NEW OR IMPROVED METHODS OF AND APPARATUS FOR TREATING VARIOUS LIQUID AND SOLID SUBSTANCES FOR THE PRODUCTION OF ARTIFICIAL LIQUID MANURES, FOR SEPARATING OILS AND OTHER LIQUIDS FROM SOLIDS, AND PREPARING OR TREATING OF THE SOLID INGREDIENTS FOR DRY MANURES; THE SAID APPARATUS OR PARTS THEREOF BEING APPLICABLE FOR FILTERING, DECANTING, CARBONISING, PUMPING, DRYING, EVAPORATING, AND DIGESTING GENERALLY
Year: 1864

page_text: PROVISIONAL SPECIFICATION left by James Robbins at the Office of
the Commissioners of Patents, with his Petition, on the 29th March
. 1864.
I, JAMES ROBBINS, of Howley Street, in the County of Surrey, do hereby
declare the nature of the said Invention for "NEW OR IMPROVED METHODS OF
AND APPARATUS FOR TREATING VARIOUS LIQUID AND SOLID SUBSTANCES FOR THE
PRODUCTION OF ARTIFICIAL LIQUID MANURES, FOR SEPARATING OILS AND OTHER
LIQUIDS FROM SOLIDS, AND PREPARING OR TREATING OF THE SOLID INGREDIENTS FOR
DRY MANURES; THE SAID APPARATUS OR PARTS THEREOF BEING APPLICABLE FOR
FILTERING, DECANTING, CARBONISING, PUMPING, DRYING, EVAPORATING, AND
DIGESTING GENERALLY," to be as follows:-
To treat sewage according to my Invention, this may be made to pass
sluggishly over a large area, so that only a small portion of sand and other
deleterious matters shall enter tanks for deodorising, in which the sewage may
be partly filtered or decanted, or it is conducted by pipes or syphons from the
reservoirs, or direct from the sewers through gratings or strainers into the
filtering, or the filtering and pumping apparatus, where the sewage and other
liquors are filtered previous to or after other matters are mixed and thoroughly
incorporated with it in manufacturing or compounding the liquid manures.
The filtration is effected by or in the open or close reservoirs perforated, or
other cylinders or chambers with one or more diaphragms, floats, dredges, or
other bodies moving or working in the same. Also I use cylinders and filter
pistons, or presses, by which the oils or liquors are separated from the

page_text: solids; or the soluble ingredients or liquid manures are filtered, pumped, and
delivered into mains, and the pulp compressed. Fish, flesh, guano, or
other solids are discharged. from the cylinders, presses, reservoirs, or filter
chambers.
In the construction of the filtering reservoirs, cylinders, pistons, presses, 5
and chambers I introduce perforated or other bricks, blocks, slabs, plates,
hollow cases or boxes of iron, wood, or other materials, and fit or line the
same with strainers of felt, cloth, hair-cloth, matting, wickerwork, wirework,
or openwork, at the back of, or under, or on, or in which is charcoal, coke,
tan, peat, sand, gravel, and other filtering media, through which the liquors 1
or liquid manures are filtered into vacuum if requisite.
Solid or filter dredges are made to fit transversely and travel backwards
and forwards or up and down in the reservoirs or filter chambers by steam,
hydraulic, or other power. In the open reservoirs, if circular (on plan) is
this arrangement
:B
formed by one or more filter heads or shields 1
A and B from centre C to side of reservoir, and the dredge works backwards
and forwards on the centre C. When the solid dredge is in motion, or tra-
velling from A to B the sewage and other liquors or matters are admitted
only at or on the side A, and the thick sediment or sludge is driven on in.
front of the dredge, pressing the liquor out of the sludge. through the filter 2
head or shield B, and then discharging the solids through sluices arranged for.
that purpose.
In the reservoirs or chambers (if circular on plan) there are. filter heads
or shields as described, and solid or filter dredges working on the centre,
these dredges are driven by steam or other power, or by the pressure (obtained a
on each side of the dredge alternately) from a column of sewage or other
liquor flowing into the reservoir or chamber forcing the liquids through the
filters, and the solids out afterwards. The liquors that are driven into and
filtered by a dredge pass off through a hollow column in: the centre of the
reservoir; the upper part of the column serves also for the passage of the
sewage, and such like, through the dredge into the reservoir or chamber.
Solid or filter pistons in (or diaphragms or floats in open or working up
into vacuum in perpendicular cylinders or diaphragms in horizonal or per-
pendicular cylinders or chambers are driven by the pressure of a column of
sewage, night-soil, coagulated blood, and other liquors; the liquids are forced
through the filters, and the solids discharged from the cylinders, or presses;
.

