AN IMPROVED MODE OF AND APPARATUS FOR TREATING OR PREPARING MEGASS AND OTHER SUBSTANCES TO BE USED AS FUEL
Year: 1863

page_text: LETTERS PATENT to Hamilton Shirley Warner, of Trinidad, Gentleman,
for the Invention of "AN IMPROVED MODE OF AND APPARATUS FOR TREATING
OR PREPARING MEGASS AND OTHER SUBSTANCES TO BE USED AS FUEL."
Sealed the 17th December 1863, and dated the 3rd July 1863.
PROVISIONAL SPECIFICATION left by the said Hamilton Shirley Warner
at the Office of the Commissioners of Patents, with his Petition, on
the 3rd July 1863.
I, HAMILTON SHIRLEY WARNER, of Trinidad, Gentleman, .do hereby declare
the nature of the said Invention for "AN IMPROVED MODE OF AND APPARATUS
FOR TREATING OR PREPARING MEGASS AND OTHER SUBSTANCES TO BE USED AS FUEL,"
to be as follows:-
This Invention relates to a peculiar mode of and apparatus for drying the
megass or other substance by means of artificial heat, so as to make such
substances fit for burning as fuel. The Invention is intended to be applied
more particularly to megass; the object being to use the substance as fuel
almost immediately after it leaves the cane mill. For this purpose I make
use of the heated products of combustion that are given off from the furnaces
employed for the evaporation of the cane juice. After these products have
passed the last evaporating vessel they are drawn out by means of a fan or
other suitable blowing apparatus and caused to permeate or pass through a
chamber in which the megass to be dried. is placed. This chamber may be
built of brick, iron, or other suitable material in any suitable form, and is

page_text: provided with a series of endless travelling aprons or webs of iron on which
the megass is placed. These aprons are placed one above the other, and each
web is properly supported by rollers or wheels, and has imparted to it a slow
motion. The motion of each web is in a contrary direction to that of the one
next above or below it. The megass or other substance being spread upon
the uppermost webb will be carried along by it as far as it reaches, and is then
dropped continuously on to the webb below; by this it will be carried in the
contrary direction and dropped upon the third, and so on.till it reaches the
lowest one, which will deliver the dried substance outside. The heated
products of combustion are to be forced into the chamber by the action of the
blowing apparatus, and caused to pass through the megass while it is travelling
along on the webs. To produce a thorough permeation the layers of megass
should be thin, and the direction of the heated current should be transverse to
the layers. As these are horizontal the current in the chamber should be
in a vertical direction, being either introduced at the top and moving down-
wards, or introduced at the bottom and moving upwards. After passing
through the megass the heated current is allowed to escape into the air. To
prevent danger of inflammation care must be taken that the heated current
is not too hot; the reduction of temperature when necessary being effected
by an admixture of cold air; the admission of the cold air may be either
regulated by hand or by a self-acting apparatus. Sparks may be arrested by
screens of wire gauze or any of the other well-known means for stopping
them. Instead of the endless webs the megass may be placed in iron trays
with bottoms of wirework conveniently arranged so that they can be drawn
out of the chamber for the purpose of being charged and discharged.
SPECIFICATION in pursuance of the conditions of the Letters Patent, filed
by the said Hamilton Shirley Warner in the Great Seal Patent
Office on the 2nd January 1864.
TO ALL TO WHOM THESE PRESENTS SHALL COME, I, HAMILTON
SHIRLEY WARNER, of Trinidad, Gentleman, send greeting. !
:
WHEREAS Her most Excellent Majesty Queen-Victoria, by Her Letters
Patent, bearing date the Third day of July, in the year of our Lord One
thousand eight hundred and sixty-three, in the twenty-seventh year. of Her
reign, did, for Herself, Her heirs and successors, give and grant unto me, the
said Hamilton Shirley Warner, Her special license that I, the said Hamilton
Shirley Warner, my executors, administrators, and assigns, or such others

page_text: as I, the said Hamilton Shirley Warner, 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 MODE OF AND APPARATUS FOR TREATING OR PREPARING MEGASS AND
OTHER SUBSTANCES TO BE USED AS FUEL," upon the condition (amongst others)
that I, the said Hamilton Shirley Warner, 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 Hamilton Shirley Warner, 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 a peculiar mode of and apparatus for drying
megass or other substances by means of artificial heat, so as to make such
substances fit for burning as fuel: The Invention is intended to be applied
more particularly to megass, which is the woody fibre of the sugar cane after.
the sugar or sirop has been expressed therefrom in the ordinary manner; the
object of the Invention is to use this substance as fuel almost immediately
after it leaves the cane mill. For this purpose I make use of the heated:
products of combustion that are given off from the furnaces employed for the
evaporation of the cane juice. After the heated gases have passed from the
last evaporating vessel they are drawn out by means of a fan or other suitable
blowing apparatus, and in combination with a suitable quantity of air (if the
addition of air is thought desirable) the gases are caused to permeate or pass
through a chamber in which the megass to be dried is placed. This chamber
may be built of brick, iron, or other suitable material in any convenient form,
and is provided with a series of endless travelling aprons or webs of iron on
which the megass is placed. These aprons are placed one above the other,
and each web is properly supported by rollers' or wheels, and has imparted to
it a slow motion. The motion of each web is in. a contrary direction to that
of the one next above or below it. The megass or other substance being
spread upon the uppermost web will be thereby carried along as far as the
web reaches, and is then dropped continuously on to the web below; by this.

