US1047406A - Drying apparatus for railway-ties. - Google Patents

Description

w. P. GOLTRA. A DRYING APPARATUS FOR RAILWAY TIES APPLIOATIONHLED JANLz. 1912. f, Y

Patented Deo. 17, 1912.

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. APPLICATION FILED mlm, 1912. f l f i 1,047,406. Patented Dec. 17,1912.

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W. P. GORRA. l DRYINGMAPPARMIUAS Foa RAILWAY TIES.

" APLIOIATIO'N FILED JAN. 2, 1912.

f- 4 PatntedDec. 17,1911

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APIPLIOATION FILED JAN. 2, 1912.

"Patented Dec. l?, 1912.

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`DRYING APPARATUSPOR RAILWAY TIES.

APPLIGATION FILED JAN. 2, 1912. Patented Dec. 1'?, 1912.

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" T all bers, and the invention consists more espe- UNITED STATES PATENT QFFIGE.

WILLIAM FRANCIS GOLTRA, 0F CLEVELAND, OHIO.

DRYING APBRHTUS FOR RAILWAY-TIES.

Specification of Letters Patent.

Patented Dec. 17, 1912.

Application filed January 2, 1,912. Serial No. 668,916.

apparatus cially in a drying oven of original construction and associated means adapted tto circulate air at a drying temperature through the oven, all as hereinafter fully described land particularly pointed out in the claims.,

In the accompanyiiig drawings, Figure l 1s a longitudinal sectional elevation of the apparatus, and Fig. 1s a cross section on line 2 2, Fig. 1, and showing two ovens arranged side by side. rIhere may be one or severaltovens, according to vthe size or capacity of the plant, but all,are alike and adapted to ,ing

have ,theira own complete eqnipments and be operated separately or simultaneously according to the amount of work to be'done. F ig. 3 is a cross section corresponding substantially to line 3 3, Fig. 1, Fig. 4 is a cross section corresponding substantially to line 4 4,

Fig. 1, but omitting the tram shown in Fig.

1 as carrying a load of timbers. Figf is a cross section substantially on the line 5 5, Figfl, looking to the left.. Fig. (i is a horizontal sectional plan on a line corresponding substantially to 6 6, Fig. 1, and which runs through the immediate bottoni of the dry- Fig, 7 is a cross Section corresponding substantially to 7 7, Fig. 8, looking inward. Fig. 8 isa horizontal sectional view corresponding substantially to line 8 8, Fig. 7 but omitting the blower-.and drum shown in Fig. 7. 4

The drying apparatus as thus shown is a portion of a plant or system which I have developed for treating timber and particularl railway ties, and which consti-tutes the .subJect matter of two companion applications', bearing Sei'. Nos. 608,914 and `(368,915, respectively.

The present application appertains exclusively 4to that portion of the said system which receives the ties or timber after they have been previously `steamed and dried cylinders directly over the tracks there` and otherwise made ready'for ultimate drying .and treatment as hereinafter set forth.

As to the importance of this particular apparatus and step inthe treatment of the timber by my method it is to be observed that the moisture content in timber has` a very appreciable effect upon the way 1n which it lends itself to filling with the preservative, and any method which places the wood in suoli condition that it will be in approximately the same state of dryness throughout is bound to result in a much more uniform penetration and dissemination of the antiseptic than can be obtained Where such favorable conditions do not exist. The uniformity with which the preservative "is distributed through the wood is one of the cardinal principles of proper wood preservy in'g work, and since open air-seasoning is 4not in itself found sutlicient to insure a satisfactory preparation of the wood for 'chemical treatment the drying must necessarily be artificially completed.

It is to be further observed that the placing` Aof the timber in drying ovens is not only for the purpose of completing the drying but has two other important objects; iirst, because it permits a perfect regularity of operations at ,the plant in all seasons of the 'year and in all kinds of Weather; and, secondly, because the timberthus dried is prepared to go to the impregnating retort in a heated state and thus is also given the temperature of the impregnating fluid as it is run into the retorts.l Consequently the penetration of said fluid is deeper and more perfect than it couldotherwise be, especially if the Wold were cold when impregnation, begins. Iluring the winter season in northernlatitudes-it is frequent-ly necessary to closel down impregnating works on account of ties being covered with ice and snow.. When such ties are placed in the impregnatingl retort for treatment. the warm vim-- pregnating iiuid is chilled and congealed and, in consequence, thc penetration is very slight. Again, ties exposed to the Weather immediately prior to treatment are often drenched by heavy rains and absorb considarable water. This offsets, in a great measure, they open air seasoning and makes it quito impossible to obtain good results from such .seasoning alone. But with drying ovens it is possible to get uniform conditions preparatory to antiseptic treatment and also 60 size and length adapted to receive a line of to hurry the seasoning of any timber which must be carefully regulated throughout the rently affected by the same treatment.

