AN IMPROVED FURNACE FOR LOCOMOTIVE AND OTHER BOILERS
Year: 1857

page_text: LETTERS PATENT to William Edward Newton, of the Office for Patents,
66, Chancery Lane, in the County of Middlesex, Civil Engineer, for
the Invention of "AN IMPROVED FURNACE FOR LOCOMOTIVE AND OTHER
BOILERS."-A communication.
PROVISIONAL SPECIFICATION left by the said William Edward Newton
at the Office of the Commissioners of Patents, with his Petition, on the
23rd February 1857.
I, WILLIAM EDWARD NEWTON, of the Office for Patents, 66, Chancery Lane,'
in the County of Middlesex, Civil Engineer, do hereby declare the nature
of the said.Invention for "AN IMPROVED FURNACE FOR LOCOMOTIVE AND OTHER
BOILERS," to be as follows:-
"This Invention of an improved furnace for locomotive and other boilers has
for its object the removal of those objections incidental to ordinary furnaces
in which the smoke is attempted to be consumed. The improved furnace
differs from those above referred to, and in which the furnace is divided into
two compartments, inasmuch as the smoke and gases from the fresh fire aro
caused to pass through the whole length of the other compartment, and thus
become highly heated and thoroughly mixed with these gases from the incan-
descent fire; the gases then enter together a combustion chamber, where they

page_text: are consumed immediately behind the tube plate, an additional supply of air
being poured into this combustion chamber if found necessary.
The furnace is entirely surrounded by a water space, and is divided into
two compartments by a midfeather or partition through the opening in which
the two compartments communicate with each other. Immediately over the
furnace, and separated therefrom by the water space, is the combustion
chamber, which communicates with the compartments below through suitable
openings. By means of dampers the openings aro closed when necessary.
An opening is made into the chamber, through which air is admitted for the
more perfect combustion of the unconsumed gases. This opening may be
furnished with a door or other suitable damper or slide, by the partial opening
of which the quantity of air admitted can be regulated. The operation of
this furnace is as follows:-The fires being started, the fuel in one of the
compartments is allowed to become incandescent; one of the dampers is then
opened and the other one closed; fresh fuel is then thrown upon the fire in
the other compartment, the unconsumed gases and smoke from which pass
over the whole length of the incandescent fire in the first compartment and
through an opening into the combustion chamber; these gases thus become
highly heated; and intimately mixed with those rising from the incandescent
fire, and on reaching the combustion chamber they receive a sufficient supply
of air to thoroughly consume them. This takes place immediately in front
of the tube plate. When the second compartment has ceased to throw off
smoke its damper is opened and the other one closed, fresh fuel is thrown
into the first compartment, the smoke from which passes over the fire in the
adjoining compartment and through an opening into the combustion chamber,
as before. Fresh fuel is thus added alternately to each compartment of the
furnace as the fire in the other becomes incandescent, the dampers being
changed as required each time the furnace is fed.
Instead of dividing the furnace into two compartments, a rotating. furnace
having two or more fire boxes may be employed, each one of which as it
revolves receives a fresh feed on arrival at a certain point, the smoke and
gases being allowed to pass over the surface of the fire in all the other
chambers, and to issue into a combustion chamber, arranged as above.

page_text: SPECIFICATION in pursuance of the conditions of the Letters Patent, filed
by the said William Edward Newton in the Great Seal Patent Office.
on the 22nd August 1857.-.
TO ALL TO WHOM THESE PRESENTS SHALL COME, I, WILLIAM'
EDWARD NEWTON, of the Office for Patents, 66, Chancery Lanc, in the County'.
of Middlesex, Civil Engineer, send greeting.
:
WHEREAS Her most Excellent Majesty Queen Victoria, by Her Letters
Patent, bearing date the 23rd day of February, in the year of our Lord 1857,
in the twentieth year of Her reign, did, for Herself, Her heirs and successors,
give and grant unto me, the said William Edward Newton, Her special
license that I, the said William Edward Newton, my executors, administrators,
and assigns, or such others as I, the said William Edward Newton, 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
therein 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 "AN IMPROVED FURNACE FOR
LOCOMOTIVE AND OTHER BLERS," being a communication from abroad, upon the
condition (amongst others) that I, the said William Edward Newton, by an
instrument in writing under my hand and seal, should particularly describe
and ascertain the nature of the said Invention, and in what manner the same
was to be performed, and 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 William Edward Newton, do hereby
declare the nature of the 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 Drawings hereunto"
annexed, and to the letters and figures marked thereon (that is to say):—'
:
Fig. 1 is an end view of a portion of a locomotive boiler with theso'
improvements attached; Fig. 2, an isometric view of the same; a portion of
the exterior being removed to show the parts within; Fig. 3 is a vertical*
longitudinal section on the lino A, A, of Fig. 1; Fig. 4, a section upon the
line B, B, of Fig. 3; Fig. 5, a section upon the line C, C, of Fig. 3; Fig. 6,
a vertical transverse section upon the line D, D, of Fig. 3; Fig. 7, a modi-'
fication of the improvement..
In the construction of furnaces for steam boilers various plans have been
resorted to for the purpose of economizing fuel, and for the more perfect
,

