US281127A

US281127A - Apparatus for generating illuminating or heating gas

Info

Publication number: US281127A
Authority: US
Publication date: 1883-07-10
Anticipated expiration: 1900-07-10

Description

(No Model.)

W. P. PATTON APPARATUS POR GENERATING ILLUMINTING 0R HEATING GAS.

Patented July 10, 1883.'`

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)WILLIAM I. PATTON, OF HARRISBURG,A ASSIGNOR OF ONE-HALF TO C. F. ROBERTSON, OF PHILADELPHIA, PENNSYLVANIA.

APPARATUS FOR GENERATING ILLUMINATING OR HATlNG G'AS.

SPECIFICATION forming part of Letters Patent No. 281,127, dated July 10, 1883,

. Application tiled May 1,1883. (No model.)

To all whom it may concern.-

Be it known that WILLIAM l?. PATTON, of the city of Harrisburg, count-y of Dauphin, and State of Pennsylvania, have invented a new and improved gas apparatus for the rapid:

and economical generation of illuminating or heating gas from high-pressure steam and carbonaceous liquids, preferably crude ben-v zine#7 and I hereby declare thev following to be a full, clear, and exact description of thev same, reference being made to the accompanying marked thereon.

In the dra-wings, Figure l represents a sidev elevation of the generator. Fig. 2 is a view of the gasgenerator in vertical section, takenv through the center of the furnace from front a sectional view of the steam-superheating de vice that is also shown in Fig. 2. Fig. 7 is a top or plan view oi' the snperheating device illustrated in Fig. 6. Figs. 8 and 9 are sectional and top views of the same portion of the gas-generator, which will be fully explained in the following spec-iiication.

In all the figures like letters designate like parts of the generator.

The shell or body A of the generator is made of boiler-plate iron of a suicient thickness. It is a vertical cylindrical chamber, is riveted together, and has its seams calked to make gas-tight joints. A plate-iron bottom is rigidly secured in. place,as shown in Fig..1. The angle-iron ring or iia-nge 71,-71 is attached to the upper end of the yshell A, as shown. It is made preferably of east-iron, and has its horizontal face made level.

The cap-plate G- G, that is placed upon the flange hl 11 is madeL of castiron, and Vhas its bearing-surface made true, so that a gas-tight joint is obtained at its point of contact with the flange h 7e., it being securely bolted thereto. A circular oriiice or coal-stokng hole, (see Fig. 2,) is made in the cap-plate G G at a point central to the shell A. The part of the drawings and the letters of reference Fig. 5 is a4 plate G G surrounding this hole is raised slightly above the upper surface of the same. The face of this projection is made true, so as to eect a gastight joint with the lid i, Figs. 2 and 4.

The cover i is made of a proper thickness to stand the action of heat without warping, and of a sufficient size to cover the projection upon which it lies. The lid t' is hinged at o, Figs. 2 and 4, so as to permit it to be readily opened and closed, its connection with the plate G G being maintained. Then closed it is secured by the swing-bar c and screw f.. (See Fig. 2.)

The generator-shell A is lined up inside with ire-brick of a proper thickness, the bottom being similarly protected. (See S S, Fig. 2.) At a proper height from the bottom a castiron chamber, 0, is placed, resting upon the lining-wall S S. It is circular in form, having its top and bottom parallel. lts diameter is smaller than the shell A, so as to enter same easily. I designate this chamber() as a miX- ing-retort. Its walls are of proper thickness to sustain weight upon them, as this device takes the place of grate-bars. A suflicient number of annular walled oriiices 1 2 34 are made to perforate the upper and lower faces oi' the retort O. The cylindrical walls of these perforations prevent access to the interior of retort O, and serve to conduct an air-blast through them from the sub-chamber or ash-pit m below the retort into the iire-bed above it. Figs. 2, 8, and 9 show the form of the retort 0. Through the lower lplate or bottoni of O a proper number of gas escape holes, s s s, are made. These perforations allow superheated steam or crude hydrocarbon gas that is introduced into or is generated in the interior cavity of the retort, to be forced by accumulating pressure downward into the ash-pit m, and consequently upward through the blast-holes l 2 3 The pipe J, that is made to communicate with the inside of the retort O, and also with the interiorof the steam-superheating chamber I), is designed to convey the highly-heated steam from said chamber l? to the mixing-retort O. It is essential that the pipe J be properly j acketed or protected with a non-conducting covering, so that the superlicated steam is not IOO lowered in temperature in passing through it. The steam-superheating chamber P is located immediately below-the cap-plate G G, and is supported in position by the lining-wall S S. It is made of cast-iron, and is annular in form, as shown in Fig. 7,which is a top view of same. The outside diameter is of a size to permit its easy introduction into the interior of the generator-shell A. (See Fig. 2.) It is made with an interior cavity or steam-space, u u. The inner wall of chamber P is made conical, or converging regularly from the base to the upper edge of same, the upper aperture conforming in diameter to the size of the stoking-hole in the cap-plate G G. (See Fig. 2.) A gas-outlet, k, is made in and through the side of the retort or chamber P, a neck or short flangedV pipe, D, being securely bolted or riveted upon the outside'of the generatorshell A in an axial line with the aperture k. (See Fig. 2.) A steam-pipe, L, for conveying high-pressure steam from a steam-boiler to the chamber P, is connected therewith, as shown in Fig. 2, a valve, o, being placed in a convenient position for access tosame.

