A METHOD OF TREATING GUANO AND OTHER MATTERS CONTAINING URIC ACID, AND THE MANUFACTURE FROM THE PRODUCTS ARISING FROM SUCH TREATMENT, AS WELL AS FROM URIC ACID, OF NEW COLORING MATTERS, AND THE FIXING AND APPLICATION THEREOF
Year: 1856

page_text: LETTERS PATENT to Richard Archibald Brooman, of 166, Fleet Street,
in the City of London, Patent Agent, for the Invention of "A METHOD
OF TREATING GUANO AND OTHER MATTERS CONTAINING URIC ACID, AND THE
MANUFACTURE FROM THE PRODUCTS ARISING FROM SUCH TREATMENT, AS WELL
AS FROM URIC ACID, OF NEW COLORING MATTERS, AND THE FIXING AND
APPLICATION THEREOF."-A communication.
Sealed the 24th October 1856, and dated the 6th May 1856.
FROVISIONAL SPECIFICATION left by the said Richard Archibald Brooman
at the Office of the Commissioners of Patents, with his Petition, on the
6th May, 1856.
I, RICHARD ARCHIBALD BROOMAN, of 166, Fleet Street, in the City of
London, Patent Agent, do hereby declare the nature of the said Invention for
"A METHOD OF TREATING GUANO AND OTHER MATTERS CONTAINING URIC ACID, AND
THE MANUFACTURE FROM THE PRODUCTS ARISING FROM SUCH TREATMENT, AS WELL AS
FROM URIC ACID, OF NEW COLORING MATTERS, AND THE FIXING AND APPLICATION
THEREOF," (communicated to me by a foreigner residing abroad)- to be as
follows-
This Invention consists, first, in the purification of guano and other matters
containing uric acid by means of acids which dissolve all injurious matters
and leave the uric acid mixed with insoluble and inoffensive matters. These
purified agents are as fit to be used in the manufacture of the various products

page_text: arising from the oxidation of uric acid, as uric acid obtained by an expensive
process from the same matters by means of alkalis.
Second, in a new red coloring product, which is termed "carmin de pourpre,"
and in the manufacture thereof, by evaporating solutions of uric acid, or of the
purified products obtained, as before stated, in nitric acid or other oxidizing
agents.
Third, in fixing upon threads, yarns, and fabrics, silk, wool, cotton, &c., by
dyeing or printing, the above-named carmin de pourpre, as well as other
coloring matters 'obtained from the oxidation of uric acid by means of certain
metallic salts such as salts of mercury, of zinc, &c., so as form in the threads,
yarns, and fabrics metallic purpurates ("purpurates ").
And, fourth, in the manufacture of metallic purpurates in a state of lac
(laque) or colored powder, and the application thereof upon paper, stuffs, and
to painting.
SPECT
TION in pursuance of the conditions of the Letters Patent,
by the said Richard Archibald Brooman in the Great Seal Patent Office
on the 31st October 1856.
TO ALL TO WHOM THESE PRESENTS SHALL COME, I, RICHARD
ARCHIBALD BROOMAN, of 166, Fleet Street, in the City of London, Patent
Agent, send greeting.
WHEREAS Her most Excellent Majesty Queen Victoria, by Her Letters.
Patent, bearing date the Sixth day of May, in the year of our Lord One
thousand eight hundred and fifty-six, in the nineteen'h year of Her reign,
did, for Herself, Her heirs and successors, give and grant unto me, the said
Richard Archibald Brooman, Her special licence that I, the said Richard
Archibald Brooman, my executors, administrators, and assigns, or such others
as I, the said Richard Archibald Brooman, 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 "A METHOD OF TREATING GUANO AND OTHER MATTERS CONTAINING URIC ACID
AND THE MANUFACTURE FROM THE PRODUCTS ARISING FROM SUCH TREATMENT, AS
WELL AS FROM URIC ACID, OF NEW COLORING MATTERS, AND THE FIXING AND
APPLICATION THEREOF," communicated to me by a foreigner residing abroad,
upon the condition (amongst others) that 1, the said Richard Archibald

