US261708A - haslam - Google Patents

Description

(No Model.) 6 Sheets-Sheet 1.

. A. S. HASLAM.

REFRIGERATOR FOR COOLING AIR.

Patented July 25, 1882.

l r l N4 PUERS, Vhylwlilhugnpher. wnmngmn. D. c.

(No Model.) 6 Shets-Sheet 2.

-A. s. HASLAM. REFRIGERATOR FOR COOLING AIR.

No 261,708. Patented Ju1'y25,-1882.

(No Model.) 6 sheets-sheet s. A. S. HASLAM.

REFRIGERATOR FOR 000mm AIR. No. 261.708. Patented July 25, 1882.

N, PETERS, Phoku-Lilhngmpher. Washlnglun. n.c.

(No Model.) 6 Sheets-Sheet 4.

A. S. HASLAM. REFRIGERATOR FOR UOOLING AIR. N0.'261,'708. Patented July 25, 1882.

N. PETERS. Phulu-kjlho n hnr, Washingian. D. c.

(No Mofiel.) A S- HASLAM. 6 Sheets-Sheet 5.

v REFRIGERATOR FOR GOOLING AIR. No. 261,708. Patented July 25, 1882.

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' (No Model.) I 6 Sheets-Sheet s.

A. s. HASLAM. v REFRIGERATOR FOR COOLING AIR.

No. 261,708. Patented July 25, 1382.

Ens Phob-bthognphel. Wnahinm v.1:

UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE.

ALFRED SEALE HASLAM, OF DERBY, COUNTY OF DERBY, ENGLAND.

REFRIGERATOR FOR COOLING AIR.

SPECIFICATION formingpart of Letters Patent No. 261,708, dated July 25, 1882. Application filed December 17, 188l. (No model.) Patented in England June 22, 1881, No. 2,740.

To all whom rt may concern Be it known that I, ALFRED SEALE HAS- LAM, of Derby,.in the county of Derby, Eng land, engineer and iron-founder, have invented new and useful lmprovementsin Refrigerators, of which the followingis a description.

This invention relates to a novel construction and arrangement of refrigerator for cooling air on the dry-air system-that is to say, without at any period of the cooling process bringing the said air into direct contact with the water used for such cooling. In this improved refrigerator the air to be cooled is first passed into a compressing-cylinder through improved suction-va'lves furnished with springs on the outside of the covers, which springs can be adjusted or replaced while the coinpressor is at work, the said cylinder and its valves being cooled externally by water circulating through helical passages formed in the jacket and covers thereof. The air leaves the compressing-cylinder by valves of special construction, which, with the'inlet-valves, will be hereinafter more fully described, and passes thence through two or more sets of tubes Within acondenser situateimmediately beneath the said cylinder, around which tubes water is constantly circulating, whereby the temperature of the compressed air is lowered, and the air is caused to yield up a large portion of its watery particles. The air next enters an airreservoir, and thence passes to a special apparatus, called a collectorand separator, situate below the air-reservoir and the condenser above named. The collector and separator consists of a series of tubes arranged in sets within a casing, the interior of which is brought into connection with the cold air from the meat-room or the expansion-cylinder, as may be desired, by a system of pipes and "elves. The compressed air from the reservoir passes through the sets oftubes-in the collector and separator, around which tubes the cold air from the meat-room or the colder air from the expansion-cylinder, as the case may be, is caused to pass, which air, by impinging upon them, greatly cools the compressed air passing through them. The compressed air next passes to the air-expansion cylinder, which. is fitted with a novel arrangement of valves, allowing of adjustment, and avariable cut-off, and which are, moreover, readily accessible. The construction of this part of the refrigerator will be more fully described hereinafter. From the expansion-cylinder thecold air, at ordinary atmospheric pressure, passes to the meat-room or other structure the contents of which are to be cooled.

This improved refrigerator is specially designed for use on board ship, and it is for this purpose that its several parts, as well as the engine for operating the same, are combined, so as to be self-contained, and mounted on one bed -plate--an arrangement effecting great economy of space and the utmost efiiciency in working. It has been found, however, that alter the engine has ceased to work the large amount of energy stored in the compressed air within the reservoir and other parts of the apparatus is such that on slightly turning the fly-wheel the said air will drive the fly-wheel for some twenty revolutions. This starting of the fly-wheel, when at sea, is therefore attended with considerable risk to life, and in .order to obviate this a novel arrangement of starting-gear is provided, by which gear the fly-wheel of this improved refrigerator may be started at a safe distance therefrom.