page_text: web it will be carried in the contrary direction and dropped upon the third,
and so on till it reaches the lowest one, which will deliver the dried substance
outside the drying chamber. The heated products of combustion are to be
forced into the drying chamber by the action of the blowing apparatus, and
caused to pass over the surface of the megass while it is travelling along on
the webs. To produce a thorough permeation of the heated vapours the layers
of megass should be thin, and the direction of the heated current should be
transverse to the layers. As these are horizontal the current of heated air in
the chamber should be in a vertical direction, and introduced either at the top
and conducted downwards, or at the bottom and conducted upwards. After
passing through the megass the current of heated gases is allowed to escape
into the air. In order to avoid the danger of the megass becoming ignited by
the heated gases care must be taken that these gases be not too hot when
introduced into the chamber. The reduction of temperature of the gases - is
effected when necessary by an admixtue of cold air therewith. This admission
of the cold air may be either regulated by hand or by a self-acting apparatus
constructed on the principle of the thermostat, and care should be taken that
the hot and cold air are properly mingled together so as to produce a uniform.
temperature throughout the current. The proper heat to be employed will
vary according as the hot air is made to act first upon the wettest or the
dryest layer of megass, that is to say, according to whether it enters at the top
or bottom of the chamber. When the current enters at the bottom where the
megass is driest the heat should not be allowed to exceed four hundred degrees.
Fahrenheit. When it enters at the top where the megass will contain a large
amount of moisture a higher heat may be used. Sparks may be arrested by
means of wire gauze screens, or by any of the other well-known means for
stopping them. Instead of the endless webs the megass may be placed in
iron trays with bottoms of wirework conveniently arranged so that they can
be drawn out of the chamber for the purpose of being charged and discharged;
when in the chamber the current of heated air should be passed through the
megass in the trays in the same way as already described. The process may
be varied in other ways provided the megass be spread in thin layers, and the
heated current be made to pass transversely through the layers, that is, so
that the direction of the gases be approximately at right angles to the megass
on the trays. The drying chamber may be provided with three, four, or five
webs from six to eight feet wide and from thirty to forty feet long. The
layers of megass may be from twelve to thirty inches thick, and the speed of
the webs such as to carry the megass through the chamber in from one to two
hours; but I do not confine myself to these dimensions and numbers, as the

page_text: details will vary considerably according to circumstances and the quantity of
megass to be dried in a given time. The drying chamber is by preference
constructed of flanged cast-iron plates connected together by bolts and nuts as
usual in the construction of tanks.
In the accompanying Drawing, Fig. 1 is a longitudinal section of the
chamber, shewing the position of the iron webs and cross shafts; Fig. 3 is an
elevation of one end of the drying chamber; Fig. 4 is a similar view of the
other end; Fig. 6 is a detailed view, drawn upon an enlarged scale; of one
of the plates of which the drying chamber is constructed. The side plates
carry plummer blocks for the cross shafts a, a, a, a. Each plate has two
round holes b; b, see Fig. 6, of one inch diameter, to receive the cross ties, one
of which is shewn detached at Fig. 8. These tie rods are six feet long from
shoulder to shoulder, and hold the side plates together, and are put in where
required for stiffness and where they do not interfere with the megass or the
webs. In Fig. 1 the position of those that would be required for the present
apparatus, to the number of fourteen, are shewn at b, b. The cross shafts are
supported in plummer blocks which are bolted on to the plate, as shown in
Figures 13, 14, and 15. The plummer block is supported and steadied by a
fillet. c, cast on the plate, as shewn in the same Figures, and also in Fig. 6.
The plummer blocks are shown in Figures 13, 14, and 15, and are all the
same size. They must have greasing holes.properly placed according to the
position of the blocks. The bolts for holding them on are shewn at d, Fig. 13,
and are made to fit the hole in the plate and be incapable of turning in it.
Each cross shaft carries four wheels placed at twenty-one inches apart, centre
to centre, as shewn in Fig. 16, which represents the different kinds of shafts
detached. All the shafts are six feet from shoulder to shoulder, and in
Fig. 1 are numbered from one to twelve, so that they may be more con-
veniently referred to hereafter. The journals and portions passing through
the plummer blocks are in all the shafts one and a quarter of an inch less
diameter than the shafts themselves. Some of the cross shafts (Nos. 2, 3,
and 4) carry on the right-hand side of the chamber spur wheels e, e, which
gear together. These wheels are not shewn in detail, but are shewn in edge
view at e, e, in Fig. 2. The brackets, which carry the shafts Nos. 1 and 4,
must be inade strong, as the pressure upon them will be about four tons in a
horizontal direction.
Shafts Nos. 1 and 3, Fig. 2, carry on the left side of the chamber spur
pinions ff, connected by a gearing chain, so that these two shafts revolve in
the same direction and at the same speed. Shaft No. 3 is extended at one
side in order to be connected with a feed-motion... It transmits motion to the

