IMPROVEMENTS IN PROCESSES AND APPARATUS FOR TREATING AND PREPARING PEAT AND TURF, AND THE PRODUCTS OBTAINED THEREFROM
Year: 1864

page_text: LETTERS PATENT to Frederick North, of Leeds, in the County of York,
Cloth Merchant, for the Invention of "IMPROVEMENTS IN PROCESSES AND
APPARATUS FOR TREATING AND PREPARING PEAT AND TURF, AND THE
PRODUCTS OBTAINED THEREFROM." - A communication from abroad by
Charles Fluery, of Bruxelles.
Sealed the 19th July 1864, and dated the 23rd January 1864.
PROVISIONAL SPECIFICATION left by the said Frederick North at the
Office of the Commissioners of Patents, with his Petition, on the
23rd January 1864.
I, FREDERICK NORTH, of Leeds, in the County of York, Cloth Merchant,
do hereby declare the nature of the Invention for "IMPROVEMENTS IN PROCESSES
AND APPARATUS FOR TREATING AND PREPARING PEAT AND TURF, AND THE PRODUCTS
OBTAINED THEREFROM," to be as follows:-
My Invention consists of a new mode of treating in suitable vessels turf and
peat cut from bogs by the agency or use of carbonated calcined potash with or
without water and steam, by which I decompose and more easily dislodge all
mineral substances and woody fibre, or nearly so, and thereby separate all the
decomposed portions from the undecomposed portions of the turf and peat,
so as to convert both those substances into heavy fuel for manufacturing,
domestic, or other purposes. The turf and peat being brought to a pulpy
state, sometimes undergo (to perfect the process) a second similar treatment
in a perforated vessel or cylinder, in which the woody fibre is extracted from the

page_text: peat and turf, and by that process is nearly dried. The pulp so prepared is
then pressed into any shape or size desired, either by hand, steam, or other
motive power. The product is then further dried in heated sheds, and is then
ready for use for manufacturing, household, and other purposes, and also for
burning into peat charcoal.
SPECIFICATION in pursuance of the conditions of the Letters Patent, filed
by the said Frederick North in the Great Seal Patent Office on the
20th July 1864.
TO ALL TO WHOM THESE PRESENTS SHALL COME, I, FREDERICK
NORTH, of Leeds, in the County of York, Cloth Merchant, send greeting.
WHEREAS Her most Excellent Majesty Queen Victoria, by Her Letters
l'atent, bearing date the Twenty-third day of January, in the year of our Lord
One thousand eight hundred and sixty-four, in the twenty-seventh year
of Her reign, did, for Herself, Her heirs and successors, give and grant.unto
-me, the said Frederick North, Her special licence that I, the said Frederick
North, my executors, administrators, and assigns, or such others as I, the
said Frederick North, my 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
PROCESSES AND APPARATUS FOR TREATING AND PREPARING PEAT AND TURF, AND
THE PRODUCTS OBTAINED THEREFROM," a communication to me from abroad by
Charles Fleury, of Bruxelles, upon the condition (amongst others) that I, the
said Frederick North, my executors or administrators, by an instrument in
writing under my, 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 I, the said Frederick North, do hereby declare the
nature of the said Invention, and in what manner the same is to be per-
formed, to be particularly described and ascertained in and by the following
statement thereof, that is to say:-
This Invention consists of a new mode of treating in suitable vessels turf
and peat cut from bogs by the agency or use of carbonated calcined potash

