IMPROVE- MENTS IN THE MANUFACTURE OF SUGAR AND MACHINERY OR APPARATUS THEREFOR IN PART APPLICABLE TO OTHER PURPOSES PROVISIONAL SPECIFICATION
Year: 1883

page_text: LETTERS PATENT to Alfred Fryer and James Bingham Alliott both of
Nottingham, in the County of Nottingham for an Invention of "IMPROVE-
MENTS IN THE MANUFACTURE OF SUGAR AND MACHINERY OR APPARATUS
THEREFOR IN PART APPLICABLE TO OTHER PURPOSES
PROVISIONAL SPECIFICATION left by the said Alfred Fryer & James
Bingham Alliott at the Office of the Commissioners of Patents on the
17th January 1883.
ALFRED FRYER and JAMES BINGHAM ALLIOTT, both of Nottingham in the
County of Nottingham, "IMPROVEMENTS IN THE MANUFACTURE OF SUGAR AND
MACHINERY OR APPARATUS THEREFOR IN PART APPLICABLE TO OTHER PURPOSES
"
Our invention has for object improvements in the manufacture of sugar and
machinery or apparatus therefor in part applicable to other purposes.
When sugar is being manufactured from the sugar cane the crushed cane or
megass is usually employed as fuel and where the crushing is very good and the
furnaces are of suitable construction this crushed cane may be burnt immediately
it leaves the crushing apparatus without being spread out to dry.
Now to convey such fuel in an automatic manner to the furnaces and feed them
with it as required wo cause the crushed cane or megass to be discharged from the
crushing apparatus into a fixed gutter or trough leading above the furnace crowns.
Along this gutter the megass is drawn by rakes attached to a travelling band or
chain that may be actuated from the moving parts of the mill or in any other con-
venient way. Over each furnace is a hole in the bottom of the gutter or trough
through which the megass may fall into a hopper fixed in the furnace crown. This
hopper is furnished at its lower part with a door opening downwards. Near the
top it is provided with prongs somewhat resembling those of a horse rake. The
door and the prongs are so arranged in connection with driving apparatus, that
the door opens at intervals to permit the contents of the hopper to fall into the
furnace. While the door is thus open the prongs are across the hopper and retain
above them a certain quantity of megass which is thus not only prevented from
falling down into the hopper until the door has again closed but also is made to
serve as a temporary cover closing the hopper against the rush of air into the
furnace which would otherwise take place. We so arrange the apparatus moving
the prongs and opening and shutting the door that these operations may be readily

page_text: adjusted to take place at longer or shorter intervals as may be required to keep the
furnace properly fed with megass
This apparatus may be conveniently actuated by the travelling band or chain
carrying the rakes. Should the gutter or trough pass over several furnaces, as soon
as the hopper leading into the first is full megass will be carried forward by the
rakes to the next and so on. Should the supply of megass become insufficient to
feed all the furnaces those furthest from the mill may be supplied with fuel so far
as necessary in any other convenient way.
If there be more megass than is needed for the time being it may be allowed to
fall from the open further end of the gutter and be collected and stored for future
use, or carried away and used as inanure.
In extracting juice from sugar cane by means of a crushing mill the power
employed has to be very greatly increased if it be desired to obtain a large per-
centage of juice and even then with the best crushing a considerable portion of
unextracted juice is left in the crushed cano
Now with a view to obtaining a larger yield of juice with less expenditure of
power than is now usual, we treat the crushed cane or megass after it has left the
mill in a supplementary extractor wherein tlie said cane or megass is subjected to
the percussive action of stampers or beaters, whilst being moved through hot water
caused to flow constantly or intermittently in a contrary direction to that in which
the crushed cane or megass is travelling. A convenient arrangement of apparatus
for this purpose is as follows:We provide a shallow' trough or tank into which
the crushed cane is introduced and from one end to the other of which it is caused
to travel. The crushed cane while in this tank is covered or nearly so with hot
water admitted at that end of the trough at which the crushed cane emerges and
passing off at the end at which the crushed cane enters.
Above this trough are beaters or stampers operated in any convenient way so ng
to nct upon the crushed cane saturated with water; thus each portion of crushed
cane as it passes along the tank is repeatedly stamped by the beaters.
