Chapter 121

REFRIGERATION OF WORTS, &c. In August, 1826, Mr. Yandall obtained a patent for an apparatus designed for cooling worts and other hot fluids, without exposing them to evaporation. Utensils employed for this purpose, are generally called refrigerators, and are so constructed, that a quantity of cold water shall be brought in contact with the vessel which contains the heated fluid. But in every construction of refrigerator heretofore used, the quantity of cold water necessarily employed in the operation, greatly exceeded the quantity of the fluid cooled, which, in some situations, where water cannot be readily obtained, was a serious impediment and objection to the use of such apparatus.The inventor has contrived a mode of constructing a refrigerator, so that any quantity of wort or other hot fluid may be cooled by an equal quantity of cool water; the process being performed with great expedition, simply by passing the two fluids through very narrow passages, in opposite directions, the result of which is, that the cold liquor imbibes the heat from the wort, or other fluid, and the temperature of the hot fluid is reduced in the same ratio.CoolersCoolerFigs.932,933, and934.represent different forms in which the apparatus is proposed to be made. The two first have zigzag passages; the third, channels running in convolute curves. These channels or passages are of very small capacity in thickness, but of great length, and of any breadth that may be required, according to the quantity of fluid intended to be cooled or heated.Fig.935.is the section of a portion of the apparatus shown atfigs.932.and933.upon an enlarged scale; it is made by connecting three sheets of copper or any other thin metallic plates together, leaving parallel spaces between each plate for the passage of the fluids, represented by the black lines.These spaces are formed by occasionally introducing between the plates thin straps, ribs, or portions of metal, by which means very thin channels are produced, and through these channels the fluids are intended to be passed, the cold liquor running in one direction, and the hot in the reverse direction.Supposing that the passages for the fluids are each one-eighth of an inch thick, then the entire length for the run of the fluid should be about 80 feet, the breadth of the apparatus being made according to the quantity of fluid intended to be passed through it in a given time. If the channels are made a quarter of an inch thick, then their length should be extended to 160 feet; and any other dimensions in similar proportions: but a larger channel than one quarter of an inch, the patentee considers would be objectionable. It is, however, to be observed, that the length here recommended, is under the consideration, that the fluids are driven through the apparatus by some degree of hydrostatic pressure from a head in the delivery-vats above; but if the fluids flow without pressure, then the lengths of the passages need not be quite so great.CoolerIn the apparatus constructed as shown in perspective atfig.932., and furtherdeveloped by the section,fig.935., cold water is to be introduced at the funnela, whence it passes down the pipeb, and through a long slit or opening in the side of the pipe, into the passagec,c(seefig.935.), between the plates, where it flows in a horizontal direction through the channel towards the discharge-piped. When such a quantity of cold water has passed through the funnela, as shall have filled the channelc,c, up to the level of the top of the apparatus, the cockebeing shut, then the hot wort or liquor intended to be cooled, may be introduced at the funnelf, and which, descending in the pipeg, passes in a similar manner to the former, through a long slit or opening in the side of the pipeg, into the extended passageh,h(seefig.935.), and from thence proceeds horizontally into the discharge-pipei.The two cockseandk, being now opened, the wort or other liquor is drawn off, or otherwise conducted away through the cockk, and the water throughe. If the apertures of the two cockseandk, are equal, and the channels equal also, it follows that the same quantity of wort, &c., will flow through the channelh,h,h, in a given time, as of water through the channelc,c; and by the hot fluid passing through the apertures in contact with the side of the channel which contains the cold fluid, the heat becomes abstracted from the former, and communicated to the latter; and as the hot fluid enters the apparatus at that part which is in immediate contact with the part where the cooling fluid is discharged, and the cold fluid enters the apparatus at that part where the wort is discharged, the consequence is, that the wort or other hot liquor becomes cooled down towards its exit-pipe nearly to the temperature of cold water; and the temperature of the water, at the reverse end of the apparatus, becomes raised nearly to that of the boiling wort.It only remains to observe, that by partially closing either of the exit-cocks, the quantity of heat abstracted from one fluid, and communicated to the other, may be regulated; for instance, if the cockeof the water-passage be partially closed, so as to diminish the quantity of cold water passed through the apparatus, the wort or other hot fluid conducted through the other passages will be discharged at a higher temperature, which in some cases will be desirable, when the refrigerated liquor is to be fermented.Fig.933.exhibits an apparatus precisely similar to the foregoing, but different in its position; for instance, the zigzag channels are made in obliquely descending planes.ais the funnel for the hot liquor, whence it descends through the pipedinto the channelc,c(seefig.935.), and ultimately is discharged through the pipeb, at the cocke. The cold water being introduced into the funnelf, and passing down the pipei, enters the zigzag channelh,h, and, rising through the apparatus, runs off by the pipeg, and is discharged at the cock below.The passages of this apparatus for heating and cooling fluids, may be bent into various contorted figures; one form found particularly convenient under some applications, is that represented atfig.934., which is contained in a cylindrical case. The passages here run in convolute curves, the one winding in a spiral to the centre, the other receding from the centre.The wort or other hot liquor intended to be cooled, is to be introduced at the funnela, and passing down the pipeb, is delivered into the open passagec, which winds round to the central chamberd, and is thence discharged through the pipee, at the cockf. The cold water enters the apparatus at the funnelg, and proceeding down the pipeh, enters theclosed channeli, and after traversing round through the apparatus, is in like manner discharged through the pipek, at the cockl. Or the hot liquor may be passed through the closed channel, and the cold through the open one; or these chambers may be both of them open at top, and the apparatus covered by a lid when at work, the principal design of which is to afford the convenience of cleaning them more readily than could be done if they were closed; or they may be both closed.A similar ingenious apparatus for cooling brewers’ worts, or wash for distillers, and also for condensing spirits in place of the ordinary worm tub, is called by the inventor, Mr. Wheeler, an Archimedes condenser, or refrigerator, the peculiar novelty of which consists in forming the chambers for the passage of the fluids in spiral channels, winding round a central tube, through which spiral channels the hot and cold fluids are to be passed in opposite directions.RefrigeratorFig.936.represents the external appearance of the refrigerator, enclosed in a cylindrical case;fig.937., the same, one-half of the case being removed to show the form of the apparatus within; andfig.938., a section cut through the middle of the apparatus perpendicularly, for the purpose of displaying the internal figure of the spiral channels.The apparatus is proposed to be made of sheet copper, tinned on its surface, and is formed by cutting circular pieces of thin copper, or segments of circles, and connecting them together by rivets, solder, or by any other convenient means, as coppersmiths usually do; these circular pieces of copper being united to one another, in the way of a spiral or screw, form the chambers through which the fluids are to pass within, in an ascending or descending inclined plane.Infigs.937.and938.,a,a, is the central tube or standard (of any diameter that may be found convenient), round which the spiral chambers are to be formed;b,b, are the sides of the outer case, to which the edges of the spiral fit closely, but need not be attached;c,c, are two of the circular plates of copper, connected together by rivets at the edges, in the manner shown, or by any other suitable means;d, is the chamber, formed by the two sheets of copper, and which is carried round from top to bottom in a spiral or circular inclined plane, by a succession of circular plates connected to each other.The hot fluid is admitted into the spiral chamberd, through a trumpet or wide-mouthed tubee, at top, and is discharged at bottom by an aperture and cockf. The cold water which is to be employed as the cooling material, is to be introduced through the pipeg, in the centre, from whence discharging itself by a hole at bottom, the cold water occupies the interior of the cylindrical caseb, and rises in the spiral passageh, between the coils of the chamber, until it ascends to the top of the vessel, and then it flows away by a spouti, seen infig.936.It will be perceived that the hot fluid enters the apparatus at top, and the cold fluid at bottom, passing each other, by means of which an interchange of temperatures takes place through the plates of copper, the cooling fluid passing off at top in a heated state, by means of the caloric which it has abstracted from the hot fluid; and the hot fluid passing off through the pipe and cock at bottom, in a very reduced state of temperature, by reason of the caloric which it held having been given out to the cooling fluid.CoolerFig.939.is a side view and section of Wagenmann’s apparatus for cooling worts;fig.940., a view from above. The preceding contrivances seem to be far preferable.a,a, is the tub for receiving the apparatus, whose central upright shaftb, rests upon a stepc, in the bottom, and revolves at top in a bush atd, made fast to a bare, fixed flat across the mouth of the tub. The shaft may be driven by the two bevel wheelsf,f, at right angles to each other, and the horizontal rod turned by hand; or the whole may be impelled by any power.g, is an iron basin for receiving the cold water from the spouth, supplied by a well; it flows out of the basin through two tubesi i, down into the lower part of the coolerk k. The cooler consists of two flat vessels, both of which are formed of a flat interior plate, and an arched exterior one, so that their transverse section is plano-convex. The water which flows along the tubesi i, spreads itself upon the bottom of the cooler, and then rises through the scabbard-shaped tubesl l, &c., into the upper annular vesselm m; whence it is urged by hydrostatic pressure, in a now heated state, through the slanting tubesn n, which terminate in the common pipeo, of the annular basinp p, and is thence discharged by the pipeq. The basinp p, is supported by the two bearersr, made fast to the cross-beame. There is in the lowest part of the hollow ring at bottom, a screw plug, which may be opened when it is desired to discharge the whole contents, and to wash it with a stream of water.

The inventor has contrived a mode of constructing a refrigerator, so that any quantity of wort or other hot fluid may be cooled by an equal quantity of cool water; the process being performed with great expedition, simply by passing the two fluids through very narrow passages, in opposite directions, the result of which is, that the cold liquor imbibes the heat from the wort, or other fluid, and the temperature of the hot fluid is reduced in the same ratio.

Coolers

Cooler

Figs.932,933, and934.represent different forms in which the apparatus is proposed to be made. The two first have zigzag passages; the third, channels running in convolute curves. These channels or passages are of very small capacity in thickness, but of great length, and of any breadth that may be required, according to the quantity of fluid intended to be cooled or heated.

Fig.935.is the section of a portion of the apparatus shown atfigs.932.and933.upon an enlarged scale; it is made by connecting three sheets of copper or any other thin metallic plates together, leaving parallel spaces between each plate for the passage of the fluids, represented by the black lines.

These spaces are formed by occasionally introducing between the plates thin straps, ribs, or portions of metal, by which means very thin channels are produced, and through these channels the fluids are intended to be passed, the cold liquor running in one direction, and the hot in the reverse direction.

