US1361212A - Oil-tank heater - Google Patents

Description

G. I. WORLEY AND C. E. LOGAN.

OIL TANK HEATER. APPLICATION FILED. JULY 13 I917.

" I Patented D60- 7,

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UNITED' STATES PATENT OFFICE.

GEORGE I. WORLEY AND CHARLES E. LOGAN, OF KANSAS CITY, MISSOURI, ASSIGNORS TO THE GOOD ROADS 00., OF KANSAS CITY, MISSOURI, A CORPORATION OF MIS- SOURI.

OIL-TANK HEATER.

Specification of Letters Patent.

Application filed July 13, 1917. Serial No. 180,449.

To all whom it may concern:

Be 1t known that we, (arnonen I. WORLEY and CHARLES It. LOGAN, citizens of the United States, residing at Kansas City, in

the county of Jackson and State of Missouri, have invented certain new and useful Improvements in Oil-Tank Heaters, of which the following is a specification. v

This invention relates to oil tank heaters and more especially to heaters for portable oil tanks of that class employed for oiling roadways The objects of the invention are to produce a heater by which the whole body of the oil or the like can be raised to any requireddegree of temperature without generating gas from the oil and therefore without danger of explosion; to produce a heater which can be utilized to heat the oil-in the tank regardless of the quantity and as it is being supplied to the tank, as distinguished,

from those heaters in which the tank must be charged with oil before the heater is started in operation; and to produce a heater having a boiler through which heat is transmitted to oil in the tank to heat the same and from which boiler steam may be supplied to the tank to clean the same.

With these general objects in view, and others as hereinafter appear, the invention consists in certain novel and useful features of construction and combinations of parts as hereinafter described and claimed; and in order that it may be fully understood reference is to be had to the accompanying draw-' ing, in which:

Figure 1, 1s a view partly 1n slde elevation and partly in central vertical section of an oil tank heater embodying the invention.

Fig. 2, is a rear end view of the same.

Fig. 3, is a cross section on the line IIL-III of Fig. 1.

Fi 4, is a cross section on the line IV- V of Fig. 1.

Referring to the drawing in detail, 1 indicates an oil tank preferably in the form of a horizontally-arranged cylinder and said tank is equipped with a filling tube 2 and with a suitable valve-controlled discharge pipe 3.

Arranged horizontally within and longitudinally of the tank is a heater comprising an inner cylinder 4 forming a combustion chamber and an outer or surroundin cylinder 5 constituting a boiler, the cylinder 4 pro ecting through the rear end of the cylinder 5 and the latter through the correspondmg end or head of the tank, the joint being made liquid tight in any approved manner.

The cylinder 4 is provided with a'smoke stack 6 extending up through the tank and the boiler is likewise provided with an upwardly projectin extension 7 inclosing the "smoke stack to t e top of the tank and is provided with a closure cap 8, at such oint, the upper part of the boiler extension constituting a steam dome; Leading from said steam dome is a steam line 9 equipped with a steam gage 10 and terminating in branch pipes 11 and 12, the former communicating with the boiler at its upper side and rear end, and the branch pipe 12 with the said boiler at a lower point, the said branch pipe 12 containing a water column 13 extending considerably above the plane of the cylinder a pair of sleeves 18 and 19.

A gas generator-and burner is carried by said cap and is constructed as follows:

20 is a short vertical tube arranged in the cylinder 4 rearward of the boiler tubes and "provided with a rearwardly projecting tubular stem 21 closed at its rear end by a cap 22. The tube 20 depends from an elbow 23 secured to the front end of a tube 24 extending longitudinally of and through the sleeve 18 and rearward of the latter is bent downward to semi-circular form and at its lower end extends through the sleeve 19 and terminates in a forwardly projecting nozzle 25 disposed rearward of and in a slightly lower plane than the tubular stem 21 of tube 20.

26 is a pipe for discharging air "under Patented Dec. 7, 1920. i

pressure into the tank above the oil there in. 27 is a pipe leading from the chamber of the tank above the oil to the distributing nozzle 27 with which the discharge pipe 3 is provided, it being understood that the distributing nozzle is a combined oil and air nozzle, supplied respectively by pipes 3 and 27 and that the pressure of air pass 1n through pipe 27 acts to effect ejection an atomization of oil supplied by pipe 3, the atomized oil being discharged from Send nozzle onto the road. The nozzle is not de tailed as it is described and shown in Pat- .oil as it escapes from the nozzle 29, the oil being supplied -to the burner from a suitable source not shown, through a valve-controlled supply pipe 30, which extends through pipe 2 1 and discharges directly down into tube 20, and is. controlled at the rear of the burner by a valve 31.