Rollers are provided between which the crushed cane is passed in order to
extract as much as practicable of the water with which it has been saturated.
For the purpose of effectually clarifying saccharine juices it is desirable to raise
them rapidly to a temperature higher than their ordinary boiling point.
To effect this we employ heating apparatus in conjunction with a londed valve
or valves in such a manner that the juice is retained in the heating apparatus until
it has attained a pressure corresponding to a temperature exceeding the boiling
point at atmospheric pressure. In an arrangement of apparatus for this purpose
the juice is caused to pass under pressure successively through two heaters in the
first of which it is heated by exhaust steam that has been used for producing
power and in the second by steam of higher pressure taken direct from a steam
boilor.
To regulate the pressure to which the juice is subjected so that the desired
temperature may be reached there is provided a valve with a load capable of
adjustment and through this valve the juice escapes from the second heater on its
way to vessels wherein it is treated with suitable chemicals such as lime for the
purpose of neutralizing its acidity and causing the more thorough floculation and
separation of the coagulated solids as well understood. Coagulation of the
vegetable albumen having been effected the juice requires further treatment in
order to remove from it the solid matter held in suspension or accumulated in the
form of scum or dregs.
For this purpose a bag filter is employed-now in order to obviate the delay and
labor incidental to the removal of the filter bags from within the filter body by
hand as heretofore usual, we use a filter so arranged that the said bags can be
allowed to drop from the filter head through the bottom of the filter onto a truck
or otherwise so as to be removed.
In apparatus according to this part of our invention it is advantageous (instead
of as usual using wide bags of thin filtering cloth confined within much stronger

page_text: sheathing) to employ seamless sheathing only, made of soft cotton which itself
forms the filtering medium. Each of these sheaths forms an open pipe that can be
secured into the "head" of the filter by means of a ring fitting within the sheath
and resting upon the inclined wall of a conical hole in the filter "head" through
which hole the ring is too large to pass but within which it can enter so as to press
the sheath against the wall of the hole thus forming a sufficiently close joint.
The lower end of the sheath can be closed by simply tying it.
"
As is well understood a "sheath" or bag fastened into the filter head as above
described will at once drop if the ring at its upper end be withdrawn from within
it. The lower part of the filter is of the form of a truncated cone having below it a
dished bottom of somewhat larger size than the opening.
This bottom is provided with a suitable outlet or outlets for liquor that falls into
it from the filter bags and is removable; conveniently it can be provided with
hinges that will allow it to swing from below the aperture in the bottom of the
filter body so as to allow the dirty sheaths or bags as they are released from the
filter to fall upon a truck or carriage placed below upon which they can be carried
away to be cleansed.
The filtered juice has to be treated in a concentrating apparatus such as is known
as a concretor to which we admit the cleansed juice through a valve regulator
or gauge vessel provided with an external index so that the operator can see by
the index to what extent he has opened the valve, while the juice passing this
valve is received in a small cylinder from which it escapes through holes arranged
in its sides in a spiral form so that it may easily be ascertained through how many
holes the juice is Howing and consequently whether the required quantity is passing
on to the trays.
The external index enables the valve at once to be opened so as to pass
approximately the required quantity of juice while the flow through the spirally
arranged holes, renders practicable the effecting with certainty of the finer
adjustments that become necessary as the conditions of working vary.
Concretors are usually constructed with cast iron trays having "ribs" that
divide the transverse channels of the trays from one another. We make these ribs
comparatively shallow at the upper end of the tray and much deeper at the lower
end, so that although the trays are placed at an inclination the surface of the juice
upon them may stand at almost the same lovel at the lower end as at the upper
end of each tray without flowing over the "ribs"
At the lower end of each tray in the last channel and close to the juice outlet
we arrange a movable stop or dam fitting closely but not tightly into the channel.
This stop is of triangular section and of such form that the dam formed by it
will be higher or lower according as it is laid upon one or other of its sides.
It may also when desired be entirely removed so as to permit the tray to drain
dry or to have only a shallow stream of juice flowing over it. In such apparatus
as heretofore usually constructed to obviate inconvenience from expansion, and
from the view of the trays being much obscured by froth, scum and vapour, the
several cast iron trays of a concretor have been connected by shallow channels of
horse shoe form not exposed to heat.
