Im- PROVEMENTS IN TREATING AND UTILIZING CERTAIN REFUSE ANIMAL AND VEGETABLE SUBSTANCES, AND THE APPLICATION OF THE RESULTING SUB- . PROVISIONAL SPECIFICATION
Year: 1872

page_text: LETTERS PATENT to William Glazier, of No. 235, Drake Street,
Rochdale, in the County of Lancaster, for the Invention of “Im-
PROVEMENTS IN TREATING AND UTILIZING CERTAIN REFUSE ANIMAL AND
VEGETABLE SUBSTANCES, AND THE APPLICATION OF THE RESULTING SUB-
.
PROVISIONAL SPECIFICATION left by the said William Glazier at
the Office of the Commissioners of Patents, with his Petition, on the
5th November 1872.
I, WILLIAM GLAZIER, of No. 235, Drake Street, Rochdale, in the
County of Lancaster, do hereby declare the nature of the said Invention
for "IMPROVEMENTS IN TREATING AND UTILIZING CERTAIN REFUSE ANIMAL AND
VEGETABLE SUBSTANCES, AND THE APPLICATION OF THE RESULTING SUBSTANCES OR
MATTERS TO VARIOUS MANUFACTURES," to be as follows:-
:-
This Invention consists in utilizing scrap leather of every description,
and the fibrous refuse from wool, cotton, flax, and jute manufactures
and spent dyewoods by combining these materials with silicates and
animal carbon, or the carbon refuse of chemical manufactures, gas tar,

page_text: asphalt, and bitumen in the several ways herein-after described, so as to
make an improved plastic composition or pulp, and also various kinds of
waterproof and fireproof goods, such as seamless incorrodible buckets,
skips," portable receptacles, and tanks for dry closets, cisterns, water
tanks, coffins, pipes, or tubes for sanitary or other purposes, finger plates
and knobs for doors, statuary, and other articles.
$6
My Invention further consists in making from the said materials
slabs or tiles for roofs, fireproof felted sheets or slabs for ceilings and
partition walls, felted floorcloth with painted or indelible patterns and
imitation parquetry.
In carrying my Invention into effect I first make what I term a
cementing composition as follows:-I steep scrap or refuse leather of
any description in hot solutions of common washing soda or other alkali,
and thereby cleanse it from dirt and grease, and extract the tannin, and
thus render the fibre soluble. I then remove the leather, and express
or drive out the liquid which it has absorbed. I then subject the said
leather to the action of steam at a pressure of about 60 lbs. in a suitable
steam-tight vessel, or I boil the said leather (after the treatment with
soda or other alkali) in water under pressure. In either of these ways
I reduce the leather to a gelatinous or gluey mass, to 100 lbs. of which
I add from 1 lb. to 5 lbs. of glycerine and 10 lbs. of pyroligneous acid,
and thus, make a solution which I term solution No. 1. In another
vessel I make a saturated solution of alum in pyroligneous acid, or a
solution of one part by weight of tannic acid in ten parts by weight of
pyroligneous acid, either of which solutions I term solution No. 2. I
then gradually mix the solutions Nos. 1 and 2 while still hot. To the
pyroligneous gelatinous mass thus produced I add a sufficient quantity
of boiled oil to reduce the said mass to a creamy fluid with which I mix
various mineral oxides, or (by preference) dry silicate colours of the tint
required.
The cementing mixture thus made serves to mix with the fibrous
materials to make an improved plastic composition or pulp, and to
coat or saturate felt prepared from such materials, as herein-after
described. I next prepare the fibrous materials according to the material
or article which I wish to produce.
In order to make the improved plastic composition or pulp, herein-
before referred to, I take wool waste, cotton waste, flax waste, and jute

