IMPROVEMENTS IN THE MANUFACTURE OF MANURES
Year: 1848

page_text: T. AND J. E. GILL'S SPECIFICATION.
TO ALL TO WHOM THESE PRESENTS SHALL COME, Wе, THOMAS
GILL and JOHN EDOCUMBE GILL, of Plymouth, Manufacturers, send greeting.
WHEREAS Her present most Excellent Majesty Queen Victoria, by Her
Royal Letters Patent under the Great Seal of the United Kingdom of Great
Britain and Ireland, bearing date at Westminster, the Eighth day of April,
One thousand eight hundred and forty-eight, in the eleventh year of Her
reign, did, for Herself, Her heirs and successors, give and grant unto us, the
said Thomas Gill and John Edgcumbe Gill, our exors, adiñors, and assigns,
Her especial licence, full power, sole privilege and authority, that we, the
said Thomas Gill and John Edgcumbe Gill, our exors, adñiors, and assigns,
and such others as we, the said Thomas Gill and John Edgcumbe Gill, our
exors, admors, or assigns, should at any time agree with, and no others, from
time to time and at all times during the term of years therein expressed,
should and lawfully might make, use, exercise, and vend, within England,
Wales, and the Town of Berwick-upon-Tweed, our Invention of "IMPROVEMENTS
IN THE MANUFACTURE OF MANURES;" in which said Letters Patent is contained a
proviso that we, the said Thomas Gill and John Edgcumbe Gill, should cause a
particular description of the nature of our said Invention, and in what manner
the same is to be performed, by an instrument in writing under our hands
and seals, or under the hand and seal of one of us, to be inrolled in Her
Majesty's High Court of Chancery within six calendar months next and im-
mediately after the date of the said in part recited Letters Patent, as in and
by the same, reference being thereunto had, will more fully and at large appear.
NOW KNOW YE, that in compliance with the said proviso, we, the said
Thomas Gill and John Edgcumbe Gill, do hereby declare that the nature of our
said Invention, and the manner in which the same is to be performed, are fully

page_text: Our Invention consists,
First, of means of manufacturing superphosphate of lime from bones by the
employment of acid and artificial heat..
Secondly, our Invention consists of means of employing muriatic acid in
the manufacture of manuro from bones.
Thirdly, our Invention consists of employing-nitric and acetic acid in the
manufacture of manure from bones.
Fourthly, our Invention consists of manufacturing manure from bones by
dissolving them in acid, and-then-precipitating. the manure therefrom. And,
Fifthly, our Invention consists of separating fat from bones in the act of
manufacturing manure therefrom.
And in order that our Invention may be most fully understood and
readily carried into effect, we will proceed to, describe the means pursued
by us; and in doing so we would first. remark that when speaking of
bones we mean to include bones (whole, ground; or. crushed), bone carth,
animal charcoal, fossil bones; and mineral phosphate of: lime (apatite), but our
manufacture.is usually conducted with bones in the whole state, and the de-
scription hercin given is applicable thereto, but is equally applicable with the
simple allowance for the difference in the materials to each of these matters.
We employ a leaden or other pan in which we dissolve the bones, the bottom
of which is supported on iron plates, or on tiles, or on brickwork; the support
of the bottom of the pan forms also the roof of-a. drying furnace beneath,
while the fireplace at one end of the furnace-serves: the twofold purpose of
heating the pan above and drying the manufacture.below. With this apparatus
we proceed as follows:-We throw the required quantity of bones into the pan
above and pour on the sulphuric acid. When the bones are sufficiently dis-
solved, the contents of the pan are syphoned or clipped off and passed through
a hole in the roof of the furnace (made for that purpose, which is at other
times closed with a stopper) into the drying bed below; re-charging the pan
above as before. The product below is now worked at a moderate heat, but it
will be found that the gelatine of the bone has been-so' well preserved intact, and
consequently with the preservation of its nitrogen, 'that if drawn from the
drying bed.without being subjected to further manipulation, that it would come
out in such a waxy state as would seriously interfere with its general usefulness;
it is therefore advisable, while in a fluid or-semi-fluid state on the under bed,
that a portion of bone earth or some other substance, such as dry gypsum, be
added to it and well incorporated, that, when drawn, the products may be suffi-

