570 



THE CIVIL ENGINEER AND ARCHITECT'S JOURNAL. 



[Decembbb, 



//, by the remainin^T two-thirds of the down-stroke of tlie piston c, 

 the crank k, will be carried the remaining half of its semi-revohi- 

 tion to the second dead point. The dotted lines o. o, o, p, p, p, and 

 7,7,7, illustrate how much nearer to a right angle the jiull of the 

 connecting-rod is on the crank during the secimd half of its semi- 

 revolution than during the first half, for this directness of the 

 pull, during the second half of the semi-revolution, must be 

 greater than during the first half, in the proportion of the greater 

 range of motion of the piston during the one than during the 

 other,— that is, nearly in the juoportion of two to one. So soon 

 as the first piston has reached the end of its down-stroke, and its 

 crank has performed the effective half of its revolution, the second 

 jiistcm begins to descend, producing the same effect on its crank; 

 and in this way the two pistons and their cranks alternate,— no 

 force being applied to either of their pistons during their up- 

 motion: the cranks, therefore, each pass through the remaining 

 half of their revolutions without any impelling force being applied 

 to them. Steam is admitted to the upper end of the first cylinder 

 ./; from the steam-pipe «•, by a slide-valve t, which is held up in the 

 position shown in the drawing, and with the port closed by a 

 helical spring », on the valve-rod v, — one end of the said spring 

 being attached to the valve-rod, and the other resting against a 

 guide-stud u; attached to the frame. To the valve-rod is jointed 

 one arm of a lever ,v, represented by dotted lines, which turns on 

 a stud at i/, — its other arm resting on the periphery of a cam z, on 

 the crank-shaft. This cam, which is represented by dotted lines, 

 is conceJitric from the point 1 to 2; and, during this part of the 

 rotation of the crank-shaft, the valve remains closed by the tension 

 of the helical spring; but from 2 to 1, the cam has an enlargement, 

 which acts on the lever t, to depress and open the valve for the 

 admission of steam to the cylinder; and therefore the extent of 

 this cam-like projection, in the direction of the peripherj', will 

 determine at what portion of the stroke the steam shall be cut off. 

 After the valve is closed, the steam acts on the piston expansively, 

 until the end of the down-stroke; a sliding-valve a\ then opensa 

 port b\ which establishes a communication between the upper end 

 of the tv.o cylinders, that the steam may act on the piston g, to 

 force it down solely by its expansive force; the second cylinder k, 

 being of much greater capacity than the first, and so much larger, 

 that the steam, acting by expansion therein during the range of 

 the piston, shall exert on it a mechanical force about equal to that 

 which is exerted on the first piston. The steam of the valve «', is 

 jointed to a lever c\ that turns on a pin at d\ its other end being 

 forked, to embrace an eccentric e', on the crank -shaft by which it 

 is operated. The lower end of the second cylinder is always in 

 communication with the condenser by means of the pipe/'; and 

 the upper end also communicates with the condenser by means of 

 a passage <;', governed by the valve a'; and the motion of the valve 

 is such, that at the end of the down-stroke of the piston g, this 

 passage is opened, whereby the steam from the cylinder is ex- 

 hausted, and a vacuum established above as well as below the 

 piston. There is a connection or passage h\ between the lower 

 end of the first and the upper end of the second cylinder (partly 

 represented by dotted lines); so that when the upper end of the 

 second cylinder is exhausted, the lower end of the first is also, to 

 establish a vacuum below the piston e, during its descent; but 

 when the valve a\ is opened, to pass the steam from the first to 

 the second cylinder, it also communicates with the lower end of 

 the first cylinder by the passage h'; so that whilst the second pis- 

 ton is being forced down by the expanding steam, the first piston 

 is balanced, during its return motion, by the pressure of the steam 

 on both sides of it;— thus making the full pressure of the steam 

 on the large piston available, instead of having it react against the 

 surface of the first piston, as in Wolf's expanding engine. 



