Improved Means for Heating by Electricity..
Year: 1898

page_text: Date of Application, 10th Dec., 1898
Complete Specification Left, 7th Sept., 1899-Accepted, 28th Oct., 1899
PROVISIONAL SPECIFICATION.
Improved Means for Heating by Electricity..
I, DIMITRIS TSCHERNOFF, Engineer, of Pessotschnaya 25, St. Petersburg, in the
Empire of Russia, do hereby declare the nature of this invention to be as
follows:-
My invention has for its object the electrical conveyance for industrial pur-
poses, of heat from its concentrated source to more or less distant places, and
the distribution of heat to the places of its consumption by means of electric
conductors, and for this purpose I transform the heat from the concentrated source
into electric current by means of a gas motor and a dynamo, and at the places
of consumption of the heat I again transform the electric current into heat by
means of an improved gas heater.
In carrying out my system on a large scale, as for instance for heating the
dwellings in towns, great advantages may be realised in economical, as well as
in hygienic respects. In the first instance, all expeuses ensuing from the frac-
tional transportation of fuel to different parts of the town and to distant stores,
as also from delivering it into separate houses will be saved; besides, a concen-
trated combustion of fuel in a limited number of central stations ensures the
possibility of its utilisation with far greater economy, than its fractional com-
bustion in a great number of separate ovens and furnaces, which are often of a
very unsatisfactory construction; not to speak of the possibility of avoiding in
this case the services of retail fuel dealers, whose gain enormously increases the
cost of the fuel to customers. In hygienic respects, my system completely avoids
the smoke and soot in towns, the fumes and noxious gases from the fuel, which
is highly desirable for the sanitary improvement of towns.
I am aware that the transformation of heat into electric current and its distribu-
tion, as also the transformation of the current into heat, present by themselves
no novelty, and I make no claim to such transformation, but only to the
characteristic peculiarities of my system of conveying heat, which consist essenti-
ally in the combination in one cycle of the following apparatus: a) gas generators
for transforming a solid or liquid fuel into gas; b) gas motors for transforming
heat into mechanical work, which in its turn is transformed into electric current
by means of a dynamo; and c) gas heaters of special construction, for trans-
forming the electric current into heat and for transmitting the latter to gases
or vapours (such as: air, steam, combustible gases etc.) which pass through such
gas heaters. In the whole system only the arrangement of gas heaters is new
and original by itself, while all other parts of the system may be, according to
local conditions, of any known types of gas generators, gas engines, dynamos, etc.
In the annexed drawings, Figure 1 represents a longitudinal section of my
improved gas heater; Figures 2 and 3 represent cross sections of it (with one and
three pairs of conductors E respectively;) Figure 4 shews the arrangement of
the gas heater as applied for heating the air to be blown into a blast furnace;
Figure 5 is a longitudinal section, and Figure 6 a front view of a metallurgical
or similar furnace with my gas heaters applied thereto.
The electrical gas heater consists essentially of a tube. box or evlinder A

page_text: (Figures 1, 2 and 3) which may be rectangular, oval, round or otherwise shaped
in cross section, and provided with one or more side openings B, and which forms
the external casing of the apparatus. Within this casing is fixed, by means of
insulating rings or packing a a of refractory material (as for instance asbestos,)
the inner box, cylinder or tube C made of some refractory material and a bad
conductor of heat (as for instance porcelain, chamotte, magnesite etc.), this tube
is provided with side holes or openings 6 b. The tubes A and C are closed at one
end by a cover or lid 1) through which pass along the tube C one or more pairs
of thick electric conductors E, E, isolated from the tubes A, C, and communicating
with the whole system of electric conductors by means of switches or commu-
tators as usual. Each pair of conductors E is connected through the openings bb
by a number of thin wires, bands or metallic nets d d d arranged in the tube C;
these wires, bands etc. become heated by the electric current to a temperature
which depends upon the tension and strength of the current.
The action of this apparatus in its various applications is the following:.