page_text: or chambers. The presses or filtering and pumping apparatus consist of
cylinders and solid or filter pistons; the cylinders of the filtering and pumping
apparatus are charged at one end only with sewage or other material by the
pressure of the piston. The liquids are filtered through and escape by valves
in the piston to the back of the same, and the solids discharged by the :back
stroke of the piston; the valves in the piston are closed, and the filtered
liquor or manure impelled or pumped into the mains or reservoirs, as the
.cylinders or chambers are again charged with sewage and other matters.
The digesting, filtering, and drying apparatus is charged with compressed fish
or other animal or with vegetable matters, and by the action of heat the
nitrogenised or ammoniacal vapours or steam these ingredients are reduced to
pulp; the solids separated from night-soil, coagulated blood, and so forth, are
partly dried by air or superheated steam, by which they are compressed, and
the liquids forced through the filters into a water passage between the filters
and the outer vessels or digesters. The liquor runs into tanks, and the vapours
or steam (generated in digesting or drying the solids) escape or follow the
liquor into vacuum, and is condensed in the liquor. By a worm or curved
scraper or dredge working in the centre, and extending to the inside surface
of the filtering, digesting, and drying apparatus or pistons, or diaphragms in
the same, the solids are driven into a pug mill and mixed, and thoroughly
incorporated with charcoal and other dryers forced by the pug mill into
covered pits and allowed to ferment, heat, and dry. The solid sewage may be
laid in strata with other matters and allowed to dry, or if requisite, it is put
into digesters, or ovens, or drying chambers, and dried with or in the same
manner as the blood, night-soil, decomposed animal and vegetable matters, and
other ingredients used in manufacturing the solid or dry manures.
For making artificial liquid manures the oxide or oxides of iron, the lime
or other refuse from gasworks, nitrate of soda, salts of ammonia, guano, soot,
or other ingredients containing nitrogenous matters are put into boilers or
separate pits and boiled or occasionally agitated in sufficient sewage or other
liquor or water to take up all the ammonia and other soluble matters con-
tained in the same; they are then put through the filtering press or pump;
or the liquor, with as little of the sediment as possible, is drawn off by a
syphon or other means, together with gas liquor, urine, the liquors or impreg-
nated waters from the condensers, with other ammoniacal liquors into or
pumped or allowed to run into and mix with the sewage.
When the sewage
or other liquors are to be discharged, a portion only of the ammoniacal liquor
is mixed with it until it contains a much larger quantity of ammonia than is
generally found in the London sewage. Before or after, mixing a large or a

