An Improvement in Burners for Incandescent Gas Lighting.
Year: 1896

page_text: An Improvement in Burners for Incandescent Gas Lighting.
I, LOUIS DENAYROUZE, of 70 Boulevard Victor Hugo, Neuilly (Seine) France,
Engineer do hereby declare the nature of this invention to be as follows:-
I have observed that the flame of a Bunsen burner such as is employed for
incandescent gas lighting, consists of an internal cone of a bluish colour surroun lel
by an elongated semi-spheroid of red colour from which spheroid a cone of flame
extends upwards considerably above the internal cone. From this observation
I concluded that the internal cone consists mostly of gas with too small a proportion
of air for its proper combustion, and that a more powerful flame would be obtained
if the mixture of air and gas could be made more uniform throughout the body of
the flame.
My present invention relates to means of effecting this.
On the mouth of the tube of an ordinary Bunsen burner I fix a casing like a
deep cup, of as nearly as possible the same form as the elongated semi-spheroid
which forms the lower portion of the Bunsen flame, and I make the cup of such
depth that its upper mouth is about the level of the apex of the bluish internal cone
of the flame.
Over this mouth I fix a diaphragm of finely perforated metal or wire gauze,
which prevents the flame from striking back into the cup. On igniting the
mixture of gas and air above the diaphragm, a flame is produced like that of the
upper portion of the Bunsen flame, and, as in this flame there is no bluish interior
cone of gas unconsumed or only partly consumed, very great heat is obtained,
causing intense incandescence of the mantle supported with its base just over the
mouth of the cup.
Dated this 26th day of September 1896.
ABEL & IMRAY,
Agents for the Applicant.
I, LOUIS DENAYROUZE, of 70 Boulevard Victor Hugo, Neuilly (Seine), France,
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 :-
I have observed that the flame of a Bunsen burner, as shewn in Figure 1 of the
accompanying drawings, as it issues from the tube T, has certain characteristics
which are found in Bunsen flames of any size supplied with gas at any pressure.
In the centre there is a blue cone A. B. C, having its base A B about the same in
diameter as the mouth of the tube T, and a height which varies with the length of
the tube, being about equal to the square root of the length, as found by
Price 8a.1

page_text: experiment. Around the internal cone there is a shell Z of brighter flame,
-bounded, so to speak, by an almost translucent surface of revolution of ovoid form,
and longer the longer is the blue cone. The appearance of this flame clearly
indicates that in all that part of the flame which is below the horizontal plane X Y,
which passes through the apex C of the cone, the mixture of gas and air is
incomplete, the centre having too much gas, and the air not having penetrated
completely among the molecules of gas until above the plane X Y.
Furthermore, if above this flame, the streams have the best admixture of gas
and the best velocity, it is obvious that, as they ascend, the presence of the
surrounding cold air alters gradually from the .circumference to the centre the
composition of the mixture and lessens the ascending force.
In consequence of these observations, I have devised, as shewn in Figure 2, the
enclosure of the ovoid space Z by a cup K of substantially the same formias
the flame would be, and having its upper edge at the level of Cthe apex of what
would be the blue conc. Above this cup I support an incandescence mantle M.
Thus only gas and air thoroughly mixed penetrate the meshes of the mantle which
is suspended in the usual way from a bent wire b. It is better that the shell' K
though generally following the outline of the ovoid Z, should be somewhat smaller
in diameter towards its base at the mouth A B, whence it gradually widens out
until it becomes nearly cylindrical as it approaches the plane X Y.
A diaphragmnt of wire gauze or finely perforated sheet metal prevents the flame
from striking back into the shell.
Experiments with a burner of the kind described shew a marked increase of
illuminating, power. Obviously the construction may he applied to mouths of
various sizes, the parts being suitably proportioned. The shell K might be made
in one piece with the tube T, but it is of advantage to make it adjustable in height,
.fixing it in position by a setting screw v.
As the apparatus has, as it were, a chimney draught, the admission of air and
the speed can be varied by raising or lowering the shell, the apex of what would be
the blue cone being still at the level of the base of the mantle.
The construction of burner described is applicable not only for coal gas but also
for acetylene and other combustible gases.
Having now particularly described and ascertained the nature of this inven
tion and in what manner the same is to be performed, I declare that what I
claim is :-
In combination with a Bunsen burner for incandescence, a fixed or adjustable
shell enclosing and approximately fitting the ovoid form assumed by the gas and
air issuing from the burner tube, and terminating with a pervious diaphragm on a
level with what would be the apex of the blue cone, observed where there is a
flame without an enclosing shell, substantially as and for the purpose set forth.
Dated this 14th day of May 1897.
ABEL & IMRAY,
Agents for the Applicant.