Improvements in and connected with Fluid Pressure Motors.
Year: 1894

page_text: Date of Application, 22nd Dec., 1894
Complete Specification Left, 22nd Oct., 1895-Accepted, 23rd Nov., 1895
PROVISIONAL SPECIFICATION.
Improvements in and connected with Fluid Pressure Motors.
I JOSEPH LINDLEY Engineer of Britannia Mill Mufield in the County of York
do hereby declare the nature of this invention to be as follows:-
My said invention relates primarily to the use of a mixture of air and steam in
the generation of power instead of steam alone
In carrying out my invention I arrange the ordinary valves of the engine so that
there is communication between the valve box and the cylinder nearly the whole of
the stroke or as long as possible consistent with the proper working of the engine.
1 then attach an additional valve box to the engine into which the steam is allowed
to enter either at boiler pressure or through a throttle valve. Communication between
this second valvo box, hereinafter called the steam box, aud the ordinary valve
box, hereinafter called the air box, is regulated by valves which may be of any
And I
style or construction such as Corliss valves, slide valves, diop valves &c.
usualy arrange that the opening and closing of these valves or the length of time,
or size, of opening in each stroke, shall be determined by the govenor, or speed
regulator, except in the case of locomotives or other engines of a simular nature; in
which case the adjustment can be made by the man in charge of the engine.
In
conection with the engine is an an pump, or other suitable means,
of forcing air
which is driven by the engine.
When an an cylinder is used it may be driven by a continuation of the piston
rod, or any other method most suitable to the particular case. The air is thus made
to enter into the air box.
Since this box is open to the cylinder for a large part of the stroke, its pressure
reduces simultaneously with the expansion of the working fluids in the cylinder,
and it is 80 arranged that the bulk of the an 18 made to enter this box when the
pressure is the lowest. The air enters the air box through a back valve so that
when once in it cannot return.
The air having entered, the valve in the steam box 18 opened and steam mixes
with the air so that both funds are raised to the piesure of the steam, and the two
fluids together supply the power which drives the engine.
Either hot or cold air may be used, but in many cases I prefer to use the air at
the atinospheric temperature.
When the air
19 raised up to the steam pressure its temperature is raised
accordimaly to the well known law of the effect of pressure on gases, and if the steam
pressure be high the temperature of the air is raised higher than the steam so that
it dissolves or vapouzes the water which the steam bilugs with it from the boiler.
To the air box I usualy fix an air inlet valve so that when the pressure in the box
becomes below the atmospheric pressure au can enter it direct from the atmosphere,
without going through the an pump.
In the case of engines having double triple quadruple expansions &c. the air can
be made to enter into the boxes of the 1st 2nd 31d &c. oylinders or into any number
or all of them.
After the air leaves the pump it may be stored in a reservoir or dome so that it
can enter the box or boxes when there is the lenst resistance to its entrance and
also so as to take the least power to drive the an pump,
Usualy the valve in the steam box is worked from a separate eccentric or cam
though it can, in some cases, be worked from the same eccentric, or cam, as the air

page_text: box, and one of my arrangements for governing the supply of stein is by means of
a lover o link, one end of which is attached to the govenor 1od, which allows it to
move with this point of attachment as a center, and the other end of the lever is
attached to the eccentric 10d. The part between these two points, of attachment,
is slotted and in this slot, is a die which is connected with the valve rod.
When the govenor lowers the die moves towards the eccentric rod, and the valvo
18 thus made to move a greater distance backward and forward and so allows more
steam to enter the air box.
When the govenor rises the die moves away from the eccentric rod, towards
the govenor attachment, so that the movement of the valve is correspondingly
reduced and less steam is supplied.
I do not, however, confine myself to any particular arrangements of valves or
governing arrangements as many of the exhisting ones can be applied to the
principles of my invention.
Dated this 21st day of December 1894
Improvements in and connected with Fluid Pressure Motors.
I JOSEPH LINDLEY, Engineer, of Britanna Mill, Mufield, in the County of
York, 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 and accompanying diawings:-
My said invention relates generally to the use of a mixture of air and steam in
the generation of power, and particularly to the use of air for this purpose in an
unheated condition.
