Improvements in or Additions to Carbon Lamps or Carbon Burners for Illuminating Purposes.
Year: 1892

page_text: Date of Application, 19th Sept., 1892
Complete Specification Left, 3rd May, 1393-Accepted 24th June, 1893
PROVISIONAL SPECIFICATION.
Improvements in or Additions to Carbon Lamps or Carbon Burners
for Illuminating Purposes.
I BERNARD RATCLIFF, of the firm of Joseph Ratcliff and Sons, of New
Summer Street, in the City of Birmingham Manufacturers do hereby declare the
nature of this invention to be as follows:-
This invention pertains to improvements in, or additions to, the vaporising
apparatus or means employed in generating vapour, for the carburetting of gas for
illuminating purposes, and consists primarily in the employment of a supplementary
guard, protecting the vaporiser, and preferably of the shape of an inverted sleeved
or piped funnel placed at a short distance from the underside bottom of the said
vaporising chamber or tank.
This said guard forms, as it were, a jacket or superstrata outer covering, within
an inner shaft or chimney, under which the gas burner comes.
By thus employing an interposed guard between the vaporising tank or chamber,
and the heat of the flame or burner of the lamp, the heat imparted to the said
vaporiser by radiation, or by conduction through heat conveying mediums, is
limited, and that amount which actually passes, by conduction or radiation, is
equalized.
If excessive heat is allowed to play directly upon the underside of the said
vaporiser, the hydro-carbon contained therein, and in direct contact with the bottom
becomes unduly heated, causing smoke to be emitted through the burners and
producing odour by which the efficiency of the vaporiser is reduced.
Besides, that part of the hydro-carbon in direct contact with the bottom of the
tank, is by the heat applied, thereto, unduly expanded, and becomes lighter bulk
for bulk, and rises through the strata above it, too rapidly, and in too great a
volume than is desirable to be consumed.
The accelerated generation, has a tendency, at one time, to glut the burner with
too much carbon vapour, and at another time, to impoverish the same.
In carrying out my invention, in connection with a carbon lamp, I connect to the
lower part of a pillar sleeve or pillar casing, a vaporiser, through the middle or
axis of which sleeve and vaporiser, which has a hole up its middle, a coal gas
supply or service pipe downwardly takes, and with the lower termination of it
being provided with gas jets, which come within a suitable distance of the
vaporiser.
The said vaporiser is preferably made in the form of an annulus, with a flared or
trumpet-mouth shaft or passage up its middle, which leads to the sleeve or casing
above it as aforesaid.
Fitted or disposed within a short distance from the said bottom and inside
passage of the vaporiser, is an inverted funnel shaped guard, with the expanded
front and flared mouth part coming within a short distance of the bottom, and with
the neck or pipe of the same being directed partly up the shaft, and partly up the
sleeve, to any desired extent, so as to entirely protect the vaporiser from the direct
impingement or action of the heat or flame of the burner.
It will be thus understood that the flare-mouthed shield is separated from the
underside or outer walls of the vaporiser tank or vessel, by a stratum of air, which
circulates between the said media, and creates an equilibrium of temperature in the
vaporiser.
The coal gas supply pipe running down the middle of the sleeve of the shield,
becomes heated by its contact with the heated air passing up the shaft, by which

page_text: means, the gas supply becomes also heated, and is then conveyed into the upper
part or crown space of the vaporiser, and there circulated above the hydro-carbon,
hence the impregnation of the said coal gas with the hydro-carbon vapour, hence
the highly carburetting of the same. This highly carburetting coal gas is then
conveyed to the burners.
The shield or superstrata guard may be made of metal, glass or other suitable
material.
BERNARD RATCLIFF,
By Henry Skerrett,
Agent for Applicant.
COMPLETE SPECIFICATION.
Improvements in or Additions to Carbon Lamps or Carbon Burners
for Illuminating Purposes.
I, BERNARD RATCLIFF, of the firm of Joseph Ratcliff and Sons, of New
Summer Street, in the City of Birmingham, Manufacturers, 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 pertains to improvements in, or additions to, the vaporising
apparatus or means employed in generating vapour, for the carburetting of gas, for
illuminating purposes, and consists primarily in the employment of a supplementary
guard, protecting the vaporiser and preferably of the shape of an inverted sleeved
or piped funnel, placed at a short distance from the underside bottom of the said
vaporising chamber or tank.
This said guard forms as it were, a jacket or superstratum outer covering, within
an inner shaft or chimney, under which the gas burners come.
By thus employing an interposed guard between the vaporising tank or chamber,
and the heat of the flame or burner of the lamp, the heat imparted to the said
vaporiser by radiation, or by conduction through heat conveying mediums, is
limited, and that amount which actually passes by conduction or radiation is
equalized.
If excessive heat is allowed to play directly upon the underside of the said
vaporiser, the hydro-carbon contained therein, and in direct contact with the
bottom, becomes unduly heated, causing smoke to be emitted through the burners,
and producing odours, by which the efficiency of the vaporiser is reduced.
Besides, that part of the hydro-carbon in direct contact with the bottom of the
tank, is, by the heat applied thereto, unduly expanded, and becomes lighter bulk
for bulk, and rises through the strata above it too rapidly and in a greater volume
than is desirable to be consumed.
Excessive generation has a tendency, at one time, to glut the burner with too
much carbon vapour, and another time to impoverish the same.
Figure 1 of the accompanying drawing represents a complete sectional view of a
carbon lamp, constructed, fitted and provided with improvements made according
to my invention.
The vaporiser is shown in the form of a hollow or chambered annulus, with a
shaft or axial hole through its middle, and with the coned underside separated from
the metal attachments at the neck of the combined heat collector and light
reflector by a stratum of air, or by an annular and coned passage, through which
intervening passage or air space, the vaporiser is prevented from being unduly
heated by direct conduction through the metal of the parts of the lamp contiguous
to it.
Figure 2 represents in elevation, a portion of the middle part of the lamp, or
that part of the lamp comprehending the vaporiser and the cognate parts of it.
Figure 3 is a transverse section of Figure 1, on the dotted lines A B. looking

