The Mechanical Handling and Storing of Material

THE MECHANICAL DISPOSAL OF ASHES FROM STEAMERS 231 similar purpose to See’s attachment; both have the object of preventing shocks in the hydraulic mains at the setting to work of the apparatus and preventing unsatisfactory starting owing to insufficient initial pressure. This is achieved, particularly by Hochstein, by allowing the pump to be always at work, and his apparatus permits, by the movement of a lever, to utilise the Fig. 316. Outline of the Thorne Hopper. water either for the ejector or to return it into the sea. The simplest form is the application of a three-way valve tv, shown in Fig. 317, which explains itself; it shows the hydraulic main lead- ing into the valve zv, which conducts the water - either into the ejector or right away. In Fig. 318 the hydraulic main enters at e, and the water can enter either through jet b to the ejector or through jet c to some other exit; the jets b and c are respectively opened or closed by the valves k arid i, which latter form part of a hollow spindle with the openings or ports d, f and g. Attached to this spindle are the pistons r and 5, of different diameters. When the three-way valve a is opened, as shown in the draw- ing, the pipe p forms a communication between the hydraulic supply and the larger of the two pistons, and thereby opens jet b and starts the ejector with full pressure. When valve a is closed, the water enters the ports d, in the hollow spindle, and passes through ports below the smaller piston, and forces the valves into the position shown—that is, the ejector valve b is closed and the water escapes through the ports f and exit c. It will thus be seen that by opening or closing valve a the ejector is started or stopped immediately. As it is most essential, for obvious reasons, that the dis- charge of the ashes should take place at will, either at the port or starboard side of the steamer, ejector installations have either to be provided in duplicate, with the exit on different sides, or if one installation only is to be used, it must be pro- vided with alternate exits, one to port and one to starboard. A scheme providing for this, and also the invention of Höch- stem, is shown in Fig. 319, where a represents the ash hopper, b the ejector pipe, and c c the two outlets. The valve attachment d by a simple move- ment conducts the ashes to either side. The two smaller illustrations, Fig. 320, show