Supposing that the passages for the fluids are each one-eighth of an inch thick, then the entire length for the run of the fluid should be about 80 feet, the breadth of the apparatus being made according to the quantity of fluid intended to be passed through it in a given time. If the channels are made a quarter of an inch thick, then their length should be extended to 160 feet; and any other dimensions in similar proportions: but a larger channel than one quarter of an inch, the patentee considers would be objectionable. It is, however, to be observed, that the length here recommended, is under the consideration, that the fluids are driven through the apparatus by some degree of hydrostatic pressure from a head in the delivery-vats above; but if the fluids flow without pressure, then the lengths of the passages need not be quite so great.

Cooler

In the apparatus constructed as shown in perspective atfig.932., and furtherdeveloped by the section,fig.935., cold water is to be introduced at the funnela, whence it passes down the pipeb, and through a long slit or opening in the side of the pipe, into the passagec,c(seefig.935.), between the plates, where it flows in a horizontal direction through the channel towards the discharge-piped. When such a quantity of cold water has passed through the funnela, as shall have filled the channelc,c, up to the level of the top of the apparatus, the cockebeing shut, then the hot wort or liquor intended to be cooled, may be introduced at the funnelf, and which, descending in the pipeg, passes in a similar manner to the former, through a long slit or opening in the side of the pipeg, into the extended passageh,h(seefig.935.), and from thence proceeds horizontally into the discharge-pipei.

The two cockseandk, being now opened, the wort or other liquor is drawn off, or otherwise conducted away through the cockk, and the water throughe. If the apertures of the two cockseandk, are equal, and the channels equal also, it follows that the same quantity of wort, &c., will flow through the channelh,h,h, in a given time, as of water through the channelc,c; and by the hot fluid passing through the apertures in contact with the side of the channel which contains the cold fluid, the heat becomes abstracted from the former, and communicated to the latter; and as the hot fluid enters the apparatus at that part which is in immediate contact with the part where the cooling fluid is discharged, and the cold fluid enters the apparatus at that part where the wort is discharged, the consequence is, that the wort or other hot liquor becomes cooled down towards its exit-pipe nearly to the temperature of cold water; and the temperature of the water, at the reverse end of the apparatus, becomes raised nearly to that of the boiling wort.

It only remains to observe, that by partially closing either of the exit-cocks, the quantity of heat abstracted from one fluid, and communicated to the other, may be regulated; for instance, if the cockeof the water-passage be partially closed, so as to diminish the quantity of cold water passed through the apparatus, the wort or other hot fluid conducted through the other passages will be discharged at a higher temperature, which in some cases will be desirable, when the refrigerated liquor is to be fermented.

Fig.933.exhibits an apparatus precisely similar to the foregoing, but different in its position; for instance, the zigzag channels are made in obliquely descending planes.ais the funnel for the hot liquor, whence it descends through the pipedinto the channelc,c(seefig.935.), and ultimately is discharged through the pipeb, at the cocke. The cold water being introduced into the funnelf, and passing down the pipei, enters the zigzag channelh,h, and, rising through the apparatus, runs off by the pipeg, and is discharged at the cock below.

The passages of this apparatus for heating and cooling fluids, may be bent into various contorted figures; one form found particularly convenient under some applications, is that represented atfig.934., which is contained in a cylindrical case. The passages here run in convolute curves, the one winding in a spiral to the centre, the other receding from the centre.

The wort or other hot liquor intended to be cooled, is to be introduced at the funnela, and passing down the pipeb, is delivered into the open passagec, which winds round to the central chamberd, and is thence discharged through the pipee, at the cockf. The cold water enters the apparatus at the funnelg, and proceeding down the pipeh, enters theclosed channeli, and after traversing round through the apparatus, is in like manner discharged through the pipek, at the cockl. Or the hot liquor may be passed through the closed channel, and the cold through the open one; or these chambers may be both of them open at top, and the apparatus covered by a lid when at work, the principal design of which is to afford the convenience of cleaning them more readily than could be done if they were closed; or they may be both closed.

A similar ingenious apparatus for cooling brewers’ worts, or wash for distillers, and also for condensing spirits in place of the ordinary worm tub, is called by the inventor, Mr. Wheeler, an Archimedes condenser, or refrigerator, the peculiar novelty of which consists in forming the chambers for the passage of the fluids in spiral channels, winding round a central tube, through which spiral channels the hot and cold fluids are to be passed in opposite directions.

Refrigerator

Fig.936.represents the external appearance of the refrigerator, enclosed in a cylindrical case;fig.937., the same, one-half of the case being removed to show the form of the apparatus within; andfig.938., a section cut through the middle of the apparatus perpendicularly, for the purpose of displaying the internal figure of the spiral channels.

The apparatus is proposed to be made of sheet copper, tinned on its surface, and is formed by cutting circular pieces of thin copper, or segments of circles, and connecting them together by rivets, solder, or by any other convenient means, as coppersmiths usually do; these circular pieces of copper being united to one another, in the way of a spiral or screw, form the chambers through which the fluids are to pass within, in an ascending or descending inclined plane.

Infigs.937.and938.,a,a, is the central tube or standard (of any diameter that may be found convenient), round which the spiral chambers are to be formed;b,b, are the sides of the outer case, to which the edges of the spiral fit closely, but need not be attached;c,c, are two of the circular plates of copper, connected together by rivets at the edges, in the manner shown, or by any other suitable means;d, is the chamber, formed by the two sheets of copper, and which is carried round from top to bottom in a spiral or circular inclined plane, by a succession of circular plates connected to each other.

The hot fluid is admitted into the spiral chamberd, through a trumpet or wide-mouthed tubee, at top, and is discharged at bottom by an aperture and cockf. The cold water which is to be employed as the cooling material, is to be introduced through the pipeg, in the centre, from whence discharging itself by a hole at bottom, the cold water occupies the interior of the cylindrical caseb, and rises in the spiral passageh, between the coils of the chamber, until it ascends to the top of the vessel, and then it flows away by a spouti, seen infig.936.

It will be perceived that the hot fluid enters the apparatus at top, and the cold fluid at bottom, passing each other, by means of which an interchange of temperatures takes place through the plates of copper, the cooling fluid passing off at top in a heated state, by means of the caloric which it has abstracted from the hot fluid; and the hot fluid passing off through the pipe and cock at bottom, in a very reduced state of temperature, by reason of the caloric which it held having been given out to the cooling fluid.

Cooler

Fig.939.is a side view and section of Wagenmann’s apparatus for cooling worts;fig.940., a view from above. The preceding contrivances seem to be far preferable.

a,a, is the tub for receiving the apparatus, whose central upright shaftb, rests upon a stepc, in the bottom, and revolves at top in a bush atd, made fast to a bare, fixed flat across the mouth of the tub. The shaft may be driven by the two bevel wheelsf,f, at right angles to each other, and the horizontal rod turned by hand; or the whole may be impelled by any power.g, is an iron basin for receiving the cold water from the spouth, supplied by a well; it flows out of the basin through two tubesi i, down into the lower part of the coolerk k. The cooler consists of two flat vessels, both of which are formed of a flat interior plate, and an arched exterior one, so that their transverse section is plano-convex. The water which flows along the tubesi i, spreads itself upon the bottom of the cooler, and then rises through the scabbard-shaped tubesl l, &c., into the upper annular vesselm m; whence it is urged by hydrostatic pressure, in a now heated state, through the slanting tubesn n, which terminate in the common pipeo, of the annular basinp p, and is thence discharged by the pipeq. The basinp p, is supported by the two bearersr, made fast to the cross-beame. There is in the lowest part of the hollow ring at bottom, a screw plug, which may be opened when it is desired to discharge the whole contents, and to wash it with a stream of water.

REGULUS, is a term introduced, by the alchemists, now nearly obsolete. It means literally a little king, and refers to the metallic state as one of royalty, compared with the native earthy condition. Antimony is the only metal now known by the name of regulus.

RESINS (Résines, Fr.;Harze, Germ.); are proximate principles found in most vegetables, and in almost every part of them; but the only resins which merit a particular description, are those which occur naturally in such quantities as to be easily collected or extracted. They are obtained chiefly in two ways, either by spontaneous exudation from the plants, or by extraction by heat and alcohol. In the first case, the discharge of resin in the liquid state is sometimes promoted by artificial incisions made in summer through the bark into the wood of the tree.Resins possess the following general properties:—They are soluble in alcohol, insoluble in water, and melt by the application of heat, but do not volatilize without partial decomposition. They have rarely a crystalline structure, but, like gums, theyseldom affect any peculiar form. They are almost all translucid, not often colourless, but generally brown, occasionally red or green. Any remarkable taste or smell, which they sometimes possess, may be ascribed to some foreign matter, commonly an essential oil. Their specific gravity varies from 0·92 to 1·2. Their consistence is also very variable. The greater part are hard, with a vitreous fracture, and so brittle as to be readily pulverized in the cold. Some of them are soft, a circumstance probably dependent upon the presence of a heterogeneous substance. The hard resins do not conduct electricity, and they become negatively electrical by friction. When heated, they melt more or less easily into a thick viscid liquid, and concrete, on cooling, into a smooth shining mass, of a vitreous fracture, which occasionally flies off into pieces, like Prince Rupert’s drops; especially after being quickly cooled, and scratched with a sharp point. They take fire by contact of an ignited body, and burn with a bright flame, and the diffusion of much sooty smoke. When distilled by themselves in close vessels, they afford carbonic acid and carburetted gases, empyreumatic oil of a less disagreeable smell than that emitted by other such oils, a little acidulous water, and a very little shining charcoal. SeeRosin Gas.Resins are insoluble in water, but dissolve in considerable quantities in alcohol, both hot and cold. This solution reddens tincture of litmus, but not syrup of violets; it is decomposed by water, and a milkiness ensues, out of which the particles of the resin gradually agglomerate. In this state it contains water, so as to be soft, and easily kneaded between the fingers; but it becomes hard and brittle again when freed by fusion from the water. The resins dissolve in ether and the volatile oils, and, with the aid of heat, combine with the unctuous oils. They may be combined by fusion with sulphur, and with a little phosphorus. Chlorine water bleaches several coloured resins, if they be diffused in a milky state through water. The carburet of sulphur dissolves them.Resins are little acted upon by acids, except by the nitric, which converts them into artificial tan. They combine readily with the alkalis and alkaline earths, and form what were formerly reckoned soaps: but the resins are not truly saponified; they rather represent the acid constitution themselves, and, as such, saturate the salifiable bases.Every resin is a natural mixture of several other resins, as is the case also with oils; one principle being soluble in cold alcohol, another in hot, a third in ether, a fourth in oil of turpentine, a fifth in naphtha, &c. The soft resins, which retain a certain portion of volatile oil, constitute what are called balsams. Certain other balsams contain benzoic acid. The solid resins are,amber,animé,benzoin,colophony(common rosin),copal,dammara,dragon’s blood,elemi,guaiac,lac, resin ofjalap,ladanum,mastic,sandarach,storax,takamahac.