The pipe N, Fig. 2, is designed to convey crude benzine or oil from an elevated supplytank (not shown) to the point of junction c of said pipe with the steam-pipe J. A checkvalve, a, and stop-valve b are introduced in pipeNat a point near the place of attachment c. In Fig. 5 an enlarged view of the connecting steam-pipe J is seen, the lower end being shown to exhibit the conical or contracting nozzle w. This is placed in the horizontal part of pipe J, immediately in the rear of the benzine-supply pipe N.

In the side of the shell A, below the retort O, is rigidly attached the air-blast pipe F. This is connected with a rotary fan located at a convenient point, and a stop gate or valve is placed in the connecting-pipe, so that all O for a similar purpose.

communication can be cut off when so desired. The blast-pipe F projects into the ash-pit m, as seen in Fig. 2. Upon the opposite side the door E is placed. This is secured by hinged joints to a stout cast-iron frame, F. (See Fig. l.) This frame is riveted fast to the shell A. A bail-clamp, Z, is pivoted tothis frame, so as to swing away from or be placed in front of the door E, and thus permit the handled set-screw Z to bear against' the projection formed on the outside of the door E, securing it tightly against the true-faced joint on the frame F, it being important that the door be made gas-tight. A portion of the frame F projects above the upper face of the retort O, and thus gives access to the fire-bed in` the generator to remove ashes and clinker. Said door and frame also extend below the retort The cap-plate G G of the generator is extended in the rear ofthe shell A a sufficient distance to form a base or support for the draft-stack d.

ln Figs. l, 2, and 3 are shown views of the stack d and an adjustable bonnet, B. This bonnet is made somewhat larger in diameter than the lid e', over which it stands, resting its lower end on the cap-plate G G, as seen in Figs. l and 2. The body ofthe hood or bonnet B is bent at an obtuse angle, and is rigidly attached to a' sleeve, C, that is placed upon the stack d. This is so proportioned in size to the stack as to allow it to fit neatly, and yet be moved in either alateral or vertical direction with ease. The dotted lines in Fig. 3 show the relative position of the bonnet B when removed from direct connection with the interior of the stack d. As will be noticed, a proper-sized opening, g, is made through the wall of the stack d, so that when the hood B and its sleeve C are in correct position, and the lidil opened by access to it through the hole in the bonnet B immediately over it, a direct passage is formed from the interior of the generator to the interior of the stack d. When the bonnet B-is raised so as to clear the lid i, and is moved away from said lid, as shown in Fig. 3, the sleeve C covers the aperture in the stack d. The bonnet B is provided with an opening in its top over the lid i. It is closed by a hinged lid, e, and catch 5. lts use has been just explained. The stack d, sleeve C, and bonnet B are made of plate-iron of proper thickness to insure stability under the action of heat. A handle, e', is placed upon each side of the bonnet B to raise it. vA counterbalance-weight,f, chain c, and pulleys a a can be arranged to relieve a great portion of the weight, and thus aid the operation of removal of said bonnet B. Another style of attachment of the bonnet to the stack is shown in Fig. 4, in which the bonnet B 1 is hinged, so as to be lifted up and retained in that position and give access to the generator-lid fi when desired. The object to be attained by these devices is to enable the gasmaker yto have free access to the stoking-hole x to readily introduce coal, and then by replacing the bonnet to bring the iire in the generator in direct connection with the stack d, so that a fan-blast and continuous draft through the iire may be secured. The swinging away of the -bonnet B IIO is also necessary to allow the iireman to use a long metallic bar through the stoking-hole x, causing the same to penetrate downward through the bed of incandescent coals, and particularlyalong the surface of the fire-brick lining-wall, in order to break off the clinker that slags onto the same. By the free use of said bar all the caked cinder may be broken up and taken out through the door E.

