IMPROVEMENTS IN APPARATUS FOR THE DISTILLATION OF COAL AND PEAT, AND SUCH OTHER SUBSTANCES AS ARE OR MAY BE USED FOR THE MANUFACTURE OF SOLID AND LIQUID VOLATILE HYDROCARBONS, OR FOR THE MANUFACTURE OF THE SAID HYDROCARBONS AND COKE
Year: 1865

page_text: LETTERS PATENT to William Mattieu Williams, of the Celyn, Caergwrle,
near Wrexham, in the County of Denbigh, Manufacturer, for the Inven-
tion of "IMPROVEMENTS IN APPARATUS FOR THE DISTILLATION OF COAL AND
PEAT, AND SUCH OTHER SUBSTANCES AS ARE OR MAY BE USED FOR THE
MANUFACTURE OF SOLID AND LIQUID VOLATILE HYDROCARBONS, OR FOR THE
MANUFACTURE OF THE SAID HYDROCARBONS AND COKE."
Sealed the 1st September 1865, and dated the 22nd March 1865.
PROVISIONAL SPECIFICATION left by the said William Mattieu Williams
at the Office of the Commissioners of Patents, with his Petition, on the
22nd March 1865.
I, WILLIAM MATTIEU WILLIAMS, of the Celyn, Caergwrle, near Wrexham,
in the County of Denbigh, Manufacturer, do hereby declare the nature of the
said Invention for "IMPROVEMENTS IN APPARATUS FOR THE DISTILLATION OF COAL
AND PEAT, AND SUCH OTHER SUBSTANCES AS ARE OR MAY BE USED FOR THE MANU-
PACTURE OF SOLID AND LIQUID VOLATILE HYDROCARBONS, OR FOR THE MANUFACTURE
OF THE SAID HYDROCARBONS AND COKE," to be as follows:-
My Invention consists in constructing and arranging the said distillatory
apparatus in the following manner :-I make the retorts of cast or wrought
iron, but by preference of cast iron. I make the said retorts of the figure of
an oblong box, open at one or both ends, the sides being a little convex to give
strength and to diminish the liability to cracking by the action of the fire.
The door is fitted to one end of the retort, and is of the full dimensions of the

page_text: retort. The outlet channel for carrying away the products of distillation is
situated at the other end and passes downwards, so as rapidly to convey the
vapours from the influence of the heat. This channel may be made separate
from the retort and attached thereto. I apply the heat to the under side of the
door end of the retorts, the said heat passing to a flue running under the whole
length of the retort, or as nearly the whole length as practicable, the said flue
being nearly or quite as wide as the retort. This last-mentioned flue com-
municates with flues placed as far back as possible to carry the heat upwards
to another flue running along the top of the retort, and nearly of the same
width as the retort. At the end of this flue, that is, at the fire-place end, the
chimney is situated. Thus the heat passes along the bottom of the retort,
then by side or end flues over to the top and along the whole length of the
top, or as nearly the whole length as the necessary spaces, brickwork, setting,
and chimney will admit. The retort is charged by a tray or lining constructed
as follows:-I make the trays of wrought iron and of the form of an oblong
iron box or lining to the retort, but rather shorter than the retort. This tray
or lining is divided into three compartments by means of two shelves. The
upper and lower compartments are closed at each end. The bottom of the
top compartment, that is, the top shelf, is of open bars or perforated metal, the
top of the lower compartment or the lower shelf is also open. I prefer that
the upper compartment should be occupied by a moveable tray, or that the
open bottom shall be moveable, in order that it may be lifted out if required,
the bottom of this tray constituting the open bottom before described. The
coal or substance to be distilled is placed in the top and bottom compartments,
or the top tray and bottom compartment, in order that they be near to the
heated surfaces of the top and bottom of the retort, and that the vapour shall
have a ready exit through the middle open space of the retort lining or
chamber, which is the least heated. I prefer to make the moveable bottom
of the top compartment capable of adjustment at different heights, so that the
depth of the layer of coal or other substance contained therein shall be capable
of modification according to the material used, and the varying heat of the
different parts of the retort. Some materials, for example, some varieties of
cannel.coal or shale, distil more slowly or require more heat than others, and a
thin layer may be distilled in a shorter time at a given heat than a thicker
layer; and one object of this adjustment is to adapt the depth of layer to the
quality of the material. For peat a much greater depth is desirable than for
coal. When different portions of the contents of a retort of any given material
are subjected to different degrees of heat (within certain limits) these
differences may be wholly or partly compensated by varying the thickness of

