Improvements in Spark Arresters for Use in connection with Locomotive and other Boilers.
Year: 1899

page_text: Date of Application, 11th Apr., 1899-Accepted, 20th May, 1899
COMPLETE DIBUITIVATION.
Improvements in Spark Arresters for Use in connection with
Locomotive and other Boilers.
We, NATHAN PAGE STEVENS, Inventor, and FRANK MORRIS KNOWLES, Banker,
both of Concord, County of Merrimack, and State of New Hampshire, one of the
United States of America, do hereby declare the nature of this invention and in
what manner the same is to be performed, to be particularly described and ascer-
tained in and by the following statement; -
This invention has for its object the production of a novel and effective spark-
arrester for boilers, particularly adapted for use with locomotive boilers, whereby
the sparks and cinders are prevented from passing out with the exhaust, thus
obviating a nuisance and, in dry weather, a source of great danger to adjacent
property.
We have herein illustrated our invention in connection with a locomotive boiler,
as the widest field for its use is in connection with such apparatus, although it will
be obvious hereinafter that our invention is not restricted to such use.
Fig. 1, in vertical, longitudinal section, represents the forward end of a loco-
motive boiler, the smoke box and exhaust outlet, with one embodiment of our
invention in operative position in the smoke box;
Fig. 2 is a front elevation of the apparatus, the head of the smoke box being
omitted, and
Fig. 3 is a horizontal sectional detail of the tubular baffles, to be described, on
the line xx, Fig. 1, looking upward.
The boiler shell A, fire tubes A¹, smoke stack A2, smoke box B projecting
beyond the end of the boiler, and the upturned exhaust pipe or outlet E, Fig. 1,
may be and are of usual construction in locomotive engines.
An inclined deflector plate E extends from the tube sheet A* forward to the
inner end of the spark arrester, to be described, the exhaust outlet E passing up
through the plate, so that the products of combustion are deflected towards the
lower part of the boiler.
The spark arrester is preferably removably supported in the smoke box B, and
consists of a tubular shell D, as herein shown, divided by a transverse partition
or diaphragm D* into a lower receiving chamber D¹ and an upper discharge cham-
her D, the inner end of said diaphragm meeting the lower edge of the deflector
plate E, as clearly shown in Fig. 1, so that said chambers are separated at their
inner ends, but communicate at the outer end of the shell, the diaphragm extend-
ing only part way the length of the shell.
Thus the inner end of the chamber D¹ is open and forms an inlet for the pro-
ducts of combustion, passing from the boiler flues below the deflector E', while the
open inner end of the chamber D³ forms an outlet above the deflector, the direc-
tion of current being indicated by the arrows 5.
The diaphragm D has a series of staggered openings d, located at the outer or
inlet sides, and adjacent the lower ends of a series of preferably narrow baffle
plates D, suitably bolted to the diaphragm and to the shell D to form a tortuous

