economisers D, D; h is a valve or stop cock,
which can be opened or closed as required; i is a valve or stop cock
connected with the pipe ƒ which supplies the cistern G; k is a valve or
stop cock connected with pipe e which takes the water from cistern F; 3
Z is a stop cock or valve for running off the dirty water from the
economisers D, D. When the valve h is opened for the admission of
steam to the economisers D, D, the valves i and k must be closed and
the valve being left open the dirty water passes off through it.
Figures 1 and 4 illustrate the last portion of our Invention, by which 3
it is intended to prevent the accumulation of soot and other deposits in
the economiser and generator tubes and in the flues. For this purpose

page_text: we place one or more fans H at the junction of the flue E and the
chimney K, or it may be placed in any other convenient position. The
fan H is driven by a belt or other contrivance, and the draught or
suction caused by the fan or fans draws the soot through the tubes
and flues to the centre of the fan whence it is discharged into the
chimney at K¹.
Having now described the nature of our said Invention and the
manner in which same is to be carried into effect, we may observe that
we do not confine or restrict ourselves to the precise details or arrange-
ments already described or referred to as such may be varied without
departing from our Invention, but what we consider to be novel and
original and therefore claim as the Invention to be protected by the
herein-before in part recited Letters Patent is,-
1st. The application to flued boilers of one or more steam generators
or vessels furnished with internal tubes, and fitted in the flue or flues of
the boiler, and placed in communication therewith, substantially as here-
in-before shown and described.
2nd. The employment of one or more tubular economisers or feed
water heaters placed in the flue between the boiler and the chimney and
connected with cisterns, all as herein-before described, whether provided
or not with the means of preventing the accumulation of scale or
sediment, therein as specified.
3rd. The employment in combination with said tubular generators and
economisers of one or more fans, so arranged and worked as to draw,
suck, or blow all deposits from the flucs and the inside of the econo-
miser and generator tubes, as herein-before described.
In witness whercof, I, the said George Horner, for myself, and
on behalf of the said Adam Dobson, have hereunto set my hand
and seal, this Sixth day of December, in the year of our Lord
One thousand eight hundred and seventy-three.
GEORGE HORNER. (L.S.)