Improvements in Water-feed Apparatus for Boilers.
Year: 1898

page_text: Date of Application, 12th Sept., 1898—Accepted, 19th Nov., 1898
COMPLETE SPECIFICATION.
Improvements in Water-feed Apparatus for Boilers.
I, FRANZ JOSEPH WEISS, of Weiherweg 54, Basel, Canton Basel, in the Swiss
Confederation, Civil 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 relates to mechanism for supplying feed water to boilers, and has
for its object the constant maintenance of the water line in the boiler at an
approximately uniform level.
I accomplish this by providing a steam feed pump which should be of a type
which is capable of being started in any position of the piston, and coupling
the motor cylinder of the pump with the boiler to be fed by a conduit, the inlet
end of which is arranged in or in connection with the boiler in such a position
as to be flooded by the water in the boiler when the water level reaches a deter-
mined point. By this device the supply of steam to the pump is automatically
cut off as soon as the determined water line is reached and the motor cylinder
thereafter fed with water instead of steam until, the water line again falls below
the determined level.
I preferably use a pump which will operate with water as a motive fluid as
well as with steam and which therefore continues in operation irrespective of
the heighth of the water level in the boiler, but of course works very much more
slowly when the motor cylinder is supplied with water instead of steam. The
pump cylinder or plunger working in the pump chamber being of smaller sec-
tional area than the motor cylinder the pump, when working with water instead
of steam, will draw more water from the boiler into its motor cylinder than it
forces into the boiler from the pump cylinder consequently the continued opera-
tion of the pump after the water has exceeded the determined level results in a
lowering of the water level even irrespective of the use of steam from the boiler,
a lowering of the level which continues until the inlet end of the supply conduit
comes again above the water whereupon the pump will resume operation with
steam as a motive fluid and the water level will again rise.
It will be seen from what I have above stated that my boiler feeding device
is entirely automatic and of such a character that it can be relied upon to main-
tain the water level at a practically uniform point.
My invention further consists in certain details and specific improvements
upon a feeding device of the character above described which will best be under-
stood as described in connection with the drawings in which my invention is
illustrated and in which:
Figure 1 is a sectional end elevation of a boiler and feed water tank provided
with my improved feeding apparatus.
Figure 2 is a sectional elevation of a modification which is advantageous
under certain conditions.
Figure 3 indicates still another modification, and
Figure 4 is an elevation showing the conjoint use of the two modifications
separately illustrated in Figures 2 and 3.

page_text: C indicates a boiler, the determined normal water line of which is indicated
at A-B. D indicates the motor cylinder and E the pump cylinder of the feed
pump which, as stated above, should be of a type capable of starting in any
position, and preferably also of a character which will work with water as well
as steam as a motive fluid.
Many such pumps are in common use and for a typical example I would men-
tion the well known Worthington duplex pump as being thoroughly adapted for
my purposes. Findicates a receptacle for feed water; a conduit leading from
the receptacle F to the pump cylinder E; e a conduit leading from the pump
cylinder to the lower portion of the boiler. a indicates a conduit for the motive
fluid of the pump leading to the motor cylinder D from a point in or in connec
tion with the boiler, the said conduit being so arranged that its inlet end will
be submerged by the water of the boiler when the water level in the boiler
exceeds the determined line. As shown in Figure 1, the inlet end of the pipe a
is introduced directly into the boiler and brought to the determined water
level A-B. Sometimes it is desirable to make the submersion of the inlet end
of the supply pipe to a certain degree temporarily independent of the water
level in the boiler so that, for instance, water will continue to flow to the motor
cylinder of the pump for a short time after the water has fallen below its normal
level and so that after the pump has resumed operation with steam there will be
an appreciable interval before the inlet end of the supply pipe is again flooded.
Such a method of operation is provided for by the addition of a vessel g (see
Figures 2 and 4) having an open topped end and placed in or in connection with
the boiler so that its open top will come flush with a determined water level, the
inlet end of the supply pipe a being introduced into this vessel as shown in the
drawings.
In the modification last described, it will be obvious that so long as the water
level A B in the boiler lies above the mouth of the vessel g the vessel will be
kept full of water and the motor cylinder of the pump supplied with water
from it and that even after the water line has fallen below the mouth of the
vessel the pump will still be actuated by water until the vessel g has been
emptied or until the water in that vessel has fallen below the mouth of the pipe a.
While the vessel ġ is being emptied of water in this way the water line of the
boiler is of coursé falling, and if no considerable demand is made upon the
boiler for steam, the fall in level will not be considerable or in any wise danger-
ous if the vessel is properly proportioned, being such for instance as is indi-
cated between line A-B and the line h in Figure 2. It will also be obvious
that after the vessel g is emptied of water the steam will pass freely through it
and into the motor cylinder bringing the feed pump again into energetic opera-
tion, the pump continuing to work with steam while the water level rises from
h to A-B.
"
Where the water supplied to the boiler comes from a source which makes it likely
to form a scum or have light impurities floating upon its surface it is desirable
to provide means which will prevent the scum from entering the pump, and this
may be readily done by connecting with the boiler a receptacle k, as shown in
Figures 3 and 4, the said receptacle expanding above and below the normal
water line of the boiler and being connected with the steam and water spaces
as by conduits 1 and 2. The supply pipe a is led into this receptacle and as
the water in the receptacle is always drawn from below the water level in the
boiler it is naturally free from scum or light impurities which float upon the
top of the water..
As indicated in Figure 4, the vessel 7 may be used in connection with the
receptacle and the combined advantages of both additions to my invention
thus availed of.
It will be obvious that provided the feed water pump is sufficiently large to
suit the maximum consumption of steam from the boiler the determined water
level in the boiler will by my device be maintained practically constant. In

