IMPROVEMENTS IN THE TREATMENT OR PURIFICATION OF SEWAGE AND OTHER MATTERS, AND IN THE TREATMENT OR PROVISIONAL SPECIFICATION
Year: 1875

page_text: LETTERS PATENT to Christopher Rawson, of No. 9, Victoria
Chambers, in the City of Westminster, Managing Director to the
Native Guano Company (Limited), and John William Slater, of
No. 2, Tamworth Terrace, in the County of Middlesex, Analytical
Chemist, for the Invention of "IMPROVEMENTS IN THE TREATMENT OR
PURIFICATION OF SEWAGE AND OTHER MATTERS, AND IN THE TREATMENT OR
PROVISIONAL SPECIFICATION left by the said Christopher Rawson
and John William Slater at the Office of the Commissioners of
Patents, with their Petition, on the 25th October 1875.
We, CHRISTOPHER RAWSON, of No. 9, Victoria Chambers, in the City
of Westminster, Managing Director to the Native Guano Company
(Limited), and JOHN WILLIAM SLATER, of No. 2, Tamworth Terrace,
in the County of Middlesex, Analytical Chemist, do hereby declare the
nature of the said Invention for "IMPROVEMENTS IN THE TREATMENT OR
PURIFICATION OF SEWAGE AND OTHER MATTERS, AND IN THE TREATMENT OB

page_text: PREPARATION OF AGENTS TO BE USED IN THE SAID PURIFICATION," to be as
follows:-
Our Invention relates, firstly, to certain processes for purifying sewage
liquid, night soil, dye waters, or other refuse waters, or such waters
mixed with sewage and other liquid matters by precipitation. In such
processes as ordinarily practised alum or sulphate of alumina or other
salts of alumina or alum sludge, either alone or in combination with
other agents, is or are mixed with the sowage to be purified. Now the
object of this part of our Invention is to provide a cheap substitute for
the manufactured alum or sulphate of alumina or other salts of alumina
or alum sludge thus used.
According to this part of our Invention we substitute for the said manu-
factured alum sulphate of alumina or other salts of alumina or alum
sludge, raw or natural aluminious schists or shales, or bituminous and oil
schists or shales, or oil rock or carboniferous shists or shales, or rock
(burnt, carbonized, or raw) containing alumina, or the refuse of any of
these shists or shales, or "oil rock" after the bitumen or oil has been
extracted from them or it. These schists or shales contain sulphate and
sulphide of iron, sulphate of alumina, alumina and sulphur, which sulphur
in contact with moist air becomes oxidised to sulphuric acid, which forms
a crude sulphate of alumina suitable in its raw state for the treatment of
sewage and other matters. Some shales contain ready-formed sulphate of
alumina, potash, alum, and other salts useful for the treatment of sewage
and other matters. We use the said schists or shales in their natural or
raw state (i.c. without ustulation or calcination), either alone or in admix-
ture with the steamed shales herein-after referred to, or other matters or
agents in the treatment of sewage and other matters. When we use the
said schists or shales alone we simply grind them (when necessary), and
mix them with the sewage or other matters to be purified. When we
use them in purifying sewage by the process described in the Specifi-
cation of Letters Patent granted to William Cameron Sillar, Robert
George Sillar, and George William Wigner, and bearing date the 15 June
1868 (which process is commonly known as the "A. B. C. process "),
we omit from the "A. B. C. mixture," the manufactured alum or
sulphate of alumina heretofore used in the said process, and add the
said raw schists or shales, or the steamed schists or shales herein-after
referred to, or a mixture of both raw and steamed schists or shales in
lieu of such alum or sulphate of alumina to the blood, clay, charcoal,

