Improvements in Working. Motive Power Engines, and in Apparatus Actuated by Combustible Gases to be employed for that Purpose, and for other purposes.
Year: 1893

page_text: Date of Application, 21st Apr:; 1893 、
Complete Specification Left, 21st Feb., 1894-Accepted, 14th Apr., 1894.
PROVISIONAL SPECIFICATION.
Improvements in Working. Motive Power Engines, and in Apparatus
Actuated by Combustible Gases to be employed for that Purpose,
and for other purposes.
I ALFRED. MORCOM, of the Firm of G. E. Belliss and Company, of Ledsam
Street Works, Birmingham in the County of Warwick, Engineers and Boiler
Makers do hereby declare the nature of this invention to be as follows:-
My invention consists of the improvements hereinafter described in working
motive power engines and in apparatus to be employed in the said working a
portion of the apparatus being applicable for other purposes as hereinafter pointed
out.
The essence of my invention consists in the employment for working engines of a
motive power of the kind and produced and used substantially in the manner herein-
after described, the essential feature of the invention consisting in using a gaseous
motive power under pressure produced by effecting under pressure a slow combustion
of coal gas or of oil gas in a properly constructed furnace receiving the products of
combustion in a receiver or reservoir and introducing a further supply of air under
pressure in such a manner as to prevent loss of heat from 'the gaseous products of
combustion and in such quantity as will after mixing with the products of
combustion reduce the temperature so as to permit of the gases being used with
safety in an engine of any of the simple or compound types usually worked by
steam.
=
The air and gas. for combustion and the air for dilution may be pumped into the
furnace and receiver or reservoir respectively by means of pumps worked from the
main engine or by a separate pump. Or a special pump or apparatus of the kind
hereinafter described may be used in which apparatus the mixture of gas and air
is exploded and forced together with the cooling air direct into the receiver or
reservoir.
In carrying my invention into effect by the first indicated method, that is by
the use of a combustion chamber and reservoir, I force the charge of compressed
air and gas, either mixed or separate, in proper proportions for exploding into,
preferably, a fire clay combustion chamber through wire gauze or through a nozzle
or nozzles so as to obtain as intimate a mixture as possible of the air and gas and
to prevent the return of the flame. The gas may be ignited to start the operation,
the heat of the combustion chamber being subsequently sufficient to continue the
process. At the same time the air for diluting or cooling the products of com-
bustion is brought under pressure to and made to traverse the whole surface of the
reservoir and is then allowed to mix with the products of combustion therein. The
air under pressure may be made to pass through concentric tubes preferably of fire
clay inside the reservoir or through other tortuous passages so as to take up and
intercept the loss of heat from the products of combustion.
A pyrometer safety valve and gauge may be fitted to the reservoir and if required
means may be employed to limit the supply of gas and thereby prevent the pressure
within the reservoir rising beyond the arranged pressure.
I use the gaseous mixture under pressure produced in the manner described or in
the manner hereinafter described and expand it in the same way as steam is
employed in the ordinary engine, avoiding or using as little as possible water for
cooling the cylinder or rods, the temperature of the gaseous mixture being
purposely reduced to the required degree.

