Improvements in Apparatus for the Production and Storage of Acetylene Gas.
Year: 1898

page_text: Date of Application, 23rd May, 1898
Complete Specification Left, 23rd Feb., 1899-Accepted, 1st Apr., 1899
PROVISIONAL SPECIFICATION.
Improvements in Apparatus for the Production and Storage of
Acetylene Gas.
I, HAROLD ELY, of Lombard Street, West Bromwich, in the County of Stafford,
Manufacturer, do hereby declare the nature of this invention to be as follows:-
This invention relates to improvements in apparatus for the production or genera-
tion and storage of acetylene gas, and has for its object, to provide an automatic
and sate apparatus, which shall be efficient in its action, economical in its working
and in which gas is produced pro rata with the consumption.
The said apparatus consists essentially of a generating chamber, which contains
the water by which the decomposition of the calcium carbide is effected, a partly
perforated rotating barrel containing the carbide, suitably journalled and
coming intermediate between the water tank or generator and the rising and falling
gas holder, whose mouth works in a water seal contained in jacket surrounding
the generator, which has a water supply pipe, cleaning plugs and other adjuncts
common to this class of apparatus.
The gas holder consists of a vessel closed at top and with the lower mouth end
open and dipping into the water seal formed by water placed within a jacket sur-
rounding the generating chamber, which is also partly filed with water. The
said gas holder is counterpoised by weights and chains or otherwise, and is
arranged to rise and fall with the variations in the consumption of gas.
The carbide chamber consists of a barrel, access to the interior of which is gained
by a suitable lid or cover with the journalled ends working in bearings carried
in the walls of the generating vessel and with a series of piercings or holes made
longitudinally along one portion only of its walls. Coiled or wrapped circumferen-
tially around this container or pivoted chamber, is a band, chain, cord, flexible
wire or equivalent, with one end made fast to the rising and falling gas holder
and the other end is made fast to the contained, whilst a continuation of this
cord, or a separate cord, is also made to the barrel container and is terminated by
a weight or by a spring, the tendency of which is to drag round the barrel and
bring the holes therein onto the underside, so that the carbide, which is preferably
in a granulated state, may run out of the container and fall into the water.
gas thereby evolved causes the gas holder to rise and the cord connection between
it and the carbide barrel causes the latter (which acts as if it were a pulley) to
partly turn and bring the holes above its axis, or into a position in which it is
impossible for any further carbide to run out. The generation of gas is thus
checked, and as the consumption proceeds, the holder falls again sub rata there-
with and allows the weight or spring to turn round and admit of a further quantity
of gas passing from through the holes into the water.
The
The rotation of the carbide container may be effected by a pinion on its axis
engaging with a rack on the inside of the gas holder, or the said container may be
stationary and have an orifice along its bottom, closed by a rotating shutter or
sliding cover actuated, through the rising and falling of the gas holder or its
equivalent either by rack and pinion gear, or a cord and pulley arrangement or

page_text: otherwise. In this case a loose spindle within the casing may be provided with
fingers or teasers for preventing the clogging of the carbide and also with a pinion
or other means for rotating it.
Improvements in Apparatus for the Production and Storage of
Acetylene Gas.
I, HAROLD ELY, of Lombard Street, West Bromwich, in the County of Stafford,
Manufacturer, 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: -
This invention relates to improvements in apparatus for the production or genera-
tion and storage of acetylene gas, and has for its object, to provide an automatic
and safe apparatus, which shall be efficient in its action, economical in its working
and in which gas is produced pro rata with the consumption.
The said apparatus consists essentially of a generating chamber, which contains
the water by which the decomposition of the calcium carbide is effected, a partly
perforated rotating barrel or vessel containing the carbide, suitably journalled and
coming intermediate between the water tank or generator and the rising and failing
gas holder, whose mouth works in a water seal contained in a jacket surrounding
the generator, which has a water supply pipe, cleaning plugs and other adjuncts
common to this class of apparatus.
Figure 1 of the accompanying drawings represents a complete transverse vertical
section of an apparatus for generating acetylene gas, constructed and arranged
in accordance with my invention, whereby the supply of carbide to the water of
the generating chamber is controlled by the rising and falling gas holder.
Figure 2 is a cross section of Figure 1 upon the dotted line .
Figure 3 is an elevation of a part of the said apparatus showing how the rotatable
carbide supply vessel is carried by, or mounted upon the top of, the vessel contain-
ing the water into which the carbide is fed as required for generating gas.
The same letters of reference indicate corresponding parts in the aforesaid
Figures 1 to 3.
The gas holder consists of an inverted bell or vessel a, closed at top a¹, with the
lower mouth end a³, open and dipping into the water seal b, formed by water
placed within a jacket b¹, enclosed by the outer casing d, and surrounding the
generating chamber C, which is also filled or partly filled with water c¹. The said
gas holder, which may be counterpoised by weights and chains or otherwise, is
arranged to rise and fall with the variations in the consumption of gas, and to
facilitate this, the lower end of the said holder is provided with guide rollers a³,
bearing against the inner side of the casing d, which may be supported upon legs,
not shown, and is provided at the lower end with a large bore cock d'; through
which water and lime residues may be withdrawn. A water supply pipe e, leads
into the lower end of the generating chamber at e¹, and has a vertical branch e,
the open ende, of which comes a little below the level of the open end f' of an
interiorly located gas pipe f, leading from the inside of the gas holder above the
water line to a system of burners or the like, and whereby the over filling of the
generating chamber is prevented.

