IMPROVEMENTS IN GENERATING AND APPLYING CERTAIN GASES, AND IN APPARATUS TO BE EMPLOYED THEREIN
Year: 1865

page_text: LETTERS PATENT to James Webster, of Birmingham, in the County of
Warwick, Engineer, for the Invention of "IMPROVEMENTS IN GENERATING
AND APPLYING CERTAIN GASES, AND IN APPARATUS TO BE EMPLOYED THEREIN."
PROVISIONAL SPECIFICATION left by the said James Webster at
the Office of the Commissioners of Patents, with his Petition, on the
2nd November 1865.
I. JAMES WEBSTER, of Birmingham, in the County of Warwick, Engineer,
do hereby declare the nature of the said Invention for "IMPROVEMENTS
IN GENERATING AND APPLYING CERTAIN GASES, AND IN APPARATUS TO BE EMPLOYED
THEREIN," to be as follows, that is to say:
My Invention refers, firstly, to the generating of gases by forcing
currents of atmospheric air through mineral turpentine, napthaline, or rock
oil, or any oil or spirit consisting of a similar base; and, secondly, to the
apparatus to be used in making and applying such gases, and for this
purpose employ a cylinder, the lower part of which is charged with the
oil or spirit above named, into which the air is forced by bellows or other
suitable means placed at any convenient position; the air is forced into
the upper part of the cylinder and down a tube which descends nearly to the
bottom of the cylinder, but which tube has its lower end stopped, and
Price Ed

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consequently discharges the air into a drum which surrounds it at some
slight distance up. This drum is connected to a series of small vertical
tubes extending from the under side of the drum to the bottom of the
cylinder, and these tubes are formed by preference alternately of copper
and zinc, and have their ends dipping into the oil or spirit, the bellows
forcing the air through the descending pipe. through the drum, and
through the vertical tubes into the oil or spirit. The air absorbs or takes
up a portion of the oil or spirit, and forces it up the outer cylinder and
around the tubes into and through the body of the cylinder, which is
charged at its upper part with sponge, or pumicestone, or other filtrating
medium, whence it issues into a pipe in the form of gases; and as one most
important application of this Invention consists in its use as a substitute
for the ordinary blow pipe, I shall proceed now to describe the mechanism
necessary for employing or adapting these gases and their generator to such
purpose. The gases issuing from the cylinder in a flexible tube are stopped
at any convenient distance by a branch tube containing two stop-cocks to
regulate the supply of gases to the two tubes, which will be presently
described. Above these stop-cocks two gasways or tubes diverge and
meet again in a junction, and above this junction to the nozzle the gases are
conveyed by two separate channels, consisting of two tubes one within the
other, to the nozzle. The outer tube is about sixteen times the area of the
inner tube, but this tube, though the smaller, takes about sixteen times the
quantity of gas that the outer one takes, the outer one being used only to
keep up suflicient. ignition. For the purpose of a blow pipe of small size I
employ, by preference, bellows placed underneath the cylinder and worked
by the foot by means of a treadle. To apply these gases and their generator
for cooking or other like purposes any number of these nozzles may be
employed.
SPECIFICATION in pursuance of the conditions of the Letters Patent,
filed by the said James Webster in the Great Seal Patent Office
on the 2nd May 1866.
TO ALL TO WHOM THESE PRESENTS SHALL COME, I, JAMES
WEBSTER, of Birmingham, in the County of Warwick, Engineer, send
greeting.
WHEREAS Her most Excellent Majesty Queen Victoria, by Her Letters
Patent, bearing date the Second day of November, in the year of our