page_text: passage through the discharge chamber D³, said baffle plates being preferably.
inclined upwards and outwards.
In the receiving chamber D₁ are located a series of staggered baffle tubes D³,
attached at their upper ends to the diaphragm D to register with the cinder
outlets therein, and communicating at their lower ends with openings & in the
shell D, thus forming closed ducts from the chamber D2 to the exterior of the
shell, said baffle tubes being preferably inclined oppositely to the baffle plates D*.
We prefer to form the rear walls of the baffle tubes as shown best in Fig. 3,
curved transversely, and concaved to the incoming products. of combustion, to
thereby better direct sparks and cinder down to cinder outlets d'in the bottom of the
chamber D, said outlets being located adjacent the lower ends and at the inlet
sides of the baffle tubes.
A cinder box C is shown as attached to the underside of the smoke box, below
the openings d, d' of the shell D, to receive the sparks and cinders, said cinder
box having suitable blow out openings C¹ in its sides, normally closed by caps C²,
Fig. 2.
The outer end of the smoke box is shown as provided with an internal ring b
to which the head or closure B is suitably secured, as by screws 10, the head
closing the smoke box and outer end of the shell D.
From the foregoing it will be seen that the products of combustion pass from
the flues into the chamber D¹ travelling around the baffle tubes D³ therein, and
some of the sparks and cinders will pass out through the outlets into the
receptacle C.
The draught created by the exhaust will draw the smoke and other sparks and
cinders up around the outer end of the diaphragm D into the chamber D², where
they are met by the baffle plates D, which direct the remaining cinders through
the oulets into the tubular baffles D3, whence they are discharged at the open-
ings d into the box C, the smoke passing finally from the inner, open end of cham;
ber D to the stack, practically free from sparks or cinders.
The spark arrester may be supported in any suitable manner in the smoke box,
and herein we have shown the shell D as provided with two external longitudinal
ribs on its upper side, to enter suitable guides 60 secured to the smoke box,
see Fig. 2.
A ring at the inner end of the smoke box serves as an abutment for ears d
secured to the shell D, said ears being detachably connected with the smoke box
by suitable screw bolts 6, so that by removing the head B', and the bolts 6 the
spark arrester can be withdrawn bodily to be cleaned or repaired, the ribs d
serving to position and partly support the shell D when in place.
We prefer to mount the shell D eccentric with the smoke box, in order to leave
a greater space between them at the bottom than at the top, to provide for the
collection of cinders in the lower part of the smoke-box.
The short arrows 8 in Fig. 1 indicate the direction of the cinders or sparks as
they are discharged.
Our invention is not restricted to the precise construction and arrangement
shown and described, for the same may be modified or rearranged without depart-
ing from the spirit and scope of our invention.
Having now particularly described and ascertained the nature of our said
invention, and in what manner the same is to be performed, we declare that what
we claim is:-
1. The use in a spark arrester having receiving and discharge chambers for the
products of combustion communicating at a point remote from the inlet of the
former, of a series of staggered tubular baffles in the receiving chamber, to formi a
tortuous passage therethrough and communicating with the discharge chamber,
staggered baffle plates in the latter chamber, and einder outlets in each chamber
adjacent the lower ends and at the inlet sides of the baffles, substantially as
described,

page_text: 2. The use in a spark arrester having receiving and discharge chambers for the
products of combustion, communicating at a point remote from the inlet of the
former, of a series of staggered, tubular baffles in the receiving chamber, com-
municating at their upper ends with the discharge chamber, staggerd baffle plates
in the latter chamber, their lower ends being interposed between the inlets of the
tubular baffles and the main outlet of said chamber, and cinder outlets in the
receiving chamber, at the inlet sides of and adjacent the lower ends of said
tubular baffles.
3. The use in a spark arrester, of a tubular shell having a closure at its outer
end, a transverse diaphragm dividing it into a lower receiving and an upper dis-
charge chamber for the products of combustion, said chamber communicating at
the closed end of the shell, staggered baffles in the discharge chamber, cinder
outlets in the diaphragm at the inlet side of and adjacent the lower ends of said
baffles, staggered baffle tubes leading from said outlets through the receiving cham-
ber to the exterior of the shell at its lower portion, and cinder outlets in the said
chamber at the inlet sides of and adjacent the lower ends of the baffle tubes.
4. The use in a spark arrester, of a tubular shell having external, longitudinal
supporting and positioning ribs, superposed discharge and receiving chambers
within it, the latter having an inlet and the former an outlet for the products of
combustion from a boiler, baffles in each chamber, and cinder outlets for said cham-
bers, located adjacent the lower ends and at the inlet sides of the respective series
of baffles, the chambers communicating at the outer, closed end of the shell beyond
the baffles.
5. The use in a locomotive boiler having a projecting smoke box beyond the
exhaust outlet, and an inclined directing plate to deflect the products of combus-
tion to the lower part of the box, of a removable spark arrester in the smoke box,
said arrester comprising a tubular shell closed at its outer end and having a lower
receiving and an upper discharge chamber for the products of combustion, com-
municating at the closed end of the shell, staggered baffle plates in the discharge
chamber, cinder outlets adjacent the lower ends and at the inlet side of said plates,
staggered baffle tubes leading for said outlets through the receiving chamber to the
exterior of the shell at its lower portion, and cinder outlets in the said chamber
at the inlet sides of and adjacent the lower ends of the baffle tubes, the directing
plate separating the main inlet and outlet openings of the receiving and discharge
chambers.
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WM. BROOKES & SON,
55 and 56, Chancery Lane, London, Agents for the Applicants.