Improvements in and connected with Furnaces for Destroying Towns' Refuse and the like, and in Utilising the Heated Waste Gases Emitted therefrom.
Year: 1895

page_text: Date of Application, 3rd Aug., 1895
Complete Specification Left, 4th May, 1896-Accepted, 6th June, 1895
PROVISIONAL SPECIFICATION.
Improvements in and connected with Furnaces for Destroying
Towns' Refuse and the like, and in Utilising the Heated
Waste Gases Emitted therefrom.
I WILLIAM YOUNG HARDIE of 15 Central Road, Withington, Manchester, in
the County of Lancaster, Civil Engineer, do hereby declare the nature of this
invention to be as follows:-
My invention consists in the construction of a furnace, cupola in form.-the
height and width being governed by local necessities, the top being occluded with
a peculiarly designed high pressure auxiliary steam boiler, receiving the direct
radiated heat of the furnace; the upper surface forming part of a desiccating
chamber for the deposit of crude refuse. The refuse is tipped from carts or other
vehicles into suitably designed buckets-lowered into sumps. These buckets when
filled, are hoisted by convenient appliances and automatically discharged into a
heated chamber or hopper which forms the upper portion of the auxiliary boiler.
The empyreumatic and other pernicious gases are displaced by desiccation in the
hopper and exhausted by the blowing engines and forced along with an admixture
of fresh air, as mechanical or artificial blast, into the incandescent furnace fire and
annihilated. When sufficiently dehydrated or as necessity requires, the conical
valve in the centre of the drying hopper is raised and the refuse allowed to drop
into the furnace for consumption, which, at the intense heat of two or more thousand
degrees Fahrenheit, aided by a flux, will fuse readily and become liquefied or fluid
cinder, and discharged at the tap hole under the tymp arch of the crucible, as scoria
or slag.
The furnace is constructed externally of strong wrought iron plating, and
internally of common bricks, lined with ganister bricks or other slow conductor of
heat.
The top of the furnace or more particularly the covering of the drying chamber
or hopper, is hermetically closed by wrought iron plating, with automatically worked
hoppers in front, through which the chamber is supplied with refuse. To the
opposite side is attached the exhaust pipes conveying the gases and fumes to the
blowing cylinders. Around the top of the drying chamber is constructed a wrought
iron platform, overhead being erected the framing and gear for working the steam
elevator.
The main flue conveying the gases and fumes from the top of the furnace to the
engine boilers to be utilised as fuel, is constructed of wrought iron or steel tubing,
lined with ganister bricks, fireclay or other slow conductor of heat, and furnished
throughout with safety valves.
My invention also consists of a cylindrical tank vortex dust collector, erected on
the line of main flue, between the furnace and the engine boilers, and which also
acts as an auxiliary feed water heater for the boilers. This may be constructed
entirely of iron or other metal, or the lower portion may be formed of brickwork,
with a sump for accumulations. This feed tank is heated entirely by the current of
gases and fumes passing through its centre and a circular water jacketed arm
thereby forming a continuation of the main flue conveying them to the boilers.
The furnaces of the engine boilers being fed by the gases of combustion, propelled
by pressure from the blast furnace, are kept ignited and consumed in the furnaces,

page_text: by vigorous glowing fires of refuse cinders, aided in combustion by air admitted
through valves placed in front, and below the fire bars.
My invention further consists of a fume and vapour condenser and smoke washer,
constructed between the engine boilers and the chimney (forming part of the boiler
outlet flues) for chemically treating and cleansing with sprays of infinitesimal
globules, injected by currents or jets of air, or steam, alone, or combined, and
brought into contact with, and precipitate any atoms of matter that may possibly
pass or arise from the boiler fires, and thereby doubly insure the annihilation of all
noxious emissions.
Dated this Second day of August 1895.
COMPLETE SPECIFICATION.
Improvements in and connected with Furnaces for Destroying
Towns' Refuse and the like, and in Utilising the Heated
Waste Gases Emitted therefrom.