page_text: waste (or any of them), and add thereto a proportion of spent dye
woods. I then add a sufficient quantity of the cementing composition
herein-before described, and incorporate the whole together, so as to
make a homogeneous plastic mass. The mass thus produced is an
improved plastic composition or pulp, which may be rolled, moulded, or
otherwise formed into various useful and ornamental articles.
In making felted articles I reduce the waste fibres of cotton, wool,
flax, or jute to a light fleecy state by passing them through a
"devil."
For "shaped" articles (i.e. articles formed on a mould) I make a mould
of perforated sheet metal similar to the moulds on which felt hats are
formed. By means of suitable machinery I cause this mould to revolve,
and I deposit upon it by means of a blowing machine similar to that
used in the manufacture of felt hats the felting material herein-before
described. When a sufficient thickness has been deposited I remove
from the mould the shape thus formed, and saturate it with my
cementing composition. I then subject the said shape to moderate
pressure in a suitable die or mould, after which I remove the said shape
and allow it to dry for about twenty-four hours, after which I again
press it and completely dry it. It is then finished by being hooped (if
required) and waterproofed with the improved waterproof composition
herein-after described.
In making my improved composite sheets or slabs I prepare felted
sheets by felting the devilled fibres herein-before described in the way
practised in the manufacture of felted carpets, and I saturate such
sheets with my cementing composition, and lay a saturated felted sheet
of a size somewhat larger than that of the required slab on the recipro-
cating table of the machine by which ordinary papier mâché sheets are
rolled. On the said sheets I place a flat iron frame or gauge to regulate
the thickness of the layer of my plastic composition or pulp, which I
then spread on the said sheet in sufficient quantity to fill the said gauge.
I then pass the said sheet under the cylinder, after which I place on the
said sheet a second saturated sheet of felt, which I coat and roll as
before. I proceed in this manner until I have made a slab of the
desired thickness, such slab consisting of alternate layers of the saturated
felt and plastic composition or pulp. I then dry the slab, and press it
either in a hydraulic press or by means of rammers or beaters. Sheets
or slabs thus produced are of great strength, require no surfacing, and

page_text: -
are applicable to the construction of fire-proof roofs, ceilings, and
partitions.
In making waterproof slabs or sheets for outdoor use I proceed as
follows: I take the felted sheets and saturate them with my cementing
composition, as herein-before described. I then press and dry them,
and when they are dry I dip them in or coat them with a waterproof
composition made as follows:-I grind animal carbon or the dried
refuse carbon of chemical manufactures with a sufficient quantity of gas
tar to make a thick paint, which I thin with rectified wood naptha or
turpentine, or with benzine or other hydrocarbons to the consistency of
ordinary paint. After the sheet has been treated with this composition
I place the said sheet upon the reciprocating table, herein-before referred
to, and spread on the said sheet melted asphalt or bitumen. I then
place a second sheet of the prepared felt upon the asphalt or bitumen,
an press the whole together either into a flat or a corrugated slab.
The waterproof composition or paint herein-before last described is
applicable to the protection of iron ships and other iron structures from
rust, and also to the coating of tubs, tanks, tubes, and other articles
made according to my Invention.
Instead of combining several sheets of felt in one slab, as herein. ;
before described, a single sheet of felt may be saturated with my
cementing composition, and passed between rollers and dried. I use
sheets thus prepared as the basis of two kinds of improved floorcloth,
one with patterns printed on its surface, and the other with tesselated or
indelible patterns.
In preparing the improved floorcloth for printed patterns I spread on
the felt a layer or ground prepared as follows:-I take a sufficient
quantity of my cementing composition, and grind up therewith silicate
pigments of the colour and tint required. With this I mix the short
cotton fibres termed "blowings," woollen waste, spent dyewoods, and
finely ground cork, and thoroughly incorporate the whole so as to make
a homogeneous composition, which I spread on the felt, and when it is
dry I print the pattern thereon in the manner in which patterns are
usually printed on floorcloth.
In making tesselated floorcloth I proceed as follows:-I saturate the
sheets of felt with my cementing composition, as herein-before described,
and colour them according to the nattern which I intend to produce. I

