IMPROVE- MENTS IN THE PROCESS OF AND APPARATUS FOR TREATING AND PURIFYING SEWAGE AND POLLUTED WATERS, WHICH IMPROVEMENTS ARE APPLICABLE FOR COLLECTING THE SOAP, GREASE, AND OILS FOR THE MANUFACTURE OF GAS AND FOR REMOVING INCRUSTATION IN STEAM BOILERS
Year: 1875

page_text: LETTERS PATENT to George Rydill, of 8, Quality Court, Chancery
Lane, in the County of Middlesex, for the Invention of "IMPROVE-
MENTS IN THE PROCESS OF AND APPARATUS FOR TREATING AND PURIFYING
SEWAGE AND POLLUTED WATERS, WHICH IMPROVEMENTS ARE APPLICABLE FOR
COLLECTING THE SOAP, GREASE, AND OILS FOR THE MANUFACTURE OF GAS AND
FOR REMOVING INCRUSTATION IN STEAM BOILERS."
Sealed the 25th March 1875, and dated the 3rd February 1875.
PROVISIONAL SPECIFICATION left by the said George Rydill at the
Office of the Commissioners of Patents, with his Petition, on the
3rd February 1875.
I, GEORGE RYDILL, of 8, Quality Court, Chancery Lane, in the
County of Middlesex, do hereby declare the nature of the said Inven-
tion for "IMPROVEMENTS IN THE PROCESS OF AND APPARATUS FOR TREATING AND
PURIFYING SEWAGE AND POLLUTED WATERS, WHICH IMPROVEMENTS ARE APPLICABLE
FOR COLLECTING THE SOAP, GREASE, AND OILS FOR THE MANUFACTURE OF GAS AND
FOR REMOVING INCRUSTATION IN STEAM BOILERS," to be as follows:-
1
This Invention of improvements is for the treatment of sewage and

page_text: '
dye waters for preventing the pollution of rivers and streams, and may
be carried out in several ways, which are intended to .be worked in
conjunction with my improvements in machinery and apparatus in the
construction and working of vessels, tanks, reservoirs, areas, and
materials used for the purification of sewage and other polluted waters
named in my Specification dated January 14th 1875, No. 150.
As it is my intention to embrace the workings of nature as much as
possible in this Invention of improvements for the purification of sewage
and polluted waters, I will remark that I am acquainted with the river
Calder, and at a certain part of its stream this river is so contaminated
with sewage and dye waters that no fish can live in it. After the said
waters have passed over three weirs and travelled the distance of four
miles the matter is so oxidized that fish may be seen living in the water
and supporting the higher orders of animal and vegetable life.
I have also in experiments imperfectly filtered sewage waters, and by
the action of air brought in contact with the imperfectly filtered water
caused the said water to be void of any appearance of once being sewage
water. I give this description of the workings of polluted river water,
and my experiments with sewage and polluted waters, in order that I
may clearly explain how polluted waters have been by nature purified,
also experimentally treated and purified without the application of any
added chemicals simply by filtering under vacuum and pressure through
clean sieved coal fire ashes of dwellings or furnaces, and then-sub-
jecting the water to the action of the air by blowing or forcing air
through the filtered water to supply oxygen to the decomposed organic
matter, after which a fish has lived in the water.
In describing this Invention of improvements I feel it my duty
clearly to explain how sewage is contaminated with several most
valuable substances. It is well known that in all towns sewage is
impregnated with soap, greasy, and oily waters. In woollen districts,
soap and oily matters from fulling mills run into the sewers and streams,
which only serve to assist decomposition and to create noxious gases.
There are several important reasons for utilising and collecting these
soapy, greasy, and oily waters from dwellings and factories, both
sanitary and also valuable for the manufacture of gas of great illumi-
nating power, preventing the fatty acids combining with the earthy salts
in the water to form insoluble soaps, and slimy scum which, having once

