IMPROVEMENTS IN OBTAINING FRESH WATER BY EVAPORATION, AND IN APPARATUS THEREFOR
Year: 1862

page_text: LETTERS PATENT to Alexander Chaplin and George Russell, of Glasgow,
in the County of Lanark, North Britain, Engineers, for the Invention of
"IMPROVEMENTS IN OBTAINING FRESH WATER BY EVAPORATION, AND IN
APPARATUS THEREFOR."
Sealed the 21st April 1863, and dated the 23rd October 1862.
PROVISIONAL SPECIFICATION left by the said Alexander Chaplin and
George Russell at the Office of the Commissioners of Patents, with
their Petition, on the 23rd October 1862.
We, ALEXANDER CHAPLIN and GEORGE RUSSELL, of Glasgow, in the County
of Lanark, North Britain, Engineers, do hereby declare the nature of the
said Invention for "IMPROVEMENTS IN OBTAINING FRESH WATER BY EVAPORATION,
AND IN APPARATUS THEREFOR," to be as follows, that is to say:-
This Invention has for its object to obtain fresh water of a palatable and
drinkable quality by evaporation and condensation from sea water or other
And the Invention consists in employing what may be termed the
'jet" action of the steam when passing towards or into the condensing worm
or other condenser to draw in and thoroughly intermingle with itself sufficient
atmospheric air to combine with the water of condensation, and impart to it
the well known "fresh" character which distinguishes spring water from.
ordinary distilled water. .

page_text: A simple modification of apparatus for carrying this improvement into
effect consists of a kind of cup introduced into the pipe conveying the steam
to the condenser. The steam pipe end is made to project a short distance
through the top of the cup to serve as the jet nozzle, and in the sides of the
space round the jet nozzle there are apertures for the admission of atmospheric
air. Below the air apertures the cup is crossed by a diaphragm, having
concentric with the jet nozzle a nozzle or short tube of somewhat larger bore
than that of the jet nozzle. The bottom or opposite end of the cup com-
municates with the condenser. The jet of steam issuing from the jet nozzle
draws in atmospheric air, and forcibly impels it along with itself through the
larger opening in front of the jet nozzle, and the steam in condensing combines
with the air in such a way that the water of condensation has completely the
sparkling aerated character of fresh spring water. Carbonic acid or other
gases whose combination with the water may be found beneficial may be
drawn into the condensing steam by the same apparatus.
SPECIFICATION in pursuance of the conditions of the Letters Patent, filed
by the said Alexander Chaplin and George Russell in the Great Seal
Patent Office on the 22nd April 1863.
TO ALL TO WHOM THESE PRESENTS SHALL COME, we, ALEXANDER
CHAPLIN and GEORGE RUSSELL, of Glasgow, in the County of Lanark, North
Britain, Engineers, send greeting.
WHEREAS Her most Excellent Majesty Queen Victoria, by Her Letters
Patent, bearing date the Twenty-third day of October, in the year of our Lord
One thousand eight hundred and sixty-two; in the twenty-sixth year of Her
reign, did, for Herself, Her heirs and successors, give and grant unto us, the
said Alexander Chaplin and George Russell, Her special licence, that we, the
said Alexander Chaplin and George Russell, our executors, administrators,
and assigns, or such others as we, the said Alexander Chaplin and George
Russell, our executors, administrators, and assigns, should at any time agree
with, and no others, from time to time and at all times thereafter during
the term therein expressed, should and lawfully might make, use, exercise,
and vend, within the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland, the
Channel Islands, and Isle of Man, an Invention for "IMPROVEMENTS IN
OBTAINING FRESH WATER BY EVAPORATION, AND IN APPARATUS THEREFOR," upon
the condition (amongst others) that we, the said Alexander Chaplin and
George Russell, our executors or administrators, by an instrument in writing

