US824143A - Liquid-level apparatus. - Google Patents

Description

N .824,143. I l l PAIBNTBIJ-JUNB 26, 1906.

' s. ..REBVII a B. I. NoYE's.

LIQUID LEVEL APgARATUs.

APPLIoAT'III FILED 001211. 1905.

y. UNITEDA STATES PATEET DEETDE.

ISTDNEY A. REEvE, or WORCESTER, AED EDWARD ENDYES, orwin- ,cHESTEa MASSAcnUSErTS1 ASSieNoas To DHARLES E. BROWN, n TRUSTEE, or READTNG, MASSASHUSETTS.

Lianne-Leven. APPARATUS.

Speccation oi' Letters Patent.

y I Application filed October 11,1905. Serial No. 232,286.

[ r11/ZZ wliom it may concern;

Bc it known that we, SIDNEY A. REEVE, residing at Worcester, county of Worcester, and EDWARD P. -NOYES, residing at Vlinchester, county of Middlesex, State of Massachusetts, citizens of the United States, have invented certain new and useful Improvements in Liquid-Level Apparatus,` of which the following specification and accompanying drawings lllustrate one form of the lnvention which We new regard as the best out ofthe various forms in which the invention' may be embodied.

This lnvention relates to liquid-level-eontrolled devices applicable to a vessel contain- 4ing'a liquid and an elastic iiuid under pressure--for example, a steam-boiler-and ,adapted to perform a useful function with rei spect to sald vessel, such as controlling the inflow or exit of liquid or gaseous contents, giving an alarm, &c.

The invention involves the differential action of constant and variable pressuresderived from the vessel on a movable member, such as a diaphragm, under control ofl the liquid-level in the vessel, andamong the ob- -jects sought are a sensitive and powerful action, durability, low cost, and adjustability.

Of the accompanying drawings, Figure 1 represents a sectional view of a vliquid-level a paratus embodying our invention and apiedto a vessel assumed to be a steam-boiler.

gig. 2 represents a section on the line 2 2 oi" FigJ-l. Fig. 3 represents a section on the line 3 3'of Fie. 1. Fig. 4 re resents an enlarged vertical section oi the ower end of the dip-tube and adjacent parts.

The same reference characters represent the same parts in all the views.

.Referring 'to the drawings, in which for the `sake of illustration the invention is shown as applied to regulate the feed-water supply of a eil'er, 10 designates the boiler withnormal Water-line at about the line 2 2 and supplied with water through a feed-pipe 11, adapted to be conneetedwith a feed-pump. ln this is placed a valve-casing 12, forming the lower part of the controller-casing 13 and lcontaining a balanced valve 14, whose vertical movement o ens and closes the feed-pipe, and thus contro s the delivery of feed-water to the boiler. The feed might be controlled in other' well-known Ways, and for the purpose of interchangeabili-ty we have made the valve-casing 12 asymmetrical with respect to its medianhorizontal axis, so that on disconnecting it and turning it end for end about .said axis without changing the position of Patented annees, ieee.

the valve the ports of said valve-casing instead of being closed by an upward movement of the valve, as in the drawings, will be opened by such movement, thus adapting the valve to act as a by-pass (with suitabl revised connections) instead of' a direct fee throttle.

rlhe controller-casing 13 contains a main chamber 15, whichA is connected by 'branch' pipes 16 17 with the steam and water spaces,

respectively, of the boiler 10, so that the same water-level is mamtained in said casing as in the boiler, the chamber 12 being, like an ordinary water-column, practically a part of the boiler. r At the upper end of the casing 13 is located a diaphragm-casing 18, containing a 'flexible diaphragm 19 with a chamber 20 below it forming ,a continuation of the upper part of chamber 15, and thus 'constantly lled with steam at normal boilerpressure, and with a chamber 21 above it subject to variations in steam-pressure Diaphragm 19 is attached to valve 14 by e ecnnection, Whose upper part is a t'ube 22; called the dip-tube, having an inlet at the intended water-line and an outlet to th upper diaphragm-chamber 21, and whose lower part is a rod'23, constituting the stem of the valvey 14. Said stem passes through a partition 24, dividing the chamber 15 from the valvecasing 12, in which partition the valve-stem has a snug machine iit and is hydraulically packed by the boiler-Water without requiring other packing. The upper face of this partition is upwardly coned to keep sedlment from the valve-guide, and a blow-ofi cock 25 is provided for disposing of sediment. The

lower face of' the partition is also upwardly The dip-tubeis adjustably connected with IOO rod 23 by means of a short sleeve 30, screwing on the tube, and for the pur oser of rotating the rod and sleeve the lower boss of valve 14 is embraeedby a parallel-faced claw 31, imposing rotation on the valve, its stem 23, and the sleeve 30, but permitting their vertical movement, said claw being journaled in the lower wall of the valve-casing 12 and having an outside hand-wheel 32 for rotating it. A convenient adjustment from below is thus provided for varying the height of the valve 14 with resp'ect to the diap thus adjusting said valve wlth re ation to its 'ports inde endently of the movement imposed. by t e diaphragm.

