The Washington herald., 1908-01-12
MONEY FROM WASTE
Company viii Make Wood
Pulp.
CAPITALIZED AT 100000
Plans to Install Special Machinery
at Vancouver, Where All of the
Refuse from the NeighbOring Saw
Mills WIZ Be UtiIized-WiH One
rate by Hydraulic Power.

A report from Consul L. Edwin Dudley
Of Vancouver. states that unusual inter
est Is manifested IN a new Sl,000.0oO comp
any organized in that British Columbian
city. owing to the fact that it will use
the vast waste material from the saw
and shingle mills. including the sawdust,
which is now burned at some expense
to prevent large accumulation. The
consul explains the plans and the propos-
ed processes:
Ihis company first contemplated the
establishment of its plant at Aberdeen.
wash, but was forced to abandon that
location, because it was found that the
supply OF fresh water was insufficient.
After through investigation it finally
arranged for the purchase of eighty acres
opposite Gambler Island, on Howe Sound.
twenty miles from Vancouver. at the
entrance of Rainy River, where there is
an abundant supply of water at all sea-
sons,
By utilizing the water power of the
Rainy River. the company will develop
sufficient water power for mechanical and
II VI
ical grinders for the manufacturer of
ground wood. which is used to supplement
chemical fiber IN the manufacturer of
peper. The plan is TO convey the refuse
of the local mills, of which there is said
to be three thousand tons In this vicinity
IN especially prepared scows to the plant
where the entire mass is 10 be dsinte-
grated into suitable fineness for conver-
sion into wood pulp. This will eliminate
the expense incident to the use of uni
form cut wood which is said TO be the
only method now in general use by the
peper mills throughout eastern Canada
and the United States
One of the Innovations Of the new
company is patented process whereby it
can use Douglas fir and other resinOus
woods in the manufacturer of wood pulp.
Papermakers in the past have never been
able TO use woods containing pitch and
resin for paper purposes. owing in the
difficulty in separating the cellulose from
the pitch, resin, and essential oils; by the
new process all those parts are passed
of In vapor and the fiber Is recovered
by subjecting the mass 10 a system OF
pressing.
Process and Machinery.
The company now has in operation in
Vancouver a complete but small plant for
the manufacturing of pulp and paper,
which fully demonstrates the process and
which Is both ingenious and simple. The
wood is first placed in what is known as
a chipping machine and reduced 10 small
shavings, the shavings pass up a fume
and enter a digester which consists of a
la~e ,rTFr H.
reservoir that ordinarily ranges from eight
10 twelve feet in diameter and twenty
four 70 forty-eight feet in height The
digester is filed with a solution of caustic
soda, and the entire mass Of shavings.
ranging from eight TO ten tons. is
thoroughly cooked under a high pressure
OF steam for several hours. until the cell
lulose is thoroughly released.
The mushy black mass is then re-
moved TO the draining floor or press,
where the caustic soda is separated as
much as possible from the fiber, The
material then passes to the beating ma
chine. which consists of a wooden OF
metal tub ten or fifteen feet long. with
round ends. on the center Of which is a
partition called midfeather. A roller is
provided with knives and it revolves over
bedpiate of similar knives The dis
tance between the bedplate and the roller
is regulated by q wheel and screw The
pulp after II passes between the bedplate
and the roller. flows down the backfall
and around the midfeather back to the
starting point. The machine is also pro- /
vided with a washing cylinder. which /
is so made that as ii reVolves il scoops up ]
the water, which flows through its axis; /
the pulp is kept out by a fine wire gauze /
surrounding the cylinder. A large guam
uty of water is admitted into the heater, 1
which is removed by the drum washer. /
and the pulp is in this manner rapidly |
cleansed.
Modification and Capacity.
During the process of the beating this
pulp Is colored or bleached to any color /
desired. The bleaching is accomplished /
by a solution of chloride of lime. After
passing through the beating engine, the /
whole mass is run through a Jordan re-
1ning engine. This machine consists Of
q stationary hollow comb mounted with
knives on the inside. which fit over a
solid rapidly revolving comb mounted
with similar knives on the outside The
pulp passes between the combs. and the
knives can be brought close together or
with great accuracy, so that the
degree Of fneness Of the pulp can be
adjusted The material is then run into
what is known as a pulp pit, where It is
taken up by the large fourdrinier ma
chimes and run into merchantable paper
of different character and fineness.
The plant. as outlined. will have a ca
pacity of $50 tons Of finished material
per week, consisting Of 200 tons of news
and 100 tons OF manila, wrapping, box
boards. building paper. &c. In addition
TO the local trade, the company proposes
the markets Of Australia and
New Zealand, Japan, and the Western
United States
AS the writer witnessed the working Of
this exhibition machinery, the thought
that there are many uses for
cellulose. The new apparatus seems to
have demonstrated the practicability Of
the waste OF fir and cedar
into cellulose at an expense which may
enable other possessors Of this material
10 follow the process described.