An Improved Packing for Flanges of Steam, Gas, and Water Apparatus, Stuffing Boxes, Pistons, and the like.
Year: 1897

page_text: Date of Application, 8th Nov., 1897-Accepted, 19th Feb., 1898
An Improved Packing for Flanges of Steam, Gas, and Water
Apparatus, Stuffing Boxes, Pistons, and the like.
I, CARL ENDRUWEIT, of 12, Triftstrasse, Berlin, W., in the Empire of Germany,
Manufacturer, 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:-
It is known in practice that in spite of the employment of various methods of
packing and of materials utilised the manner of tightening same so as to effect a
really reliable packing able to resist with success considerable steam pressure and
the high degree of heat from modern high pressure engines, gas motors, and pipes
is defective. At present such packings are tightened only by the exterior effect of
a high mechanical pressure which method causes a considerable loss of power and
affects the durability of movable machine parts (especially of piston and side rods).
The hereinafter described invention fulfils in a most perfect manner all require-
ments which can be asked from a really reliable packing, the following points
being kept in view.
In order to avoid the greatest inconvenience of the present packings, that is the
enormous loss of power and the consequent larger consumption of steam in the
motors, which is to be seen in the fact, that the present packings remain temporarily
steam tight only on screwing the stuffing box gland with force down on the same,
the object of this invention is first to create a packing, which lies loosely in the
stuffing box without exterior mechanical pressure weighing thereon.
The second object of the invention is to use steam, gas or water themselves for
effecting automatically the tightening by means of their own pressure on the
packing.
In this invention there is not used as packing thick strong rings or the like,
but two entirely different materials, which are placed loosely and alternately over
one another in very thin layers.
According to this invention the thus arranged material is placed in stuffing
boxes at an angle to the direction of the pressure, in consequence of which the
pressure operating on the packing tends to put the single layers of the packing
straight, whereby the single sheets, foils, or disks lying loosely on one another are
pressed strongly on one another and are tightened securely at their exterior edges
against the wall of the stuffing box or of the cylinder and against the machine
part to be tightened.
The packing consists preferably of single layers lying loosely over one another
of galvanically produced metal coated paper, but it may also consist of an alternate
layer of exceedingly thin galvanically or mechanically produced metal sheet in
combination with paper, paste board, canvas, fabric, or any other suitable material.
The packings produced according to the before described process have the following
great advantages. As the packing consists of infinitely thin layers of metal foils in
connection with equally correspondingly thin interposed layers of an elastic
material, it is nearly indestructible and for instance in flange tightenings an

page_text: absolutely tight connection of the single foils or sheets can be made since by means
of the flange screws a strong pressure is given on the single layers, which pressure
is transferred from one layer to the other by the elastic interposed layers. Any
unevenness is entirely equalized by the infinite thinness of each of the single layers
and in this manner there is created a completely strongly closed whole.
In packings for stuffing boxes it may be first mentioned that contrarily to the
hitherto known treatment of all hitherto used tightenings, in this packing the
stuffing box nuts are not screwed down strongly as hitherto, but the single layers
rest only lightly on one another. A complete mobility is obtained in the single
layers whereby they can fit to all even the smallest unevennesses. It has further
the purpose that the interposed layers provided between the single metal layers
and consisting of appropriate elastic and absorbtive material remain able to receive
in an equal manner the oil for lubricating the stuffing box, whilst the single metal
sheets, which bedded in the soft material form harder ribs, which are however
flexible in consequence of their properties, protect the packing against quick
wearing and especially against destruction by heat. In order to allow an automatic
tightening of the packing effected by the steam pressure, the single thin layers
of the same are placed at an angle to the steam pressure (see annexed drawing)
whereby as the steam tends to press the opposing oblique surface straight, the
exterior edge of the single disks is pressed against the moved machine part as well
as against the wall of the stuffing box or of the cylinder, which pressure is in
proportion to the steam pressure and thus causes as the steam pressure increases, an
always stronger automatic tightening.
As it is not necessary to tighten the packing by means of screw spanners, it is
recommendable to provide under the stuffing box gland counter nuts, by means of
which the stuffing box gland can be adjusted fixedly, in order to keep thus the auto-
matic tightening in a durable manner and to prevent a loss of power of the machine
by unnecessarily screwing up the screws.
Having now particularly described and ascertained the nature of this in-
vention and in what manner the same is to be performed I declare that what I
claim is
1. An improved packing for flanges of steam, gas and water apparatus, stuffing
boxes, and pistons, consisting of layers of metal paper lying over one another or of
thin galvanically or mechanically produced metal foils in connection with elastic
soft and oil conducting interposed layers of paper, paste board, fabric, canvas, or
similar appropriate materials.
2. The application of the packing as in Claim 1 to stuffing boxes, whereby the
same is arranged in layers lying loosely on one another at an angle to the direction
of steam pressure for the purpose of obtaining a tightening of the packing operating
automatically in proportion to the steam pressure.
Dated this 8th day of November 1897.
HERBERT HADDAN & Co.,
Agents to Applicant,
18, Buckingham Street, Strand, W.C., London.