PROVEMENTS IN AND RELATING TO MOTOR ENGINES FOR DEVELOPING AND UTILIZING POWER OBTAINED FROM THE VAPOUR OF VOLATILE FLUIDS
Year: 1879

page_text: LETTERS PATENT to William Robert Lake, of the Firm of Haseltine, Lake, & Co.,
"IM-
Patent Agents, Southampton Buildings, London, for the Invention of
PROVEMENTS IN AND RELATING TO MOTOR ENGINES FOR DEVELOPING AND
UTILIZING POWER OBTAINED FROM THE VAPOUR OF VOLATILE FLUIDS." A
communication from abroad by William Patrick Wood, Cabinetmaker, and
William Turner Wood, Machinist, both of Washington, District of Columbia,
United States of America.
COMPLETE SPECIFICATION filed by the said William Robert Lake at the
Office of the Commissioners of Patents on the 14th July 1879.
WILLIAM ROBERT LAKE, of the Firm of Haseltine, Lake, & Co., Patent Agents,
Southampton Buildings, London. "IMPROVEMENTS IN AND RELATING TO MOTOR
ENGINES FOR DEVELOPING AND UTILISING POWER OBTAINED FROM THE VAPOUR
OF VOLATILE FLUIDS." A communication from abroad by William Patrick Wood,
Cabinetmaker, and William Turner Wood, Machinist, both of Washington, District
of Columbia, United States of America.
The objects of these improvements are to economize fuel and gain power in
engines, for which purposes I use bi-sulphide of carbon vaporized and employed in
a manner to avoid all danger; or I use other vapor producing agents, such as
ammonia for instance.
In practising the said Invention I take a steam boiler of ordinary construction,
and of a capacity to generate merely sufficient steam to keep a retort heated to the
proper temperature to vaporize volatile compounds, the said boiler having such pipe
connections to and from the retort as to effect the return of the steam from the
said retort to the boiler without exhaust. This retort is of a capacity sufficient to
hold the volatile vapour necessary for the required force, and is so constructed as
to admit the steam from the boiler to such parts of the said retort as will permit
the vaporizing of the compound as the said volatile compound is pumped into said
retort. It has suitable connections to convey the vapor to the engine for operating
the same.
I do not limit myself to the specific construction or location of the said steam-
boiler and retort; for the operation of larger engines I prefer a separation of the

page_text: boiler from the retort for better security and facility of repair, but for the successful
operation of small engines the boiler and retort may be connected.
Any-ordinary-engine-that can-be-driven-by-steam-may be used, and will receive.
and be operated by the vapor the same as if it received steam.
After the vapor
has performed-its-office in the engine, and is received, in the exhaust pipe, it is
carried-to:a.condenser to be condensed-and-used again.
The-condenser-is placed upon the top-of-the reservoir for the compound; it has
pipe connections with a pump to feed the volatile compound to the retort, and has
devices to regulate the feed thereof.
The said retort is a chamber heated in any manner by the extraneous application
of steam or hot water, and serves to receive the injected compound and vaporize it.
This Invention comprises a method of vaporizing the compound by heat in contra-
distinction to injecting the compound into steam, hot water, or other heated liquid,
and maintains a continuous circuit of the steam to keep the vaporizing-chamber
heated. This method is designed to avoid heating the compound in its reservoir.
In the accompanying Drawings,-
Figure 1 is a side elevation of a bi-sulphide of carbon engine.
Figure 2 is an end elevation, showing the retort reservoir and condenser in
section, the positions being changed for the purpose of clear illustration; and
Figure 3 illustrates a modification of the said Invention.
The said apparatus, as above stated, may be varied in some respects; but I prefer
and shall describe the following construction as being the most convenient and
entirely devoid of the dangers accompanying the attempts hitherto, made to use
bi-sulphide of carbon as a motor.
..
The boiler A is an ordinary upright boiler, the smoke stack B extending through
it from the fire-box beneath. From the top of the boiler runs a pipe C, which
passes down through the retort D or vapor generator and terminates in a cone-
shaped heating-cup D' which it pierces. This cup D¹ is situated at the bottom of
the retort, and is made of bronze, cast-iron, or other suitable material. It is heated
from the inner side by the. direct impingement of the steam or hot water coming
from the said pipe C. It is against this cup that the volatile compound is driven
and vaporized in the retort, as will be presently described.
The continuous passage of steam is. provided for through a return pipe C!
extending from the bottom of cup D' back to the boiler A, which it pierces above
the fire-box but beneath the water line, and thus a continuous circuit of the steam
or hot water is kept up and no open exhaust is used. There are however in the
pipe C¹ the usual cocks a, b, to let off the first cold water in order to have the hot
water circuit, as is well understood.
The bi-sulphide of carbon reservoir I prefer to have at some distance from the
boiler, especially for large engines as above stated. This reservoir E is of boiler-
iron, and is so situated that it may have connection with the retort through a
-pump.F, whereby_the_volatile.compound.is.forced into the retort against the heated
cup D where it vaporizes, as hereinbefore specified. A pipe G passes from the
reservoir through the pump and into the retort for this purpose.
The heated vapor confined in the retort seeks vent through a pipe H, which
conducts it to the vapor-chest I of the engine, where, like steam, it performs its
office as a motive power. The exhaust passes through a pipe K to a condenser L,
situated preferably on the top of the reservoir E, and thence the products of con-,
densation drop into the said reservoir and are again used, as herein before stated..
In starting the engine I use a hand-lever to operate the pump, (for the reason
that the engine works the pump by a connecting band and pulley) to force the bi-
sulphide of carbou or other volatile compound into the retort and thus work the
engine. Consequently I must first pump the compound out of the reservoir against
the heated cup by hand. However, after the first starting there is no necessity to
use the.hand-lever of the pump because sufficient of the compound (the product of
the cooled vapor) will remain in the gutter surrounding the heating cup or cone
to make sufficient vapor to work the engine, which then in turn works the pump