Assuming that the boiler is charged with water, it will be apparent that the heating operation can be started by inserting a torch or piece of lighted Waste into the rear end of the cylinder 4 and then successively opening the air and oil valves so that the oil which is supplied to tube 20 and stem 21 by the pipe 30 will after filling said tube, flow back through tube 24 and thence to the nozzle 25, the suction ofthe air discharged through nozzle 29 effecting ejection and atomization of such oil and producing a combustible mixture which is ignited by the flame from the torch or waste. The method described is the preferred method of starting the operation of the heater but it is to be understood that if at the time no air under pressure is available,

the oil can be permitted to flow from the nozzles 25 and 29 onto the bottom of the combustion chamber and in unatomized form be ignited by a torch or the like. In either event, the flame. and heat impinging on the small'tubu'lar stem 21 and the tube 20 will quickly vaporize oil standing therein. Under. the preferred method of operation, the instant vaporization begins, the compressed air may be shut off, and theoil supply valve temporarily closed. 'The gas generated in the burner tubes will supply the. pressure necessary to effect'the forceful forward discharge of the gas from the nozzles during the entire operation of the heater, the fuel supply valve of course being continue as long as the supply-of oil is maintained.

The heat generated first affects'the water.

in the boiler and the heat therefrom is transmitted to the oil or the like with which the tank may have been previously charged or with which it may be' charged while the heating operation is in progress, it being obvious that as the heat is transmitted to the oil only through the boiling water and steam dome, it is impossible for the oil to come in contact with a part so hot as to result in the vaporization of the oil and the l i danger incidental to such action, this danger bemg such that with oil-tank heaters in which the oil is heated through direct con-- tact with the shell or wall with which the flames come in contact, it is essential that the tank shall be charged before the heating operation begins. It is obvious that any arrangement in which it is necessary to charge the tank with oil beforestarting the heating operation is relatively slow, as compared with apparatus in which the operation of the heater or the supplying of the oil to the tank can be performed at any convenient time. objectionable character mentioned, it is unsafe to attempt the heating of a volume of oil unless it is ample to cover the entire heater, whereas with apparatus of the character herein illustrated, a small quantity of oil may be heated with celerity and perfect safety and in the actual practice of oiling roads, this advantage will be found to be a practical one, as it frequently occurs that the supply contained in the tank is ex-' hausted just prior to covering the prescribed course and that considerable time could be saved-if a small quantity ofoil could be placed in the tank and quickly heated to complete the oiling operation in progress. v

To clean the tank of oil or the like, so that it may be utilized if desired for discharging water, and also to clean the distributing nozzle the steam supply pipe.9 is equipped with a branch 32, terminating 'in valve-controlled branches 33 and 34:, re-

spectively leading to the compressed air distributing pipe 27, forward and rearward of the valve 27 thereof for supplying the distributing nozzle. this arrangement steam can be discharged through the distributing nozzle to clean 'heavy oil or asphaltum therefrom or if desired, steam can be discharged back through pipe 27 into the tank for the purpose of cleaning the walls thereof of heavy oil or asphaltum which would otherwise adhere thereto and thus Furthermore with apparatus of the render it undesirable and perhaps impracticable for a time at least to utilize the tank for water flushing purposes.

We claim:

1. In an oil tank heater, a closed oil tank, a boiler extendinghorizontally in said tank and provided at one end with a tubular dome extending upthrough the top of the tank, a flue extending longitudinally within the boiler from one end thereof nearly to the other and provided with a stack spaced from the side walls of the dome and extending up through the latter to a point exterior thereto and to the tank, means for generating heat within the flue, a pipe connecting the dome at the top, with the, opposite end of the boiler, a steam gage on said pipe, and. a by-pass between said pipe and the boiler, including a water columnv extending from a plane above to a plane intermediate the body of the boiler.

2. In an-oil tank heater, a closed oil tank, a boiler extending horizontally in said tank and provided at one end with a tubular dome extending up through the top of the tank, a flue extending longitudinally within the boiler from one end thereof nearly to the other and provided with a stack spaced from the side walls of the dome and extending up through the latterto a point exterior thereto and to the tank, means for generating heatwithin the ,flue, a pipe connecting the dome at the top with the opposite end of the boiler,a steam gage on said pipe, a by pass between said pipe and the boiler, including a Water column extending from a plane above to a plane intermediate the body of the boiler, and means for discharging compressed air into the said flue adjacent the said heat-generating means therein, to vaporize the fuel of said heat-generating means.

3. In an oil tank heater, a closed oil tank, a boiler extending horizontally in said tank and provided at one end with a tubular dome extending up through the top of the tank, a flue extending longitudinally within the boiler from one end thereof nearly to the other and provided with a stack spaced from the side Walls of the dome and extend ing up through the latter to a point exterior thereto and to the tank, means for generating heat within the flue, a pipe connecting the dome at the top with the opposite end of the boiler, a steam gage on said pipe, a by-pass between said pipe and the boiler, including a Water column extending from a plane above to a plane intermediate the body of the boiler, means for discharging compressed air into the said flue adjacent the said heatgenerating means therein, to vaporize the fuel of said last-named means, a Valve in said compressed air-supply means, and valve-controlled pipes connected to said compressed air-supply means at opposite sides of the said valve thereof and to the steam supply pipe.

In testimony whereof, we afiix our signatures.

GEORGE I. WORLEY. CHARLES E. LOGAN.

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