US168901A - Improvement in compound condensing apparatus for marine steam-engines - Google Patents

Description

2 Sheets-Sheet 1.

l. HUUPT.

.l m a n... l S e n r a M r 0 f S .d t u as Pn... ,an D..I g D." AF. g n s n e .U vn 0 C .U n, U 0 D. m` 0 C Patented oct. 19,1875.

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N. PETERS, PNOTO-LITHOGRAFHER. WASHINGTON, D C.

2Sheets-Sheet2. J1. HuuPT.

Compound Cnndensng Apparatus for Marine Steam- Engines.

NO. 168,901. Patented 0ct.19,18-75.

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' fM #MW NITED S'.rrrlrlts PATENT OFIGE JOHN nouer, or sPnINGTo'wN, PENNSYLVANIA.

IMPROVEMENT IN VCOMPOUND` CONDENSING APPARATUS PQR MARYINE STEAM- ENGINES.

Specification formingrpart of Letters Patent No. 168,901, dated October 19, 1875,; application filed July 29, 1875.

To all whom 'it may concern:

Be it known that I, JOHN HOUPT, of Springtown, in the county of Bucks andv State ot` Pennsylvania, have invented an Improvement in the Compound Condensing Apparatus for Marine Steam-Engines, o f which the following is a specification:

My improvement' relates more especially to the compound condensing apparatus for marine steam-engines for certain improvements in which Letters Patent were granted to me, dated September 15, 1874, and numbered 154,951. Insaid patented4 apparatus a primary jet-condenser and an expander are used, which, in `rny present improvement, are dispensed with, and a primary surface-condenser, with peculiarly-constructed steam-dividing valves, and a plurality of secondary surface,- condensing cases, substituted between the steam-cylinder of the engine and the tertiary or fsave-all surface-condenser, as will here-- inafter be fully and clearly described, with reference to the accompanying drawing, (on two sheets of paper,) in which- Figure l represents the primary surface-condenser and the peculiarly-constructed steam dividing valves, in connection with the steamcylinder ot' the engine, and the necessary salt' and fresh water pumps; Fig. 2, the plurality ot' surface-condensing cases and the tertiary condenser, together with the airpump, hotwells, circulating-pump, and the mouth otl the hot-Water-boiler supply-pipe. Fig. 3 represents a transverse section ot' the primary surface-condenser on a horizontal line with the inlet-openings for the-cold sea-water; and Fig. 4represents the same section ot' Fig. 3, in connection with the pipes communicating therewith through the ships side.'

To insure a free and prompt working ot' the outlet-valve g5 in the ufpper dividing valvechamber G, (see Fig. 1,). l construct a thin, long, narrow tongue or valve-plate ot' springsteel, gil-say, three or four times longer than it is widetapered or thinned down, so as to serve as a spring-hinge at its back end, which is then secured down rmly to a cross-barred brass grating, which forms the valve-seat, substan tially as represented at g", (see Fig. 1,) and also having a cross-barred brass guard, g, set above the steel-plate valve, so as to prevent the latter-from rising too high-pr, say, not much higher than one, two, or three inchesat its t'ront end, according to the magnitude ot' works. The inlet-openings r1.3, Fig. 4, for the cold circulating sea-water through the side of the ship into the condensing-cases, respectively, are provided with regulating-valves or stop-cocks r4, to regulate the quantity of cold circulating sea-water required for the secondary surfacecondensing cases R R, Fig. 2, to cool down and condense their portion ot* the exhaust steam to a temperature a little below that of boilingwater under a partial vacuum, as hereinafter will be fully described and set forth. rllhe said device is also intended to regnlate the quantity ot the circulating water required -for thel tertiary surface-condenser or save-all S, and the stop-cock 'r4 also serves to shut out the sea-water securely when the latter .is not wanted for immediate use in their respective condensing-cases. The 'crank H, which operates the cut-off slide g4 has two or more sockets, whereby the wrist-pin may be shifted to give either a longer or shorter stroke, as occasion may require, to enable the engineer to adjust and time said slide-valve g4 to divide the exhaust steam coming from the cylinder A properly between the primary condenser B, (see Fig. 1',) and the secondaries E R, Fig. '2. The said crank H is geared so as to make two revolutions during a single rotation ot' the main crank-shaft ot' the engine, so as to divide the exhaust steam coming from either end ot' the steam-cylinder A.