Through the opening or openings B the gas to be heated is led or forced
in the annular space between the tubes A and C. From this space the gas passes
through the holes or openings 6b in the inner space of the tube C, where the
gas is heated by hot wires, bands etc. d d and is discharged by the nozzle F. By
thus directing the gas to be heated, a constant cooling of the exterior casing A
is attained and consequently the loss of heat by external radiation is diminished,
and an excessive heating of the conductors E E is avoided. In case the gases
are required to attain a very high temperature, the inner tube C can be provided
with double walls with an air space between for more securely protecting the
conductors E E from being heated.
In the arrangement shown by Figure 4, A is the gas heater provided with a
nozzle F and placed in each blast hole of the blast furnace G. H is a flexible
pipe supplying the gas heater with cold air from the general air conduit I fed
by some blower. E E are electric conductors leading from a dynamo rotated
by a gas motor which is brought into action by the gases escaping from the blast
furnace.
For metallurgical or glass making furnaces I use two sets of heaters as shown
on Figures 5 and 6. The heaters A A supply the furnace with generator gas
and the heaters A¹ A' with the highly heated air, which is required for burning
the gas. By this means I obviate the necessity of having regenerators, and the
products of combustion escaping from the furnace at N may be led under a
boiler for producing steam, which by means of an engine may drive a dynamo
for supplying the current to the heaters A A A¹ A¹.
In applying my system in dwellings it will be sufficient to mount the heater
represented on Figure 1 in a vertical position with the nozzle F up, and to let
the current pass through the heater. The air contained in the cylinder C becomes
heated and will ascend by the natural draught, the fresh air entering through
the openings B and the heated air being discharged by the nozzle F directly into
the room, which is perfectly available as the air by this method of heating it will
in no way be deteriorated."
Dated this 10th day of December 1898.
Improved Means for Heating by Electricity.
I, DIMITRIS TSCHERNOFF, Engineer, of Pessotschnaya 25, St. Petersburg, in the
Empire of Russia, do hereby declare the nature of this invention and in what

page_text: •
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 the electrical conveyance for industrial pur-
poses, of heat from its concentrated source to more or less distant places, and
the distribution of heat to the places of its consumption by means of electric
conductors, and for this purpose I transform the heat from the concentrated source
into electric current by means of a gas motor and a dynamo, and at the places
of consumption of the heat I again transform the electric current into heat by
means of an improved gas heater.
In carrying out my system on a large scale, as for instance for heating the
dwellings in towns, great advantages may be realised in economical, as well as
in hygienic respects. In the first instance, all expenses ensuing from the frac-
tional transportation of fuel to different parts of the town and to distant stores,
as also from delivering it into separate houses will be saved; besides, a concen-
trated combustion of fuel in a limited number of central stations, ensures the
possibility of its utilisation with far greater economy, than its fractional com-
bustion in a great number of separate ovens and furnaces, which are often of a
very unsatisfactory construction; not to speak of the possibility of avoiding in
this case the services of retail fuel dealers, whose gain enormously increases the
cost of the fuel to customers. In hygienic respects, my system completely avoids
the smoke and soot in towns, the fumes and noxious gases from the fuel, which
is highly desirable for the sanitary improvement of towns.
I am aware that the transformation of heat into electric current and its distribu-
tion, as also the transformation of the current into heat, present by themselves
no novelty, and I make no claim to such transformation, but only to the
characteristic peculiarities of my system of conveying heat, which consist essenti-
ally in the combination in one cycle of the following apparatus: a) gas generators
for transforming a solid or liquid fuel into gas; b) gas motors for transforming
heat into mechanical work, which in its turn is transformed into electric current
by means of a dynamo; and c) gas heaters of special construction, for trans-
forming the electric current into heat and for transmitting the latter to gases
or vapours (such as: air, steam, combustible gases etc.) which pass through such
gas heaters. In the whole system only the arrangement of gas heaters is new
and original by itself, while all other parts of the system may be, according to
local conditions, of any known types of gas generators, gas engines, dynamos, etc.
