IMPROVE- MENTS IN THE TREATMENT OF SOAP LEYS TO OBTAIN GLYCERINE AND OTHER PRODUCTS THEREFROM, IN THE TREATMENT OF GLYCERINE OBTAINED FROY SAID LEVO ADDAD LTTY M DO TORD BHAR Tanım
Year: 1881

page_text: LETTERS PATENT to Charles Thomas, of the City of Bristol, and Albert Domeier,
of Botolph Lane, in the City of London, for an Invention of "IMPROVE-
MENTS IN THE TREATMENT OF SOAP LEYS TO OBTAIN GLYCERINE AND
OTHER PRODUCTS THEREFROM, IN THE TREATMENT OF GLYCERINE OBTAINED
FROY SAID LEVO
ADDAD LTTY M DO TORD
BHAR
Tanım"
PROVISIONAL SPECIFICATION left by the said Charles Thomas & Albert
Domeier at the Office of the Commissioners of Patents on the 4th June 1881.
CHARLES THOMAS, of the City of Bristol, and ALBERT DOMEIER, of Botolph Lane,
in the City of London. "IMPROVEMENTS IN THE TREATMENT OF SOAP LEYS TO
OBTAIN GLYCERINE AND OTHER PRODUCTS THEREFROM, IN THE TREATMENT OF
GLYCERINE OBTAINED FROM SOAP LEYS, AND IN APPARATUS TO BE USED DURING
SUCH TREATMENT."
The objects of this Invention are to obtain crude glycerine and other useful
products from soap leys, to remove from the crude glycerine the disagreeable smell
and taste that remains in it, and to provide suitable and effective apparatus
for effecting the above objects.
In carrying out our Invention we take the soap ley and pass it through a
concentrating apparatus to evaporate the water and reduce the ley to about one
fifth its original bulk.
The concentrated ley is then mixed with an excess of sulphuric, oxalic, or other
suitable acid, in solid, liquid, or gaseous form, which is afterwards neutralized by
an alkali. We thus obtain a partial separation of the constituent parts of the ley,
viz., the fatty acids float on the top of the mass and are removed; the glycerine,
water, and albuminous matters remaining.
The glycerine solution is then filtered to remove the albuminous matters. The
filtered liquor, which still contains a quantity of salt and water, is subjected to
further concentration to remove the salts and remaining water, and the product is
crude glycerine, which may be used in that stato, or it may be further treated as
hereafter described to remove all disagreeable smell or taste that may remain.

page_text: This treatment consists in washing the glycerine with a hydrocarbon obtained
from the distillation of coal tar, petroleum, or other mineral oil, with bisulphide of
carbon, ether, or other suitable solvent of the impurities, but in which the glycerine
is practically insoluble.
The hydrocarbons or other substances are thoroughly mixed with the glycerine
by mechanical agitation. The mass is then allowed to stand until separation takes
place. The hydrocarbons are drawn off and the glycerine is subjected to heat to
drive off the remaining hydrocarbons, the last traces of which may be removed
by blowing in air. The crude glycerine is finally distilled, preferably in an
apparatus to be hereafter described.
This mode of treating crude glycerine will apply to that obtained by the
process described in the Specification of a Patent granted to one of the present
applicants in conjunction with William James Fuller and Sydney Abraham
King, and bearing date the 31st day of March 1879, No. 1282, or by any other
process.
The apparatus which we prefer to employ for concentrating the soap ley consists
of a cylinder containing a series of sloping shelves over which the soap ley is
allowed to trickle. This cylinder is suitably heated to evaporate the water on the
vapors being drawn off by an exhauster and allowed to condense in a suitable
condenser. The liquor thus obtained may be used again in the manufacture of
soap.
The concentrated liquor which will consist principally of glycerine, water, and
salts, collects at the bottom of the concentrating vessel, the bulk of the salt
precipitating. This is removed by a mechanical appliance to a receptacle placed
below the concentrator, and the glycerine liquor is drawn off for treatment as above
described.
The salt may be used again in the manufacture of soap.
The apparatus for distillation consists of a cylindrical or other vessel, which is
provided with bafflers to prevent any portion of the charge from passing over with
the glycerine vapours.
The fatty acids obtained by the above process are used in the manufacture of
soap.
The albuminous matters may be utilized in various ways.

