Year: 1898

page_text: I, PIERRE PESSE, of Marcq en Baroeul, Nord, in the Republic of France,
Engineer, do hereby declare the nature of this invention and in what manner the
same is to be performed, to be particularly described and ascertained in and! by the
following statement:―
This invention relates to a process for the purification and decoloration of
liquids.
Animal charcoal in the form of grains of larger or smaller size is now used in
connection with filters, cisterns scrubbers and the like for the decoloration and
purification of various liquids such use necessitating the employment of a con-
siderable staff.
Further, the cleaning of the filters requires a quantity of water, and causes a
considerable loss in the material under treatment carried over in this water and
in the charcoal itself.
By the use of, the process forming the subject of the present invention, the incon-
veniences above referred to are to a great extent obviated and the cost of purifica-
tion is considerably diminished.
The improved process consists in decolorating and purifying liquids (such as
syrup from sugar works or refineries, glucose, molasses, products from distilleries
and the like, in short all liquids which are at all colored or impure) by animal
charcoal, in the state of an impalpable powder, or otherwise, under the following
conditions.
The liquids, acid or alkaline, have powdered charcoal added thereto in pro-
portion to the degree of purification to be obtained and are heated to a temperature,
which may be varied to suit the product treated in a special mixer hereinafter
described, or in any other apparatus which will accomplish the same end. The
liquids may however be treated cold if desired. The liquid is kept in motion for
a time varying according to the particular liquid under treatment and is filtered
through filter presses or by other suitable means, in such a way as to separate
the charcoal from the liquid, which can be filtered again, to recover the last traces
of charcoal. The cake of charcoal charged with impurities, may be completely
or partially washed, and may serve again, as will be hereinafter described. In
the treatment of a second liquid of the same nature as the first, but less pure, as
in sugar works and refineries with the residue from the action of the centrifugal

page_text: machine, this liquid may be treated in the same manner as before, by using the
cake of impure charcoal resulting from the preceding operation. These cakes,
previously divided, have still a considerable purifying power, and enable the
decoloration and purification of these liquids to be carried out without the employ-
ment of fresh material.
This second mixture is filtered as above, and the cake washed in the ordinary
manner. This process particularly in sugar works and sugar refineries enables
a large part of the residue of the preceding boiling to be put back to the boiling
of the first charge or to be refined and in doing so to dispense with the second
charge in sugar works and to considerably diminish the green syrup in refineries.
When it is desired to purify only one and the same liquid, the following process
may be followed. The cake obtained by the filtration of a first mixture is again
placed in a mixing apparatus, and serves for a first purification of the original
liquid. This filtered product yields a liquid and a cake. This cake is washed,
and then regenerated. The liquid is submitted to a fresh purification, with an
equal quantity of fresh or regenerated charcoal then filtered again. The
cake thus obtained, serves, such as it is, to purify the original liquid
which is submitted, secondly, to the action of the fresh or regener-
ated charcoal. The purification is thus greatly augmented, entirely by
using only, proportionally the same quantity of charcoal. In the case of the
employment of a single mixing apparatus, any proportion whatever of the cake
obtained in the filtration may be again placed in this apparatus, in such a manner
that the proportion of the purifying matter will be augmented, without incurring
fresh expense.
The cake of charcoal is suitably washed, dried, then regenerated by the ordinary
methods, and may be used afresh under the same conditions, or may be sold as
manure.
For example in refineries; the initial syrup which I will call 1 is mixed with
the cake which I will call 2, obtained by the purification of the second syrup,
which I will call syrup 12, and then filtered. I have on the one hand a cake which
is to be regenerated, and a syrup which is the syrup 13. This syrup 13 is then
mixed with new, or regenerated charcoal, and filtered. The cake thus obtained is
cake 2 which will serve to purify the initial syrup 1 of the following operation.
This syrup 13 thus obtained is completely purified and sent direct to be boiled.
In the accompanying drawing I have shown an apparatus by which the above
described process may be carried into effect.
Figure 1 is a longitudinal section of the mixer.
Figure 2 is a plan of the same.
Figure 3 is a transverse section on the line C D of Figure 2 and
Figure 4 shows a diagrammatic view of the whole of the apparatus used in
this process.
Referring to Figure 4 of the drawing a is the reservoir which receives the
syrup which flows out through the automatic valve E; M is the mixer having
agitating vanes H¹; G is a valve for regulating the flow of the syrup; 6 the pump;
C the filter press; d an empty vat; e a mechanical filter, and f the empty vat of
the boiling apparatus.
Each operation may be made in accordance with the diagram Figure 4, the
details of the apparatus being shown in Figures 1, 2 and 3.
The liquid to be purified which is contained in a vat a flows in to the mixer M
through an automatic valve E, the opening of which is regulated by the float
valve G, in such manner that the said mixer is always full of liquid digesting the
charcoal,
The liquid from the valve falls on a paddle wheel H which operates a helix L.
This helix feeds the charcoal from the receiver K into the mixer, in proportion
to the quantity of liquid passing through the valve.
The charcoal and the liquid fall onto a grating formed of bars 0, 01, 01, 0111
intended to facilitate the mixture of the two substances. The mixture then passes

page_text: into the mixer M, divided by the partitions P, P1, P1, P1, in such a way that the
liquid is obliged to pass successively through the apertures R, R¹, R and R
formed alternately at the top and bottom of the said partitions and then through
the outlet S. By this means the space between the partitions P and P¹ must be
illed before the liquid can pass into the next space and so on. The mixer is
provided with arms intended to keep the mass in motion, and with a double steam
bottom to enable the desired temperature to be obtained and maintained. A
thermometer T indicates this temperature. The float valve regulating tho
admission of the syrup is arranged in a side box G, communicating with the mixer
n such a way that the float valve will not be subjected to the effect of the eddies
caused by the arms, which would prevent a regular flow. V is the extractor, X
the outlet of the syrup to be filtered, Y the air cock, and Z the steam cock.
Having now particularly described and ascertained the nature of my said
nvention and in what manner the same is to be performed, I declare that what
I claim is:
1. The use of animal charcoal in the state of a more or less fine powder for the
purification and decoloration of liquid in such a manner that the charcoal after-
wards separated from the purified liquid, may be used again before being regener-
ated as a preliminary means of purifying a liquid more impure, or the same liquid
before its final purification, for the purpose of increasing the purification and the
lecoloration without additional cost for purifying material.
2. The arrangement of the automatic mixing apparatus, characterized by:
I. An inlet valve for the liquid, regulated automatically by the level of this
liquid in the apparatus.
II. The automatic supply of the purifying material in quantities proportional
to the liquid to be purified.
III. A series of partitions in the form of baffle plates forcing the liquid and
the purifying material to remain in contact in successive portions, and pre-
venting any portion whatever of the mixture from leaving the apparatus
before the preceding portion has left it.
'
Dated this 4th day oI
HASELTINE, LAKE & Co.,
45, Southampton Buildings, London, W.C.,
Agents for the Applicant.
HASELTINE, LAKE & Co.,
45, Southampton Buildings, London, W.C.,
Agents for the Applicant.