Resins possess the following general properties:—They are soluble in alcohol, insoluble in water, and melt by the application of heat, but do not volatilize without partial decomposition. They have rarely a crystalline structure, but, like gums, theyseldom affect any peculiar form. They are almost all translucid, not often colourless, but generally brown, occasionally red or green. Any remarkable taste or smell, which they sometimes possess, may be ascribed to some foreign matter, commonly an essential oil. Their specific gravity varies from 0·92 to 1·2. Their consistence is also very variable. The greater part are hard, with a vitreous fracture, and so brittle as to be readily pulverized in the cold. Some of them are soft, a circumstance probably dependent upon the presence of a heterogeneous substance. The hard resins do not conduct electricity, and they become negatively electrical by friction. When heated, they melt more or less easily into a thick viscid liquid, and concrete, on cooling, into a smooth shining mass, of a vitreous fracture, which occasionally flies off into pieces, like Prince Rupert’s drops; especially after being quickly cooled, and scratched with a sharp point. They take fire by contact of an ignited body, and burn with a bright flame, and the diffusion of much sooty smoke. When distilled by themselves in close vessels, they afford carbonic acid and carburetted gases, empyreumatic oil of a less disagreeable smell than that emitted by other such oils, a little acidulous water, and a very little shining charcoal. SeeRosin Gas.

Resins are insoluble in water, but dissolve in considerable quantities in alcohol, both hot and cold. This solution reddens tincture of litmus, but not syrup of violets; it is decomposed by water, and a milkiness ensues, out of which the particles of the resin gradually agglomerate. In this state it contains water, so as to be soft, and easily kneaded between the fingers; but it becomes hard and brittle again when freed by fusion from the water. The resins dissolve in ether and the volatile oils, and, with the aid of heat, combine with the unctuous oils. They may be combined by fusion with sulphur, and with a little phosphorus. Chlorine water bleaches several coloured resins, if they be diffused in a milky state through water. The carburet of sulphur dissolves them.

Resins are little acted upon by acids, except by the nitric, which converts them into artificial tan. They combine readily with the alkalis and alkaline earths, and form what were formerly reckoned soaps: but the resins are not truly saponified; they rather represent the acid constitution themselves, and, as such, saturate the salifiable bases.

Every resin is a natural mixture of several other resins, as is the case also with oils; one principle being soluble in cold alcohol, another in hot, a third in ether, a fourth in oil of turpentine, a fifth in naphtha, &c. The soft resins, which retain a certain portion of volatile oil, constitute what are called balsams. Certain other balsams contain benzoic acid. The solid resins are,amber,animé,benzoin,colophony(common rosin),copal,dammara,dragon’s blood,elemi,guaiac,lac, resin ofjalap,ladanum,mastic,sandarach,storax,takamahac.

RESIN, KAURI or COWDEE, is a new and very peculiar substance, recently imported in considerable quantities from New Zealand, which promises to be useful in the arts. It oozes from the trunk of a noble tree calledDammara australis, orPinus kauri, which rises sometimes to the height of 90 feet without a branch, with a diameter of 12 feet, and furnishes a log of heart timber of 11 feet. The resin, which is called Cowdee gum by the importers, is brought to us in pieces varying in size from that of a nutmeg to a block of 2 or 3 cwts. The colour varies from milk-white to amber, or even deep brown; some pieces are transparent and colourless. In hardness it is intermediate between copal and resin. The white milky pieces are somewhat fragrant, like elemi. Specific gravity, 1·04 to 1·06. It is very inflammable, burns all away with a clear bright flame, but does not drop. When cautiously fused, it concretes into a transparent hard tough mass, like shellac. It affords a fine varnish with alcohol, being harder and less coloured than mastic, while it is as soluble, and may be had probably at one-tenth of the price. A solution in alcohol, mixed with one-fourth of its bulk of a solution in oil of turpentine, forms an excellent varnish, which dries quickly, is quite colourless, clear, and hard. It is insoluble in pyro-acetic (pyroxilic?) spirit. Combined with shellac and turpentine, it forms a good sealing-wax.

REVERBERATORY FURNACE; seeCopper,Iron, andSoda.

RETORT. For producing coal gas, there are many modifications, varying in dimension and shape with the caprice of the constructor, and in many cases, without any definite idea of the principle to be aimed at.They may be divided into three general classes:1st. The circular retort, from twelve to twenty inches in diameter, and from six to nine feet in length. This retort is used in Manchester and some other places, in general for the distillation of cannel, or Scotch parrot coal. It answers for the distillation of a coal which retains its form in lumps, and is advantageous only from the facility with which its position is changed, when partially destroyed by the action of fire on the under side.2nd. The small or LondonDretort, so called in consequence of its having first been used by the chartered company in London, being still in use at their works, and recommendedby their engineer. This retort is 12 inches broad on the base, 11 inches high, and 7 feet long, carbonizing one and a half to two bushels at a charge.3rd. The YorkDretort, (so called in consequence of its having been introduced by Mr. Outhit, of York,) and the modifications of it, among which I should include the elliptic retort, as having the same general purpose in view. The difference between the London and YorkDretorts, consists only in an extension of surface upon which the coal is spread. SeeGas-light.

They may be divided into three general classes:

1st. The circular retort, from twelve to twenty inches in diameter, and from six to nine feet in length. This retort is used in Manchester and some other places, in general for the distillation of cannel, or Scotch parrot coal. It answers for the distillation of a coal which retains its form in lumps, and is advantageous only from the facility with which its position is changed, when partially destroyed by the action of fire on the under side.

2nd. The small or LondonDretort, so called in consequence of its having first been used by the chartered company in London, being still in use at their works, and recommendedby their engineer. This retort is 12 inches broad on the base, 11 inches high, and 7 feet long, carbonizing one and a half to two bushels at a charge.

3rd. The YorkDretort, (so called in consequence of its having been introduced by Mr. Outhit, of York,) and the modifications of it, among which I should include the elliptic retort, as having the same general purpose in view. The difference between the London and YorkDretorts, consists only in an extension of surface upon which the coal is spread. SeeGas-light.

RHODIUM, is a metal discovered by Dr. Wollaston in 1803, in the ore of platinum. It is contained to the amount of three per cent. in the platinum ore of Antioquia in Colombia, near Barbacoas; it occurs in the Ural ore, and, alloyed with gold, in Mexico. The palladium having been precipitated from the muriatic solution of the platinum ore previously saturated with soda, by the cyanide of mercury, muriatic acid is to be poured into the residuary liquid, and the mixture is to be evaporated to dryness, to expel the hydrocyanic acid, and convert the metallic salts into chlorides. The dry mass is to be reduced to a very fine powder, and washed with alcohol of specific gravity 0·837. This solvent takes possession of the double chlorides which the sodium forms with the platinum, iridium, copper, and mercury, and does not dissolve the double chloride of rhodium and sodium, but leaves it in the form of a powder, of a fine dark-red colour. This salt being washed with alcohol, and then exposed to a very strong heat, affords the rhodium. But a better mode of reducing the metal upon the small scale, consists in heating the double chloride gently in a glass tube, while a stream of hydrogen passes over it, and then to wash away the chloride of sodium with water.Rhodium resembles platinum in appearance. Any heat which can be produced in a chemical furnace is incapable of fusing it; and the only way of giving it cohesive solidity, is to calcine the sulphuret or arseniuret of rhodium in an open vessel at a white heat, till all the sulphur or arsenic be expelled. A button may thus be obtained, somewhat spongy, having the colour and lustre of silver. According to Wollaston, the specific gravity of rhodium is 11. It is insoluble by itself in any acid; but when an alloy of it with certain metals, as platinum, copper, bismuth, or lead, is treated with aqua regia, the rhodium dissolves along with the other metals; but when alloyed with gold or silver, it will not dissolve along with them. It may, however, be rendered very soluble by mixing it in the state of a fine powder with chloride of potassium or sodium, and heating the mixture to a dull-red heat, in a stream of chlorine gas. It thus forms a triple salt, very soluble in water. The solutions of rhodium are of a beautiful rose colour, whence its name. In the dry way, it dissolves by heat in bisulphate of potassa; and disengages sulphurous acid gas in the act of solution. There are two oxides of rhodium. Rhodium combines with almost all the metals; and, in small quantity, melted with steel, it has been supposed to improve the hardness, closeness, and toughness of this metal. Its chief use at present is for making the inalterable nibs of the so-named rhodium pens.

Rhodium resembles platinum in appearance. Any heat which can be produced in a chemical furnace is incapable of fusing it; and the only way of giving it cohesive solidity, is to calcine the sulphuret or arseniuret of rhodium in an open vessel at a white heat, till all the sulphur or arsenic be expelled. A button may thus be obtained, somewhat spongy, having the colour and lustre of silver. According to Wollaston, the specific gravity of rhodium is 11. It is insoluble by itself in any acid; but when an alloy of it with certain metals, as platinum, copper, bismuth, or lead, is treated with aqua regia, the rhodium dissolves along with the other metals; but when alloyed with gold or silver, it will not dissolve along with them. It may, however, be rendered very soluble by mixing it in the state of a fine powder with chloride of potassium or sodium, and heating the mixture to a dull-red heat, in a stream of chlorine gas. It thus forms a triple salt, very soluble in water. The solutions of rhodium are of a beautiful rose colour, whence its name. In the dry way, it dissolves by heat in bisulphate of potassa; and disengages sulphurous acid gas in the act of solution. There are two oxides of rhodium. Rhodium combines with almost all the metals; and, in small quantity, melted with steel, it has been supposed to improve the hardness, closeness, and toughness of this metal. Its chief use at present is for making the inalterable nibs of the so-named rhodium pens.

RIBBON MANUFACTURE, is a modification ofWeaving, which see.