page_text: the layer of the material inversely with the heat to which it is subjected. The
precise adjustment to meet the varying properties of the materials must
be determined by trial, and one of the objects of this adjustment of the
upper compartment is to enable the operator to alter the thickness of the
layer of material to suit the varieties of heat necessarily following from the
different distances from the source of heat. Thus in the top compartment
the end furthest from the door of the retort should be the thickest. A similar
variation of thickness should be obtained in the lower compartment, and may
be effected by raising or lowering the top bars, which should be wide apart,
and only serve as a guide to the workman in determining the height to which
he is to charge the material. The space between these bars should be large
enough to admit the coal to be thrown in. The object of making the tray or
lining shorter than the retort is to place all the coal in that part where the
heat is most effective, as it is found that the extreme ends of such a retort
cannot be fully heated. The retorts are set in brickwork and sloped down-
wards from the fire and chimney end towards the outlet end, in order to
facilitate the fall of the vapours and the charging of the tray.
Instead of using a lining or tray with compartments, as before explained,
two trays, an upper and a lower one, may be employed to contain the material
to be distilled, a space being left between the two trays for the vapours to pass
through. The upper tray may slide and rest upon a ledge or projection on
the side of the retort, and the lower one may slide and rest upon the bottom
of the retort or on a rail cast or laid on the bottom of the retort. The depth
of these trays is adjusted, as before described, to suit the varying heat of the
retort and the varying properties of the material operated upon.
By the arrangements described I can arrange the material to be distilled on
the top and bottom of the retort (where the heat is applied) in trays, and
adjust the depth of the varying heat of the different parts of the retort. I can
also, where desirable, distil in one retort two different kinds of coal or other
material requiring different treatment and different degrees of heat, by placing
one in the hottest and the other in the less heated compartment. When
there are two classes of coal or other material, one of which requires longer
treatment than the other, and that which requires least time makes a good
coke if heated sufficiently, I can place both in the same retort, and obtain the
good coke from the one by subjecting it to the highest temperature, or leaving
it in the retort during the time required for the ordinary distillation of the
more obstinate or the richer material.

page_text: SPECIFICATION in pursuance of the conditions of the Letters Patent, filed
by the said William Mattieu Williams in the Great Seal Patent Office
on the 15th September 1865.
TO ALL TO WHOM THESE PRESENTS SHALL COME, I, WILLIAM
MATTIEU WILLIAMS, of the Celyn, Caergwrle, near Wrexham, in the County
of Denbigh, Manufacturer, send greeting.
WHEREAS Her most Excellent Majesty Queen Victoria, by Her Letters
Patent, bearing date the Twenty-second day of March, in the year of our Lord
One thousand eight hundred and sixty-five, in the twenty-eighth year of
Her reign, did, for Herself, Her heirs and successors, give and grant unto
me, the said William Mattieu Williams, Her special licence that I, the said
William Mattieu Williams, my executors, administrators, and assigns, or
such others as I, the said William Mattieu Williams, my executors, admi
nistrators, 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 APPARATUS FOR THE
DISTILLATION OF COAL AND PEAT, AND SUCH OTHER SUBSTANCES AS ARE OR MAY BE
USED FOR THE MANUFACTURE OF SOLID AND LIQUID VOLATILE HYDROCARBONS, OR FOR
THE MANUFACTURE OF THE SAID HYDROCARBONS AND COKE," upon the condition
(amongst others) that I, the said William Mattieu Williams, my executors
or administrators, by an instrument in writing under my, or. their, or one
of their hands and seals, should particularly describe and ascertain the
nature of the said Invention, and in what manner the same was to be per-
formed, 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 I, the said William Mattieu Williams, do hereby
declare the nature of the said Invention, and in what manner the same is
to be performed, to be particularly described and ascertained in and by the
following statement thereof, that is to say:-
My Invention consists in constructing and arranging the said distillatory
apparatus in the following manner :-I make the retorts of cast or wrought
iron, but by preference of cast iron. I make the said retorts of the figure of
an oblong box open at one or both ends, the sides being a little convex to give
strength and to diminish the liability to cracking by the action of the fire.
The door is fitted to one end of the retort, and is of the full dimensions of the