page_text: On
ciently granulated to be easily made available for the purpose of manure.
emptying the pan above its bottom will be found covered with a fine sedimen
of sulphate and phosphate of lime; this matter is to be taken up with a wooden
shovel and put into the drying bed. After the withdrawal of the charge it is
to be sifted, and the separated' bone, &c. may be calcined, and the ashes used
for mixing with the contents of the under bed. For every one hundred parts
by weight of bone we employ sixty and three quarter parts by weight of. sul-
phuric acid at eighty degrees of Twaddell, or specific gravity 1-400, that is to
say, whatever the specific gravity of the acid, we use such a quantity as shall
represent 31 by weight of acid at specific gravity 1.845. If burnt bone or
fossil bone is employed, then we make a previous analysis thereof, and deter-
mine accordingly the quantity of acid to be used. On the application of the
sulphuric acid liéat is applied to the bottom of the pan, when, as the bones are
being acted on by the acid, they will gradually sink and become covered; the
process may be conveniently assisted by turning aside the bones, above; and
taking up by any convenient incans' (as a perforated shovel)" the 'fine sulphate
and phosphate of lime at the bottom; putting it on h'sloping shelf over the pan
to drain. In about twelve hours, in ordinary cases, about three quarters of
the bones will have become dissolved or disintegrated. The operator' may now
with a ráke or shovel turn back any large bones on the top, and by means of
a syphon or 'dipper transfer the contents of the pan' into the drying bed below,
then re-changing the pan as before. The large bones turned aside may remain
in the pan. When the product as before stated is in the drying bed, as much
fine câlcined bone is to be added to it as will represent, as nearly as may be;
the undissolved bone. The whole is now to be well incorporated and worked
at such a temperature as will not destroy the organic matter, and which may
be known to the operator by his drawing a little occasionally, and noticing
whether it has an offensive burning smell, if so, then his temperature is too
high, and ho must' lower it'accordingly. When the product becomes so dry as
to be granular and pulverulent it may be withdrawn from the furnace, and,
while hot, well 'turned over and incorporated on the floor, then sifted as before
imentioned; the rough parts beaten and again'sifted, the 'fine may be put away
as 'completed, while the rough may be calcined in any ordinary way, and used
as herein-before described. "When using liquid muriatic acid' according to our
Invention, we obtain à manure in a dry or granular form in place of a solution
as has heretofore been proposed to be used "as a manure. We proceed as
follows: In acting on bones with liquid muriatic acid for the production of a
solid pulverulent form of phosphate of lime (which we propose to call muri-
phosphate), we thus proceed-Wo follow the directions already given for

page_text: making our improved superphosphate, only we put to every one hundred parts
of bones by weight so much liquid muriatic acid as shall contain twenty parts
by weight of muriatic acid gas, but on the whole we find that acid of specific
gravity 1.090 is the best for this purpose, as there is no loss of acid by eva-
poration, and a greater bulk is brought to bear upon the bones, and when of that
specific gravity we employ one hundred and nine parts by weight. It will be
found that the gelatine in this process is still more completely preserved, and
there is usually required more calcined bone or other substances to bring it
to a pulverulent form. We sometimes vary the methods for drying it, as by
adding dry sulphate of lime to the pan above or bed beneath, or other suitable
substance having an affinity for water. In place of using liquid muriatic acid
we also use the gas or fumes of that acid when coming off in processes
as decomposing common salt, in which case we place bones in towers, chambers,
or galleries, in place of the matters now employed, and we condense the acid
in other respects in such towers, galleries, or chambers as heretofore practised;
the acid acting on the bones the same become decomposed, and we use the con-
densed liquid acid to act on other bones, and in like manner may the fumes or
vapors of other acids be employed.
such
Another part of our Invention consists of the use of nitric acid and acetic
acid; and we would remark in respect to this part of our Invention, that at
present the cost of these acids is too great, but efforts are largely making to
reduce the cost of such acids, and we have found on experimental inquiry that
such acids, when reduced in cost, may be employed for decomposing bones in
like manner to what has been above described in respect to sulphuric and
muriatic acid, but we prefer to use such acids in the manner we will now
describe. When using nitric or acetic acid, in order to economise the use we
proceed as follows:-We use nitric or acetic acid, or it may be muriatic acid,
in such manner as to obtain a precipitated manufacture of manure from bones,
by which means we only employ the absolute quantity of acid required to
neutralize the lime contained in the bones as carbonate of lime in place of
using the acid in excess as heretofore, and as is the case in the above-described
processes. When using nitric or acetic acid we prefer to employ earthenware
vessels heated in any convenient manner. And we would state that we prefer,
in all cases where it can conveniently be done, to cause the flues from the de-
composing furnaces of alkali works to be used as a means of giving the
required heat, as it will be found that the waste heat passing away from such
furnaces may be usefully applied to such purposes. In making precipitated
bone dust from a solution we place any quantity of bones in the vessel, and
apply acid, so as to cover the same; and when they are dissolved we continue

page_text: to add bones till the acid will dissolve no more: we then remove the charge
into the drying bed as before explained, and complete the process, the suc-
cessive addition of bones acting as a precipitant of the matters previously in
solution. In applying acid to some classes of bones the oily matters contained
therein rise to the surface, and we skim them off, which we wash and use for
making soap, or any purpose to which they may be useful.
Having thus explained the nature of our Invention, and the manner in which
the same is to be performed, we would have it understood that we do not con-
fine ourselves to the details herein described, so long as the peculiar character
of either part of our Invention be retained. But what we claim is,-
First, the manufacture of superphosphate of lime from bones by employing
acid and artificial heat.
Secondly, we claim the manufacturing of manure from bones by employing
liquid muriatic acid, and so conducting the manufacture as to obtain a dry or
granulated manure as explained; and we also claim the applying vapors
or fumes of muriatic or other acid to bones in the manufacture of manure
therefrom.
Thirdly, we claim the application of nitric and acetic acid in the manufacture
of manure from bones.
Fourthly, we claim the manufacture of manure from bones by precipitating
the same from a solution of bones. And,
Fifthly, we claim the separating of fatty matters from bones when dissolving
the same in the process of manufacturing manure as described.
In witness whereof, I, the said Thomas Gill, have hereunto set my hand
and seal, this Sixth day of October, in the year of our Lord One
thousand eight hundred and forty-eight.
THOMAS L
CITT