IMPROVED MEANS OF CONSUMING SMOKE IN STEAM BOILER FURNACES
Year: 1884

page_text: I, WILLIAM NOBLE, of High Street, Sutton, in the County of Surrey, Boiler
Setter, do hereby declare the nature of the said invention for "IMPROVED MEANS
OF CONSUMING SMOKE IN STEAM BOILER FURNACES," to be as follows:—
:
The object of this Invention is to reduce the quantity of smoke given off by
boiler furnaces in consequence of injudicious firing or from other cause and
consequently to lessen the consumption of fuel. This result is obtained by-the use
of a bridge specially constructed so as to bring a current of heated air of sufficient
volume into intimate contact with the products of combustion as they pass over
the crown of the furnace bridge. At this point the ignition temperature is still
maintained and consequently the additional supply of oxygen contained in the
incoming air, is instrumental in accomplishing the combustion of the carbon
passing off in the form of smoke.
:
The bridge which is considerably thicker than those of the usual type is
constructed in the following manner. It is divided by a chamber extending its
whole width into two portions, and this chamber is itself divided by a vertical
baffle or gilled plate of iron of the same width into two compartments or passages.
The front portion of the bridge next to the grate and the baffle or gilled plate do
not extend below about the level of the bottom of the fire grate, while the back
portion of the bridge rests on the bottom of the flue in the usual manner. The
front compartment thus formed communicates at the top with the furnace
combustion chamber by oblique channels passing through the front portion of the
bridge and at the bottom it may be open to the ashpit. The back compartment
or passage is in communication at the bottom with the ashpit and has a top
perforated with a number of small holes which open out immediately at the crown
of the bridge, the said perforations being smaller at the top than the bottom in
order to prevent choking. The front portion of the bridge is made removable so
as to admit of the chamber being cleaned.
The front chamber being in communication with the furnace the baffle plate
becomes heated and in turn heats the air coming from the ashpit and ascending
through the back chamber. This heated air on emerging at the perforated crown,
mingles with the main volume of the smoke &c and effects its complete
combustion.
L

page_text: COMPLETE SPECIFICATION.
I, WILLIAM NOBLE, of High Street, Sutton, in the County of Surrey, Boiler
Setter, do hereby declare the nature of my invention for "IMPROVED MEANS OF
CONSUMING SMOKE IN STEAM BOILER FURNACES" 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 to reduce the quantity of smoke given off by
boiler furnaces in consequence of injudicious firing or from other cause and
consequently to lessen the consumption of fuel. This result is obtained by the
use of a bridge specially constructed so as to bring a current of heated air of
sufficient volume into intimate contact with the products of combustion as they
pass over the crown of the furnace bridge. At this point the ignition temperature
is still maintained and consequently the additional supply of oxygen contained in
the incoming air, is instrumental in accomplishing the combustion of the carbon
passing off in the form of smoke.
Reference is to be had to the accompanying drawings forming part of this
Specification, wherein Figure 1 is a longitudinal section of a boiler furnace
provided with my improved bridge. Figure 2 is a cross section, and Figures 3, 4
and 5 are detail sectional views of the bridge separately. The same letters of
reference indicate the same parts in all the figures.
The bridge which is considerably thicker than those of the usual type is
constructed in the following manner. It is divided by a chamber extending its
whole width into two portions a b, and this chamber is itself divided by a vertical
baffle or gilled plate c of iron of the same width into two compartments or
passages de. The front portion a of the bridge next to the grate and the baffle
or gilled plate c do not extend below about the level of the bottom of the fire
grate so as to leave a clear passage beneath them, while the back portion b of the
bridge rests on the bottom of the flue in the usual manner. The front compart-
ment & thus formed communicates at the top with the furnace combustion chamber
by oblique channels f passing through the front portion a of the bridge and at the
bottom it may be open to the ash pit. The back compartment or passages is in
communication at the bottom with the ash pit and has a top g perforated with a
number of small holes h which open out immediately at the crown of the bridge,
the said perforations being preferably smaller at the top than at the bottom in
order to avoid liability of becoming choked. The front portion a of the bridge is
made removable so as to admit of the chamber de being cleaned.
The front chamber d being in communication with the furnace by the channels f
which open out towards the front of the bridge some distance in advance of the
perforated crown, the baffle plate c becomes heated and in turn heats the air coming
from the ashpit and ascending through the back chamber or passage e. This
heated air on emerging at the perforations h in the crown mingles with the main
volume of the smoke & and effects its complete combustion.

page_text: Having now particularly described and ascertained the nature of the said
invention and in what manner the same is to be performed I declare that what
I claim is
A furnace bridge constructed with a chamber divided by a plate into two
passages communicating, the front one with the combustion chamber by oblique
channels through the bridge, and the back one with the ash pit by a passage
below the front portion of the bridge and with the flue above through perforations
in the crown of the bridge, substantially as herein described and shown in the
drawings.