page_text: then cut out the pieces constituting such pattern, and affix them by
means of the cementing composition on a sheet of the before-described
felt, or of coarse canvass or calico. When the cement is dry I fill up the
interstices between the said pieces with the ground, and when this is dry
I smooth the surface of the tesselated floorcloth by planing it, rubbing
it with pumice stone, or in any other suitable manner.
By the following modification of the above process I produce duplicate
patterns at the same time. I affix to the felt the pieces constituting the
tesselated pattern as herein-before described, only I cut such pieces from
sheets of double the ordinary thickness. When the said pieces have been
properly affixed to the first backing, and the interstices have been filled
up, and the whole has been dried, as described, I cement another sheet
of felt on the upper side of the tesselated floorcloth and dry the whole,
which done, I divide the compound sheet down the middle by a band
saw or other suitable means, and thus produce two sheets with the same
tesselated pattern, each with its proper backing. By this means I also
produce a cheap substitute for or imitation of parquetry, flooring dado,
wall decorations, and other similar ornamental work.
In making circular, square, elliptical, or other shaped receptacles,
tubs, "skips," boxes, tanks, and cisterns I proceed as follows:-I first
make a metal mould the shape of the interior of the article to be made.
On this mould I make a shape by cementing sheets of brown paper
together, and I coat the said shape with my cementing composition, and
when it is dry I mould on the said shape successive layers of the plastic
composition herein-before described, until the required thickness is
obtained. I then partially dry the article in a moderate temperature for
about 48 hours, after which I subject it to hydraulic pressure in a die or
mould. I then complete the drying of the article, and hoop it when
necessary. I finish. the said article by waterproofing it with the water
proof composition herein-before described.
In some cases in making circular or elliptical vessels I mount the
felted shape or the brown paper shape herein-before referred to on a
spindle or mandril projecting from a headstock, and cause the said
spindle and shape to revolve, and by means of proper gauges and
spreaders I regulate the thickness of the successive layers of the plastic
composition or of the said composition and asphalt as required.
In the manufacture of buckets, closet tubs or receptacles, and other
vessels subject to rough usuage I strengthen them by affixing around

page_text: them one or more strips of calico or canvass, such strips being placed
either outside or between the layers.
For the manufacture of tubes or pipes for sanitary and other purposes
I make a hollow perforated metal mould, the exterior of which is the
size of the interior of the pipe to be made. I cause this mould to revolve,
and deposit thereon the felting material by blowing, as herein-before
described. I then remove the felted shape, and place it on an unper-
forated mould, and then saturate the said shape with the cementing
composition. I then place the said mould with the felted shape thereon
in a mould, the interior of which is the size of the exterior of the pipe to
be made. This mould is made in two parts in order to allow of the
insertion of the shape aforesaid, such parts being held together by
screws, clamps, or other fastenings. One end of this outer mould is
closed, and has small perforations through which the superfluous
cementing fluid escapes. At this end I place a ring of a diameter equal
to that of the pipe to be made, which ring has perforations corresponding
to those in the end of the outer mould. I place one end of the inner
mould in this ring, the other end being placed in a similar ring at the
open end of the outer mould. Having inserted in the said outer mould
the inner mould with the felted shape thereon I close and fasten the said
outer mould, and introduce an annular ram or plunger at the open end,
which ram on being actuated by hydraulic power slides over the inner
mould, and forces inward the ring at that end. The felted material is
thus compressed to the required shape. I then remove from the mould
the pipe thus formed, and dry it and coat it with the waterproof com-
position herein-before described.
:-
In applying my compositions to the interior of iron ships I proceed as
follows I first coat or paint the interior with the waterproof com-
position herein-before described. When this is dry I spread between
the ribs the plastic composition herein-before described, and when this
is dry I again paint the interior with the waterproof composition, and
while that is wet dust or powder it with ground glass and alum in equal
proportions.
The waterproof composition may however be used alone for coating

