IMPROVEMENTS IN STEAM ENGINES
Year: 1854

page_text: LETTERS PATENT to James Edward McConnell, of Wolverton, in the
County of Bucks, Civil Engineer, for the Invention of " IMPROVEMENTS IN
STEAM ENGINES."
Sealed the 4th May 1855, and dated the 7th December 1854.
PROVISIONAL SPECIFICATION left by the said James Edward McConnell
at the Office of the Commissioners of Patents, with his Petition, on the
7th December 1854.
I, JAMES EDWARD MCCONNELL, of Wolverton, in the County of Bucks, Civil
Engineer, do hereby declare the nature of the said Invention for "IMPROVE-
MENTS IN STEAM ENGINES" to be as follows:-
These improvements relate to blast pipes, pistons, and tubes of steam
engines, and are improvements upon several Patents heretofore granted to me
for "Improvements in Steam Engines."
The improvements in blast pipes of locomotive engines consist in employing
a chamber of tubes, or alternate water and steam spaces of any form, between
the cylinders and the orifice where the escape steam issues to the chimney,
through which tubes or passages the feed water from the tender is forced in
its passage into the boiler, and thus receives the heat from the waste steam

page_text: and the surrounding gases, so that the water enters the boiler in a highly
heated state.
The improvements in pistons consist in the construction of a solid wrought
iron or steel piston and piston rod forged in one piece, such piston having a
single or double packing ring inserted into its edge without any cover or
screwed-on plate, by which means, and by means of set screws or other con-
venient contrivances, I am enabled to adjust the packing readily, the loose
ring at present employed being dispensed with.
My improvements in tubes for locomotives consist in the formation of the
individual tubes for locomotives of two capacities or bores, that portion of
the tube of the larger bore being near the fire, and the portion of the tube
of the smaller bore nearer the smoke box. By the use of tubes of this con-
struction, the body of heat will be partially impeded in its passage through
the tubes, and made to act more strongly upon the smaller area towards the
smoke box.
SPECIFICATION in pursuance of the conditions of the Letters Patent, filed
by the said James Edward McConnell in the Great Seal Patent Office on
the 7th June 1855.
TO ALL TO WHOM THESE PRESENTS SHALL COME, I, JAMES
EDWARD MCCONNELL, of Wolverton, in the County of Bucks, Civil Engineer,
send greeting.
WHEREAS Her most Excellent Majesty Queen Victoria, by Her Letters
Patent, bearing date the Seventh day of December, in the year of our Lord
One thousand eight hundred and fifty-four, in the eighteenth year of Her
reign, did, for Herself, Her heirs and successors, give and grant unto me,
the said James Edward McConnell, Her special license that I, the said James
Edward McConnell, my executors, administrators, and assigns, or such others as
I, the said James Edward McConnell, my executors, administrators, or 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 "IM-
PROVEMENTS IN STEAM ENGINES," upon the condition (amongst others) that I,
the said James Edward McConnell, by an instrument in writing under my
hand and seal, should particularly describe and ascertain the nature of the

page_text: 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 James Edward McConnell, 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 accompanying Drawings, and
to the letters and figures marked thereon, that is to say :-
My said Invention relates to certain improvements in the construction and
arrangement of blast pipes, pistons, and tubes of steam engines, and consists
of improvements upon several Patents heretofore granted to me for Improve-
ments in Steam Engines.
The improvements in the construction and arrangement of the blast pipes
of locomotive engines consist in the employment of a chamber of tubes, or
alternate water and steam spaces of any convenient form, placed between the
cylinders and the orifice where the escape steam issues to the chimney, through
which tubes or passages the feed water from the tender is forced in its passage
into the boiler, and thus receives the heat from the waste steam and the
surrounding gases, so that the water enters the boiler in a highly heated
state.
The improvements in pistons consist in the construction of a solid wrought
iron or steel piston and piston rod forged in one piece, such piston having a
single or double packing ring inserted into its edge without any cover or
screwed-on plate, by which means, and by means of set screws or other con-
venient contrivance, the packing may be readily adjusted, the loose ring or
piston cover plate at present employed being dispensed with, thereby greatly
reducing the cost and weight of the piston.
The improvements in tubes for locomotives consists in the formation of the
individual tubes of two capacities or bores, that portion of the tube of the larger
bore being near the fire, and the smaller portion or bore of the tube next to
the chimney. By the use of these tubes the body of heat will be partially
impeded in its passage through the tubes, and made to act more strongly
upon the smaller area towards the smoke box.
And in order that my said Invention may be more readily understood, I
shall now proceed to describe and refer to the several Figures on the Sheets
of Drawings hereunto annexed.
Figure 1, on Sheet 1 of my Drawings, represents a transverse vertical
section, taken through the centre of the smoke box, of a locomotive engine

