AN IMPROVED MODE OF VENTILATING AND EXTINGUISHING FIRES IN MINES, PITS, TUNNELS, AND OTHER PLACES, AND IN THE ARRANGEMENT OF APPARATUS THEREFOR
Year: 1881

page_text: LETTERS PATENT to John Onions, of 29, Cornbury Road, Rotherhithe, in the
County of Surrey, Ironfounder, and William Henry Tooth, of 51, Union Road,
Borough, in the County of Surrey, Civil Engineer, for an Invention of
"AN IMPROVED MODE OF VENTILATING AND EXTINGUISHING FIRES IN
MINES, PITS, TUNNELS, AND OTHER PLACES, AND IN THE ARRANGEMENT
OF APPARATUS THEREFOR,"
PROVISIONAL SPECIFICATION left by the said John Onions and William
Henry Tooth at the Office of the Commissioners of Patents on the
15th October 1881.
JOHN ONIONS, of 29, Cornbury Road, Rotherhithe, in the County of Surrey,
Ironfounder, and WILLIAM HENRY TOOTH, of 51, Union Road, Borough, in the
County of Surrey, Civil Engineer. "AN IMPROVED MODE OF VENTILATING AND
EXTINGUISHING FIRES IN MINES, PITS, TUNNELS, AND OTHER PLACES, AND IN THE
ARRANGEMENT OF APPARATUS THEREFOB."
Our Invention consists, first, in the application and arrangement of certain
machinery so constructed and applied as to effect a sufficient vacuum to exhaust
from the working of any mines, pits, and other places, all such inflammatory gases,
vapours, choke-damp, and so forth, so disastrously manifest in mines and other
places, as described above, and thereby also produce a current of air in such
workings, productive of health and comfort to the work-men. The mode by which
we secure a perfect ventilation in pits, mines, and other places, is as follows :-
We fix a large cistern, tank, or tanks, near the bottom of the upcast shaft or any
suitable place, with branch pipes leading from the various workings or any place
in the mines, pite, and other places where foul air, gas, or any noxious vapours
exists or are likely to accumulate, having a kind of hopper mouth at the end of
each pipe or pipes where necessary, for the more easily receiving of the vitiated
air, gas, and so forth, into the pipes, tubes, or troughs, so connected with the tank or
tanks, as stated above, to which we would attach a large air pump or pumps (to be
worked by a steam engine) with inlet and outlet valves of such dimensions as to
•

page_text: relieve the engine or engines of a vast amount of pressure, and also produce a
vacuum in the tank or tanks sufficient to exhaust any amount of air, gas, and so
forth, that is likely to engender and of course cause a fair flow of fresh air through
the mines, pits, and other places, the exhausted air, gas, and so forth, to discharge
itself through the outlet valves of the pump or pumps into or through the outlet
valves of the pump or pumps, into or through a large tube or tubes into the
bottom of the upcast shaft or other suitable place.-N.B. By the means of the air
pump or pumps, with branches and pipes therefrom, you cause the air, gas'
et cetera, to rush into the said pipes immediate from the spot or place where it
exists or may be likely to exist, and so pass into the cistern or tank where a
sufficient vacuum is formed by the air pumps' exhaustive power, which cannot fail
to cause a current of air to exist throughout the workings of any mines, pits, and
other places. We also purpose using part of the same machinery for the purpose
of extinguishing fires in mines, pits, and other places than those which may
originate from the explosion of gas, or otherwise in any of the said works, for
which full particulars will be given in our Complete Specification. Suffice it to
say that we create by a suitable apparatus carbonic acid gas or other gases whose
properties are of such a nature as to quickly extinguish fire, and which gas or
gases we force by the same pumps, pipes, and cisterns and other conveyance used
for the purpose of ventilation in the said works. The way in which we purpose
carrying out our extinguishing process is by the use of one or more generators
fixed contiguous to the air vault, tank, or cistern, wherein to create an abundant
supply of carbonic acid gas or other gases qualified for the purpose, and which by
reversing all the valves used for ventilation, and opening others connected with the
pumps, et cetera, we draw the deadly gas through the cistern and thereby force the
(say) carbonic acid gas into any part of the workings and thereby effect the object
Bought for.

