Improvements in Gas Generators.
Year: 1897

page_text: Improvements in Gas Generators.
We, ALFRED ORME, Manufacturer, of Great Brick Kiln Street, Wolverhampton,
in the County of Stafford, and FREDERICK JOSIAH JONES, Civil Engineer, of
Brentwood, Stanley Road, King's Heath, in the County of Worcester, do hereby
declare the nature of this invention to be as follows:-
Our invention relates to that class of gas generator in which a non-caking coal
is carbonized and consists essentially in dividing the generator into two floors placed
one above the other. The lower floor is arranged in a manner similar to the
ordinary gas producer but the firebars are sloped down from the front at an
angle of about 45 degrees so that the lower ends may dip into a water bosh placed
under the grate in the ordinary way. We leave a space of about 12 in. between
the back ends of the firebars and the back wall of the producer so that any clinker
may slide down the firebars into the water bosh and be withdrawn without dis-
turbing the fire. The lower part of the generator is provided with doors for
cleaning etc. and may be worked with natural or forced draught according to local
circumstances.
We construct the division between the lower and upper portion of the gas
generator with an opening or openings through which the coal contained in the
upper portion may descend as that in the lower portion is consumed and by this
arrangement we are able to prevent the lower portion of the generator from being
overcharged with coal.
And we provide an opening or openings (which may be closed with dampers)
in the division between the upper and lower portions of the gas generator for the
purpose of poking down clinker and disturbing the fuel in the lower portion of
the generator when required. We provide separate outlets for the gases generated
in the upper and lower portions of the generator and the gases from the upper &
lower portions of the generator may be kept separate or mixed as required. The
lower portion of the generator produces what is known as "producer" gas only.
The upper portion produces a gas which is practically free from nitrogen and
which may be treated for the manufacture of tar and ammonia the radiated heat
from the lower part of the generator being sufficient to distil the coal in the
upper part.
The resultant gases are generally mixed and form a fuel of much higher calorific
.value than what is known as "producer" gas. The upper portion of the generator
is provided with the usual charging hopper and is constructed large enough to
hold sufficient fuel to run for several hours without attention. The generator
may be constructed round, polygonal or rectangular in plan, and we find it best so
to arrange the division between the upper and lower portions that an even depth of
about three feet six inches of fuel is kept over the firebars. The divisions separat-
ing the upper and lower portions of the gas generator may be constructed of any
refractory material or of hollow cast or wrought iron or other metal after the
manner of the tymp of a blast furnace to allow the circulation of water therein and

page_text: lessen the liability of clinker adhering. The whole of the generator may be
constructed with a metal water jacket similar to a locomotive firebox and if the
interior of the generator so constructed be from time to time coated with blacklead,
clinker will not adhere to the walls. Steam for blowing the generator may be
obtained from the above mentioned water jacket.
Improvements in Gas Generators.