In apparatus hitherto devised for the utilization of steam and air in conjunction,
it has been thought necessary to heat the air by artificial means before bringing it
in contact with the steain
Presumably this has been done because of the impression that if cold air wcie
brought in contact with the steam a high initial condensation of the latter would
occur
Practically have found that this impression is erroneous and that air at
atmospheric temperature or rather at the temperature represented by the development
of the latent heat in the air under compression in the pump, can be mixed with steam
without bringing about condensation. This being established. the practical and
commercially advantageous results that follow from my discovery are, that I am
enabled to dispense with the former costly means for heating the air and for protecting
it from loss of heat, which has been the serious drawback and stumbling block in
all prior apparatus of the kind In other words I pump air at atmospheric
temperature directly to the mixing box or valve chest on the steam cylinder or into
the cylinder itself.
The mere fact of adding air or other gas to steain as a means of increasing the
available output of energy in the steam, has been within the knowledge of a limited
circle of engineers and scientihe men for a few years back. The theory of its
utility and importance as an economical factor may be briefly explained. Steam
contains an immense quantity of energy in a comparatively small mass of material.
If the steam could be kept alive and utilised under expansion to the utmost
degree, its output of energy would be vastly mereased Unfortunately long before
its energy is fully utilised, condensation steps in and the steam practically ceases to
exercise the expansive pressure which it inight do. To carry the steam further
ahead of the usual point of condensation, engineers sometimes superheat the steam,
but superheating although useful is subject to disadvantages which need not be
entered upon here. Under my invention I seek inter alia to carry the steam in the

page_text: other direction, that is to say I retard condensation so as to prolong the usefulness
of the steam. This carrying of the steam past the usual point of condensation is
effected by the addition of air which I have referred to This is in accordance
with the rule that generally if two fluids having different boiling points are mixed,
the boiling point of the mixture is intermediate between the boiling points of the
two component fluids. Thus for example a mixture of alcohol and water boils
below the boiling point of water and above the boiling point of alcohol. As the
boiling point is affected by mixing the fluids, so also is the point of condensation.
The boiling point of an being more than 200 degrees Fahrenheit below zero, a
comparatively small proportion of an mixed with the steam is sufficient to reduce
very materially the temperature at which condensation takes place Thus the
mixture of steam and an working expansively in the cylinder, will continue to exert
pressure upon the piston for a longer time and considerably past the point where
steam alone at tho same temperature would have become condensed.
In addition to this extension of the utility of the steam past the usual point of
condensation, it may be pointed out that by the raising of the au to an equality of
pressure with the steam, the temperature of the air may be increased by the
development of the latent heat therem so as to exceed the temperature of the
steam.
Thus the temperature of the mixture as a whole is raised and practically the
steam is superheated. I thus gam a double advantage and extend the utility of the
steam both initially and toimimally. The practical result is that I obtain a greater
amount of power fioin an equal quantity of steam or the same power from a less
quantity of steam, thus effecting economy in fuel and in the steam generating
arrangements.
I will now proceed to deal with the means whereby I cally into effect my
Improvement of using cold an ie. air at about atmospheric temperature, for the
foregoing purposes instead of an heated by special means ns heretofore
For the purpose of obviating repetition I may explain at this point that when I
EC the term "cold air" I mean air not previously heated by separate and indepen-
dent menus other than by compression in a pump or incidentally by contact with
the steam in an engine, steam pipe oi air box
The apparatus indicated in my Provisional Specification and hereinafter described
is a simple and useful means for carrying my invention into effect although it will
of course be evident that the special form of apparatus can be greatly varied
without departing from the spuit of my invention. I use an ordinary steam engine
and upon the back of the ordinary slide valve chest (which I shall in the following
description and in view of my improvement now call tho "au box") I place an
additional valve or steam box contaming valve adapted to admit steam at the
proper intervals to the air box. Any suitable valve o valves may be used to adout
the steam from the steam box to the air box For example I might use a slide
valve or valves, or Corliss or drop on cut-off valves worked from any suitable
moving part of the engine and if thought fit automatically regulated from the
governor. The slide valve proper in the au box is preferably atranged to admit
the fluid contents of the air box dung nearly the whole of the piston stroke. In
connection with the engine I arrange an au pumping on torcing appliance either
driven direct or by a belt or gearing For example I might ai range the air pump
to lie in line with the pressure cylinder and be worked by a prolongation of the
piston rod. The said air pump connects by a pipe or passage with the aforesaid air
box, a back pressure valve preventing return of pressure to the an pump.
air box boing open to the cylinder duing the larger part of the piston stroke, while
the steam is cut-off, the pressure therein falls simultaneously with the expansion
of the pressure in the cylinder, and I arrange that the bulk of the air shall enter
the air box at the times when the pressure is lowest.
