Year: 1887

page_text: Date of Application, 15th Feb., 1887
Complete Left, 15th Nov., 1887
Complete Accepted, 27th Dec., 1887
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 to be as follows:-
The object of this invention is to avoid all manipulations, such as stirring, agitating
or repeated plunging of the material to be treated, hitherto indispensable to effect the
decoloration or bleaching of vegetable or animal matter such as wool, flax, hemp, jute,
esparto grass and the like either raw, as yarn or as tissue, further straw, horsehair,
feathers, hair and the like. The same system may also be employed for the washing
and scouring of wool.
These manipulations are replaced and the same results obtained by an automatic
circulation of the decoloring or bleaching liquid under the action of a vacuum and by
means of a new system of hydraulic balance effected by the same vacuum produced in
the apparatus.
The apparatus may be used in connection with any desired number of vats placed
on the same level and into which the material to be treated is placed either on false
perforated bottom or on hooks or bars fixed in the interior of the vats.
When the vats are open they are connected by pipes and on a higher level are
placed two hermetically closed receptacles provided with charging funnels and guage
glasses.
These receptacles are connected to the two end vat of the series by means of pipes
and are provided on the top with pipes which connect them to the hydraulic balance
which latter produces the vacuum alternatively in the two receptacles.
It will now be seen, that when the vacuum is produced in one of the receptacles it
will fill itself with the liquid from the vat connected therewith and the liquid in this
vat will be replaced by that of the next and so on to the end of the series. If therefore

page_text: the vacuum is produced alternatively in the two receptacles connected to the two
end vats a continuous flow of the liquid through the entire series of vats will take
place the quantity displaced being dependent on the size of the receptacles.
The hydraulic balance consists of any convenient support carrying the pipes coming
from the top of the two receptacles which pipes are here connected and joined to
another pipe leading to an air-tight chamber in which the vacuum is produced by
means of a suitable steam ejector connected therewith.
Each of the two pipes coming from the top of the receptacles is provided near the
junction with the pipe leading to the vacuum chamber with a three way cock the top
opening of which opens or closes a small pipe provided with a valve which regulates
the re-entrance of the air into the receptacles. These three way cocks are so arranged
that when one is open the other is closed, they are further provided upon their axes
with small pulleys over which an endless band runs. On each side of these pulleys is
placed another similar pulley and a band runs from the top of one of the latter over the
top of one and under the bottom of the other of the three way cock pulleys and over
the top of the second outside pulley in such a manner that when this band moves the
three way cock pulleys are simultaneously moved. To the ends of this band are
fastened small receptacles of bottles containing a certain quantity of liquid. These
small bottles are connected by a pipe with each other and each of them by a pipe to
the top of its corresponding large receptacle placed above the vat as before described.
The two small bottles or receptacles fastened to the ends of the bands are so arranged
that when one stands on the ground the other is suspended in the air.
Supposing the three way cock is open which leads to the receptacle the bottle of
which is suspended, the vacuum will form there as also in the bottle connected with it
and the bottle will naturally fill with the liquid drawn from the other bottle as this
latter empties itself and the former fills the formerly suspended bottle will sink by its
own weight and draw the band the three way cock connected with it will close and
the other open and the same process will repeat itself on the other side.
By the small air cocks above the three way cocks the time of the filling of the
receptacles as also the time of the hydraulic balance movement is regulated.
Hermetically closed vats are preferably used when a liquid is employed which con-
tains gaseous decoloring or bleaching agents such as oxygenized water or water
charged with sulphurous acid or the like. In this case the apparatus is preferably
arranged as follows:-supposing a series of 4 vats are to be used only one of the
middle ones will be filled with the liquid which will be drawn by the receptacles in
the same manner as above described from one of the middle vats to the other and
back without entering the outside vats in which the material to be treated is placed in
a suitable damp condition. Thus the gaseous agents disengaged from the liquid will
alternately be drawn into and fill the outside vats and here encounter the material to
be treated.
The liquid may also be heated by an arrangement of pipes and the apparatus will
then be applicable to the washing and scouring of wool.
1
1000

