352 TRANSACTIONS OF THE AMERICAN INSTITUTE. 



Mr. Churchill made some remarks upon the use of steam in desulphurizing 

 ores. ' 



On motion of Mr. Dibben it was voted that the meetings of the society, 

 during the summer, should be held monthly, on the second Thursday of each 

 month, and the society adjourned to the second Thursday in July. 



John K. Fisher, Secrelary pro tern. 



American Institute Polytechnic Association, ) 



Juhj 10, 1862. j 

 Prof. Charles A. Seely in the chair. 



Thompson's Automatic Gas Regulator. 



Mr. Churchill, from the committee appointed to examine this invention, 

 made the following report: 



To the Polytechnic Association of the American Institute : 



Your committee, appointed to examine Thompson's automatic gas regu- 

 lator, submit the following report: 



Table I, hereto appended, presents the mean of several readings on 

 the meter at the pressures under which observation were taken. 



The double lines, intersected between the base line and the line of each 

 burner, being proportionable to the consumption. 



Table I, column 1st, shows the pressures. Column 2d shows the ratio 

 of consumption (100=6 cubic feet per burner). Column 3d shows the 

 ratio of light by the photometer. Column 4th shows the ratio of light if 

 the gas had been burnt at all of these pressures with the maximum of 

 economy obtained at 1.5 inch pressure. Column 5th shows the ratio of the 

 difference between columns three and four, supposing the unit of light 

 equal to sixteen candles. 



Some delay was occasioned in preparing the trials, in order that com- 

 pliance might be obtained with the point insisted on by your committee, 

 viz: that the articles sent to be tested should be such as were furnished 

 for sale. 



These experiments show that the improved burner No. 1 was adapted to 

 burn with a maximum variation of J^o of 1 cubic foot per minute, with 

 pressure varying form 1.5 inch to 3 inches, and the burner No. 2 was able 

 to produce. the same effect with the wider range of 1 to 3 inches. 



These results are greatly in advance of the best hitherto presented to 

 the Institute. , 



The fishtail burner, used in the experiments on the regulator No. 2, was 

 detached, and with a variation of pressure from .T to 1.1 inch, the consump- 

 tion increased fully 30 per cent, with a further increase of pressure it 

 commenced "blowing," burning with bursts of flame. The photometrical 

 trials showed that this increase of consumption was waste, and this is at 

 least fivefold of that shown in table I. Your committee lay stress upon 

 the point, that this loss is one that cannot be charged to the carelessness 