In using the generator to produce illuminating or heating gas, a fire of anthracite coal is started in the chamber A upon the upper surface of retort O, a fan-blast being introduced at F after the door E is closed and the lidi opened. It is evident that the mass of coals can soon be brought to a cherry-red heat on the upper surface, this being the proper condition of the fire to effect free generation and fix the gas properly. The retort P will esl-.127 3 be highlyheated'by the productsfof coal combust-ion passing upward-through it into the bonnet B. The retort O will also bein a similareondition. Thevalveupontheblast-pipeli" must now be closed, as well as the lid i, the latterbeing secured by the clamp u and set-screw t. The valve that is attached to the gas-outlet D must now be opened. (Said valve not shown.) The steam-valve o being adjusted to permit a free iiow of hi gh-pressure steam into the superheating-chamber P, it will pass down through the pipe J and nozzle fw into the retort O. Iminediately after the steam is turned on, the valve b in the benzinesupply pipe N should Vbe opened a proper distance to allow the requisite amount of carbonaceous liquid to flowthrough the check-valve ce and into the pipe J at the point c. The superheated steam coming' into contact with the benzine instantlyvaporizes it, and the joined vapors are thoroughly blended and mixed together by forcible contact against the numerous pipes in the retort-cavity, so that partial dissociation of the superheated steam is effected by reason of' the intimate contact of it and carbonaceous vapor in the highly-heated retort. The oxygen of the intensely-heated steam, combining with corresponding atoms of carbon, produces carbonio oxide. Thev hydrogen thus liberated by this dissociation and recomposition takes up the remaining volume of carbon vapor and coin- 'bines therewith, producing crudehydrocarbon gas. The whole volume of compound gas passes downward through the pipes or orifices s s s into the sub-chamber ,or ash-pit m, and the increasing pressure of rapid generation forces the same upward through the blastholes 12 8 4, Sac., into and through the firebed. The upward passage of the crude hydro- 40 carbon gas through the incandescent bed of coals perfects the recomposition of the constituent elements, and completely fixes the compound gas, which escapes through the outlet I), and 'is conveyed by a pipe to the gas washing and purifying apparatus.

In this generator the entire operation is conducted within the wall of one vertical chamber A, and such devices as supplementary coaliires and superheating-chambers filled with refractory material for iixing the compound gas y are dispensed with. My present improved gas-generator is compact, simple, and easy to operate, and generates high candle-power before been used in' other patented devices.

fixed gas in large volume and in an economical and cheap manner.

I do not desire to claim, broadly, the use of a vertical chamber for a gas-generator; nor do I cla-im the use of a bed of incandescent coal for iixing the compound gas, for these have 6o Neither do I claim to bethe first to generate illuminating or heating gas from superheated steam and oil or benzine, as these materials have been so utilized before; but

Wha-tI do claim as new', of my own invention, and desire to secure by Letters Patent of the United States, isy 1. The vertical generator-shell A, in combination with the annular/steam-superheating chamber P, connecting-pipe J, steam and hydrocarbon mixing retort O, and benzine-supply pipe N, constru/cled and operating sub- `st-antially as is herein shown, and for the purpose set forth.

2. Thecombination oi the removable capplate G G,'lid fi, annular steam-superheating chamber l?, connecting-pipe J, mixing-retort O, benzine-supply pipe N, and vertical gener- :ttor-shell A, the whole being constructed and operatic g substantially as shown, and for the purpose set forth.

3. A vertical gas-generator constructed with a removable or adjustable top plate, G G, that is made to project outward asufficient distance from the side of the shell A, so aste form a base for the support ofthe draft-stack d, in combination with the hood and sleeve and the 'smoke-stack, as is herein shown, and for-the purpose specified.,

l 4. A vertical gas-generatorconstructedwith 9o a stack, d, adjustable bonnet B, extended capplateGGI, annular steam-superheating chamber P, connecting-pipe J, mixing-retort O, sup ply-pipe N, and shell A, the whole being combined and operating as is herein set forth.

5. The retort O, having its faces perforated and provided with the annular walled orifices l 2 3 4, and gas-escape holes s s s, in combination with the ash-pit m below the retort and the fire-bed above it, all constructed to operlroo ate' as and for the purpose herein set `forth.

WM. r. rnrfrox. [1.. s]

lVtnesses:

S. W. FLEMING, En. M. Coornu.