Improvements in or relating to Cellulose Manufacture.
Year: 1891

page_text: Date of Application, 29th May, 1891
Complete Specification Left, 12th Feb., 1892-Accepted, 29th June. 1892
PROVISIONAL SPECIFICATION.
Improvements in or relating to Cellulose Manufacture.
A communication from EUGENE ROCCA, of Naples, in the Kingdom of Italy.
I, ALFRED JULIUS BOULT of 323 High Holborn in the County, of Middlesex,
M.I.M.E., do hereby declare the nature of this invention to be as follows:-
:-
This invention relates to a material which it is preferred to call "celluline."
The material is prepared from cellulose as taken from textile plants with
cellulose of resinous plants and is treated at a high pressure with an alkaline
solution. The proportion of each kind of cellulose required to give softness and
flexibility to the celluline will be regulated according to the quality of cellulose
used that is according as it has or has not been previously bleached and is more or
less stringy and also according to the length and strength of the fibre and to the
softness and tenuity required in the finished material.
The paste or pulp obtained from this mixture is purified, bleached, washed and
treated in the same manner as paper pulp and suitable means of manufacture are
employed to obtain a thoroughly pure, white and refined pulp; and as the pulp
must be very thin and light the refining must be continued until the mass has
reached the highest degree of lightness and thinness.
The process of manufacture of celluline is the same as that used in making paper.
The substance reduced to the necessary lightness and thinness by chemical and
mechanical operations is carried to the wire cloth and continuing on the same
principle as in the manufacture of paper, it passes to the drying cylinders, one of
which is sufficient, if large enough. The celluline must be taken from the cylinder
before it has completely lost its plastic state and dampness, and before it takes the
appearance and the consistence of paper, which must be avoided. The mass may
be taken off the cylinder in the form of a layer or otherwise by means of a knife or
other instrument.
The product turned out will be very porous or spongy and have interstices and
be very thin and light much resembling wadding, fine gauze, crape and such
like.
The properties of the thinnest material can be varied according to requirements,
by modifying the refining operation, the thickness of the layer of material poured
out and the degrees of heat or dampness.
The material can be transformed into felt, sponges, wadding, stuffing and may be
substituted for cotton and other similar materials.
The celluline manufactured as above can be sterilized if required by exposing it
for a long time to a temperature of 120° C. so as to make it aseptic; or it may be
sterilized while still in the form of pulp by adding some antiseptic matter in the
proportion required, care being taken that such antiseptic does not decompose
chemically at a temperature of 50°-55° C. It can also be made aseptic by
several layers saturated with an antiseptic solution being placed one upon another
and pressed.
The sterilisation produced by any of the above methods, make the celluline an
antiseptic material par excellence, it does not matter which method is adopted
whether by introducing the material directly into the pulp or by saturation and
pressing so that the material becomes soft and smooth and antiseptic without the
use of greasy matter.
Dated this 29th day of May 1891.
W. P. THOMPSON & BOULT,
Agents for the Applicant.