In the drawings left with the Provisional Specification, Figure 1 represents a
longitudinal section of my improved gas heater; Figures 2 and 3 represent cross
sections of it (with one and three pairs of conductors E respectively;) Figure 4
shews the arrangement of the gas heater as applied for heating the air to be blown
into a blast furnace; Figure 5 is a longitudinal section, and Figure 6 a front view
of a metallurgical or similar furnace with my gas heaters applied thereto.
The electrical gas heater consists essentially of a tube, box or cylinder A
(Figures 1, and 3) which may be rectangular, oval, round or otherwise shaped
in cross section, and provided with one or more side openings B, and which forms
the external casing of the apparatus. Within this casing is fixed, by means of
insulating rings or packing a a of refractory material (as for instance asbestos,)
the inner box, cylinder or tube C made of some refractory material and a bad
conductor of heat (as for instance porcelain, chamotte, magnesite etc.), this tube
is provided with side holes or openings bb. The tubes A and C are closed at one
end by a cover or lid D. through which pass along the tube C one or more pairs
of thick electric conductors E, E, isolated from the tubes A, C, and communicating
with the whole system of electric conductors by means of switches or commu-
tators as usual. Each pair of conductors E is connected through the openings bb
by a number of thin wires, bands or metallic nets d d d arranged in the tube C;
these wires, bands etc. become heated by the electric current to a temperature
which depends upon the tension and strength of the current.

page_text: The action of this apparatus in its various applications is the following:
Through the opening or openings B the gas to be heated is led or forced
in the annular space between the tubes A and C. From this space the gas passes
through the holes or openings 6b in the inner space of the tube C, where the
gas is heated by hot wires, bands etc. d d and is discharged by the nozzle F. By
thus directing the gas to be heated, a constant cooling of the exterior casing A
is attained and consequently the loss of heat by external radiation is diminished,
and an excessive heating of the conductors E E is avoided. In case the gases
are required to attain a very high temperature, the inner tube C can be provided
with double walls with an air space between for more securely protecting the
conductors E E from being heated.
In the arrangement shown by Figure 4, A is the gas heater provided with a
nozzle and placed in each blast hole of the blast furnace G. H is a flexible
pipe supplying the gas heater with cold air from the general air conduit I fed
by some blower. E E are electric conductors leading from a dynamo rotated
by a gas motor which is brought into action by the gases escaping from the blast
furnace.
For metallurgical or glass making furnaces I use two sets of heaters as shown
on Figures 5 and 6. The heaters A A supply the furnace with generator gas
and the heaters A¹ A¹ with the highly heated air, which is required for burning
the gas. By this means I obviate the necessity of having regenerators, and the
products of combustion escaping from the furnace at N may be led under a
boiler for producing steam, which by means of an engine may drive a dynamo
for supplying the current to the heaters A A A¹ A¹
In applying my system in dwellings it will be sufficient to mount the heater
represented on Figure 1 in a vertical position with the nozzle F up, and to let
the current pass through the heater. The air contained in the cylinder C becomes
heated and will ascend by the natural draught, the fresh air entering through
the openings B and the heated air being discharged by the nozzle F directly into
the room, which is perfectly available as the air by this method of heating it will
in no way be deteriorated."
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. The system of electrically conveying heat consisting in the combination of
following processes: a) the transformation of a local concentrated store of solid
or liquid fuel into gas; b) the combustion of said gas in a gas engine for convert-
ing the heat into mechanical work; c) the transformation of the mechanical work
into an electric current by means of dynamo machines; d) the distribution of
the electric current to places of consumption of heat by means of electric conduc-
tors and e) the transformation of electrical energy into heat at the places of heat
consumption by means of electric gas heaters.
2. An electrical gas heater to be used in the system of electrically conveying
heat, claimed in the preceding paragraph--characterized by the arrangement of
thin wires, bands or nets placed in a perforated box, tube or cylinder C, the said
wires, bands or nets connecting the thick electric conductors E E, so as to be
heated by the electric currents, whereby the gases passing through the external
casing A and the inner tube or box C can be heated to any desired temperature.
Dated this 7th day of Santambo 1000
CARPMAEL & Co.,
Agents for the Applicant.