page_text: become mixed with sewage and polluted waters would soon cause porous
filter beds to be made up. By collecting these soapy, greasy, and oily
waters, the porous filter beds work more rapid, better, and longer,
causing filteration of sewage and polluted streams to be successfully
worked, both under vacuum and pressure, also causing irrigation the
same as filteration to be worked more successfully.
At present the polluted and fatty acid waters combine with the earthy
salts in the sewage, and on lands forming insoluble soaps and slimy
scum, which give off unpleasant odours and injurious gases, both in the
sewers, rivers, streams, and on lands, causing grass and other cultivated
lands irrigated with sewage containing these fatty acids and insoluble
soaps, on which cattle have to graze, to be unpleasant to the taste and
'unhealthy for cattle to graze upon. I prefer to collect the soap and
greasy waters of factories and at dwellings by running them direct from
the sink or slop stone on to a filter bed of sieved, ground, or crushed
ashes, cinders, or scale, known as coal fire ashes, cither from dwellings,.
steam boiler or other furnaces, or through ground or crushed clinkers,
rubbish, brick pieces, stones, earthenware, earths, dust, refuse barks, and
other refuse substances, refuse animal charcoal, dross, shrive, allum,
shale, and other porous substances.
Coal fire ashes being of little or no value I prefer the adoption of their
use, so that which is now a worthless refuse becomes a useful agent as a
purifier of polluted waters when used for purposes of filteration. It
is important to keep the ashes dry in a box under cover, free from
decayed substances. The filter vessel may be made of any required
dimensions, containing a perforated bottom; or a filter vessel having
a chamber, as described in my Specification dated January 14th 1875,
No. 150, may be used and placed at any convenient place in the yard.
The clear water run from the filter bed may be conducted into the closet
instead of direct into the drain.
Collecting and removing these soapy, greasy, and oily waters, so, that
they do not pass into the drains and sewers will considerably reduce
those unpleasant odours and injurious sewage gases known to accumu-
late in the sewers, and so improve the health of towns.
By running the soap and greasy
waters from the sink or slop stone on
to the filter bed, the sink or slop stone pipe does not form a direct
communication with the drains and sewers, so the noxious gases are

page_text: prevented from escaping into the dwellings. I prefer to erect two filter
vessels in the yard, one connected with the sink or slop stone, to filter
the soap and greasy waters; and the other for dirty waters, not con-
taminated with soap or grease. This arrangement allows the soap and
grease collected on the filter, to be more free from dirt for the manu-
facture of gas or for other purposes; which is collected by scraping off
the soap and grease from the top of the filter bed, which filter vessels
may be covered over with a pierced lid. This method of preventing the
soap and greasy waters entering the drains and sewers will prevent the
sides of the sewers from being heaped up with slimy matter and offensive
rubbish, so that flushing of the sewers will be less frequent.
1
As it may be long before sanitary authorities are disposed to adopt the
aforesaid improvements of collecting the soap, grease; and oil in the
waters from dwellings for the manufacture of gas, preservation of health;
and keeping the drains and sewers cleaner, I therefore treat the whole of
the mixed impurities of sewage and polluted waters as they are at
present collected in the sewers of towns.
In order to prevent the porous filter beds from making up in the
vessels, tanks, reservoirs, and areas from the fatty acids, insoluble soaps,
and slimy scum, I first precipitate in a tank or in one of my improved
filter vessels, tanks; reservoirs, and areas, as described in my Specification
of January 14, 1875, No. 150, the mixed sewage and polluted waters;
also acid dye waters with caustic soda liquid, which precipitates the
heavy impurities; or clear lime water from washed lime may be used;
according to the mixed contamination of the
waters.
sewage
In manufacturing districts where much äcid liquids pass into the
sewage caustic soda liquid may be used to precipitate. In other parts
of the country wliere few acids become mixed with sewage and polluted
waters, caustic soda and clear lime water may be used combined, or clear
lime water alone may be used. When the heavy matters are precipitated
the clear top water is run into the filter vessel; tank, reservoir; or area to
be filtered, and having passed through one filter bed may afterwards pass
upwards or downwards through other filter beds, in order to purify and
remove organic matter as much as possible.
In many of the manufacturing districts in the country the streams
forming a water supply for steam boilers and condensing engines are
11th comes and dus waters The dve waters are ima

