US1652960A - Method of and apparatus for transporting pulverulent materials - Google Patents

Description

Dec. 13, 1927. 1,652,960

w. o. SNELLING ET-AL METHOD OF AND APPARATUS FOR TRANSPORTING PULVERULENT MATERIALS Filed Nov, 15, 1925 5 Sheets-Sheet l Dec. 13 1927. 1,652,960

w. o. SNELLING ET Al,

METHOD OF AND APPARATUS FOR TRANSPORTING PULVERULENT MATERIALS Filed Nov. 1. 25 5 Sheets-Sheet 2 Dec. 13, 1927. 1,652,960

W. O. SNELLING ET AL METHOD OF AND APPARATUS FOR TRANSPORTING PULVERULENT MATERIALS led Nov. 13, 1925 3 Sheets-Sheet 5 Z8 j syre Wamj M/Mw 35 .7 we 1 have illustrated diagrammatically the Patented c- 1927. l a

NITEDCS' srenons '10 TROJAN NEW YORK.

METHOD; or ANnAPrARArUs non'rmlvsronrmerUpvEnUnENr animate! WALTE o. SNELLING AND an AQRUP P, on riLENroWn,- rnivnsYLvANr ".Al j a rownnn ooivirnnrror Nnw'YonK, Nam, A'conroRA'rron orplication filed November 13,1925. Serial the. 68,841. Y i

This invention relates to the; art of handling and transporting pulverulent materials, and it is'particularly applicable to materials which areinflammable or explosive in character-when dry. Nitrostarch may be taken asa'n example of such a material.

reason of their explosive character, a considerable. risk is involved in] shipping such materials in the dry state byrailroad or otherwise; and furthermore thetransportation charges are excessive by reason of the danger involved. In accordance with our in vention such, materials can be'jconveniently shipped in a'wet condition, thus eliminating all danger and enabling the shipper to have the advantage of a low freight rate. We

furthermore avoid the use of expensive ;spe

'cial containers and the likegwhich haveheretofore been considered necessary. 7 v Y One of the principal objects of the inven tion therefore is to .provide a inethod of han dling pulverulent material whereby for purposes of transportation it may be convenient ly supplied to and removed from a container in wet or moist condition. 1 Anotherobject of the invention isto prot vide' an improved apparatus for the trans porting of material in accordance w th our improved method. 7 V k 1 Further objects of the invention will be apparent from the following. specification and claims. f

In the accompanying drawings, we have shown several types of apparatus embodying the mechanical features of our invention, and

- the claimsforming a part of this sp-ecifica v tion being relied upon for thatfpurpose. .7 Of the drawings: i

:-"Figure 1 is a vertical longitudinal section-' al view of a tank oar embodying the mechanical-features of our invention;

.-Fig. "2 is a transverse vertical sectional .view showing an alternate form'of tank car embodying the mechanical I features of the invention; k Y

ig; 3 is; View Sana was; Qb'utshow mg another alternate embodiment ofthe chanical features of the invention 1'. I Fig. .4 1s a fragmentary side view of the construction shownin Fig. 3, and; 1 V. i

" 5 to lo-a diagrammatic views illus proved methodfi.

Referring to the vided for thetank' whereby the tank may be V g I drawings, 1', tank adaptedv to contain the material to be' I tratingfthe manner: of practicingour img readily transported, and we have indicated a framework 3 and wheels t liconstituting parts ofa 'railwaycan ,The framework and wheels are indicated diagrammatically, .as they do not of themselves constitute any part of the invention. They are or may'be ofany usual or preferred construction), Itwill-be understood that while we'haveshown a railway car, the nvention sfnot, necessarily, so

limited, but is applicable Lto (other; systems of transportation.

Y The tank is provided with from the exterior; there fiii For a reason vwhich w1ll presently bemade'clear, wefloagitating mea ns l c ed therein and adapted to be" operated cate the agitating means at a considerable distance above the bottom of the tank. a I

' We do not necessarily limit ourselves to any particular type ofagitating'means,- and two distinct types. are shown in the drawings. In Fig. 1 we have shown agitating 7 blades 5, 5, which are mounted at the lower ends of vertical shafts 6, 6. Theseshaftsare I carried by bearings 7 ,7, secured to the top of thetank, ands'uitable means is provided for rotating all of the shafts blades, simultaneously. ,Asshown' there is a;jho1'isuitable means such as a belt pulley9, {Bevel i-a drive h 8 ptecl'to berotatd bi a I gearing 10, 10, serves to connectjthe-drive" shaft 8'with theseveral verticalshaftso, 61"

The shaft ,8 is carried-b y bearing brackets 11, 11, preferably formed-integrally with'the ibearings.,7, Z.- rWe'do notlimit ourselves to. any, definite'n'umberof agitating units, but

when vertical unitsare usedas' shownin Fig.

as]. I

1, we prefer to provide several ofthem so- V Fora purpose that agitation may be effected throughout the entire length of the tank.

