221 



THK CIVIL ENGINEER AND ARCHITECTS JOURNAL. 



[July, 



of n spatula or brush ; tlie first composition hoing forcpti into and 

 tlirougli tlie fabric, anfl tlie scconil luid on evenly and smoutlily. 



The second description of fabric is made by pasting, cementing, 

 or otherwise \initing a sheet of paper to a sheet of calico or similar 

 textile fabric, which has been previously waterproofed and japanned. 



MAN'UFACTURE OF GAS. 



George Lowe, of Finsbury-circus, Miildlesex, engineer, for " Im- 

 provemenla in the maniifaclure of and hi burning gas, and in tlie manu- 

 facture of /tit l." -Granted Ocl.S,, IS-IG; Enrolled April 8, 181". 



The improvements relate, first, in preparing peat in combination 

 with resin, pitch, oil, fat, or other hydro-carbonaceous matter, and in 

 making gas therefrom; secondly, an appara us fur purifying gas; 

 thirdly, in making gas from coal and otiier matters, by introducing 

 gteam, highly heated, into the retorts used ; fourthly, in improvements 

 in Argand g.is-burners, whereby the gallery or apparatus carrying the 

 chimney is made to rise and fall on a screw, so as to adjust the admis- 

 sion of the air to the flame; and, fifthly, in manufacturing fuel from 

 yi('%l, by causing dry blocks of peat to be saturated with pitch or other 

 liydro-carbonaceous matters. 



' The first part of the invention is for saturating blocks cf peat with 

 resin, pitch, fat, oil, or other hvdro-carbonaceous matters. The peat 

 is cut into blocks, and well dried, and then saturated by piling the 

 peat in a square cast iron boiler, about IS inches deep, to within a few 

 inches of the top ; then melted pitch, resin, t ir, or combinations 

 thereof, or other cheap hydro-carbonaceous matter, in a highly-heated 

 state, is allowed to flow into the boiler, and heat is then applied ; by 

 such means, the hvdro-carbonacecus matter penetrates the blocks, and 

 causes them to be well saturated, the time of such process depending 

 on the character of the peat and the sizes of the dry blocks, but gene- 

 rally about an hour is sufficient. When the blocks are saturated, the 

 remainder of the fluid matter is allowed to run off, and the blocks are 

 removed, and a fresh quantity put into the boiler, and the saturated 

 blocks are (ilaced on edge on open shelves to drain, and afterwards 

 made into gas, by being placed into retorts, in the same manner as 

 coal. The patentee prefers to saturate the dry blocks of peat by 

 placing them within a vessel, such as is now used for saturated wood 

 by the aid of vacuum and pressure. When using tar as the hydro- 

 carbonaceous matter, it is advantageous to combine therewith from 

 five to ten per cent, of quicklime in the state of powder. 



The second improvement relates to an apparatus for purifying gas. 

 The annexed engraving is a section of the apparatus, made in two 



compartments, weak ammoniacal 

 liquor to be used in the lower 

 one, and water or water acidu- 

 lated with sulphuric or muriatic 

 acid in the other. These two 

 compartments are each nearly 

 filled with lumps of coke, as has 

 before been dune in constructing 

 wliat is called the scrubber; and 

 the improvements consist of the 

 means of distributing the puri- 

 fying fluid u^'ed. a is a tank of 

 water or other purifying liquid; 

 6, a tank for weak amnioniacal 

 liquid ; 6', c, are two perforated 

 pipes on axes, the perforations 

 on either side of the axis of each 

 pipe being on opposite sides, so 

 that the flow of fluid in streams 

 will cause the tubes to revolve 

 on their axes and distribute the 

 fluid equally on the coke; the 

 gas rising upwards from its pipe 

 of introduction at rf, passes otf, 

 partially purified from ammonia, 

 by the jiipe t ; and it is the use 

 of revolving pipes, ti', c, which 

 constitutes the novelty of this 

 arrangement of apparatus. 



The third part of the inven- 

 tion consists iu applying steam, 

 highly heated (after it leaves the 

 boiler rr generator), into the re. 

 torts U!.ed when making gas from 

 coal, prepared peat, or other matter rich in carbon. Steam from a 

 steam-boiler or vessel passes through pipes highly heated, iu a li^e 



manner to that commonly resorted to for obtaining hot blast in the 

 manufacture of iron, which liighlv-he.ited steam is conducted by a 

 pipe into that part uf a gas retort most distant from where the gas 

 passes oR" from the retort. The steam is generated under a pressure 

 about that of the gas, and it flows into the retort freely at the com- 

 mencement of gas making, after charging the retort, and it is stopped 

 after the most carbon. iceous matters iiave been driven oft' from the 

 CO d or other matter used. 



The fourth part of the invention relates to improvements in Argand 

 gas burners, by so arranging the gallery for carrying the cliimney for 

 directing the air to the external surf.ice of the. fl.ime, that it may rise 

 and fall, and be fixed at the required position by a screw or other 

 means, and thus allow of a nice adjustment of the admission of air to 

 the Hame. 



The fifth part cf the invention consists of treating blocks of dry 

 peat in the same manner as that described under the first part of the 

 invention for gas making. 



STEAM HAMMER. 



John Condie, of Glasgow, engineer, for "Improvements in machin' 

 ery used in manufacturing malleable !>oh."— Granted Oct. 15, 1846 ; 

 Enrolled Aprd 15, 1847. 



The improvements relate, first, to the arranging or constructing 

 steam hammers, that the steam cylinders have the hammer faces ap- 

 plied thereto and move therewith; and, secondly, to the introduction 

 of malleable irou tubes into anvils and hammer and squeezer faces. 



Fig. 1 is a front elevation of the hammer and steam apparatus ; 



fig. 2 a vertical section, taken at right angles to fig. 1 ; and fig. 3 a plan 

 of the cylinder. The steam is admitted through the valve a and 

 tube b, which encases the piston rod, into the steam cylinder c, and 

 presses on the piston d (which is fixed) and the cylinder top, and 

 raises the cylinder, which is made moveable, together with the ham- 

 mer e, attached thereto, until the steam valve a closes, and cuts off" the 

 supply of steam, and at the same time opens the outlet port _/", to 

 allow the steam to escape from the cylinder through the pipe g into 

 the atmosphere; consequently, the hammer will then fall by its 

 weight, and when the steam is again admitted the same operation is 

 repeated. Near the bottom of the cylinder, there is a port, or ports, 

 h, to allow the air under the piston to escape while the cylinder and 

 hammer are being raised, and also the air to return when the h.immer 

 is falling. When the hammer is required to strike with more force 

 than its weight alone, the throttle valve is fully opened, which c mses 

 the air port A to pass the piston and compress the air under the latter, 

 by which additional recoil will be given to the fall of the hammer. 

 The cylinder is guided by guides 1, working in grooves attached to 

 the vertical framing k. 



The hammer may also be worked without the air port h, at the bot- 

 tom of the cylinder ; in such case, the cylinder is made longer, and 

 the air under the piston is compressed, as the hammer is raised, 

 until its density is about half that of the steam. When the steam is 