In practice however it has been found that much froth bas nevertheless been
carried into these channels, and this has frothed over so that juice has been lost,
and the stream of juice has been hidden from view.
To obviate this we introduce a contracting piece into the entrance end of this
channel which closes the upper part of it, leaving at the bottom just sufficient space
to permit the passage of the largest required quantity of liquid.
In this way the juice can flow freely but the froth is arrested by the contracting.
piece and prevented from entering the horse shoe channel.
Our just described improvements render it much easier to regulate the flow of
juice upon the trays and to avoid burning juice upon them, or sending it on to the
cylinder before it is sufficiently concentrated. After the juice has passed over the

page_text: "trays" it is admitted through a gauge vessel similar to the one already described
to the revolving cylinder where it is further concentrated in manner well known.
For the purpose of enabling the revolving cylinder to be more readily emptied
on stopping work and thus to be kept cleaner we fit the cylinder with a valve or
plug fixed near its discharge end.
The cylinder is stopped with the valve on its lower sido and on opening this the
liquid or semi liquid contents flow out
The apparatus for heating air to be used in the revolving cylinder of the
concretor we make of horizontal form, that is to say that the pipes through which
the products of combustion pass on their way to the chimney are placed horizontal
or nearly so.
To prevent escape of heated air between the tubes and tube plates or entry of
heated gases into the air heating chamber, we employ an arrangeinent as follows;
The tubes at each end pass through two tube plates, the space between which is
filled in with material such as sand.
The holes in the tubo plates are of such a size that untooled cast iron tubes can
be easily passed through them.
To prevent leakage of the sand or other filling material material around the
tubes out of the spaces between them & the tube plates the holes in these are made
conical in form so as to hold a luting of suitable material such as clay.
The inner tube plate at each end is put in place and the tubes are put in
position; the joints around them at each end are then luted from outside; the
outer tube plates are next passed over the ends of the tubes and bolted to the inner
tubo plates.
The joints of the tubes with the outer tube plates are then luted and the spaces
at each end between the inner and outer tube plates are filled with the material
such as sand, poured in at the top, and the joint is complete. Each tube is held
firmly in its place at one end by means of a nail or small wedge driven beside it
into the hole in the tube plate.
This prevents the tubes from being displaced when tube brushes are passed
through them to clean them.
We enlarge one side of each hole in the tube plates slightly so that the pro-
jections on the tubes where chaplets have been used to support the coro in
moulding them may pass readily without the hole being too much increased
in size.
The concentrated sugary mass discharged from the "revolving cylinder" before
mentioned at a temperature of about 190° or 200° F. still contains a small
percentage of water.
In order to remove a part of this and to rapidly cool the material which is very
tenacious of heat we cause it to be broken up and subjected in a divided state to
the action of air.
A convenient method of effecting this is by causing the semifluid porridgy
material to fall upon blades attached to a suitable device such as a disc to which
rapid rotary motion is imparted. The material is caught by the blades and flung
from them in a shower of grains or pellets which as they rapidly pass through the
air part with much of their moisture and heat.
The material divided dried and cooled as above set forth is more suited for
certain markets than the ordinary untreated product of the concretor.
When a disc caused to revolve rapidly is employed its blades can be utilised in
some cases for the additional purpose of aspirating from the air heater heated air,
the heat of which will help to keep the apparatus clean and to dry the sugar.
Apparatus embodying improvements above described may in some cases be
employed in the manufacture of other materials than sugar where similar treatment
is required.

page_text: SPECIFICATION in pursuance of the conditions of the Letters Patent filed
by the said Alfred Fryer & James Bingham Alliott in the Great Soal Patent
Office on the 17th July 1883.
ALFRED FRYER and JAMES BINGHAM ALLIOTT both of Nottingham in the
County of Nottingham
IMPROVEMENTS IN THE MANUFACTURE OF SUGAR AND
MACHINERY OR APPARATUS THEREFOR IN PART APPLICABLE TO OTHER PURPOSES
Our invention has for object improvements in the manufacture of sugar and
machinery or apparatus therefor in part applicable to other purposes.
When sugar is being manufactured from the sugar cane the crushed cane or:
megass is usually employed as fuel and where the crushing is very good and the
furnaces are of suitable construction this crushed cane may be burnt immediately
it leaves the crushing apparatus without being spread out to dry.