page_text: retort. The outlet channel for carrying away the products of distillation is
situated at the other end and passes downwards, so as rapidly to convey the
vapours from the influence of the heat. This channel may be made separate
from the retort and attached thereto. I apply the heat to the under side of
the door end of the retorts, the said heat passing to a flue running under the
whole length of the retort, or as nearly the whole length as practicable, the
said flue being nearly or quite as wide as the retort. This last-mentioned
flue communicates with flues placed as far back as possible to carry the heat
upwards to another flue running along the top of the retort. At the end of
this flue, that is, at the fire-place end, the chimney is situated. Thus the
heat passes along the bottom of the retort, then by side or end flues over the
top, and along the whole length of the top, or as nearly the whole length as
the necessary spaces, brickwork, setting, and chimney will admit. The retort
is charged by a tray or lining constructed as follows:--I make the trays of
wrought iron and of the form of an oblong iron box or lining to the retort,
but rather shorter than the retort. This tray or lining is divided into three
compartments by means of two shelves. The upper and lower compartments
are closed at one end. The bottom of the top compartment, that is, the top
shelf, is of open bars or perforated metal, the top of the lower compartment or
the lower shelf is also open. I prefer that the upper compartment should be
occupied by a moveable tray, or that the open bottom shall be moveable iu
order that it may be lifted out if required, the bottom of the tray constituting
the open bottom before described. The coal or substance to be distilled is
placed in the top and bottom compartments, in order that they may be near
to the heated surfaces of the top and bottom of the retort, and that the vapour
shall have a ready exit through the middle open space of the retort lining or
chamber which is the least heated. I prefer to make the moveable bottom
of the top compartment capable of adjustment at different heights, so that the
depth of the layer of coal or other substance contained therein shall be capable
of modification according to the material used and the varying heat of the
different parts of the retort. Some materials, for example some varieties of
cannel coal or shale, distil more slowly or require more heat than others, and
a thin layer may be distilled in a shorter time at a given heat than a thicker
layer, and one object of this adjustment is to adapt the depth of layer to the
quality of the material. For peat a much greater depth is desirable than for
coal. When different portions of the contents of a retort of any given
material are subjected to different degrees of heat (within certain limits) these
differences may be wholly or partly compensated by varying the thickness of
the layer of the material inversely with the heat to which it is subjected. The

page_text: precise adjustment to meet the varying properties of the materials must be
determined by trial, and one of the objects of this adjustment of the bottom of
the upper compartment is to enable the operator to alter the thickness of the
layer of material to suit the varieties of heat necessarily following from the
different distances from the source of heat. Thus in the top compartment
the end furthest from the door of the retort should be the thickest. A similar
variation of thickness should be obtained in the lower compartment, and
may be effected by raising or lowering the top bars which should be wide
apart, and only serve as a guide to the workman in determining the height to
which he is to charge the material. The space between these bars should be
large enough to admit the coal to be thrown in. The object of making the
tray or lining shorter than the retort is to place all the coal in that part where
the heat is most effective, as it is found that the extreme ends of such a retort
cannot be fully heated. The retorts are set in brickwork and slope downwards
from the fire and chimney end towards the outlet end, in order to facilitate
the fall of the vapours and the charging of the tray.
Instead of using a lining or tray with compartments, as before explained,
two trays, an upper and a lower one, may be employed to contain the material
to be distilled, a space being left between the two trays for the vapours to pass
through. The upper tray may slide and rest upon a ledge or projection on
the side of the retort, and the lower one may slide and rest upon the bottom
of the retort, or on a rail.cast or laid on the bottom of the retort. The depth
of these trays is adjusted as before described to suit the varying heat of the
retort, and the varying properties of the material operated upon.
By the arrangements described I can arrange the material to be distilled on
the top and bottom of the retort (where the heat is applied) in trays, and
adjust the depth to the varying heat of the different parts of the retort. I can
also, where desirable, distil in one retort two different kinds of coal or other
material requiring different treatment and different degrees of beat, by placing
one in the hottest and the other in the less heated compartment. When
there are two classes of coal or other material, one of which requires longer
treatment than the other, and that which requires least time makes a good
coke if heated sufficiently, I can place both in the same retort and obtain the
good coke from the one by subjecting it to the highest temperature, or leaving
it in the retort during the time required for the ordinary distillation of the
more obstinate or the richer material.
Having explained the nature of my Invention, I will proceed to describe,
with reference to the accompanying Drawing, the manner in which the same is
the nerformed.

