Improvements in Apparatus for Evaporating, Condensing, and Cooling Fluids.
Year: 1896

page_text: Date of Application, 29th Feb., 1896-Accepted. 18th Apr., 1896
COMPLETE SPECIFICATION.
Improvements in Apparatus for Evaporating, Condensing, and
Cooling Fluids.
I, EDUARD THEISEN, of No. 15, Werder Strasse, Baden-Baden, Germany,
Engineer, 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 :-
This invention relates mainly to evaporative surface condensers in which cold is
produced by the evaporative action of currents of air or other gases made to
impinge upon thin films of liquid flowing down the outer surfaces of the condensing
apparatus. The improved apparatus is however equally applicable for producing
cold generally and for simply effecting the evaporation of liquids.
The essential feature of the invention consists in causing the liquid under
pressure which is intended to flow down the surfaces of the condenser or other
apparatus, to act, either alone or in conjunction with a jet of steam or other vapour
or gas under pressure, either directly or indirectly upon a fan or propeller which
serves to accelerate the velocity of the air currents that are to effect the evaporation
of the liquid, and which are to a certain extent already produced by the differences
of temperature existing between the interior of the apparatus and the outer air.
The means employed for the above purpose may be variously modified; generally
speaking they may be divided into two groups, namely:
1. Fans for propellers with revolving reaction-nozzles, through which the liquid,
steam or gas is made to issue so as to effect the rotation both of the nozzles
and of the fan.
2. Fans or propellers with fixed nozzles through which the liquid steam or gas is
made to issue so as to impinge upon the blades of a turbine or similar rotary motor
combined with the fan, and thereby to effect the rotation of both parts.
In both cases the liquid issuing from the nozzles is made to flow over the
surfaces of the apparatus whence it is to be evaporated by the air currents.
I will describe, by way of example, some of the various arrangements that may
be employed for carrying my invention into practice.
Fig. 1 shews a vertical section through a tube of a condenser or evaporating
apparatus provided with appliances according to ny said invention. The water
which is required to flow down over the inner surface of the tube A is made to
pass under a certain pressure up the pipe a, on the upper end of which are rotatably
mounted reaction nozzles y y, through which the water consequently issues in a
tangential direction, thereby effecting the rotation of the nozzles, the water being
thus thrown on to the surface of the tube, down which it flows. The water in
flowing down will consequently be evaporated if the tube A be heated on its outer
surface, for example by the exhaust steam of an engine. To the revolving boss
of the nozzles are fixed the screw vanes b of a fan, which are co.sequently made
to rotate rapidly therewith, and thus produce a constant air current up the tube A,
which air current will impinge upon the film of water on the tube, accelerating the
evaporation and carrying off the vapour as it is formed.
Fig. 2 shews a plan of the arrangement at Fig. 1. The arrow c indicating the
direction of rotation of the nozzles and fan blades.
Fig. 3 shews a modification in which the nozzles y and vanes 6 are arranged at
the lower part of the tube A, the nozzles being formed with an upward as well as

page_text: a horizontal curvature, so that the water issues therefrom in obliquely upward
directed jets to the top of the tube A, down the surface of which it then flows,
while the fan & at the same time propels the air upward.
The above described arrangements can also be used for condensing the steam
or vapour produced in the tube A again.
For this purpose there is provided above the tubes A and their hefore described
appliances a cylindrical extension A' ns shewn at Figure 4 in which is arranged a
second water pressure supply pipe a' with revolving reaction nozzles y' and fan
blades &, so thint water is also thrown against the inner surface of the cylinder.
The vapour rising up from the lower tubes A will consequently be condensed by
contact with the water flowing down A, the fan blades serving both to accelerate
the currents of mixed air and vapour and to cause them to impinge upon the wet
surface. Instead of employing a single cylinder of large diameter for this purpose
several smaller cylinders or tubes may of course he employed, which in nilording a
larger amount of surface, will have a more effective condensing action.
The cylinder A Figure 4 with its appliances may in addition to its described
condensing action, also serve for the cooling of that portion of the water which
is heated in the tubes A without being evnpornted. For this purpose such warm
water un flowing off from the bottom of the tubes A is caused to pass through the
pipe a to the nozzles y of the upper cylinder A' so that on flowing down the
surface hereof it will be cooled by contact with the air current propelled against
it by the fan
As before stated, the above described arrangements may be mulified by causing
the water to issue through fixed nozzles so as to impinge against the blades of a
turbine which is combined with and imparts motion to the fan. According to
another modification the same effect is produced by causing jets of liquid at low
pressure to impinge upon a central part of the fan blades by the rotation of which
it is then thrown on to the surfaces of the tubes A, and a jet or jets of steam or
gas is made to impinge either upon the outer periphery of the fan blades so na
to effect an accelerated rotation thereof or upon the blades of a turbine combined
with the fan, by which means an increased speed of the fan and consequently also
of the air currents will be obtained.
Figures 5 and 6 shew a cross section and longitudinal section of an apparatus
the condensing or evaporating surfaces of which are formed by a series of
horizontal tubes C. The several rows of tubes are arranged so far apart as to
allow of the requisite quantity of air for effecting the evaporation to pass up
between them.
The steam to be condensed passes from the common supply pipe D into the
box E from which it passes through the conlensing tubes C so ns to be condensed
therein. The air and uncoudensible gases collect in the box E' and are drawn
off at F the water of condensation heing discharged at G. The liquid under
pressure serving to moisten the outer surfaces of the tubes C issues through
the nozzles y y and impinges upon the tubes C and flows downwards over
the same.
Above the tubes C are arranged fan blades & b which are rotated by the
action of water jeta supplied from branches a' of the pipe a', acting on turbine
blades at the periphery of the fan blades; the fan blades being this made to
accelerate the upward air currents through the apparatus which are induced in
the first instance by the difference of temperature within and without tho
apparatus.
The water jets issuing from the nozzles y not only accelerate the air currents,
but also effect the partial condensation of the vapours given off from the lower
part of the evaporating surfaces, thus also affording a freer passage for the air
currents. Upper water jets y may also be provided for condensing the vapours
rising up with the air currents from the upper part of the apparatus, such jets
being surrounded by walls I of wire gauze, perforated metal, or the like.
By the above described arrangements the effectiveness of the apparatus is not

page_text: only very considerably increased but also a portion of the evaporated water is
regained by condensation.
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
claim is :-
1. In apparatus for evaporating, condensing and cooling fluids with cooling by
evaporation, the use for accelerating the speed of the air currents, of fans or
propellers actuated by liquid under pressure which is at the same time made to
serve as the liquid to be evaporated on the condensing or cooling surfaces
substantially as described.
2. In apparatus for evaporating condensing and cooling fluids, such as is referred
to in the first claim, the use in combination with the liquid jets of jets of steam
or gases which are made to act together with the liquid upon the fan or propeller
or upon a turbine combined therewith for the purpose of still farther increasing
the speed of the air currents, and for effecting the recondensation of the
evaporating liquid so as to economise the expenditure thereof, substantially as
described.
Dated this 29th day of February 1896.
ABEL & IMRAY,
Agents for the Applicant.