page_text: SPECIFICATION in pursuance of the conditions of the Letters Patent filed by
the said John Onions and William Henry Tooth in the Great Seal Patent
Office on the 14th April 1882.
JOHN ONIONS, of 29, Cornbury Road, Rotherhithe, in the County of Surrey,
Ironfounder, and WILLIAM HENRY TOOTH, of 51, Union Road, Borough, in the
County of Surrey, Civil Engineer. "AN IMPROVED MODE OF VENTILATING AND
EXTINGUISHING FIRES IN MINES, PITS, TUNNELS, AND OTHER PLACES, AND IN
THE ARRANGEMENT OF APPARATUS THEREFOR."
My Invention consists, first, in the application and arrangement of certain
machinery so constructed and applied as to effect a sufficient vacuum to exhaust
from the working of any mines, pits, tunnels, and all other places, all such
inflammatory gases, vapours, choke damp, and so forth, so disastrously manifest in
mines and other places as herein described, and thereby also produce a current of
air in such workings, productive of health and comfort to the workmen. The mode
by which I secure a perfect ventilation in mines, pits, tunnels, and other places is
as follows:-I fix a cistern (or cisterns), tank, or tanks, near the bottom of the
upcast shaft or any other suitable place, as the case may be, with branch pipes
leading from the various workings or any place in the mines, tunnels, pits, and
other places where foul air or gas, or any noxious vapours, exist or are likely to
accumulate, having a kind of hopper mouth at the end of each pipe or pipes where
necessary for the more easily receiving of the vitiated air, gas, and so forth, into
the pipes, tubes, or troughs so connected with the tank or tanks as stated above,
to which I would attach a large air pump or pumps (to be worked by a steam
engine or engines), with inlet and outlet valves of such dimensions as to relieve
the engine or engines of a vast amount of pressure, and also produce a vacuum in
the tank or tanks sufficient to exhaust any amount of air, gas, and so forth, that is
likely to engender in the workings, and of course cause a fair flow of fresh air
through the mines, pits, and other places or works; the exhausted air, gas, and
so forth, to discharge itself, &c. to be discharged through the outlet valves of the
pump or pumps into or through a large tube or tubes, into the bottom of the
upcast shaft or other suitable place.-N.B. By the means of the air pump or
pumps with branches and pipes therefrom, you cause the air, gas, et cetera, to rush
into the said pipes immediate from the spot or place where it exists or may be
likely to exist, and so pass into the cistern, tank, or tanks, where a sufficient
vacuum is formed by the air pumps, exhaustive power which cannot fail to cause a
current of fresh air to exist in and through the workings of any mines, pits, or
other places where necessarily used. I also purpose using part of the same
machinery for the purpose of extinguishing fires in pits, mines, and other places
than those which may originate from the explosion of gas or otherwise in any of
the said works or places. Suffice it to say that I create by a suitable apparatus
or more of them carbonic acid gas or other gases whose properties are of such a
nature as to quickly extinguish fire, and which gas or gases by the same or other
pumps, pipes, and cisterns, or other conveyance used for the purpose of ventilation
in the same works. The way in which I intend carrying out my extinguishing
process is by the use of one or more generators fixed contiguous to the air vault,
tank, or cistern, wherein to create an abundant supply of carbonic acid gas or other
gases qualified for the purpose, and which, by reversing all or such of the valves
used for ventilation, and opening others connected with the pumps, et cetera, I draw
the deadly gas through the cistern, and thereby force the (say) carbonic acid gas or
other suitable gases into any part of the workings and thereby effect the object

page_text: sought for. I also by the use of the air pump force such gas or gases through the
pipes or hose for the purpose of extinguishing fires as by the use of such deadly
gases so forced it will have a greater force or effect than that of water and more
readily obtained, as by always having one or more generators (either stationary or
movable) ready charged no time is lost (as in the case of shortness of water), but
the gas can be made and applied instanter. I do not confine myself to any class
of engine, but the application of such as may be found most convenient, either
portable or stationary, for the purpose herein set forth. First, the mode by which
I exhaust the foul air, gases, vapours, choke damp, and so forth, and also the mode
by which I have herein set forth for extinguishing fires in pits and other places.
In witness whereof, I, the said John Onio ns, on behalf of myself and the said
William Henry Tooth, have hereunto set my hand and seal, this Fourteenth
day of April, in the year of our Lord One thousand eight hundred and
eighty two.