The operation ot the slide-valve g4 must be adjusted so as to be closed at the time when the exhaust-valve at either end ot' the steamcylinder begins to open and to discharge the exhaust steam into the lower dividing valvechamberG, (see Fig. 1,) at which time a very little preponderance in the pressure ot'. the exhaust steam against the under side ot' the thin `steel-plate flap-valve will raise the front end ofthe same to its limited opening between the valve-seat and the guard above it, as described, and represented at g5 in Fig. 1, thus allowing a large portion ot' the exhaust steam and heat to be drawn oftl by the secondary surface-condensing apparatus, (see Fig. 2;) but the moment the cut-ott'l slide-valveg4 opens communication between the steam-cylinder A and the primary condenser B then the outlet -valve g5 will be closed down immediately onto its valve-seat gs (see Fig. 1) by the preponderance of the pressure of the exhaust steam on the upper side of said ap-valve plate g5, and there Will be only a comparatively small remnant of expanded vapor left to be condensed in the primary condenser B,

.and,.consequently, a more perfect vacuum will be produced in front of the-steam-piston of the cylinder A than can be economically afforded when all the exhaust steam and heat must be cooled down and condensed by the same condenser, and to produce a good vacuum in front of the piston at the same time.

The primary, secondary, and tertiary surface-condensers, represented, respectively, by B, It B, and S in the drawing, being each furnished With a plurality of spirally-coiled surface-condensing tubes similar to those of an ordinary still-Worm, and the ends of said tubes Able packing, secured by tightening up the screw-nuts on the ends of the tubes, and thus close` the jam-rings of the tubes onto the packing in the bottom of the stufing-boxes, making the perfectly-tight Water-joints before' stated, and representedat B, Fig. 1.

Having thus described and 'set forth a special form and construction of surface-condensers, which I believe to be the best for my compound condensing` apparatus for marine steam-engines, I would remark that any other suitable form and construction may possibly answer the same purposes when placed in combination substantially in the same manner as primary, secondary, and tertiary condensers for marine steam-engines.

The larger portion ofthe exhaust steam and heat from thecylinder A, which passes through the dividing valve-chambers G G, Fig. l, into the ysecondary surface-condensing cases R R, Fig. 2, is therein cooled down to a temperature' which will' be a little below' that of boiling Water, (under a partial vacuum, as hereinbefore stated vand the hot water of condensation drops down and passes off through the pipes r1 and r3 into the hot-Well W below to supply the boilers (not shown) with hot fresh Water at a much higher temperature than can be afforded by the ordinary surface-condensers, When depending upon them for agood vacnum before the piston of the steam-cylinder. The hotvapor from the secondary surface-condensing cases R R being drawn olf by the action of the air-pump T through the pipe r into the tertiary surface-condenser or saveall S, is therein condensed to save the remnant of fresh Water for the steam-boilers, and drops down into the hot-Well W, and is then drawn oil' by the air-pump T and forced up into the hot-Well U for supplying the steamboilers with hot fresh water, `substantially as represented in the drawing. The surface-condensing cases, as represented at B, R R, and S in Figs. l and 2, are comparatively small, and detachably connected together, and all of them made from the same patterns, and consequently any one of them can be readily detached and substituted by another when it becomes foul or out of order, and thus delay for repairs is entirely avoided.

\'Vhen the engine is Worked at a light pressure ot steam, as is frequently the case, there will, in that case, be less cooling-surface required by the secondary surface-condensers, and having a plurality of comparatively small surface-condensing cases connected With the exhaust-steam tube of the engine-say, from four to six or more, according to the size of the Works, instead of two only-as represented by R R, Fig. 2, then any one or more of said plurality of cases may be throttled off by any suitable arrangement of throttle-Valves or stop-cocks, so as to regulate the quantity of cold circulating sea-Water in the remainder. of the cases, to reduce the temperature of the exhaust steam Within them to a temperature a little below boiling water under a partial vacuum, and thus return the fresh water of condensation to the steam-boilers at a temperature much higher than can be'afforded by the ordinaryvsuriace, or even by jet, condensers.

I claim as my inventionl. The thin spring Hap-valve g5, of steel, constructed as described, in combination With the valve-seat g and guard gi, substantially as and for the purpose herein before set forth and described.

2. The primary surface-condenser B, in combination with the dividing-valves in the chamber G G and 4the secondary and tertiary surface-condensers R R and S, substantially as set forth and described.

JOHN HOUPT.

Witnesses:

. BENJ. MoRIsoN,

WM. H. MoRIsoN.

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