' Lhich will be hereinatter' fully specified, we prefer *to provide means whereby the tank may be vibrated. WVe do ng-m ans t oi ny ne ocat o er th notlimit ourselves to. any one type ofvibratvibrating means. However, for purposes or" illustration we have shown means whereby theiitrackAIQJ on which. the car rests may be bodily vibrated, thus indirectly causing the vibrationof the carstructure-and of the tank. Assl own, there are two pairs of hammere 13', 13; which are vertically movable and which are adapted. :to zi'rnpiiige against the I bottomat the track rails. Associated' 'witli the hammers offztherespective-pairs,are'cains I v M, 14, mounted ,on transverseshatts 15, 15,

which are rotatable by' any suitable means :(not shown); It' will be seen 'that'by.i'otat-v inglthe shafts 15,15, the cams-14E, let, willbe "lcaused'i to reciprocatethe hammers 13, 13.

. The. hammers will strike a ainst thetrack rails and verticallyyibrate them, and the vibrations of the rails will be transmitted to H thecar structureland to thetank.

The" construction sliown in Figis or maybe substantially thesame as that shown in Fig. 1 except th'atflagitating blades .16,

"1 6', are provided which are rotatable about horizontal axes instead of vertical axes; As I tank, the shafts being' supported by, means of bearing brackets 18, 1:8. The shai'ts 17,

I7-',' iefiteiid through'one end of the tank where they are provided withsuitable drivingidevi'ces, as forinstance belt pull' eys ll),

19, sliownby dottedlines in'Fig. 25 v.

may "be desirable, as shown in l ig. 2, to-provide a'secondfset otagitatin'g means located close to the bottom of thetank. For

"this, purpose, we have shown ' twopip'es 20, 20, extending longitudinally ofthe tank and provi'ded with a large number of lODgltu j dina-lly distributed apertures 21' through Theeonstruction'shown in Figs. 3

i whicheithencompre-ssed airlor a suitable liqjid, may be discharged into, the t'ank'to assist in causing agitation.

and a differs from that shown FigJZ in that Vtheupper'agitating means consists of pipes.

22, 22," instead of mechanical agitating de vices.) Thes'e pi-pe- s 22, 22, are provided with longitudinallydistributed apertures 23,

- throughwhich air'o'r'liquid under pressuremay be" delivered to the tank-to efie'ct agitation; shown in Fig: i, 1 valvesv 24 and 'couplings'25' may .be provided for the pipes -20,-*and valves 26 and" couplings 27 may be p'rovidedi. forj'the "pipes 22.

Theprjacticeof ouriinproved method and "the use of our improved apparatus will. be more fully understoodby reference to the diagrammatic Figures 5 to Instead of introducing the pulverulent material into the tank in a dry condition, it 18 introduced in the .itorm of a paste or slurry.fIn some:

cases," the slurry may exist as airiiicident to the manufacture or prior handlingof the: material, and in such a'case the slurry ;can be allowed toflow directly into the tank 1; In other cases, however, when, the naterial exists in a dry condition, a slurry must b'eiformedby mixingjjth-e materialwith water or other suitablefluid, as for instance by means of aniiXer 28--:-indicated in Fig. 5.

Nhen'the tank has been filled, the slurry Y is" allowed to stand so asto Permit the niate'rial therein to settle to the lower part of tlie'tank, leaving a body of supernatant liq uid in the upper part of the ta'nk, Fig." 6'

shows, the pulverulent material separated from the liquid as described; .Thissettling operation can be allowed to take place naturally, but: in many cases it will be desirable to accelerate it by vibrating the taii'kyaiid thus vibrating the contents thereof." "It is a well known physical principle tliat tlie settling of pulverulent inaterialir'om a liquid can be accelerated and expedited by vibrating or jarring. With the apparatus as illustrated', this vibrating or arring is effected by means of the hammers 13' engaging the track in the manner already describedi It is to be understood that in effectingv the vibrating,use is made of a rapid succession.

of sharp'quick blows which effect rapid vibration, which isato-be distinguished from the: desired result.

The material which settles to' be. lower part of the tankmay be-in the form ot'a very-thick paste, or it may be in'the form of a relatively solid. cakel It will beobvious that" the character of the: settled ma terial will depend upon the chemical and lOO agitation which would have 'tlie reve'rseof pl ysical characteristicsthereof, Iii the case of nitrostarch, particularly when niechai ical vibration is utilized, a density is'obtained. 7

As" soon as the settling operation is com cake of high plete,- the supernatant'liquid is removed from the tank-so; as to reduce the weight thereof, and thus reduce the labor, powerand' expense which would otherwise be ine volved'in transportation. For, removing this liquid, a valve may be provided in the tank, but we prefer to remove the liquid through oneof the openings 2. purpose,'we have shown a suction hose 29 connected with .a centrifugal suction pumpSO,

In ma nycases, it is preferable to utilize the liquid discharged irom the pump 30 for the purpose of forming aslurr-y with another batch of material to be delivered to another tank. Itwill be understood that For this the settling operation is never entirely complete and that some of the material; will shownin Fig. 8.