I, WILLIAM YOUNG HARDIE of Central Road Withington Manchester in the
County of Lancaster, 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 :-
This invention relates to furnaces for destroying towns' refuse and other like
matters and materials and to the method of and means for utilizing the heated waste
gases emitted therefrom.
The furnace which I employ is of the cupola or blast furnace type, its dimensions
being governed by the local conditions in each case. The upper end of the furnace
may be partially closed by means of an annular steam generator, the upper part of
which is shaped to form a desiccating chamber for the crude refuse. An opening
through the centre of this generator, closable by a cone or bell, permits the dried
refuse to be supplied to the interior of the furnace from time to time as may be
required. The refuse is supplied to the desiccating chamber by suitable elevators
and the gases and vapours arising therefrom are withdrawn by the blowing engines
and forced with an admixture of atmospheric air into the furnace.
The gaseous products of combustion from the furnace, are conveyed, first, if
desired, to a dust separator, and then to the furnace of a steam generator where
their heat is utilised. After leaving the steam generator flues the gases may be
subjected to the washing and absorbent action of water or of a chemical solution,
applied in the form of spray. The gases finally escape through a chimney.
"I will more particularly describe my said invention with reference to the accom-
panying drawings in which :-
Figure 1 represents a partial sectional elevation,
Figure 2 a sectional elevation, and
Figure 3 a sectional plan.
A is the furnace of the cupola type, which may have a strong iron casing and
be lined with fire resisting material as is the case with an ordinary foundry cupola.
At the upper part of the furnace there may be fixed an annular steam generator B,
above which there is a closed chamber Chaving a conical bottom. The lower
part of this chamber is formed and enclosed by the upper part of the generator B,
and communicates with the cential opening c which is normally closed by the
cone or bell D, suspended by the chain d which passes out through the top of the
chamber over suitable pulleys, and thence to a lever or wheel by the motion of
which the cone or bell D may be lowered and raised. If the chamber contain
refuse and the cone be lowered, the refuse will fall into the furnace through the
opening. The cone being again raised, closes the opening c and retains the
C

page_text: refuse in the desiccating chamber until a further supply is required in the
furnace.
The refuse may be supplied to the chamber by any suitable known means, but I
prefer to employ the elevator and buckets represented in the drawings. Two
buckets, E E, are suspended from opposite ends of a chaine passing over a pulley F
which may be rotated in either direction by hand or power. The chain is of such.
a length that when one of the buckets is in the well or sump G the other will be
at the entrance to the chamber C as indicated by Figure 1. The refuse or other
material is tipped near to the sump G and some of it falls or is shoveled into the
bucket therein. This bucket is then raised to the entrance to the chamber Figure 1
when the side of the bucket is opened and the refuse falls into the chamber, the
bucket having a sloping bottom to facilitate the material falling into the chamber.
The entrance to the chamber is provided with two sliding doors, one for each
bucket, these doors being normally closed. On the arrival of a bucket, the door
next the bucket is lifted thereby to permit the refuse to enter the chamber and this
door again falls when the bucket descend. The gases and vapours arising in the
chamber C are withdrawn by the blowing engines H through the pipe h and are
forced from those engines into the furnace through the pipe I and tuyers i,
atmospheric air being mixed with them if desired or necessary.
The hot gaseous products of combustion in the furnace pass out through the
pipes J either direct to the steam generator furnace K or preferably to the dust
separator L which may be of the vortex or any other known and suitable type.. In
this case it is also preferred that the hot gases after or before passing through the
dust separator, should pass through or in contact with a feed water heater, such as
that indicated at M in the drawings.