This
Now to convey such fuel in an automatic manner to the furnaces and feed them
with it as required we cause the crushed cane or megass to be discharged from the
crushing apparatus into a fixed gutter or trough leading above the furnace crowns.
Along this gutter the megass is drawn by rakes attached to a travelling band or
chain that may be actuated from the moving parts of the mill or in any other
convenient way. Over each furnace is a hole in the bottom of the gutter or trough
through which the megass may fall into a hopper fixed in the furnace crown.
hopper is furnished at its lower part with a door opening downwards. Near the
top it is provided with prongs somewhat resembling those of a borse rake. The
door and the prongs are so arranged in connection with driving apparatus that the.
door opens at intervals to permit the contents of the hopper to fall into, the furnace.
While the door is thus open the prongs are across the hopper and retain above them
a certain quantity of megass which is thus not only prevented from falling down
into the hopper until the door has again closed but also is made to serve as a
temporary cover closing the hopper against the rush of air into the furnace which
would otherwise take place. We so arrange the apparatus moving the prongs and
opening and shutting the door that these operations may be readily adjusted to.
take place at longer or shorter intervals as may be required to keep the furnace
properly fed with megass.
This apparatus may be conveniently actuated by the travelling band or chain
carrying the rakes. Should the gutter or trough pass over several furnaces, as.
soon as the hopper leading into the first is full megass will be carried forward by
the rakes to the next and so on. Should the supply of megass become insufficient
to feed all the furnaces, those furthest from the mill may be supplied with fuel so far
as necessary in any other convenient way. If there be more megass than is needed
for the time being it may be allowed to fall from the open further end of the gutter
and be collected and stored for future use, or carried away and used as manure.
On sheets 1 and 2 of the accompanying drawings we shew an arrangement of
apparatus according to our invention for carrying crushed cane or megass from the
mill and feeding the same to the furnaces as required.
Fig 1 is an elevation shewing in outline part of the end of a cane inill and in
front elevation a set of furnaces in communication with the mill by means of an
mproved apparatus shewn in side elevation and whereby the megass is auto-
matically fed to the furnaces from the mill.
Fig II is a section in the line A B (Fig 1) of the gutter or trough hopper and
urnace top.
Fig III sheet 2 is a side elevation to a larger scale of the apparatus shewn above'
he furnaces in Fig 1.

page_text: Fig IV is a plan of the same and Fig V an end elevation, and Fig V* a detail
drawing of the ratchet wheel to a larger scale. 1 is the mill or crushing apparatus.
2 is the fixed gutter or trough into which the crushed cane or megass is discharged
from the mill or crushing apparatus. The gutter extends across the tops of the
furnaces, and is open at the end furthest from the mill to permit the escape of
surplus megass. 3 is a toothed roller driven by any suitable means-conveniently
it may be driven as shewn by a pitch chain 4 actuated by a chain pulley attached
to the axis of the top roll of the mill. Round this roller 3 and similar rollers 5, 6
and 7 pass two endless pitch chains 8 and 9. These chains are provided with
rakes 10 (which may be solid like paddles) designed to move the inegass along the
gutter or trough as the chains travel in the direction indicated by arrows.
11 and 12 are the hoppers through which megass is fed from the gutter or trough
to the furnaces, a suitable hole being formed through the bottom of the gutter
or trough over each hopper. 13 and 14 are doors in the lower parts of the
hoppers each of these doors is hinged at 15 so as to open downwards. They
are operated in a manner to be presently described. Each hopper near its top is
provided with two sets of prongs 16 and 17. Each set of prongs is carried by
levers those of the one set belonging to each hopper being marked 18 and those of
the other set 19. The levers 18 have their fulcra at 20, whilst the fulcra of the
levers 19 are at 21. The levers 18 are connected to the lovers 19 by links or
connecting rods 22.
