AN IMPROVED COMBINED APPARATUS FOR MANUFACTURING Gas FOR LIGHTING, HEATING, AND COOKING
Year: 1873

page_text: LETTERS PATENT to Henry Skoines, of 7, Argyle Street, King's Cross,
in the County of Middlesex, Gas Engineer, for the Invention of
"AN IMPROVED COMBINED APPARATUS FOR MANUFACTURING Gas FOR LIGHTING,
HEATING, AND COOKING."
Scaled the 5th September 1873, and dated the 24th March 1873.
PROVISIONAL SPECIFICATION left by the said Henry Skoines at the
Office of the Commissioners of Patents, with his Petition, on the
24th March 1873.
HENRY SKOINES, of 7, Argyle Street, King's Cross, in the County
of Middlesex, Gas Engineer, do hereby declare the nature of the said
Invention for "AN IMPROVED COMBINED APPARATUS FOR MANUFACTURING GAS
FOR LIGHTING, HEATING, AND COOKING," to be as follows:-
-
My Invention relates to certain improvements in the construction of
apparatus for the manufacture of gas applicable for lighting and cooking,
and also for heating mansions, public buildings, churches, private
buildings, conservatories, and other purposes.

page_text: In order to effect these objects I propose to place a retort or retorts
subdivided into one or more chambers over a furnace or fire-place, which
retort or retorts will be heated thereby for the purpose of making gas
from coal or any oleagenous substances, the fuel used for heating said
retort or retorts will also be applicable for cooking and other domestic
purposes as well as for heating water in a circulating and steam boiler,
oven, hot closet, and plate rack. By means of valves or dampers, or
both, I can make use of the retort or retorts, steam boiler and ovens in
combination, or use any one of them separately, the furnace door is
open in part so as to be applicable for any domestic purpose. By
traversing the crude gas through the chambers in retort or retorts the
volume is greatly encreased and the whole of the hydrocarbons are
eliminated and formed into a permanent gas, it is then optional to
lead away the gas from the front or back end of retort into a combined
condensing, scrubbing, and purifying apparatus into the gas holder.
SPECIFICATION in pursuance of the conditions of the Letters Patent,
filed by the said Henry Skoines in the Great Seal Patent Office
on the 24th September 1873.
TO ALL TO WHOM THESE PRESENTS SHALL COME, I, HENRY
SKOINES, of 7, Argyle Street, King's Cross, in the County of Middlesex,
Gas Engineer, send greeting.
WHEREAS Her most Excellent Majesty Queen Victoria, by Her
Letters Patent, bearing date the Twenty-fourth day of March, in the
year of our Lord One thousand eight hundred and seventy-three, in
the thirty-sixth year of Her reign, did, for Herself, Her heirs and suc-
cessors, give and grant unto me, the said Henry Skoines, Her special
license that I, the said Henry Skoines, my executors, administrators,
and assigns, or such others as I, the said Henry Skoines, 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
COMBINED APPARATUS FOR MANUFACTURING GAS FOR LIGHTING, HEATING, AND
COOKING," upon the condition (amongst others) that I, the said Henry

page_text: Skoines, my executors or administrators, by an instrument in writing
under my, or their, or one of their hands and seals, 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 Henry Skoines, 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 thereof and the Drawings therein referred to (that
is to say):-
My Invention relates to certain improvements in the construction of
apparatus for the manufacture of gas, applicable for lighting and
cooking, and also for heating mansions, public buildings, churches,
private buildings, conservatories, and other purposes.
My Invention will be readily understood from the following description
thereof, reference being had to the accompanying Sheet of Drawings, in
which Fig. 1 is a front elevation of my improved apparatus; Fig. 2 is a
plan; Fig. 3 is a vertical section taken in the line A, B, of Fig. 2; Fig. 4
is a horizontal section in the line C, D, of Fig. 3; Fig. 5 is a vertical
section in the line E, F, of Fig. 1; Fig. 6 is a horizontal section in the
line G, H, of Fig. 1; Fig. 7 is a longitudinal vertical section of the
condenser, and Fig. 8 is a transverse vertical section of the condenser
and purifier.
The apparatus is constructed with a furnace or fire-place a, having
an ash-pit 6 below it and a retort c above. The upper part of this
retort is divided from the lower part by a horizontal partition d, above
which there is a vertical partition e which divides the upper part of the
retort into two chambers c¹, c². The chamber c¹ communicates at one
end with the lower part or carbonizing compartment of the retort by an
aperture or opening c³, and at its other end by an aperture or opening c*
with the chamber c. From the chamber c* a pipe fleads to a condenser
which consists of a chamber g provided with a number of transverse
vertical divisions or baffles h, so that the gas in passing through is
compelled to pass as indicated by arrows several times alternately to
the upper and lower parts of the condenser with which the purifier for
purifying the gas is combined, in such manner that a single lid i hinged
at and provided with a suitable luting or liquid sealing at ² is made