page_text: with or without water and steam, by which I decompose and more easily
dislodge all mineral substances and woody fibre, or nearly so, and thereby
separate all the decomposed portions from the undecomposed portion of the
turf and peat, so as to convert both those substances into heavy fuel for manu-
facturing, domestic, or other purposes. The turf and peat being brought to a
pulpy state, sometimes undergoes (to perfect the process) a second similar
treatment in a perforated vessel or cylinder, in which the woody fibre is
extracted from the peat and turf, and by that process is nearly dried. The
pulp so prepared is then pressed into any shape or size desired, either by hand,
steam, or other motive power. The product is then further dried in heated
sheds, and is then ready for use for manufacturing, household, and other
purposes, and also for burning into peat charcoal.
And in order that the Invention may be most fully understood and readily
carried into practice, I will proceed to describe in more minute detail the
manner of conducting the several processes for treating and preparing peat
and turf and the products obtained therefrom, together with the apparatus
employed therein according to these improvements. For this purpose the
peat or turf (herein-after called peat only) is taken as is cut from the bog
(rejecting the surface layer containing the living plants and their roots) in the
natural state, and deposited in a suitable vessel or receiver, and combined with
a solution of carbonated calcined potash prepared in the following manner,
namely, a quantity of carbonated calcined potash is dissolved by steam or in water
until the specific gravity of the solution tests 5 or more degrees of Twaddle's
bydrometer. This solution is added to the peat until the mineral substances
6 are eliminated and the roots freely discharge all or nearly all the decomposed
particles, which will be effected when the impure liquor from the peat tests
2 degrees more or thereabouts than its original specific gravity. The vessel
or cylinder containing the peat and dissolved calcined carbonate of potash is
furnished with an agitator, which consists of an axis having radial arms rotating
within the cylinder, which is also furnished with fixed arms similar to that of
an ordinary pug mill, as shewn in Sheet 1 of the Drawings hereunto annexed,
which represents longitudinal and transverse sections, together with a plan of the
arrangement of apparatus which it is preferred to employ in carrying out this
part of the Invention. (It may be desirable to remark here that as the
various parts of the apparatus shewn in the Drawing Sheet 1 are well known
and in use for various purposes, no claim is herein made for the application of
such apparatus to the purposes of this Invention, this arrangement of appara-
tus being shewn simply for the purpose of enabling me to describe more readily
the mode of carrying out the present improvements in treating and preparing

page_text: peat.) The carbonated calcined potash is thoroughly combined with the peat
in the vessel A, so as to convert it into a pulpy mass and bring the decomposed
parts into a state of minute division; at the same time the fibre or cellular
substance, which retains in its natural state the imbibed moisture, is not divided
or cut up whilst being subjected to the mechanical action of the mixing and
pugging process. It is preferred to introduce steam to divide the peat into
minute division at a temperature of about 80° Fahrenheit or more. into the
vessel A during the pugging process in order to accelerate the operation. By
thus combining carbonated calcined potash in solution with the peat all
mineral substances or nearly so will be eliminated so as to be readily discharged
therefrom, as herein-after described. The decomposed portion of the pent
when separated from the undecomposed portion may be deprived of water by
hydraulic pressure or other suitable means, and is then in a suitable condition
for conversion into heavy fuel or carbon of great purity by moulding the same
into form in any convenient manner. When the peat and carbonated calcined
potash are thoroughly blended together by the above treatment the compound
mass will consist of carbon or pulp containing carbon and undissolved vegetable
fibres or roots, and also the mineral substances held in solution which are
capable of being discharged with the fluid portion of the materials thus
combined.
After the operation of agitation has been performed in the agitator A its
contents are run off into the tank or cistern B by removing the plug d, or by
opening a suitable valve- in the bottom of the vessel A; the roots are then
raked out of the tank or cistern B, either by hand or by other suitable
mechanical means. The pulp containing carbon is then drawn off into per-
forated boxes C and placed in the hydraulic press D, the pulp being submitted
to pressure in order to discharge the excess of water through the perforations;
or, in place of submitting the pulp to pressure, as previously described, the
pulp may be discharged from the cistern B on to properly prepared "swards,"
and after the excess of water has discharged itself by evaporation or infiltra-
tion into the soil, the peat will be ready for moulding and drying in heated
sheds, but it is preferred to dry the same in its divided state before it is
moulded into convenient shapes.
I will now describe the second part of the Invention, which relates to
improvements in apparatus for more effectually separating the carbon con-
tained in the peat from the roots and coarse fibres combined therewith. For
this purpose after the peat has been reduced to a homogeneous mass or pulp
in combination with calcined potash in a pug mill, or by other suitable means,
with or without the aid of steam, as previously described, it is allowed to rest