RICE, of Carolina, analyzed by Braconnot, was found to be composed of starch 85·07, of gluten 3·60, of gum 0·71, of uncrystallizable sugar 0·29, of a colourless rancid fat like suet 0·13, of vegetable fibre 4·8, of salts with potash and lime bases 0·4, and 5·0 of water.The quantity of rice entered for home consumption in the year 1836, was—Cwts.81,610.In 1837,126,739.Ditto in the husk,Bushels292,444.282,377.Rice Paper, as it is called, on which the Chinese and Hindoos paint flowers so prettily, is a membrane of the bread-fruit tree, theArtocarpus incisifoliaof naturalists.

The quantity of rice entered for home consumption in the year 1836, was—

Rice Paper, as it is called, on which the Chinese and Hindoos paint flowers so prettily, is a membrane of the bread-fruit tree, theArtocarpus incisifoliaof naturalists.

RICE CLEANING. Various machines have been contrived for effecting this purpose, of which the following, secured by patent to Mr. Melvil Wilson, in 1826, may be regarded as a good specimen. It consists of an oblong hollow cylinder, laid in an inclined position, having a great many teeth stuck in its internal surface, and a central shaft also furnished with teeth. By the rapid revolution of the shaft, its teeth are carried across the intervals of those of the cylinder with the effect of parting the grains of rice, and detaching whatever husks or impurities may adhere to them. A hopper is set above to receive the rice, and conduct it down into the cleansing cylinder.About 80 teeth are supposed to be set in the cylinder, projecting so as to reach very nearly the central shaft; in which there is a corresponding number of teeth, that pass freely between the former.The cylinder is shown inclined in the figure which accompanies the specification; but it may be placed also upright or horizontal, and may be mounted in any convenient frame-work. The central shaft should be put in rapid rotation, while the cylinder receives a slow motion in the opposite direction. The rice, as cleaned by that action, is discharged at the lower end of the cylinder, where it falls into a shute (shoot), and is conducted to the ground. The machine may be driven by hand, or by any other convenient power.Rice consists chiefly of starch, and therefore cannot by itself make a proper bread. It is used in the cotton factories to form weavers’ dressings for warps. The Chinese reduce its flour into a pulp with hot water, and mould it into figures and plates, which they afterwards harden, and ornament with engravings, resembling those of mother-of-pearl. When a decoction of rice is fermented and distilled, it affords the sort of ardent spirit calledarrackin the East Indies.

About 80 teeth are supposed to be set in the cylinder, projecting so as to reach very nearly the central shaft; in which there is a corresponding number of teeth, that pass freely between the former.

The cylinder is shown inclined in the figure which accompanies the specification; but it may be placed also upright or horizontal, and may be mounted in any convenient frame-work. The central shaft should be put in rapid rotation, while the cylinder receives a slow motion in the opposite direction. The rice, as cleaned by that action, is discharged at the lower end of the cylinder, where it falls into a shute (shoot), and is conducted to the ground. The machine may be driven by hand, or by any other convenient power.

Rice consists chiefly of starch, and therefore cannot by itself make a proper bread. It is used in the cotton factories to form weavers’ dressings for warps. The Chinese reduce its flour into a pulp with hot water, and mould it into figures and plates, which they afterwards harden, and ornament with engravings, resembling those of mother-of-pearl. When a decoction of rice is fermented and distilled, it affords the sort of ardent spirit calledarrackin the East Indies.

RIFLE; seeFire Arms.Rinsing machine

RIFLE; seeFire Arms.

Rinsing machine

RINSING MACHINE, is one of those ingenious automatic contrivances for economizing labour, and securing uniformity of action, now so common in the factories of Lancashire.Fig.941.is a longitudinal middle section of an approved mechanism for rinsing pieces of calico dyed with spirit or fancy colours, and which require more delicate treatment than is compatible with hand-washing.A,E,F,B, is a wooden cistern, about 12 feet long, 4 feet high at one end, 2 feet at the other, and of the ordinary width of calico cloth. It is divided transversely into a series of equal compartments by partitions, decreasing in height from the upper to the lower end, the top of each of them, however, being an inch at least under the top of the enclosing side at its line of junction. Above the highest end of the trough, a pair of squeezing rollers is mounted atB; the lower one having a pulley upon the end of its shaft, for turning it, by means of a band from one of the driving-shafts of the factory; and the upper one is pressed down upon it by weighted levers acting on the ends of its axis. The roller above the second highest partition has also a pair of squeezing rollers, with a weighted leverD. The pieces of cloth, stitched endwise, being laid upon a platform to the right hand of the cistern, are introduced over the rollerA, passed down under the roller beneath it, and so up and down in a serpent-like path, from the lowest compartment of the cistern to the uppermost, being drawn through the series by the traction of the rotatory roller atB. While the long web is thus proceeding upwards fromAtoB, a stream of pure water is made to flow along in the opposite direction fromBtoA, running over the top of each partition in a thin sheet. By this contrivance, the goods which enter atA, having much loose colour upon their surface, impregnate the water strongly, but as they advance they continually get cleaner by the immersion, and pressure of the successive rollers, being exposed to purer water, till at last they reach the limpid stream, and are discharged atBperfectly bright. The rinsing operation may be modified by varying the quantity of water admitted, the speed with which the pieces are drawn through the cells, or the pressure upon the series of top rollers.

ROCKETS. M. de Montgery, captain of a frigate in the French service, has written aTraité sur les Fusées de Guerre, in which he discusses the merits of the Congreve rockets, and describes methods of imitating them. As the subject of military projectiles is foreign to this Dictionary, I refer my readers to the above work, which is commended by the editor of theDictionnaire Technologique.

ROLLING-MILL. SeeIron,Mint, andPlated Manufacture.

