A New Method of and Means for Generating Steam in Steam Engines.
Year: 1899

page_text: Date of Application, 6th Feb., 1899
Complete Specification Left, 6th Nov., 1899 -Accepted, 5th May. 1900
PROVISIONAL SPECIFICATION.
A New Method of and Means for Generating Steam in Steam Engines.
I, HENRY ALONZO BUCK, of Hotel Metropole, London, Engineer, do hereby
declare the nature of this invention to be as follows:-..
f...t.
This invention relates to a new method of and means for generating steam in
'steam engines and it has for its objects to increase the efficiency of the generating
plant, to utilise as far as possible the heat contained by the waste products of
combustion that escape from the fire box of the boiler, and generally, to minimise
the cost of running and, maintaining the plant.
In carrying the invention into effect, provide a boiler of any well known
multitubulai form and heated in the usual way, the boiler being filled with
water under pressure, the pressure on the water being maintained and regulated
by means of an hydraulic accumulator to which the water is supplied by a suit-
able force pump, the feed from the pump being automatically regulated by means
of a, suitable device actuated in any convenient manner by the ram of the
accumulato
The heated water is led from the boiler through a suitable tube, which may
be ordinary hydraulic tubing, and is preferably drawn from the front of the
boiler (which it will be understood is completely filled with water), the opening
in the tube being located at or near the top of the boiler, and the water passes
therethrough to, the engine. The supply tube for the engine is so arranged that
by means of a valve hereinafter more fully described, the water may either be
admitted to the cylinder of the said engine, or, when the engine is not running
it 'may return to the boiler, being admitted thereto at the back, and at a point
lower than the discharge opening.
The tubes leading to and from the boiler to the engine as well as the water
feed tube are all enclosed in suitable Jackets on cases, which may be covered
externally with any non-conducting substance or material. within which circulate
the heated waste gases from the fuel and the cylinder or cylinders of the engine
would also be provided with a similar jacket or case, the gases here serving to
raise the temperature of the cylinder thereby assisting in the case of a single
cylinder in the conversion of the heated water into steam, and also the main-
tenance of that steam at the highest possible temperature consistent with perfect
lubrication whilst the effective work is being obtained from it, and where two or
more cylinders are employed to keep the temperature and consequently pressure
of steam when admitted thereto as high as possible, the pressure of the said
steam being dependent upon the initial temperature of the water in the boiler
and the temperature of the cylinder to which the water is admitted.
The valve before referred to as governing the admission of the water to the
engine may in its simplest form consist of a casing or shell within which is a
plug having formed in it a small chamber of sufficient size to receive a small
quantity of water and which plug may be caused by any suitable means to have an
Intermittent partial rotation so as to discharge the water with which the chamber
'

page_text: is filled into the heated cylinder of the engine where it is at once converted into
steam.
The exhaust steam may pass through a suitable condenser from which the con-
densed steam is drawn by the feed pump aforesaid and fed to the hydraulic
accumulator from whence, as already described, it passes to the boiler.
Dated this 6th day of Webruary 1899
A New Method of and Means for Generating Steam in Steam Engines.
1, HENRY ALONZO BUCK, of 11, Montague Street, Russell Square, London, late
of Hotel Metropole, London, Engineer, 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:-
This invention relates to a new method of, and means tor generating steam in
steam engines, and to increase the efficiency and to minimise the consumption
of coal per h.-p. by generating the steam in the cylinder of the engine, thereby
utilising to better advantage the high temperature of the water in its evaporation,
and generally to decrease the cost of running and maintaining the plant.