page_text: pregnated with sulphuric, muriatic, nitric, and other acids, as well as
other impurities. Such sewage and polluted waters are mostly used for
condensing the steam in condensing steam engines. Supplying the
steam boilers with water in a polluted condition causes the bottom of
steam boilers to be heavily charged with dark impure substances, causing
boilers to prime and valves to choke up.
To purify the said sewage and polluted waters I treat them with caustic
soda liquid in a vessel, tank, or reservoir, to precipitate the heavy sub-
stances. I then pass the clear top water through a filter of sieved ground
or crushed ashes, so that the filtered waters are perfectly clear. This
method of treating sewage and polluted waters prevents soap, greasy,
and oily waters from passing into the steam boilers to form insoluble
soapy matters with the lime salts present in the water forming a deposit
and incrustation. The sewage and polluted waters may be treated with
caustic soda before or after they pass into the hot well.
Treating sewage and polluted waters with caustic soda liquid not only
precipitates the said dye colouring matters, but after filtering the same it
prevents priming in steam boilers and removes incrustation.
I have now described in what manner I procure clear water from
sewage and polluted streams, but as soap and grease collects in the drains
I and sewers with other refuse matters, polluted waters do from many
causes, such as drains not always being in use, so that stagnant polluted.
waters remain for days or weeks together, by which the organic matter
becomes decomposed, and depriving the water of oxygen renders it.
impossible for the higher organisms to live in it unless it absorbs from
the atmosphere enough oxygen to replace that consumed. It is almost
impossible to remove entirely by filteration all trace of such contami-
nation, so that the matter requires to be oxidized to cause the waters to
be unobjectionable for use. I therefore pass the waters which have been
filtered or cleared into a reservoir or channel of any required depth, but
I prefer it not so deep when the saving of power is of moment. I place
along the reservoir or channel bottom, or near its bottom, perforated
pipes, which may be lengthways or crossways. The ends of the
perforated pipes are unpierced, so that they may pass through the side
or sides or end of the reservoir or channel, which may be made up with
a moveable plate. The perforated pipes fixed near to or along the
bottom may be connected with each other or. kept separate, and I

page_text: connect to the perforated pipe ends passing through the side or sides of
the reservoir or channel, or up the end of the reservoir or channel, with a
fan or fans of sufficient power to force air through the perforated pipe
openings; or an air pump or engine may be used to force the air first
into a large wrought-iron air vessel connected to the perforated pipe or
pipes; or the air pump or engine may pump the air direct into and
through the pierced pipe openings to agitate and risc through the filtered
waters.
In order to make it clearly understood, I will describe the air forcing
machine as being a fan, and by any suitable motive power, I force air
with the fan into the end or ends of the pipe or pipes which are
connected to the fan, causing the air to be forced through the perforated
openings in the pipes, causing the filtered waters run into the reservoir
or channel to become agitated by the air passing through the waters,
which gives them the appearance of boiling water in a vessel, causing
any decomposed matter in the water to be so oxidized by being brought
in contact with the air that fish will live in the water, which is a
guarantee of its purity. The filtered waters may be thus treated to
purify them as they slowly pass through the reservoir or channel from
the purifying works, or I draw or force the air previous to passing`
through the perforated pipes in the reservoir or channel through lime
water, caustic soda water, or through a retort connected with one in
which charcoal is heated, or through sulphuric acid, or other acid waters
or gases; or chemical waters may be used to create precipitation and
purification of polluted waters; or I precipitate the heavy matters in
sewage by running the sewage matters into a vessel, tank, or reservoir
containing perforated pipes by forcing the air previously passed through
caustic soda, lime, or sulphuric acid chemical waters into the sewage
waters; when, on the air ceasing to agitate the sewage and polluted
waters, precipitation at once commences to take place. When sufficiently
settled the clear water is run off to be further cleared by filteration. Or
instead of agitating the clear filtered waters with air, a shaft or shafts
with arms may be fixed in suitable bearings in the reservoir or
channel, so as to agitate and cause the waters to be brought in contact
with the air, but I prefer to pass the air through the pierced pipes as
described.
In order that the purification of sewage and polluted waters may be