page_text: COMPLETE SPECIFICATION.
Improvements in or relating to Cellulose Manufacture.
A communication from EUGENE ROCCA, of Naples, in the Kingdom of Italy.
1, ALFRED JULIUS BOULT of 323 High Holborn, in the County of Middlesex,
M.I.M.E., 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 material which it is preferred to call "celluline."
The material is prepared from cellulose as taken from textile plants with
cellulose of resinous plants and is treated at a high pressure with an alkaline
solution, such as is used in the ordinary method of washing the pulp employed in
the manufacture of paper. The proportion of each kind of cellulose required to
give softness and flexibility to the celluline will be regulated according to the
quality of cellulose used, that is according as it has or has not been previously
bleached and is more or less stringy and also according to the length and strength
of the fibre and to the softness and tenuity required in the finished material.
The paste or pulp obtained from this mixture is purified, bleached, washed and
treated in the same manner as paper pulp, and suitable means of manufacture are
employed to obtain a thoroughly pure, white, and refined pulp, and as the pulp
must be very thin and light the refining must be continued until the mass has
reached the highest degree of lightness and thinness, thus exceeding in lightness of
pulp that which is required for the production of paper.
The process of manufacture of celluline is the same as that used in making paper.
The substance reduced to the necessary lightness and thinness by ordinary chemical
and mechanical operations is carried to the wire cloth and continuing on the same
principle as in the manufacture of paper, it passes to the drying cylinders, one of
which however is sufficient, if large enough. The celluline must be taken from the
cylinder before it has completely lost its plastic state and dampness, and before it
takes the appearance and the consistency of paper, a state which must absolutely be
avoided.
The mass may be taken off the cylinder in the form of a layer or otherwise by
means of a knife, scraper or other instrument placed longitudinally to the cylinder
or roller and in contact with its surface, and as it is detached from the cylinder it
falls as a light and frothy mass.
The product turned out will be very porous or spongy and have interstices and be
very thin and light much resembling wadding, fine gauze, crape and the like. My
correspondent has found in practice that the film of pulp must be immediately
detached from the cylinder when it reaches the stage between soft dampness and
semi-cohesion, that is when it reaches the stage of fibrous cellular disaggregation,
so that when dry it may have the characteristic speciality of being spongy and
frothy resembling cotton or wadding.
It is clearly therefore of great importance that the material shall be scraped off
the cylinder at the proper time or stage for if it were taken off before the time one
would obtain a soft and shapeless mass, and if the drying process were continued
too long nothing but bad tissue paper would be the result. Now the article in
question is neither a shapeless mass nor paper of any kind, but it is a soft, porous
article completely new.
The treatment is modified according as it is desired to obtain material of greater
or less purity, or according to the quantity of pulp treated at a time, a thicker layer
being spread on the wire cloth when it is desired to obtain a more spongy sheet of
material.
The properties of the thinnest material can be varied according to requirements,
by modifying the refining operation, the thickness of the layer of material poured
out and the degrees of heat or dampness.

page_text: The material can be transformed into felt, sponges, wadding, stuffing and may be
substituted for cotton wool and other similar materials.
A substance resembling felt is produced by submitting the mass to the action of
a press. To make bandages, a number of such compressed sheets may be placed
one upon the other. A sponge may be obtained by enveloping a given quantity of
celluline in gauze or muslin.
The celluline manufactured as above can be sterilized if required by exposing it
for a long time to a temperature of 120° C. so as to make it aseptic; or it may be
sterilized while still in the form of pulp by adding in the proportion required some
antiseptic matter such as corrosive sublimate, carbolic acid, salicylic acid, boric
acid, iodoform or equivalent antiseptic of which neither alcohol nor ether is the
chief ingredient, care being taken that such antiseptic does not decompose
chemically at a temperature of 50°-55° C. It can also be made aseptic by
several layers saturated with an antiseptic solution being placed one upon another
and pressed.
The sterilization produced by any of the above methods, inake the celluline an
antiseptic material par excellence, it does not matter which method is adopted
whether by introducing the material directly into the pulp or by saturation and
pressing so that the material becomes soft and smooth and antiseptic without the
use of greasy matter.
Flexibility is obtained by the addition of glycerine.
Having now particularly described and ascertained the nature of the said inven-
tion, as communicated to me by my foreign correspondent, and in what manner
the same is to be performed, I declare that what I claim is:
-
1. The manufacture of material possessing the properties described from a paste
of highly refined cellulose substantially as described.
2. The employment as a substitute for cotton and the like of the material
described in the above first claiming clause in the manufacture of felts sponges
wadding stuffing veils gauze crapes and other similar fabrics or materials.
3. The employment of the herein described material as an antiseptic.
Dated this 12th day of February
1000
1002
W. P. THOMPSON & BOULT,
Agents for the Applicant.
on a
W. P. THOMPSON & BOULT,
Agents for the Applicant.