page_text: SPECIFICATION in pursuance of the conditions of the Letters Patent,
filed by the said William Glazier in the Great Seal Patent Office
on the 5th May 1873.
TO ALL TO WHOM THESE PRESENTS SHALL COME, I, WILLIAM
GLAZIER, of No. 235, Drake Street, Rochdale, in the County of Lan-
caster, send greeting.
WHEREAS Her most Excellent Majesty Queen Victoria, by Her
Letters Patent, bearing date the Fifth day of November, in the year
of our Lord One thousand eight hundred and seventy-two, in the
thirty-sixth year of Her reign, did, for Herself, Her heirs and successors,
give and grant unto me, the said. William Glazier, Her special
license that I, the said William Glazier, my executors, adminis-
trators, and assigns, or such others as I, the said William Glazier,
my executors, administrators, and assigns, should at any time agree with,
and no others, from time to time and at all times thereafter during the
term therein expressed, should and lawfully might make, use, exercise,
and vend, within the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland,
the Channel Islands, and Isle of Man, an Invention for "IMPROVEMENTS
IN TREATING AND UTILIZING CERTAIN Refuse ANIMAL AND VEGETAALE Substances,
AND THE APPLICATION OF THE RESULTING SUBSTANCES OR MATTERS TO VARIOUS
MANUFACTURES," upon the condition (amongst others) that I, the said
William Glazier, my executors or administrators, by an instrument in
writing under my, or their, or one of their hands and seals, should
particularly describe and ascertain the nature of the said Invention,
and in what manner the same was to be performed, and cause the same
to be filed in the Great Seal Patent Office within six calendar months
next and immediately after the date of the said Letters Patent.
NOW KNOW YE, that I, the said William Glazier, do hereby
declare the nature of the said Invention, and in what manner the same
is to be performed, to be particularly described and ascertained in and
by the following statement thereof, that is to say :-
This Invention consists in utilizing scrap leather of every description,
and the fibrous refuse from wool, cotton, flax, and jute manufactures
and spent dyewoods by treating and mixing these materials with
silicates and animal carbon or the carbon refuse of chemical manu-
factures in the several ways herein-after described, so as to make an

page_text: improved plastic composition or pulp, from which I manufacture, as
herein-after described, various kinds of waterproof goods, such as
seamless incorrodible buckets, " skips," portable receptacles, and tanks
for dry closets, cisterns, water tanks, coffins, pipes, or tubes for sanitary
or other purposes, finger plates, and knobs for doors, sanitary and other 5
articles.
My Invention further consists in making from the said materials slabs
or tiles for roofs, fireproof sheets, or slabs for ceilings, and partition
walls, and for protecting iron surfaces from the action of fire.
My Invention further consists in making an improved waterproof 1
composition or paint by mixing carbon, silica, tar, and naptha, or
turpentine, as herein-after described, such composition being applicable
(amongst other purposes) to the waterproofing of articles made of or
with the plastic composition aforesaid.
In carrying my Invention into effect I first make what I term a 1
cementing composition as follows:-I steep scrap or refuse leather of
any description in hot solutions of common washing soda, and thereby
cleanse it from dirt and grease, and extract the tannin, and thus render.
.the fibre soluble. I take, say, 100 lbs. of leather and 5 lbs. of soda, and
place them in a tank or other suitable vessel, and add sufficient boiling 2
water to cover these materials. I steep the leather in this bath for about
12 hours, frequently stirring it to facilitate the removal of the grease
and tannic acid. I then remove the said leather, and steep it in a
second bath of the same strength as the first for another 12 hours, at the
end of which period I remove the leather, and express or drive out the 2
liquid which it has absorbed. I then put the leather thus prepared into
a suitable wire cage, which I insert in a steam-tight vessel or boiler, in
which I subject the said leather to the action of steam at a pressure of
35 to 60 lbs., or I boil the said leather (after the treatment with soda) in
water under pressure. I am aware that leather has heretofore been a
treated with caustic alkalies in order to render it soluble, I therefore
make no claim to the use of caustic alkalies, but prefer to use instead
.common washing soda, as aforesaid, which is cheaper and more efficient
for the purpose. In either of these ways I reduce the leather to a
gelatinous or gluey mass to 100 lbs., of which I add from 5 to 10 lbs. of 3
-glycerine, and 10 lbs. of pyroligneous acid, and thus make a solution
which I term solution No. 1. In another vessel I make a saturated