In addition to the general combination and arrangement of the several parts of the re frigerator in their relative positions, as above mentioned, which combination and arrangement are believed to be both new and useful, the refrigerator is constructed with improved devices for more effectually attaining the object in view. Thus the inlet and outlet valves of the compressing-cylinder and its spirallychanneled water jacket, the collector and separator, the construction and arrangement of the air-expansion cylinder and its accessories, and the starting-gear for the fly-wheel of the refrigerator are each and all believed tobe new and useful improvement-s, all working together for the economicaland safe production of highly-cooled dry air. These several improvements will now be described in order, reference being made to the accompanying drawings, in which the same letters of reference indicate like parts.

Figure l is a side elevation of the improved refrigerator, and Fig. 2 is a plan view thereof.-

A is the compressor, to which the air to be compressed passes alternately by the branch pipes A A through the improved inlet-valves 1 A A at either end of the cylinder, and from which the compressed air issues by the outletvalves A A and branch pipes A A by which pipes it is conducted to and through two or more sets of tubes in the condenser B, around which tubes waterentering by the pipe b is constantly circulating. The covers of the said condenser B are divided by partitions to insure the air passing from one set of tubes to the other in succession. When two sets of tubes are used one of the covers only need be divided to guide the air through them; but it' three sets are used each cover will require a division-plate for this purpose. The water, after flowing around the tubes of the condenser B, passes by an opening or a short vertical pipe to the jacket of the compressor A, and circulates around the cylinder and valves of the said compressor through spiral passages formed in thejacket and communicating with channels formed in the cylinder-heads, by which means the water is thoroughly turned over and its cooling-power utilized to its highest degree. The water, after thus externally cooling the compressor, passes off by the pipe at. The compressed air, after leaving the condenser B, passes to the compressed-air reservoir G, situate immediately beneath the condenser B and compressor A. This reservoir serves to insure regularity in working the apparatus. Below the said air-reservoir is the collector and separator D, which consists of a box orvcasing fitted with a series of tubes in sets, arranged substantially in the same manner as are those of the condenser B. The compressed air, after leaving the reservoir 0, passesnthence into one cover, D, of the collector D, which cover is divided to keep separate the currents of air passing through the two sets of tubes, after the manner already explained with reference to the condenser B. The air passes through one set of tubes and back again through another set of tubes, around which tubes cold air from the meat-room, or from the expansion-cylinder E, is drawn by the compressor A, the direction of the air being controlled by a suitable arrangement of sliding valves.

D is the return-pipe from the meat-room to the collector, and D is the pipe from the collector to the compressor, by which the cold air from the meat-room is drawn through the collector D and around the tubes therein.

E is the expansion-cylinder, arranged midway of one end of the base-plate, its valves being worked by eccentrics on the crank-shaft of the engine F, by the piston-rod of which the compressor is worked. On the end of this crankshaft the fly-wheel G is mounted. This fiy-wheel of the refrigerator is provided with improved safety starting-gear, which will be more fully described hereinafter. The compressed air, having been still further dried and cooled within the tubes of the collector D, passes by the pipe E to the expansion-cylinder E, which cylinder it leaves by the main cold-air tank E Hand sliding valves E and E are provided for regulating the direction of the cold air, as follows: Should it become necessary to admit extreme cold air to the interior of the collector, so as to freeze the moisture contained in the compressed air, it will only be necessary to close the valves by which the air from the meatroom is drawn into the collector D and to open the sliding valve E between the expansion-cylinder E and the said collector, at the same time turning the cock A so as to open the pipe D and close the pipe D During this operation the valve E may be partially closed, it" necessary. The compressor A will then draw extreme cold air by the pipe D from the expansion-cylinderE through the collector D, causing it to impinge on the tubes placed therein; or, if desired, air may be drawn to the compressor from the outer air by a pipe, A provided with a suitable cook or valve, which will be ordinarily kept shut.

It will be observed that in this refrigerator the air to be cooled is separated from the cooling medium throughout its circulation through the apparatus, and that all the parts are arranged with respcct to each other, according to the natural sequence of the several stages of the process.