We, ALFRED ORME, of Great Brickkiln Street, Wolverhampton, in the County
of Stafford, Enameller, and FREDERICK JOSIAH JONES, of Summer Lodge, Kenil-
worth, in the County of Warwick (formerly of Stanley Road, King's Heath, in
the County of Worcester), 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:-
"
Our invention relates to that class of gas generators or producers in which a
non-caking coal, or a coal which is tolerably free from liability to cake, is converted
into a gaseous fuel, and consists in the formation of a generator for the purpose
which is divided in its height into two floors or compartments into one of which
a limited supply of air is admitted whch only partially oxidises the fuel therein,
forming what is known as producer gas, and in the other of which the fuel is heated
mainly or entirely by the heat from the lower chamber with the result that
distillation takes place without oxidation, or with only very slight oxidation,
and the gas from such chamber is free from nitrogen and may be treated for
the manufacture of tar and ammonia. An outlet for the passage of gas is provided
from each chamber of the generator, and the gas may be collected from each
chamber separately, or the outlets may be in communication with one another so
that the gases will mix together in a common passage, whereby the
heavy hydro-carbons from the upper chamber are fixed on admixture
with the gas of higher temperature from the lower chamber, the
result of such admixture being the formation of
a gaseous fuel of
much higher calorific value than what is known
as producer" gas and
the avoidance or the minimisation of the formation of pitch in the flue which
would occur if the heavy hydro-carbons were conveyed away through a separate
flue. An opening or openings are formed through the bottom of the upper
chamber through which the fuel may pass into the lower chamber, and the fuel
is originally fed into the upper chamber through a hopper at the top, as is usual
with gas generators, or in any convenient manner. The lower chamber is con-
structed similarly to an ordinary gas producer with the fire bars sloping down
from the front, and the lower ends of the bars may dip into a water bosh placed
under the grate in the ordinary way, a space of say about twelve inches being left
between the lower ends of the bars and the back wall of the chamber so that any
clinker may slide down the fire bars and into the water bosh and be withdrawn
without disturbing the fire. The slope of the fire bars is arranged to suit the
natural slope of the fuel, being about 45°, and the fuel which passes through from
the upper chamber lies consequently at, approximately, an even thickness upon
the bars, and as it is converted into gas and the residue is drawn away from the
bottom further fuel slides down from the upper chamber to keep up the
thickness of the bed of fuel lying upon the inclined bars of the lower chamber.

page_text: By this arrangement an approximately constant charge of fuel is maintained
within the lower chamber notwithstanding that the upper chamber is charged only
from time time with fresh fuel. The upper chamber is constructed large enough
to hold a sufficient supply of fuel to run for several hours without attention.
We find it best to arrange the generator so that an even depth of about three
feet six inches of fuel, measured at right angles to the slant of the bars, is maintained
upon the bars.
The lower chamber of the generator is provided with doors for cleaning etc.,
and the air may be supplied to the fuel by natural or forced draught, as required.
A suitable opening (or openings) is formed through the crown of the generator
through which a bar may be passed down and through the opening (or openings)
from the upper to the lower chamber, to poke down clinker and disturb the fuel
lying upon the fire-bars. The opening (or openings) from the upper to the lower
chamber may be controlled by a suitable damper (or dampers).
The division separating the upper and lower chambers of the generator may be
constructed of any refractory material, or may be formed of metal through which.
water is allowed to flow in the manner of a blast furnace tymp whereby liability
to clinker is obviated or greatly reduced.
The generator may also, if desired, be constructed with a water jacket of the
character, for instance, of the portions of a locomotive fire-box which surround
the fire, and if the inner wall of such jacket forms the inner face of the wall of
the generator, and is coated from time to time with blacklead, there will be very
little or no tendency for clinker to adhere thereto. When a water jacket is
employed, steam for use in blowing the generator may be obtained therefrom.
The generator may be constructed of any suitable form as seen in plan, such for
instance as rectangular or polygonal.
In order that the invention may be clearly understood, we have illustrated a
practical application of the same by the drawings herewith, to which reference
will now be made. Figure 1 is a vertical section taken from front to back through
the middle of one of our improved generators; and Figure 2 is a vertical transverse
section thereof taken in the planes indicated by the line of Figure 1, but
shewing also, for convenience of illustration, the blowers, which would not strictly
appear in a view taken in such planes.
The upper chamber A is supplied with fuel through the hopper B. An out-
let a for gas is formed through the top of the back wall of the chamber, and an
opening (or openings) is formed through the front end of the division C between
the upper and lower chambers, through which solid fuel from the chamber A passes
down into the lower chamber D. This opening may be closed, when desired,
by means of a damper indicated by broken lines c, and a poker passed down through
an opening through the top of the upper chamber A may be passed down also
through the opening for the purpose of poking down clinker, and disturbing the
fuel in the lower chamber D. The opening is normally closed by a cover d.