page_text: pipes, or the waste products of combustion from furnaces or chemical
works may be forced through the perforated pipes to act upon and
prevent the sewage and polluted waters being frozen.
To cheapen the use of the materials used for precipitation, and for
some polluted waters, the caustic soda liquid, lime water, and sulphuric
acid may be mixed together instead of using them separately.
SPECIFICATION in pursuance of the conditions of the Letters Patent,
filed by the said George Rydill in the Great Seal Patent Office on
the 3rd August 1875.
TO ALL TO WHOM THESE PRESENTS SHALL COME, I, GEORGE
RYDILL, of 8, Quality Court, Chancery Lane, in the County of
Middlesex, send greeting.
WHEREAS Her most Excellent Majesty Queen Victoria, by Her Letters
Patent, bearing date the Third day of February, in the year of our
Lord One thousand eight hundred and seventy-five, in the thirty-eighth
year of Her reign, did, for Herself, Her heirs and successors, give
and grant unto me, the said George Rydill, Her special licence that
I, the said George Rydill, my executors, administrators, and assigns,
or such others as I, the said George Rydill, my executors, admini-
strators, 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 THE PROCESS
OF AND APPARATUS FOR TREATING AND PURIFYING SEWAGE AND POLLUTED WATERS,
WHICH IMPROVEMENTS ARE APPLICABLE FOR COLLECTING THE SOAP, GREASE, AND
OILS FOR THE MANUFACTURE OF GAS AND FOR REMOVING INCRUSTATION IN STEAM
BOILERS," upon the condition (amongst others) that I, the said' George
Rydill, 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.

page_text: NOW KNOW YE, that I, the said George Rydill, do hereby declare
the nature of my said 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 of improvements is for the treatment of sewage and
dye waters for preventing the pollution of rivers and streams, and may
be carried out in several ways which are intended to be worked in con-
junction with my improvements in machinery and apparatus in the
construction and working of vessels, tanks, reservoirs, areas, and materials
used for the purification of sewage and other pulluted waters named in
my Specification dated January Fourteenth, One thousand eight hundred
and seventy-five, Number 150.
As it is my intention to embrace the workings of nature as much as
possible in this Invention of improvements for the purification of sewage
and polluted waters, I will remark that I am acquainted with the river
Calder, and at a certain part of its stream this river is so contaminated
with sewage and dye waters that no fish can live in it. After the said
waters have passed over three weirs and travelled the distance of four
miles the matter is so oxidized that fish may be scen-living in the water
and supporting the higher orders of animal and vegetable life.
I have also in experiments imperfectly filtered sewage waters and by
the action of air brought in contact with the imperfectly filtered water
caused the said water to be void of any appearance of once being
sewage water. I give this description of the workings of polluted river
water and my experiments with sewage and polluted waters in order
that I may clearly explain how polluted waters have been by nature
purified, also experimentally treated, and purified without the appli-
cation of any added chemicals, simply by filtering under vacuem and
pressure through clean sieved coal fire ashes of dwellings or furnaces,
and then subjecting the water to the action of the air by blowing a
or forcing air through the filtered water to supply oxygen to the decom-
posed organic matter after which a fish has lived in the water.
In describing this Invention of improvements I feel it my duty.
clearly to explain. how sewage is contaminated with several most
valuable substances. It is well known that in all towns sewage is a
impregnated with soap, greasy, and oily matters. In woollen districts
Боар and oily waters from fulling mills run into the sewers and streams
which only serve to assist decomposition and to create noxious gases.