page_text: combustion of the gases and smoke. Amongst others double furnaces have
been employed, the compartments of which were alternately supplied with
facl, the smoke and gasos from the one so supplied being permitted to pass
up through the fire in the other. It is evident, however, that the operation
of this furnace must be very imperfect, as the fires can only receive one half
the amount of oxygen due to the extent of grate surface employed, that which
has once passed through the first fire being obliged to descend and pass.
through the grate of the second one. In other similarly arranged furnaces
the smoke from the fresh fire has been thrown into the compartment con-
taining the incandescent fire, and consumed directly upon the surface of this
fire. In this case, however, the gases and heated air are but imperfectly
mixed, and the combustion is still defective. In other furnaces the smoke
and gases from the fresh firo in one compartment and the heated air from an
incandescent fire in the other compartment have boen thrown into a com-
bustion chamber, where they are mixed and consumed together. The per-
formance of these furnaces has, not been so satisfactory as was anticipated,
owing to the fact that the smoke and gases from the fresh fire were not
sufficiently heated, and not so perfectly mixed with those from the incan-
descent fire, as to burn readily after they have entered the combustion
chamber.
.
This Invention has for its object the removal of all these difficulties,.and
the furnace differs from those above referred to in this, that the smoke and
gases from the fresh fire are caused to pass through the whole length of the
other compartment, and thus become highly heated and thoroughly mixed
with those from the incandescent fire, they then enter together a combustion
chamber, where they are consumed immediately behind the tubo plate, an
additional supply of air boing poured into this combustion chamber if.found
necessary. The. furnace is entirely surrounded by water space E, and is
divided into two compartments F, F, by the midfeather or partition G
through the opening H in, which the two compartments communicato with
each other. Immediately over the furnace, and separated therefrom by the
water space I, is the combustion chamber K, which communicates with the
compartments below through the openings L, L. M, M', are dampers, which
slide in the ways a, and are operated by the rods 6; by means of theso
dampers the openings L, L', are closed. when necessary. In Fig. 2 the
damper M' and the ways a in which it slides are removed. N is an opening
into the chamber K, through which air is admitted for the more perfect com-
bustion of the. unconsumed gases. This opening may be furnished with a
dcor R, or other suitable damper or slide, by the partial opening of which the

page_text: quantity of air admitted can be regulated. O, O', are the fire doors; -P, the
tube plate; Q, the tubes.
.
The operation of this furnace is as follows:-The fires being started, the fuel
in one of the compartments F is allowed to become incandescent; the damper
M is then opened and Mis.closed, fresh fuel is then thrown upon the fire
in the compartment F', the unconsumed gases and smoke from which pass
through the opening H over the whole length of the incandescent fire in the
compartment F and through the opening L into the combustion chamber K;
these gases thus become highly heated and intimately mixed with those
rising from the incandescent fire, and on reaching the combustion chamber they
receive a sufficient supply of air through the opening N to thoroughly con-
sume them; this takes place immediately in front of the tube plate P.
When the compartment F' has ceased to throw off smoke, its damper M' is
opened and M is closed, fresh fuel is thrown into the compartment F, the
smoke from which passes through the opening H, over the fire in F', and
through the openings L' into the combustion chamber, as before. Fresh fuel
is thus added alternately to each compartment of the furnace as the fire in
the other becomes incandescent, the dampers being changed as required each
time the furnace is fed. Instead of dividing the furnace into two compart-
ments, a rotating furnace having two or more fire boxes may be employed,
each one of which as it revolves receives a fresh feed on arrival at a certain
point, the smoke and gases being allowed to pass over the surface of the fire
in all the other chambers, and to issuo into a combustion chamber arranged
as above. Such revolving furnace, however, forms no part of the present
Invention, and need not be further described.
In the furnace represented in the accompanying Drawings the midfeather
G forms a dividing partition between the compartments F, F, the only com-
munication between which is through the opening H. This opening may,
however, be closed, and a long passago be opened between the two compart-
ments by interrupting the midfeather along its bottom line, as seen in Fig. 7.
This is but a modification of the construction described above, and requires no
alteration in the method of working the furnace.
The above-described arrangement and combination of duplicate fire boxes
and combustion chamber is particularly applicable to boilers of locomotives,
but may also be applied to boilers of stationary engines. I do not, therefore,
limit myself in its use to locomotive boilers alone, but intend to apply it
whenever it may be found useful; neither do I limit myself to the exact
arrangement of parts above set forth, but intend to vary the same so far as
this may be done without a departure from the principle of the Invention.

page_text: Having now set forth the nature of this Invention, and explained the
manner of carrying the same into effect, I wish it to be understood that under:
the above recited Letters Patent I claim the combustion chamber K, with
its openings L, L', in combination with two or more fire boxes, arranged
in the manner substantially as herein described, whereby the unconsumed
smoke and gases from the freshly fed fire are heated by passing over the
incandescent fire and are consumed in the chamber K, as set forth.
In witness whereof, I, the said William Edward Newton, have hereunto'
set my hand and seal, the Twentieth day of August, in the year of our
Lord One thousand eight hundred and fifty-seven.
Witness,
J. W. MOFFATT,
.:
66, Chancery Lane.
W. E. NEWTON. (L.S.)