CERTAIN IMPROVEMENTS IN APPARATUS, MODES, OR PROCESSES OF CONVERTING SEA OR SALT WATER (AND ALSO OTHER BRACKISH, TURBID, OR IMPURE WATERS) INTO PURIFIED OR FRESH WATER, WHICH APPARATUS, MODES, OR PROCESSES, OR PARTS THEREOF, MAY BE APPLIED TO OTHER PURPOSES
Year: 1831

page_text: TO ALL TO WHOM THESE PRESENTS SHALL COME, I, MARK
COSNAHAN, of the Isle of Man, Esquire, send greeting.
WHEREAS His present most Excellent Majesty King William the
Fourth, by His Letters Patent under the Great Seal of Great Britain, bearing
date at Westminster, the Twentieth day of September, in the second year
of His reign, did, for Himself, His heirs and successors, give and grant
unto me, the said Mark Cosnahan, His especial licence, sole privilege and
authority, that I, the said Mark Cosnahan, my exors, admors, and assigns, or
such others as I, the said Mark Cosnahan, my exors, admors, or assigns,
should at any time agree with, and no others, from time to time and at all
times during the term of years therein mentioned, should and lawfully might
make, use, exercise, and vend, within England, Wales, and the Town of
Berwick-upon-Tweed, and also in all His said Majesty's Colonies and Planta-
tions abroad, my Invention of "CERTAIN IMPROVEMENTS IN APPARATUS, MODES,
OR PROCESSES OF CONVERTING SEA OR SALT WATER (AND ALSO OTHER BRACKISH,
TURBID, OR IMPURE WATERS) INTO PURIFIED OR FRESH WATER, WHICH APPARATUS,
MODES, OR PROCESSES, OR PARTS THEREOF, MAY BE APPLIED TO OTHER PURPOSES;"
in which said Letters Patent is contained a proviso that I, the said Mark
Cosnahan, shall cause a particular description of the nature of my said Inven-.
tion, and in what manner the same is to be performed, to be inrolled in
His said Majesty's High Court of Chancery within six calendar months
next and immediately after the date of the said in part recited Letters Patent,

page_text: as in and by the same, reference being thereunto had, will more fully and at
large appear.
NOW KNOW YE, that in compliance with the said proviso, I, the said
Mark Cosnahan, do hereby declare that the nature of my said Invention is
fully described and ascertained in and by the following description thereof,
reference being had to the Drawing hereunto annexed, and to the figures and
letters marked thereon, that is to say:-
My Invention consists in certain combinations and arrangements of appa-
ratus, and modes of using the same, whereby sea and other brackish or
impure waters are rendered pure or fresh water, and applicable as such to
general and domestic purposes.
I would first observe that it has been long known that by distillation sea
and other waters may be deprived of many of their impurities. I do not,
therefore, lay any claim to the distilling of such waters, but only combining
that process with other means hereafter described, whereby I am enabled to
produce pure water suitable to general purposes, whether for the table, for
cooking, or for other purposes; and in addition to this, by a slight variation of
the apparatus I am enabled to produce a still capable of producing spirits
from worts.
In order that my Invention may be fully understood, I will now describe
the Drawing hereunto annexed, which shews my Improvements applied in
various ways; and in each of the Figures of the Drawing the same letters of
reference indicate similar parts.
Fig. 1 represents a side view and Fig. 2 an end view of one arrangement
of apparatus, a being a rectangular boiler; b is the grate or fireplace running
through the boiler a; c is the furnace or flue which conveys off the smoke; d
is a condenser into which the steam rising from the boiler a flows and becomes
condensed.
Figs. 6, 7, and 8 show three forms of cooling apparatus, such as I prefer
to use, Fig. 6 being a series of tubes e, e, e, connected to hollow vessels f, f,
by which means, when this condenser is placed in a tube or vessel containing
water, a very large condensing surface is exposed. Fig. 7 shows another
arrangement, consisting of two concentric tubes, leaving a thin space between
them, into which the steam flows and becomes condensed, and by having
a bottom the condensing water may be placed in the interior. The steam
passes through the part f into the branch pipes 9, 9, and thence between the
two tubes, and may be drawn from the bottom at h.
Fig. 8 shows another arrangement, varying from Fig. 7 only in not having