In some cases I may dispense with the airreservoir 0, maintaining, however, the relative positions of the other parts of the apparatus,

either in a vertical or a horizontal direction.

The special points of novelty in the compressor A and its accessories will now be described.

Figs. 3 and 3* represent the compressor A in side elevation (partlyin section) and end view, respectively. A designates the inlet airpipes; A the inlet air-valves; A the outlet air-valves, and A, Fig. the outlet for the compressed air. The water for cooling the compressor enters by the opening a, and, circulating around the cylinder in a double spiral direction, as clearly indicated in the drawings, leaves the cylinder by the outlet at. It will be seen that the cylinder-covers are deeply channeled to form passages which communicate with the two spiral passages around the cylinder, and that the valves A and A are thus brought into close proximity with the cooling medium.

Each of the air-inlet valves A consists essentially of a disk, a having a hollow stem working in a fixed sleeve, a", and opening inward. The outer end of the hollow stem is screwed to receive a cap through which a spindle is passed. The spindle passes through the cover, and is surrounded by a coiled spring contained within a hollow casting, a, bolted to the outside of the cover. A disk, a, or its equivalent, is passed over the end of the spindle, which is threaded at its extremity to receive a nut, and by means of this nut the coiled spring may be compressed to any required degree, and thus necessitate a greater or less airpressure to be exerted in order to open the valve. A washer of rubber, prefer ably protected by a metal rim, is secured to the innerxend of the cap, and thus all shock.

to the working parts of the valves is obviated. The outlet-valves A each consist of a disk, a having a hollow stein working in a fixed sleeve, a bolted to the outside of the cover.. Into the center of this sleeve a'rodis screwed, and its inner end bears upon acoiled spring contained within the hollow stem of the valve-disk a which is thus kept uponits seat until the compressedair forces it outward. An additional coiled springis contained within the sleeve a and surrounds the fixed rod above named, thus preventingtheouter face of the valve disk a from coming violently in contact with the end of the hollow sleeve 0?. By this construction oftheinlet and outlet valves I obtain greatstrength ofthe working parts,combined with lightness and simplicity of construc; tion, a large bearing-surface for the valvestems, and easy access to the working parts from the outside. The compressed air from the compressor A next passes to the sets of tubes within the condenser B, which has been already described, wherein it is cooled by the flow of wateraronnd the said tubes, and without coming into direct contact withthecooling medium. From the condenserB the com.- pressed air passes to the air-reservoir 0, which reservoir, it should be remarked, is not absolutely necessary to myinvention of a refrigerator for. producing cold dry air, but which is preferably employedin combinatiouwith the upper parts of the apparatus, as already described with reference to Figs. 1 and-.2, and serves to increase the efficiency by insuring the regular working of the machine. Fromthe reservoir (1 the compressed air enters the collector and separator D, which consists-0t a casing fitted with a series of tubes through which the compressed air passes. Thispart of. the invention has already been sutficientlydescribed, and its construction andoperation' will be readily understood on reference to Fig. 1 and the aforesaid description. Its object is to still further dry and cool the compressed air, for which purpose it is fitly placed below the condenser B and reservoir 0, andimmediately before the expansion-cylinder E.

It should be especially noted that by the above construction and arrangement of apparatus the small amount of moisture in the. air may be allowed to deposit within the tubes of the collector and separator D in the form of ice or snow without risk of stopping them, inasmuch as the system of cooling the compressor and the condenser tubes by the. external application of water does not load the air with so. much moisture as would, when passing through the collector, choke the tubes thereof with snow and cause a breakdown of the apparatus. Should, however, the pipes collect too much snow or ice, the current of air is reversed by the cock or valve A fresh air being drawn into the machine and the circulation of cold air round the tubes being suspended. The air from the reservoir passing through the tubes at a higher temperature cleans the tubes from suchice orsnow, and the air passing through the tubes is further cooled in. its passage. led byrthepipe E to the expansion-cylinder E,

theconstruction and arrangement of whichfectsa saving of power. .This arrangementv permits of short straight ports being used in all connections in. the exhaust-a matter of great importancein" refrigerating apparatus. Air, expanding under theseconditions does not permit snow or ice to form. in the said portsandobstruct the passage of air. The exhaustvalves-can also be carefully adjusted to the:

face of the,ports,.andby reason of theexpansion-chest not having to resist internal pressare itscovermay beconstructedof woodfor any. lightnon-conducting material, and made easil y removable to clear-the chest of any snow thatmay form therein. The rods which work the valvesfor admitting. the air to and: ex hausting it from the expansion-cylinder dcrive their motion from an eccentric common to both. through a. rocking shaft, arms; keyed thereon, and link-rods. The shaft? carrying the eccentric just mentioned. is furnished with a secondeccentric for working the cut-off valve. This valve is connected by a link-rod to an arm of a rocking shaft, asecond arm from which is jointed to thearodof the second eccentric. i

Inthe accompanying drawings, Fig. this an end elevation of. the; refrigerating. apparatus, showing theexpansion-cylinder. Fig. 5 shows" onan enlarged scale the means for adjusting the cut-off. and the indicatorfor regulating the extent. of such adjustment Fig. 6 is a horizontal section, and Fig. 7 isra vertical section of the cylinder and its accessories.

In these figures, E is the cylinder tojwhich the compressed air isconducted from the collector and separator through the pipe E He the receiving-chest, and e the expansionchest or snow-box, placed respectively on op. posite sides of the cylinder E, as shown-in the drawings; or it. maybe one at the side and the other at the front or top of thecylinder, by which means separate valves are usedfor the. supply andexhaust, thus allowing ofa variable cut-oft for the supply-valve and the use of valves of small size.

eis the. supply-valve, e the adjustable cutofi valve, and 0 the exhaust-valve. The valves 0 e are worked by an eccentric, 00, common to both on the crankshaft so, through the horizontal rock-shaft e and arms keyed thereon, one of the arms being connected to the rod of the eccen- The air, after leaving thecollectorD, is

trio, and the other two being connected to the rods ofthe supply and exhaust valves. Thecutott'valve e is worked by the eccentric a, through the rock-shaft e and lever-arms keyed thereon, one of which arms is connected to the cut-offvalve rod by a suitable link. The cut-off-valve rod, it will be seen, is threaded at two points with right and left handed threads, respectively, to receive correspondingly threaded blocks, which are made with recesses to carry the removable pieces serving as valve-faces. and together with them constitute the cut-off valves. The rod of this cut-oft valve, it will be seen from Fig. 5, passes through a block, e to which is attached one end of the link whereby it is actuated. This block e is secured to the rod by means of the shoulder below it andthe nuts above it. On slacken ng these nuts the rodmay be rotated by a spanner applied to the hexagonal shoulder, and by its rotation will cause the threaded blocks, which carry the removable wearing-pieces serving as the faces of the cut-off valves 6 to recede from one another or to approach one another, thus regulatingthe cut-off. The relative positions of the wearing-surfaces of the said cut-oft valves e with respect to the inlet-ports of the supply-valvese may be ascertained with exactitudc by the pointer 0 which protrudes through a slot cut in the face of the block 6'', and which is caused to travel up or down the graduated face of such block as the cutoff-valve rod is rotated to the right or left. This traverse motion of the pointer c is effected by its rear end being threaded (or formed with a tooth) and lyingin close contact with athreaded portion of the cut-otf-valve rod within the block e as will be readily understood.

The exhaust-valves e are also capable of easy adjustment upon their rod by means of the nuts which hold the valve-surfaces in place upon the rod which works them. In order to set up or adjust the wearing-surfaces of the exhaust-valves-to the face of the expansionchest against which they work, wedge-shaped blocks (3 Fig. 6, are employed. These wedgeshaped blocks are interposed between the outer face of the valve-pieces e and inclined surfaces formed in the walls of the expansionchest 0. The wedge-block's are slot-ted to allow of their vertical adjustment, and they are then clamped securely by the clamping-boltsc". By these means both the upper and lower valve-pieces, a, can be forced against the face of the expansion-chest with any desired pressure. Access to these adjusting-nuts and wedgeshaped blocks may be easily had by removing the cover 6 of theexpansion-ehest. or snowbox e, which cover, by reason of there being no internal pressure of air to resist, is made of wood or other light non-conducting material,

' and may be consequently handled with case.

