US1082512A - Apparatus for the manufacture of plate-ice. - Google Patents

Description

E. E. QAINER. 4

APPARATUS For: THE MANUFACTURE OF PLATE 10E.

' APPLICATION FILEDIOV. 8, 1910. 1,082,512, Patented Dec. 30, 1913.

/////////VV-7// A 1% bneooeo' UNITED STATES PATENT, OFFICE.

EDWARD n. eAmnn, or OKLAHOMA, oKLAnonA, ASSIGNOR ro eno or nnooxmm, new YORK.

APrAnAros non 'rrin irANuFAorunE or rLArn-Ion Specification of Letters Patent.

Applie'atlonflled November 8, 1910. Serial No. 591,219.

To all whom it may concern;

-Be it known that I, EDWARD E. GAINER, a citizen of the United States, residing at Oklahoma cit in the county of Oklahoma and State of gklahoma, have invented a certain new and useful Improvement in Appa laws for the Manufacture of Plate-Ice, of

which the following is a specification.

The invention is an apparatus for the manufacture of late ice.

In .the particu ar embodiment of my ap paratu's which is hereinafter set forth, I employ a header from which depend a plurality of tubes'closed at their lower ends,

which enter for a suflicient depth, thewater to be frozen. These tubes are kept filled with liquid ammonia, the gas; developed being drawn, oii from the header and returned thereto after condensation and lique-- faction, as already described. The ice forms upon the tubes first as cylinders which, as they enlarge indiameter, finally meet and form a single cake from which the tubes are subsequently withdrawn after the thawing ofi operation is accomplished.

In the accompanying drawings-Figure 1 shows a freezing \tank in section with the header and depending tubes disposed therein, and the various connections and associated devices illustrated diagrammatically. Fig. 2 is a longitudinal section of one end of the'header and connected depending tubes,

showing the arrangement of the ends of the tubes in said header. Fig. 3 is a longitudinal section of the valves and couplings at the ends of the header.

Similar numbers of reference indicate like arts. p 1 is a tank which contains the water to be frozen. p

2 is a header supported upon the side walls of the tank in any suitable way. Depending from the header are a. numberof parallel vertical tubes 3 closedat their lower ends. Said tubes enter; the bottom ofthe header and extend therein upward in the leader for a short distance ,as indicated in Fig. 2. At one end of the header is an inlet For liquid ammonia; at the other end, an utlet for gas. The inlet communicates by pipe 4 with a valve casing 5, in which is ;eated a valve 6, Fig. 3. The outlet oomare detachably connected to municates by pipe 7 with a similar valve casing 8, in which is seated a valve 9. The casings and 8 have flanges, by which they similar flanges on slmllar casings 10, 11, in which casings are valves 12 and 13. i

. As shown in Fig. 3, the valves 12, 9, 6, 13 are frusto-conical in form, and-are ground to fit accurately the correspondingly shaped seats in'their casings. The bottoms of each pair of valves,"as 12, 6, are also ground to fit accurately together when said valves are seated and when the flanges of their casings 'arecoupled. Each valve is operated by means of a stem 14, seated in a threaded and secured in said recess by an. annular threaded collai: 15. Each stem passes through a bonnet 16 bolted to the valve casi g, and is threaded to pass through a bushing in a suitable standard 17 cast integral with said bonnet. On the end of the stem is the usual operating wheel.

To the valve casing is connected a pipe 19 which communicates with a closed receptacle 20, and said receptacle 20 connects by pipe 21 with the suction end of the compressing pump 22. The delivery pipe 23 of said pump connects with one end of the condensing coil 24, disposed in a closed vessel 25. Said vessel 25 has an inlet 26 and an outlet 27 for the cooling water, and also communicates by a pipe 28 with a closed receptacle 29, which in turn by pipe 30 communicates \with valve casing 11. From the recess in said valve,

RGE E. LLEWELLYN,

Patented Dec. 30, 1913.

headed at one end,

bottom of receptacle 20 a pipe 31 extends to receptacle 29. From the pump delivery pipe 23 a by-passpipe 32, provided with aval've 33, extends to the header 2 and is detachably connected thereto by a pipe communieating with said header and rovided with a. valve 35. A coupling 36 etachably connects pipe 32 to the header pipe.

