- This is a historical article. For current information see Syngas. Syngas (from syn thesis gas) is the name given to a gas mixture that contains varying amounts of Carbon monoxide and Hydrogen.
A Gasworks or Gas house is a factory for the manufacture of gas. Coal gas (known in the USA as Town gas) was introduced to Great Britain in the 1790s as an Illuminating gas by the Scottish inventor William Murdoch. The United States of America —commonly referred to as the See also Kingdom of Great Britain Great Britain (Breatainn Mhòr Prydain Fawr Breten Veur Graet Breetain is the larger of the two main islands Illuminating gas was a synthetic mixture of Hydrogen and Hydrocarbon gases produced by Destructive distillation ( Pyrolysis) of Bituminous The Scots people ( Scots Gaelic: Albannaich) are a Nation and an Ethnic group indigenous to Scotland. William Murdoch (sometimes spelled Murdock) ( August 21, 1754 - November 15, 1839) was a Scottish engineer and inventor
Early gasworks were usually located beside a river or canal so that coal could be brought in by barge. "Riverine" redirects here For the use of that term in Maritime geography, see there Canals are artificial channels for water There are two types of canals water conveyance canals which are used for the conveyance and delivery of water and Waterways BARGE, the Big August RecGambling Excursion is a yearly convention held in Las Vegas during the first weekend of August Transport was later shifted to railways and many gasworks had internal railway systems with their own locomotives. "Railroad" and "Railway" both redirect here For other uses see Railroad (disambiguation.
Early gasworks were built for factories in the Industrial Revolution from about 1805 as a light source and for industrial processes requiring gas, and for lighting in country houses from about 1845.
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Equipment
A gasworks was divided into several sections for the production, purification and storage of gas.
Retort house
This contained the retorts in which coal was heated to generate the gas. In a Chemistry laboratory a retort is a glassware device used for Distillation or Dry distillation of substances The crude gas passed on to the condenser. The residue left in the retort was coke. Coke is a solid Carbonaceous material derived from Destructive distillation of low-ash low-sulfur Bituminous coal.
Condenser
This consisted of a bank of air-cooled gas pipes over a water-filled sump. Its purpose was to remove tar from the gas by its condensing out as the gas was cooled. Tar is a viscous black Liquid derived from the Destructive distillation of organic matter Condensation is the change of the physical state of aggregation (or simply state of matter from gaseous phase into liquid phase
Scrubber
A tower, packed with coke, down which water was trickled. This removed ammonia and ammonium compounds. Ammonia is a compound with the formula N[[hydrogen H3]] It is normally encountered as a Gas with a characteristic pungent Odor Ammonium is also an old name for the Siwa Oasis in western Egypt.
Purifier
This removed hydrogen sulfide from the gas by passing it over trays containing moist ferric oxide. Hydrogen sulfide (or hydrogen sulphide) is the Chemical compound with the formula H 2 S. Iron(III oxide —also known as ferric oxide, Hematite, red iron oxide, synthetic maghemite, colcothar, or simply Rust —is The gas then passed on to the gasholder.
Gasholder
The gasholder or gasometer was a tank used for storage of the gas and maintain even pressure in distribution pipes.
By-products
The by-products of gas-making, such as coke, coal tar, ammonia and sulfur had many uses. Coke is a solid Carbonaceous material derived from Destructive distillation of low-ash low-sulfur Bituminous coal. Coal tar is a brown or black liquid of high Viscosity, which smells of Naphthalene and Aromatic hydrocarbons Coal tar is among the by-products when coal Ammonia is a compound with the formula N[[hydrogen H3]] It is normally encountered as a Gas with a characteristic pungent Odor Sulfur or sulphur (ˈsʌlfɚ see spelling below) is the Chemical element that has the Atomic number 16 For details, see coal gas.
British gasworks today
Coal gas is no longer made in the UK but many gasworks sites are still used for storage and metering of natural gas and some of the old gasometers are still in use. Natural gas is a Gaseous Fossil fuel consisting primarily of Methane but including significant quantities of Ethane, Propane, Fakenham gasworks dating from 1846 is the only complete, non-operational gasworks remaining in England. Fakenham is a Town and Civil parish in Norfolk, England. It is situated on the River Wensum, some 30 km north east of King's Other examples exist at Biggar in Scotland and Carrickfergus in Northern Ireland. Biggar is a Burgh in South Lanarkshire, Scotland. The town is situated in the Southern Uplands, near the River Clyde Scotland ( Gaelic: Alba) is a Country in northwest Europethat occupies the northern third of the island of Great Britain. Carrickfergus ( is a large town in County Antrim, Northern Ireland. Northern Ireland (Tuaisceart Éireann Ulster Scots: Norlin Airlann) is a Country within the United Kingdom, lying in the northeast of
Gasworks in popular culture
Gasworks were noted for their foul smell and generally located in the poorest areas of metropolitan areas. Cultural remnants of gasworks include many streets named Gas Street or Gas Avenue and groups or gangs known as Gas House Gang, such as the 1934 St. Louis Cardinals
See also
The St Louis Cardinals (also referred to as "the Cards " or "the Redbirds " are a professional Baseball team based in St British Gas plc was formerly the Monopoly gas supplier in the United Kingdom. Gasification is a process that converts carbonaceous materials such as Coal, Petroleum, or Biomass, into Carbon monoxide and HydrogenDapyx Software network: MP3 Explorer | Ebook Manager | Zenithic