page_text: There are several important reasons for utilising and collecting the
soapy, greasy, and oily waters from dwellings and factories, both
sanitary and also valuable for the manufacture of gas of great
illuminating power, preventing the fatty acids combining with the
earthy salts in the water to form insoluable soaps and slimy scum,
which having once become mixed with sewage and polluted waters
would soon cause porous filter beds to be made up. By collecting these
soapy, greasy, and oily waters, the porous filter beds work more rapid,
better, and longer, causing filtration of sewage and polluted streams to
be successfully worked, both under vacuum and pressure, also causing
irrigation the same as filtration to be worked more successfully.
At present the polluted and fatty acid waters combine with the earthy
salts in the sewage and on lands, forming insoluble soaps and slimy
scum which give off unpleasant odours and injurious gases; both in the
› sewers, rivers, streams, and on lands, causing grass and other cultivated
lands irrigated with sewage containing these fatty acids and insoluble
soaps, on which cattle have to graze, to be unpleasant to the taste and
unhealthy for cattle to graze upon. I prefer to collect the soap and
greasy waters of factories and at dwellings by running them direct from
the sink or slop stone on to a filter bed of seived, ground, or crushed
ashes, either from dwellings steam boiler or other furnaces, or through
ground or crushed clinkers, rubbish, brick pieces, stones, earthenware, .
earths, dust, refuse barks, and other refuse substances, refuse animal
charcoal, dross, shieve, allum, shale, and other porous substances.
Coal fire ashes being of little or no value I prefer the adaptation of their
use, so that which is now a worthless refuse becomes a useful agent as a
purifier of polluted waters when used for purposes of filtration. It
is important to keep, the ashes dry in a box under cover, free from
decayed substances. The filter vessel may be made of any required
dimensions, containing a perforated bottom, or a filter vessel having a
chamber, as described in my Specification dated January Fourteenth,
One thousand eight hundred and seventy-five, Number 150, may be used
and placed at any convenient place in the yard. The clear water run
from the filter bed may be conducted into the closet, instead of direct
into the drain.
Callanting and

page_text: those unpleasant odours and injurious sewage gases known to accumulate
in the sewers, and so improve the health of towns.
By running the soap and greasy waters from the sink or slop stone on
to the filter bed the sink or slop stone pipe does not form a direct
communication with the drains and sewers, so the noxious gases are
prevented from escaping into the dwellings. I prefer to erect two filter
vessels in the yard, one connected with the sink or slop stone to filter
the soap and greasy waters, and the other for dirty waters not con-
taminated with soap or grease. This arrangement allows the soap and
grease collected on the filter to be more free from dirt for the manufac-
ture of gas or for other purposes, which is collected by scraping off the
`soap and grease from the top of the filter bed, which filter vessels may
be covered over with a pierced lid. This method of preventing the soap
and greasy waters entering the drains and sewers will prevent the sides
of the sewers from being heaped up with slimy matter and offensive
rubbish, so that flushing of the sewers will be less frequent.
As it may be long before sanitary authorities are disposed to adopt the
aforesaid improvements of collecting the soap, grease, and oil in the
waters from dwellings for the manufacture of gas, preservation of health,
and keeping the drains and sewers cleaner, I therefore treat the whole of
the mixed impurities of sewage and polluted waters as they are at present
collected in the sewers of towns.
In order to prevent the porous filter beds from making up in the
vessels, tanks, reservoirs, and arcas from the fatty acids, insoluble soaps,
and slimy scum, I first precipitate in a tank or in one of my improved
filter vessels, tanks, reservoirs, and areas, as described in my Specification
of January Fourteenth, One thousand eight hundred and seventy-five,.
No. 150, the mixed sewage and polluted waters, also acid dye waters
with caustic soda liquid, which precipitates the heavy impurities, or
clear lime water from washed lime may be used according to the mixed
contamination of the sewage waters.
In manufacturing districts where much acid liquids pass into the
sewage, caustic soda liquid may be used to precipitate. In other parts
of the country where few acids become mixed with sewage and polluted
waters caustic soda and clear lime water may be used combined, or clear
lime water alone may be used. When the heavy matters are precipitated
the clear top water is run into the filter vessel, tank, reservoir, or area
to be filtered, and having passed through one filter bed may afterwards