ROPE-MAKING. The fibres of hemp which compose a rope, seldom exceed in length three feet and a half, at an average. They must, therefore, be twined together so as to unite them into one; and this union is effected by the mutual circumtorsion of the two fibres. If the compression thereby produced be too great, the strength of the fibres at the points where they join will be diminished; so that it becomes a matter of great consequence to give them only such a degree of twist as is essential to their union.The first part of the process of rope-making by hand, is that of spinning the yarns or threads, which is done in a manner analogous to that of ordinary spinning. The spinner carries a bundle of dressed hemp round his waist; the two ends of the bundle being assembled in front. Having drawn out a proper number of fibres with his hand, he twists them with his fingers, and fixing this twisted part to the hook of a whirl, whichis driven by a wheel put in motion by an assistant, he walks backwards down the rope walk, the twisted part always serving to draw out more fibres from the bundle round his waist, as in the flax-spinning wheel. The spinner takes care that these fibres are equably supplied, and that they always enter the twisted parts by their ends, and never by their middle. As soon as he has reached the termination of the walk, a second spinner takes the yarn off the whirl, and gives it to another person to put upon a reel, while he himself attaches his own hemp to the whirl hook, and proceeds down the walk. When the person at the reel begins to turn, the first spinner, who has completed his yarn, holds it firmly at the end, and advances slowly up the walk, while the reel is turning, keeping it equally tight all the way, till he reaches the reel, where he waits till the second spinner takes his yarn off the whirl hook, and joins it to the end of that of the first spinner, in order that it may follow it on the reel.The next part of the process previous to tarring, is that of warping the yarns, or stretching them all to one length, which is about 200 fathoms in full-length rope-grounds, and also in putting a slight turn or twist into them.The third process in rope-making, is the tarring of the yarn. Sometimes the yarns are made to wind off one reel, and, having passed through a vessel of hot tar, are wound upon another, the superfluous tar being removed by causing the yarn to pass through a hole surrounded with spongy oakum; but the ordinary method is to tar it in skains or hanks, which are drawn by a capstan with a uniform motion through the tar-kettle. In this process, great care must be taken that the tar is boiling neither too fast nor too slow. Yarn for cables requires more tar than for hawser-laid ropes; and for standing and running rigging, it requires to be merely well covered. Tarred cordage has been found to be weaker than what is untarred, when it is new; but the tarred rope is not so easily injured by immersion in water.The last part of the process of rope-making, is to lay the cordage. For this purpose two or more yarns are attached at one end to a hook. The hook is then turned the contrary way from the twist of the individual yarn, and thus forms what is called a strand. Three strands, sometimes four, besides a central one, are then stretched at length, and attached at one end to three contiguous but separate hooks, but at the other end to a single hook; and the process of combining them together, which is effected by turning the single book in a direction contrary to that of the other three, consists in so regulating the progress of the twists of the strands round their common axis, that the three strands receive separately at their opposite ends just as much twist as is taken out of them by their twisting the contrary way, in the process of combination.Large ropes are distinguished into two main classes, thecable-laidandhawser-laid. The former are composed of nine strands, namely, three great strands, each of these consisting of three smaller secondary strands, which are individually formed with an equal number of primitive yarns. A cable-laid rope eight inches in circumference, is made up of 333 yarns or threads, equally divided among the nine secondary strands. Ahawser-laidrope consists of only three strands, each composed of a number of primitive yarns, proportioned to the size of the rope; for example, if it be eight inches in circumference, it may have 414 yarns, equally divided among three strands. Thirty fathoms of yarn are reckoned equivalent in length to eighteen fathoms of rope cable-laid, and to twenty fathoms hawser-laid. Ropes of from one inch to two inches and a half in circumference are usually hawser-laid; of from three to ten inches, are either hawser or cable laid; but when more than ten inches, they are always cable-laid.Every hand-spinner in the dock-yard is required to spin, out of the best hemp, six threads, each 160 fathoms long, for a quarter of a day’s work. A hawl of yarn, in the warping process, contains 336 threads.The following are Captain Huddart’s improved principles of the rope manufacture:—1. To keep the yarns separate from each other, and to draw them from bobbins revolving upon skewers, so as to maintain the twist while the strand or primary cord is forming.2. To pass them through a register, which divides them by circular shells of holes; the number in each concave shell being conformable to the distance from the centre of the strand, and the angle which the yarns make with a line parallel to it, and which gives them a proper position to enter.3. To employ a tube for compressing the strand, and preserving the cylindrical figure of its surface.4. To use a gauge for determining the angle which the yarns in the outside shell make with a line parallel to the centre of the strand, when registering; because according to the angle made by the yarns in this shell, the relative lengths of all the yarns in the strand will be determined.5. To harden up the strand, and thereby increase the angle in the outside shell; which compensates for the stretching of the yarns, and the compression of the strands.A great many patents have been obtained, and worked with various degrees of success, for making ropes. Messrs. Cartwright, Fothergill, Curr, Chapman, Balfour, and Huddart,have been the most conspicuous inventors in this country; but the limits of this work preclude us doing justice to their respective merits.All improvements in the manufacture of cordage at present in use, either in her Majesty’s yards or in private rope-grounds, owe their superiority over the old method of making cordage to Captain Huddart’s invention of the register plate and tube.Mr. Balfour took out a patent for the manufacture of cordage about a month before Captain Huddart; but the formation of his strand was to be accomplished by what he called a top minor, (in the form of a common top, with pins to divide the yarns,) which upon trial could not make cordage so good as by the common mode. On seeing Captain Huddart’s specification, Mr. Balfour, five years after, procured another patent, in which he included a plate and tube, but which was not sufficiently correct, and experience in the navy proved the insufficiency of the cordage. Captain Huddart’s plate and tube were then adopted in the king’s yards, and he gave his assistance for the purpose.Captain Huddart then invented and took a patent for a machine, which by registering the strand at a short length from the tube, and winding it up as made, preserved an uniformity of twist, or angle of formation, from end to end of the rope, which cannot be accomplished by the method of forming the strands down the ground, where the twist is communicated from one end to the other of an elastic body upwards of 300 yards in length. This registering-machine was constructed with such correctness, that when some were afterwards required, no alteration could be made with advantage by the most skilful and scientific mechanic of that day, Mr. Rennie. Thus the cold register was carried to the greatest perfection.A number of yarns cannot be put together in a cold state, without considerable vacancies, into which water may gain admission; Captain Huddart, therefore, formed the yarns into a strand immediately as they came from the tar-kettle, which he was enabled to do by his registering-machine, and the result was most satisfactory. This combination of yarns was found by experiment to be 14 per cent. stronger than the cold register; it constituted a body of hemp and tar impervious to water, and had great advantage over any other cordage, particularly for shrouds, as after they were settled on the mast-head, and properly set up, they had scarcely any tendency to stretch, effectually secured the mast, and enabled the ship to carry the greatest press of sail.In order more effectually to obtain correctness in the formation of cables and large cordage, Captain Huddart constructed a laying-machine, which has carried his inventions in rope-making to the greatest perfection, and which, founded on true mathematical principles, and the most laborious calculations, is one of the noblest monuments of mechanical ability since the improvement of the steam-engine by Mr. Watt. By this machine, the strands receive that degree of twist only which is necessary, and are laid at any angle with the greatest regularity; the pressure is regulated to give the required elasticity, and all parts of the rope are made to bear equally. In no one instance has a rope or cable thus formed, been found defective in the lay, or stiff, or difficult to coil.Such a revolution in the manufacture of cordage could not be accomplished without great expense, as the works at Limehouse fully testify; and considerable opposition necessarily arose. Captain Huddart’s first invention was, however, generally adopted, as soon as the patent expired; and experience has established the great importance of his subsequent improvements.His cordage has been supplied in large quantities to her Majesty’s navy, and has received the most satisfactory reports.The following description of one of the best modern machines for making ropes on Captain Huddart’s plan, will gratify the intelligent reader.Rope making machineFig. 942 enlarged(100 kB)Fig.942.exhibits a side elevation of the tackle-board and bobbin-frame at the head of the ropery, and also of the carriage or rope-machine in the act of hauling out and twisting the strands.Rpoe making machineFig.943.is a front elevation of the carriage.Fig.944.is a yarn-guide, or board, or plate, with perforated holes for the yarns to pass through before entering the nipper.Figs.945.and946.are side and front views of the nipper for pressing the rope-yarns.ais the frame for containing the yarn bobbins. The yarns are brought from the frame, and pass through a yarn-guide atb.cis a small roller, under which the rope-yarns pass; they are then brought over the reeld, and through another yarn-guidee, after which they enter the nippers atv, and are drawn out and formed into strands by the carriage. The roller and reel may be made to traverse up and down, so as to regulate the motion of the yarns.The carriage runs on a railway.f,f, is the frame of the carriage;g,g, are the small wheels on which it is supported;k,k, is an endless rope, reaching from the head to the bottom of the railway, and is driven by a steam-engine;m,m, is a wheel with gubs at the back of it, over which the endless rope passes, and gives motion to the machinery of the carriage.n, is the ground rope for taking out the carriage, as will be afterwards described. On the shaft ofm,m, are two bevel wheels 3, 3, with a shifting catch between them; these bevel wheels are loose upon the shaft, but when the catch is put into either of them, this last then keeps motion with the shaft, while the other runs loose. One of these wheels serves to communicate the twist to the strand in drawing out; the other gives the opposite or after turn to the rope in closing. 4, 4, is a lever for shifting the catch accordingly. 5, is a third bevel wheel, which receives its motion from either of the other two, and communicates the same to the two spur wheels 6, 6, by means of the shaftx. These can be shifted at pleasure; so that by applying wheels of a greater or less number of teeth above and beneath, the twist given to the strands can be increased or diminished accordingly. The upper of these two communicates motion, by means of the shafto, to another spur wheel 8, which working in the three pinions above, 9, 9, gives the twist to the strand hooks.The carriage is drawn out in the following manner. On the end of the shaft ofm,m, is the pinion 3, which, working in the large wheelR, gives motion to the ground-rope shaft upon its axis. In the centre of this shaft is a curved pulley or drumt, round which the ground rope takes one turn. This rope is fixed at the head and foot of the ropery; so that when the machinery of the carriage is set a-going by the endless ropek,k, and gives motion to the ground-rope shaft, as above described, the carriage will necessarily move along the railway; and the speed may be regulated either by the diameter of the circle formed by the gubs on the wheelm,m, or by the number of teeth in the pinion 3. AtT, is a small roller, merely for preventing the ground rope from coming up among the machinery. At the head of the railway, and under the tackle-board, is a wheel and pinionZ, with a crank for tightening the ground rope. The fixed machinery at the head, for hardening or tempering the strands, is similar to that on the carriage, with the exception of the ground-rope geer, which is unnecessary. The motion is communicated by another endless rope, (or short band, as it is called, to distinguish it from the other,) which passes over gubs at the back of the wheel 1, 1.When the strands are drawn out by the carriage to the requisite length, the spur wheels 3,R, are put out of geer. The strands are cut at the tackle-board, and fixed to the hooks 1, 1, 1; after which they are hardened or tempered, being twisted at both ends. When this operation is finished, three strands are united on the large hookh, the top put in, and the rope finished in the usual way.In preparing the hemp for spinning an ordinary thread or rope-yarn, it is only heckled over a large keg or clearer, until the fibres are straightened and separated, so as to run freely in the spinning. In this case, the hemp is not stript of the tow, or cropt, unless it is designed to spin beneath the usual grist, which is about 20 yarns for the strand of a three-inch strap-laid rope. The spinning is still performed by hand, being found not only to be more economical, but also to make a smoother thread, than has yet been effected by machinery. Various ways have been tried for preparing the yarns for tarring. That which seems now to be most generally in use, is, to warp the yarns upon the stretch as they are spun. This is accomplished by having a wheel at the foot, as well as the head of the walk, so that the men are able to spin both up and down, and also to splice their threads at both ends. By this means, they are formed into a haul, resembling the warp of a common web, and a little turn is hove into the haul, to preserve it from getting foul in the tarring. The advantages of warping from the spinners, as above, instead of winding on winches, as formerly, are, 1st, the saving of this last operation altogether; 2dly, the complete check which the foreman has of the quantity of yarn spun in the day; 3dly, that the quality of the work can be subjected to the minutest inspection at any time. In tarring the yarn, it is found favourable to the fairness of the strip, to allow it to pass around or under a reel or roller in thebottom of the kettle while boiling, instead of coiling the yarn in by hand. The tar is then pressed from the yarn, by means of a sliding nipper, with a lever over the upper part, and to the end of which the necessary weight is suspended. The usual proportion of tar in ordinary ropes, is something less than a fifth. In large strap-laid ropes, which are necessarily subjected to a greater press in the laying of them, the quantity of tar can scarcely exceed a sixth, without injuring the appearance of the rope when laid.For a long period, the manner of laying the yarns into ropes, was by stretching the haul on the rope-ground, parting the number of yarns required for each strand, and twisting the strands at both ends, by means of hand-hooks, or cranks. It will be obvious that this method, especially in ropes of any considerable size, is attended with serious disadvantages. The strand must always be very uneven; but the principal disadvantage, and that which gave rise to the many attempts at improvement, was, that the yarns being all of the same length before being twisted, it followed, when the rope was finished, that while those which occupied the circumference of the strand were perfectly tight, the centre yarns, on the other hand, as they were now greatly slackened by the operation of hardening or twisting the strands, actually would bear little or no part of the strain when the rope was stretched, until the former gave way. The method displayed in the preceding figures and description, is among the latest and most improved; Every yarn is given out from the bobbin frame as it is required in twisting the rope; and the twist communicated in the out-going of the carriage, can be increased or diminished at pleasure. In order to obtain a smooth and well-filled strand, it is necessary also, in passing the yarns through the upper board, to proportion the number of centre to that of outside yarns. In ordinary sized ropes, the strand seems to have the fairest appearance, when the outside yarns form from2⁄3ds to3⁄4ths of the whole quantity, in the portion of twist given by the carriage in drawing out and forming the strands.Cable making machineIn laying cables, torsion must be given both behind and before the laying top.Figs.947,948,949.represent the powerful patent apparatus employed for this purpose.A, is a strong upright iron pillar, supported upon the great horizontal beamN,N, and bearing at its upper end the three-grooved laying topM.H,H, are two of the three great bobbins or reels round which the three secondary strands or small hawsers are wound. These are drawn up by the rotation of the three feeding rollersI,I,I, thence proceed over the three guide pulleysK,K,K, towards the laying topM, and finally pass through the tubeO, to be wound upon the cable-reelD. The frames of the three bobbinsH,H,H, do not revolve about the fast pillarA, as a common axis; but each bobbin revolves round its own shaftQ, which is steadied by a bracing collet atN, and a conical step at its bottom. The three bobbins are placed at an angle of 120 degrees apart, and each receives a rotatory motion upon its axis from the toothed spur wheelB, which is driven by the common central spur wheelC. Thus each of the three secondary cords has a proper degree of twist put into it in one direction, while the cable is laid, by getting a suitable degree of twist in an opposite direction, from the revolution of the frame or cageG,G, round two pivots, the one under the pulleyE, and the other overO.The reelDhas thus, like the bobbinsH,H, two movements; that in common with its frame, and that upon its axis, produced by the action of the endless band round the pulleyE, upon one of its ends, and the pulleyE′ above its centre of rotation. The pulleyEis driven by the bevel mill-geeringP,P,P, as also the under spur wheelC.L, infig.949., is the place of the ringL,fig.947., which bears the three guide pulleysK,K,K.Fig.948.is an end view of the bobbinH, to show the worm or endless screwJ, offig.949., working into the two snail-toothed wheels, upon the ends of the two feed-rollersI,I, which serve to turn them. The upright shafts ofJ,J, receive their motion from pulleys and cords near their bottom. Instead of these pulleys, and the othersE,E′, bevel-wheel geering has been substituted with advantage, not being liable to slip, like the pulley-band mechanism. The axis of the great reel is made twice the length of the bobbinD, in order to allow of the latter moving from right to left, and back again alternately, in winding on the cable with uniformity as it is laid. The traverse mechanism of this part is, for the sake of perspicuity, suppressed in the figure.Mr. William Norvell, of Newcastle, obtained a patent in May, 1833, for an improvement adapted to the ordinary machines employed for twisting hempen yarns into strands, affording, it is said, a simpler and more eligible mode of accomplishing that object, and also of laying the strands together, than has been hitherto effected by machinery. The yarns spun from the fibres of hemp, are wound upon bobbins, and these bobbins are mounted upon axles, and hung in the frame of the machine, as shown in the elevation,fig.950., from which bobbins the several ends of yarn are passed upwards through slanting tubes; by the rotation of which tubes, and of the carriages in which the bobbins are suspended, the yarns become twisted into strands, and also the strands are laid so as to form ropes.Hemp spinnerFig. 950 enlarged(152 kB)His improvements consist, first, in the application of three or more tubes, two of which are shown infig.950, placed in inclined positions, so as to receive the strands immediately above the press-blocka,a, and nearly in a line withA, the point of closing or laying the rope.B1, andB3, are opposite side views;B2, an edge view; andB, a side section of the same. He does not claim any exclusive right of patent for the tubes themselves, but only for their form and angular position.Secondly, in attaching two common flat sheaves, or pulleys,C,C,fig.950., to each of the said tubes, nearly round which each strand is lapped or coiled, to prevent it from slipping, as shown in the sectionB1. The said sheaves or pulleys are connected by a crown or centre wheelD, loose uponb,b, the main or upright axle;E,E, is a smaller wheel upon each tube, working into the said crown or centre wheel, and fixed upon the loose boxI, on each of the tubes.F,F, is a toothed or spur wheel, fixed also upon each of the loose boxesI, and working into a smaller wheelG, upon the axis 2, of each tube;H, is a bevel wheel fixed upon the same axis withG, and working into another bevel wheelJ, fixed upon the cross axle 3, of each tube;K, is a spur wheel attached to the same axis withJ, at the opposite end, and working intoL, another spur wheel of the same size upon each of the tubes. By wheels thus arranged and connected with the sheaves or pulleys, as above described, a perfectly equal strain or tension is put upon each strand as drawn forward over the pulleyC.Thirdly, the invention consists in the introduction of change wheelsM,M,M,M,fig.950., for putting the forehard or proper twist into each strand before the rope islaid; this is effected by small spindles on axles 4, 4, placed parallel with the line of each tubeB.Upon the lower end of each spindle the bevel wheelsN,N, are attached, and driven by other bevel wheelsO,O, fixed immediately above each press-blocka,a. On the top end of each spindle or axle 4, 4, is attached one of the change wheels, working into the other change wheel fixed upon the bottom end of each of the tubes, whereby the forehard or proper twist in the strands for all sizes of ropes, is at once attained, by simply changing the sizes of those two last described wheels, which can be very readily effected, from the manner in which they are attached to the tubesB,B, and 4, 4.From the angular position of the tubes towards the centre, the strands are nearly in contact at their upper ends, where the rope is laid, immediately below which the forehard or proper twist is given to the strands.Fourthly, in the application of a press-blockP, of metal, in two parts, placed directly above and close down to where the rope is laid atA, the inside of which is polished, and the under end is bell-mouthed; to prevent the rope from being chafed in entering it, a sufficient grip or pressure is put upon the rope by one or two levers and weights 5, 5, acting upon the press-block, so as to adjust any trifling irregularity in the strand or in the laying; the inside of which being polished, gives smoothness, and by the said levers and weights, a proper tension to the rope, as it is drawn forward through the press-block. By the application of this block, ropes may be made at once properly stretched, rendering them decidedly preferable and extremely advantageous, particularly for shipping, inclined planes, mines, &c.The preceding description includes the whole of Mr. Norvell’s improvements; the remaining parts of the machine being similar to those now in use, may be briefly described as follows:—A wheel or pulleyc, is fixed independently of the machine, over which the rope passes to the drawing motion represented at the side;d,d, is a grooved wheel, round which the rope is passed, and pressed into the groove by means of the lever and weighte,e, acting upon the binding sheaff, to prevent the rope from slipping. After the rope leaves the said sheave, it is coiled away at pleasure.g,g, are two change wheels, for varying the speed of the grooved wheeld,d, to answer the various sizes of ropes;h, is a spiral wheel, driven by the screwk, fixed upon the axlel;m, is a band-wheel, which is driven by a belt from the shaft of the engine, or any other communicating power;n,n, is a friction strap and striking clutch. The axleq, is driven by two change wheelsp,p; by changing the sizes of those wheels, the different speeds of the drumR,R, for any sizes of ropes, are at once effected.Gear wheels and axleThe additional axles, and wheelst,t, shown infig.951., are applied occasionally for reversing the motion of the said drums, and making what is usually termed left-hand ropes;u,figs.950.and951., show a bevelled pinion, driving the main crown wheelv,v, which wheel carries and gives motion to the drumsR,R;w,w, is a fixed or sun wheel, which gives a reverse motion to the drums, as they revolve round the same, by means of the intervening wheelsx,x,x, whereby the reverse or retrograding motion is produced, and which gives to the strands the right twist. The various retrograding motions, or right twists for all sizes and descriptions of ropes, may be obtained by changing the diameters of the pinionsy,y,y, on the under ends of the drum spindles; the carriages of the intervening wheelsx,x,x, being made to slide round the ringz,z;W,W, is the framework of the machine and drawing motion;T,T,T, are the bobbins containing the yarns; their number is varied to correspond with the different sizes of the machines.The machine here described, in elevation and plan, is calculated to make ropes from three to seven and one-half inches in circumference, and to an indefinite length.Messrs. Chapman of Newcastle, to whom the art of rope-making is deeply indebted, having observed that rope yarn is considerably weakened by passing through the tar-kettle, that tarred cordage loses its strength progressively in cold climates, and so rapidly in hot climates as to be scarcely fit for use in three years, discovered that the deterioration was due to the reaction of the mucilage and acid of the tar. They accordingly proposed the following means of amelioration. 1. Boiling it with water, in order to remove these two soluble constituents. 2. Concentrating the washed tar by heat, till it becomes pitchy, and then restoring the plasticity which it thereby loses, by the addition of tallow, or animal or expressed oils.In 1807, the same able engineers obtained a patent for a method of making abelt or flat band, of two, three, or more strands of shroud or hawser-laid rope, placed side by side, so as to form a band of any desired breadth, which may be used for hoisting the kibbles and corves in mine-shafts, without any risk of its losing twist by rotation. The ropes should be laid with the twist of the one strand directed to the right hand, that of the other to the left, and that of the yarns the opposite way to the strands, whereby perfect flatness is secured to the band. This parallel assemblage of strands has been found also to be stronger than when they are all twisted into one cylinder. The patentees at the same time contrived a mechanism for piercing the strands transversely, in order to brace them firmly together with twine. Flat ropes are usually formed of hawsers with three strands, softly laid, each containing 33 yarns, which with four ropes, compose a cordage four and a half inches broad, and an inch and a quarter thick, being the ordinary dimensions of the grooves in the whim-pulleys round which they pass.Relative StrengthofCordage, shroud laid.Size.Warm Register.Cold Register.Common Staple.Tons.Cwt.Qrs.Lbs.Tons.Cwt.Qrs.Lbs.Tons.Cwt.Qrs.Lbs.3inches bore317—16353162912431⁄2—55——49221361274—617—16517—4453741⁄2—81328753151265—10141493—4692851⁄2—121924111125712—226—14152241332881712061⁄2—182—10159199163147—21———17183811412171⁄2—242—16201139128368—27812623828132312The above statement is the result of several hundred experiments.

