Improvements in or relating to the Employment of Air for Lighting and Heating Purposes.
Year: 1894

page_text: Date of Application, 19th Jan:, 1894
Complete Specification Left, 18th Oct., 1891-Accepted, 15th Dec., 1894
PROVISIONAL SPECIFICATION.
Improvements in or relating to the Employment of Air for Lighting
and Heating Purposes.
We DAVID HANCOCK, Gas Engineer, of 50 West Ham Lane, JOHN BELL
CRAIG, Candle Maker, of 3 Hotham Street, and ALFRED HEARN HANCOCK,
Scenic Artist, of 50 West Ham Lane, all in Stratford in the County of London,
do hereby declare the nature of this invention to be as follows:-
Hitherto it has been customary in the employment of air for lighting and heating
purposes to mix the air with a certain proportion of coal gas, by means of an
atmospheric burner.
The object of this invention is to dispense with the use of coal gas entirely.
In order to effect this, we take common air at a pressure and carburet it, which
may be done in a similar way to carburetting coal gas, and either near the burner
or at any distance therefrom.
The burner we propose to employ, for lighting purposes, is a ring burner,
somewhat similar to that known as "the Argand burner," but being closed at the
bottom, so as to do away with the central draught. In the centre of said burner
we fit an upright rod, having a cone or disc at a suitable distance above the ring
for spreading out the flame. On the said rod we fix a gauze cap or mantle, made
of metallic oxide or other suitable substance, which will become incandescent upon
being heated by the flame derived from the combustion of the carburetted air.
For heating purposes ordinary burners may be employed-the flames impinging
upon asbestos or other material, as at present where atmospheric burners are
employed.
It will be seen by the above that the dangers through leakage of pipes, incident
to coal gas, will be avoided; as nothing will escape from the pipes but air; and the
cost of lighting and heating by this means would be infinitesimal; further, there
would be no sulphurous fumes given off, to damage decorations and be injurious to
health; and many of the harmful products of combustion, generated by ordinary
gas lighting, would be absent.
BROWNE & Co.,
9, Warwick Court, Gray's Inn, London,
Agents for Applicants.
COMPLETE SPECIFICATION.
Improvements in or relating to the Employment of Air for Lighting
and Heating Purposes.
We, DAVID HANCOCK, Gas Engineer, of 50 West Ham Lane, JOHN BELL
CRAIG of 3 Hotham Street, Candle Maker, and ALFRED HEARN HANCOCK,
Scenic Artist, of 50 West Ham Lane, all in Stratford in the County of London,
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:
Hitherto in gas lighting and heating it has been customary to mix air in proper
proportions with coal gas by means of an atmospheric burner, that is to allow the
air to pass into the burner and issue therefrom mixed with the gas. Now such

page_text: modes of producing the proper admixture present considerable disadvantages when
the gas is to be employed for heating and particularly when for use in producing
incandescence in the burners for so-called incandescent gas lighting.
Now the object of our invention is to dispense with the necessity of introducing
air at the burner and thus reducing pressure of gas, and instead thereof we employ
air, which we carburet at a pressure or mix the air with gas, and this operation
may be effected at any convenient distance from the burner. The air is to be thus
saturated with volatile gases of hydrocarbons or other gases in proper proportions
so as to be readily and eminently suitable for combustion in burners (hereafter
described) for incandescent gas lighting and for heating purposes. Any suitable
proportion of gas thus intermixed with air, is, as will be understood, readily and
equally applicable for the purposes of our invention, such as hydrogen or
water gas.
The burners we employ for the purposes of our invention differ from those
hitherto employed for coal gas incandescent lighting or for heating, in that air as
aforesaid is not admitted at the burner, and we are enabled to produce a heating
flame suitable for these special purposes and to burn same at any desired pressure
whereby a greater heat and incandescence is produced than heretofore.
The accompanying drawing will clearly show the construction of burners suitable
for use for incandescent lighting and for beating purposes.
Figure 1 is an elevation of a ring burner, Figure 2 a vertical section of the
nozzle portion of the same burner and Figure 3 a plan taken on line X Y of
Figure 1.
Figure 4 shows in elevation the application of a so-called batswing or fishtail
burner to the purposes of incandescent lighting and heating, and Figure 5 is a plan
view of same on the line X' Y¹ of Figure 4.
The ring burner shown at Figs. 1 and 2 as adapted to the purposes of our
invention, is somewhat similar to that class known as "Argand burners" but closed
at the centre part. A is the carburetted air or gas supply tube, A', Figure 2,
being an annular perforated or gauze cover above which combustion takes place,
B is a cone or disc fixed at a suitable distance above the ring or burner to act as a
spreader for the flame, and is carried at a suitable place on the vertical rod or
support C from which latter such a gauze cap or mantle D is suspended as is
suitable, when brought to incandescence by the flame derived from the carburetted
air or gas, for giving off the light. It is to be observed that with burners thus
constructed there is no central draught or air supply, and outer atmospheric air
is not admitted into the burner in incandescent lighting according to our
invention.
For heating and other purposes ordinary burners may be employed, for example
as shown at Figs. 4 and 5 where an application of a burner of the so-called
batswing or fishtail type is shown applied. A is the supply tube, D is the mantle,
C is the central support carried by the lateral arms C Cand adjustable thereon.
E is a base plate supporting the lateral arms C¹ C' and around which the base of
the mantle D fits. We sometimes prefer to form two exit apertures F F in the
burner as shown at Figure 5 made to direct the flames outwards to impinge against
the mantle. For other heating purposes the flame of the burner or burners is
caused to impinge against asbestos or other material as at present wherein
atmospheric burners are employed.
Having now particularly described and ascertained the nature of our said inven-
tion and in what manner the same is to be performed we declare that what we
claim is :-
1. In lighting, the employment of carburetted air in combination with a burner
constructed substantially as described and into which atmospheric air is not
admitted at the burner, together with a gauze or other mantle capable of being
brought to a state of incandescence and substantially as and for the purposes set
forth with reference to Figures 1 to 5 of the accompanying drawings.

page_text: 2. The employment of carburetted air in combination with a burner constructed
substantially as described and into which atmospheric air is not admitted at the
burner, the air and gas issuing at a pressure, and the produced flame acting upon
asbestos or other substance, or manufactured material, to be brought to, and
maintained at, a state of incandescence substantially as set forth.
Dated this 17th day of October 1894.
DAVID HANCOCK.
JOHN BELL CRAIG.
ALFRED HEARN HANCOCK.