IMPROVEMENTS IN FIRE- PLACES AND FURNACES, AND IN THE MODE OF FEEDING THE SAME WITH FUBL
Year: 1868

page_text: LETTERS PATENT to Henry Moule, of Fordington, in the County of
Dorset, Master of Arts, for the Invention of "IMPROVEMENTS IN FIRE-
PLACES AND FURNACES, AND IN THE MODE OF FEEDING THE SAME WITH
FUBL."
Sealed the 5th January 1869, and dated the 31st July 1868.
PROVISIONAL SPECIFICATION left by the said Henry Moule at the
Office of the Commissioners of Patents, with his Petition, on the
31st July 1868.
I, HENRY MOULE, of Fordington, in the County of Dorset, Master of
Arts, do hereby declare the nature of the said Invention for" IMPROVE.
MENTS IN FIRE-PLACES AND FURNACES, AND IN THE MODE OF FEEDING THE SAME
WITH FUEL," to be as follows:-
This Invention relates to the use of water in combination withi
carbonaceous substances as fuel for furnaces and fire-places, the fire-
place being deprived of fire-bars, and the incandescent fuel being

page_text: I will first describe an arrangement by which I feed the fuel through
water, or water mixed with saponaceous or other inflammable matter,
the advantage of which procedure is an economy of fuel, while at the
same time little or no smoke is generated. Immediately below the
fire-place I form a water-tight cistern which may itself form a hopper,
or it may be fitted with a hopper for receiving the liquid matter together
with the coals, coke, shale, or other solid matter to be burned. When
intended to be used as the hopper I form this vessel by preference with
a curved bottom and of a width about equal to the width of the fire-
place its depth is also about equal to the depth of the fire-place
measuring from the front to the back thereof. In this hopper I
mount transversely a swinging perforated piston or valve, which is
intended to sweep over the bottom of the cistern or hopper and press
the fuel contained therein before it. To charge the cistern or hopper
with coal this piston is first raised on its trunnions and the coal being
thrown in the piston is let down in rear of the charge. After charging
the hopper the fire is laid and ignited in the fire-place in the ordinary
manner. Water or soapy or other waste water is then poured into the
hopper upon or with the coals or other fuel, and it is kept up to a
proper level in the cistern or hopper by adding thereto from time to time
as it is consumed or evaporated. The coal or coke as it is pressed up
into the fire-place by the movement of the piston or valve will be coated
and impregnated with the liquid, which on coming in contact with the
fire heat will be reduced to its constituent gases, and being then con-
sumed will add to the intensity of the fire. As the fuel burns away
the piston is caused to press upward a fresh supply from below. The
piston may be made to slide instead of swing, and it may be worked by
an ordinary poker as a lever, or it may be connected with a pedal and
worked with the foot, a ratchet and click being used to retain the piston
in its advanced position.
The advantages consequent on the use of this Invention are, that the
fire will always have a bright top and front, and that when it is desired
to put it out or to lower its heating power the ignited fuel may be
wholly or partially immersed in the water in the cistern. When it is

page_text: desired to renew the supply of fuel while the fire is burning this may
be done while there is still a sufficient weight of fuel below to support
that in the fire-place by withdrawing the piston and inserting more fuel
in face of it.
In some cases I omit the use of the piston or valve and feed the fire in
the usual way on the top, relying upon a mass of fuel lying in the water
in the reservoir below the fire-place for supporting the incandescent
fuel. The heat of the fire will in this instance create a continuous
evaporation, and the burning of the vapour will take place as in the
first-described arrangement, thereby effecting an
economy in the
consumption of fuel.
SPECIFICATION in pursuance of the conditions of the Letters Patent,
filed by the said Henry Moule in the Great Seal Patent Office on
the 30th January 1869.
TO ALL TO WHOM THESE PRESENTS SHALL COME, J, HENRY
MOULE, of Fordington, in the County of Dorset, Master of Arts, send
greeting.
WHEREAS Her most Excellent Majesty Queen Victoria, by Her
Letters Patent, bearing date the Thirty-first day of July, in the year
of our Lord One thousand eight hundred and sixty-eight, in the thirty-
second year of Her reign, did, for Herself, Her heirs and successors,
give and grant unto me, the said Henry Moule, Her special licence that
I, the said Henry Moule, my executors, administrators, and assigns, or
such others as I, the said Henry Moule, 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 herein 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 FIRE-PLACES AND FURNACES, AND IN
THE MODE OF FEEDING THE SAME WITH FUEL," upon the condition (amongst
others) that I, the said Henry Moule, my executors or administrators,
by an instrument in writing under my, or their, or one of their hands
and seals, should particularly describe and ascertain the nature of the
said Invention, and in what manner the same was to be performed, and

