APPARATUS FOR COMBUSTION OF LIQUID HYDROCARBONS
Year: 1885

page_text: I, PERCY TARBUTT, of N° 75 Lombard Street in the City of London, Civil
Engineer, do hereby declare the nature of my invention for "APPARATUS FOR
COMBUSTION OF LIQUID HYDROCARBONS to be as follows:-
"2
This invention relates to improved apparatus for the complete combustion of
liquid hydrocarbons in furnaces for heating boilers or other purposes and is more
especially designed with the object of doing away with the necessity of obtaining
steam or pressure from an auxiliary boiler or from gravitation tanks, or other
external sources, in order to start the apparatus.
I employ an injector for the purpose of forcing the hydrocarbons to be consumed
into the furnace, by means of a pressure of superheated steam, this injector being
connected to the hydrocarbon reservoir, but having no air nozzle.
The fire-box is mostly lined with brickwork or other refractory material so as
to form a combustion chamber, and the materials forming this chamber are so
constructed and arranged as to be easily removable, should it be desired to burn
solid fuel in the furnace.
At or near the bottom of the combustion chamber I place a coil of pipe or other
suitable form of superheater, one end of which is connected to the injector and the
other to the bottom of an air tight tank or vessel and also to the water space
of the boiler, each of those branches being provided with a stop cock or valve. For
starting the apparatus, a fire of wood or other combustible is lighted on the super-
heater which has been previously filled with water; the branch pipes leading to the
injector and to the boiler are closed, that leading to the air-tight tank being left
open. The heat of the fire converts part of the water in the superheater into steam
and forces the remainder into the tank in which a considerable pressure is thus
obtained. When the pressure is sufficient and the superheater thoroughly heated
communication is opened between it and the injector and the hydrocarbon being
forced into the combustion chamber by the escaping jet of steam is immediately
ignited by the fuel burning on the superheater.
I prefer to close the space round the nozzle of the injector so that little or no air
enters with the steam and hydrocarbon, and thus the fouling of the mouth of the
injector is prevented; the air required for combustion being admitted at an adjust-
able opening or openings at or near the level of the superheater.
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page_text: Inside the combustion chamber and above the superheater, I provide an adjust-
able partition or damper, preferably of asbestos fabric, to deflect the heat from the
superheater when necessary, and to direct the current of air to any required part of
the combustion chamber. Another method of starting the apparatus, and one which
I prefer when it is required to raise steam quickly, is as follows :-I close the pipes
leading to the superheater from the water tank and from the boiler and allow any
water in the superheater to flow out through a blow-off cock provided for that
purpose. The fire is then lighted on the superheater, and, at the same time, pressure
is got up in the water tank by pumping water into it by means of a hand pump.
As soon as the superheater is sufficiently hot, the blow off cock is closed, and
communication is made with the water tank. The water flowing into the super-
heater is at once converted into steam which, issuing through the injector, carries
the hydrocarbon into the furnace.
As soon as sufficient pressure of steam is raised in the boiler, the communication
between the injector and the water tank may be closed, the superheater being then
fed from the water space of the boiler..

page_text: I, PERCY TARBUTT of N° 75 Lombard Street in the City of London, 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 :-
=
My invention relates to apparatus for effecting complete combustion of liquid
hydrocarbons in furnaces for heating boilers, and other purposes. Within the fire
chamber or fire box of the furnace or boiler to which my invention is to be applied,
I construct a combustion chamber of fire brick or other refractory material with
openings for issue of the flame and hot products of combustion. Into this combus-
tion chamber, I force a spray of the bydrocarbon liquid by means of an injector
jet of steam preferably superheated. At the same time the air required for the
combustion is admitted around or near the injector. In some cases I heat the
mixture of steam and hydrocarbon either with or without air before it is burned.
In order to superheat the steam employed for the jet, I cause it or the water
which generates it to pass through a coil of pipe which is placed in the lower part
of the combustion chamber and is provided with dampers to regulate the heat
to which it is exposed and I obtain the supply of water to the superheater from a
pressure tank into which the water is forced by a pump.
:
When the apparatus is applied to a boiler, the steam or the water for generating
it is obtained by putting the superheating coil in communication with the boiler in
which case the pressure tank has to be used only at starting.
As an illustration of my invention, I will describe apparatus suitable for a boiler
of the locomotive kind referring to the accompanying drawings.
.
Fig. 1 is a vertical section through the fire box, and Fig. 2 is a similar section
shewing a modification suitable for heating the steam and hydrocarbon mixture
before combustion. A is the ordinary fire box and B the barrel of the boiler.
Within the firebox I build of refractory material the combustion chamber C which
is mostly open at the top and has also lateral openings D through its sides. G is
the injector and E is the superheating pipe coil which is placed near the bottom of
the chamber and has over it a damper E¹ which may be of any refractory material,
or an iron plate covered with sand, that can be withdrawn more or less according
as the coil has to be more or less heated. At starting the apparatus the damper E¹
is entirely withdrawn. The coil E is supplied by a pipe F with water or steam
and it communicates with the injector G which receives a supply of hydrocarbon
liquid by the pipe H. An air valve or damper I regulates admission of air to the
combustion chamber.
In addition to the parts mentioned above I sometimes employ, as shewn in
Fig. 2, a retort pipe J of refractory material through which the discharge from the
injector, either with or without an induced current of air passes, becoming heated
on its way. The pipe F for supplying water or steam to the superheater E
communicates with the water or the steam space of the boiler, and also with a
pressure tank, each of its communications being furnished with a stop cock or
valve. The pipe H for supplying the hydrocarbon communicates with a reservoir
thereof and is also furnished with a stop cock or valve for regulating the supply.

page_text: For starting the apparatus into action all the cocks or valves being closed, a fire
of wood or other combustible is kindled on the coil E and when it is sufficiently
heated the water supply cock is slightly opened to admit to the coil a little water
from the pressure tank. This is converted into steam and superheated and the
superheated steam issues through the injector G. The cock of the pipe H being
then opened, the hydrocarbon liquid flows into the injector and is forcibly driven
by the steam jet into the chamber C where it is ignited. The flame passes through
the openings from the chamber into the furnace or boiler flues, and also maintains
the heat of the coil E. When a sufficient pressure is produced in the boiler the
coil E may be put in communication with the water or steam space, its communi-
cation with the pressure tank being closed. In the modification shewn in Fig. 2
the jet of steam and hydrocarbon in passing through the hot tube J, becomes
highly heated before burning when it issues from J. By means of a slide K
a regulated quantity of air may be admitted through and around the tube J.
When there is no boiler pressure sufficient for starting the apparatus, I provide as
above mentioned a closed tank, into which I force water by a pump compressing
the air therein so that on opening the cock or valve in the pipe leading to E the
water is caused by the pressure of air in the tank to pass through the coil.
Having now particularly described and ascertained the nature of my said
invention and in what manner the same is to be performed I declare that what
I claim is
1. The construction of apparatus for combustion of liquid hydrocarbons wherein
an injector is supplied in regulated quantities with liquid hydrocarbons from a
reservoir and with superheated steam from a heated coil, such combined fluids
being forced by the injector into a combustion chamber in the lower part of which
is situated the heated coil under a damper by which its heating can be regulated,
substantially as herein described.
2. In combination with apparatus such as is referred to in the preceding claim, a
closed pressure tank and force pump for providing under pressure a supply of
water to the heated coil on first bringing the apparatus in action.
Deted this 4th day of February 1886