Improvements in Apparatus or Means for Drying Bricks and other Plastic Articles.
Year: 1898

page_text: PROVISIONAL SPECIFICATION.
Improvements in Apparatus or Means for Drying Bricks and other
Plastic Articles.
I, OLIVER HOWL, of Prince's End, Tipton, in the County of Stafford, Engineer,
do hereby declare the nature of my invention to be as follows:-
-
My invention has for its object to provide improved apparatus or means for
drying bricks and other plastic articles and consists in so constructing and arrang-
ing shelves, surfaces or supports for the bricks or articles to be dried that hot
water, steam or other suitable heating medium can be caused to circulate in or
through such shelves or supports and transmit heat through the substance of
the shelves or supports to the articles placed thereon so as to rapidly and efficiently
dry the said articles. The shelves or supports may be made hollow, of iron or
other suitable material or the said shelves may each be formed of a coil or coils
of pipe of rectangular or other shape in cross section and the convolutions of the
coil or coils of pipe may be arranged close, or approximately close, together, so
as to form a comparatively level surface to carry the articles to be dried. The
shelves may be arranged in any desired number either side by side or one above
another, or both side by side and one above another and any desired number of
shelves may be connected together by pipes or passages which may be provided
with stop cocks or valves so as to permit of opening and closing, as required,
communication between the shelves. The heating agent may be caused to enter
and circulate through any desired number of the shelves and after passing through
the said shelves may be conducted back to the source of supply. The articles to
be dried may be placed in direct contact with the shelves, or, for convenience of
carrying the said articles, may be placed on plates or pallets and the plates or
pallets with the articles thereon be placed on the shelves.
When the shelves are arranged one above another they may be connected at
their ends to vertical hollow columns communicating by horizontal passages with
the interior of the shelves in such a manner that the heating agent, admitted to
one of the vertical columns may be caused to traverse in a circuitous direction
through the several shelves, or the said heating agent may be admitted simul-
taneously or approximately so, into all or any desired number of the said shelves
and the said heating agent may be caused to pass from one series of shelves to
another or series of shelves in succession before returning to the source of supply.
Dated this 19th day of March 1898.

page_text: COMPLETE SPECIFICATION.
Improvements in Apparatus or Means for Drying Bricks and other
Plastic Articles.
I, OLIVER HOWL, of Prince's End, Tipton, in the County of Stafford, 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 has for its object to provide improved apparatus or means for
drying bricks and other plastic articles and consists in constructing and arrang-
ing on fixed or stationary supports, hollow shelves, surfaces or supports for the
bricks or articles to be dried, so that hot water, steam or other suitable heating
medium can be caused to circulate in or be passed through such shelves or sup-
ports and transmit heat through the substance of the shelves or supports to the
articles placed thereon so as to dry the said articles. The shelves or supports
may be fixed to or be removably supported on stationary columns racks standards
or the like and may be made of iron or other suitable material or the said shelves
may each be formed of a coil or coils of pipe of rectangular or other shape in
cross section, and the convolutions of the coil, or coils, of pipe may be arranged
close, or approximately close, together, so as to form a comparatively level surface
to carry the articles to be dried. The shelves may be arranged in any desired
number either side by side or one above another or both side by side and one
above another and any desired number of shelves may be connected together by
pipes or passages which may be provided with stop cocks or valves so as to permit
of opening and closing and regulating, as required, communication between the
shelves. The heating agent may be caused to enter and pass through any desired
number of the shelves, and after passing through one set or tier of shelves may
be conducted to another set or tier or other sets or tiers of shelves and thence
back to the source of supply or permitted to flow away. The articles to be dried
may be placed in direct contact with the shelves or, for convenience of carrying,
the said articles may be placed on plates or pallets and the plates or pallets with
the articles thereon be placed on the shelves.
When the shelves are arranged one above another they may be connected to
vertical, fixed or stationary, hollow columns, provided with passages communicat-
ing with the interior of the shelves in such a manner that the heating agent,
admitted to one of the columns may be caused to traverse in a circuitous direc-
tion through the several shelves, or the said heating agent may be admitted
simultaneously or approximately so, into all or any desired number of the said
shelves and the said heating agent may be caused to pass from one set or series
of shelves to other sets or series of shelves in succession before being allowed to
flow away or return to the source of supply.
Figure 1 of the accompanying drawings represents in longitudinal section a
simple construction of apparatus according to my invention showing the hollow
shelves supported on blocks of any suitable material, Figure 2 is an end view
shewing the shelves supported at their ends on frames or racks, Figure 3 is a
view similar to Figure 1 showing an arrangement in which the hollow shelves
are connected to and communicate with the interior of hollow columns or supports,
Figure 4 represents in longitudinal vertical section a modified arrangement of