Fromthe upper diaphra m-ehamber 21v a vent-pipe 33 leads to any ocality of lower pressure than the boiler and contains an ad- ]ustable vent-valve 34, through which a slight leakage is maintained, the o ening of this valve being smaller than the in et-opening of di -tube 22, so that pressure in the upper diap agm-chamber 21 will not become appreciably reduced when the dip-tube is uncovered. An outside stationary drainagepipe 35 connects the upper diaphragm-chamer with the water-space of the casing-chamber 15 to permit the return to the boiler of water which is blown'up through the diptube when the latter becomes uncovered.

In the operation of the regulator as shown, supposing the water-level to be below the inlet of di -tube 22, the full boiler steam-pressure Wil exist in both lower and upper diaphra ni-chambers .20 21, fluid-pressures on the ia hragm 19 will be balanced, and accordingly s ring 26 will depress the diaphragm an open the valve 14, thus permitting feed-water to enter the boiler. The pump is supposed to deliver more water than the boiler evaporates, so that the water-level will rise and finally cover the inlet of vdiptube 22. The up er diaphragm-chamber 21 being then sealer from the steam-space of the boiler, the slight leakage established past vent-valve 34 (aided by condensation of steam) will rapidly reduce the fluid-pressure acting on the up er side of the diaphragm, Water rises in the dip-tube a measure of the differential thus created, and the preponderating pressure on the lower side of the diapliragm raises the latter and tends to close the feed-valve 14 and stop the feed; but this elevation of the diaphragm also tends to raise the dip-tube out of Water, limit the amount of variation of the pressure in the upper diapluagm-chamber, and restore equality of pressure above and below theI diaphragm at a slightly-higher water-level. lf the level still continues to rise, the above action is repeated until evaporation and feed are balanced. lf the level starts to fall, the foregoing' action takes plaeo on a deseending seale, the feed-valve l/l being gradually opened 'wider or more frequently to permit a more eora m 19, andy pious feed or greater frequency of feed. Thus 1t will be seen that the dia hragm has a plurality of positions of equililirium or balanced pressure corres ending' to slightly-different iquid-levels. he covering of the dip-tube destroys the pressure equilibrium, and the raising of the inlet of said. tube out of water neutralizes the force which destroyed said equilibrium. This is an important feature, for although our invention 1s operative and useful .without it the use of the movable inlet gives a controlling motion of more delicate character and makes possible the partial opening and shutting of the controlling-valve to suit the need of the movement.

vl/Vhile a minute leakage is the referred means of reducing the pressure in tire upper diaphragm-chamber after the water has covered the inlet to said chamber, and we con- Sider that this expedient has many advantages, we do not wholly confine ourselves thereto.

.A useful feature in the construction and arrangement of our controller consists in the l0- cation of the diaphragm and the pump-valve at remote points, so that the former may be above the Water-level and the latter below, making it unnecessary to carry the waterpipe and valve above the water-line, and also the provision of a simple hydraulic packing in the partition separating the boiler-section of the controller-casing from the ump-valve chamber, which enables the va ve-stem to work with great freedom, but which would be difficult to maintain if the valve were at the same end of the casing as the unsubmerged diaphragm.

Our invention is capable of a variety of adaptations and modifications of structure to meet particular needs. It may be used as a gas or liquid trap, may control the height of a water seal, and may be combined with various additional mechanism designed to add to or modify its functions.

This application is in part a substitute for and continuation of our application, Serial No. 204,592, inea April 23, i904.

What we claim as new, and desire to secure by Letters Patent, is-o 1. The combination with a vessel adapted to contain a body of liquid and an elastic fluid under pressure, of a movable member operated by differences in pressure of said elastic fluid for performing a useful function with respect to said vessel, a chamber on one side of said member constantly open to the upper space of said vessel, and achaniber on the opposite side of said member having an elastic-fluid inlet from said vessel sub,4` the li uid-level therein.

2. he combination with a vessel adapted to contain. a body of liquid and an elastic fluid under pressure, of a movable diaphra m above the la uid-line for performing a use ul function Wit respect to'sad Avessel, a cham'- IOO .seams to contain a body of liquid and an elastic iiuid under pressure, of a member operated by diierences oi pressure of said elastic iluid thereon tor performing a useful function with respect to said vessel', a chamber on one side of said member having an elastic-fluid inlet from said vessel subject to the'v liquid-level therein, and a leakage-outlet from said chamber for reducing the pressure in the latter and causing movement of said member when said inlet isfeovered by the liquid;i

d. The combination With a vessel adapted to contain a body of liquid and an elastic iluid under pressure, of .a member operated by didcrences of pressure oi said elastic iluid. thereon for performing a useful function with respect to said vessel, a chamber on oneside.

v of said member having an elastic-duid ,inletl from said vessel subject to the liquidlevel therein, and a lealrageputlet from said cham-4 l ber smaller in size than said inlet for reducing the pressure the latter and causing movement of said member when said inlet is covered by the liquid. v

5. The combination with a vessel adapted to contain a body of liquid and an elastic duid under pressure, of a differential member located above the liquid-line for performing a "useulfunction With res ect to lsaid vessel, chambers on opposite si es oi said member one of which 1s connected with the upper space of said vessel, the other having an inlet from 4said vessel at the intended liquid-line, and a leakageoutlet from the latter chamber.