The
The temperature of the air by the increased pressure may become higher than
that of the steam so that the moisture in the steam may be turned into vapour or
the steam be superheated and made to develop still higher pressure than that duo

page_text: to the initial steam pressure. At the same time the steam admission valve is closed
and the pressure in the an box has free access to the cylinder. The air box-full of
pressure acts upon the piston expansively but instead of condensing at the usual
condensing point of steam alone, the fluid pressine mixture continues its expansive
pressure upon the piston past this point of steam condensation. The return stroke
is effected in the same manner and under the same advantageous circumstances.
It will be apparent to engineers after this explanation that I might have
dispensed with any illustration of apparatus, but I have chosen to annex a sheet of
drawings illustrating the engine and arrangement referred to in my Piovisional
Specification.
In the said drawings.
Fig. 1 is a side elevation of an engine made and worked in accordance with my
invention.
Fig. 2 is a plan view,
shown in section.
the cylinder, air box, steam box and air pump barrel being
Figs. 3 and 4 illustrate more particularly the means for governing the valve in
the steam box
I need only refer to those parts of the engine which are affected by my
improvements.
The
The cylinder is marked a, the air box b, the steam box c and the air pump d
The an pump barrel is connected to the back end of the cylinder a and a pipe e
conveys the air pressure to the air box The steam box c is connected to the
steam supply pipe and contains a slide valve g which slides to and fro on a face /
having ports W The steam valve spindle is connected to a quadrant or huk
which is pivotted at to the lower end of a rod A which slides in a boss and is
Jointed at the top to one end of a double lever m pivotted about midway at n to an
arm o' extending from the bracket o which supports the governor spindle p.
other end of the double lever m is confined between collars at the foot of the
governor weight 7. It will thus be seen that as the governor rises and falls
the link is correspondingly raised and lowered. The said liuk is connected at the
lower end by a rod to an excentric r on the crank shaft. The pin which
connects the valve spindle to the link passes through a block or die which fits
and slides in the slot of the link. This pivot being stationary, it will be
understood that as the link is raised or lowered by the governor, the centies k¹
and are moved further apart or closer together so that the movement unpaited
to the valve spindle and valve g by the excentric and iod is increased or
diminished in unison with the movements of the governoi. Thus the supply of
steam is varied in accordance with the demands on speed of the engine. I do not
however confine myself to this governing arrangement as any other suitable
arrangement might be used and valves of any convement type such as Corliss or
diop or tip or rotating or cut-off valves might be employed and worked either
from the excentrics or from any other suitable moving part of the engine. In
locomotive or steam road-carriages the variation of the steam supply would be
under the control of the diver. The valve g of the illustrated apparatus is so set
as to admit a sufficiency of steam to the air box after the pump has forced its
quantum of air into the said box, a back pressure valve e' on the pipe e preventing
the return of pressure from the air box to the pump.
1
The slide valves in the air box is worked by the indicated means from the
excentric t and is so set as to admit about full head of pressure to the piston during
the greater part of the stroke Therefore instead of being made with the usual
"lap" and "lead" the slide valves would in practice be cut shorter than usual,
relatively to the pitch of the poits For practical purposes and to obtain a quick
opening and closing of the valve it might be made of the Corliss or other full way
type but the slide valve shown will suffice to illustrate my invention, the engine
which I have illustrated being in fact at work at the present time The air forced
into the air box by the pump d is simply drawn from the atmosphere and is not
previously beated at all, so that none of the costly means for heating the air are

page_text: required under my invention. In order to select the most favourable time for
admitting the air pressure to the air box (.e. when the pressure in the air box and
cylinder is lowered) I might cause the au pump to deliver into an air pressure
reservoir and place a valve on the conduit admitting to the air box, the said valve
being worked from the engine so nas to open and close quickly at the exact selected
moment. All of these details for the more advantageous working of my invention
ale however matters of special design which each maker manufacturing under my
invention would devise to suit the special engine he had in hand
Any suitablo
meaus capable of producing substantial compression other than the described air
pump might be used to create the desued an pressure. My invention is specially
applicable to high pressure engines but it might be used in conjunction with
double, triple or other expansion condensing engines in which case I would either
use a special form of condenser such as the ejector condenser, totary condenser, or
other special means to clear the an out of the condenser. In double, tuple and
other similar expansion engines, I might in some cases pump the air into two or
more of the successive valve or air boxes from soparate air pumps, thus fuither
diluting the steam with the an to the required point of elhciency. I might also in
some cases place an inlet valve in communication with the valve or an box so that
if the pressure therein should sink below that of the atmosphere, air would enter
the box automatically.