page_text: apparatus constructed according to my invention and Figure 5 is a transverse
section of the same. Figure 6 represents in transverse section a similar apparatus
provided with two vertical series or tiers of shelves arranged side by side.
Figures 7 and 8 represent in side elevation and plan one of the shelves or supports
formed by a coil of pipe through which the heating medium is caused to pass.
Like letters indicate like parts in all the figures.
A are the hollow shelves on which the articles to be dried are placed. These
shelves can be made of any suitable length and breadth and can be constructed
of metal plates connected together in any suitable manner for instance by channel
irons as shewn in Figure 5 or they may be formed of coils of pipe as shewn in
Figures 7 and 8. The shelves A may be supported as shewn in Figure 1 on
blocks B at their opposite ends and also if desired at their centre portions as
at B. The ends of these shelves are shewn in Figures 1 and 2 as being closed
by plates a the closing plates at one end having holes therein for the insertion
of pipes or steam nozzles b connected by a pipe c with a steam boiler or other
source of heating medium, the closing plates at the opposite ends of the shelves
being provided with outlet pipes 6₁ for the escape of the steam or other heating
medium admitted to the interior of the shelves by the nozzles b. In the arrange-
ment illustrated in Figure 2 the shelves A are supplied with steam in a similar
manner to that shewn in Figure 1, but the shelves are supported at their ends
on racks or standards B. In the arrangement shewn in Figure 3 the shelves A
are connected at their ends to hollow columns or standards B to one of which
the steam is admitted by the nozzles b the said steam passing thence through
the hollow shelves A into the standard at the opposite end of the shelves and
escapes therefrom by a pipe 6 through which water of condensation will also
pass away. The shelves A may be made each of a length to reach from one end
support to the other end support or each shelf may be made in two or more lengths
connected together by bolts and nuts as shewn at a¹ in Figures 1 and 3 or in
any other convenient manner. In the arrangement illustrated by Figures 4 and 5
each hollow column or standard B B to which the shelves A are connected is
divided vertically by horizontal partitions d into separate spaces e corresponding
in number to the number of shelves A arranged one above another. Each shelf
communicates with the corresponding spaces in the two end standards B B' by
passages f and each space e communicates with the next space above by connect-
ing pipes fitted with stop cocks h.
Opening into the lowermost space e in the standard B is a pipe C communicat-
ing with the source of supply of the heating medium which I will refer to as
steam the said pipe C being provided with a cock or valve g₁ to govern the
admission of the steam to the interior of the standard B. The top and bottom
spaces e of the standard B¹ are connected together by a pipe C₁ fitted with two
cocks or valves h¹ h between which valves is a branch pipe C³ conducting the
steam away.
The bricks or other plastic artacles to be dried may be placed on the shelves A
in direct contact therewith or, for convenience of carrying the articles, plates
or pallets may be interposed between the articles and the surfaces of the shelves.
The shelves being charged with the articles to be dried the cock or valve gl in
the steam pipe C is opened to admit steam to the lowermost space e in the
standard If the cocks or valves h in the connecting pipes and also the
cocks or valves h¹ h³ in the pipe C¹ be all open, the steam will pass into and
fill all of the spaces e in the standard B and pass therefrom through all the hollow
shelves A into the spaces e in the standard B and thence into the pipe C¹ and
away by the branch C² back to the source of supply or to a condenser or other
desired place. The heat imparted to the shelves by the steam passing therethrough
is conducted to the goods placed on the said shelves whereby the said goods are
dried. If desired the steam may be caused to pass through the lowermost shelf
only or through the said lowermost shelf and any desired number of shelves

