A Kingston valve is a type of

valve A valve is a device or natural object that regulates, directs or controls the flow of a fluid (gases, liquids, fluidized solids, or slurries) by opening, closing, or partially obstructing various passageways. Valves are technically fittings ...

fitted in the bottom of a

ship A ship is a large watercraft that travels the world's oceans and other sufficiently deep waterways, carrying cargo or passengers, or in support of specialized missions, such as defense, research, and fishing. Ships are generally distinguished ...

's plating that connects the

sea The sea, connected as the world ocean or simply the ocean, is the body of salty water that covers approximately 71% of the Earth's surface. The word sea is also used to denote second-order sections of the sea, such as the Mediterranean Sea, ...

to the ship's piping and

storage tank Storage tanks are containers that hold liquids, compressed gases (gas tank; or in U.S.A "pressure vessel", which is not typically labeled or regulated as a storage tank) or mediums used for the short- or long-term storage of heat or cold. The t ...

s. A Kingston valve is a type of

seacock A seacock is a valve on the hull of a boat or a ship, permitting water to flow into the vessel, such as for cooling an engine or for a salt water faucet; or out of the boat, such as for a sink drain or a toilet. Seacocks are often a Kingston va ...

. It is arranged so that, under normal operating conditions, sea pressure keeps the valve closed. When opened from the ship's interior, the Kingston valve allows sea water to enter the tank. The mechanism was introduced in 1837 by John Kingston (1786–1847), an English engineer after whom it is named.

Surface ships

On surface ships, Kingston valves are fitted on ship systems such as

fuel A fuel is any material that can be made to react with other substances so that it releases energy as thermal energy or to be used for work. The concept was originally applied solely to those materials capable of releasing chemical energy but ...

tanks,

water Water (chemical formula ) is an inorganic, transparent, tasteless, odorless, and nearly colorless chemical substance, which is the main constituent of Earth's hydrosphere and the fluids of all known living organisms (in which it acts as a ...

tanks, and

ballast Ballast is material that is used to provide stability to a vehicle or structure. Ballast, other than cargo, may be placed in a vehicle, often a ship or the gondola of a balloon or airship, to provide stability. A compartment within a boat, ship, ...

tank A tank is an armoured fighting vehicle intended as a primary offensive weapon in front-line ground combat. Tank designs are a balance of heavy firepower, strong armour, and good battlefield mobility provided by tracks and a powerful engin ...

s. The valve allows sea water to enter the tank. For fuel tanks, the purpose was cleaning the tanks. On water tanks, the Kingston valve gave ship engineers the ability to blow out increasingly salty water from the system, by safely and easily operating the valve from the interior of the ship. Sea water was used in the ship's steam-powered propulsion system, with water being injected and ejected from the boilers. Water, controlled by a Kingston valve, could be deliberately taken on board to act as

below the waterline. This provided additional stability and maneuvering. Some shipboard safety systems may also incorporate Kingston valves. Uses include the fire extinguishing system and the system to flood the artillery magazine.

Submarines

Submarine ballast tanks, before saddle tanks (Warships To-day, 1936)

On vintage

submarines A submarine (or sub) is a watercraft capable of independent operation underwater. It differs from a submersible, which has more limited underwater capability. The term is also sometimes used historically or colloquially to refer to remotely o ...

, Kingston valves are fitted at the bottom of certain ballast tanks, such as safety, negative, and bow buoyancy tanks. The submarine's

ballast tank A ballast tank is a compartment within a boat, ship or other floating structure that holds water, which is used as ballast to provide hydrostatic stability for a vessel, to reduce or control buoyancy, as in a submarine, to correct trim or list, ...

valves are used to admit water when the submarine dives. The valves allow water to enter the ballast tanks, while the enclosed air escapes through the open main vents at the top of the ballast tanks. During peacetime the Kingston valves are closed when the submarine is on the surface, the valves and vents being opened to dive, but to reduce the time required for diving in wartime the Kingston valves are left permanently open when at sea, the water being kept out of the ballast tanks by the air pressure of the trapped air. This pressure is released when the vents are opened for diving, allowing the water to enter through the open Kingston valves. In general, ''main ballast tanks'' have the Kingston valve atop the tank. This Kingston valve, controllable both manually and hydraulically, is known by some as ''main vent operating gear.'' Main ballast tanks are in pairs, one on each side of the boat. One Kingston valve serves a pair, but each tank has a vent riser, with air connections and stop valves in the vent riser. The tank bottom is open to the sea through flood ports. The trapped air in the tank provides positive buoyancy while on the surface, although sea water sloshing in through the flood ports must be removed occasionally from the ballast tank(s) when cruising on the surface by means of low pressure air. The tank is capped by a vent riser, a pipe coming out of the top of the tank that terminates at a Kingston valve. In the vent riser is a valve that when shut, prevents flooding the tank when the submarine is rigged for surface. When the sub is rigged for dive, this valve is opened and flooding the tank becomes an option. Normally, the tank is flooded when the Kingston valve is opened, usually hydraulically from the control room. This Kingston valve then is left open until time to surface comes. This is because a slight leak of air from the air line provided to blow the tank into the vent riser could slowly make the boat more buoyant. When surfacing, the Kingston valve gets shut so the introduced air gets trapped in the tank and pushes the water out the tank's bottom through the flood port. The Kingston valve associated with each ballast tank can be operated manually. The vent riser valves get opened or shut manually during the rig for surface or rig for dive procedure.

Use in deliberate sinking

Kingston valves can be used to scuttle (deliberately sink) a ship. Famous examples include the Russian battleships ''Sevastopol'' and ''Potemkin'' in 1905, the interned Imperial German High Seas Fleet at Scapa Flow in 1919 or the German aircraft carrier ''Graf Zeppelin'' in 1945. The

Imperial Japanese Navy The Imperial Japanese Navy (IJN; Kyūjitai: Shinjitai: ' 'Navy of the Greater Japanese Empire', or ''Nippon Kaigun'', 'Japanese Navy') was the navy of the Empire of Japan from 1868 to 1945, when it was dissolved following Japan's surrender ...

battleship '' Kirishima'' was scuttled by the opening of her Kingston valves, after she had received extensive damage during the

Second Naval Battle of Guadalcanal The Naval Battle of Guadalcanal, sometimes referred to as the Third and Fourth Battles of Savo Island, the Battle of the Solomons, the Battle of Friday the 13th, or, in Japanese sources, the , took place from 12 to 15 November 1942, and was t ...

References

{{reflist 19th-century inventions Plumbing valves Watercraft components Submarine design English inventions

Surface ships

Submarines

Use in deliberate sinking

See also

References