Motion is conveniently communicated to the apparatus by means of one of the
pitched chains 9 which engages in the chain wheel 23. This again by means of
spur gearing 24 and 25 actuates the rotating disc 26 carrying the crank pin 27 the
stroke of which can be varied in manner well known by sliding it in the groove 28
provided for the purpose in the face of the disc. The connecting rod 29 working
upon this crank pin communicates motion to the slotted lever 30. A sliding
block 31 (which can be moved nearer to or further from the axis of this lever by
means of the screw 32 and its handle 33) carries a pin 34 giving motion to the
rods 35 and 36. These carry at their extremities pawls 37 and 38 kept in position
by the springs 39 and 40, and engaging in the ratchet wheel 41 carried by the
shaft 42. Upon this shaft are keyed the cams 43 and 43º.
The cam 43 operating through the antifriction rollers 44 and 45 and the levers 46
and 47 closes the hopper doors 13 and 14.
When the cam ceases to keep these doors closed their own weight suffices to open
them to drop the megass which may be in the hopper into the furnace.
The doors are opened alternately and as soon as the contents of the hoppers have
been discharged into the furnace the cam again closes them.
The cam 43 in like manner operates through the anti-friction rollers 44 and 45
and the levers 46 and 47* to bring together the prongs 16 and 17 until their teeth
meet across the upper parts of the furnaces 11 and 12.
The weighted levers 48 and 49 again separate the prongs when the pressure of
the cam is removed.
It will be understood from the drawings that the arrangement shewn is a double
one, wherein the two hoppers are opened and closed alternately. Obviously a
similar arrangement may be employed for a single hopper. In extracting juice
from sugar cane by means of a crushing mill the power employed has to be very
grently increased if it be desired to obtain a large percentage of juice and even
then with the best crushing a considerable portion of unextracted juice is left in
the crushed cane.
Now with a view to obtaining a larger yield of juice with less expenditure of
power than is now usual, we treat the crushed cane or megass after it has left the
mill in a supplementary extractor wherein the said cane or megass is subjected to
the percussive action of stampers or beaters whilst being moved through hot water
caused to flow constantly or intermittently in a contrary direction to that in which,
the crushed cane or megass is travelling.
A convenient arrangement of apparatus for this purpose is illustrated on sheet 3.

page_text: of the drawings where Fig VI is a side elevation and part section, and Fig VII is a
plan of the apparatus. Fig VII is a detail view illustrating the arrangement for
working the rakes. 50 is the cane mill or crushing apparatus and 51 a table for
delivering the crushed cane or megass from the mill to 52 which is a shallow
trough or tank wherein the crushed cane is operated upon whilst being caused to
travel from one end to the other of the said trough. In the trough the crushed
cane is covered or nearly so with hot water admitted by a pipe 53 at that end of the
trough at which the crushed cane emerges and passing off through a gutter 54 at
the end at which the crushed cane enters.
Above this trough are beaters or stampers 55 operated in any convenient way
such as for instance by cams or lifters 56 so as to act upon the crushed cane saturated
with water; thus each portion of crushed cane as it passes along the tank is
repeatedly stamped by the beaters.
Rollers 57 are provided between which the crushed cane is passed in order to
extract as much as practicable of the water with which it has been saturated.
A toothed roller 58 is provided to receive the crushed cane as it falls from the
Bill and move it forward to a series of rakes 59 having imparted to them by
suitable means such as eccentrics 60 and connecting rods 60° 60° and 61 (the
latter (61) operated through bell crank levers 62) movement from right to left of
Fig VI when the rakes aro in the lower position as there shown, then upward, then
froin left to right, then downward; and afterwards back again from right to left,
and so on. The crushed cano after treatment in the tank is delivered to the
rollers 57 by the toothed roller 63. At 04 is an engine whereby the just described
apparatus can be worked through a train of gearing as indicated by the drawings.
For the purpose of effectually clarifying saccharine juices it is desirable to raise
them rapidly to a temperature higher than their ordinary boiling point. To effect
this we employ heating apparatus in conjunction with a loaded valve or valves in
auch a manner that the juice is retained in the heating apparatus until it has
attained a pressure corresponding to a temperature exceeding the boiling point at
atmospheric pressure. An arrangement of apparatus for this purpose is illustrated
on sheet 4, Fig VIII being a front elevation. Fig IX a side elevation and Fig X a
plan. The juice is caused to pass under pressure successively through two heaters 65
and 66 in the first (65) of which it is heated by exhaust steam that has been used
for producing power and in the second (66) by steam of higher pressure taken
direct from a steam boiler not shewn.
