Improvements relating to the Manufacture of a Substitute for Leather.
Year: 1893

page_text: Date of Application, 23rd Aug., 1893
Complete Specification Left, 23rd May, 1894-Accepted, 23rd Aug., 1894
PROVISIONAL SPECIFICATION.
[Communicated from abroad by GUSTAV SACHSENRÖDER, of 18, Loherstrasse,
Barmen, in the Empire of Germany, Manufacturer.]
Improvements relating to the Manufacture of a Substitute for Leather.
I, HENRY HARRIS LAKE, of the Firm of Haseltine, Lake & Co., Patent Agents,
45 Southampton Buildings, in the County of Middlesex, do hereby declare the
nature of this invention to be as follows:-
This invention relates to the manufacture of a substitute for leather.
The imitations of leather heretofore known bear a certain outward resemblance
to the finer sorts of leather, but they do not possess the quality of resisting wear
which is peculiar to leather.
It is the object of the aforesaid invention to produce an article which not only
bears a striking outward resemblance to leather but is just as resistant as leather
and even more so.
Attempts have already been made to employ parchment paper for this purpose,
but this has been found to be unsuitable, because it cannot be pasted and is too
hygroscopic. In the manufacture of a substitute for leather common paper
is chiefly used, endeavours being made to convert such paper, by treatment with
lacs or the like or with glue or the like, into a waterproof article resembling skin.
It has been found that parchment paper combined with fabric, paper or the like
forms a product which is absolutely similar to animal skin, the very resistant
layer of parchment corresponding to the grain side and the ground connected
therewith to the flesh side.
As this product is in itself impervious to water the said invention is not
designed like the known processes for manufacturing imitations of leather to
produce such an article but to treat this vegetable skin so as to obtain vegetable
leather.
Here the imperviousness to water constitutes a quality not to be underrated,
because owing to this quality the vegetable skin may be treated in the moist state,
in which the pores are more open and are thus better adapted to receive the
impregnating agent.
Artificial vegetable leather, which has been found to be perfectly equal and in many
respects even superior to animal leather in all its essential qualities, may be produced
by treating vegetable parchment material with oil, resin, wax, paraffin, stearin,
fat or like substances. Parchment material completely takes up these substances,
which may be employed either in the cold state or in suitable solvents, such as
alcohol, glycerin, turpentine, or in the hot state, and also in the molten state
(melted fat) so that an impregnated supple article is obtained instead of parchment
paper coated only on the surface with lac or the like.
Besides impregnating it with fats, oils or the like, the parchment material to be
transformed into artificial leather may be treated with substances which serve as it
were for covering the oil, fat or the like and prevent a deleterious change in the
same, for instance the transformation of the oils into resins, or the decomposition of
the fat with formation of fatty acid; and the parchment material to be impregnated
with oil or fat may be treated with hygroscopic substances, if necessary in
conjunction with the aforesaid treatment with covering substances.
Use is
made chiefly of solutions of dextrine, mucilage, albumin, casein and glue as
covering substances, while glycerin, magnesium chloride and calcium chloride are
more particularly employed as hygroscopic substances.

page_text: In carrying the before described process into practice, parchment material is
suitably dyed throughout, then imperfectly dried, in order that the moisture
remaining therein may render it more receptive for the fatty impregnating agents.
Then it is conducted through a hot bath of fats, paraffin, oil, wax, stearin or the
like, or else through a solution of these substances in alcohol, turpentine oil,
glycerin or the like. This impregnating liquid, as shown by experience, expels
the water which has remained in the parchment material and takes its place. The
intimate union between the parchment material and the impregnating agent may be
promoted by passing the material between rollers receiving the impregnating agent.
After its removal from the impregnating bath the parchment material is dried in
the open air and a polish is obtained resembling that of leather by polishing
the surface. The article is then suitable for use in lieu of common leather.
Instead of using directly this parchment material treated with fatty impregnating
agents, it may be treated by a solution of dextrine, albumin, casein, mucilage,
animal glutine, or the like, thereby increasing the strength of the artificial
leather, and diminishing at the same time the great unctuousness of the article
which may be observed in the case of certain impregnating agents, such as tale and
the like.
