An Improved System of Conductors for Electrical Decomposing Tanks.
Year: 1894

page_text: Date of Application, 31st Dec., 1894
Complete Specification Left, 17th Sept., 1895-Accepted, 19th Oct., 1895
PROVISIONAL SPECIFICATION.
An Improved System of Conductors for Electrical Decomposing
Tanks.
We JOHN LEITH of The Electro-Chemical Company's Works, St. Helen's,
Lancashire, Chemical Engineer, and THE ELECTRO-CHEMICAL COMPANY
LIMITED, of 11 Queen Victoria Street in the City of London, do hereby declare
the nature of this invention to be as follows:-
-
In tanks used for the electrolytic decomposition of solutions containing a number
of electrodes of opposite polarity, it is customary to connect together, by means of
a conductor of suitable capacity, all the anodes or positive electrodes, and likewise
all the cathodes or negative electrodes, and to attach these conductors to the
terminals of the dynamo-electric machine or other current generator.
This method of establishing connections is expensive, owing to the weight of the
conductors, which are commonly in the form of solid bars of copper extending the
whole length of the tanks. Where a number of tanks are used in an installation,
the cost of the conductors is very large.
The object of the present invention is primarily to reduce the cost of an
installation, by employing a less expensive system of conductors than heretofore.
To this end, the conductor which leads the current from the generator, takes
the form of a number of wires (or strips), which are individually connected to the
anodes of the tank, there being as many wires (or strips) as anodes. The wires
may be insulated and gathered together to form a cable, the strands or wires from
which are, in turn, separated from the rest, to be attached severally to the
electrodes, so that the cable is gradually tapered off as each connection is made
until a single wire only remains for attachment to the last electrode. The return
conductor from the tank to the generator is similarly arranged, and connected, wire
by wire, to the cathodes.
In an installation of several tanks, it will not be necessary to provide two
tapered cables for each tank, but the tanks may be coupled together, so that a pair
of cables will do for all.
Thus, the anodes of the first tank having been connected to a tapered cable, as
already described, the cathodes are severally connected to the anodes of the next
tank, while the cathodes of this second tank are similarly coupled to the anodes of
a third tank, and so on, until the cathodes of the last tank are provided with a
return tapered cable leading back to the dynamo electric machine.
In this manner great economy is effected in the cost of the conductors, and,
moreover, several minor advantages are secured, for instance, facility in coupling
and uncoupling the tanks.
Dated this 31st day of December 1894.
NEWTON & SON,
Agents for the Applicants.

page_text: COMPLETE SPECIFICATION.
An Improved System of Conductors for Electrical Decomposing
Tanks.
We JOHN LEITH of The Electro-Chemical Company's Works, St. Helens
Lancashire Chemical Engineer and THE ELECTRO-CHEMICAL COMPANY
LIMITED of 11 Queen Victoria Street in the City of London 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 :-
In tanks used for the electrolytic decomposition of solutions containing a number
of electrodes of opposite polarity it is customary to connect together by means of
a conductor of suitable capacity all the anodes or positive electrodes and likewise
all the cathodes or negative electrodes and to attach these conductors to the
terminals of the dynamo electric machine or other current generator.
This method of establishing connections is expensive owing to the weight of
the conductors which are commonly in the form of solid bars of copper extending
the whole length of the tanks. Where a number of tanks are used in an
installation the cost of the conductors is very large.
The object of the present invention is primarily to reduce the cost of an
installation by employing a less expensive system of conductors than heretofore.
To this end the conductor which leads the current from the generator takes
the form of a number of wires (or strips) which are individually connected to the
anodes of the tank there being as many wires (or strips) as anodes. The wires
may be insulated and gathered together to form a cable the strands or wires
from which are in turn separated from the rest to be attached severally to the
electrodes so that the cable is gradually tapered off as each connection is made
until a single wire only remains for attachment to the last electrode. The return
conductor from the tank to the generator is similarly arranged and connected wire
by wire to the cathodes.
In an installation of several tanks it will not be necessary to provide two tapered
cables for each tank but the tanks may be coupled together so that a pair of
cables will do for all.
Fig. 1 of the accompanying drawing shows a portion of a taper cable composed
of a number of insulated wires or strands.
Fig. 2 is a diagram showing a series of electrolytic tanks coupled together and
connected to a dynamo electric machine by means of taper cables made in
accordance with the present invention.
The plant or installation comprises a number of electrolytic tanks A arranged
near together. In the diagram they are shown one over the other. The solution
to be electrolysed is contained in these tanks and the electric current for effecting
the decomposition is led from the dynamo electric machine B by a taper cable C
built up of as many strands or wires c as there are positive electrodes or anodes in
the first tank. The return current is led back to the dynamo machine by a similar
cable C containing separate wires c¹ connected individually to the negative
electrodes or cathodes of the last tank. The intermediate tanks of the series may
be coupled in a manner similar to that adopted in coupling the cells of a primary
battery as will be hereafter more fully explained.
The coupling up of the tanks before mentioned is diagrammatically illustrated
at Fig. 2.
Taking the topmost tank as No. 1 the cable of the dynamo machine being
connected to the anodes in the cells a the current passes from these to the
cathodes a* of the same tank. The cathodes of tank No. 1 are coupled to the
anodes of No. 2 tank by suitable wires. The cathodes of tank No. 2 are coupled
by wires to the anodes of tank No. 3 and so on to the last tank however many there

page_text: may be. The cathodes of the last tank are joined up with the wires of the return
cable as already explained so that the circuit is complete.
By the employment of the taper cables and of the method described of coupling
the tanks we are enabled to reduce considerably the weight of copper conductor
which has hitherto been customarily employed in electrolytic installations hence a
great economy in construction is effected.
Having now particularly described ascertained the nature of our said invention
and in what manner the same is to be performed we declare that what we
claim is
For use in electrolytic installations comprising tanks or cells containing the
electrolyte to be decomposed the arrangement of conductors herein before explained
whereby a material economy in the cost is effected as set forth.
Dated this 17th of September 1899.
Dated HIS 17th of September 1899.
NEWTON & SON,
Agents for the Applicants.
NEWTON & SON,
Agents for the Applicants.