page_text: fitted with my improved feed-heating blast pipe; Figure 2 is a corresponding
longitudinal vertical section of the same; and Figure 3 is a side elevation of
a portion of a locomotive engine, shewing the arrangement of feed pipes and
clack boxes in connexion therewith; Figure 4 represents a detail side eleva-
tion on an enlarged scale of the blast pipe; Figure 5 is a corresponding
elevation of the same, looking at right angles to Figure 4; Figure 6 is a
vertical section of the blast pipe, shewing the internal arrangement thereof;
and Figure 7 is a sectional plan of the same, drawn half the real size; the
same letters of reference indicating corresponding parts throughout all the
Figures on Sheet 1 of my Drawings.
The modification of blast pipe, illustrated on this Sheet of Drawings, consists
of a cylindrical wrought-iron outer casing A, which is secured at the top and
bottom to the plates B and C by means of angle-iron flanges rivetted thereto.
The plates B and C are perforated, to receive the ends of the vertical tubes
D, D, which afford a passage to the steam in its escape from the cylinders
E, E. These tubes at their upper ends open into the chamber F, which con-
stitutes the nozzle of the blast pipe, their lower ends communicating with the
pipe G, which is bolted on to the exhaust port of the steam cylinders. The
feed water is supplied from the tender to the water space round the tubes in
the blast pipe by means of the ordinary feed pumps through the clack box H
and feed pipe I. This pipe communicates with the clack box J, from which
the feed may be directed at once into the boiler without being heated by the
blast pipe by simply adjusting the three-way cock K in such a manner as to
shut off the communication between the pipe I and the pipe L, which forms a
continuation of it, and communicates with the lower portion of the blast pipe
by means of the branch pipe M. By this arrangement, the feed may either
be supplied direct to the boiler, or it may be first conducted to the blast pipe
by simply turning the cock K; accordingly, on entering the water space round
the blast pipe or pipes, the feed becomes heated to boiling point, or nearly so,
and is forced through the pipe N, which opens at one end into the upper part
of the feed water heating chamber, and at the other end it is connected to
the clack O, inside the smoke box. A bent pipe P from this clack box
conducts the feed into the boiler, the pipe being conducted round the tubes
some distance below the level of the water in the boiler. A small pet cock Q,
communicating with the clack box O, serves to test the working of the pumps
when requisite.
It will be obvious, on referring to the Drawings, that not only is the heat of
the escape steam utilized in heating the feed, but also that of the heated air

