Improved Mode of and Means for Ventilating Railway Tunnels.
Year: 1894

page_text: Date of Application, 3rd July, 1894
Complete Specification Left, 3rd May, 1895-Accepted, 15th June, 1895
PROVISIONAL SPECIFICATION.
Improved Mode of and Means for Ventilating Railway Tunnels.
I, EMIL WEIDLICH of 74 Milton Street, in the City of London, Manufacturer's
Agent, do hereby declare the nature of this invention to be as follows:-
The object of my invention is to improve the ventilation of railway tunnels with
two or more tracks, and especially those in and near large towns, where, owing to the
frequency of the trains, the smoky vitiated atmosphere has not time to be replaced
by fresh pure air, and where in fact the bad air when partially set in motion by a
truin moving in one direction is soon after churned back into the tunnel by a train
moving in the opposite direction.
For this purpose I provide in the tunnel a partition between the two tracks or
between any two adjoining tracks. This partition is suspended from the top of the
arched or other roof and reaches down to or within a certain distance of the
ground. In this manner the tunnel or the upper part of same is divided into two
chambers or passages whereby two air columns are as it were created one acted
upon by the up trains and the other by the down trains. The partition is made of
a number of curtains made of light and sufficiently strong material such as canvas,
sheet metal or wood, and weighted as required. The curtains may be joined.
Canvas suspended from a metallic tube may in many cases answer the purpose; the
tube may be formed with fine perforations for the supply of water to trickle down
the partition to absorb the "blacks" and other impurities in the smoke in the
tunnel and the bottom edge of the partition may be weighted by means of lengths
of bar iron passed through a pleat or fold of the canvas. These bars may be
joined by sockets slided upon their ends. At each end of the tunnel I may provide
a hood and funnel one for carrying off smoke from the up trains and the other at
the other end of the tunnel for carrying off smoke from the down trains and to
ensure the proper draught in these funnels I provide a gas or other burner or
burners at or near the bottom of the funnels.
Where the roof of a tunnel is made with transverse arches I prefer to board in
the top so as to make a flat ceiling.
Improved Mode of and Means for Ventilating Railway Tunnels.
I, EMIL WEIDLICH of 74 Milton Street in the City of London Manufacturer's
Agent 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 :-
The object of my invention is to improve the ventilation of railway tunnels with
two or more tracks and especially those in and near large towns where owing to the
frequency of the trains the smoky vitiated' atmosphere has not time to be replaced by
fresh pure air and where in fact the bad air when partially set in motion by a train
Winiel

page_text: moving in one direction is soon after churned back into the tunnel by a train
moving in the opposite direction.
For this purpose I provide in the tunnel a partition between the two tracks or
between any two adjoining tracks. This .partition is suspended from the top of the
arched or other roof and reaches down to or within a certain distance of the ground.
In this manner the tunnel or the upper part of same is divided into two chambers or
passages whereby two air columns are, as it were, created, one acted upon like a
piston by the " up "trains and the other by the "down" trains. At each end of
the tunnel I provide a hood and funnel, one for carrying off smoke from the "up
trains and the other, at the other end of the tunnel, for carrying off smoke from
the "down" trains and to increase the draught I when required provide a gas or
other burner or burners at or near the bottom of the funnels. Where the roof of a
tunnel is made with transverse arches I prefer to board in the top so as to make a
flat ceiling.
:
"
Figure 1 is an end view of an ordinary double track railway tunnel and Fig. 2 a
longitudinal section of same provided with my improvements.
The partition consists of a number of curtains A made of light and sufficiently
strong material such as canvas or wood rendered fireproof, or sheet metal, and
weighted as required, or held down by wire ropes to stakes driven into the sleepers.
The curtains may be joined for instance as here shewn by means of pieces of bar
iron or tube C inserted loosely in the ends of the tubular bottom bars B of two
adjoining curtains. Canvas or jute rendered fireproof suspended from an iron tube D
may in many cases answer the purpose. The tube D may be formed with fine
perforations for the supply of water to trickle down the partition to cool the air in
the tunnel, to absorb the "blacks" and other impurities in the smoke in the tunnel,
and to keep the partition from catching fire by sparks and 'cinders from the engines.
The bottom bars B serve to weight the curtains.
E is a hood with funnel Fat each end of the tunnel, so arranged as shewn
in Fig. 1 that the one carries off the smoke from the up trains and the other from
the down trains:
The bottom of the hood may be carried into or towards the month of the tunnel
as shown dotted at E¹.
The curtains A may be carried down further than shewn or right down to the
bottom. The gas or other burner may be conveniently fixed at or about at G but
under some circumstances it may be mounted in other parts of the funnel.
The strong draught action set up by a train driving the air before it like a piston
serves to draw off the smoke given off and set in motion by the train.
Having now particularly described and ascertained the nature of my said inven-
tion and in what manner the same is to be performed I declare that what I
claim is
:
1. The application and use in tunnels for two or more railway tracks of curtains
between the tracks or between each two tracks suspended from the upper part of
the tunnel in combination with hoods and funnels at the up train exit end and the
down train exit end, for the purpose of carrying off the smoke substantially as set
forth.
2. The construction of partition with hoods and funnels as described with reference
to the drawing.
3. The application and use of water to tunnel partitions of the character described
for the purpose of rinsing off the "blacks," for protecting against ignition and for
cooling the air in the tunnel.
JENSEN & SON,
77, Chancery Lane, London, W.C., Patent Agents.