page_text: Brooman, 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 Richard Archibald Brooman, 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, firstly, in the purification of guano and other matters
containing uric acid by means of acids, which dissolve all injurious matters
and leave the uric acid mixed with insoluble and inoffensive matters. These
purified agents, are as fitted to be used in the manufacture of the various
products arising from the oxidation of uric acid, as uric acid obtained by an
expensive process from the same matters by means of alkalies.
Secondly, the Invention consists in a new coloring product, which is termed
"carmin de pourpre," and in the manufacture thereof, by evaporating
solutions of uric acid, or of the purified products obtained, as before stated, in
nitric acid or other oxidizing agents.
Thirdly, the Invention consists in fixing upon threads, yarns, and fabrics,
silk, wool, cotton, and other materials, by dyeing or printing, the above-named
"carmin de pourpre," as well as other coloring matters obtained from the
oxidation of uric acid, by means of certain metallic salts, such as salts of
mercury, of zinc, &c., so as to form in the threads, yarns, and fabrics metallic
purpurates ("purpurates ").
And, fourthly, the Invention consists in the manufacture of metallic pur-
purates in a state of lac (laque) or colored powder, and the application thereof
upon paper and fabrics, and to painting.
I now proceed to describe the manner in which the first part of the said
Invention is carried into effect.
Guano, or other matter containing uric acid, is heated in suitable vessels with
muriatic or other acid diluted with water, the action being assisted by heat;
the matters are left to settle and the liquor run off; the same acid liquor is
passed over fresh portions of the guano (supposing that to be the matter under
treatment) till it is completely saturated. The first portion of guano is treated
with a fresh supply of acid, then washed with water several successive times,
allowed to drain, and then dried. The object of this operation is to dissolve the
salts which are formed in the guano, viz., ammoniacal, carbonate and oxalate

page_text: calcic magnesic, and ammoniaco-magnesic phosphates, calcic carbonate, &c.,
and also to decompose the alkaline urates. The matters thus treated now only
contain uric acid combined with sand, calcic sulphate, and other insoluble
bodies, and organic detritus (of a yellowish color), and the substance obtained
may be as advantageously employed as uric acid itself in the manufacture of
products resulting from the oxydation of this acid. The saturated hydrochloric
liquors may be employed either as manure or ammonical salts; oxalic acid,
&c. may be extracted therefrom. The mode of treatment just described for
treating guano is applicable for others matters containing uric acid. Instead of
employing muriatic acid, as herein-before described, for the purifying of guano
or other matters containing uric acid, other acids answering the same purpose
may be employed.
To carry the second part of the Invention into effect, guano (or other matter
containing uric acid), purified as herein-before described, is mixed with nitric
acid in earthen vessels, portions of guano and acid being placed in the vessels
alternately, and a little at a time (in order to avoid the raising of the tempera-
ture to too high a degree, and to moderate the effervescence of the liberated
nitrous gases). The mixture is left to settle for some days, when a thick pasty
substance will result, which is treated with warm water, filtered, and the
residuum washed with warm water; the filtered liquor is of a yellowish or
reddish color; it may be decolorized by animal charcoal, which would retain
the matters colored yellow dissolved by the nitric acid. The liquor, cither
decolorized or not, is then a solution of uric acid in nitric acid, that is to say,
it contains alloxan, alloxantin, urca, and various colorless products, resulting
from the oxydation of uric acid. The liquor is next evaporated in any suitable
manner in large iron vessels, enamelled or glazed on the inside, care being
taken not to raise the liquors to boiling point. The solution is poured into
these vessels a little at a time; that already in the vessel should arrive at a
pasty consistency before adding a fresh supply, and the matters should be kept
stirred all the time. When all the liquid has sufficiently evaporated, the
contents of the vessel are left to cool down into a pasty or solid consistency;
the product will be more or less solid, in proportion to the extent to which
evaporation may have been carried. This pasty or solid substance is of a
brownish red or violet color, sometimes reflecting green rays, and the Inventor
designates it "carmin de pourpre."
In this operation the colorless products of the oxydation of uric acid being in
presence of the ammoniacal salts, urea, ammoniacal nitrate, &c. combined with
them in the nitric solution, and undergoing the action of heat, are converted
into reddish products, &c. Whatever be the mode adopted for evaporating,