page_text: SPECIFICATION in pursuance of the conditions of the Letters Patent filed
by the said Charles Thomas & Albert Domêier in the Great Seal Patent
Office on the 3rd December 1881.
CHARLES THOMAS, of the City of Bristol, and ALBERT DOMEIER, of Botolph Lane,
in the City of London. "IMPROVEMENTS IN THE TREATMENT OF SOAP LEYS TO
OBTAIN GLYCERINE AND OTHER PRODUCTS THEREFROM, IN THE TREATMENT OF
GLYCERINE OBTAINED FROM SOAP LEYS, AND IN APPARATUS TO BE USED DURING
SUCH TREATMENT.”
The objects of this Invention are, first, to obtain glycerine and other useful
products from soap leys; secondly, to remove those impurities which cause the
disagreeable smell and taste to be found in glycerine, and which prevents the use
of such glycerine for many purposes to which it is capable of being applied;
and thirdly, to provide suitable apparatus to be used during the treatment of tho
soap leys to obtain the glycerine.
In carrying out the first part of our Invention we take the soap ley, and by
preference concentrate it, until the salt contained in the ley begins to procipitate.
We thus obtain a liquor which is saturated with common salt. The object of thus
concentrating the liquor is partly to reduce the bulk to be treated, and partly to
facilitate by the presence in large quantities of common salt the precipitation of
the impurities.
To this liquor when gently heated is added an excess of a suitable acid, and the
liquid mass is well stirred to effect a thorough mixing of the ingredients. The
excess of acid employed varies according to circumstances, but in general a
quantity that will shew from one to one and a half per cent. of free acid to the
original bulk of the ley will be sufficient.
The object in treating the ley with an excess of acid is, first, to effect the
complete decomposition of all soapy matters contained therein; secondly, to
completely eliminate the resinous matters; and thirdly, to act upon the other
impurities contained in the ley in such a manner as to precipitate them or render
them capable of being precipitated when the acidified ley is treated with an
alkali.
The acidified mass will be allowed to stand for, say twenty four hours, and
when the fatty acids (and resin, if present) rise to the top of the mass, they must
be removed, the glycerine, water, salt in solution, albuminous matters, and other
impurities remaining. This remaining liquor we treat with an alkali until it is
completely neutralized. It is then filtered to remove all impurities held in
suspension.
The filtered liquor, which contains common salt in solution and water, is
subjected to further concentration to remove the salt and water, and the resulting
product is crude glycerine.
The glycerine thus obtained may be used in that state, or it may be further
treated to remove the disagreeable smell and taste that remains in it.
It may be here remarked that occasionally it may be found that the soap ley is
of such a nature that the first concentration will be unnecessary, in which case the
ley will be treated with the excess of acid at once.
The second part of our Invention consists in washing the crude glycerine with a
solvent which will dissolve the impurities contained in the glycerine.
The solvent may be a hydrocarbon obtained from the distillation of coal tar,
petroleum, or other mineral oil, bisulphido of carbon, amylic alcohol, ether, or
other suitable solvent in which the glycerine is practically insoluble.
The solvent is intimately mixed with the crude glycerine by mechanical