In lieu of effecting the impregnating with covering substances after the treatment
with the fatty substances the two operations may take place simultaneously
the fatty substances or the like being mixed, in the form of emulsions or compounds
soluble in water, with the aqueous solution of the covering agent, and the parchment
material being conducted through the cold or heated mixture.
With those sorts of artificial leather in which the unctuous suppleness of leather
is not be noticed it is expedient to replace a portion of the aforesaid fatty
impregnating agents by hygroscopic agents, that is to say the impregnation
is effected first with a comparatively small quantity of fats and if desired also of
covering agents, and the product thus obtained is conducted through a solution of
glycerin, calcium chloride, magnesium chloride or the like, or else au emulsion may
be prepared of the fatty impregnating agents in an aqueous solution of the
hygroscopic agents, the parchment material being treated therewith. The impreg-
nation with covering substances may also be combined with this modified method
of treatment.
The leather thus produced may be ornamented in any desired manner by pressing
and printing.
HASELTINE, LAKE & Co.,
45, Southampton Buildings, London, W.C., Agents for the Applicant.
COMPLETE SPECIFICATION.
Improvements relating to the Manufacture of a Substitute for Leather.
I, HENRY HARRIS LAKE, of the Firm of Haseltine, Lake & Co., Patent
Agents, 45 Southampton Buildings, in the County of Middlesex, do hereby
declare the nature of this invention, and in what manner the same is to be
performed, to be particularly described and ascertained in and by the following
statement:-
This invention relates to the manufacture of a substitute for leather.
The imitations of leather heretofore known bear a certain outward resemblance
to the finer sorts of leather but they do not possess the quality of resisting wear
which is peculiar to leather.
It is the object of the aforesaid invention to produce an article which not only
bears a striking outward resemblance to leather but is just as resistant as leather
and even more so.
Attempts have already been made to employ parchment paper for this purpose,

page_text: but this has been found to be unsuitable, because it cannot be pasted and is too
hygroscopic. In the manufacture of a substitute for leather common paper is
chiefly used, endeavours being made to convert such paper, by treatment with
lacs or the like or with glue or the like, into a waterproof article resembling skin.
It has been found that parchment paper combined with fabric, paper or the like
forms a product which is absolutely similar to animal skin, the very resistant layer
of parchment corresponding to the grain side and the ground connected therewith
to the flesh side.
As this product is in itself impervious to water the said invention is not designed
like the known processes for manufacturing imitations of leather to produce such
an article, but to treat this vegetable skin so as to obtain vegetable leather.
Here the imperviousness to water constitutes a quality not to be underrated,
because owing to this quality the vegetable skin may be treated in the moist state,
in which the pores are more open and are thus better adapted to receive the
impregnating agent.
The material to be treated by the process forming the subject of the present
application is ordinary vegetable parchment, or preferably a combination of any
suitable fabric with parchment paper manufactured according to known processes.
Artificial vegetable leather, which has been found to be perfectly equal and in
many respects even superior to animal leather in all its essential qualities, may be
produced according to my present invention by treating vegetable parchment
material with oil, resin, wax, paraffin, stearin, fat or like substances. Parchment
material completely takes up these substances, which may be employed either in
the cold state or in suitable solvents, such as alcohol, glycerine, turpentine, or in
the hot state, and also in the molten state (melted fat) so that an impregnated
supple article is obtained instead of parchment paper coated only on the surface
with lac or the like.
Besides impregnating it with fats, oils or the like, the parchment or the herein-
before described parchment material to be transformed into artificial leather may
be treated with substances which serve as it were for covering the oil, fat or the
like and prevent a deleterious change in the same, for instance the transformation
of the oils into resins, or the decomposition of the fat with formation of fatty acid;
and the parchment material to be impregnated with oil or fat may be treated with
hygroscopic substances, if necessary in conjunction with the aforesaid treatment
with covering substances. Use is made chiefly of solutions of dextrine, mucilage,
albumin, casein and glue as covering substances, while glycerine, magnesium
chloride and calcium chloride are more particularly employed as hygroscopic
substances.