The first part of the process of rope-making by hand, is that of spinning the yarns or threads, which is done in a manner analogous to that of ordinary spinning. The spinner carries a bundle of dressed hemp round his waist; the two ends of the bundle being assembled in front. Having drawn out a proper number of fibres with his hand, he twists them with his fingers, and fixing this twisted part to the hook of a whirl, whichis driven by a wheel put in motion by an assistant, he walks backwards down the rope walk, the twisted part always serving to draw out more fibres from the bundle round his waist, as in the flax-spinning wheel. The spinner takes care that these fibres are equably supplied, and that they always enter the twisted parts by their ends, and never by their middle. As soon as he has reached the termination of the walk, a second spinner takes the yarn off the whirl, and gives it to another person to put upon a reel, while he himself attaches his own hemp to the whirl hook, and proceeds down the walk. When the person at the reel begins to turn, the first spinner, who has completed his yarn, holds it firmly at the end, and advances slowly up the walk, while the reel is turning, keeping it equally tight all the way, till he reaches the reel, where he waits till the second spinner takes his yarn off the whirl hook, and joins it to the end of that of the first spinner, in order that it may follow it on the reel.

The next part of the process previous to tarring, is that of warping the yarns, or stretching them all to one length, which is about 200 fathoms in full-length rope-grounds, and also in putting a slight turn or twist into them.

The third process in rope-making, is the tarring of the yarn. Sometimes the yarns are made to wind off one reel, and, having passed through a vessel of hot tar, are wound upon another, the superfluous tar being removed by causing the yarn to pass through a hole surrounded with spongy oakum; but the ordinary method is to tar it in skains or hanks, which are drawn by a capstan with a uniform motion through the tar-kettle. In this process, great care must be taken that the tar is boiling neither too fast nor too slow. Yarn for cables requires more tar than for hawser-laid ropes; and for standing and running rigging, it requires to be merely well covered. Tarred cordage has been found to be weaker than what is untarred, when it is new; but the tarred rope is not so easily injured by immersion in water.