page_text: care should be taken that the matters should not accumulate in too large a
quantity and should not reach boiling point. Instead of employing in the
manufacture of this coloring matter guano purified by means of muriatic
acid, as previously described, pure or impure uric acid of commerce or other
solutions of uric acid may be employed for the purpose, and any other oxydating
agent that will answer the purpose may be substituted for the nitric acid
employed in the process.
39
I now proceed to describe the manner of carrying the third part of the
Invention into effect. In order to apply the coloring matter or
" carmin de
pourpre to yarns, threads, and fabrics, and to fix it solidly thereon by means
of dyeing and printing, metallic salts are used in such manner as to produce in
the fibres insoluble metallic purpurates; the salts which have been found to
yield the best results are salts of mercury for red, purple, and pin shades, and
salts of zinc for yellow and buff shades. By these agents this coloring matter
may be fixed in dyeing and printing on all descriptions of fibrous or filamentous
inaterials and textile fabrics, whether in a natural state or oiled, as in the
case of Turkey reds, whether such materials or fabrics be spun or not, woven
or otherwise; also on flocks used for paper hangings or otherwise, feathers,
artificial flowers, tanned and tawed skins and hides, employing any means
known in dyeing and printing for combining on the fibre, fabric, or article to
be dyed or printed a metallic base with a coloring matter. For example, the
coloring matter may be applied by steeping or printing, and then fixed by the
metallic salts, or the salts may be applied as mordants, and the article dyed
with the coloring material; or the coloring material and the metallic salts may
be combined in such manner as to produce a wholly or partially soluble pre-
paration, and the fabrics may be then placed in contact therewith; thus, for
example, to dye silks in shades of purple, pink, &c., a solution of bichloride of
mercury should be mixed with a solution of "carmin de pourpre," and the silk
steeped in the combined solution, which it will absorb, and take a fine shade,
more or less dark, in proportion to the length of time it remains in the bath,
and of the strength of the bath. To dye wools in shades of purple or pink,
they should first receive a mordant of a salt of mercury, such as bichloride of
mercury, with oxalic acid added, mercurio-potassic, tartrate acid, sulphate of
mercury. To these mordants an oxydating agent, such as chloride of lime,
chlorine water, and bichloride of tin, &c. should be added, in order to maintain
the mercury in a state of peroxide. When the wool has received the mordant
and has been washed, it is dyed in a bath of "carmin de pourpre alone or
mixed with salts of alkaline metals. such as oxalate of soda, &c. In order to
obtain shades of yellow, salts of zinc should be used instead of salts of mercury.

page_text: For printing cottons, they should first be printed in acetate of mercury and
zinc, then dyed in a solution of "carmin de pourpre" and washed; the cotton
would be printed in yellow and red, while the ground would remain white.
22
The method just described for fixing "carmin de pourpre -
may also be
applied to the fixing on matters to be dyed or printed of pure murexid (pur-
purate of ammonia), soluble purpurates (purpurate of soda, potassa, &c.,) or any
other coloring matter resulting from the oxydation of uric acid. The same mode
may also be adopted for the fixing of the colorless products of the oxidation
of uric acid, such as alloxan, or a simple solution of uric acid in nitric acid.
On subjecting the dyed fabric to heat, by hot air or otherwise, it will acquire a
red shade. In order to fix this color and obtain fast reds and yellows, the
fabric should be passed through a solution of salt of mercury or of zinc. These
coloring matters may be satisfactorily applied to the dyeing of fabrics in
designs or patterns, as they may be readily eaten away, and designs, left in
various shades (such as white, yellow, blue, green, gray, &c.,) by means of
chemical agents, and these shades readily combine with other known coloring
matters, so that the fabric may be doubly dyed, and a variety of plain and
figured patterns produced.
I now proceed to describe the manner of carrying the fourth part of the
Invention into effect. The "carmin de pourpre," murexid, and other coloring
matters resulting from the oxydation of uric acid, treated with certain solutions
of metallic salts, yield precipitates entirely or nearly insoluble (metallic pur-
purates), some of which possess much brilliancy. These precipitates, when dry,
yield powders or lacs (laques) which might be advantageously employed in
painting, and in printing paper hangings and textile fabrics. Thus, the
precipitates obtained by means of the acetate and nitrate of mercury, directly
combined with the solution of "carmin de pourpre," and other coloring matters
resulting from the oxydation of uric acid, and by means of bichloride of mercury
mixed first with the aforesaid resulting coloring matters, and then precipitated
by means of an alkaline salt, yield purples, violets, and pinks. Those obtained
by means of salts of zinc, yield yellow, orange, &c.
And having now described the nature of the said Invention, and in what
manner the same is to be performed, I declare that I claim is,-
First, the purification of guano and other matters containing uric acid, by
means of muriatic or other acids, as herein-before described under the first
head of this Specification.
Second, the manufacture of the new coloring matter, herein-before described,
called "carmin de pourpre," by the evaporation of solutions of uric acid, or of
the purified products obtained, as described under the first head of this Speci-

page_text: fication, in nitric acid, or other equivalent oxydating agent, all as described
under the second head of this Specification.
Third, the fixing, upon threads, yarns, and fabrics, and textile and fibrous
and filamentous materials, and raw and manufactured products, of the above-
named "carmin de pourpre " as well as of other coloring matters obtained
from the oxydation of uric acid, by means of metallic salts, as described under
the third head of this Specification.
And, fourth, the manufacture of purpurates in a state of powder and lac,
from the combination of "carmin de pourpre," or other coloring matters,
resulting from the oxydation of uric acid, with metallic salts, as described
under the fourth head of this Specification, and also the application of such
lacs and powders to purposes of painting and printing paper hangings and
fabrics.
In witness whereof, I, the said Richard Archibald Brooman, have
hereunto set my hand and scal; this Twenty-seventh day of October,
One thousand eight hundred and fifty-six.
R. A. BROOMAN. (L.S.)