CAPTAIN" LIERNUR'S PNEUMATIC SEWERAGE SYSTEM.

Southland Times, Issue 1013, 31 August 1868, Page 3

CAPTAIN" LIERNUR'S PNEUMATIC SEWERAGE SYSTEM.

(From the ' Engineer,' May 1.)

We give, above, illustrations of the apparatus for the daily removal of fsecal matter, &c, out of privy closets, built after the nesi^us of Captain Liernuf, at the machine factory of De Bruyn, Kobs, and jlicker, of Breda, Holland, in execution of an order received from Italy. In our impression of Nov. 2, 1866, the principal features of this new system were already so clearly described, that a very short account will doubtless now be sufficient.

The engraving of the air-pump engine and tender is copied from a photograph taken ou the spot where they were being operated. The steam engine, driving the air-pump, is of 6 horse power, and has a cylinder of 6% in. diameter by 10 in. stroke, while the air-pump has 10 in. bore and 10 in. stroke. The steam and air-pump cylinders are laid in a line on top of the boiler, which is of the ordinary locomotive class, and their respective pistons are fastened on the same rod. The packing of the air-pump piston is made of hard wood, the bearing surfaces being endways, and well rubbed with graphite and tallow. The steam cylinder is enclosed iv the steam dome.

The piston rod carries, between the cylinder and air pump 3 a crosshead, from which two light connecting rods work a crank axle lying behind the steam dome. This axle is furnished with two fly-wheels and an eccentric for working the side valves of the steam cylinder.

To deaden the noise of the exhaust, so as cot to awaken the inhabitants by the work carried on in the streets during the night, the steam escapes into two annular cases fitting round the boiler, and is consequently discharged through the chimney in a continuous stream as from a blowpipe. The boiler is fed by an injector from a small tank hung below it, and containing water sufficient for one hours steady Work

The tender has a capacity of 60ft., 55 of which are for receiving a twenty-four hours' supply of fcecal matter from about 1600 inhabitants, while the remaining sft. are partitioned off for fresh water to feed the boiler, which the tender is to bring along when returning empty from the place where the manure is decanted or deposited to the spot on the streets where the pneumatic locomotive happens to be at work. A 3 in. hose connects the airpump with the dome of the tender, and another one connects the latter with the subterranean reservoir, into which the street main pip as discharge. These are connecttd with the privies of all surrounding dwellings by means of branch pipes which, like the mains, are good substantial 5 in. iron socket tubes.

Before shipping this apparatus to Italy, Captain Liernur made a public trial of his whole system, to which he invited the municipal authorities, with their engineers and professional advisers of the various Dutch cities and towns, who just now are treating with him regarding the introduction of pneumatic sewerage, and who were anxious for some such occular demonstration before coming to a final decision. This public trial took place at Breda, on the 4th of March, for which occasion an iron reservoir was placed underground, in the yard of Messrs De Bruyn, Kops, and Backer's factory, and connected with the privies of that establishment, and of" a few houses standing near it. JFrom a friendly source and eye-witness we obtain the following account of this trial : The whole apparatus was arranged as intended for practical working, engine and tender being placed over the reservoir, as shown on the drawing. Amongst those invited there came, from the Hague, the mayor, the Commission for Public AVorks, with their secretary and engineer, several members "of the City Council, and the president of the Board of Trade. There were similar delegates from Amsterdam, Dortrecht, Delft, and other large Dutch towns, besides two members of the special engineering commission charged with reporting upon the Hague sewerage plan, the medical inspectors of the Board of Health of various provinces, and a number of engineers, agriculturists, and other interested parties.

After the various fixtures had been duly examined, and not a little admired for their realy highly finished workmanship, the trial began by allowing an inspection of the tender and reservoir to show that they really were quite empty. The hoses were then put on, the air-pump set in motion, and the whole performance gone through with proper intervals to give au opportunity for watching the progress. Many questions, of course, were asked, which, however, were all answered in the most satisfactory manner by Captain Liernur and Mr P. Mass Greesteranus, civil engineer, representing the captain in the Netherlands.

The whole experiment gave universal satisfaction, the speedy and thorough manner in which the desired result was obtained causing considerable astonishment amongst the non-professional spectators. The leading facts established, and by which the success of the trial may be measured, are summed up in two main items, namely : 1. The pneumatic engine proved itself capable of reducing the pressure within the tender and street reservoir to a vacuum of 27 in. mercury in about 20 seconds. 2. With this vacuum about fifty privies may be thoroughly cleaned in the course of a few minutes, and their contents be forced into a hermetically closed wagon without annoying the inhabitants in the least, either by smoke, smell, or noise. Two other scarcely inferior points were established, namely, that the pneumatic governor, invented by Captain Liernur, perfectly regulates the motion of the air j pump, opening the steam valve in proportion as the vacuum becomes more perfect, and closing it instantaneously when, by the air rushing through the street pipes into the tender, the load on the air-pump -piston is suddenly, relieved, so that the engine does not start off on a gallop, but keeps wef king at a uniform rate. The

other point is that, as predicted, fteces, urine, and paper are, through the violent treatment experienced, thoroughly worked and beaten up, so as to lose altogether their original distinct character, having become a very thin mixture of uniform consistency without any lumps, &c., which may be poured through a quill with an even steady stream, a peculiarity very essential for the particular mode of directly mixing the manure with the soil, as required by the agricultural part of Captain Liernur's system. All these peculiarities were carefully noted by the professional and scientific gentlemen present, and elicited their repeatedly and warmly expressed approbation. The trial finished, the company collected in the manufacturer's oflice for taking some slight refreshments, when the Mayor of the Hague, lifting up his voice and glass, in a very handsome speech, congratulated Captain Liernur on his signal and most decisive success^ expressing in the name of all present his satis faction with, and thanking Captain Liernur for what had thus been exhibited, encouraging him to persevere in his useful professional career, and predicting that^ without fail, he would earn the name of a benefactor of his native country by promoting public health, agriculture, and general weliare in the Netherlands to a degree hitherto unknown.