page_text: small quantity of the liquor its properties and proportions are ascertained by
well-known chemical tests, and the potash, superphosphates, silicates, or
ammonia, or other ingredients (worthy the mauufacturer's attention) taken
for the standard required as the basis for compounding or manufacturing
liquid manures. I add the salts of or liquor containing potash, soda,
chlorides, nitrates, sulphates, superphosphates, silicates, and such like in solu-
tion in such quantities as the sewage or other liquor is found deficient in such
matters. The silicates, superphosphates, and other soluble ingredients may
be added previous to filtering or decanting the sewage and other liquors, or
at such times and places as it is intended to use the manures. The sewers
and pipes through which it passes into the various districts would then be kept
almost free from sediment, that is, providing the sewage be filtered or decanted.
In manufacturing or preparing ingredients for solid or dry manures a
(portable or) stationary apparatus is used, consisting of boilers, digesters,
filtering, pressing, drying, or evaporating apparatus, charcoal ovens, steam or
other cylinders, hot and cold air pipes. Peat, tan, or any rough vegetable
matter is used as fuel, and sufficient heat obtained to digest, dissolve, and dry
the silica and other ingredients. When larger quantities of ashes are required
than are obtained from the ash-pits of the boilers, the peat, tan, and such like
material is burned in kilns or chambers constructed for that purpose. I also
heat floors and chambers for drying peat, tan, seaweed, and other matters
previous to burning or reducing the same to pulp in gas liquor, urine,
night-soil, blood, or other liquor, or water by the hot-air nitrogenised, or
ammoniacal vapour, or steam. The ashes are collected and mixed with
ground flint, feldspar, slag of furnaces, sand, or other siliceous matters, quick-
lime, or milk of lime; this is thoroughly incorporated and mixed to about the
consistency of thick paste or mortar, thrown into pits and allowed to lay about
six months (tan ashes excepted). Or I charge vessels with this mixture (tari
ashes included), it is then subjected to the action of heat until the silicates
are produced in solution in digesters, or boilers. To facilitate this operation
soda ash or red liquor (as it is termed in the alkali trade) or other strong
alkali is used. When the heat has been applied a sufficient length of time
(which time will vary according to the pressure) the moisture is in part
driven off by evaporation, and the silica mixture removed from the digesters
or boilers. Vessels are charged with animal and vegetable matters (the
vegetable being occasionally mixed with ashes, the oxides of iron or lime, or
other residua from gas purifiers) and put into the digesters. The steam
which passes off in dissolving and partly drying the silica, is conducted into
other digesters charged with such matters, which steam acts on and digests

page_text: the ingredients. When the animal and vegetable matters are thoroughly
digested by the steam or hot air and liquors, a passage is opened into other
digesters, or the charcoal beds and condensers, and the moisture is in a
measure evaporated and driven through the filters or the drying vessels by
continuing to draw or drive air (or the hot air from the flues or fire-box) or
superheated steam into the digesters, ovens, filtering or drying apparatus ;
this is done by the hot-air pipes, which pass through or round the fire-box,
drying chambers, charcoal ovens, or kiln in which the peat, tan, and such like
material is dried, carbonised, or burned, the air in passing through the
pipes is heated previous to entering the digesters, ovens, or drying chambers.
The pipes may be of metal, fire-clay, or other suitable material. I heat blood,
night-soil, decomposed flesh, fish, and such like substances (but not carbonised)
in the filtering and drying vessels, chambers, digesters, or ovens until it forms
a thick pasty mass by evaporation previous to or after the liquids contained
in the same are partly separated from the solids in the filtering or decanting
tanks, or the filtering and drying apparatus. Providing the blood or night-
soil be filtered or decanted, the liquors are used in preparing the super-
phosphates, and the steam condensed in sewage or other liquor; or the
filtered or decanted liquor from the blood and night-soil is boiled down with
sulphate of lime, compressed, dried, carbonised, digested. vegetable matter,
and other dryers used by manufacturers of manure. Compressed fish, flesh,
or other animal matters or vegetable matters, such as damaged rape, linseed,
cotton cake (and every description of rags) are reduced to pulp instead of
using acid or grinding the same, or previous to using acid. The oxide or
oxides of iron, lime, or other residua from gas purifiers, or other matters con-
taining nitrogen or ammonia are put into digesters, ovens, or drying or
evaporating chambers, and their volatile contents are driven or pass into a
vacuum or other chamber, through or into digested, dried, or other vegetable
matter or charcoal (or other media calculated to arrest ammonia) into con-
densers, or digesters, or direct into the liquid manures, or other liquor or
water. The nitrogenised or ammoniacal vapours, or steam from any or all
of the matters that are heated, digested, or dried as described, are conducted
into the digesters, and the ingredients are thereby reduced to pulp at a lower
temperature than is done by ordinary steam. After drying the pulp it is
used with ashes and other dryers in taking up silicates in solution. Peat,
tan, seaweed, and such like are occasionally mixed with oxide or oxides of
iron, or other refuse from gasworks, paper makers, and others, or the ashes
from the boilers or kilns, and boiled or digested in the ashes or other
ingredients as described. When the ingredients are dissolved or digested

page_text: cold air is driven in to cool it previous to removing the same from the ovens,
digesters, or drying chambers, or the vessels may stand in a tank, into or out
of which sufficient cold water is allowed to run as may be required.