page_text: above it by simply closing the cocks or valves in the connecting pipes 9 of
those spaces e connected with the shelves not required to be heated and closing
also the cock h¹ in the pipe C the cock h² being open so that the steam admitted
to the said lower shelf or lower shelves will escape through the valve h² and pass
away by the pipe C².
Instead of causing the steam to pass from the spaces in the standard B, through
the shelves in the same direction and at the same time as before described the
said steam may be caused to take a circuitous course through the said shelves
from the lowermost shelf to the top shelf of the series, in which case the steam
admitted to the lowermost space e of the standard B is by closing the cock or
valve in the pipe connecting the said lowermost space in this standard with the
next space above, caused to pass through the lowermost shelf A into the lower-
most space e in the standard B' and thence through the connecting pipe g (the
cock in the said tube being open) into the next space e above, and the cock in
the pipe connecting this space with the next space above in the said standard B¹
being closed, the steam is caused to pass into and through the second shelf from
the bottom into the second space from the bottom in the standard B and so on
through all the shelves as indicated by arrows in Figure 4 to the top shelf of the
series it passing thence into the pipe C¹ and away by the branch pipe C³, the
lower cock or valve 2 in the pipe C being closed. In the lower part of each
hollow column or standard B B is a discharge pipe or passage i for water of
condensation. Each shelf may be formed of a coil of pipe as shewn for example
in Figures 7 and 8 so that the steam will travel in a circuitous course through
each such shelf or support. The shelves may if desired be arranged side by side
instead of one above another or as shewn in Figure 6 the said shelves may be
arranged in vertical tiers or series side by side with a space between each two
vertical tiers to admit of the ready escape of vapour.
The steam may, after passing through one tier or series of shelves, be caused
to enter and pass through the adjacent tier or series of shelves and so on through
any desired number of tiers or series. In the top of the standards B B¹ vent
holes are provided for the escape of air. By this invention a great economy
of fuel is effected as compared with the old system of drying bricks and other
plastic articles on stone floors heated by fuel from beneath, as by my invention
the temperature can be regulated as required by governing the admission of the
heating medium and the supply of heat can be discontinued at any time; whilst
the necessity for the workmen to stand on heated surfaces to stack and remove
the goods is dispensed with, and a greatly increased drying area is provided in
a minimum space.
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. In apparatus for drying bricks and other plastic articles the combination
with fixed or stationary columns standards or supports carrying hollow shelves
on which the articles to be dried are placed, pipes or passages for admitting
steam or like heating medium into the hollow shelves; and valves or cocks
in the pipes or passages for directing or varying as desired the course of the
heating medium through the hollow shelves substantially as herein before
described.
2. In apparatus for drying bricks and other plastic articles stationary or fixed
hollow shelves arranged side by side or both side by side and one above another
and connected together by pipes or passages provided with cocks or valves for
directing steam or hot water through all or any number of the hollow shelves
either in a circuitous direction or simultaneously through all or any number of
the shelves in the same direction, as desired. substantially as hereinbefore
described.

page_text: 3. Stationary or fixed apparatus for drying bricks and other plastic articles
by means of steam, hot water or like heating medium substantially as hereinbefore
described and illustrated by the accompanying drawings.
Dated this 19th day of December 1898.
JOHNSONS & WILLCOX,
47, Lincoln's Inn Fields, London, W.C., Agents.