To regulate the pressure to which the juice is subjected so that the desired
temperature may be reached there is provided a valve 67 with a load capable of
adjustment by suitable ineaus such as a weight 68 as shewn. Through this valvo
the juice escapes from the second heater 66 on its way by pipes 69 to vessels (not
shewn) wherein it is trented with suitable chemicals such as lime for the purpose
of neutralizing its acidity and causing the more thorough floculation and separation
of the coagulated solids as well understood. The heaters may be of the well known
multitubular type the juice being fed to the first (65) through the juice inlet 70
and after flowing through in an upward direction being conducted down to the
lower part of the second heater (66) by the inclined pipe or conduit 71. A loaded
valve 72 controls the pressure in the low pressure steam main 73. Coagulation of
the vegetable albumen having being effected the juice requires further treatment in
order to remove from it the solid matter held in suspension or accumulated in the
form of scum or dregs.
For this purpose a bag filter is employed. Now in order to obviate the delay
and labour iucidental to the removal of the filter bags from within the filter body
by hand as heretofore usual, we use a filter so arranged that the said bags can be
allowed to drop from the filter head through the bottom of the filter on to a truck
or otherwise so as to be removed.
In apparatus according to this part of our invention it is advantageous (instead
of as usual using wide bags of thin filtering cloth confined within much stronger
sheathing) to employ seamless sheathing only, made of soft cotton which itself

page_text: forms the filtering medium. Each of these sheaths forms an open pipe that can bo
secured into the "head" of the filter by means of a ring fitting within the sheath
and resting upon the inclined wall of a conical hole in the filter head through
which hole the ring is too large to pass but within which it can enter so as to press
the sheath against the wall of the hole thus forming a sufficiently close joint. The
lower end of the sheath can be closed by simply tying it. As is well understood a
"sheath" or bag fastened into the filter head as above described will at once drop
if the ring at its upper end be withdrawn from within it. The lower part of the
filter is of the form of a truncated cone having below it a dished bottom of some-
what larger size than the opening. This bottom is provided with a suitable outlet
or outlets for liquor that falls into it from the filter bags, and is removable; con-
veniently it can be provided with hinges that will allow it to swing from below
the aperture in the bottom of the filter body so as to allow the dirty sheaths or
bags as they are released from the filter to fall upon a truck or carriage placed
below. upon which they can be carried away to be cleansed.
On Sheet V of the drawings is illustrated a bag filter according to our invention.
Fig XI is a front elevation of the filter; Fig XII a sectional elevation, and
Fig XIII a plan. Fig XIV is a detail section to a larger scale shewing the method
of securing the bags into the filter head.
74 is the body or casing of the filter, 75 the head, 76, 76 are filter bags, 77 rings
for securing them in the head, 78 is the coned lower part with hole 79.-80 is the
dished bottom, hinged at 81, and able when released from the catch or fastening 82
to swing from below the aperture in the filter body as indicated by dotted lines in
Fig XII.
The filtered juice has to be treated in a concentrating apparatus such as is
known as a concretor to which we admit the cleansed juice through a valve
regulator or gauge vessel provided with an external index as represented on
sheet 6 of the drawings by Figs XV XVI and XVII so that the operator can see
by the index 83 to what extent he has opened the hooded valve 84 while the
juice passing this valve is received in a small cylinder 85 from which it
escapes
through holes 86 arranged in its sides in a spiral form so that it may easily be
ascertained through how many holes the juice is flowing and consequently whether
the required quantity is passing on to the trays (not shewn) by the outlet 87.
The external index enables the valve at once to be opened so as to pass approxi-
mately the required quantity of juice while the flow through the spirally arranged
holes renders practicable the effecting with certainty of the finer adjustments that
become necessary as the conditions of working vary.