page_text: Lord One thousand eight hundred and sixty-five, in the twenty-ninth
year of Her reign, did, for Herself, Her heirs and successors, give and
grant unto me, the said James Webster, Her special license that 1, the
said James Webster, my executors, administrators, and assigns, or such
others as 1, the said James Webster, my executors, administrators, 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 GENERATING AND APPLYING CERTAIN GASES,
AND IN APPARATUS TO BE EMPLOYED THEREIN," upon the condition (amongst
others) that I, the said James Webster, by an instrument in writing
under ny hand and seal, 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 James Webster, 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, reference being had to the Drawings hereunto annexed,
and to the letters and figures marked thereon, that is to say:
My Invention refers, firstly, to the generating of gases by forcing
currents of atmospheric air through mineral turpentine, napthaline, or rock
oil, or any oil or spirit consisting of a similar base; and, secondly, to the
apparatus to be used in making and applying such gases.
DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS.
Figure 1 is an elevation of the apparatus; Figure 2, a vertical section of
the same; Figure 3, a plan upon the line A, B; and the remaining Drawings
represent details of the burners employed in various applications of the
Invention, and which will be more particularly alluded to herein-after.
(a) is a cylinder, the lower part of which is charged with the oil or spirit
before named as at (6), which is done by pouring it in through the tube (c)
into the reservoir (d), whence it descends into the cylinder by the pipe (e);
air is forced into the oil or spirit by the bellows (f) worked by the treadle
(g), by which the air is driven through the tube (h) and is discharged into
To this drum are connected the series of vertical
a drum or reservoir (i).
tubes (), extending from the under side of the drum (i) to the bottom of

page_text: the cylinder (a); these tubes are by preference formed alternately of
copper and zinc. and have their lower ends immersed in the oil or spirit, the
upper ends being fixed in a block of wood or other non-conductor (h).
By the action of the bellows air is forced through the tube (h) into the
drum (), and thence through the vertical tubes (k) into the oil or spirit,
and in its passage absorbs a portion of the oil or spirit. driving it up the
outer cylinder (a) in the space around the tubes into and through the body
of the cylinder, and through a mass of sponge, or pumicestone, or other
filtrating medium (m) with which the upper part of the cylinder is charged.
whence it issues in the form of gas by the pipe (n). When using this
apparatus as a blow pipe, which is one of its most important forms of appli-
cation, a flexible tube is attached to the pipe (n), to which is fixed the
two-way nozzle pipe shewn at (Figure 4). The gases issuing from the
cylinder through the flexible tube are stopped by the stop-cock (o), which
regulates the supply to the two tubes above it; these two tubes meet again
at a junction (p), whence they are conveyed to the nozzle by two tubes, one
within the other. The outer tube is in section about sixteen times the
area of the inner one, but the inner one takes about sixteen times more
gas than the outer one, the latter being used only to maintain ignition.
The gas being lighted at the nozzle (r) and the bellows worked by the
treadle, an excessively strong heat is produced and can be maintained
until the whole of the oil or spirit has been consumed.
Figures 5, 6, and 7 shew in elevation, section, and plans the form of burner
I employ when using this apparatus for cooking. The tube (s) is covered
by a plate () in which are fixed nozzles (u), and between each nozzle an
aperture () is drilled through the plate. these are covered by a second
plate (c), through which the nozzles protrude, and thus the gas passing
through the nozzles (w) and through, the holes (c) is received into a
chamber (c), whence it issues through and around the nozzles to the point
of ignition. (Figure 8) shews an arrangement of the burners for heating
steam boilers and other similar purposes; Figure 9 being a section of the
tube (y).
Having thus described the nature of my said Invention, and in what
manner the same is to be performed, I do not limit myself to these precise
details, as the same will admit of some variation: but I claim,--
Firstly, the improvements in generating gases for heating purposes by
forcing atmospheric air through mineral turpentine, napthaline, rock oil, or
other similar oil or spirit having the like constituents or base, in manner
described herein.

page_text: And, secondly, I claim the apparatus designed for generating and applying
such gases, or any mere modification of such apparatus involving the same
principles, substantially as herein more fully set forth and specified.
In witness whereof. I. the said James Webster, have hereunto set my
hand and seal, this First day of May, in the year of our Lord
One thousand eight hundred and sixty-six.
JAMES WEBSTER. (L.S.)