page_text: 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 Henry Moule, 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 Drawing hereunto
annexed, and to the letters and figures marked thereon (that is to
say):-
This Invention relates to the use of water in combination with car-
bonaceous substances as fuel for domestic fire-places and furnaces, the
fire-place being deprived of bottom bars or fire-bars for sustaining the
solid fuel, and the incandescent fuel being maintained at the desired
level by means of fuel contained in a reservoir below.
In the accompanying Drawing I have shown several arrangements of
domestic fire-places in which the fuel is fed through water, or water
mixed with saponaceous or other inflammable matter, and from a know-
ledge of their construction it will be readily seen how the Invention
may be applied to steam boiler and other furnaces, the advantage of its
application being that a great economy of fuel is obtained, while at the
same time little or no smoke is generated.
Fig. 1 is a front elevation, Fig. 2 a cross section, and Fig. 3 a sectional
plan of one form of my domestic fire-place for burning coal or coke
supplied thereto through water, or water mixed with saponaceous or
other inflammable liquid. It consists of a grate a (somewhat like an
ordinary grate, but with the bottom removed) fitted upon a water-tight
reservoir or cistern b of segmental form in cross section, and of a width
corresponding with that of the grate. This cistern constitutes the
hopper for receiving into the liquid matter which it contains the coals,
coke, shale, or other solid matter to be burned. The cistern or reservoir
is conveniently made of cast iron with a flange at back to allow of
the attachment of the grate thereto, and with ribs or corrugations, s
shown in Fig. 3, to facilitate the traverse of the solid fuel through the
cistern. In the line of the axis of the curved cistern is mounted a
swinging propeller formed of prongs c, c, arranged all in the same plane,
and projecting from a transverse shaft d mounted in suitable bearings
within and external of the cistern. The propeller is intended to sweep

page_text: or
over the bottom of the cistern and press the fuel contained therein before
it. To charge the cistern with coal the propeller is first raised on its
trunnions, and the coal being thrown in the propeller is let down in
rear of the charge, and being pressed upon it the fuel will be caused to
slide forward and rise to the required level in the grate. This being
effected the upper surface of the fuel is ignited by the aid of shavings
dry wood chips or sticks in the ordinary manner. Water or soapy or
other waste water is poured into the cistern upon or with the coals or
other fuel, and it is kept up to a proper level in the cistern by additions
thereto from time to time as it is consumed or evaporated. The coal or
coke as it is pressed up into the fire-place by the movement of the
propeller will be coated and impregnated with the liquid, which on
coming in contact with the fire heat will be reduced to its constituent
gases, and being then consumed will add to the intensity of the fire.
As the fuel burns away the plunger is caused to press upward a fresh
supply from below.
The means for actuating the propeller may be indefinitely varied,
but that shown at Fig. 1 would serve well for furnaces requiring a
large and constant supply of fuel. On one end of the shaft d is fitted
a wheel e having a ring of holes to receive a lever and two rings of
ratchet teeth, one on either side of the holes, to receive a retaining
click f. On applying a lever to the wheel e and pulling it down to
the shaft d will be rocked and the propeller advanced, at the same
time the click f slipping over the ratchet teeth will retain the propeller
in its advanced position. The propeller it will be obvious may be made
to slide instead of swing, and it may be worked by an ordinary poker as
a lever, or it may be connected with a pedal and worked with the foot,
a ratchet and click being used to retain it in its advanced position.
Fig. shows in vertical section, and Fig. 5 in sectional plan a modified
form of fire-place in which a detached fork is used as the propeller.
The grate a is in this case fitted to a cistern b with a flat bottom, and
its lower front bar is protruded to form a fulcrum for the propelling
fork to rock upon. The coal or coke is contained in a grid g fitted in
the cistern, and composed of two inclines, which form a kind of hopper,
that admits of the liquid contained in the cistern flowing through the
mass of coal lying on the grid. The fork, which is shown in plan at
Fig. 6, is introduced between the grid and the lower bar, and it is fitted

page_text: By
with a plate at the shoulder to bear upon the bar as a fulcrum.
raising and depressing this fork the coal may be lifted to the required
height in the grate a, and the fuel advancing behind the lifted pieces by
force of gravitation will serve to retain the same in position.
A further modification of domestic fire-place is shown at Figures 7, 8,
and 9. Fig. 7 is a plan view, Fig. 8 a front elevation, partly in section,
and Fig. 9 a vertical cross section of a fire-place fitted with side
hoppers h, h, from which coal or other fuel may be continuously
supplied to a kind of cradle or curved grid i placed below the grate,
and contained in the cistern b. In this arrangement the grate and
cistern may conveniently be cast in one piece, a fire-brick back and
metal cheeks being applied, as shown, to encounter the fierce heat of
the fire. A fork will in this case be used to lift the coal up to the
level for burning (that is above the water line), it being inserted in
the direction indicated by the red line in Fig. 9.
It may be here remarked that the advantages consequent on the use
of this Invention are, that the fire will always have a bright top and
front, and that when it is desired to put it out or to lower its heating
power the ignited fuel may be wholly or partially immersed in the
water in the cistern. When it is desired to renew the supply of fuel
(while the fire is burning) to the cistern or grid where a mounted
propeller is used for retaining the fuel in its advanced position, this
may be done while there is still a sufficient weight of fuel below to
support that in the grate by withdrawing the propeller and inserting
more fuel in face of it.
Having now set forth the nature of my Invention of improvements
in fire-places and furnaces, and in the mode of feeding the same with
fuel, and explained the manner of carrying the same into effect, I
wish it to be understood that under the above in part recited Letters
Patent I claim,-
First. Supplying fire-places and furnaces with fuel passed up through
a reservoir of water, or water mixed with saponaceous or other in-
flammable liquid, in the manner and for the purpose above described.
Second. The application to fire-places and furnaces of a reservoir
for containing water and the fuel that is to be supplied to the fire-
place or furnace.

page_text: Third. The means above described for maintaining the fuel at the
proper level in the fire-place.
In witness whereof, I, the said Henry Moule, have hereunto set
my hand and seal, the Twenty-sixth day of January, in the year
of our Lord One thousand eight hundred and sixty-nine.
HENRY MOULE. (L.S.)