page_text: and gases emitted from the boiler tubes; such air and gases, by impinging on
the outer shell of the heating chamber A, impart thereto an additional amount
of heat, by which the temperature of the feed water is raised to boiling point,
or near to boiling point, before entering the boiler.
Figure 1, on Sheet 2 of my Drawings, represents a vertical section of a
second modification of feed-heating blast pipe, and Figure 2 is a transverse
section of the same. The only difference in this arrangement consists in
having one set of small tubes A situated round a central tube B of consider-
ably larger bore, this tube being rivetted to the upper and lower plates C
and D, suitable flanges being formed on each extremity for the purpose of
receiving the rivets. The outer shell E is fitted round the tubes, and rivetted
to the plates C and D.
Figure 3 is a vertical section, and Figure 4 a horizontal section, of another
modification, in which the small tubes are dispensed with, the whole of the
escape steam passing up the central tube or pipe A, which is flanged and
rivetted at each end to the plates B and C.
of
I may here observe that I do not confine or limit myself to any particular
arrangement, form, or number of tubes, so long as the principle of this portion
my Invention is adhered to, namely, the heating of the feed by passing it
through a water space or chamber formed by one or more tubes enclosed in an
outer shell or case, and through which tube or tubes the escape steam from
the cylinders passes on its way to the chimney.
Figure 5 represents an elevation of the under side of my improved piston, a
portion of the same being broken away to show the arrangement of adjusting
springs and set screws, and Figure 6 is a corresponding longitudinal section of
the same. The body of the piston A and rod B are forged in one solid piece
of steel or wrought iron. The recess or hollow on the under side of the
piston is formed by forging the piston on a matrix, the steam hammer
employed for that purpose having its face made to correspond to the hollow
or recess in the piston, whilst the matrix is so formed as to leave a shank on
the opposite side of the piston, to which shank the piston rod is subsequently
welded. The body of the piston being thus roughed out, is afterwards turned
up in a lathe, the interior of the recess or hollow being turned smooth and
drilled to receive the set screws C. The circumferential groove for receiving
the packing ring or rings D is also cut in the lathe. These rings may be of
the ordinary or any other construction, and are set up by the springs E and
screws C. One or more holes are drilled transversely through the screw
heads to receive a split pin or other contrivance, which, by bearing at one end

page_text: against the under side or face of the piston, prevents the screws from turning
round or becoming accidentally slackened. These holes serve also for the
introduction of a pin therein when, the screws require adjusting, the split pins
being temporally removed for that purpose; -a cast-iron or other metal block F,
set up by an adjusting screw G, is fitted behind the packing rings at the lower
portion of the circumference of the piston, which rests on the lower side of
the cylinder, for the purpose of taking off the extra strain of the weight
of the piston from the two lower adjusting springs. Figure 7 represents a
longitudinal vertical section of a locomotive boiler, shewing the application
thereto of my improved tubes. These tubes are made of two capacities, that
portion A next the smoke box being smaller in diameter than the portion B,
which opens into the fire box, whereby the heated air and gases are impeded
in their passage to the smoke box, and made to give off a greater portion of
their heat than when they are allowed to pass rapidly through the tubes into
the smoke box. The small tube A may be let into the bore of the larger
one B, as shewn in the detail, Figures 8, 9, and 10; or it may be expanded at
one end and fitted outside the larger tube, as in Figures 11, 12, and 18, by
which means the passage of the heated air and gases, although retarded, will
not be impeded by any obstruction inside the tubes. The tubes may either be
both of brass or both of iron, or they may be made one of brass and one of
iron, as shewn in the several details, by which latter arrangement the increased
expansion of the brass tube over that of the iron tube will tend to keep the
joint always tight when heated, and so prevent leakage therefrom. The tube
hole in smoke box plate is the full size of largest diameter, & the tube is
made larger to suit on this end.
Having now described and particularly ascertained the nature of my said
Invention, and the manner in which the same is or may be used or carried
into effect, I would observe, in conclusion, that I do not confine or restrict
myself to the precise details or arrangements which I have had occasion
to describe or refer to, as many variatiations may be made therefrom without
deviating from the principles or main features of my said Invention; but
what I consider to be novel and original, and therefore claim as the Invention
secured to me by the herein-before in part recited Letters Patent, is,―
First, the application and use of blast pipes divided into alternate water
and steam spaces by one or more pipes or tubes, enclosed in an outer shell or
casing, for the purpose of heating the feed water of steam boilers before its
introduction into the boiler.
Second, the peculiar construction and arrangement of pistons for steam

page_text: engines, as herein-before described, whereby the screwed-on plate is dispensed
with.
Third, the application and use of boiler tubes with reduced capacities at
their ends next the smoke box of locomotive engines, for the purpose herein-
before described.
In witness whereof, I, the said James Edward McConnell, have hereunto
set my hand and seal, the Seventh day of June, One thousand eight
hundred and fifty-five.
J. E. MCCONNELL. (L.S.)
J. E. MCCONNELL. (L.s.)