page_text: Figure 1 represents in longitudinal vertical section a distillatory apparatus,
constructed according to my. Invention, combined with a condenser; and
Figure 2 is a front elevation of the same.
a is the retort having the figure of an oblong box, the said retort being
made of cast or wrought iron. The door 6 is fitted to one end of the retort,
and is of the full dimensions of the retort. The outlet passage c for removing
the products of distillation is situated at the other end of the retort and passes
downwards so as rapidly to convey the vapours from the influence of the heat
to the condenser d. The said condenser is of the ordinary construction and
constitutes no part of my Invention. The channel c may be made separately
from the retort and bolted to the retort. The retort a is heated from the
fire-place e, the fire and heated air from the said fire-place passing over the
bridge finto a flue g running under. nearly the whole length of the retort,
the said flue being as wide as the retort. The heat from this flue g passes,
by vertical flues situated at the extreme ends of the apparatus (one of which
is indicated in dotted lines at h), to a flue i above the top of the retort, the said
flue i being nearly as wide as the retort. The heat, after heating the top of
the retort, escapes by the chimney k at the fire-place end of the apparatus.
The heat is thus made to pass first along the bottom of the retort, then by
end vertical flues to the top of the retort, and from thence to the chimney,
the bottom and top only of the retort being thereby heated. The retort a
is divided by two shelves or trays l, m, into three compartments, the upper
and lower compartments being closed at one end by the plates n, n, and
the middle compartment being open to the condenser d. The bottom / of
the top compartment, or the top shelf or tray, is made of open bars or per;
forated metal, as. represented, and is capable of sliding from out of or being
introduced into the retort, the said shelf l sliding upon and being supported
by a ledge or projection p running along each side of the retort. The said
ledges or projections are adjusted to the height required by the variation in
the heat and the nature of the material operated upon. In place of the
ledges or projections described, a series of cross bars may be used for sup-
porting the tray or shelf at the required .height in the retort. The top m of
the lower compartment is made of a frame of bars, the spaces between them
being large enough to admit the coal to be thrown in. These bars may be raised
or lowered at pleasure, and serve as a guide to the workman in determining
the height to which he is to charge the material into the said lower com-
partment or tray. The shelves or trays l, m, of the upper and lower com-
partments do not run parallel with the top and bottom of the retort, but are
inclined thereto in the manner represented, so that the layer of coal is of

page_text: greatest depth where the heat is greatest, and of least depth where the heat
is least. A number of retorts similar to the retort a are built side by side,
and the said retorts are charged from a carriage or trolly containing the coal
or material, the said trolly working upon a pair of rails q in front of the
fire-place end of the apparatus. In charging the retort the top shelf or
tray of the upper compartment is removed and the coal thrown into the
bottom compartment through the wide openings in the frame of bars m.
The top shelf or tray is next replaced and the upper compartment filled.
The inclination of the retort enables the compartments to be readily charged
by direct hand power.
It will be seen from an examination of the Drawing that the shelves or
trays of the retort do not extend to the end of the retort; every portion of
the coal or material charged into the retort is thereby acted upon more or
less by the heat of the fire from the fire-place. In place of dividing the retort
into compartments by two shelves or single trays a complete lining to the
retort may be used, the said lining consisting of a double tray, a space being
left between the two trays of the double tray for the vapours to pass through
to the condenser d, the bottom of the top tray being perforated. The depth
of these trays is adjusted to suit the coal or material to be distilled. The
ends of the double tray at the charging end are left open for discharging the
coke when it is tipped. The bottom of the upper tray of the double tray is
hinged to the side of the lining or to the lower tray, and is capable of opening
from the lining, after the manner of the cover of a book. In charging this
lining or double tray with the coal or material to be distilled the said double
tray is removed from the retort into a trolley or carriage upon the rails q.
The bottom of the upper tray is turned upon its hinges, and the coal or
material charged into the bottom tray; the bottom of the top tray being
shut down the said top tray is then charged. The charged double tray is
now introduced into the retort, the bottom of the said double tray sliding or
resting on the bottom of the retort, or upon a rail cast or laid on the bottom
of the retort. In discharging the double tray after the distillation has been
completed it is removed from the retort on to the trolley or carriage and the
said trolley tipped so as to discharge the coke therefrom.
By the use of my Invention the difficulty of distilling slack is much
diminished in consequence of the double thin layers which can be exposed
to the heat, the said slack, if thickly heaped, resisting the passage of heat
through it.
Having now described the nature of my Invention, and the manner in
which the same is to be performed, I wish it to be understood that I do not

page_text: limit myself to the precise details herein described and represented in the
accompanying Drawing, as the same may be varied without departing from the
nature of my Invention, but I claim as my Invention the improvements, herein-
before described and illustrated in the accompanying Drawing, in apparatus
for the distillation of coal and peat, and such other substances as are or may be
used for the manufacture of solid and liquid volatile bydrocarbons, or for the
manufacture of the said hydrocarbons and coke, that is to say, the arrange-
ment or combination of the parts described and represented for adjusting the
thickness of the layer of coal or material to be distilled to the variable heat
of the different parts of the retort, or to the quality of the coal or material,
the coal or material being arranged in contact with the top and bottom of the
retort in layers of the required variable thickness by means of adjustable
shelves or trays, or by means of a lining having upper and lower adjustable
shelves or compartments.
In witness whereof, I, the said William Mattieu Williams, have
hereunto set my hand and seal, this Thirteenth day of September, in
the year of our Lord One thousand eight hundred and sixty-five.
WILLIAM MATTIEU WILLIAMS. (L.S.)
Witness,
RICHARD SKERRETT,
Clerk to George Shaw,
Birmingham.