page_text: a bottom; but in place thereof there are branch pipes i, i, connected to the
bottom of the two concentric tubes. This condenser must therefore be placed
in a tub or vessel in the same manner as a cooling worm, letting the pipe j
pass through the bottom thereof. Over the fireplace thereof is placed a small
rectangular vessel or chamber at K, see Fig. 5. This vessel is what I call the
purifier, and consists of a small square box let into the upper part of the
boiler a. The bottom of the box, coming directly over the flue of the fireplace
receives heat therefrom. At the top of this box there is an opening 1, having
a cover which is sufficiently open to admit of the escape of any vapour or
steam to flow out which may arise in the purifier, m is a pipe open at top,
and descending to the bottom of the boiler a, as shewn by dotted lines. Into
this pipe flows the water from the condenser as it becomes heated by the con-
densation of the steam, whereby it will be seen that the boiler is continually
supplied with heated impure water, and thus much saving takes place in the
application of fuel.
Fig. 3 shows another arrangement, differing only from that already
described inasmuch as the placing the condenser at the side of the apparatus
in place of the top, and in this instance the water does not go directly into the
boiler a, but passes into a feeder, and thence into the boiler. In other respects
the same letters of reference and the same description will apply to this Figure,
the action being in every respect similar. Fig. 5 is a plan by which the
arrangement of the parts will be readily understood. n, n, are two covers for
the purpose of cleansing the boiler.
Having described these Figures, I will next proceed to describe the mode
or process of using the apparatus by which. the sea or other impure waters
become purified :-
The boiler is to be filled with sea or other impure water so that it covers
the flue of the fireplace; there is also to be a constant flow of such impure
water into the condenser by the pipe o. On the fire being lighted, steam will
flow over by the steam pipe into the condenser, and will give off its heat to
the water, and thus become condensed, and will fall to the bottom of the con-
denser, and be conveyed by means of a pipe therefrom into the purifier
K, where it again becomes heated and boiled, and any fumes or vapours
which may arise pass off at the opening at top. For that purpose the water
may be continually running off at the cock p from the purifier into vessels to
cool, when it will be pure, and fit for use. The cock 9 on the condenser is for
the purpose of running the water from the condenser into the boiler, and thus
keeping up a constant supply. The cocks r, r, are for the purpose of drawing
off any saline settlement which would otherwise be prejudicial to the bottom

page_text: of the boiler when acted on by the fire. Fig. 4 shows an end view of an
apparatus which is applicable to distilling, and the same letters indicating
similar parts to those already described. It will be seen that in this apparatus
there are three condensers used, their construction being similar to that
already described in Fig. 7. From the top of the boiler a descend two boxes
or vessels s, t, which are shown by dotted lines. The wash is to be placed in
the boiler a, so that it well covers the fireplace and flue. The vapour rising
from the wash passes up the pipe v into the condenser, and becomes condensed,
and from the condenser it is conveyed by a pipe into the vessels, where it
again becomes vapourized, and passes up the pipe w into the second condenser,
and again becomes condensed; from thence it is conveyed by a pipe shown in
the Drawing into the vessel t, where it is again converted into vapour by the
action of the fire, yet the fire does not act directly against the bottom of this
vessel t, there being a space between it and the flue, by which there is at all
times a quantity of wort between the flue and the vessels s and t, which
prevents the spirits becoming burned. The spirits having passed through the
various condensers, as above described, may be drawn off at x. Should it,
however, be desired to draw off spirits of less strength, by drawing from the
cccks y, y, the strength will be in proportion to the place from which the
spirits are drawn. z, z, are two cocks for drawing off the spent wash. I
have here described and shown the apparatus as of particular shapes or forms;
but it will be evident that the same may be varied without departing from the
nature of the Invention, and the same may be of any suitable material.
And I would have it understood that what I claim as my Invention is the
combining and arranging the various parts as above described, whereby the
steam is first passed into a condenser, and when condensed it is passed into
the clarifier, and again boiled, whereby it is deprived of its impurities, and at
the same time the impure water which is used to condense the steam becoming
heated supplies the boiler with water considerably heated, and thus produces
a great saving in fuel.
And I do further claim the arrangement of the vessels & and t (Fig. 4),
and the condensers, together with the other arrangement of the parts to the
purpose of distilling; but I lay no claim separately to the various parts of
which such arrangements or combinations are composed.
In witness whereof, I, the said Mark Cosnahan, have hereunto set my
hand and seal, this Twentieth day of March, in the year of our Lord
One thousand eight hundred and thirty-two.
MARK (L.8.) COSNAHAN.

page_text: AND BE IT REMEMBERED, that on the Twentieth day of March, in
the year of our Lord 1832, the aforesaid Mark Cosnahan came before our
said Lord the King in His Chancery, and acknowledged the Specification
aforesaid, and all and every thing therein contained and specified, in form
above written. And also the Specification aforesaid was stamped according
to the tenor of the Statute made for that purpose.
Inrolled the Twentieth day of March, in the year of our Lord One
thousand eight hundred and thirty-two.