page_text: to place more of the compound in the retort, and so on continuously, as above
specified.
From a countershaft above connected with the engine as usual a belt works the
pump through a pulley and crank-lever, as shown.
The condenser L has the usual tubes 1, 1, 1, and cold water circuit m, m.
There
is also a removable cap o, and beneath this cap is a perforated conical hood n,
whereby the exhaust vapor from the engine is properly distributed to the. various
condenser-tubes. This condenser L is preferably placed above the reservoir E so
that room may be economized, and so also that the percolations or products of
condensation may drop directly into the reservoir, which is a matter of some
moment in view of saving the bisulphide of carbon or other compound used. The
condenser is bolted or otherwise fastened to its reservoir base, and its top being
removable, as above stated, it may be readily cleaned when necessary. The pump F
may be of any suitable construction.
The retort or vaporizing-chamber D is strongly made of boiler-iron or other
suitable material; the pipe C from the boiler passes through the top of the retort
and down through the heating cup D¹, which cup is preferably conical in shape
to receive against its sides the direct impingement of the compound to be vaporized.
This cup or cone should be a single casting with a guttered base forming a recep-
tacle P for the drip, and also to receive the condensed vapor which remains after
the fire has gone out and the retort has cooled. The receptacles' sides are deep
enough for this purpose and also to receive the pipe G from the pump, so that there
may be no leaking down of the compound. The pipe G should extend through
both the retort sides and the gutter-wall of the cup.
Beneath the cup in the retort-base is a basin i, serving as part of the said cup,
but being really part of the cap of the brick base, and made of iron, bronze, or
other suitable material. In this basin hot water may collect and be transmitted
through the pipe C¹ back to the boiler, as above set forth.
In Figure 3 of the Drawings I have shown a modification of this apparatus
useful in running engines of small power. In this modification the retort 1 is
within the boiler above the hot water chamber 2, the hot water or steam circulation
being maintained by a coil 3. Against this coil the pipe G injects the bi-sulphide
of carbon and the vapor passes out for service through the pipe H, as before
described.
The supply-reservoir E is filled with bi-sulphide of carbon or other compound
in any suitable manner, preferably by a valved funnel pipe. It also, as above
stated, receives the drip from the condenser.
A sight-gauge or other appliance may be used to determine the quantity of the
compound in the reservoir.
Those parts of the engine which come in contact with the bi-sulphide of carbon
vapor must be lubricated with glycerine or some compound of glycerine. If other
vapors are used which might lick up ordinary lubricants a lubricant should be
provided specially for the purpose, but glycerine is not affected by the vapors
ordinarily used.
On the exhaust-pipe K leading from the vapor-chest I to the condenser I
provide a valve y to cut off or close the vapor circuit when examination of the
vapor-chest is desirable.
Having thus fully described the said Invention as communicated to me by my
foreign correspondent, and the manner of performing the same, I wish it understood
that I claim,
First. For utilizing volatile liquids as motors for engines, the method of pro-
ducing the power-vapor, consisting in pumping the volatile compound from a
reservoir into and against parts of an empty retort heated by a circuit of steam-
pipes from a boiler.
Second. In apparatus for utilizing volatile liquids as motors, the combination
with a boiler of a retort or vaporizing-chamber and a steam-circuit pipe extending
from the said boiler into and through the said retort, whereby the vaporizing

page_text: surface is heated by a continuous circuit of steam coming directly from and
returning to the boiler, substantially as herein set forth.
Third-In-apparatus-for-utilizing-volatile-liquids-as-motors,-the-retort-or
vaporizing chamber provided with a heating cup or cone in combination with the
steam or hot water conduit, the volatile liquid conduit; and the engine connection,
substantially as and for the purpose described.
Fourth. In apparatus for utilizing volatile liquids as motors, the boiler, the steam-
conduit, the heating cup of the retort and the return pipe, whereby to maintain
the circuit of the steam or hot water, substantially as described.
Fifth. The cup or heating cone of the retort provided with the receptacle p, for
the-purpose herein set forth.
Sixth. A vapor-engine consisting of a steam-boiler, an independent retort or
vaporizing chamber, a heater therefor, a reservoir for the volatile liquid, a steam-
circuit pipe extending from the said boiler into and through the said retort to its
extraneous heater, the circuit-pipes connecting the boiler, condenser, reservoir, and
pump for operation, substantially as herein set forth.
In witness whereof, I, the said William Robert Lake, have hereunto set my
hand and seal, this Fourteenth day of July, in the year of our Lord One
thousand eight hundred and seventy nine.
AD
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