The last part of the process of rope-making, is to lay the cordage. For this purpose two or more yarns are attached at one end to a hook. The hook is then turned the contrary way from the twist of the individual yarn, and thus forms what is called a strand. Three strands, sometimes four, besides a central one, are then stretched at length, and attached at one end to three contiguous but separate hooks, but at the other end to a single hook; and the process of combining them together, which is effected by turning the single book in a direction contrary to that of the other three, consists in so regulating the progress of the twists of the strands round their common axis, that the three strands receive separately at their opposite ends just as much twist as is taken out of them by their twisting the contrary way, in the process of combination.

Large ropes are distinguished into two main classes, thecable-laidandhawser-laid. The former are composed of nine strands, namely, three great strands, each of these consisting of three smaller secondary strands, which are individually formed with an equal number of primitive yarns. A cable-laid rope eight inches in circumference, is made up of 333 yarns or threads, equally divided among the nine secondary strands. Ahawser-laidrope consists of only three strands, each composed of a number of primitive yarns, proportioned to the size of the rope; for example, if it be eight inches in circumference, it may have 414 yarns, equally divided among three strands. Thirty fathoms of yarn are reckoned equivalent in length to eighteen fathoms of rope cable-laid, and to twenty fathoms hawser-laid. Ropes of from one inch to two inches and a half in circumference are usually hawser-laid; of from three to ten inches, are either hawser or cable laid; but when more than ten inches, they are always cable-laid.

Every hand-spinner in the dock-yard is required to spin, out of the best hemp, six threads, each 160 fathoms long, for a quarter of a day’s work. A hawl of yarn, in the warping process, contains 336 threads.

The following are Captain Huddart’s improved principles of the rope manufacture:—

1. To keep the yarns separate from each other, and to draw them from bobbins revolving upon skewers, so as to maintain the twist while the strand or primary cord is forming.

2. To pass them through a register, which divides them by circular shells of holes; the number in each concave shell being conformable to the distance from the centre of the strand, and the angle which the yarns make with a line parallel to it, and which gives them a proper position to enter.

3. To employ a tube for compressing the strand, and preserving the cylindrical figure of its surface.

4. To use a gauge for determining the angle which the yarns in the outside shell make with a line parallel to the centre of the strand, when registering; because according to the angle made by the yarns in this shell, the relative lengths of all the yarns in the strand will be determined.

5. To harden up the strand, and thereby increase the angle in the outside shell; which compensates for the stretching of the yarns, and the compression of the strands.

A great many patents have been obtained, and worked with various degrees of success, for making ropes. Messrs. Cartwright, Fothergill, Curr, Chapman, Balfour, and Huddart,have been the most conspicuous inventors in this country; but the limits of this work preclude us doing justice to their respective merits.

All improvements in the manufacture of cordage at present in use, either in her Majesty’s yards or in private rope-grounds, owe their superiority over the old method of making cordage to Captain Huddart’s invention of the register plate and tube.

Mr. Balfour took out a patent for the manufacture of cordage about a month before Captain Huddart; but the formation of his strand was to be accomplished by what he called a top minor, (in the form of a common top, with pins to divide the yarns,) which upon trial could not make cordage so good as by the common mode. On seeing Captain Huddart’s specification, Mr. Balfour, five years after, procured another patent, in which he included a plate and tube, but which was not sufficiently correct, and experience in the navy proved the insufficiency of the cordage. Captain Huddart’s plate and tube were then adopted in the king’s yards, and he gave his assistance for the purpose.

Captain Huddart then invented and took a patent for a machine, which by registering the strand at a short length from the tube, and winding it up as made, preserved an uniformity of twist, or angle of formation, from end to end of the rope, which cannot be accomplished by the method of forming the strands down the ground, where the twist is communicated from one end to the other of an elastic body upwards of 300 yards in length. This registering-machine was constructed with such correctness, that when some were afterwards required, no alteration could be made with advantage by the most skilful and scientific mechanic of that day, Mr. Rennie. Thus the cold register was carried to the greatest perfection.

A number of yarns cannot be put together in a cold state, without considerable vacancies, into which water may gain admission; Captain Huddart, therefore, formed the yarns into a strand immediately as they came from the tar-kettle, which he was enabled to do by his registering-machine, and the result was most satisfactory. This combination of yarns was found by experiment to be 14 per cent. stronger than the cold register; it constituted a body of hemp and tar impervious to water, and had great advantage over any other cordage, particularly for shrouds, as after they were settled on the mast-head, and properly set up, they had scarcely any tendency to stretch, effectually secured the mast, and enabled the ship to carry the greatest press of sail.

In order more effectually to obtain correctness in the formation of cables and large cordage, Captain Huddart constructed a laying-machine, which has carried his inventions in rope-making to the greatest perfection, and which, founded on true mathematical principles, and the most laborious calculations, is one of the noblest monuments of mechanical ability since the improvement of the steam-engine by Mr. Watt. By this machine, the strands receive that degree of twist only which is necessary, and are laid at any angle with the greatest regularity; the pressure is regulated to give the required elasticity, and all parts of the rope are made to bear equally. In no one instance has a rope or cable thus formed, been found defective in the lay, or stiff, or difficult to coil.

Such a revolution in the manufacture of cordage could not be accomplished without great expense, as the works at Limehouse fully testify; and considerable opposition necessarily arose. Captain Huddart’s first invention was, however, generally adopted, as soon as the patent expired; and experience has established the great importance of his subsequent improvements.

His cordage has been supplied in large quantities to her Majesty’s navy, and has received the most satisfactory reports.

The following description of one of the best modern machines for making ropes on Captain Huddart’s plan, will gratify the intelligent reader.

Rope making machineFig. 942 enlarged(100 kB)

Fig. 942 enlarged(100 kB)

Fig.942.exhibits a side elevation of the tackle-board and bobbin-frame at the head of the ropery, and also of the carriage or rope-machine in the act of hauling out and twisting the strands.

Rpoe making machine

Fig.943.is a front elevation of the carriage.

Fig.944.is a yarn-guide, or board, or plate, with perforated holes for the yarns to pass through before entering the nipper.

Figs.945.and946.are side and front views of the nipper for pressing the rope-yarns.

ais the frame for containing the yarn bobbins. The yarns are brought from the frame, and pass through a yarn-guide atb.cis a small roller, under which the rope-yarns pass; they are then brought over the reeld, and through another yarn-guidee, after which they enter the nippers atv, and are drawn out and formed into strands by the carriage. The roller and reel may be made to traverse up and down, so as to regulate the motion of the yarns.

The carriage runs on a railway.f,f, is the frame of the carriage;g,g, are the small wheels on which it is supported;k,k, is an endless rope, reaching from the head to the bottom of the railway, and is driven by a steam-engine;m,m, is a wheel with gubs at the back of it, over which the endless rope passes, and gives motion to the machinery of the carriage.n, is the ground rope for taking out the carriage, as will be afterwards described. On the shaft ofm,m, are two bevel wheels 3, 3, with a shifting catch between them; these bevel wheels are loose upon the shaft, but when the catch is put into either of them, this last then keeps motion with the shaft, while the other runs loose. One of these wheels serves to communicate the twist to the strand in drawing out; the other gives the opposite or after turn to the rope in closing. 4, 4, is a lever for shifting the catch accordingly. 5, is a third bevel wheel, which receives its motion from either of the other two, and communicates the same to the two spur wheels 6, 6, by means of the shaftx. These can be shifted at pleasure; so that by applying wheels of a greater or less number of teeth above and beneath, the twist given to the strands can be increased or diminished accordingly. The upper of these two communicates motion, by means of the shafto, to another spur wheel 8, which working in the three pinions above, 9, 9, gives the twist to the strand hooks.

The carriage is drawn out in the following manner. On the end of the shaft ofm,m, is the pinion 3, which, working in the large wheelR, gives motion to the ground-rope shaft upon its axis. In the centre of this shaft is a curved pulley or drumt, round which the ground rope takes one turn. This rope is fixed at the head and foot of the ropery; so that when the machinery of the carriage is set a-going by the endless ropek,k, and gives motion to the ground-rope shaft, as above described, the carriage will necessarily move along the railway; and the speed may be regulated either by the diameter of the circle formed by the gubs on the wheelm,m, or by the number of teeth in the pinion 3. AtT, is a small roller, merely for preventing the ground rope from coming up among the machinery. At the head of the railway, and under the tackle-board, is a wheel and pinionZ, with a crank for tightening the ground rope. The fixed machinery at the head, for hardening or tempering the strands, is similar to that on the carriage, with the exception of the ground-rope geer, which is unnecessary. The motion is communicated by another endless rope, (or short band, as it is called, to distinguish it from the other,) which passes over gubs at the back of the wheel 1, 1.

When the strands are drawn out by the carriage to the requisite length, the spur wheels 3,R, are put out of geer. The strands are cut at the tackle-board, and fixed to the hooks 1, 1, 1; after which they are hardened or tempered, being twisted at both ends. When this operation is finished, three strands are united on the large hookh, the top put in, and the rope finished in the usual way.

In preparing the hemp for spinning an ordinary thread or rope-yarn, it is only heckled over a large keg or clearer, until the fibres are straightened and separated, so as to run freely in the spinning. In this case, the hemp is not stript of the tow, or cropt, unless it is designed to spin beneath the usual grist, which is about 20 yarns for the strand of a three-inch strap-laid rope. The spinning is still performed by hand, being found not only to be more economical, but also to make a smoother thread, than has yet been effected by machinery. Various ways have been tried for preparing the yarns for tarring. That which seems now to be most generally in use, is, to warp the yarns upon the stretch as they are spun. This is accomplished by having a wheel at the foot, as well as the head of the walk, so that the men are able to spin both up and down, and also to splice their threads at both ends. By this means, they are formed into a haul, resembling the warp of a common web, and a little turn is hove into the haul, to preserve it from getting foul in the tarring. The advantages of warping from the spinners, as above, instead of winding on winches, as formerly, are, 1st, the saving of this last operation altogether; 2dly, the complete check which the foreman has of the quantity of yarn spun in the day; 3dly, that the quality of the work can be subjected to the minutest inspection at any time. In tarring the yarn, it is found favourable to the fairness of the strip, to allow it to pass around or under a reel or roller in thebottom of the kettle while boiling, instead of coiling the yarn in by hand. The tar is then pressed from the yarn, by means of a sliding nipper, with a lever over the upper part, and to the end of which the necessary weight is suspended. The usual proportion of tar in ordinary ropes, is something less than a fifth. In large strap-laid ropes, which are necessarily subjected to a greater press in the laying of them, the quantity of tar can scarcely exceed a sixth, without injuring the appearance of the rope when laid.