It will be
The invention is suitable for application either to double acting engines as
descubed or to single acting high speed engines such for instance as the "Willans"
engine the pressure from the first piston being ti insmitted to the second either
through the hollow piston rod as in such engines or by other means
evident that although a separate an box or mixing vessel outside of the cylinder
18 advantageons, the an might nevertheless in some cases be admitted separately
direct to the cylinder or steam pipe, the steam being then added, with the results
already set forth.
In cases where the air is forced directly into the steam pipe, the air will requiro
to be at a pressure approximate to that of the steam in the pipe. This necessarily
high pressine will develope considerable heat in the complesse so that it will be
necessary to jacket the barrel or walls of the compiessen with some heat abstracting
fluid. This may be done by means of a water jacket or by circulating steam
through the jacket space lu the former case the heated watch could be utilised
and in the latter case the steam would become suporheated so that in neither caso
would the heat developed in the compresser be lost.
When au is forced duectly into the steam pipe it is desuable to cusure the
immediate use of the mixture in the motor otherwise the mixture will become
corrosive and cause oxidation in the cylinder and working parts. In all of my
arrangements I seek to effect the mixture of the an and steam close up to the
point of consumption and use precautions such as back pressure valves and the like
to prevent the air or mixture from finding its way to the boiler. This I do
because I ain well aware of the above noted conosive effects and have therefore
sought to guard against them.
As particles of dust in the air would tend to promote earlier condensation of the
steam in the mixture I may use means to filter and cleanse and dry the air before it
enters the compressei.
Having now particularly described and ascertained the nature of my said inven-
tion and in what manner the same is to be performed 1 declate that what I
claim is.
(1) As an improvement in and connected with fluid pressure motors, the
employment of cold air on air at or about atmospheric temperature compressed and
mixed or combined with steam and applied in the development of motive power, in
the manner and substantially by the means herein before described.
(2) In fluid pressure motors, admitting or forcing cold air at atmospheric
temperature, le au drawn duectly from the atmosphere to a box into which

page_text: a proportion of steam is also admitted, the mixture then passing to the cylinder
wherein it is used expansively, substantially in the manner and by the means
herein set forth.
(3) Admitting or forcing cold air or an at atmospheric temperature directly to
the cylinder of a steam engine and mixing it with steam and using the mixture
expansively substantially as described.
(4) In fluid pressure motors admitting or forcing an into a box or vessel not
communicating directly with the exhaust and connected so as to vary in pressure
simultaneously with the pressure in the cylinder during the whole or the greater
part of the stroke, substantially as bereinbefore described and indicated.
(5) In a fluid pressure motor the combination of a piston an compresser and a
box or vessel not communicating directly with the exhaust, but connected with the
cylinder so that the pressure in the said box synchomises with the pressure in the
cylinder, substantially as described and indicated
(6) In fluid pressure motors worked by a mixture of cold an and steain, mixing
the air and steam in close proximity to the point of consumption and using the
mixture at once so as to prevent corrosive effects in the cylinder and other parts,
in the manner and substantially by the means hereinbefore set forth.
(7) The improved governing arrangement for controlling the admission of steam
to the a box of a steam engine worked by a mixture of cold air and steam
substantially as hereinbefore described and shown.
(8) In fluid pressure motors of the indicated type and having a steam box and
air box as set forth (the said an box not communicating directly with the exhaust)
automatically regulating the supply of steam from the steam box to the air box by
means of the engine governor substantially as descubed.
OnE
For the Applicant,
EK DUTTON & Co,
5 John Dalton Street, Manchester, Chaiteied Patent Agents.