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The kerosene lamp (widely known in Britain as a paraffin
lamp) is a type of lighting device that uses kerosene (British
"paraffin", as distinct from paraffin wax or paraffin oil) as a fuel.
Kerosene lamps have a wick or mantle as light source, protected by a glass
chimney or globe; lamps may be used on a table, or hand-held lanterns may used
for portable lighting. There are three types of kerosene lamp: flat wick,
central draught (tubular round wick), and mantle lamp. Kerosene lanterns meant
for portable use a flat wick and are made in dead flame, hot blast, and cold
blast variants.
Kerosene lamps are widely used for lighting in rural areas
of Africa and Asia where electricity is not distributed, or is too costly.
Kerosene lamps consume an estimated 77 billion
litres of fuel per year,
equivalent to 1.3 million barrels of oil per day, comparable to annual U.S. jet
fuel consumption of 76 billion litres per year.A flat-wick lamp is a simple
type of kerosene lamp, which burns kerosene drawn up through a wick by
capillary action. If this type of lamp is broken it can easily start a fire. A
flat-wick lamp has a fuel tank (fount), with the lamp burner attached. Attached
to the fuel tank, four prongs hold the glass chimney, which acts to prevent the
flame from being blown out and enhances a thermally induced draft. The glass
chimney needs a "throat," or slight constriction, to create the
proper draft for complete combustion of the fuel; the draft carries more air
(oxygen) past the flame, helping to produce a smokeless light which is brighter
than an open flame would produce. A kerosene lantern, also known as a
"barn lantern" or "hurricane lantern," is a flat-wick lamp
made for portable and outdoor use. They are made of soldered or crimped-together
sheet metal stampings, within-plated sheet steel being the most common
material, followed by brass and copper. There are three types: Dead flame, hot
blast, and cold blast. Both hot blast and cold blast designs are called tubular
lanterns and are safer than dead flame lamps as tipping over a tubular lantern
cuts off the oxygen flow to the burner and will extinguish the flame within
seconds.The hot-blast design, also known as a "tubular lantern" due
to the metal tubes used in its construction, was invented by John Irwin and
patented on January 12, 1868. The hot-blast design collected hot air from above
the globe and fed it through metal side tubes to the burner, to make the flame
burn brighter.The cold-blast design is similar to the hot-blast, except that
cold fresh air is drawn in from around the top of the globe and is then fed
though the metal side tubes to the flame, making it burn brighter. This design
produces a brighter light than the hot blast design, because the fresh air that
is fed to the flame has plenty of oxygen to support the combustion process.
Kerosene wick lamps should only be operated with kerosene or lamp oil, but
alternative fuels are used in an emergency. Such fuels may produce additional
smoke and odor and may not be usable indoors. Tractor vaporizing oil is made
from kerosene with some additive to make a motor fuel for tractors. No. 1
diesel fuel (also called winter diesel) is about the same as kerosene but with
the additives to make it a motor fuel. Jet a jet-engine fuel is essentially
kerosene with a few additives.
