Westinghouse compressors have been found well adapted to this class of work and are largely employed for furnishing the compressed air to raise or convey liquids in breweries, tan neries, oil wells, dairies, hospitals, chemical laboratories, acid plants and especially all kinds of water wells.
The Latta-Martin displacement pump is an efficient and reliable device designed to pump water by air pressure. Extremely simple in construction, it requires no packing nor lubrica tion, has no dead centre, no pistons, no plungers, will not freeze in the severest weather, and is entirely automatic. It will pump from any dis tance, to any elevation, in any quantity, hand ling muddy or gritty water without injury. In the general design of the apparatus, the two cylindrical chambers are connected at the top by an automatic air-valve mechanism and at the bottom by suitable, piping and check valves. The air pressure entering at the top is delivered alternately to the respective chambers, discharg ing the water contained therein through the check valves and discharge pipe. As a chamber
is emptied of water, the remaining air is ex hausted through a port in the upper valve gear, while Stater simultaneously replaces it through the check valves below. This simple operation is repeated alternately upon each side of the pump and is entirely automatic. The pump may be placed at any point of water supply in a dug well or in a river — and can be oper ated and controlled by the engineer even though situated several miles from the source of power. A modified form of these displacement pumps can be used in wells having casings six inches or more in diameter. This form is particularly valuable for cases where the water level in the well falls .a considerable amount, either during the pumping operation, or at different times of the year, as the action of the pump is not affected by the position of the water level. See AIR-COMPRESSOR; CONDENSER; COMPRESSED Am; POWER; POWER, TRANSMIS SION OF.