IMPROVEMENTS IN ROTATORY STEAM BOILERS
Year: 1861

page_text: LETTERS PATENT to Filippo Grimaldi, of Teramo, Kingdom of Italy, but
now residing at 13, Manchester Buildings, Parliament Street, in the
County of Middlesex, for the Invention of "IMPROVEMENTS IN ROTATORY
STEAM BOILERS."
Sealed the 17th June 1862, and dated the 21st December 1861.
PROVISIONAL SPECIFICATION left by the said Filippo Grimaldi at the
Office of the Commissioners of Patents, with his Petition, on the 21st.
December 1861.
I, FILIPPO GRIMALDI, of Teramo, Kingdom of Italy, but now residing at
13, Manchester Buildings, Parliament Street, in the County of Middlesex, do
hereby declare the nature of the said Invention for "IMPROVEMENTS IN ROTATORY
STEAM BOILERS," to be as follows:-
My improvements in rotary steam boilers relate to my Invention on
"the instantaneous generation of steam," for which a Patent was granted to
me, dated the 9th day of August 1860, No. 1927, and these improvements
consist, 1st, of straight or bent tubes to be added to the rotatory boiler
described in the above-mentioned Patent, so as to greatly increase its heating
surface; then the boiler is not entirely enclosed in the furnace, but one of its
ends is there, and the other in the smoke chamber. The products of com-
bustion pass
from the former to the latter through the tubes of the boiler; this
can be made of only one cylinder fitted with the above said tubes, or of two

page_text: cylinders, the one provided with tubes and the other without, and connected
together by a central neck and several tubes at their circumference, so that
water and steam can freely pass from one cylinder to the other; in this case
the steam pipe and the two pipes of the water gauge communicate with the
last cylinder.
2ly, of making hollow both the trunnions by which the boiler is supported
on the bearings, so that the feeding pipe finds its way into the boiler through
one of the trunnions and the steam pipe and the two pipes of the water gauge
through the other.
3ly, of bending up the steam pipe within the boiler so as to take the steam
near the top of the same.
4ly, of substituting partially or totally a double iron casing to the brick-
work, or enclosing one or more rotatory boilers within an ordinary boiler.
5ly, of dividing the cylindrical chamber in which the boiler is placed into
longitudinal flues by means of sets of fire-bricks or of iron sheets projecting
from the cylindrical chamber towards the shell of the boiler, but without
touching the latter so as not to prevent the revolving of the boiler.
6ly, of fitting the safety valves and steam gauge directly on the steam pipe
near the boiler when a steam chest is not made use of.
7ly., when the trunnions are of large diameter, in order to diminish their
friction on the bearings I fit with rollers the inner surface of the bearing, and
make the boiler revolving on thein.
SPECIFICATION in pursuance of the conditions of the Letters Patent, filed
by the said Filippo Grimaldi in the Great Seal Patent Office on the
21st June 1862.
TO ALL TO WHOM THESE PRESENTS SHALL COME, I, FILIPPO
GRIMALDI, of Teramo, Kingdom of Italy, lately residing at 13, Manchester
Buildings, Parliament Street, in the County of Middlesex, but now residing at
77, Great Dover Street, in the County of Surrey, send greeting.
5
WHEREAS Her most Excellent Majesty Queen Victoria, by Her Letters 3
Patent, bearing date the Twenty-first day of December, in the year of our
Lord One thousand eight hundred and sixty-one, in the twenty-fifth year of
Her reign, did, for Herself, Her heirs and successors, give and grant unto
me, the said Filippo Grimaldi, Her special licence that I, the said Filippo
Grimaldi, my executors, administrators, and assigns, or such others as I, the 3
said Filippo Grimaldi, my executors, administrators, and assigns, should at any