I prefer to employ either two Cornish boilers or one Lancashire boiler N, or
steam generators having two or more furnaces, so that the gases may pass through
both or all simultaneously or through only one of them whilst the other or others is
or are being cleaned. Each branch pipe j enters an ash-pit space of the boiler furnace,
and openings kk opposite to the ash-pits may be made through them for the inser-
tion of tools for removing ashes. These withdrawn ashes may fall through the
pipe into the pits O which are kept closed except during the time occupied in
emptying. The pipe J also has openings above the pits O through which the ashes
can fall. Each branch also is provided with a damper or valve to cut off the outlet
when desired. The dry cinders and other combustible matter which can generally
be separated from towns' refuse can be used as fuel, and the steam generated is
employed for actuating the blowing engines.
After the hot gases have passed the boiler flues, they may enter a chamber P.
In Figure 3 a part of this chamber, being a continuation of the main figure, is shewn
to the left of the boiler. The chamber is illustrated in sectional elevation by
Figure 4. In it there are arranged one or more jets R R supplied with water
or other appropriate liquid under pressure. This liquid is intended to thoroughly
wash the issuing gases, and in some cases to neutralise any free acids which they
may contain. It also serves to condense any vapours and bring down any dust
which may be present.
Beyond the chamber P the cleansed gases pass to the chimney S.
}
The intense heat in the furnace A effectually burns up all the organic matter
therein, and if the material contains a sufficiency of a suitable flux, the residue
is brought to the condition of a liquid slag which may be allowed to run off
from the bottom of the furnace from time to time through the tap hole a. It
may generally be convenient to make a door at the back of the furnace at the
bottom, as in an ordinary foundry cupola, which may be opened from time to
time as required for the removal of materials which may have failed to be burnt
or to be liquidified.
The steam from the auxiliary boiler at the top of the furnace may be utilised for
the engine by which a dust separator is driven or otherwise.
In place of the blowing engines illustrated by the drawings steam blast or other

page_text: equivalent appliances may be employed for supplying air to the furnace. Steam
which may be generated in excess of that required for the service of the furnace
and its accessories may be utilised in other ways, for example in engines driving
dynamos and the like."
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 :-
1. A destructor furnace of the cupola type, partly closed at the upper end
by a steam generator and partly by a movable cone or bell, constructed and
arranged substantially as hereinbefore described and as illustrated by the accom-
panying drawings.
2. A destructor furnace of the cupola type, having at its upper end a desiccating
chamber for the raw refuse, a movable cone or bell at the bottom of the chamber
and an outlet from the chamber through which the evaporated vapours and gases
are withdrawn to be supplied to the furnace under pressure, constructed and
arranged substantially as hereinbefore described and as illustrated by the accom-
panying drawings.
3. A destructor furnace of the cupola type having a closed top and having the
upper part of its interior in communication with a dust separator and the separator
in communication with the furnaces of a steam generator, constructed and
arranged substantially as hereinbefore described and as illustrated by the accom-
panying drawings.
4. A destructor furnace of the cupola type having a closed top and having the
upper part of its interior in communication with the furnaces of a steam generator
through a feed water heater, constructed and arranged substantially as hereinbefore
described and as illustrated by the accompanying drawings.
5. The combination and arrangement with a destructor furnace and steam
generator supplied with hot gases from the said furnace, of a steam washer con-
structed and operating substantially as and for the purpose hereinbefore described
and as illustrated by the accompanying drawings.
6. Apparatus for the destruction of towns' refuse and like materials and for the
utilization of the heat therefrom, consisting essentially of a furnace of the cupola
type, a desiccating chamber at the top of the furnace, appliances for supplying air
blast to the furnace, pipes connecting the desiccating chamber with the air blast,
and a steam generator or generators having furnaces in communication with the
interior of the destructor furnace, with which there also may or may not be
combined and arranged any or all of the following appliances: An elevator for
raising the material to the top of the furnace, a dust separator, a feed water heater,
and a smoke washer; constructed arranged and operating substantially as herein-
before described and as illustrated by the accompanying drawings.
7. Apparatus and appliances for the destruction of towns' refuse and like materials
and for the utilisation of the heat therefrom, constructed arranged and operating
substantially as herein before described and as illustrated by the accompanying|
drawings.
Dated this and of M... A D 1000