page_text: Improvements in the Process and Apparatus for the Bleaching of
Vegetable and Animal Matter and Washing and Scouring of
Wool.
A communication from HONORÉ KORWIN DE PAWLOWSKI, of Paris, in the Republic
of France, Chemist.
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 and in what manner the same is
to be performed, to be particularly described and ascertained in and by the following
statement :-
The object of this invention is to avoid all manipulations, such as stirring agitating
or repeated plunging of the material to be treated, hitherto indispensable to effect the
decoloration or bleaching of vegetable or animal matter such as wool, flax, hemp, jute,
esparto grass and the like either raw, as yarn or as tissue, further straw, horsehair,
feathers, hair and the like. The same system may also be employed for the washing
and scouring of wool.
These manipulations are replaced and the same results obtained by an automatic
circulation of the decoloring or bleaching liquid under the action of a vacuum and by
means of a new system of hydraulic balance effected by the same vacuum produced in
the apparatus.
In the accompanying drawings :-
Fig. 1 is an elovation of the apparatus in connection with open vats.
Fig. 2 an elevation of the apparatus in connection with hermetically closed vats.
The apparatus may be used in connection with any desired number of vats placed
on the same level and into which the material to be treated is placed, either on false
perforated bottoms or on hooks or bars fixed in the interior of the vats.
When the vats are open as in fig. 1 the vats A A' A² are connected by pipes B and
on a higher level are placed two hermetically closed receptacles C C provided with
charging funnels and guage glasses.
These receptacles are connected to the two end vats of the series by means of
pipes D and are provided on the top with pipes E F and E' F' which connect them
to the hydraulic balance which latter produces the vacuum alternately in the two
recipients.
It will now be seen, that when the vacuum is produced in one of the receptacles it
will fill itself with the liquid from the vat connected therewith and the liquid in this
vat will be replaced by that of the next and so on to the end of the series. If there-
fore the vacuum is produced alternatively in the two receptacles connected to the two
end vats a continuous flow of the liqui through the entire series of vats will take
place the quantity displaced being dependent on the size of the receptacles.
The hydraulic balance represented in elevation in figure 1 and in plan below fig. 2
consists of any convenient support carrying the pipes E E¹ coming from the top of
the two receptacles C C which pipes are here connected and joined to another pipe G
leading to an air-tight_chamber H in which the vacuum produced by means of a
suitable steam ejector I J K connected therewith.
Each of the two pipes coming from the top of the receptacles is provided near the
junction with the pipe leading to the vacuum chamber H, with a three way cock, L
or L' the top opening of which opens or closes a small pipe provided with a valve
which regulates the re-entrance of the air into the receptacles CC'.
These three way
cocks L L are so arranged that when one is open the other is closed, they are further
provided upon their axes with small pulleys over which an endless band M runs. On
each side of these pulleys is placed another similar pulley N and a band runs from the

page_text: top of one of the latter over the top of one and under the bottom of the other of the
three way cock pulleys and over the top of the second outside pulley N in such a
manner that when this band moves the three way cock pulleys are simultaneously
moved. To the ends of this band are fastened small receptacles or bottles o o' con-
taining a certain quantity of liquid. These small bottles are connected by a pipe P
with each other and each of them by a pipe F or F1 to the top of its corresponding
large receptacle C or C¹ placed above the vat as before described. The two small
bottles or receptacles fastened to the ends of the band are so arranged that when one
stands on the ground the other is suspended in the air.
Supposing the three way cock is open which leads to the receptacle the bottle of
which is suspended the vacuum will form there as also in the bottle connected with it
and the bottle will naturally fill with the liquid drawn from the other bottle as this
latter empties itself and the former fills, the formerly suspended bottle will sink by
its own weight and draw the band, the three way cock connected with it will close and
the other open and the same process will repeat itself on the other side.
By the small air cocks above the three way cocks the time of the filling of the
receptacles as also the time of the hydraulic balance movement is regulated.
Hermetically closed vats as represented in fig. 2 are preferably used when a liquid
is employed which contains gaseous decoloring or bleaching agents such as oxygenized
water or water charged with sulphurous acid or the like. In this case the apparatus is
preferably arranged as follows: supposing a series of four vats are to be used only one
of the middle ones will be filled with the liquid which will be drawn off by the
receptacles in the same manner as above described from one of the middle vats to the
other and back without entering the outside vats in which the material to be treated
is placed in a suitable damp condition. Thus the gaseous agents disengaged from the
liquid will alternately be drawn into and fill the outside vats and here encounter the
material to be treated.
The liquid may also be heated by an arrangement of pipes and the apparatus will
then be applicable to the washing and scouring of wool.
Having now particularly described and ascertained the nature of the said invention
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 herein described method of bleaching washing or scouring vegetable and
animal substances based on the alternate displacement of the liquid contained in the
vats by means of a vacuum substantially as and for the purpose specified.
2. The arrangement and operation of the apparatus represented in figure 1 of the
accompanying drawings comprising open vats in which the automatic displacement of
the bleaching or other liquid is produced by two receptacles placed on a higher level
than the vats substantially as and for the purpose specified.
3. The arrangement and operation of the apparatus for bleaching or other liquids
giving off gas represented in figure 2 of the accompanying drawings comprising a
series of hermetically closed vats the end ones of which remain always empty for the
purpose of utilising the gas given off under the action of the vacuum produced
alternately in the receptacles arranged above the vats for the automatic displacement
of the liquid in the apparatus, substantially as and for the purpose specified.
4. The arrangement and operation of the hydraulic balance operating under the
action of the vacuum and the adjustable oscillations of which assure the automatic
alternate displacement of the liquid in the apparatus substantially as and for the
purpose specified.