IMPROVEMENTS IN OBTAINING SALTS OF AMMONIA
Year: 1875

page_text: LETTERS PATENT to Robert Ormiston Paterson and Francis William
Brothers, both of Cheltenham, in the County of Gloucester, for the
Invention
ΟΙ IMPROVEMENTS IN
OBTAINING SALTS OF AMMONIA.
PROVISIONAL SPECIFICATION left by the said Robert Ormiston
Paterson and Francis William Brothers at the Office of the Com-
missioners of Patents, with their Petition, on the 16th August
1875.
We, ROBERT ORMISTON PATERSON and FRANCIS WILLIAM BROTHERS,
both of Cheltenham, in the County of Gloucester, do hereby declare
the nature of the said Invention for " IMPROVEMENTS IN OBTAINING SALTS
OF AMMONIA," to be as follows:-
This Invention has for its object the more ready and economical
means of obtaining a carbonate or the carbonates of ammonia from the
ordinary ammoniacal liquor resulting from the distillation of coal and
other similar material in the manufacture of gas, or from other am-
moniacal solution, and consists in the following process;-The

page_text: ammoniacal liquor is run into a boiler, from which a pipe of suitable
capacity rises. This pipe is continued to any convenient length, and is
then caused to enter a chamber or receiver. To this receiver one end of
another pipe rises, the other end of the pipe being attached to a second
receiver. To the second receiver there is also a pipe communicating
with a third receiver, and so on until there is a sufficient number of
receivers. Heat is then applied to the boiler, and the ammoniacal
liquor raised in temperature sufficient to disengage the ammonia and
carbonic acid contained therein, the gases and vapours passing up the
first-mentioned pipe, which should be of such a length and capacity, or
subjected to such cooling influence and so arranged as regards inclina-
tion that while the gases will pass on into the receiver the aqueous
vapours shall be condensed and fall back into the boiler.
By these
means the carbonic acid and the ammonia will be disengaged and
deposited in the receiver in the form of a carbonate or carbonates of
ammonia, while the sulphuretted hydrogen or other sulphurous gases
will pass on to the outlet of the last receiver, where they may be arrested
by lime or oxide of iron, or otherwise disposed of.
The bulk of the carbonate of ammonia will be deposited in the first
receiver, but in order to avoid loss of ammonia a second and third or
even more receivers may be added, if found requisite, and instead of only
one pipe being used for the conveyance of the gases and vapours any
convenient number may be employed.
At times it may be found that the ammoniacal liquor does not contain
sufficient carbonic acid to neutralize the whole of the ammonia, and in
that case it will be necessary to supply an addition of carbonic acid, to
be obtained by the decomposition of chalk or other well known means.
SPECIFICATION in pursuance of the conditions of the Letters Patent,
filed by the said Robert Ormiston Paterson and Francis William
Brothers in the Great Seal Patent Office on the 12th February 30
1876.
TO ALL TO WHOM THESE PRESENTS SHALL COME, wc, ROBERT
ORMISTON PATERSON and FRANCIS WILLIAM BROTHERS, both of Chel-
tenham, in the County of Gloucester, send greeting.

