Wauwatosa news. [volume] (Wauwatosa, Wis.) 1900-1948, 1916-10-27

fSAU1 ulSpoSlng OF the waste of
" cities and towns. In No
vember Of last year the first
experimental plant of the new garbage
disposal process was established in San
Antonio, Tex. 1t proved so successful
that the city of Austin decided to order
the construction of a plant, and the
factory, which was opened a few weeks
ago, is now running to full capacity.
taking care of all refuse in a sanitary
manner and converting it into bricks
OF fuel which tests have proved to be
the equal of bituminous coal. The in
ventor OF the new fuel is Mr.. f. L. Gull
yer OF Chicago, who began investigat-
ing the possibility and practicabiIity
OF cOmmercializing municipal garbage
about five years ago. AS a result of
long series of experiments he proved
the adaptability of method for maxi
ing fuel bricks out of the refuse. In
addition to the plant at Austin, Regina,
Canada, has entered into contract for
the erection Of a municipal plant.
The process Of manufacturing
Oakoal, name given to the new fuel
because of it's similarity to oak wood in
burning, is similar to the making of
stiff mud bricks, practically the same
machinery being used, although much
less power is used, and less care is re
quired to produce perfect bricks of
fuel. The combination producing the
BEST results for domestic purposes is a
mixture of equal parts of coal dust
she waste dust from coal mines-and
garbage, with the addition of about
per cent of coal tar. For steam pur-
poses no coal dust is required. Each
brick weighs, when dry, two pounds,
so that 1000 bricks make a ton. For
convenience in handling, as well as the
protection of the public against short
weights, the fuel is SOLD on a schedule
Of prices for 1000 or 100 bricks.
One stiff mud brick machine of the
type used at the Austin plant turns
out in eight hours run, $4,000 bricks,
or % tons of Oakoal, and in erecting
plants this is termed a one-unit plant,
which has full capacity of IS tons
dal.y In erecting municipal plants,
other units can be installed to suit the
capacity of the city, or until all of the
available binding material of the city
IS consumed. 1t is estimated that a
city win produce for each one thou
sand people approximately a ton of
garbage a day, or for domestic pur-
poses over two tons of brick fuel.
The manufacture of the new fuel is
extremely interesting inasmuch as it
Is made up entirely of waste material
handled by common labor. The waste
winch the city formerly had to burn
III an incinerator at a considerable eX-
pense is now taken by carts direct to
the factory, where it is dumped on a
sorting platform and sprayed with
Ueosote as sanitary precaution, as
wen as to allow the sorters to work
~ comfort. Openings are provided in
ehese platforms where the different
parts OF the garbage are dropped into
cohVeyors and conveyed as follows:
me pieces of iron to a storage; the
ootties TO washing tank, where they
are Sterilized before being stored; the
rags 10 a washing machine. where they
are Sterilized by being washed in boil
.ls wafer; the ashes, stone. brick. etc,
~ d storage and used for fills, and the
IA cans to a press where they are
'aleu and conveyed to storage.
mat which is left and of a combust-
'0'e nature is placed on a large 40-foot