Faraday to Marc Isambard Brunel   12 February 1836

Royal Institution | 12 Feby 1836

My dear Sir

I feel no doubt that the principle of ventilation might be applied to lights burning ordinary coal gas but then you will require a more effective i.e. a more capacious set of ventilating pipes than for the Cannel coal because common coal gas produced more heat & water for the same proportion of light obtained. Still I see no difficulty in this but should nevertheless by nailing a few boards together to make an air trunk try a preliminary experiment with the first half dozen of the present lights.

If you use common coal gas you will probably find your present gas pipes two [sic] small even now and if so now much too small will they be by the time you are seven eights thro the work i.e. by this time twelve months. [Of] course all this will have occurred to you.

Ever Dear Sir | Very Truly Yours | M. Faraday

M.I. Brunel Esq | &c &c &c

Endorsed: 24th Feb 1836. Read & Resolved that Mr. Brunel be requested to make a Report to the Board this day Fortnight of his proposed Experiments for improving the present mode of Ventilation at the Tunnel BH¹