page_text: case however the amount of steam drawn from the boiler varies suddenly and
materially the ordinary precaution of regulating the fire in accordance with
the demand for steam may at times be insufficient to prevent an undesirable
increase in steam pressure. In such cases it is the common practice for the
fireman to feed water to his boiler beyond the necessary and normal water line
so as, by the addition of comparatively cool feed water in large quantity, to
absorb the temporary overplus of heat and I provide for this manipulation in
connection with my feed device by connecting the supply pipe a with the steam
space of the boiler, as by a conduit e, and providing in the pipe e a stop cock,
as indicated at H by which it can be opened or closed at will. It will be obvious
that by this device steam can be supplied to the pipe a even after its inlet end
is submerged below the water level and in this way the pump kept in connection
with steam and the water level in the boiler raised to any desired extent.
Preferably I lead the exhaust from the motor cylinder D of the pump by a
conduit into the supply tank F so that the water in the supply tank may
receive the heat of the exhaust steam when the cylinder D is fed with steam
and so that the hot water from the boiler shall be returned to the supply tank
when the motor cylinder is fed with water. The obvious economy of thus utilis-
ing the heat of the steam or water drawn from the boiler will be appreciated.
Having now particularly described and ascertained the nature of my said
invention and in what manner the same is to be performed, I declare that what
I claim is:
1. In combination with a boiler, a feed water pump, and a steam supply pipe
connected at one end to the motor cylinder of the pump and at the other end
connected with the boiler as described, and so as to have its inlet end flooded
when the water in the boiler reaches a determined level.
2. In combination with a boiler, a feed water pump adapted to work with steam
or water as a motive fluid, a supply pipe connected at one end to the motor
cylinder of the pump and at the other end connected with the boiler as described,
and so as to have its inlet end flooded when the water in the boiler reaches a
determined level.
3. In combination with a boiler, a feed water pump adapted to work with
steam or water as a motive fluid, a supply pipe connected at one end to the motor
cylinder of the pump and at the other end connected with the boiler, as described,
and so as to have its inlet end flooded when the water in the boiler reaches a
determined level, a supplemental steam supply pipe leading from a point above
high water level in the boiler to the motor cylinder and a stop cock in said
supplemental pipe.
4. In combination with a boiler, a feed water pump adapted to work with steam
or water as a motive fluid, a supply pie connected at one end to the motor cylinder
of the pump and at the other end connected with the boiler, as described, and so
as to have its inlet end flooded when the water in the boiler reaches a determined
level, a reservoir for feed water, and an exhaust conduit leading from the motor
cylinder to said reservoir.
5. In combination with a boiler, a feed water pump adapted to work with
steam or water as a motive fluid, a receptacle, as k. connected with the boiler
above and below the normal range of the water line therein, and a supply pipe
connected at one end to the motor cylinder of the pump and at the other end
connected with the receptacle aforesaid, as specified, and so as to have its inlet
end flooded when the water in the boiler reaches a determined level.
6. In combination with a boiler, a feed water pump, an open topped vessel,
as a. in or connected with the boiler and arranged so that its open top shall be
flush with a determined high water level of the boiler, and a supply pipe con-
nected at one end to the motor cylinder of the pumn and at the other end
extended into the vessel aforesaid so as to have its inlet end flooded by water.
entering said vessel through its open top.

page_text: 7. In combination with a boiler, a feed water pump adapted to work with steam
or water as a motive fluid, and having its motor cylinder of greater sectional
area than its water cylinder, and a supply pipe leading to the motor cylinder
of the pump and connected to the boiler, as described, and so as to have its inlet
end flooded when the water level reaches a determined line.
Dated this 12th day of September 1898
HASELTINE, LAKE & Co.,
45, Southampton Buildings, London, W.C.,
Agents for the Applicant.