6. ln a liquid-level controller,` the combination i of a diHerentially-controlled movable member, a chamber on one side thereof having aleakage-exit and an inlet subject to the liquid-level inthe controlled vesse a cham ber on the opposite side of said member .subject to the lpressure in said vessel, and means to ad'ustt e size of said exit.

' 7. nliquid-level apparatus, the combina-v tion of a vessel for containing a liquid Whose level varies and an elastic pressure-fluid, a device for performinp a useful function With respect to said vess'e and having a plurality oi positions of equilibrium, means subject to the liquid-level for subjecting said device to a force Which destroysits equilibrium., and means operated by the movement of said device to a new position of equilibrium Jfor neuy tralizing the iniluence of said torce. A

8. In liquid-level apparatus, the ccmbina' tion of a .pressure vessel having liquid and elasticdiuid contents, a device crmtrolled by the liquid-level and, ope ated 2cv f; rcvfences spect to the da hragm.

of elastic-duid pressure produced-.by varia-V tion in said level, for performng'a useful function in connection with said vessel, and means controlled by said device for establishing equilibrium of the fluidressures acting thereon, at a plurality of di erent liquidlevels.

9. ln aliquid-level controller, the-combination of a pressure vessel, a chamber having an inlet from said vessel subject to the liquid-l level therein, and means controlled by the pressure 'n said chamber for limiting the amount o variation of said pressure.

1Q. ln a liquid-level controller, the combi- -nation of a pressure vessel, a chamber having Ya pressure connection. with said vessel and providedwith movable ressure-.varying in said chamber for limiting the movement of said means.

il. ln liquid-level controller, the combi.-

mea'na and means controlle by the pressure j nation oi a pressure vessel, a chamber having an inlet from said vessel at the intended normal-liquid-line, and means operated by' the difference in elastic-duid pressure betweenl said chamber and the vessel for varying the height of said inlet. j

l2. ln a liquid-level controller, the combif nation ot a rassure vessel-,ehambers aboveA the normal iquid-level in'said lvessehone ci which has a pressure connection with the ves- ,sel above said level, a movable' partition sep-v arating said chambers, and. a diptube carriedb said partition connecting the interior of sai vessel with the other ot said chambers.

i oe

' 13. in alliquid-level controller, the combination of two chambers, an interposed mov-l able member lsubject differentially to the pressures insaid chambers, a ieed-valve'confl nected with `said member, and externally-` exposed means for adjusting said valvewith' respect to said member.

14. In a liquid-level controller, thev combi- 'l r nation of a casing having two diaphragmchambers, a movable dia hragm'separating said chambers, a feed-va ve attached to the diaphragm and having a'threaded adjust-'-v ment for varying its distance from the diaphragm, and a rotary valveiadjuster mounti Aed on4 the casing and connected f or joint roT tation and for relative longitudinesliding movement with said valve, Whereb 'the latu ter `may be longitudinally adjusts with re- 15; The com ination with a vessel adapt ed'to contain a bodyoi li uid and an elastic fluid under pressure, of a ierentially-operated member above the liquid-line, and a chamber on the upper side thereoi1 having anA inlet from said vessel subject to the' liquid-v level and a separate drainage-outlet' leading lto the 'li uid-space of said' vessel.

i6. T e combination with-a vessel adapt-.-

ed to contain a body oi li uid and an elastic fluid under pressure, oi a iederentiallyoper*l ated member ebove'thefliquid-line, e Aehemchambers on opposite sides of said member for receiving an'elastie-fiuid pressure from 'said vessel, andra, conduit connection extending from one of said chambers to .the intendL ed liquidline in the direction of seid valve and ada )ted to have its inlet alternately cov,- ered and uncovered by the liquid.

18. In e liquid-level controller the combination of a easing having et different heights a diiferentiel member and e Valve-ehumber,

a liquid-oo1itrolling valve in the valve-chan ber, conduit connections extending from said easing et drierent heights i'or connection l with the steem and Water s aces of ay boiler or similar vessel, elastic-Hui -pressure clmmbers on opposite sides of said member, one ol which has en inlet at the intended witterL line between seid memberand vulve andthe other a boi1er-inlet above seid line, e perti-v tion separating the intermediate portion of' the oasmg from said valve-chamber, and an operating connection between said member and velve traversing said partition und fitted for hydraulic` peeking therein bythe vboiler- Water..

In witness whereof we .have hereunto set our hands, before two subscribing witnesses, the 9th dey of September, 1905.

SIDNEY A. REEVE. EDWARD I. NOYES. Witnesses:

C. F. BROWN, .In 1V. HARRISON.

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