page_text: ม
The special pump or apparatus hereinbefore referred to for exploding and
compressing the gaseous mixture and forcing it with the cooling air directly into
the reservoir consists essentially of the following parts. Two explosion cylinders
are arranged in line and the prolongation of their plunger rod drives an air pump
and a gas pump situated at opposite ends of and in line with the explosion cylinders.
The gas is admitted by valves to one side of the piston say, of the first explosion
cylinder while that piston is making its advance stroke. The said advance stroke
being effected by the pressure due to an explosion on the left hand side of the
piston in the second explosion cylinder Op the reverse stroke made by the
explosion of charge on the right hand side of either piston of the two explosion
cylinders the gaseous charge on the left band side of the piston in the first explosion
cylinder is compressed and when that piston is near the end of its stroke: the said
compressed gaseous' charge is exploded and the piston and rod again make their
advance stroke..
The operation on each side of the pistons in the two explosion cylinders is alike
and is as follows. The gas is taken in on the first advance stroke compressed on
the return; explodes and expands on the second advance stroke-and-the-products
of combustion are driven out on the second return stroke. The explosions must
take place alternately on the back and front faces of the pistons in the explosion
cylinders and this may be arranged by separate clockwork or other mechanism.
bringing each end in proper order under conditions for firing by electric spark or
other igniting source; or a valve arrangement operated by the motion of the
plunger rod may be adopted. If the pump is used for filling a reservoir as before
described the exhaust will communicate by means of a non-return valve and in this
case a firing tube or other arrangement placed suitably at the commencement of the
exhaust passage might be adopted.
The special pump or apparatus last described may be used for obtaining a
to and fro motion by the explosion of gas with air for any required purpose.
Dated this 21st day of April 1893.
W. T. WHITEMAN,
Agent for the Applicant.
COMPLETE
SPECIFICATION.
Improvements in Working Motive Power Engines, and in Apparatus
Actuated by Combustible Gases to be employed for that Purpose,
and for other purposes.
I, ALFRED MORCOM, of the Firm of G. E.. Belliss and Company, of Ledsam
Street Works, Birmingham, in the County of Warwick, Engineers and Boiler
Makers, 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 consists of the improvements hereinafter described in working
motive power engines and in apparatus to be employed in the said working which
apparatus is applicable for other purposes.
In my Provisional Specification I have described a method of producing motive
power by the slow combustion of coal gas or oil gas in a furnace under pressure
and also a special gas operated pump intended to supply the said furnace with air,
or air and gas under pressure, and I have described the pump as applicable to
other purposes. I find that the method of obtaining motive power is old and so I
do not now consider it as a part of my invention. The special gas pump, however,
is novel and useful, and it may be applied in connection with motive power
engines having an air reservoir, or separately as indicated in the said Provisional
Specification.
The special pump or apparatus hereinbefore referred to for exploding aud

page_text: compressing the gaseous mixture and forcing it with the cooling air directly
into the reservoir consists essentially of the following parts:-Two explosion
cylinders are arranged in line, and the prolongation of their plunger rod
drives an air, pump, and a gas pump situated at opposite ends of, and in line
with, the explosion cylinders.. The gas is admitted by valves to one side of the
piston, say of the first explosion cylinder, while that piston is making its advance
stroke; the said advance stroke being effected by the pressure due to an explosion
on the left hand side of the piston, in the second explosion cylinder. On the
reverse stroke made by the explosion of a charge on the right hand side of either
piston of the two explosion cylinders, the gaseous charge on the left hand side of
the piston in the first explosion cylinder is compressed, and when that piston is
near the end of its stroke, the said compressed gaseous charge is exploded and the
piston and rod again make their advance stroke.
:-
Referring to the three accompanying sheets of drawings
Figure 1 is a longitudinal section showing the general arrangement of my special
gas pump.
Figure 2 is a longitudinal section on a larger scale of a suitable valve with its
casing for an explosion cylinder, the said valve being arranged to control the
admission of gas and air, to the cylinder, and the discharge of the exhaust gases.
Figure 3 is a transverse section corresponding to Figure 2, and also showing a
method of igniting the charge.
Figure 4 is an elevation drawn to the same scale, as Figures 2 and 3, showing
a method of operating the valves from the piston rod.
Figure 5 is a plan corresponding to Figure 4.
The two explosion cylinders respectively A and B are bolted to the bed plate &,
and the said bed plate carries in line with them at either end the air pump
cylinder e¹ and the gas pump cylinder d'. The piston rod c passes through all
four cylinders and operates the four pistons; a and b are the motor pistons, and
d and e are respectively the gas pump and air pump pistons.
The motor cylinders A and B are water jacketed as at p p.
The valves controlling the operations of the cylinder A are shown at A' A²,
and those controlling the cylinder Bat B' B. These four rotating valves are keyed
to a common spindle C which spindle is rotated by means of the bevil wheels C₁ F
and a pawl and ratchet device shown on a larger scale at Figures 4 and 5, and
operated by the movement of the piston rod c.
The operation on each side of the pistons a b in the two explosion cylinders A B
is alike, and is as follows:-The gas and air mixture is taken in on the first
advance stroke and compressed on the return into the explosion space marked 1;
the mixture is then exploded and by its expansion it forces the piston a on the
second advance stroke; on the second return stroke the products of combustion on
the side 1 are expelled by way of the valve A. In the same way the charging,
compressing and exploding, expanding, and exhaust operations, are carried on, on
the side 2 of the piston a, and on the sides 3 and 4 of the piston b respectively.
The explosions, are arranged to take place alternately on the back and front faces
of the pistons a b, so that an explosion stroke is given in each direction alternately.
That is, by means of the two cylinders and pistons in line the necessary four cycle
of gas engine operations is carried into effect, and yet one power impulse is given
for each backward and forward stroke. This sequence of operations may be
arranged by separate clockwork or other mechanism bringing each end in proper
order under conditions for firing by electric spark, or other iguiting source; or a valve
arrangement operated by the motion of the plunger rod may be adopted. Such an
arrangement is indicated at Figure 1, and is shown more fully on a larger scale at
Figures 4 and 5. The piston rod c carries a pin f, which strikes upon a shoulder on
the link g, when moving in the direction of the arrow (Figures 4 and 5), and so the
said link is moved in the same direction, and moves with it a lever F' which lever
carries a pawl F operating in the ratchet wheel F. This wheel F has four teeth,
and at each movement of the piston rod towards the end of its stroke, the pawl F*