The fire-bars E form the front of the lower portion of the chamber 1) and, as
above stated, are slanted at an angle of about 45°. The lower ends of these bars
dip into a water bosh F into which the clinker and ash consequently fall and from
which they are drawn out through the ash-pit opening G. If, as is shewn to be
the case in the illustrations, a forced draught is used for supplying air to the fuel
in the chamber D, the front of the ash-pit is closed in by a door or doors H, and
such door or doors may be used, also, if a natural draught is employed, but in such
case must, of course, have suitable openings for the admission of the air. An
outlet opening c, for the gas from the chamber D, is formed through the top of
the back wall of such chamber. In the generator illustrated, the two outlet
openings a and e from the upper and lower chambers, respectively, are shewn to be
in communication with one another through a vertical flue f, and the mixed gases
pass away from the generator through an opening J from whence they are
conveyed through a flue or flues, according to the purpose for which they are
required. The division C between the upper and lower chambers is shewn as con-

page_text: sisting of an arch of fire-brick, or other refractory material, but it may be
constructed in any suitable manner, as has been previously described.
A forced draught is shewn to be produced by means of steam jet blowers g, but
other suitable means may, of course, be adopted for the purpose.
For some kinds of fuel such as are high in mineral ash a set of fire-bars K,
shewn by broken lines Figure 1, may be placed to slant up from the lower ends
of the fire-bars E to the back wall of the chamber D, in which case any clinker or
ash must, of course, pass either between the fire-bars E or the fire-bars K before it
can fall into the water bosh For ash pit.
It will be seen, on reference to Figure 1, that the distance which the opening b
extends back from the front wall of the generator regulates, approximately the
thickness of the layer of fuel which lies upon the fire bars E, so long as the upper
chamber is sufficiently supplied with fuel, and thus there is no liability of the
chamber becoming overcharged.
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:
1. A gas generator having a lower chamber which is supplied with a limited
quantity of air for the formation of producer gas and having an upper chamber
within which the fuel is heated from the lower chamber and gas rich in hydro-
carbon thus distilled off, substantially as described.
2. A gas generator having a lower chamber which is supplied with a limited
chamber
quantity of air for the formation of producer gas and having an upper
within which the fuel is heated from the lower chamber and gas rich in hydro-
carbon thus distilled off, the fuel being originally supplied to the upper chamber
and passing down from thence after the heavy hydro-carbons, or a large proportion
thereof, have been distilled off, into the lower chamber where its final treatment for
the production of gas takes place, substantially as described.
3. A gas generator having an upper chamber into which the fuel is first supplied,
a lower chamber having inclined fire-bars slanting inwards from one side thereof,
and an opening or openings through the division between the upper and lower
chambers at one end thereof through which the fuel from the upper chamber falls
on to the upper portion of the bars in the lower chamber, or on to the fuel lying
upon the upper portion of the bars, the said opening or openings being adapted
to ensure a regular or approximately regular thickness of fuel upon the fire-bars,
substantially as described.
4. A. gas generator having an upper chamber into which the fuel is supplied,
and within which the heavy hydro-carbons or the main portion thereof are distilled
off by the heat from the lower chamber, and a lower chamber into which fuel
which has been treated in the upper chamber passes through a suitable opening or
openings and is burnt with a limited supply of air, to form producer gas, and outlet
gas openings from the respective chambers which communicate with one another
SO that the gasses from the two chambers mix with the result that
fixed
from the
chamber are
upper
the cooler heavy hydro-carbons
from the lower chamber
by the greater heat of the producer gas
and the formation of pitch in the flue, which would occur if the heavy
hydro-carbons were conveyed away through a separate flue, is thus avoided or
minimised, substantially as described.
5. A gas generator formed with an upper and lower chamber, substantially as
described, and shewn by way of example by the drawings herewith.
FE
1
£ Contember 1898
STEPHEN WATKINS,
Wolverhampton, Agent for the Applicants.