The morning news. [volume] (Savannah, Ga.) 1887-1900, 1894-05-14
TURPENTINE DIsrILLING.
The Advantage of the French Method
Over the American


prices and under the present mode of pro-
duction and distillation. 1t will be,
therefore. interesting. to know how other
nations manage to produce rosin and
spirits of turpentine and make money in
the business.
The largest amount of turpentine pro
duced outside of the United States is I'M
doubleday in France, where the annual
production amounts to 100000 barrels of
crude turpentiue. The barrels, il is true.
only weigh about half as much our bar
reIs and much of this crude gum is merely
melted and strained and is placed on the
market as crude turpentine and is known
IN commerce as "krench gallipot" If
the French turpentine operator would
follow the crude and faulty American
method Ofdistilling, he would be irretriev-
ably ruined during a single season,
While with their system the business is
quite profitable TO the thrifty French
man. The celebrated French chemist
Violet introduced many years ago a
method of distilling crude fine gum with
superheated steam, instead of an open
hre, and this method is still in general
use In France to-day
The plan is simple enough and consists
mainly IN passing steam from a common
which are exposed to a lively fire. The
steam Is thereby superheated and can be
Kept at any desired tempera ture, by
simply accelerating or retarding the pass
age through the heated pipes The super
heated steam is then conducted into the
mass OF crude gum by eight branch
pipes, which have numerous perfora-
lions. The steam passes through the
gum and carries the spirits of turpentine
IC lnA
cooled copper coil, where it is condensed,
and as long as there are any spirits of
turpentlne discharged from the worm,
the operation is continued.
by the French method the entire amount
or spirits Of turpentine contained in the
crude gum is always recovered, which
amounts to % per cent. in virgin dip and
to 10 per cent. or II per cent. in yellow
dip and less in scrape gun. while by the
dlstlllatlon over an open fire the usual re-
suits are about 10 per cent. to II per cent.
OF spirits from virgin dip and IL per cent.
to u per cent. from old gum or scrape.
BY the American method from per
cent to g per cent. of spirits of turpentine
always remain in the rosin and which is
lost to everybody except the distiller OF
roSln oil, who RECEIVERS the whole of this
amount
1t is evident, therefore, that the distill-
JufDe0Iln
IS carried on in a very crude, wasteful
and irrational way In the first place.
the heat obtained in distilling over an
open fire is entirely to high and causes
more or less Charring of chips, pine straw
and other impurities, which are ALWAYS
mixed with the crude gum, and which are
hound to depreciate the rosin by giving it
dark color. To distill spirits of turpen-
tine temperature of 260 degrees F. is am
pie, while as a rule the temperature OBJ
tanned by the distiller over an open tire
will range from $40 degrees to $50 de-
grees. At a temperature of 424 degrees
wood begins to char, and becomes red,
and at the same temperature tar is also
being formed, and both combine to pro-
duce dark rosins of comparatively little
value. The quality of the rosin is often
sacrificed in the vain attempt to obtain all
the spirits, which is utterly impossible
over an open fire.
The large. increase of 40 per cent. ad-
ditional spirits of turpentine is not the
only benefit that is derived from the
Violet method. The rosins are produced
at such low temperature that no char
ing takes place, nor is it possible. The
percolation of the steam through the gum
is virtually a very perfect mechanical
washing of the rosin. Both have the
effect to produce invariably the
finest possible grades of rosin.
The Violet apparatus has also
a device that filters the rosin after dis
tillation under a pressure of sixty or
seventy pounds of steam. This steam
flJering is so perfect that no impurities
can be embodied in the rosin, and clear
pale rosin is obtained. The loss by steam
tiltering is also much less than by the
American method.
In distilling virgin dip gum the produc-
tion of window glass and water white is
always insured, as their production does
not depend on the skill of the distiller,
but is caused entirely by physical means,
which are always reliable; event when
yellow dip or scrape gum is distilled by
superheated steam no rosin below G or
H is ever produced. With some
alterations and additions the French
system can be applied to any
common turpentine still. The filter
ing device consists of sheet iron cylin-
der, with movable perforated bottom.
This cylinder is steam acketed, and the
rosin is kept warm while the pressure
of the steam strains the rosin through
coarse cloth. A ten horse power boiler
will furnish ample steam to operate two
stills and the additional cost of the plant
would be saved many times over during
a single season. Anybody capable of
taking care of boiler and who can read
the scale on a thermometer can opel ate
such plant if once taught, and while it
is true that the French method is much
slower than the American, charge be-
ing run in three to four hours, while by
the Violet method a charge requires
from eight TO ten hours, the same
attendant can operate several stills at
the same time.
To fully illustrate the difference in
yield by the two methods, the following
statement will show the commercial ad-
vantage of the French system
One charge of 1000 pounds of virgin
dip gum will yield by the open fire distil-
lation:
~ pounds of spirits OF turpentine, on
80 gallons, worth, say rs cents ........ $40 so
5]a barrels Of rosin weighing 450 of an
average grade l, equal to 81 gauge
barrels, at Sl.9O ..................... 10 Is
Value of charge .................. $85 s.
The yield by superheated steam is %
per cent of spirits on 1000 pounds,
equal to $50 pounds, or 125 gallons, at
70 Genus. .......-........ So2 %
> barrels window glass rosin, equal to
gauge barrels at S2.70, ............. 81 90
Value of charge ..................... s54 10
This shows a balance in favor of the
French method of S1S.4S for each charge
distilled. On yellow dips the profit
is not quite so large, but it will still
exceed $40 on each charge, and as each
still runs aboutthree charges per day, the
profit on a superheated still will range
from $50 to sos per day. The profit de-
rived from operating French still a sin