The operation of the apparatus is as follows: The valves 12, 9, 6, 13 being opened, litglid ammonia from any suitable source is le through the pipe 37 into the receptacle 29, whence it flows by pipes 30 and 4 into the header 2 until it rises above the upper ends of the tubes 3. The liquid ammonia then flows down into all of thetubes 3 at the same time and fills them, so that at the beginning 50 adherentice ca of the ice-making process all of the tubes are filled with liquid ammonia and also the header up to the tops of the tubes therein. The ammonia then takes up the heat from the waterin the tank 1, so that said water becomes frozen on the exposed outer surfaces of the tubes. The ice forms first as cylinders around the tubes, but as the cylinders increase in diameter they meet and become welded together, finally forming a continuous cake 38, which is adherent to and supported upon said tubes. As the liquid ammonia receives heat from the water it vaporizes. Thegas as it is formed is constantly drawn off by the pump 22'through the receptacle 20, is compressed by said pump, and is delivered to the coil 24, where it becomes condensed to liquid which flows by pipe 28 to receptacle 29, and so to the header. The receptacle 20 operates as a trap to catch any liquid formed between header and pump and to deliver the same through pipe 31 to inlet pipe 4. This operation of drawing ofi the gas, compressing and condensing it into liquid ammonia and returning it to the header oes on continually during the formation of idle ice cake. During its progress the valves 33 and 35 are kept shut, and the coupling 36 may be disconnected. It is to be noted that the capacity of the pump is preferably to be such as constantly to remove in a given time the gas produced in the same time. And the quantity of liquid returned to the header is to be such as will compensate for the lowering of the liquid level of the ammonia in the header, due to the vaporization takin' place, so that by this means the liquid leve in the header is maintained substantially constant. 40 Of course, any loss due to accidental circumstances, such as leaks, or the like, is easily compensated for by admitting into receptacle 29, small additional quantities of liquid ammonia from the original source. When 46 the icecake on the tubes has attained the desired thickness the pump is stopped, the valves 12, 9, 6, 13 are \closed, and their flanged couplings disconnected. By any suitable hoistin means the header, tubes and ie are lifted fromthe tank and placed upon a tilt' port. The plpe 32, whic may be flexible of any suitable length, is now coupled to the header, the valves33, 35 opened. The pump is again started, and now delivers warm compressed header and a ove the liquid ammonia therein. This warm gas heats the tubes, and by its increased pressure raises the boiling point of the ammonia confined in the header and duct system, so that said ammonia also becomes warmed. The result is to thaw the ice cake from the tubes-3, so that on lifting the header the tubes may be'drawn out of the cake. I prefer to remove the ice cake s through pipe '32 into thetable or other sup- 7 means for withdrawing the gas 'due to evapfrom the tank prior to thawing off but the operation may be done, if desired, in the tank. The valves 12, 9, 6,. 13 are closed as before, the pipe 32 is connected and valves 33, 35 opened, and when the header and tubes are lifted, the ice cake remains in the tank and may be removed by the usual tongs or other liftin out means. As previousl stated, this apparatus does awa with all heating of a non-congealable liquid, such as brine, and with all the apparatus for containing and circulating the same. The result is not only a large economy in cost of the apparatus, but an even eater one in the expense of manufacture, dr one transformation of energy is obviated. Inaddition, the speed of ice produc tion is notably enhanced.

I claim:

1. An ice making apparatus comprising a header having a liquid inlet, a plurality of tubes each closed at its lower end dependin therefrom, and means for causing said liqui 'to flow simultaneously into said tubes.

2. An ice making'apparatus comprising a header having a liquid inlet, and a lurality of tubes depending from said hea er: each of said tubes extending at its upper end into said header for a predetermined distance and closed at its lower end.

3. An ice-making apparatus, comprising a. tank, a header, a plurality of tubes, each closed at its lower end, depending from said header into said tank and extending at its upper end into said header, means for de livering a volatile refrigerating liquid into said tubes, and means communicating with said header above the upper ends -of said tubes for drawing ofi gas therefrom.

4. An ice making apparatus comprising a tank, a header, a plurality of tubes eac closed at its lower end depending from said header into said tank, means for delivering liquid ammonia into said header and tubes,

111 oration of said liquid ammonia from sa1d header, means for liquefying said gas, and a duct for returning said liquid to said header.

5. An ice making apparatus comprising a tank, a header, a plurality of tubeseach closed at its lower end depending from said header into said tank, means for delivering liquid ammonia into said header and tubes, means for withdrawing the gas due to evaporation of said liquid ammonia from said header, means for compressing said gas, means for liquefying said compressed gas, a duct delivering said liquefied gas to said header, a valve controlling said duct, 8 bypass delivering said compressed gas into said header, and a valve controlling said by- 6. An ice making apparatus comprising a header having an inlet for liquid ammonia and a gas outlet, a plurality of tubes each closed at its lower end depending from said header, a gas pump, a suction duct leading therefrom communicating with said gas outi let, a trap for liquid in said suction duct,

and a duct leading said liquid from said trap to said header inlet.

In testimony whereof I have afiixed my signature in presence of two witnesses.

GERTRUDE T. PORTER, MAY T. MCGARRY.

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