page_text: is moved sufficiently to carry the ratchet wheel round by one fourth of the circle.
The lever with its pawl is returned at the end of each stroke by the spring,
so as to be able to operate again at the end of the return stroke. The pin f
similarly strikes the link g' at the other end of the stroke, and so towards each end
of the stroke the ratchet wheel is operated. In this manner the vertical spindle F
is rotated through a quarter revolution at each end of the pump stroke. The bevil
wheels C F communicate the same rotation to the valve spindle C and so the four
valves A' A' B and B are rotated, and accomplish a complete revolution in four
single strokes of the pump,
The action of these valves will be readily understood on referring to Figures 2
and 3.
The valves rotate in the direction of the arrow marked on Figure 3. In the
position shown on these figures the piston a is supposed to be making its suction or
charging stroke to fill that side of the cylinder marked ; air passes by the pipe E
to the port H, and from H it enters the cylinder by the passage h; gas is supplied
by suitable pipe connections, not shown, to the port L, whence it streams as
indicated by the arrows through holes L' and enters with the air into the cylinder.
When the charging stroke-is nearing its termination the valve A' is rotated one
quarter revolution, in the direction of the arrow, Figure 3, and so the passage his
closed off. The piston a, is then returned and compresses the mixture in the
cylinder ready to be exploded, and just as the compression is being completed
the valve A' receives another quarter revolution which brings it fairly opposite to the
position shown. The explosion then occurs and at the end of the explosion stroke
the valve is again rotated a quarter revolution, and brings the exhaust port I opposite
the passage h. On the return of the piston the burned contents of the cylinder
are discharged by way of the said port 1 to the exhaust pipe D, and so the cycle of
operations is completed.
The side 2 of the cylinder A, and the sides 3 and 4 of B are operated in the
same manner so that the impulses succeed each other in their proper order.
The covers K of the valves A' A B' B2 are held down in a well known manner
by springs and studs.
The ignition may be effected by an incandescent tube as m, connecting to the
passage h, and the proper timing of the ignition may be regulated by varying the
point of incandescence in the said tube m, so that ignition only occurs when a
proper amount of compression has been attained in precisely the manner of igniting
the charge in many gas engines or a timing valve operated from the piston rod c
may be applied.
The passages hh'k and k¹ from the ends 1, 2, 3 and 4 of the cylinders A B
communicate between the said cylinders and the valves.
D and D' are the exhaust pipes and E E' and E2 are the air supply pipes. The
gas supply pipes are not shown.
The valves of the gas pump d' are not indicated and the valves of the air pumpe
are only indicated in a diagrammatic manner.
The special pump hereinbefore described may be applied to pump water or other
liquids or indeed to any other purpose where a to and fro motion is required.
Having now particularly described and ascertained the nature of my said inven-
tion, and in what manner the same is to be performed, I declare that what I
claim is :-
:-
1. A direct acting pump operated by the explosion of a compressed mixture of
gas and air or other compressed inflammable gaseous mixture comprising-two
explosion cylinders in tandem having pistons actuating one piston rod; the valve
gear of the said cylinders being so operated as to provide a power impulse for each
backward and forward stroke substantially as hereinbefore described.
2. A direct acting pump as claimed in the first claim, having rotary valves
actuated by pawl and ratchet from the piston rod, substantially as hereinbefore
described.

page_text: 3. A direct acting pump or motor to produce to and fro motion for any required
purpose, constructed and operating as hereinbefore described reference being had
to the accompanying drawings.
Dated this 20th day of February 1894
MARKS & CLERK,
18, Southampton Buildings, London, W.C., and
13, Temple Street, Birmingham, Agents for the Applicant.