GB624644A - Improvements in acetylene generators - Google Patents

Abstract

<PICT:0624644/IV (b)/1> <PICT:0624644/IV (b)/2> <PICT:0624644/IV (b)/3> An acetylene generator in which calcium carbide is contained in a basket whose motion relative to the bulk of the water starts up the gas production, while the water surface is made movable in accordance with the gas pressure by the action of several back pressure air cushions, characterised in that the back pressure chamber consists of a plurality of detachable, interchangeable partially submerged chambers open at the bottom, and arranged within the generator tank outside the vertical path of the carbide basket. In an apparatus described, Fig. 1 is a vertical section of a generator along line 1-1 of Fig. 2, Fig. 2 is a horizontal section long line 2-2 of Fig. 1, and Fig. 3 is a detailed section along line 3-3 of Fig. 2. The back pressure chambers 18, 19 and 20, open at the bottom, rest on a conical ring 15 merging into a cylindrical collar 16, and are held in position by a removable conical sleeve 30 within a cylindrical vessel 1 having a cover 6, to form an annular chamber into which the carbide basket 37 is moved vertically with the aid of lifting arm 38 to start gas production. The space 29 between the chambers 18, 19 and 20 allows the central pit 28 to communicate with the space comprised between the walls 23, 24 of the chambers, the said space communicating with said chambers through openings 32 in the lateral walls of the chambers away from the central pit 28. The conical ring 15 serves to deflect gas bubbles towards the tank which may be formed by the fall of grains of carbide into the liquid, and thereby prevents acetylene from entering chambers 18, 19, 20. On one side of vat 1, a trap box 33 is located occupying the free space between the back pressure air cushions, and contains a vertical acetylene inlet pipe 34 which leads from the upper part of the trap box, water from the moist gas is condensed on the walls of the trap box and the acetylene discharges through a hole 36.