Concretors are usually constructed with cast iron trays having "ribs” that
divide the transverse channels of the trays from ono another. Now we make
these ribs as illustrated on sheet 7 of the drawings by Figs XVIII and XIX, that
is to say, comparatively shallow at the upper end 88 of the tray and much deeper
at the lower end 89 so that although the trays are placed at an inclination the
Burface of the juice upon them may stand at almost the same level at the lower end
as at the upper end of each tray without flowing over the "ribs." At the lower
end of each tray in the last channel and close to the juice outlet 90 we arrange a 4
movable stop or dam 91 (shown more clearly and to a larger scale on sheet 8)
which fits closely but not tightly into the channel. This stop 91 is of triangular
section and of such form that the dam formed by it will be higher or lower
according as it is laid upon one or other of its sides. It may also when desired
be entirely removed so as to permit the tray to drain dry or to have only a shallow 5
stream of juice flowing over it. In such apparatus as heretofore usually con-
structed to obviate inconvenience from expansion, and from the view of the trays
being much obscured by froth, scum and vapour, the several cast iron trays of a
concretor have been connected by shallow channels of horse shoe form not exposed
to heat. In practice however it has been found that much froth has nevertheless
been carried into these channels, and this has frothed over so that juice lins been
lost and the stream of juice has been hidden from view. To obviate this we use

page_text: an arrangement illustrated on sheet 8 of the drawings by Figs XX XXI and XXII;
that is to say, we introduce a contracting piece 92 into the entrance end of the
channel 93 which closes the upper part of it, leaving at the bottom just sufficient
space to permit the passage of the largest required quantity of liquid. In this
way the juice can flow freely but the froth is arrested by the contracting piece 92
and prevented from entering the horse shoe channel 93.
Our just described improvements render it much easier to regulate the flow of
juice upon the trays and to avoid burning juice upon them, or sending it on to the
cylinder before it is sufficiently concentrated.
After the juice has passed over the "trays" it is admitted through a gauge
vessel similar to the one already described to the revolving cylinder where it is
further concentrated in manner well known. For the purpose of enabling the
revolving cylinder to be more readily emptied on stopping work and thus to he
kept cleaner we find it advantageous to fit the cylinder with a valve or plug fixed
near its discharge end.
The cylinder is stopped with. the valve on its lower side and on opening this the
liquid or semi liquid contents flow out. The apparatus for heating air to be used
in the revolving cylinder of the concretor we make of horizontal form, that is to
say, that the pipes through which the products of combustion pass on their way to
the chimney are placed horizontal or nearly so. To prevent escape of heated air
between the tubes and tube plates or entry of heated gases into the air heating
chamber we employ an arrangement illustrated on sheet 9 of the drawings by
Figs XXIII XXIV XXV XXVI and XXVII.
The tubes 94 at each end pass through two tube plates 95 and 96 the space (97)
between which is filled in with material such as sand. The holes in the tube
plates are of such a size that untooled cast iron tubes can be easily passed through
them.
To prevent leakage of the sand or other filling material around the tubes 94 out
of the spaces 97 between them and the tube plates the holes in these are made
conical in form so as to hold a luting of suitable material such as clay as indicated
in Figs XXVI. The inner tube plate at each end is put in place and the tubes are
put in position; the joints around them at each end are then luted from outside;
the outer tube plates are next passed over the ends of the tubes and bolted to the
inner tube plates. The joints of the tubes with the outer tube plates are then
luted and the spaces at each end between the inner and outer tube plates are
filled with the material such as sand, poured in at the top, and the joint is
complete. Each tube is held firmly in its place at one end by means of a nail or
small wedge driven beside it into the hole in the tube plate. This prevents the
tubes from being displaced when tube brushes are passed through them to clean
them. We enlarge one side of each hole in the tube plates slightly as shewn
in Fig XXVII so that the projections on the tubes where chaplets have been used
to support the core in moulding them may pass readily without the hole being too
much increased in size.
The concentrated sugary mass discharged from the "revolving cylinder" before
mentioned at a temperature of about 190° to 200° F. still contains a small per-
centage of water. In order to remove a part of this and to rapidly cool the
material which is very tenacious of heat we cause it to be broken up and
subjected in a divided state to the action of air. A convenient method of effecting
this is by causing the semi fluid porridgy material to fall upon blades attached to
a suitable device such as a disc to which rapid rotary notion is imparted. The
materal is caught by the blades and dung from them in a shower of grains or
pellets which as they rapidly pass through the air part with much of their moisture
and heat.
The material divided dried and cooled as above set forth is more suited for certain
markets than the ordinary untreated product of the concretor.
When a disc caused to revolve rapidly is employed its blades can be utilized in

page_text: some cases for the additional purpose of aspirating from the air heater heated air,
the heat of which will help to keep the apparatus clean and to dry the sugar.
