Improvements in the Manufacture of Illuminating Gas.
Year: 1895

page_text: Date of Application, 2nd May, 1895
Complete Specification Left, 16th Jan., 1896-Accepted, 29th Feb., 1896
PROVISIONAL SPECIFICATION.
Improvements in the Manufacture of Illuminating Gas.
We ALFRED RICHARD NEWMAN, of 38 Lime Street, in the City and County
of London, Merchant, and JOHN MURRAY SOMERVILLE, of Hassendean, Grove
Park, in the County of Kent, Engineer, do hereby declare the nature of this
invention to be as follows:-
This invention has for its object the economical production of illuminating gas
from oil and water gas permitting of the manufacture of the same in small
quantities and continuously, and whereby the said manufacture can be carried on
in metal vessels externally heated, thus obviating any waste of the oil vapours
which is a consequent necessity in the employment of internally heated carburetting
and superheating vessels.
For the carrying out of this invention two fuel chambers for the production of
water gas are arranged conveniently so as to permit of the use of one for the
decomposition of steam into the resulting gases while the other is under blast for
raising the fuel to incandescence; by this means a continuous stream of water gas
is made available.
The waste products of the blast can, with advantage, be led into a suitable
chamber of firebrickwork. The oil vapourising retorts and the vertical superheating
vessels are placed in this chamber and receive the heat necessary to maintain the
required temperature from the aforesaid blast products.
The oil vapours resulting from the retorting of the oil are led by suitable
connections to the vertical metal superheaters and are immediately brought into
contact with water gas; or the latter may be with advantage introduced into the
oil vapouriser for the purpose of displacing the vapour as it is formed.
The superheating and fixing apparatus is preferably a vertical cylindrical vessel
of cast iron, fitted with a series of cast iron gratings in close fitting tiers of
such diameter or section as to ensure the external heat permeating the interior.
The gratings are placed in such manner and position as to compel the ascending
vapours and gases to traverse a spiral path in their ascent thus prolonging the
period of heat influence upon them and increasing the heated surface to which
they are exposed.
The inlet to such vessel is at the bottom and is of such construction as to allow
of clearing any tarry particles that may adhere to the bottom.
The apparatus can be applied to any of the present systems of carburetted
water gas manufacture.
Dated this 2nd day of May 1895.
WHEATLEY & MACKENZIE,
40 Chancery Lane, London, W.C., Agents.

page_text: Improvements in the Manufacture of Illuminating Gas.
We ALFRED RICHARD NEWMAN, of 38 Lime Street, in the City and County
of London, Merchant, and JOHN MURRAY SOMERVILLE, of Hassendean Grove
Park, in the County of Kent, 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 has for its object the economical production of illuminating gas
from oil and water gas, and consists in the use and arrangement of improved
apparatus for gasifying the oil and fixing the carburetted water gas, permitting of
the manufacture of the same in small quantities and continuously without waste of
oil vapour, and effecting a complete combustion of the generator gas and utilization
of the heat contained therein.
In the accompanying drawings :-
Fig. 1 is a sectional elevation, Fig. 2 is a plan, and Fig. 3 a vertical section
at AA, Fig. 2, of an apparatus for the manufacture of illuminating gas
constructed according to this invention.
Figs. 4, 5 and 6 are plans of gratings used in the fixing retort.
For the carrying out of this invention two fuel chambers a for the production of
water gas are arranged as shown so as to permit of the use of one for the
decomposition of steam into the resulting gases while the other is under blast for
raising the fuel to incandescence by which means a continuous stream of water gas
is made available.
The waste products of the blast are led through connections b into a combustion
chamber c of firebrick where they meet and mix with a supply of heated air
which entering the heated wall dat e is conducted through the flue f into the
chamber c. These mixed gases being ignited pass down through nostrils g in the
arch into the retort chamber i at the bottom of which there is another inlet
for the supply of secondary heated air for the purpose of the further combustion
of waste gas.
An oil vaporizing or carburetting retort m formed of inclined cylinders arranged
in a zig-zag form, as shown, is fixed in the chamber i and is heated by the passage
of the burning gases.
A baffle platen on the lower arm of the retort m has the
effect of sending the furnace gases over a steam superheater comprising a casting o
in which several convolutions of steam pipes p are fixed in order to raise the
temperature of the stean. The gases then pass through the opening into a
fixing retort chamber or furnace and thence to exit funnel s.
1"
The fixing retort
comprises a vertical metal cylinder of elliptical cross section in three lengths
suitably jointed together, the interior being built up of a series of gratings v
placed one upon the other at a short distance apart and having bars w arranged at
different angles as shown in Figs. 4, 5 and 6 so that the gases, in passing through
the retort, traverse a spiral path in their ascent causing them to acquire a gyratory
motion, prolonging the period of heat influence upon them, and increasing the
heating surface to which they are exposed.
20
У
The water gas is led from the producers a through pipes into a seal tank and
thence through a pipe to the carburetting retort m of metal tubes arranged as
shown.
The oil to be vaporized and converted into gas is led from a tank or other
supply through a pipe a' which passes through the heated wall d, the oil being
thereby raised to boiling point, and is delivered through an open spout 6 to the
upper part of the zig-zag carburetting retort m and passes, with the water gas,
through it and a connecting pipe c¹ to the base d¹ of the metal fixing retort.
leaving the fixing retort the oil gas, rendered permanent by the heat to which it
On

page_text: has been subjected, and combined with the water gas is conveyed through the
pipe e' into the seal tank f¹ and from thence by pipe g¹ to a gas holder or other
storage device.
Having now particularly described and ascertained the nature of our said inven-
tion and in what manner the same is to be performed, we would have it understood
that we are aware that externally beated retorts for converting oil into gas and
fixing the oil and water gas have been used before and we do not claim their use
for this purpose in general, but we declare that what we claim is :
1. The vaporization and gasification of oil and the superheating and fixing of
oil gas and water gas into a permanent illuminating gas in metal vessels heated
externally, constructed and arranged substantially as described and illustrated by
the drawings.
2. A fixing retort for converting oil vapour into a permanent gas, comprising a
metal vessel heated externally, and provided with a series of metal gratings
arranged as described and for the purpose set forth.
3. The arrangement and construction of apparatus for producing carburetted
water gas, substantially as described with reference to the drawings.
Dated this 16th day of January 1896.
WHEATLEY & MACKENZIE,
Agents.