ANNIHILATOR, FIRE. In addition to themachines noticed under FIRE ENGINE and Fran ESCAPE, a new mode of attacking the devouring element is Mr. Phillips's Fire Anni hilator. Mr. Phillips took out his patent in 1849. The materials employed consist of sugar and chlorate of potash, mixed and boiled together into a homogeneous mass. This is placed in a perforated cylinder, within a second perforated cylinder, contained in a third but air-tight cylinder; and the whole put into an outer case. Water is placed in the space be tween the bottoms of the third cylinder and outer casing; a vertical pipe opens from this space to the space between the second and third cylinders ; so that as the metal ex pands from the application of heat, the water will be forced up the pipe, and made to mingle with the gas generated from the chemical materials, which will afterwards escape through an opening at the top of the case. It is this gas which is intended to act so remarkably upon a burning mass as to extinguish flame.
With this apparatus Mr. Phillips has made many experiments which have attracted a good deal of public attention. A display was made at Vauxhall Gas Works, in Oct. 1849; model houses and ships, filled with combusti bles, were set on fire with a view of sheaving how rapidly the annihilator could extinguish the flames. The machine is placed where it can be influenced by the heat of the confla gration ; and the resulting gas has a remark able effect in extinguishing flame; but it does not extinguish red heat unaccompanied by flame. Experiments were made in the early
part of 1850 at Trentham Park, at the Pad dington Railway Station, and at the West India Docks ; but the annihilator on these occasions scarcely merited the good opinion of its admirers. A ' Fire Annihilator Cora patty' was, however, established. Shortly after this, the Board of Ordnance permitted a brick building to be constructed in Woolwich Marsh, and made to represent as nearly as practicable (without incurring too much expense) a three storied house, which was then filled with cheap furniture. There were near at hand annihi lators of various sizes and degrees of power— one so large as to require two horses to draw it ; and a day was appointed for having a grand experimental conflagration. The building was set on fire, but the extinction did not take place satisfactorily.
The truth seems to be (so far as has yet been shown), that in close rooms, or confined spaces generally, the liberated gases of the annihilator may be serviceably used to extin guish flame; but that where there is plenty of access for external air, the action of the ma chine becomes impaired. So far as the mere setting to work is concerned, it is so easy and simple, that we may hope to find the apparatus available, in a limited if not an extensive de gree.