IMPROVEMENTS IN THE TREATMENT OF OILS AND TARS OBTAINED FROM COKE OVENS FOR THE PRODUCTION OF VALUABLE HYDROCARBONS ass
Year: 1884

page_text: I, CHARLES ERNEST BELL of Park House Durham Mining Engineer do hereby
declare the nature of my invention for "IMPROVEMENTS IN THE TREATMENT OF
OILS AND TARS OBTAINED FROM COKE OVENS FOR THE PRODUCTION OF VALUABLE
HYDROCARBONS to be as follows:
"3
This Invention has for its object improvements in the treatment of oils and tars
obtained from coke ovens.
At the present time oils and tars are obtained from coke ovens by the use of
what is known as the Jameson oven and by other like means. Such oils and tars
do not contain in their natural state any considerable proportion of hydrocarbons:
of the series to which benzol naphthaline and anthracine belong but I have
discovered that by suitable treatinent hydro carbons of these series can be obtained
from them.
For this purpose I pass the oils or tars as at present obtained in the state of
vapour through retorts charged with coke heated to a full red heat. I pass the
product into a condenser and afterwards submit it to well known treatment to
separate the various chemical bodies of which it will then be found to consist.
Dated this 27th day of June 1884.

page_text: '
I, CHARLES ERNEST BELL of Park House, Durham, Mining Engineer do hereby
declare the nature of my invention for "IMPROVEMENTS IN THE TREATMENT OF
OILS AND TARS OBTAINED FROM COKE OVENS FOR THE PRODUCTION OF VALUABLE
HYDROCARBONS" and in what manner the same is to be performed to be particularly
described and ascertained in and by the following statement :-
This invention has for its object improvements in the treatment of oils and tars
obtained from coke ovens.
At the present time oils and tars are obtained from coke ovens by the use of
what is known as the Jameson oven and by other like means. Such oils and tars
do not contain in their natural state any considerable proportion of hydrocarbons
of the series to which benzol, naphthaline and anthracine belong but I have
discovered that by suitable treatment hydrocarbons of these series. can be obtained
from them.
The way in which I prefer to operate is as follows:-
I take the oils and tars as they are obtained from the coke ovens and I-submit
them to a process of distillation by which I separate from them the pitch which
they contain. The volatile. portions may be condensed and then afterwards
treated but I prefer. to avoid this intermediate process and to pass the vapours
from the still direct into a highly heated retort or cliamber; by which treatment
the more valuable hydrocarbons are developed.
I employ preferably cast iron retorts say about 9 feet long and 8 inches in
internal diameter. The retorts are set in a furnace at a slight inclination, sufficient
to drain towards the delivery end, or other convenient position. The retorts
should be maintained at a full or even a bright red heat, they may be filled with
coke but my experiments show me that this is by no means essential for I have
obtained good results when the retorts have been left empty. The vapours from
the still are passed into the retorts near one end, and they issue from the retorts at
the other end into neck pieces forming prolongations of the retorts and extending
some three or four feet out from the back of the furnace.. From these necks
vertical pipes rise, and these are surrounded with water entering at the lower part
of a jacket and passing off at the top. In the horizontal necks of the retort, and
also in these rising pipes a partial condensation takes place, and by a siphon like
outlet pipe connected with the neck of the retort a tarry product is drawn off.
A further and more complete condensation is effected in a condenser with an oil
scrubber attached consisting of a range of vertical pipes exposed to the air and in
which the vapours are caused to ascend and descend alternately from end to end
of the series. There may be in the condenser say two dozen pipes arranged in
two parallel rows and each pipe four inches in diameter and 8 feet long. A gas
remains after this condensation which is mostly hydrogen gas-containing but a
small per centage of hydrocarbons. This gas I utilise by passing it back to the
furnace in which the retorts are contained and there burning it for the purpose of
heating the retorts.

page_text: When the vapours from the still are condensed previous to treatment in the
heated retorts or chambers I run the distilled oil into the retort at its upper end
at the rate of about a gallon and a half in an hour. The same is a suitable
quantity to be allowed to pass into each retort when admitted in a state of vapour.
When the retorts are working properly but a very small deposition of carbon
takes place within them, and this should be removed about once in 24 hours. If
too high a temperature be employed the deposition of carbon will be much larger
and it will be necessary to clear the retorts every few hours, great loss of product
then results.
I find that the tarry product obtained should be about 45 per cent of the amount
of material treated, the remainder passes off as gas and produces the small amount
of carbonaceous deposit within the retorts or chambers which so far I have not
been able to avoid.
By treatment in this manner of a material which, when admitted to the retort
has in a liquid form a specific gravity, of 8 I obtain in the proportion stated a
tarry product having the specific gravity of 109: or again with a material entering
the retort at a specific gravity of about 95 I obtain a product having a specific
gravity of 1·13 or thereabout.
These two examples represent approximately the working at the commencement
and the end of the operation. At the commencement of the distillation vapours of
oils having comparatively low specific gravity enter the retort from the still but as
the distillation proceeds oils having a higher specific gravity are drawn over. The
result of the process is to raise the specific gravity that of the product being
considerably higher than that of the matter entering the retort.
At the same time the process alters the chemical composition of the bodies which
become richer in carbon. The product contains benzol, toluole, xyline, naphthaline,
anthracine phenol and their homologues besides isologous series. For the separation
of these the product is afterwards treated by fractional distillation in the usual
manner.
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 is
The treatment of oils and tars obtained from coke ovens by submitting them to
bigh temperature in retorts or chambers substantially as herein described.
CARPMAEL & Co.,
Agents for the Applicant.