page_text: solution of alum and pyroligneous acid, which solution I term solution
No. 2. Or I make a solution of one part by weight of tannic acid in
10 parts by weight of pyroligneous acid, which solution I term solution
No. 3. Or I make a solution of acetate of alumina by dissolving
1 lb. of acetate of lead and 1 lb. of alum in one gallon of hot water,
which solution I term solution No. 4. “I then gradually mix the
solutions Nos. 1 and 2, or Nos. 1 and 3, or Nos. 1 and 4 while still hot.
To the gelatinous mass thus produced I add a sufficient quantity of
boiled oil to reduce the said mass to a creamy fluid, with which I mix
various mineral oxides or (by preference) dry silicate colours of the tint
required. The cementing composition thus made serves to mix with the
fibrous materials to make an improved plastic composition or pulp, and
to coat or saturate felt prepared from such materials, as herein-after
described.
The way in which I use the fibrous materials will vary according to
the material or article which I wish to produce.
In order to make the improved plastic composition or pulp, herein-
before referred to, I take wool waste, cotton waste, such as cotton droppings,
scutchings, fan dust, &c., flax waste, and jute waste (or any of them) and
add thereto a proportion of ground spent dyewoods. I then add a sufficient
quantity of the cementing composition herein-before described, and
incorporate the whole together in a pug mill, or other suitable apparatus,
so as to make a homogeneous plastic mass.
The proportion of the fibrous matters to the cementing mixture will
vary according to the nature of such matters, the resulting product
being required to be about the consistence of glaziers' putty. The mass
thus produced is an improved plastic composition or pulp, which may
be rolled, moulded, or otherwise formed into various useful and orna-
mental articles, such as those herein-before mentioned.
Where great strength is required in the articles I place them while
moist in suitable dies, and subject them to hydraulic or other pressure.
I then dry them in suitable drying lofts without great heat (say at a
temperature of 70 degrees Fahrenheit). When the said articles are dry
I coat them (where it is necessary to waterproof them) with the im-
proved composition or paint herein-after described.
In making felted articles I reduce the waste fibres of cotton, wool,
flax, or jute to a light fleecy state by passing them through a "devil."

page_text: For "shaped" articles (i.e. articles formed on a mould) I make a mould
of perforated sheet metal similar to the moulds on which felt hats are
formed. By means of suitable and ordinary machinery for the purpose
I cause this mould to revolve, and I deposit upon it by means of a
blowing machine similar to that used in the manufacture of felt hats the
felting material herein-before described. When a sufficient thickness
has been deposited I remove from the mould the shape. thus formed, and
saturate it (either by steeping or coating) with my cementing com-
position, which I thin down for this purpose with boiled oil, with which
I bring the said composition to the consistence of thick cream. I then
subject the said shape to moderate pressure in a suitable die or mould,
after which I remove the said shape and allow it to dry for about 24
hours, after which I again press it and completely dry it. It is then
finished by being hooped (if required) and waterproofed with the improved
waterproofing composition or paint herein-after described. This part of
my Invention is applicable to the manufacture of circular, cylindrical,
and elliptical articles, such as drain pipes, tubes, tubs, buckets, and skips.
According to another mode of making such articles I proceed as
follows: I first make a mould the shape of the interior of the article to
be made. On this mould I make a shape by cementing sheets of paper
togetlier, and I coat the said shape with my cementing composition
thinned down, as herein-before described, and when it is dry I spread or
mould on the said shape successive layers of the plastic composition,
herein before described, until the required thickness is obtained. I then
remove the article from the mould, and dry the said article at a moderate
temperature for about 48 hours, after which I subject it to hydraulic
pressure in a die or mould. I then complete the drying of the said
article, and hoop it when necessary. The article may however be dried
without being pressed. I waterproof the said article if necessary with
the waterproofing composition herein-after described.
In some cases in making circular or elliptical vessels I mount the
felted shape or the brown paper shape, herein-before referred to, on a
spindle or mandril projecting from a headstock, and cause the said spindle
and shape to revolve, and by means of proper gauges and spreaders I
regulate the thickness of the successive layers of the plastic composition
or of the said composition and asphalte as required.
In the manufacture of buckets, closet tubs, or receptacles, and other
vessels subject to rough usage, I strengthen them by affixing around