For a long period, the manner of laying the yarns into ropes, was by stretching the haul on the rope-ground, parting the number of yarns required for each strand, and twisting the strands at both ends, by means of hand-hooks, or cranks. It will be obvious that this method, especially in ropes of any considerable size, is attended with serious disadvantages. The strand must always be very uneven; but the principal disadvantage, and that which gave rise to the many attempts at improvement, was, that the yarns being all of the same length before being twisted, it followed, when the rope was finished, that while those which occupied the circumference of the strand were perfectly tight, the centre yarns, on the other hand, as they were now greatly slackened by the operation of hardening or twisting the strands, actually would bear little or no part of the strain when the rope was stretched, until the former gave way. The method displayed in the preceding figures and description, is among the latest and most improved; Every yarn is given out from the bobbin frame as it is required in twisting the rope; and the twist communicated in the out-going of the carriage, can be increased or diminished at pleasure. In order to obtain a smooth and well-filled strand, it is necessary also, in passing the yarns through the upper board, to proportion the number of centre to that of outside yarns. In ordinary sized ropes, the strand seems to have the fairest appearance, when the outside yarns form from2⁄3ds to3⁄4ths of the whole quantity, in the portion of twist given by the carriage in drawing out and forming the strands.

Cable making machine

In laying cables, torsion must be given both behind and before the laying top.Figs.947,948,949.represent the powerful patent apparatus employed for this purpose.A, is a strong upright iron pillar, supported upon the great horizontal beamN,N, and bearing at its upper end the three-grooved laying topM.H,H, are two of the three great bobbins or reels round which the three secondary strands or small hawsers are wound. These are drawn up by the rotation of the three feeding rollersI,I,I, thence proceed over the three guide pulleysK,K,K, towards the laying topM, and finally pass through the tubeO, to be wound upon the cable-reelD. The frames of the three bobbinsH,H,H, do not revolve about the fast pillarA, as a common axis; but each bobbin revolves round its own shaftQ, which is steadied by a bracing collet atN, and a conical step at its bottom. The three bobbins are placed at an angle of 120 degrees apart, and each receives a rotatory motion upon its axis from the toothed spur wheelB, which is driven by the common central spur wheelC. Thus each of the three secondary cords has a proper degree of twist put into it in one direction, while the cable is laid, by getting a suitable degree of twist in an opposite direction, from the revolution of the frame or cageG,G, round two pivots, the one under the pulleyE, and the other overO.The reelDhas thus, like the bobbinsH,H, two movements; that in common with its frame, and that upon its axis, produced by the action of the endless band round the pulleyE, upon one of its ends, and the pulleyE′ above its centre of rotation. The pulleyEis driven by the bevel mill-geeringP,P,P, as also the under spur wheelC.L, infig.949., is the place of the ringL,fig.947., which bears the three guide pulleysK,K,K.Fig.948.is an end view of the bobbinH, to show the worm or endless screwJ, offig.949., working into the two snail-toothed wheels, upon the ends of the two feed-rollersI,I, which serve to turn them. The upright shafts ofJ,J, receive their motion from pulleys and cords near their bottom. Instead of these pulleys, and the othersE,E′, bevel-wheel geering has been substituted with advantage, not being liable to slip, like the pulley-band mechanism. The axis of the great reel is made twice the length of the bobbinD, in order to allow of the latter moving from right to left, and back again alternately, in winding on the cable with uniformity as it is laid. The traverse mechanism of this part is, for the sake of perspicuity, suppressed in the figure.

Mr. William Norvell, of Newcastle, obtained a patent in May, 1833, for an improvement adapted to the ordinary machines employed for twisting hempen yarns into strands, affording, it is said, a simpler and more eligible mode of accomplishing that object, and also of laying the strands together, than has been hitherto effected by machinery. The yarns spun from the fibres of hemp, are wound upon bobbins, and these bobbins are mounted upon axles, and hung in the frame of the machine, as shown in the elevation,fig.950., from which bobbins the several ends of yarn are passed upwards through slanting tubes; by the rotation of which tubes, and of the carriages in which the bobbins are suspended, the yarns become twisted into strands, and also the strands are laid so as to form ropes.

Hemp spinnerFig. 950 enlarged(152 kB)

Fig. 950 enlarged(152 kB)

His improvements consist, first, in the application of three or more tubes, two of which are shown infig.950, placed in inclined positions, so as to receive the strands immediately above the press-blocka,a, and nearly in a line withA, the point of closing or laying the rope.B1, andB3, are opposite side views;B2, an edge view; andB, a side section of the same. He does not claim any exclusive right of patent for the tubes themselves, but only for their form and angular position.

Secondly, in attaching two common flat sheaves, or pulleys,C,C,fig.950., to each of the said tubes, nearly round which each strand is lapped or coiled, to prevent it from slipping, as shown in the sectionB1. The said sheaves or pulleys are connected by a crown or centre wheelD, loose uponb,b, the main or upright axle;E,E, is a smaller wheel upon each tube, working into the said crown or centre wheel, and fixed upon the loose boxI, on each of the tubes.

F,F, is a toothed or spur wheel, fixed also upon each of the loose boxesI, and working into a smaller wheelG, upon the axis 2, of each tube;H, is a bevel wheel fixed upon the same axis withG, and working into another bevel wheelJ, fixed upon the cross axle 3, of each tube;K, is a spur wheel attached to the same axis withJ, at the opposite end, and working intoL, another spur wheel of the same size upon each of the tubes. By wheels thus arranged and connected with the sheaves or pulleys, as above described, a perfectly equal strain or tension is put upon each strand as drawn forward over the pulleyC.

Thirdly, the invention consists in the introduction of change wheelsM,M,M,M,fig.950., for putting the forehard or proper twist into each strand before the rope islaid; this is effected by small spindles on axles 4, 4, placed parallel with the line of each tubeB.

Upon the lower end of each spindle the bevel wheelsN,N, are attached, and driven by other bevel wheelsO,O, fixed immediately above each press-blocka,a. On the top end of each spindle or axle 4, 4, is attached one of the change wheels, working into the other change wheel fixed upon the bottom end of each of the tubes, whereby the forehard or proper twist in the strands for all sizes of ropes, is at once attained, by simply changing the sizes of those two last described wheels, which can be very readily effected, from the manner in which they are attached to the tubesB,B, and 4, 4.

From the angular position of the tubes towards the centre, the strands are nearly in contact at their upper ends, where the rope is laid, immediately below which the forehard or proper twist is given to the strands.

Fourthly, in the application of a press-blockP, of metal, in two parts, placed directly above and close down to where the rope is laid atA, the inside of which is polished, and the under end is bell-mouthed; to prevent the rope from being chafed in entering it, a sufficient grip or pressure is put upon the rope by one or two levers and weights 5, 5, acting upon the press-block, so as to adjust any trifling irregularity in the strand or in the laying; the inside of which being polished, gives smoothness, and by the said levers and weights, a proper tension to the rope, as it is drawn forward through the press-block. By the application of this block, ropes may be made at once properly stretched, rendering them decidedly preferable and extremely advantageous, particularly for shipping, inclined planes, mines, &c.

The preceding description includes the whole of Mr. Norvell’s improvements; the remaining parts of the machine being similar to those now in use, may be briefly described as follows:—A wheel or pulleyc, is fixed independently of the machine, over which the rope passes to the drawing motion represented at the side;d,d, is a grooved wheel, round which the rope is passed, and pressed into the groove by means of the lever and weighte,e, acting upon the binding sheaff, to prevent the rope from slipping. After the rope leaves the said sheave, it is coiled away at pleasure.g,g, are two change wheels, for varying the speed of the grooved wheeld,d, to answer the various sizes of ropes;h, is a spiral wheel, driven by the screwk, fixed upon the axlel;m, is a band-wheel, which is driven by a belt from the shaft of the engine, or any other communicating power;n,n, is a friction strap and striking clutch. The axleq, is driven by two change wheelsp,p; by changing the sizes of those wheels, the different speeds of the drumR,R, for any sizes of ropes, are at once effected.

Gear wheels and axle

The additional axles, and wheelst,t, shown infig.951., are applied occasionally for reversing the motion of the said drums, and making what is usually termed left-hand ropes;u,figs.950.and951., show a bevelled pinion, driving the main crown wheelv,v, which wheel carries and gives motion to the drumsR,R;w,w, is a fixed or sun wheel, which gives a reverse motion to the drums, as they revolve round the same, by means of the intervening wheelsx,x,x, whereby the reverse or retrograding motion is produced, and which gives to the strands the right twist. The various retrograding motions, or right twists for all sizes and descriptions of ropes, may be obtained by changing the diameters of the pinionsy,y,y, on the under ends of the drum spindles; the carriages of the intervening wheelsx,x,x, being made to slide round the ringz,z;W,W, is the framework of the machine and drawing motion;T,T,T, are the bobbins containing the yarns; their number is varied to correspond with the different sizes of the machines.

The machine here described, in elevation and plan, is calculated to make ropes from three to seven and one-half inches in circumference, and to an indefinite length.

Messrs. Chapman of Newcastle, to whom the art of rope-making is deeply indebted, having observed that rope yarn is considerably weakened by passing through the tar-kettle, that tarred cordage loses its strength progressively in cold climates, and so rapidly in hot climates as to be scarcely fit for use in three years, discovered that the deterioration was due to the reaction of the mucilage and acid of the tar. They accordingly proposed the following means of amelioration. 1. Boiling it with water, in order to remove these two soluble constituents. 2. Concentrating the washed tar by heat, till it becomes pitchy, and then restoring the plasticity which it thereby loses, by the addition of tallow, or animal or expressed oils.

In 1807, the same able engineers obtained a patent for a method of making abelt or flat band, of two, three, or more strands of shroud or hawser-laid rope, placed side by side, so as to form a band of any desired breadth, which may be used for hoisting the kibbles and corves in mine-shafts, without any risk of its losing twist by rotation. The ropes should be laid with the twist of the one strand directed to the right hand, that of the other to the left, and that of the yarns the opposite way to the strands, whereby perfect flatness is secured to the band. This parallel assemblage of strands has been found also to be stronger than when they are all twisted into one cylinder. The patentees at the same time contrived a mechanism for piercing the strands transversely, in order to brace them firmly together with twine. Flat ropes are usually formed of hawsers with three strands, softly laid, each containing 33 yarns, which with four ropes, compose a cordage four and a half inches broad, and an inch and a quarter thick, being the ordinary dimensions of the grooves in the whim-pulleys round which they pass.

Relative StrengthofCordage, shroud laid.

The above statement is the result of several hundred experiments.

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