page_text: WHEREAS Her most Excellent Majesty Queen Victoria, by Her
Letters Patent, bearing date the Sixteenth day of August, in the
year of our Lord One thousand eight hundred and seventy-five, in the
thirty-ninth year of Her reign, did, for Herself, Her heirs and suc-
cessors, give and grant unto us, the said Robert Ormiston Paterson and
Francis William Brothers, Her special licence that we, the said Robert
Ormiston Paterson and Francis William Brothers, our executors,
administrators, and assigns, or such others as we, the said Robert
Ormiston Paterson and Francis William Brothers, our executors,
administrators, and assigns, should at any time agree with, and no
others, from time to time and at all times thereafter during the term
therein expressed, should and lawfully might make, use, exercise,
and vend, within the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland,
the Channel Islands, and Isle of Man, an Invention for "IMPROVEMENTS
IN OBTAINING SALTS OF AMMONIA," upon the condition (amongst others)
that we, the said Robert Ormiston Paterson and Francis William
Brothers, our executors or administrators, by an instrument in writing
under our, or their, or one of their hands and seals, should particularly
describe and ascertain the nature of the said Invention, and in what
manner the same was to be performed, and cause the same to be filed
in the Great Seal Patent Office within six calendar months next and
immediately after the date of the said Letters Patent.
NOW KNOW YE, that we, the said Robert Ormiston Paterson and
Francis William Brothers, do hereby declare the nature of our said
Invention, and in what manner the same is to be performed, to be
particularly described and ascertained in and by the following state-
ment, reference being had to the accompanying Drawings and to the
letters and figures marked thereon, that is to say :-
This Invention has for its object the more ready and economical
means of obtaining a carbonate or the carbonates of ammonia from the
ordinary ammoniacal liquor resulting from the distillation of coal and
other similar material in the manufacture of gas or from other
ammoniacal solutions, and consists in the following process :-The
ammoniacal liquor is run into a boiler, from which a pipe of suitable
capacity rises. This pipe is continued to any convenient length, and is
then caused to enter a chamber or receiver which is furnished with
means for draining off any liquid that may collect in it. To this receiver
one end of another pipe rises, the other end of the pipe being attached

page_text: to a second receiver. To the second receiver there is also a pipe com-
municating with a third receiver, and so on until there is a sufficient
number of receivers. Heat is then applied to the boiler, and the
ammoniacal liquor raised in temperature sufficient to disengage the
ammonia and carbonic acid contained therein, the gases and vapours
passing up the first-mentioned pipe, which should be of such a length
and capacity, or subjected to such cooling influence and so arranged as
regards inclination that while the gases will pass on into the receiver the
aqueous vapour shall be condensed and fall back into the boiler. By
these means the carbonic acid and the ammonia will be disengaged and
deposited in the receiver in the form of a carbonate or carbonates of
ammonia, while the sulphuretted hydrogen or other sulphurous gases
will pass on to the outlet of the last receiver, where they may be arrested
by lime or oxide of iron, or otherwise disposed of.
The bulk of the carbonate of ammonia will be deposited in the first
receiver, but in order to avoid loss of ammonia a second and third or
even more receivers may be added if found requisite, and instead of only
one pipe being used for the conveyance of the gases and vapours any
convenient number may be employed.
At times it may be found that the ammoniacal liquor does not contain
sufficient carbonic acid to neutralize the whole of the ammonia, and in
that case it will be necessary to supply an addition of carbonic acid to
be obtained by the decomposition of chalk or other well known means.
In order that no doubt may exist as to the mode of carrying out the
Invention a Drawing is attached to show the principle of the arrange-
ment of the apparatus we propose to employ. It is however to be
distinctly understood that we lay no claim to the particular apparatus
exhibited, as our Invention may be carried into effect by many other
forms of apparatus equally convenient.
In the illustration A represents a boiler set over a furnace B. From
the top of the boiler rises a pipe C communicating with the receiver D.
This pipe is made of such length or subject to such cooling influence as
will ensure the condensation of the aqueous vapour, and is placed at
such an inclination as to cause such condensation to flow back into the
boiler. E and F are two additional receivers in communication with D,
and are used for the purpose of catching any ammonia that may escape

page_text: from D uncondensed; G, G, G, are pipes for leading away any liquid
that may be formed in the receivers.
Having now described and particularly set forth the nature of this
Invention, and the manner in which the same is or may be used or carried
into effect, we would observe in conclusion, that we do not confine or
restrict ourselves to the precise details or arrangements which we have
described or referred to, as variations may be made therefrom without
deviating from the principles or main features of this Invention, but
what we consider to be novel and original and therefore claim as the
Invention secured to us by the herein-before in part recited Letters
Patent is, the manufacture of solid carbonate or carbonates of ammonia
by heating gas or other liquor containing ammonia, combined or not
with carbonic acid, condensing the aqueous vapours contained therein,
and depositing in suitable receivers the salt or salts thereby disengaged,
as described herein.
In witness whereof, wc, the said Robert Ormiston Paterson and
Francis William Brothers, have hereunto set our hands and
seals, this Twelfth day of February, in the year of our Lord
One thousand eight hundred and seventy-six.