As soon as the tank has been filled with the. liquid,'agitation is startedto break up the paste or' cake at the lower part of the tank o .material, it. will befobvious that all waste can-be avoided v ""A's soon" as the 's usual -way to' -"the point where the material is to be unloaded.-'- l I The first step, in preparation for unloading is to introduce a body of liquid' into the tank, as for instance through a hose'32 so as to form a second fluid slurry. If mechanical agitators of thetype shown in Figs. 1 and 2 are provided, power is supplied to operate them, and they are operated until such time as all the material is in suspension. If an agitating means of the type shown in Fig. 1 is provided, fluid may be forced intothe tank through one pipe, and withdrawn through the other, thus causing a vigorous circuation until the suspension of themateria-l is complete; or the pipes 22, 22may be connected with a source of compressed air, which is allowed to flow through the pipesuntil the desired result is obtained. By reason of the fact that the material may form a very dense cake, it is usually necessary to i locate the main agitating means above the ,lower part of the tank soas tobe above the top of the cake of material. 1 If the agitating means were lower down so .as to become embedded in the cake, it would not be possible to start the operation thereof.

In many cases, it is desirable to use a supplemental agitating means in the form. of pipes for delivering compressed air, these supplemental agitating means being located near the bottom of the tank for the purpose of completing the mixing of the material with the liquid after the cake has been broken up by the main agitating devices. These supplemental agitating devices also serve to prevent any resettling of the mate-' rial after the second slurry has been formed. When the second slurry has been formed, it can be removed from the tank in any desired way. The tank may be provided with,

a valved opening through which the slurry can flow by gravity, but we prefer to remove it through one of the openings 2. For this purpose, we have shown a hose 33 whic'h is connected with What we'claim is: V

1. The hereindescribed method of handling and transporting pulverulent material,

which consists in supplying the material inv the form of a slurryqinto a tank,'permitting the material in the slurry to settle, vlbrating the tank to expedite the settlingof'the mapernatant liquid has been removed, the tank is tra'nsported in the the tank. i i U 2.xThe hereindescribedgmethod of han-f 'dling and;transportingpulverulent'material, I s which consists in supplying the. material in tank.

: bottom of the tank.

a centrifugal suction pump 1 ting fluld underpressure." j

for transporting pulverand causing the the former aslurry into a tank, permitting 9 the material in the slurry to settle, vibrating the tankto expedite the settling of the ma f terial, removing the supernatant liquid from the settled material, transportingjthe tank with, the material therein, supplying liquidf' to the tank, agitating the liquid and the ma teri'al to form a second slurry therein, and causing the second slurry toflo w out of the V 1 The hereindescribed method of han dling .and transporting successive batches of pulverulent material, which consists in mix ing liquid with thematerial of each batch to r I form a slurry, causlng the slurry to flow into a tank,"permitting the material in the slurry. l

to settle, removing the supernatant liquid liquid thus removed and mixing it with the liquid to the tank to form a second slurry out of the tank.

oof;v from. the settled material, returning the,

material of another batch, transporting .thev tank with theinaterial'therein, supplying 4. An apparatus for transporting pulver{ ulent materialfcomprising a tank having an opening at the top, supporting means in fixed relation to the tank whereby the tank may be readily transported, agitating means comprising power-driven elements located in the tank at a point well above the bottom thereof, and agitating .means comprising perforated pipes for admitting" fluid; under first. mentioned and at a ulent material, comprising a tank having an.

pressure located below-the agitating means point close to the opening at the. top, supportingmeans in fixed relation to the tank whereby the tank may be readily transported, and two sets of agitating means located in thetank for agitating material therein, oneof the said sets being mounted wellabove the-bottom of the tank and the other of the said sets comprising perforated pipes located below the '7 first set and close to the bottom for admit- 6. An apparatus ulent material, comprisinga tank having an 1 opening at the'top, "supporting means in fixed relation to the tank whereby the tank may be-readilytransported, means'forvi 1 means located; in. the tank and "Sepa rated: port the tdnk,.1fiea,ns for'vibratingtl le treck fromf the bottomt thereof for agitating mag and thereby vibratingthetank-tocause pu-l--- eterial'therein. o V we v verulent materialtherein to settleoutvof a An apparatustfor transporting pulverslurry, and means located inthe tank. and

V 5 ilent material, comprising a tank having an separated. fromythe bottom thereof for agiopening at the top, s'upp0rti11g means inolud- .tating-material thereim Y V n in'g track Wheels in fixed relation to the tank, WALTERO. SNELLING. Y

zigtreck with whichthegwheels, engage to sup v 1 GUY. A. RUPP. z

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