entire process or warping and checking are almost certain to result. Also wood of different shapes and thicknesses is very differ- Finally, the tissues composing the wood differing in form and physical properties as they do, and crossing each other in various directions, eXerttheir own peculiar influence upon the behavior of wood d ring the drying. For instance, with our rative woods, summerwood and springwoodsnow distinct ltendencies in drying, and lthesame is true, in a less degree, of heartwood"and sapwood. Or, again, pronounced medullar rays further complicate the drying prob em. Thus,

l some woods yield their moisture more read- A ily than others, so that the time for drying differs widely with the species as well as with the intended use.

The rapidity with which the drying can be carried on after the material has received a preliminary steaming therefore depends upon several factors, such as species of the Wood, its softness and porosity, proportion of heartwood and sapwood, its .hardness or density, size, mass, -intended use and the manner in which it i's presented to the air in' the ovens. No positive rule can therefore be given I as to the duration ofthe drying period and the temperature for the various kinds of woods, under all conditions, but experience soon teaches the operator how rapidly the ties or lumber can be dried in the ovens without injuring it bysplitting, checkmg that it is necessary to separate the timbers into groups for drying in ovens beyond ness varies on account of the factors' above mentioned, and such ties ortimbers as have first reached totality of dryness shouldv wait in the ovens for the more refractoryytimbers.'

The time required in the' oven to complete the dryingV of railroad ties which have undergone t e several preparatory steps of my process is between eighteen and thirty hours, or an average' of twenty-four hours.

Now, having reference again to the drawings herewith,`the combined drying and heating ovens are indicated by2 and are preferably built of cement and masonry and of 4a trams 3 on tracks 4'in the bottom of the ovens. I prefer to make the ovens substantially in the form of cylinders and of .alength corresponding to the length of the warping or honeyc'olnbing. It should. not, however, be inferred from the above impregnating retorts, not shown, so that the trams can b e transferred from oven to retort to colitlnue the treatment without 'materially disturbing the preparation of the timber for chemical impregnation.

The ovens and their rails or tracks are preferably on the yard grade, and this brings the means for heating and controlling the air circulated throughl the ovens underground or in subterranean spaces or compartments beneath the ovens substantially as seen in Fig. 1. The said means'may be briefly summarized as comprising devices for heating' a volume of air to the desired temperature for each oven and f or drawing the moisture laden air down andout through sub-ducts and chambers by means of a suitable fan or blower 5 Fig. 4. Said blower is confined in drum or casing 6 and discharges through stack 7 to the open air. This, however, does not take account of the various I Thus,I the air enters at the front of the apparatus through afresh air space 9 and' passes thence to the space 11 from which it is drawn into the heating chamber 8 containing the steam radiating coils 10 and to which the steam. issupplied from a boiler belonging to the system, not shown. The space or passage llis common to all the heating chambers 8, and valves are of course provided for' governing the flow of steam through'the coils 10 and which also controlthe volume of heat imparted to the inflowing air. The air being heatedby said coils flows thence to the open space 12 in the top and rear of the coil chamber and thence into the oven through the grated openingor re ister 13 in the bottom and front thereof. uitab'le steam headers 14 and a trap 15 are shown in Fig. 1, and also a cross section of a Working space or gallery 16, extending across the `series of heating chambers so that one man can attend to all.of them.

The heated air having/ entered an oven 0 1 gallery, it` travels-thence under suction or draft at the rear through the loads or charges of ties or timbers on the trams.

Fig. 5,'to the exit opening 18jin the rear and bottom thereof yand down throu h the moist air or exhaust duct 2O into tie space 21 from 4which it is Withdrawn by the fan or va slidin damper 23 for said opening is suspended y cable 24 run-ning over sheaves and which is controlled by a counterweight -25 in the Working gallery 16, while a damper 2G is provided at the ent-rance 12 to the i open space .in the top of each heating chamber 8 to regulate the inflow of air to its respective oven 2. Thus, by means of said dampers and the speed ofthe blower the temperature and velocity of the air is regulated. VThe compartment or space 21 eX- 'tends transversely beneath all the ovens and be about 95 'is open alike to ally the ducts 20 in the series through the separate openings 22.