page_text: upwards, whilst Figure 4 is a transverse vertical section upon the dotted lines C. D.
of the said Figure 1, but looking downwards.
The same letters of reference indicate corresponding parts in the several figures
of the drawing.
a is a vaporiser adapted to contain the necessary carbonizing material and
consisting of a hollow annulus or chamber, having a conical shaped hole a², up its
middle, with a flared or trumpet mouthed entrance a'. Suspended or hung by
means of screws or projections from an outside bottom flange a³, of the vaporiser,
is an attachment_band c, which is connected at points to the guard, heat collector
or deflector d, which consists of an inverted funnel-shaped shade, made up of glass,
metal or other suitable material, but with a neck or contracted part ², made of
metal or some other heat conducting material, and which neck part is composed of
two sections, an inner one d', and an outer one d³, with an interposed air space d',
between them.
Terminating the inner portion of the section d³, or forming a continuation of it,
is a supplementary guard d³, passing up the middle of the hole, and terminating at
its upper end, and with an annular or circumferential air space e, f, located or
disposed between the outsides of the inner walls a', a², of the said vaporiser, and
the outer walls of the supplementary and primary guards d³, ds.
By employing the said air space between the surface of the inner walls of the
vaporiser, and the outside surfaces of the supplementary and primary guards, the
vaporiser is protected from the direct action of the heat, and undue heating of
the hydro-carbon to be volatilized contained within the vaporiser, is prevented.
If desired, the annular air space e, may be open at top, so that atmospheric air
may circulate freely and upwardly through the passages and e and be from thence
conducted into and up the cover pillar g, surrounding the depending ordinary gas
supply pipes h, supported from the ceiling plate ¹.
The lower terminal part of the said gas supply pipe h, is connected with a
pummel i, fitted with four passages 2, 3, the 2 passages lead from the coal gas
supply pipe, and terminate in the crown of the vaporiser, whilst the passages ³,
which are at a lower level than the passages 2, also terminate in the crown of the
vaporiser, but are connected with and lead to the burner service pipe j, which is
terminated at its lower end by branched burners k.
It will be seen that the vaporiser is suspended from the outer termination of the
inlet and outlet pipes 2, 3, by the said pipes being connected to the walls of the
crown of the said vaporiser, whilst the burner service pipe is suspended from
the pummel i, and the other suspended parts from the vaporiser, through the
medium of the attachment band c, and the screws or projections carried by it.
Instead of employing two inlets and two outlets, I may employ a single inlet and
a single outlet for the inward passage of the coal gas, and for the outward passage
of the coal gas charged with hydro-carbon from the vaporiser.
In operation, ordinary coal gas passes down the service h, through the pipes i³,
into the vaporiser a, then circulating and intermingling with the vaporised
hydro-carbon evolved by the action of the transmitted heat given off from the
burners k, the gas passes outwardly from the said vaporising chamber through the
pipes, and is thence conveyed down the burner service to the burners k,
consistently charged with the proper amount of hydro-carbon.
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 :-
--
First In hydro-carbon lamps, protecting or isolating the inside walls or the
heat conducting surfaces of the vaporisers or the hydro-carbon vapour generating
vessels, from the direct action of conducted or transmitted heat by or through the
medium of an all-round or circumferentially disposed air space or spaces, or a
passage or passages, substantially as, and for the purpose as, described and set
forth.

page_text: Secondly-In hydro-carbon lamps, the combination with an annular vaporiser
or a vaporiser having a central shaft through its middle, of primary or heating
conducting and supplementary guards, fitted within, and at a short distance from
the inside walls of the said vaporiser, substantially as described and set forth.
Thirdly In hydro-carbon lamps, the improvements in the construction, arrange-
ment fitting and suspension of the parts, substantially as, and for the purpose as,
described and set forth.
Dated this 2nd day of May 1893.
BERNARD RATCLIFF,
By Henry Skerrett,
6, Livery Street, Birmingham, Agent for Applicant.