page_text: The crown of the gas holder has an opening at, fitted with a removable lid g,
which may be either of the special form shown closed by the rollered lever g', or of
any other suitable construction, and through which opening when the lid is
removed access is gained to the carbide chamber for charging the same.
The carbide chamber consists of a rotatable vessel or barrel h, access to the
interior of which is gained by an opening h', closed by a suitable lid or cover h³,
with the journals or trunnion ends ³, working in bearings of supporting
brackets h, carried or supported by the generating vessel, whilst i is the carbide
exit shoot or orifice the open end of which is closed by a flap 2', counterpoised by
a weighted arm, whereby the said flap is automatically closed or opened to
prevent or admit of the carbide falling out of the vessel into the water of the
generating vessel. The flap is shown open with carbide falling through in
Figure 1, whilst in Figure 3 the said vessel is shown drawn round into such a
position that the flap is automatically brought into its closing position by the
weighted arm and the carbide supply is temporarily cut off. A length of chain,
cord, flexible wire or equivalent j, is made fast at one end j', to the rotatable
carbide vessel, from which it passes down an internal guide tube k, round an
enclosed guide pulley or roller k, and up a second and external tube, to a headed
stalk, or other termination, engaged by a catch 4, on the rising and falling
gas holder, which is thus coupled to, and made to control the rotation of the
carbide vessel, whilst a separate chain or cord m, is also made fast to the container
and is terminated by a suspended weight m', the tendency of which is to drag
round the said container and bring the carbide outlet thereof onto the underside,
or into the position shown in Figure 1, so that the carbide, which is preferably
in a granulated state, may run out of the container and fall into the water. The
gas thereby evolved causes the gas holder to rise and the cord or chain connec-
tion between it and the carbide vessels causes the latter (which acts as if it were
a pulley) to partly turn and bring the outlet above its axis, or into a position (see
Figure 3) in which it is impossible for any further carbide to run out.
The genera-
tion of gas is thus checked, and as the consumption proceeds, the holder falls
again sub rata therewith and allows the weight m¹, to turn round the carbide
chamber admit of a further quantity of carbide falling from through the outlet.
into the water. Instead of providing the carbide container with a flap closed
outlet, the same may have one or a series of open holes, and the chain or cord may
at one end be wound or coiled round the said vessel and at the other end be secured
to the rising and falling gas holder.
The rotation of the carbide container may be effected (as shown in Figure 4)
by a series of pegs n, carried around its periphery and constituting as it were, a
pinion, engaging with a rack or series of separated bars n¹, on the inside of the
gas holder or a pinion may be connected with the axis of the rotating vessel, and
engaged by a toothed rack on the said gas holder.
As a further alternative, the said container may be stationary and have an orifice
along its bottom, closed by a rotating shutter or sliding cover actuated, through
the rising and falling of the gas holder or its equivalent, either by rack and pinion
gear, or a cord and pulley arrangement or otherwise. In this case a loose spindle
within the casing may be provided with fingers or teasers for preventing the
clogging of the carbide and also with a pinion or other means for rotating it.
Figure 5 represents another form of my invention in which the connection
between the rising and falling drum and the rotatable carbide holder is made by
a flexible tube down which carbide passes when the supply of gas in the holder is
exhausted.
In this arrangement o represents the bell, the water seal located between the
outer walls of the casing and the walls of the generating chamber v. s is the
carbide vessel mounted in bearings s¹, carried by the casing q and provided with
a suspended balance weights, whilst t is a flexible tube or shaft, leading from the
outlet of the carbide vessel to the inlet o¹, in the crown of the bell. The falling
of the bell by the consumption of gas draws the tube tinto the straight position

page_text: represented in full lines in the figure, thereby providing a free passage for the
carbide to fall from the receptacle into the generating chamber and thus generate
a fresh supply of gas, which lifts the gas holder into the position represented in
dotted lines and at the same time the receptacle is turned upon its bearings by the
balance weight and the orifice or carbide outlet and flexible pipe are taken into such
a position that no more carbide can fall through, thereby cutting off the generation
of gas for a time.
Having now particularly described and ascertained the nature of my said inven-
tion, and in what manner the same is to be performed, I declare that what I
claim is
:
First In apparatus for the generation of acetylene gas, the employment
of a rotatable carbide chamber or receptacle, connected by means of a flexible
chain, cord or equivalent with a rising and falling gas holder, whose movement
is communicated through the said flexible connection to the said carbide chamber
in order to bring or remove the outlet or outlets thereof from or into a position
which will admit of carbide falling into the generating chamber, substantially as
herein described and set forth.
Secondly: An apparatus for the generation of acetylene gas, comprising a
rotatable and balanced carbide chamber provided with one or a series of automati-
cally-closed outlets and located within the interior of a rising and falling gas holder,
with connection between the said carbide chamber and the gas holder made by a
flexible or running chain, cord or the like proceeding from the one to the other,
substantially in the way and for the purpose described and set forth in Figures 1,
2 and 3.
:
Thirdly In apparatus for the generation of acetylene gas provided with a
rotatable carbide chamber and a rising and falling gas holder, communicating
the movement of the latter to the former for the purpose of controlling the supply
of carbide, by a pinion or by a series of teeth or pegs on the one engaging with
a rack or its equivalent on the other, substantially as described and set forth in
Figure 4.
Fourthly The modified apparatus for the generation of acetylene gas having
a rotatable carbide chamber and a rising and falling gas holder, with a flexible
pipe or equivalent proceeding from the outlet of the former to an inlet in the latter
communicating with the generating chamber, with the parts combined and
operating substantially as described and set forth.
T 17th day of Walo 1900
HAROLD ELY.
By Henry Skerrett,
24, Temple Row, Birmingham,
Agent for Applicant.