THE KROMSCHRODER GAS.

Evening Star, Issue 3314, 3 October 1873, Page 3

THE KROMSCHRODER GAS.

(From the Essex Standard.) A day or two since, the writer of these few remarks saw the little town of Great Marlow, in Bucks, lighted with gas from the Gas Works—not, however, with coal gas, but with the gas patented by M, Kroraschroder, a German chemist. The flare which one sees on the costermonger’s cart has been scientifically perfected, after twelve years’ labor. The great characteristics of the new gas are—purity, ease of making, brilliancy, and cheapness ; no fire is used and no coal. What first surprises one is the simplicity of manufacture. In a brick-and-tile shed, stood what is called the generator. It has the shape of, only by no means so large as what you see on board the river steamboats, the iron casing which rises on the deck as a covering for the furnace and boiler. The size may be inferred from the dimensions ; it is sft 9in by 7ft, and we suppose about 3ft high. Attached to the centre of the top is a little mechanism—a kind of clockwork, and in one or two places is a tap. This is the external appearance—plainness to simplicity. Instead of coal, spirit is used, and any light hydro-carbon, of a specific gravity of about 660, can be employed. M. Kromschroder uses the light spirit of petroleum, which hitherto has been allowed to run to waste, and the supply of which is practically inexhaustible, Not to make this record too technical, we may say that at the bottom of the iron case is what is called the reservoir, which receives the oil. An absorbent material is placed upon the top of the oil. The air is forced into the generator by the clock-like apparatus at the top, and over the saturated material, and issues out of the generator into the gasometer perfect gas, requiring no purifying or any process whatsoever. In a word, M. Kromschroder impregnates air with hydro carbon. The ease with which the gas is made, indeed, fairly puzzles the spectator ; but in addition to what we saw, a gentleman present stated that he had ona of M. Kroraschrpder’s small apparatui in his house, and had for sows

time made his own gas with ease and perfect success. Your supply is only limited by the capacity of your apparatus. The cost of the new system is an important point for small towns, and for the owners of country houses. The plant at ' • rent Marlow represents L 2.000; you might have everything you wanted (that is the plant) under the Kromachroder system for LI,OOO, and you get this reduction by, amongst other things, being able to dispense with at least onethird of the piesent works. Then, as to the cost of the manufacture, say, a ton of cannel coal, costing irom L 3 to L 3 10s per ton, will produce about 12,000 feet of 18candle gas ; oil would produce the same quantity of the same illuminating power at a cost of LI 4s 9d. But the Kromschroder gas is not only cheap in the make, but while you consume five feet per hour of coal gas you only feet of this. Then it is also pure, being free from sulphur, ammonia, and other deleterious effects, which arc, it would seem, unavoidable with ordinary coal gas; whilst so elastic an agency has the patentee to deal with that he can at pleasure increase the illuminating power from twelve caudles to forty. The economy in its manufacture is further seen from the fact that no skilled labor is required, one man of ordinary intelligence being able to Attend to the entire manufacture of works representing a daily consumption of 20,000 feet, and even then his time would not be fully occupied. The gas leaves no deposit in the pipes, and the condensation is prevented.

About three months ago a proposition was made to Mr Hastings of the Great Marlow Gas Works, wko has been engaged in thj construction of more than 500 gas works in various parts of the world, to undertake a series of experiments, necessary for the practical testing of the gar on a working scale. The generator was placed in a shed, and for three months Mr Hastings has had the entire control of it, manufacturing the gas and supplying it to the town of great Marlow according to his own free will. The tetal expenditure made at those works for adapting them to this process was less than LSO, exclusive of the generator. During these three months the gas has been sent through the four and a-half miles of main and service pipes, the main being of irregular size, and, therefore, not the best to work, but the church clock has been well lighted, as well as houses on a lower level than even the Gas Works. It has also been used in conjunction with coal gas, in various proportions ranging from onefifth up to as much as two-thirds, the result being an increase of illuminating power from four to twelve caudle standard; whilst, when used alone at these works, the standard has been as high as thirty-two candles. No alteration need be made in burners. The ga» is not influenced by variations in temperature, In twenty-four hours there bas been at these works a variation of as much as twenty degrees, without making the slightest difference to it. It has also been stored for ten days, and, it is believed, with a result as to illuminating power unequalled by coal gas. If there be an escape there is a smell, just enough to act as a detective, but it is not unpleasant.