In carrying the before described process into practice, parchment material is
suitably dyed throughout, then imperfectly dried, in order that the moisture
remaining therein may render it more receptive for the fatty impregnating agents.
Then it is conducted through a hot bath of fats, paraffine, oil, wax, stearin or the
like, or else through a solution of these substances in alcohol, turpentine oil,
glycerine or the like. This impregnating liquid, as shown by experience, expels
the water which has remained in the parchment material and takes its place. The
intimate union between the parchment material and the impregnating agent may
be promoted by passing the material between rollers receiving the impregnating
agent. After its removal from the impregnating bath the parchment material is
dried in the open air and a polish is obtained resembling that of leather by polishing
the surface. The article is then suitable for use in lieu of common leather.
Instead of using directly the parchment or the hereinbefore described parchment
material treated with fatty impregnating agents, it may be treated by a solution of
dextrine, albumin, casein, mucilage, animal glutine, or the like, thereby increasing
the strength of the artificial leather, and diminishing at the same time the great
unctuousness of the article which may be observed in the case of certain
impregnating agents, such as talc and the like.
In lieu of effecting the impregnation with covering substances after the

page_text: treatment with the fatty substances the two operations may take place, simul-
taneously, the fatty substances or the like being mixed, in the form of emulsions
or compounds soluble in water, with the aqueous solution of the covering agent,
and the parchment material being conducted through the cold or heated mixture.
With those sorts of artificial leather in which the unctuous suppleness of leather
is not noticed it is expedient to replace a portion of the aforesaid fatty impregnating
agents by hygroscopic agents, that is to say the impregnation is effected first with
a comparatively small quantity of fats and if desired also of covering agents, and
the product thus obtained is conducted through a solution of glycerin, calcium
chloride, magnesium chloride or the like, or else an emulsion may be prepared of
the fatty impregnating agents in an aqueous solution of the hygroscopic agents, the
parchment material being treated therewith. The impregnation with covering
substances may also be combined with this modified method of treatment.
The proportions of the bath which have given the best results in practice are
water 100 parts, oily or greasy substances 3 parts, covering substances 5 parts,
hygroscopic substances 10 parts. These proportions however may be varied,
according to the degree of malleableness required for various purposes and also
according to the special nature of the raw-material. The lower limit for the
composition of the bath may be stated as follows; water 100 parts, oily or greasy
substances 2 parts, covering substances 2 parts, hygroscopic substances 2 parts.
As to the upper limit, considerably greater quantities of the single ingredients than
those above given should be used only in very exceptional cases.
Through the baths of the abovementioned proportions the raw-material
(parchment or parchment-cloth) is drawn slowly in form of an endless band and in
a humid state, till it has been impregnated with the ingredients of the said bath to
about 10 per cent. of its own weight. The bath will thus be weakened and must
be brought again to the original composition.
After passing through the bath the parchment or parchment-cloth is allowed to
rest till the ingredients of the bath have perfectly penetrated it and then it is dried
and treated with lac, gum-lac or the like in the usual manner.
The leather thus produced may be ornamented in any desired manner by pressing
and printing.
Having now particularly described and ascertained the nature of the said
invention, and in what manner the same is to be performed, as communicated to me
by my foreign correspondent, I declare that what I claim is :-
First. A method of manufacturing a vegetable substitute for leather, which consists
in dyeing through and through parchment or parchment united with paper, fabric, felt
or the like (so-called parchment material), impregnating it with oils, fats, paraffin,
wax, stearin or resin solutions preferably in the heat and with application of
pressure, and treating the product thus obtained in certain cases with an aqueous
solution of substances serving as a covering (dextrin, glue, casein, and the like) or
hygroscopic substances (glycerin, magnesium chloride, and the like) or lastly a
mixture of these two.
Second. A mode of carrying out the method described in the first claim,
characterized by mixing the oils, fats or resins with the solutions of the covering
substances or also the solutions of the hygroscopic substances, or lastly with the
two conjointly to form an emulsion, and impregnating the parchment material
therewith.
HASELTINE, LAKE & Co.,
45, Southampton Buildings, London, W.C., Agents for the Applicant.