Improvements in the Manufacture of Organio Products from Sea-weed.
Year: 1898

page_text: Date of Application, 11th June, 1898-Accepted, 16th July, 1898
COMPLETE SPECIFICATION.
Improvements in the Manufacture of Organio Products from
Sea-weed.
I, AXEL KREFTING, of 18, Kort Adlersgade, Christiania, in the Kingdom of
Norway, Engineer, do hereby declare the nature of this invention and in what
manner the same is to be performed, to be particularly described and ascertained
in and by the following statement:
This invention relates to a method of manufacturing valuable organic products
from sea-weed.
When the sea-weed has been treated by suitable chemicals and has thereby been
dissolved and afterwards filtered, the organic matter must be precipitated out of
the solution thus formed
To effect this precipitation I have heretofore added an inorganic acid for
instance sulphuric acid to the sea-weed solution such as described in the specifica-
tion of former Patent No. 11538 of 1896.
To save the costs of the acid and of its expensive transport I have made exten-
sive experiments in order to find a method for the precipitation of the organic
matter which is contained in the sea-weed solution, without using acid.
In this way I have found the organic matter contained in the sea-weed solution
can be easily and effectually precipitated by treating the said solution by means
of an electric current
The organic matter precipitates on the positive pole and may be easily removed
from the anode by mechanical means, while the alkali-metal may be withdrawn
by the means, which are ordinary used in the electrolysis of salts as for instance
by using quicksilver as the cathode In this way the alkaline lye, which is
necessary for dissolving the sea-weed or the tang-acid can be regenerated
The
Instead of electrolysing the sea-weed solution alone I have also added different
salts to it for the purpose of reducing the electric resistance of the solution
effect of the electrolysis is then a secondary one. When as for instance soda-
sulphate is added to the sea-weed solution, the electric current will decompose
the salt in such a way, that sulphuric acid will be formed at the anode and soda
metal at the cathode The sulphuric acid then precipitates the organic matter
out of its solution.
I also often add chlorides to the solution of sea-weed in order to effect a bleach-
ing of the precipitated organic matter Chlorine then 18 formed at the anode
and bleaches the organic matter.
By the method described above I obtain a double economical effect Firstly
through the saving of the acid and secondly by the regeneration of the alkaline
lye, which can be used for the treatment of new sea-weed or for the dissolving of
the organic matter, which is precipitated by the electric current

page_text: Having now particularly described and ascertained the nature of my said inven-
tion and in what manner the same 18 to be performed, I declare that what I
claim is :-
1. An improved method of manufacturing valuable organic products from sea-
weed characterized by the treatment of the sea-weed solution, (which is produced
by a preceding treatment of the sea-weed by suitable chemicals) with an electric
current.
2. In the method, characterized in Claim 1, the addition of different substances
to the said solution of sea-weed in order to increase the conductivity of the solution
or to effect a bleaching of the precipitated organic stuffs.
3. In the method characterized in Claim 1, the regeneration of the alkali applied
for dissolving the sea-weed.
Dated th18 11th day of June 1898,
HASELTINE, LAKE & Co.,
45, Southampton Buildings, London, WC, Agents for the Applicant.