IMPROVEMENTS IN STEAM BOILERS
Year: 1860

page_text: PROVISIONAL SPECIFICATION left by Joseph Barrans at the Office of
the Commissioners of Patents, with his Petition, on the 24th January
⚫ 1860.
I, JOSEPH BARRANS, of 2, Caledonian Terrace, Queen's Road, Peckham, in
the County of Surrey, do hereby declare the nature of the Invention for
"IMPROVEMENTS IN STEAM BOILERS," to be as follows:-
This Invention has for its object improvements in steam boilers. For these
purposes it is preferred that the exterior form of a boiler should be an upright
cylinder, but other forms may be given thereto. At the lower part of the
boiler is the fire-place, which it is preferred should be surrounded by a water
space forming part of the boiler, through which water space and above the fire
bars there is an opening for the fire door, through which opening the fuel is
fed on to the fire bars below. Above the fire the bottom of the main boiler is
formed with hollow water spaces, which at their upper ends are fixed to the
bottom of the boiler, and their lower ends are closed, so that the heat of the
fire below may act on such closed ends, and the descending water spaces are
also arranged, one within the other, so that when of a circular section the
descending water spaces are concentric to each other, thus admitting the heat
and products of combustion to act not only on the closed bottom ends of such
water spaces, but also on the sides thereof, by which a very extensive heating
surface may be obtained. And it is preferred that these descending water spaces
should be of a conical form, though that is not essential, but by having them
conical, the sides will be inclined. The bottoms or lower ends of the water

page_text: spaces are less wide than at the upper parts where they join the bottom of the
boiler, whilst on the other hand the heating spaces will be widest nearest the
fire, and diminish in width as they rise more and more from the fire. The
spaces between the descending water spaces are in some cases connected with
short flues, for the purpose of admitting the products of combustion which rise
into the innermost space or spaces to pass therefrom into the outermost spaces,
and thence to the chimney when the chimney is on one side of the boiler,
which is the arrangement I prefer. Above the bottom of the boiler to which
the descending water spaces are affixed, as has been above explained, the body
or main portion of the boiler is constructed, and in such manner as to have
above the upper ends of the descending water spaces a large space for water
and steam.
When making steam boilers with steam chests above the top of the boiler
of a dome or other shape, as in locomotive engine and other boilers, I surround
such dome or other shaped steam chest with an external casing, and form the
chimney above so that the products of combustion after passing away from the
smoke box or other part of the boiler, pass into and heat the exterior of the steam
chest, and thus more fully insure the steam going off therefrom being dry, and
if desired, the extent of heating surface applied to heat the steam in the steam
chest may be increased by also having tubes in or through the steam chest.
.