page_text: pass upwards or downwards through other filter beds in order to purify
and remove organic matter as much as possible.
In many of the manufacturing districts in the country the streams
forming a water supply for steam boilers and condensing engines are
highly polluted with sewage and dye waters. The dye waters are
impregnated with sulphuric, muriatic, nitric, and other acids, as well as
other impurities. Such sewage and polluted waters are mostly used for
condensing the steam in condensing steam engines. Supplying the steamer
boilers with water in a polluted condition causes the bottom of steam
boilers to be heavily charged with dark impure substances, causing
boilers to prime and valves to choke up.
To purify the said sewage and polluted waters I treat them with
caustic soda liquid in a vessel, tank, or reservoir to precipitate the heavy
substances. I then pass the clear top water through a filter of sieved,
ground, or crushed ashes, so that the filtered waters are perfectly clear.
This method of treating sewage and polluted waters prevents soap,
greasy, and oily waters from passing into the steam boilers to form inso-
luble soapy matters with the lime salts present in the water, forming a
deposit and incrustation. The sewage and polluted waters may be
treated with caustic soda before or after they pass into the hot well.
Treating sewage and polluted waters with caustic soda liquid not only
precipitates the said dye coloring matters, but after filtering the same it
prevents priming in steam boilers, and removes incrustation.
I have now described in what manner I procure clear water from
sewage and polluted streams, but as soap and grease collects in the
drains and sewers with other refuse matters, polluted waters do from
many causes, such as drains not always being in use, so that stagnant
polluted waters remain for days or weeks together, by which the organic
matter becomes decomposed, and depriving the water of oxygen renders
it impossible for the higher organisms to live in it, unless it absorbs from
the atmosphere enough oxygen to replace that consumed. It is almost
impossible to remove entirely by filteration all trace of such contami-
nation, so that the matter requires to be oxidized to cause the waters to
be unobjectionable for use. I therefore pass the waters which have been
filtered or cleared into a reservoir or channel of any required depth, but
I prefer it not so deep when the saving of power is of moment. I place
along the reservoir or channel bottom, or near its bottom, perforated
pipes, which may be lengthways or crossways. The ends of the per-

page_text: forated pipes are unpierced, so that they may pass through the side or
sides or end of the reservoir or channel, which may be made up with a
moveable plate. The perforated pipes fixed near to or along the bottom
may be connected with each other or kept separate, and I connect to the
perforated pipe ends passing through the side or sides of the reservoir or
channel or up the end of the reservoir or channel with a fan or fans of
sufficient power to force air through the perforated pipe openings; or an
air pump or engine may be used to force the air first into a large
wrought-iron air vessel connected to the perforated pipe or pipes, or the
air pump or engine may pump the air direct into and through the pierced.
pipe openings to agitate and rise through the filtered waters.
In order to make it clearly understood I will describe the air forcing
machine as being a fan, and by any suitable motive power I force air
with the fan into the end or ends of the pipe or pipes which are con-
nected to the fan, causing the air to be forced through the perforated
openings in the pipes, causing the filtered waters to run into the reservoir
or channel to become agitated by the air passing through the waters,
which gives them the appearance of boiling water in a vessel, causing
any decomposed matter in the water to be so oxydized by being brought
in contact with the air that fish will live in the water, which is a gua-
rantce of its purity. The filtered waters may be thus treated to purify
them as they slowly pass through the reservoir or channel from the
purifying works, or I draw or force the air previous to passing through
the perforated pipes in the reservoir or channel through lime water,
caustic soda water, or through a retort connected with one in which
charcoal is heated, or through sulphuric acid or other acid waters or
gases; or chemical waters may be used to create precipitation and puri-
fication of polluted waters; or I precipitate the heavy matters in sewage
by running the sewage waters into a vessel, tank, or reservoir containing
perforated pipes, by forcing the air previously passed through caustic
soda, lime, or sulphuric acid chemical waters into the sewage waters,
when on the air ceasing to agitate the sewage and polluted waters pre-
_cipitation at once commences to take place. When sufficiently settled
the clear water is run off to be further cleared by filteration; or instead
of agitating the clear filtered waters with air a shaft or shafts with arms
may be fixed in suitable bearings in the reservoir or channel so as to
agitate and cause the waters to be brought in contact with the air, but I
prefer to pass the air through the pierced pipes, as described. .

page_text: GEORGE RYDILL. (L.S.)