On sheet 10 of the drawings we illustrate an arrangement of apparatus such as
just referred to, Fig XXVIII being a front elevation and Fig XXIX a sectional
side elevation. 98 are blades attached to a disc 99 fast on a driven spindle 100.
101 is a hopper into which the material to be treated is fed and whereby it is
conducted to the blades to be operated upon. 102 is a hot air trunk furnished
with a damper 103. Rapid rotary motion is imparted to the blades by means of a
belt passing round the driving pulley 104 as well understood and the blades 98 at
once break up and throw out the sugar simultaneously aspirating hot air the supply
of which is regulated by the damper 103.
Apparatus embodying the improvements above described may in some cases be
employed in the manufacture of other materials than sugar where similar treatment
is required.
Having described the nature of the said invention and the manner of carrying
it into practical effect what we claim is :—
1 The use for conveying megass automatically from a crushing mill and delivering
it as required into a furnace or furnaces of apparatus wherein the megass is drawn
along a fixed trough by rakes attached to a travelling chain or band such trough
being made with openings through which the megass may pass and provided with
hoppers furnished with movable doors and prongs operating substantially as herein-
above described.
2 The use for feeding a furnace with megass of a hopper furnished below with
a movable door and above with movable prongs so arranged that when the door is
open the prongs are across the top of the hopper so as to hold megass above them
and when the door is closed the prongs are withdrawn so as to permit the megass
to fall upon it, substantially as described.
3 The combination of parts constituting the improved apparatus for conveying
megass automatically from a crushing mill and delivering it as required into a
furnace or furnaces the whole constructed arranged and operating as hereinabove
described and shewn in the drawings.
4. Treating megass or crushed sugar cane to extract a further quantity of sugar
therefrom by causing the same to pass along a trough or vessel in opposition to a
stream of heated water whereby the megass or crushed cane is saturated whilst
stampers or beaters repeatedly stamp it substantially as described.
5 Treating megass or crushed sugar cane to extract a further quantity of sugar
therefrom by causing the same to pass along a trough or vessel in opposition to a
stream of heated water whereby the negass or crushed cane is saturated whilst
stampers or beaters repeatedly stamp it, and afterwards subjecting the megass or
crushed cane so treated to the squeezing action of suitable rolls substantially as
and for the purpose specified.
6 The combination of parts constituting the improved apparatus for treating
inegass to extract sugar therefrom constructed arranged and operating as shown in
and described with reference to Figs VI VII and VII* of the drawings,
7. The use in combination for treating saccharine juice to effect coagulation of
the vegetable albumen of two steam heaters one heated by live steam the other by
exhaust steam and means for maintaining the requisite pressure of the saccharine
juice whilst passing successively through the two heaters substantially as
described.
8. The use for treating saccharine matter in the manufacture of sugar of a filter
50 arranged that the filter bags can be allowed to drop from the filter head
through the bottom of the filter on to a truck or otherwise substantially as
described.
9. The improved filter constructed with seamless sheaths or bags secured to the.
filter head by rings placed within them and with a removable door through which
the said sheaths or bags can be allowed to drop substantially as described and
illustrated.

page_text: 10. The improved regulating valve or gauge vessel wherein an external index
for showing the extent to which the valve is opened is used in conjunction with a
spirally perforated cylinder into which the liquid passes and the flow through the
holes of which indicates the quantity of liquor passing all substantially as
described.
11. The improved combined arrangement of concretor trays wherein (a), the
ribs of each tray are deeper at its lower part than at the upper part, (b) each tray
is provided with a movable triangular stop or dam near the lower end, and, (c), the
connections between the trays are furnished with contracting pieces all substan-
tially as described.
12. In the construction of concretors the use as hereinabove described of tube
plates having conical holes the tubes being luted in with clay to facilitate making
the sand joints as above set forth.
13. Treating hot concreted saccharine matter by causing it to be broken up und
to pass in the divided state through air for the purpose of cooling and further
drying it substantially as described with reference to sheet X of the drawings—
whether hot air be used or not.
In Witness whereof I the said James Bingham Alliott have hereunto set my
hand and seal this twelfth day of July in the year of our Lord one thousand
eight hundred and eighty three
JAMES BINGHAM ALLIOTT (L.S.)