page_text: to cover both the condenser and the purifier. The purifier is constructed
with a vertical partition k, at each side of which are arranged a number
of perforated plates or shelves k¹, the spaces between these plates or
shelves being charged with lime, soda, or other well-known purifying
agents in the usual manner. Within the lower part of the main
casing of the apparatus is a steam boiler m which forms the rear wall
of the furnace. Above this steam boiler at one side is the rear end of
the retort, and at the other side also within the main casing 7 is arranged
a circulating boiler or water heater n which is provided with an inlet
pipe o.and with an outlet pipe p. At the side of the furnace and retort
is an oven q having flues r at its sides as well as above and below it,
the whole of the flues being within the main casing 7. The flues rat
each side of the retort are furnished with dampers & running from front
to back of the apparatus for regulating the direction of the products of
combustion; ¹ is the chimney, t is a steam pipe, one branch t¹ of which
conducts steam from the steam boiler m to the front of the retort when
necessary to produce hydrogen gas for heating purposes, and the other
branch leads (in the arrangement shewn) to a small engine u placed
on the hot plate 7 of the apparatus, but the steam may be utilized for
any other purpose. The operation of the apparatus is as follows: -The
products of combustion from the furnace a pass up one or both sides
of the retort over its top, then over the tops of the circulating boiler and
oven, down between their outer sides and the side of the main casing 1,
then towards the front bottom part of the oven, then under the oven
and under the steam boiler m and away by the chimney r¹; v are
baffle plates or guides to prevent the too ready escape of the products
of combustion and to ensure their utilization under the steam boiler.
The lower chamber of the retort being charged with cannel coal or
analogous substances the crude gases, vapours, or products therefrom
pass up into and through the heated chambers c¹, c², thereby converting
the tar and oils into permanent gas. The whole of the gas passes by
the pipe finto and through the condenser in the direction indicated by.
the arrows in Fig. 7, and thence through the purifier as indicated by the
arrows in Fig. 8. From the purifier the gas (now ready for use) passes
by a pipe w to any suitable gas holder. When it is desired to heat the
apparatus by means of gas in lieu of coal or other fuel such gas may
be produced by passing steam through incandescent iron coke or
analogous substances in the lower part of the heated retort, the
resulting gases being caused to pass through the upper chamber c¹, c²,

page_text: and thence through the condenser and purifier into any suitable holder
from whence the gas may be fed to the furnace or fire-place a (con-
taining an incandescent fuel or some highly heated substances) for use,
the requisite quantity of oxygen to sustain combustion being admitted
between the bars of the furnace as usual. Gas produced as last above
described may also be used for other heating purposes.
Having now described the nature of my said Invention of "An Im-
proved Combined Apparatus for Manufacturing Gas for Lighting,
Heating, and Cooking," and having explained the manner of carrying
the same into practical effect, I wish it to be understood that I do not
claim as of my Invention the several parts herein-before described or
referred to, except when the same are used in and for my said Invention,
the novelty of which I hereby declare to consist in,―
First. The peculiar construction of apparatus consisting of the
furnace a, the retort c, the steam boiler m, the circulating boiler or
water heater n and the oven q, all arranged entirely within the main
casing 1, substantially as herein-before described and illustrated in the
accompanying Drawings.
Secondly. Constructing the retort c with chambers c¹, c³, as described,
through which the crude gases, vapours, or products from the coking,
carbonizing, or lower chamber of the retort are caused to pass, as and
for the purposes specified.
Thirdly. The combined condenser and purifier shewn in and described
with reference to Figs. 7 and 8 of the accompanying Drawings.
In witness whereof, I, the said Henry Skoines, have hereunto set
my hand and seal, this 23rd day of September in the year of
our Lord One thousand eight hundred and seventy-three.