Year: 1886

page_text: Date of Application, 17th Aug., 1886.
Complete Left, 13th May, 1887.
Complete Accepted, 14th June, 1887.
I, ALEXANDER MITSOHERLICH, Professor of Chemistry and Doctor of Philosophy,
of 6 Leopold Street, Friburg, Grand Duchy of Baden, German Empire, do hereby
declare the nature of this invention to be as follows:-
According to this invention boards or laths, as free from knots as possible, of any
desired width and of a thickness of not over of an inch, and which are cut in a
direction parallel with the fibre, preferably of fir or pine wood or of the softer part of
larch, are boiled in a solution of a chemical reagent which effects the disintegration
of the wood without requiring this to be reduced into small pieces as, for instance,
with a solution of sulphurous acid or of a bisulphite, after the wood has been steamed
at 212° F. for a long time. After boiling, the wood is drawn out of the boiler on a
wood lath frame, avoiding the longitudinal splitting thereof, and is so placed that it
can readily dry either in the open air or in drying rooms.
By thus drying the fibre, which is originally very weak and tends to break at the
slightest strain, it becomes comparatively strong and does not resume its very breakable
condition on the addition of water. The perfectly dried masses may be employed
directly for the purpose in view but they are very hard and brittle and require for
their reduction into separate fibres a very considerable mechanical power, which is
completely avoided by softening the masses by saturating the same with water.
It is,
however, more suitable only to dry the mass after removal from the boiler to such an
extent that liquid can hardly be pressed out of it. The fibres have then received the
requisite strength and yet allow of very easy mechanical treatment which consists in
the separation of the fibres by squeezing or by piercing. These operations are carried
out as follows.
The imperfectly dried masses upon the lath frame are transferred to an endless
travelling cloth which leads it to a pair of rollers having deep ribs in the direction of
their length, the ribs of the one roller being made to gear into the recesses of the other
one, whereby they effect a simultaneous strong bending and squeezing of the masses.
Any cutting action of such ribbed rollers is avoided with this material on the one
hand by causing the endless cloth to pass over the lower roller and on the other hand

page_text: by a canvas covering of the upper roller. The pressed masses fall from these rollers
on to a second endless cloth which conveys them to a second pair of rollers from which
they are conveyed to a third pair and so on, they being preferably pressed in this way
six times. By a continued treatment of the wood in the direction of the length and
width in this manner, the fibres become at length so pliable and isolated from each
other that they can be employed directly for coarse filaments. For obtaining a perfect
isolation of the fibres, however, without materially deteriorating them, these operations
are not suitable and they have more particularly only for their purpose to loosen the
adhesion of the fibres in the transverse direction so that in the following operation a
thin long fibre may be obtained. For this purpose the boiled and pressed masses are
placed on the lath frames and are completely dried. After drying they are removed
and are combed in the direction parallel with the fibre by means of devices provided
with pins or teeth, in a similar manner to the operations for combing flax, cotton etc.
but with the difference that the pins or teeth of the apparatus for the above purpose
must be made very strong. The separation of the extractable matter from the fibre
produced by the boiling can be effected at any time, preferably it is effected after the
fibres have been spun into threads etc.

page_text: I, ALEXANDER MITSOHERLIOH, Professor of Chemistry and Doctor of Philosophy, of
6 Leopold Street, Friburg, Grand Duchy of Baden, German Empire 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:-
According to this invention boards or laths, as free from knots as possible of any
desired width and of a thickness of not over 10 mm. ( of an inch) and which are cut
in a direction parallel with the fibre preferably of fir or pine-wood or of the softer part
of larch, are boiled in a solution of a chemical reagent which effects the disintegration
of the wood without requiring this to be reduced into small pieces as, for instance,
with a solution of sulphurous acid or of a bisulphite, after the wood has been steamed
at 212° F. for a long time. After boiling, the wood is drawn out of the boiler on a
wood lath frame avoiding the longitudinal splitting thereof, and is so placed that it can
readily dry either in the open air or in drying rooms. By this drying the fibre, which
is originally very weak and tends to break at the slightest strain, becomes comparatively
strong and does not resume its very breakable condition on the addition of water.
The perfectly dried masses may be employed directly for the purpose in view, but they
are very brittle and require for their reduction into separate fibres a very considerable
mechanical power, which is completely avoided by softening the masses by saturating
the same with water. It is however more suitable only to dry the mass, after removal
from the boiler, to such an extent that liquid can hardly be pressed out of it. The
fibres have then received the requisito strength and yet allow of very easy mechanical
treatment which consists in the separation of the fibres by squeezing or by piercing.
These operations are carried out as follows:
The imperfectly dried masses upon the lath frame are transferred to an endless
travelling cloth which leads it to a pair of smooth rollers; or of rollers having deep
ribs in the direction of their length; in this latter case the ribs of the one roller are
made to gear into the recesses of the other one, whereby they effect a simultaneous
strong bending and squeezing of the masses. Any cutting action of such ribbed
rollers is avoided with this material on the one hand by causing the endless cloth to
pass over the lower roller and on the other hand by a canvas covering of the upper
roller. The pressed masses fall from these rollers on to a second endless cloth which
conveys them to a second pair of rollers from which they are conveyed to a third pair
and so on, they being preferably pressed in this way six times. By a continued
treatment of the wood in the direction of the length and width in this manner, the
fibres become at length so pliable and isolated from each other that they can be
employed directly for coarse filaments. For obtaining a perfect isolation of the fibres,
however, without materially deteriorating the fibres, these operations are not suitable,
and they have more particularly only for their purpose to loosen the adhesion of the
fibres in the transverse direction so that in the following operation a thin long fibre
may be obtained. For this purpose the boiled and pressed masses are placed on the

page_text: lath frames and are completely dried. After drying they are removed and are combed
in the direction parallel with the fibre by means of devices provided with pins or teeth
in a similar manner to the operations for combing flax, cotton &c., but with the
difference that the pins or teeth of the apparatus for the above purpose must be made
very strong. The separation of the extractable matter from the fibre produced by the
boiling can be effected at any time, preferably it is effected after the fibres have been
spun into threads &c.
Having now particularly described and ascertained the nature of my said Invention
and in what manner the same is to be performed, I declare that what I claim in respect
of the preparation of fibres capable of being spun, from wood, is:
1-The treatment with a chemical reagent, preferably with a bisulphite of lime, of
boards or laths, which after having been steamed are cut in a direction parallel with
the fibre and are of a thickness of not over of an inch (10 mm.) whereby the
disintegration of the wood is effected without requiring this to be reduced into small
pieces, and the treatment of the imperfectly dried masses by rollers, having preferably
ribs in the direction of their length whereby the fibres will be separated from each
other.
2-The treatment of the boiled and dried masses, or of the fibros obtained by the
operations described in the preceding claim, after they have been completely dried,
by means of devices provided with pins or teeth moving in a direction parallel with
the fibre and acting in a similar manner to the operations for combing flax, cotton &c.,
but with the difference, that the pins or teeth of the apparatus for the above purpose,
must be made suitably strong.
3-As a new article of manufacture spun threads of wood having fibres placed
longitudinally and substantially parallel with each other, as herein set forth.
Dated this 12th day of Ma 1007
ABEL & IMRAY,
Agents for the Applicant.