page_text: or subside for a short time, and is then delivered into the feed hopper of the
apparatus, shewn in Sheet 2 of the Drawings hereunto annexed, which shows
a vertical section of apparatus constructed, according to this part of the
Invention. a and b are two perforated cylinders (by preference conical), the
cylinder a being fixed and supported within the outer cylinder b, as shewn ;
c is a worm fixed on the lower end of the shaft or axis c¹, one end of which
is supported and rests in a step on the top of the cylinder a, the other end of
the shaft c¹ being supported in any convenient manner. Rotary motion is
communicated to the worm c by means of the bevel toothed wheel c* fixed on
the axis c¹, or by other suitable mechanical or other means, and as the peat
in the form of pulp is fed into the hopper d, fixed on the upper end of the
cylinder B, it is forced down the space between the two perforated cylinders
a and b, and the semi-fluid portion or carbon is forced through the perforations
in the two cylinders; that portion which is forced through the outer cylinder
6 falls into the receiver e, and is conducted by the inclined passages e¹ and
delivered into the trucks or waggons e. The portion which is forced through
the perforations in the inner cylinder a is delivered into a truck or wagon
below, placed there to receive it, as shown in the Drawing. c are arms fixed
on the axis c', and revolve therewith to agitate the peat as it is fed into the
hopper d, in which are fixed the. arms d', as shewn; f is a steam pipe fixed
within the cylinder a, the upper end being furnished with an enlarged head f",
by which jets of steam are discharged into the peat as it is fed down towards
the worm c. The intermixed roots and coarse fibres.(without being cut up
by this process) are carried down the space between the perforated cylinders
a and b by the worm c, and delivered into the passages c³, c³, from which the
fibrous substance is conducted away or removed in any convenient manner.
The carbon or pulp containing carbon separated from the roots and fibres as
previously described may be readily dried in heated sheds (being previously
subjected to hydraulic pressure if desired), but it is preferred to dry the
carbon or pulp containing carbon obtained from the peat in its divided state
(when the weather will permit) by exposure to the atmosphere upon properly
prepared swards, and afterwards on to shallow vessels or plates heated by
steam, and to submit it to a temperature of about 160 degrees, by which any.
remaining fibres contained in the prepared peat carbon will be caused to
burst and all moisture evaporated. Any sulphur will also be driven off, and
the peat carbon thus treated and prepared will be in a suitable condition for
being formed or moulded into shapes by pressure in any convenient manner,
to be used as fuel for manufacturing, household, or other purposes, or for
being converted into peat charcoal of great density by the process of burning,

page_text: as is well understood in the manufacture of charcoal for smelting and manu-
facturing iron or other purposes.
It may be desirable to remark that great obstacles have hitherto existed to
prevent the successful and profitable manufacture of so valuable a fuel as peat,
owing principally to the fibres contained therein and the difficuly of dis-
charging the water or moisture therefrom by economical means. It has been
proposed to cut up the fibre and to discharge the water by pressure, but
neither plan can be successfully adopted, and it will be found advantageous
first to prepare the peat as previously described, and then to dry it in its
divided state by artificial heat, or by exposure to the atmosphere upon
suitably prepared swards, as previously described.
Having thus described the nature of the Invention, and the manner in which
the same is carried into practice, it should be clearly understood that the
Invention is not limited to the exact details herein shewn and described, as
the same may be varied without departing from the true character of the
Invention, which consists,-
First, in treating and preparing peat and turf by submitting it to the action
of carbonated calcined potash or its chemical equivalents, as herein described.
And, secondly, the use of the apparatus shewn in Sheet 2, constructed and
employed as above described, for separating the finer particles of carbon from
the roots and fibres.
In witness whereof, I, the said Frederick North, have hereunto set my
hand and seal, this Fourteenth day of July, in the year of our Lord
One thousand eight hundred and sixty-four.
FREDERICK NORTH. (L.s.)
Signed, sealed, and delivered by
the said Frederick North, in
the presence of
WILLIAM NORTH, Sol., Leeds.
C. GRAY, Clerk to Messrs. North & Sons,
Sol., Leeds.