The free air space between the loads and the walls of the ovens is 4only sulicient for clearance, say about two or three inches,

The length of the drying ovens may of` course vary but the standard size is such as to accommodate twelve tram loads of eight foot ties, or say a total length of approximately one hundred feet, each tram carrymg 45 to 50 ties or about 560 per charge.

Suitably heavy steel doors are provided at the entrance of each oven, and lsections 32 of the tram tracks 4 are removable i to enable said doors to swing on their hinges to open and closed positions. This is' necesv sary because the doors close the ends of the ovens on a plane beneath said tracks.

A door 33 is shown between the fan room and the space 16 across the front of theseveral heating. chambers.

In Fig. 1 damper 26 which is adapted to close the passage 12 at the rear of cach heating chamber 8, has a handle- 27 and segment therefor serve to fix the adjustments of said damper.

In thc basement of each oven between passage ll and gallery 16, I employ a steel.

front with a series of swingingdoors 28,

one for each oven and its heater 8, and there are also small cast iron doors 29 in the wall 31, between the working gallery and the moist air gallery. These doors are for the purpose of Ventilating the cross galleries and one of the doors ill may be large enough 'By opening two or more doors a current of fresh air can be made to pass through the working gallery 1G into the moist air-collcction gallery 21.

'lhe operationl herein involves the final drying of railroad ties and other timbers preparatory to their heilig impregnated with a preservative, and the object is to get uniform and complete drying. 'l`o this end the timbers are placed suitably upon trams and run into the cylinders in which they are exposed to drying-means involving the circulation of heated air through the said cylinders and the said timbers, which are placed upon the trams in such way as to 'expose each timber or tie on all sides tothe heated air and passage. Air is admitted through the various channels as herein clearly described and traced and flows thence under pressure into the said cylinders and is eX- hausted with such load of moisture @as may become omitted in the process of drying, suitable fans or blowers being used for this purpose. A number .of trams with their loads are placed in each cylinder according to the length of the cylinders, and the operation continues as long as there is any evidence of moisture being absorbed. When this ceasesthe drying operation is regarded as finished and the timbers' are ready for the next step which is not within this application.

What I claim is:

1. In a system of drying and treating 'timbers with antiseptic solutions, an appa-- ratus adapted to prepare the timbers for the solution consisting of a substantially cylindrical oven provided with draft openings in the bottom and ends thereof and tracks for trams in its bottom, in combination with sub-compartments beneath said oven comprising an air heating chamber having its discharge through vthe front opening into said oven, an air supply space in advance of said heating chamber and a damper to control the flow of air through said chamber, an exhaust duct leading downward from the rear opening in the oven, a draft compartment next to said duct and a draftdamper controlling the passage of the air from said duct to said compartment, and a rotary exhaust fan arranged in a sub-compartment relatively at one side of said oven and communicating with said draft compartment and adapted to carry the moisture laden at- -mosphere away from the apparatus.

2. In timber drying apparatus, a series vof parallel cylindrical ovens, each having tracks therein and air exhaust lengthwise thereof front to rear and Jointly provided with a transverse fresh-an' inlet passage at their front and a transverse working gallery behind said ovens, a transverse moist air gallery for all said ovens walled apart behind said working gallery, and an exhaust fan communicating with said exhaust gallery.

3. In a timber drying and treating system, a drying and heating apparatus comprising a plurality ofdrying ovens of substantially cylindrical shape and arranged side by side on the yard grade, tracks in said cylinders and front and rear bottom openings 13 and,

18 in eacbvcylinder, a compartment beneath the front ofeach oven to heat air and arranged to discharge through said opening 13, a duct 20 for each cylinder communicating with each rear opening 18, a chamber 2l common to all said ducts andSepa-rated therefrom by a Wall having openings 22 in its bottom, Aa slide damper 23 for each open- 'with said chamber, a Working compartment 16 extending across the rear of said heating compartments, and mea-ns to control the flow yof air to said compartments. A10

In testimony whereof I affix my signatur in presenceof tWo Witnesses. I

WILLIAM FRANCIS GOLTRA.

Witnesses:

F. C. MUssUN,- E. M. FISHER.

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