page_text: 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
ROTATORY STEAM BOILERS," upon the condition (amongst others) that I, the
said Filippo Grimaldi, 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 performed, 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 Filippo Grimaldi, do hereby declare
the nature of my 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 :-
These improvements relate to my Invention for "improvements in the
instantaneous generation of steam," for which a Patent was granted to me,
dated the 9th day of August, 1860, No. 1927.
The most important improvement consists of fitting the rotatory boiler
either with small tubes or internal flues, so as to greatly increase the heating
surface. In case of the boiler being fitted with tubes, the latter almost fill.
the boiler, leaving only some space for the steam and feeding pipes. When
the boiler is a flue one, the internal flues are generally 4 in number, and
are placed round the axis of the boiler; they may go straight from one end of
the boiler to the other, as in the common boilers, or they may have one of
their ends bent inside the boiler so as to open in the circumference of the
same.
The next improvement consists of taking the steam as near as possible to
the top of the boiler, so as to prevent any priming; therefore the steam pipe,
on entering the boiler through one of the tubular trunnions, is bent up to the
top of the boiler as far as it can go. This arrangement, however, is not
applicable to those boilers which are fitted with straight tubes or straight
flues, because the steam pipe being fixed, would interfere with the tubes
which revolve with the boiler; in this case, therefore, I make use of the
following contrivance :-The tubular trunnion of the boiler projects inside it,
and all round this projection are fixed several pipes all opening into the
interior of the trunnion; the steam pipe is tightly fitted in the trunnion, and
is provided with a longitudinal opening communicating with the top pipes of
the trunnion, so that the pipes, while revolving with the trunnion round the

page_text: steam pipe, successively communicate with the opening of the latter, and let
the steam escape into it.
Another improvement is that of letting the steam pipe enter the boiler
through one of the trunnions and the feeding pipe through the other, and then
connecting both the pipes inside the boiler by means of a rod so as to
neutralise the effect of the steam pressure tending to drive out of the boiler
both the pipes in opposite direction. The safety valves and the steam gauge
are fitted on the steam pipe near the boiler when a steam reservoir is not
made use of; the water and steam pipes forming the syphon water gauge
enter the boiler either through the steam pipe or feeding pipe. The multi-
tubular boiler is provided with a very simple and effective cleaner, consisting
of a perforated plate running over the tubes in order to prevent the formation
of calcareous incrustation. The plate is moved by means of a central rod
passing through one of the trunnions of the boiler; when the trunnions are of
large diameter, in order to diminish their friction on the bearings, the inner
surface of the latter is fitted with rollers, upon which the boiler revolves.
Other improvements relate to the furnace. In the case of multitubular or
flue boilers, it is necessary that the flames and hot gases should first play
round the shell of the boiler, and then leave the furnace through the tubes or
flues. In order to prevent any direct escape of gases from the furnace to the
sbaft, the smoke chamber is separated from the furnace by means of a circular
diaphragm of fire-bricks projecting towards the shell of the boiler, without,
however, interfering with its revolution. When a donkey engine is not
employed to keep the boiler revolving in order to prevent the direct contact
of the flames with the shell of the boiler above the water line during the time
the boiler is not in motion, two sets of fire-bricks project from the side walls
of the furnace towards the shell of the boiler just below the level of the water,
leaving, however, two openings at the bottom of the furnace for the circulation
of the gases. Boilers applied to marine purposes are enclosed in an iron
casing lined with fire-bricks; the trunnions of the boiler pass through, and
are supported by the ends of the casing, which are bound together and
strengthened by means of two cross bars connected by side ones.
But in order that my Invention may be more easily understood and readily
carried into effect, I will now describe some arrangements of my improved
rotatory boiler, reference being had to the accompanying Drawings.
Figures 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, and 6 represent an arrangement of my improved
rotatory marine boiler. Figure 1 is a longitudinal section through the axis of
the boiler; Figure 2, a vertical section through the line A, A; Figure 3, an
elevation of the back end of the boiler casing; Figure 4, an elevation of the