The invention relates, lastly, to a simple arrangement of starting-gear for putting the engine of the refrigerator in motion when it has stopped on a dead-center. This arrangement consists in the use of teeth'or notches cast on the side or, by preference,.on the periphery of the fly-wheel G, as shown in Fig.8, taking into which teeth is a pawl, g, mounted on a rocking piece, 9, cut or formed in one with a socket, into which a hand-lever, g isinserted, which lever serves to operate the rocking piece 9 and pawl 9, thus startingthe fly-wheel. The pawl g is thrown into gear (when in action) with the teeth of the fly-wheel G by the upward pressure of a spring, 9 but when the hand-lever is dropped the pawl will drop out of gear. The rocking piece g and the handlever 9 connected therewith, may be mounted upon a stud-axle carried by a bracket-bearin g, as shown in the drawings; or it may be upon a standard bolted to the flooring or to the deck of the vessel.

Having now set forth the nature of my said invention of improvements in refrigerators, and having explained in what manner the same may be carried into practical effect, I wish it to be understood that I claim 1. A refrigerator in whch the air to be cooled passes, first, into a compressor, A, cooled externally by water flowing around its spirallychanneled cylinder and around the valves in its covers; secondly, into and through two or more sets of tubes in a condenser, B, situate immediately beneath the said compressor A, within which tubes the moisture in the air is condensed by'the action of the water flowing around them; thirdly, to an air-reservoirsuch as O-the greater part of which reservoir is situate immediately beneath the said condenser B, and serves also as a bed-plate for the engine F; fourthly, into and through the tubes ot'a collector and separator, D, the space withinthe said collector and around the said tubes being connected by pipes with the airexpansion cylinder E, the cold room, and the compressor A, as and for the purpose Speci shaft of the motive-power engine F, which engine is arranged on a level with the compressor A, and above the condenser B and airreservoir 0, the whole of theseveral parts above named being arranged substantially as and for purpose specified.

2. The combination of the compressor A, condenser B, collector D, expansion-cylinder E, and engine F, in the manner and for the purpose herein specified.

3. An air-compressor having spiral channels around its cylinder for the circulation of the water, whereby it is cooled, and channels in its end covers around the inlet and outlet valves of the compressor, whereby they may be cooled by the said water, the said inlet and" outlet valves being constructed and arranged as and for the purpose set forth.

4. In an air-compressor, an inlet-valve consisting substantially of a valve-disk having a central stem (preferably made hollow for cap-piece and a rod, or its equivalent, with a spiral spring contained within a casting situate on the outside of the cylinder-cover, the whole arranged and operating as and for the purpose specified.

5. In an air-compressor, an air-outlet valve consisting substantially of a valve-disk having a hollow stem working within a fixed sleeve fitted in the cylinder-cover, and accessible from the outside thereof, in combination with a rod situate within the hollow sleeve, one end of said rod bearing against a spiral spring'contained within the hollow stem of the valvedisk, and a second spiral spring or an equivalent elastic medium placed around the rod situate centrally within said sleeve, whereby shock to the working parts is prevented, all substantially as and for the purpose specified.

6. In combination with the condenser of a refrigerating-machine, in the tubes of which condenser the compressed air is cooled by water circulating around them, a collector and separator wherein the compressed air is further cooled and freed from moisture, such collector and separator being constructed and connected by pipes and valves with the compressor, the expansion-cylinder, and the cold room in the manner and for the purpose specified.

7. In a refrigerating machine, an expansion- -cylindersuch as E-fitted on one side or face with a supplywalve, and a cut-offvalve made adjustable in the manner described, and on the opposite or an adjacent side or face with an exhaust-valve, which allows the expanded air to pass off through short straight ports, the said exhaust-valve being capable of adjustment in the manner shown and readily accessible from the snow-box, which is fitted with a cover of wood or other light non-conducting material, all substantially as and for the purpose specified.

8. In combination with the toothed fiy-wheel of V a refrigerator, the safety starting device hereinabove described, consisting substantially ot' alever, 9 in combination with a short arm or rocking piece, g, carrying a pawl, g, and a spring, 9 as and for the purpose specitied.

A. SEALE HASLAM. Witnesses:

H. K. WHITE, A. S. BISHOP,

66 Chancery Lane, London.

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