In carrying the invention into effect I construct a boiler of any well-known
form, but preferably multitubular, and heated in the usual manner, but instead
of utilising water under atmospheric pressure the boiler is filled with water under
hydraulic pressure when the heat is applied. The pressure upon the water 18
obtained and regulated by means of an hydraulic accumulator inserted between
the feed water-pump and the boiler, and is so arranged that by means of a lever
or levers the steam supply to the feed-pump is governed by the ram of the
accumulator to which the said lever or levers, as the case may be, is or are
attached, and by this means it is possible to regulate the feed to the boiler auto-
matically, more or less water being fed thereto, according to the quantity supplied
to the engine. The feed to the engine is so arranged that the water may either
be fed to the cylinder, or when the engine is not running it may be returned to
the boiler, being preferably drawn therefrom at the top and returned thereto
at a point below the feed opening. The tubing for the feed may be hydraulic
tubing, and it, as well as the feed water-tube and the return from the engine
and the engine cylinder, or cylinders in the case of a compound engine, are
encased in a suitable jacket within which circulate the hot products of combustion
from the firebox, the jacket being encased externally with some non-conducting
heat material, thereby utilising to the fullest practical extent the heat of the
said products. A door or valve is provided whereby the said products may either
be led to the shaft or chimney from the jacket surrounding the feed water and
other tubes aforesaid, or the conduit leading therefrom may be closed and the
heated waste gases allowed to circulate round the engine or engine cylinders
before reaching the shaft, thereby heating the said cylinders so that upon the
admission of the water thereto and its conversion into steam, the heat of the
cylinder will help to maintain the steam pressure, which is dependent upon the
heat of the water in the boiler, the quantity of water admitted to the cylinder
and the temperature of the said cylinder," it being understood that the said
temperature is kept below that point at which perfect lubrication may be
mainta.ned.
The exhaust steam upon leaving the engine may be condensed by any suitable

page_text: form of condenser, and the water of condensation is drawn therefrom by the feed
pump to the boiler and returned thereto as aforesaid through the accumulator.
In order that the invention may be the better understood I have appended the
accompanying drawings illustrating one form of arrangement of a steam generat-
ing plant embodying my invention.
Fig 1 is a sectional elevation showing the arrangement of the boiler and the
conduits for the heated waste gases from the boiler.
Fig. 2 is a plan with the top of the conduits removed also showing the general
arrangement of the plant.
Fig. 3 is an elevational view of an arrangement whereby the feed to the boiler
is governed by the ram of the hydraulic accumulator
Fig. 4 is a sectional view of one form of a device for delivering a predetermined
quantity of water as applied to the cylinder of an ordinary reciprocating engine.
Referring to the drawings:-
(1) is the generator which as aforesaid may be, and is preferably, of any well-
known multitubular form, and as the construction of the same forms no part
of the present invention it will not be necessary to further describe it.
Connected to the boiler preferably at or near the top is the feed-water tube (2)
for the engine, which as shown is enclosed within the jacket (3), within which
circulate, as indicated by the arrows, the hot waste-gases from the furnace.
The tube is preferably formed as shown with a return portion, so that either by
means of the cock (5), Fig. 1, of ordinary construction, or the measuring valve (5)
to be hereinafter more fully described and illustrated in Fig. 4, the water may
be either admitted to the engine cylinder, or it may, when the engine is not
running, by closing the cock 5 be returned to the boiler, entering the same at
or near the bottom thereof. It will be seen on reference to the drawings that
the jacket (3) is provided with a door or trap (6), Fig. 1, operable by the
handle (7), Fig. 2, by which means the heated gases are either led through the
Blue (8) into the shaft (9), or when the door is in a horizontal position the gases
pass along and circulate round the engine (10) in the present instance of the
rotary type and located in the chamber (11) at the base of the shaft, thereby
heating the cylinder or cylinders, if a compound engine, and assisting in the
conversion of the water into steam, and assisting in the maintenance of the tem-
perature of the steam when the same is introduced therein, and thereby preventing
condensation. The feed-water for the boiler is fed thereto through the tube (12),
which tube is enclosed in the hot-air jacket (3), and is preferably provided with
a number of bends, as shown in Fig 2, and it is connected to the hydraulic
accumulator (13), to which water is supplied by the feed pump (14), for which
steam is obtained by means of the tube (15) communicating with the expansion
chamber (16), to which water is admitted through the cock (17), and upon its
admission to the chamber is by its own high temperature converted into steam.