page_text: agitation, the proportion of the solvent employed being about thirty three per cont.
of the glycerine under treatment. This proportion may however be varied
according to the nature of the solvent employed.
After the mixing is complete, the mass is allowed to stand for several hours
until the separation of the impurity-laden solvent from the glycerine takes place.
The solvent containing the impurities is then drawn off, and the washing is
repeated until the solvent ceases to take up any impurities from the glycerine.
The glycerine is then subjected to heat by blowing in hot air or steam, or in
other convenient manner, to remove any traces of the solvent that may remain.
The glycerine may be used in this state, or it may be distilled.
The above described mode of treating glycerine is applicable to that obtained
from soap leys by the process described in the Specification of a Patent granted to
one of the present applicants in conjunction with William James Fuller and Sydney
Abraham King, and bearing date the Thirty first day of March, One thousand
eight hundred and seventy nine, No. 1282, or by any other process.
In the accompanying Drawing_we have shewn in sectional elevation an
apparatus which we prefer to use for concentrating the soap ley either beforo or
after treatment with the acid.
a is a rectangular or cylindrical vessel of any suitable length, and set on end on
a foundation b; c is a cistern placed above the vessel a to contain the ley to be
concentrated. From this cistern the ley passes in regulated quantities to the
vessel a. We prefer that the pipe for conveying the liquid to this vessel shall
bo provided with a rose, so that the flow of ley shall be broken up into a number
of fine streams. From the rose the ley trickles down over a series of sloping
shelves e contained in the vessel a. The shelves e are arranged to slope alternately
in opposite directions.
While passing over these shelves the ley is subjected to the action of heated air
which is introduced into the vessel a through the pipe f, The mouth of this pipe
is provided with a suitable cover f¹ to prevent the ley from entering therein. The
hot air and watery vapour containing a small per centage of glycerine are drawn
off by an exhauster through the pipe g, and they are conveyed to a condenser to
be condensed previous to being used again in the manufacture of soap.
The concentrated liquor is allowed to run into a receiver h placed below the
vessel a from which it is drawn off in any suitable manner for further treatment.
The first concentration is intended only to ovaporate some of the water contained
in the ley to reduce the bulk being treated to practical limits, and the concentrating
will be discontinued so soon as salt begins to deposit on the shelves e or in the
receiver h.
The second concentration is however intended to separate most of the water and
salt from the glycerine with which it is combined.
In this case the watery vapour will be drawn off through the pipe f with
certain particles of glycerine as before explained, the bulk of the glycerine
descending to the bottom of the concentrator and passing by the spout a¹ to the
receiver h where the greater portion of the salt will deposit. A certain amount
of the salt will also deposit on the sloping shelves e; and to enable us to clear the
shelves, doors i are provided in the side of the vessel a through which wo may
introduce rakes or other implements to push or rake the salt off each shelf onto
the one below until all the salt is collected in the receiver. From the receiver the
salt is taken out with a shovel and placed in a basket j on the drawing board k,
where it is allowed to drain for a short time preparatory to being re-used in the
manufacture of soap.
The receiver is provided with an overflow pipe by which the glycerine passes
off to barrels or other receptacles for sale or for treatment as above described.
The spout a projects some distance into the receiver h, so that the glycerine in
the receiver h may seal it and thus prevent the escape of the hot air.
The fatty acids obtained by the above process may be again used in the

page_text: manufacture of soap, and the albuminous and other matters may be utilized in
various ways.
Having now described our Invention for "Improvements in the Treatment of
Soap Leys to obtain Glycerine and other Products therefrom, in the Treatment of
Glycerine obtained from Soap Leys, and in Apparatus to be Used in such
Treatment," and explained the manner of carrying the same into effect, we wish
it to be understood that under the above in part recited Letters Patent we clain,-
First. Treating soap leys in the manner substantially as herein described for
the purpose of obtaining glycerino and other useful products therefrom.
Second. Treating glycerine obtained from soap leys, substantially in the manner
and for the purpose set forth.
Third. The apparatus herein shown and described for concentrating soap leys.
In witness whereof, I, the said Albert Domeier, have hereunto set my hand
and seal, the Third day of December, in the year of our Lord One thousand
eight hundred and eighty one.
ALBERT DOMEIER.
(L.S.)