page_text: them one or more strips of calico or canvas, such strips being placed
either outside or between the layers.
In making composite sheets or slabs according to my Invention I
proceed as follows:-I first lay a sheet of coarse unsized paper on a
smooth iron reciprocating table, and spread on the said sheet with a
trowel, or in any other suitable way, a layer of the plastic composition
or pulp herein-before described, and I then pass the said table with the
coated sheet thereon under a revolving cylinder so as to give the slab a
uniform thickness. I then place on the said coated sheet another sheet
of paper, and pass them under the cylinder. I then coat with the com-
position and roll as before. In this way I add successive layers of paper
and pulp till I have produced a slab of the required thickness.
thus made may be used for partitions, wainscots, dado, and be otherwise
applied. When the said slabs are to be used as tiles and for horti-
cultural and other purposes involving exposure to moisture I water-
proof the said slabs by coating them with the waterproofing composition
herein-after described.
Slabs
In making fire-resisting sheets or slabs I proceed as herein-before last
described with the exception that I omit the oil from the cementing
composition, which I thin with any one of the solutions herein-before
referred to as solutions Nos. 2, 3, and 4. The fireproofs sheets or slabs
thus produced may be affixed to iron girders, and to plane surfaces of
wood and iron in general, in order to protect them from fire. Such
sheets or slabs thus produced are of great strength, require no surfacing,
and are applicable to the construction of fire-resisting roofs, ceilings,
and partitions, being a great improvement on the papier maché sheets or
slabs heretofore used, which require to be planed or otherwise surfaced
before they can be coated or painted.
.
In making slabs on which to spread asphalte for floors, flats, gutters,
roofs, and other surfaces I proceed as herein-before last described, with
the exception that I roughen the surface of such slabs either by pressing
upon them while moist coarse wire gauze, or in any other suitable way,
in order to give the asphalte a better hold.
Instead of making composite sheets or slabs of alternate layers of
paper and pulp, as above described, I sometimes cement two or more
sheets of paper together with the cementing composition (thinned
down) herein-before referred to. I thus obtain a dense hard slab of
great rigidity.

page_text: The improved plastic composition or pulp, herein-before described,
may be moulded to suit iron columns and girders as a protection against
fire, being affixed thereto by means of clips or brackets.
My Invention further consists of the improved waterproofing com-
position or paint, herein-before referred to, which I make as follows:-I
grind animal carbon or the dried refuse carbon of chemical manufactures
and silica with a sufficient quantity of gas tar to make a thick paint,
which I thin with wood or coal naptha or with turpentine to the con-
sistence of ordinary paint. This waterproof composition or paint is
applicable to the protection of iron ships and other iron structures from
rust, and also to the coating of tubs, tanks, tubes, sheets, slabs, and
other articles made according to my Invention, and also to the
coating of surfaces in general which have to be protected from wet or
moisture.
Having now described the nature of my Invention, and the manner
in which the same is to be performed, I claim as my said Invention,—.
Firstly. Making the cementing composition herein-before referred to
by reducing scrap or waste leather to a gelatinous mass, essentially as
herein-before described, and mixing therewith glycerine and pyroligneous
acid and the solution No. 2 or the solution No. 3 and dry mineral oxides
or silicate colours with or without boiled oil, essentially as described.
Secondly. Mixing with the aforesaid cementing composition fibrous
refuse, essentially as herein-before described, and thereby producing a
plastic composition or pulp capable of being rolled, moulded, or otherwise
formed into various useful and ornamental articles.
Thirdly. Making buckets, tubs, and other circular, cylindrical, or
elliptical articles by first blowing waste fibres onto a revolving perforated
metal mould of the required shape, and then saturating the felted shape
thus produced with the aforesaid cementing composition, essentially as
herein-before described.
Fourthly. Making tubs, skips, coffins, tanks, and other articles or
receptacles by cementing sheets of paper together with the aforesaid
cementing composition on a mould of the required shape, and coating
with such composition the paper shape thus produced, and then
spreading or moulding on the said shape successive layers of the afore-
said plastic composition until the required thickness is obtained,
essentially as herein-before described.

page_text: Fifthly. The improved waterproofing composition or paint, herein-
before described, that is to say, a composition or paint consisting of
carbon, silica, and gas tar ground together, and thinned with naptha or
with turpentine, essentially as herein-before described.
Sixthly. Making composite sheets or slabs for various useful purposes
by combining alternate layers of paper and the aforesaid plastic com-
position, or of paper and the aforesaid cementing composition, essentially
as herein-before described, and coating the sheet or slab thus pro-
duced with the aforesaid waterproofing composition or paint when
necessary.
Seventhly. Making fire-resisting sheets or slabs by combining sheets
of paper with the aforesaid cementing composition made for that purpose
without oil, essentially as herein-before described.
•
In witness whereof, I, the said William Glazier, have hereunto set
my hand and seal, this Fifth day of May, in the year of our
Lord One thousand eight hundred and seventy-three.
Witness,
H. H. MURDOCH,
7, Staple Inn,
London.
WILLIAM GLAZIER. (L.S.)