page_text: under our, or their, or one of their bands and seals, should particularly
describe and ascertain the nature of the said Invention, and in what manner
the same
was to be performed, and cause the same to be filed in the
Great Seal Patent Office within six calendar months next and immediately.
after the date of the said Letters Patent.
NOW KNOW YE, that we, the said Alexander Chaplin and George
Russell, do hereby declare the nature of our said Invention, and in what
manner the same is to be performed, to be particularly described and ascer-
tained'in and by the following statement in writing, reference being had to the
accompanying Drawings and to the letters and figures marked thereon, that is
to say:-
. Our said Invention has for object to obtain fresh water of a palatable and
drinkable quality by evaporation and condensation from sea or other water.
And our said Invention consists in employing what may be termed the " "jet"
action of the steam, when passing towards or into the condensing worm or
other condenser to draw in and thoroughly intermingle with itself sufficient
atmospheric air to combine with the water of condensation, and impart to it
the well known "fresh" character which distinguishes spring water from ordinary
distilled water.
..
And in order that our said Invention, and the manner of performing the
same may be properly understood, we have hereunto appended a Sheet of
explanatory Drawings to be herein-after referred to and representing a simple
modification of apparatus which we have devised for carrying our improvements
into effect.
Figure 1 on the Sheet of Drawings, is a vertical section of our "distil-
aerator," by which term we designate the apparatus which is the subject of our
present Invention; Figure 2 represents the distil-aerator in elevation; as drawn
to a smaller scale, and as applied to a simple form of condenser, which last
is shown in vertical section.
. The distil-aerator is a kind of cup A, connected to a stop-cock B, coupled
to the pipe C, by which the steam is conveyed' from the boiler to the con-
denser D. The steam pipe stop-cock B is formed with a jet nozzle E, which
projects downwards a short distance through the cover F of the cup (A), and
the sides of this cover F are formed with apertures g, for the admission of
atmospheric air. Below the apertures g the cup A is crossed by a diaphragm H,
having concentric with the jet nozzle E a nozzle or short tube I, projecting
downwards, and of somewhat larger bore than that of the jet nozzle: E. The
bottom or opposite end of the cup A is fitted with a screw coupling piece J,
by means of which it is fixed to the top of the condenser D, and to the con-
:

page_text: densing worm K. On the outside of the cover F of the distil-aerator there is
fitted a cylindrical ring L, with apertures for regulating the admission of air, or
for entirely closing the apertures g' when the apparatus is not working. The
condenser D is of a common construction, and is represented merely to show
the mode of applying the distil-aerator. It consists of a cylindrical vessel D,
through which a current of cold water is kept passing, entering at m, and
leaving at n. In this vessel D there is a spirally coiled pipe K, which receives
the steam and air from the distil-aerator A, at the top, and discharges the
water resulting from the condensation at the bottom into a filtering chamber P
forming the lower portion of the apparatus. The filtering chamber P is
crossed by a vertical partition 9, and as the discharge cock R is to one side of
this partition, whilst the water enters the chamber at the other side the water
has to pass under the partition, and in doing so, filtrates through a quantity of
charcoal or other suitable filtering material placed in the chamber.
The action of the apparatus is as follows:-The jet of steam issuing from
the jet nozzle E, draws in atmospheric air by the apertures g, and forcibly
impels it along with itself through the larger nozzle I, and through the
cup A into the worm K; and the steam in condensing combines with the
air or with a portion thereof in such a way that the water of condensation has
completely the sparkling aerated character of fresh spring water.
In practice it is found desirable to have an opening across the top of the:
partition q, in the filtering chamber P, to equalise the pressure of air in both
compartments; and an air pipe S is also added to convey away surplus air and
prevent its blowing out with the water at the stop-cock R. The apparatus
represented in the Drawing is designed to supply about twenty gallons per
hour of aerated distilled water, with a steam pressure of about forty pounds per
square inch. With such conditions a considerable quantity of air is discharged
by the pipe S, and this air may if wished be conveyed to the furnace, or be
otherwise usefully employed.
It may be mentioned as an advantage of our apparatus that the cold air
taken in, in the manner described, assists the condensation of the steam, and
further that whilst in ordinary condensers, the internal vacuum causes the
lower part of the worm to remain full of water, its surface being thereby
rendered inefficient, the introduction of air by our apparatus, by preventing a
vacuum, renders the entire worm surface fully efficient. Carbonic acid or other
gases, the combination of which with the water may be found beneficial, may
be drawn into the condensing steam by the same apparatus.
Having thus particularly described our said Invention, and the manner in
which the same is or may be performed, we have to state that we do not restrict

page_text: urselves to the precise details herein described and delineated; but that what
ve believe to be novel and original, and claim as the Invention secured to us
y the herein-before in part recited Letters Patent is, the aerating of water
btained by evaporation by the "jet" action of the steam, substantially as
erein-before described, and by means of apparatus, substantially such as
s herein-before described.
In witness whereof we, the said Alexander Chaplin and George Russell,
have hereunto set our hands and seals, namely, I, the said George
Russell, on this Twentieth day of April, and I, the said Alexander
Chaplin, on this Twenty-first day of April, in the year of our Lord
One thousand eight hundred and sixty-three.
ALEX. CHAPLIN.
(L.S.)
GEORGE RUSSELL. (L.S.)
ALEXR. CHAPLIN.
(L.S.)
GEORGE RUSSELL. (L.S.)