page_text: .
.
other shafts. This feed motion is not shewn in detail, as any ordinary motion
such as is used in a saw mill will suit; it must be adapted to the speed of
the engine, and capable of variation from one quarter of a revolution of shaft
No. 3 to one revolution per minute. It may perhaps be more convenient to
connect this motion with the spur wheel itself instead of with the shaft, in which
case the shaft of course need not be made longer than to carry the spur wheel.
The ends of the drying chamber are closed by flaps or shutters g, g, Fig. 1,
of sheet iron hinged on to bars which are bolted on to the flanges of the last
plates. At the back end or right-hand end in Fig. 1 there will be four
shutters, but at the front end there are only two shutters. At this end the
space below the lowest web will be closed by a piece of sheet iron bolted to tho
flanges of the plates. It will be seen in Fig. 1 that some of the shafts, one to
twelve, carry octagon wheels, while the others carry round wheels. The details
of the octagon wheels are shewn in Figures 9 and 10, and those of the round
wheels in Figures 11 and.12. These wheels will not require to be turned or
planed on the outside, but all the eyes should be bored out accurately to size, so
that the wheels can be fitted on any of the shafts. The octagon wheels must
be strongly keyed on to their shafts as there will be a considerable stress on
them. The web is shewn, drawn upon an enlarged scale, at Fig. 26. It
consists of four lines of chain twenty-one inches apart, centre to centre, corre-
sponding to the distance of the wheels on the shafts.. Each chain is composed.
of flat links of hoop iron of the form and size shewn in Figures 17 and 18.
These lines of chain are crossed by iron rods of five feet eleven inches long,
and in order to keep the chains in their places on the rods the large rods
have a pair of grooves cut in them as at h, h, Fig. 26. The easiest way to cut
these grooves will be to fix a tool, such as shewn in Figures 22 and 23, in a
fly press, so as at a stroke of the press to cut the grooves. Into these grooves
a staple of square wire or nail rod, bent into the shape shewn at Fig. 20, is
slipped, and the end bent round by a blow of the hammer, as in Fig. 24. By
this means a sort of collar will be formed on each side of the line of chain,
which will keep it from shifting on the rods. Fig. 21 shows a simple plan for
forming these staples; it is to take a bar of iron and lap the wire round it in
a continuous coil, and then cut it asunder with a chisel at.i, i.
:
Fig. 28 shows a ground plan of a factory in which the Invention has been
employed. M indicates the position of the megass drier; F, the place of the
fan in the flue leading to M, which is represented by the dotted lines. This
flue will be sunk in the ground so that the top will be flush with the surface.
B is the boiler and engine for driving the fan. The furnace should be made lofty
so as to be suited for burning megass. C shews the chimney for carrying off

page_text: the blast when shut off from M. This is shewn in Figure 27. This chimney
need only be 5 or 6 feet high, which is sufficient to carry the draft above a
man's head. If the fan and its accessories should take up more room than is
here shewn, M may be moved back a few feet to the position shewn by the
dotted line.. Fig. 27 shows the arrangement of fan I should prefer as being
simpler than the ordinary form. The fan should be capable of drawing twenty
thousand cubic feet of air per minute with a pressure of one inch of water.
Having now described my Invention of an improved mode of and apparatus.
for treating or preparing megass and other substances to be used as fuel, and
having explained the manner of carrying the same into effect, I claim, as the
Invention secured to me by Letters Patent as aforesaid, drying the megass or
other substances in the manner herein set forth by the waste heat obtained
from the furnaces employed for evaporating the cane juice; I claim also the
apparatus herein set forth for carrying the substance to be operated upon
slowly and continuously through the drying chamber, or arranging it in layers
upon trays, as described.
In witness whereof, I, the said Hamilton Shirley Warner, have hereunto
hand and seal, the Twenty-third day of November, in the year
of our Lord One thousand eight hundred and sixty-three.
set my
HAMILTON SHIRLEY WARNER. (L.S.)