The inventor does not limit himself to the precise proportions 

 or disposition of the crank-shaft, as these may be greatly varied 

 within the principle of the invention, without affecting the result, 

 except in degree. Nor does he confine himself to the combined 

 employment of all the improvements in this part of the invention, 

 as important results can be obtained from either one of them sepa- 

 ratelv: as, for instance, the means of obtaining an equal, or nearly 

 equal, mechanical force on the first and second halves of the semi- 

 rotation of the crank, when using steam expansively, by the prin- 

 ciple involved in changing the position of the crank-shaft, rela- 

 tively to the axis of vibration of the beam, may be advantageously 

 employed, with only one engine, for many purposes. The use of 

 two engines, with the cranks on the same shaft, and on opposite 

 sides of the centre, in combination with the location of the crank- 

 shaft on the principle herein specified, may be advantageously 

 applied to obtain a more regular mechanical action on the crank- 

 shaft, by the use of expansive steam on two ordinary engines, 



and without the use of the third branch of this part of the inven- 

 tion; and the arrangement of and manner of connecting the 

 ex|>ansion engine with the ordinary engine, so as to prevent the 

 steam, whilst acting by expansion alone on the large piston, from 

 re-acting on the small piston, may be advantageously applied, 

 without the use of the first and second branches of this part of the 

 in\ention; but the best results will be obtained when all three are 

 employed together. Under this part of the invention he claims — 

 Firstly, placing the axis of the crank-shaft of beam-engines, in 

 which the steam is applied expansively, nearer to the axis of 

 vibration of the beam, on the principle herein specified, and for 

 the purpose of obtaining a more regular mechanical action on the 

 crank by the applicati(m of the expansive principle of steam, ag 

 described. — Secondly, the employment of two engines, with their 

 cranks on one and the same shaft, and on opposite sides, — that is, 

 at an angle of 180°, substantially as described, when this is com- 

 bined with the location of the crank-shaft on the principle herein 

 specified. — Thirdly, expansion engines, having two cylinders and 

 pistons, in one of which the steam acts by expansion alone, having 

 one end of the large or expansion-cylinder at all times in connection 

 with the condenser, and the other alternately in connection with 

 the condenser and with the steam end of the other cylinder, that 

 tlie large piston, during its return-stroke, may have a vacuum on 

 each side, as described; when this is combined with the other 

 cylinder connected with the boiler, and which is so arranged as to 

 have both ends in connection with one end of the larger and 

 expansion cylinder, so that when its piston is acted upon by the 

 steam there shall be a vacuum on the other side, and when the 

 steam is acting by expansion on the large piston, it shall be in con- 

 nection with both ends of the small cylinder, as described. 



The object of the second part of the invention is to condense 

 the steam without admixture with the condensing water ; that the 

 water produced by the condensation may be carried back to the 

 boiler, to prevent the evil consequences arising from the use of 

 water that contains, in solution or suspension, mineral or other 

 solid matter — and to condense the waste steam blown off from the 

 boiler, to suj)ply the waste arising from leaks, and also for the 

 production of fresh water for any other use. In the fresh-water 

 apparatus a tubular condenser is used, through the tubes of which 

 the steam passes, and is condensed by the cooling influence of a 

 current of cold water, taken from outside the ship or vessel, and 

 made to pass outside of the tubes; and, to this end, the invention 

 consists in combining a condenser of a steam-engine, for the pro- 

 pelling of a ship or other vessel, with a pump that receives the 

 condensing water from outside of the vessel and causes it to pass 

 through the condenser; — the said pump being actuated, irrespec- 

 tive of the engine that propels the vessel, by means of an auxiliary 

 engine, — whereby the amount of condensation can be regulated, 

 independently of the working of the engine that propels the 

 vessel. 



Secondly, in connecting the condenser with the boiler or boilers, 

 or any part thereof, in addition to its or their connection with the 

 exhaust of the engine, when the pump, which carries the con- 

 densing water through the condenser, is operated by an auxiliary 

 engine; by means of which double connection not only is the steam 

 that escapes from the safety-valve condensed, to be carried back to 

 the boiler, but the boiler or boilers may be used to distil and pro- 

 duce fresh water for any purpose desired, when the engine is not 

 required for propelling the vessel. 



And, lastly, in connecting the tubes of the condenser with the 

 cylinder or outer case thereof, by connecting one or both of the 

 diaphragms, to which the ends of the tubes are secured, with the 

 outer cylinder or case by means of a ring, or the equivalent 

 thereof; so that the said ring or flanch may bend to adapt itself to 

 the unequal contraction and expansion of the tubes and cylinder 

 or outer case of the condenser. 



At fig. 5, a represents a hollow cylinder, within which are ar- 

 ranged a series of small parallel tubes h; and the said tubes are 

 secured at one end, in the usual way, to a diaphragm c, which has 

 a turned flanch, through which rivets or bolts d, pass, to secure it 

 to the cylinder a, and within such distance of the head as to leave 

 a sufficient space between it and the head e, of the cylinder, for 

 two chambers/, and y; — these two chambers being separated by a 

 horizontal diaphragm or partition h. The outer ends of the tubes 

 are, in like manner, secured to another diaphragm t, at the other 

 end; which said diaphragm, instead of being bolted directly to the 

 end of the cylinder, in the usual way, is bolted to a ring^', near its 

 outer periphery, — the inner periphery thereof being provided with 

 a turned flanch, bolted to the end of the cylinder. The said ring 

 or flanch should be slightly conical, or bent, that the diaphragm 

 may be at some distance from the end of the cylinder, that it may 