page_text: tube cleaner; Figure 5 shews a vertical section of the fore trunnion of the
boiler and of the steam pipe; and Figure 6, a longitudinal section of the same.
Similar letters indicate similar parts in all the Figures.
B is the boiler fitted with the tubes t, two inches and a half in diameter;
the fore end C of the boiler is provided with two holes a in order to give
access to the steam pipes p; the other end is similarly provided with mud-
holes m.
e is the fore trunnion of the boiler projecting inside it, and fitted
with six pairs of steam pipes p; S is the main steam pipe tightly fitting into
the trunnion, which revolves round it; o is the longitudinal opening of the
main steam pipe S (better shewn in the Figures 5 and 6 drawn in a larger
scale) communicating with the top pipes p, through which the steam escapes
from the boiler. One of the bottom pipes p communicates with the blow-off
pipe n, while all the remaining pipes communicate with the other bottom
pipe p, where they return any water that may be thrown into them on their
way up to replace the top pipes. c is the other trunnion of the boiler fitted
outside the casing with the toothed wheel b, by means of which the donkey
engine D gives the boiler the rotary motion. The feeding pipe f enters the
boiler through this trunnion; g and h are the water and steam pipes of the
water gauge d; r is the rod of the tube cleaner F; E is the iron casing
forming the furnace G, the boiler chamber H, and the smoke chamber N.
The base of the casing to within a few inches of the grate bars is composed of
a strong frame of angle iron, open at front, back, and side to admit air under
the bars. The main frame of the casing, containing the boiler and furnace
is lined with hollow fire-bricks formed to lock in each other, and anchored to
the casing; P is the diaphragm separating the furnace from the smoke
chamber. The ends of the casing are provided with doorways I for cleaning
and repairing the tubes of the boiler, and they are bound together by means
of the cross and side bars K and L. This boiler is a 60 h. p. one, and the
Diagrams are drawn to an inch to the foot.
Figures 7, 8, 9, 10, 11, and 12 represent an improved rotatory boiler, as
applied to stationary purposes; Figure 7 is a longitudinal section of the boiler
through the axis; Figure 8, a vertical section of boiler and furnace through
the line M, M; Figures 9 and 10 are elevations of front and back ends
of the brickwork; Figure 11 is a plan of the back end of the brickwork
and of the revolving gear; and Figure 12 is an elevation of the back
end of the boiler. Similar letters indicate similar parts in all the Figures.
R is the boiler; O, the four flues; s and u the fore and back trunnions;
k and 9 are the steam and feeding pipes, connected together by the rod a;
but as the section of the steam pipe is generally larger than that of the

page_text: feeding pipe, in order to prevent the latter from being carried inside the boiler
by the steam forcing out the former, the cross and side bars i and v (Fig. 11)
keep the feeding pipe at its place. V, V, are the bearings of the boiler; y
and z are the water and steam pipes of the water gauge; Q is the masonry
forming the furnace T, the boiler chamber U, and the smoke chamber Y,
these two latter being separated from each other by the diaphragm X; 1, 1,
are two sets of bricks preventing the flames from overheating the top of the
boiler when it is not in motion. This boiler is a 23 h.p. one, and the Diagrams
are drawn to five-eighths of an inch to the foot.
Having now described the nature of my improvements, and the best modes
I am acquainted with of carrying ont the same, I wish it to be understood
that I do not confine myself to the precise details shewn in the accompanying
Drawings; but I claim as my Invention the various arrangements of
increasing the heating surface of rotatory boilers by fitting them with tubes or
flues, of preventing the priming by taking the steam as near as possible
to the top of the boiler, of cleansing the tubes of the boiler, of preventing the
direct escape of the flames and hot gases from the furnace to the chimney
without first passing through the tubes or flues of the boiler, and all the other
improvements, as herein-before set forth.
In witness whereof, I, the said Filippo Grimaldi, have hereunto set my
hand and seal, this Twenty-first day of June, in the year of our Lord
One thousand eight hundred and sixty-two.
FILIPPO GRIMALDI. (L.S.)