The water is preferably drawn from the return portion of the tube (2) by means
of the branch tube aforesaid, its admission to the chamber (16) being regulated
by the cock (17). To maintain an equal supply of water to the boiler a cock (19)
is inserted in the tube (15) between the pump and the expansion chamber and
by means of the lever (15), see also Fig. 3, connected to the handle of the cock
and the ram of the accumulator, the supply of steam to the pump and thereby
the feed to the boiler is regulated. (20) Fig. 2, is a condenser to which the
exhaust steam from the engine is led through the tube (21), and which condenser
is provided with the usual suction (22), and overflow pipes (23), and the 'pump
(24), indicated in Fig 2 by dotted lines, is driven by steam drawn from the
expansion chamber through the tube (25). The exhaust from the boiler feed-
pump and air-pump are led to the condenser by tubes (26, 27), the condensed
steam passing from the condenser (20) into a hot well (28), from whence the water
is drawn by the boiler feed-pump through the tube (29), and passes through the
accumulator (13), through the tube (12), to the boiler (1). In addition to the
hot well I provide a storage tank (30), to which the blow-off from the boiler passes

page_text: by means of the tube (31), and which storage tank is connected to the hot well
through the pipe (32), provided with a cock (33), by which the communication
between the hot well and said tank may be cut off when desired. It is, therefore,
possible with this arrangement, if so desued, to allow the feed-pump to un
whilst the engine was at rest, the water either overflowing through the safety
valve (34), or it may be allowed to flow through the by-pass (35), in which is
inserted the cock (36), in either case going to the storage tank, then to the hot
well, from whence it is drawn and again returned to the boiler, as before
described. Referring to Fig 4, in which is shown a device for delivering a pre-
determined quantity of water to an engine cylinder, the engine in the figure referred
to being a simple reciprocating engine, (37) is the cylinder in which are formed
the usual ports, the upper poit being indicated by dotted lines (38), and the
cylinder cover being removed. (5") is the outer shell of the valve, consisting of
a plug (39), in which is formed a chamber (40), capable of containing a certain
"definite quantity of water, and being provided with a lever (41), at one end of
the plug, which lever has a moveable handle (42), whereby the plug may be
actuated by hand and caused to make a quarter turn, to give the necessary initial
charge or charges to the cylinder when starting the engine.
When the engine
18 running the handle may be removed from the pin (43), shown dotted in Fig. 4,
and the lever actuated by means of the lever (44), or levers (according to the
construction and form of the engine to which the valve is applied), which would
be attached to and actuated by some convenient part of the said engine.
It will be understood that although I have described a method of arranging
the elements of a steam-generating plant, that I do not in any way desne to
limit myself to such specified aangement, or do I desire to limit myself
to the precise form of valve for delivering the heated water to the
cylinder, as the details of such valve would of necessity be varied to suit the
various forms of steam motors capable of being employed in conjunction with
the present method of steam generation.
I should also state that as it is desirable that no steam be generated in the
boiler, the hydraulic pressure thereon is somewhat in excess of the steam pressure
corresponding to the temperature of the water.
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 18:-
}
1. The herein before described method of introducing water at a lugh tem-
perature under pressure into the preferably heated cylinder of a steam engine
for the purpose of conversion of the water into steam in the cylinder itself.
2. The combination of an hydraulic ram and feed-pump for the purpose of
automatically adjusting the feed and pressure of the water, Substantially as
described and shown.
3 In a steam-engine working according to the general method described, the
use of a measuring admission-valve for regulating the charge of water.introduced
into the cylinder.
4. The form of admission-valve substantially as described, and shown more
particularly in Fig. 4.
5. The general combination and arrangement of. parts herein before, described
, and shown in the appended drawings.
Dated thin 6th der of November 1800
J. E. EVANS-JACKSON & Co,
Agents for: the Applicant.