page_text: "
The said bituminous schists or shales, and the other schists or shales
of that class, or the refuse thereof, may also be applied either by them-
selves or itself, or in conjunction or admixture with the aforesaid
aluminous schists or shales or other agents, to the treatment of night
soil and other putrescent or putrescible organic matters.
Our Invention further consists in treating or preparing the aluminous
schists or shales, or bituminous and oil schists or shales, or "oil rock,"
or carboniferous schists or shales, or rock (burnt, carbonized, or raw),
containing alumina or the aforesaid refuse of these schists or shales, or
oil rock," as herein-after described, for the treatment of sewage and
other matters instead of using such schists or shales or refuse, as herein-
before described, without such preparation. We make the said schists
or shales or refuse crushed or otherwise into heaps either in the open
air or in suitably constructed chambers, and draw or force through them
either steam or steam and atmospheric air, or hot air charged with
moisture or sulphurous acid gas either alone or in admixture with such
air or steam.
As one method among others of obtaining hot moist air for our
purpose we utilize the vapours escaping from the drying cylinders used
in drying “native guano" or other manures or matters, or from any
When the
other drying apparatus available for our said purpose.
schists or shales have been thus steamed we apply them to the treat-
ment of sewage and other matters either alone or in addition to or
admixture with the raw aluminous schists or shales, or the other agents
used for purifying sewage, as herein-before described.
When the said schists or shales to be used are deficient in sulphur wo
add to the said schists or shales in the heaps aforesaid minerals or
residues containing sulphur in a cheap and available form.
Our Invention further consists in filtering sewage dye or other refuse
waters, or such waters mixed with sewage either through the aforesaid
aluminous schists or shales (either raw or steamed) or through tho
aforesaid bituminous or oil schists, or shales, or "oil rock," or car-
boniferous schists or shales or rock (burnt, carbonized, or raw), or the
carboniferous refuse aforesaid, or through a mixture of both classes of
such schists or shales, or through the aforesaid carboniferous refuse
alone, or through any of these agents mixed with any other suitable
carboniferous matter. This filtration may either be in addition to

page_text: "
or in substitution for the "A. B. C. process or other .precipitating
processes.
We are aware that aluminous schists or shales have been ustulated or
calcined (sometimes. with the addition of sulphur minerals) for the
manufacture of alum and sulphate of alumina and alum sludge, and
that such schists or shales have been exposed to air and rain for
considerable periods (without ustulation) and then lixiviated. We are
also aware that calcined or ustulated schists or shales have been treated
with sulphurous acid gas, steam, and air; but we dispense with the
ustulation or calcination of the said schists or shales, and also with the
prolonged exposure to air and rain aforesaid, and thus prevent the escape
of sulphurous fumes and the consequent nuisance, and save money, time,
and labour.
SPECIFICATION in pursuance of the conditions of the Letters Patent,
filed by the said Christopher Rawson and John William Slater
in the Great Seal Patent Office on the 25th April 1876.
TO ALL TO WHOM THESE PRESENTS SHALL COME, we, CHRIS-
TOPHER RAWSON, of No. 9, Victoria Chambers, in the City of West-
minster, Managing Director to the Native Guano Company (Limited),
and JOHN WILLIAM SLATER, of No. 2, Tamworth Terrace, in the County
of Middlesex, Analytical Chemist, send greeting.
WHEREAS Her most Excellent Majesty Queen Victoria, by Her
Letters Patent, bearing date the Twenty-fifth day of October, in the
year of our Lord One thousand eight hundred and seventy-five, in the
thirty-ninth year of Her reign, did, for Herself, Her heirs and succes-
sors, give and grant unto us, the said Christopher Rawson and John
William Slater, Her special license that we, the said Christopher
Rawson and John William Slater, our executors, administrators, and
assigns, or such others as we, the said Christopher Rawson and
John William Slater, our 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 law-
fully might make, use, exercise, and vend, within the United Kingdom
of Great Britain and Ireland, the Channel Islands, and Isle of Man,

page_text: an Invention for "IMPROVEMENTS IN THE TREATMENT OR PURIFICATION OF
SEWAGE AND OTHER MATTERS, AND IN THE TREATMENT OR PREPARATION OF AGENTS
TO BE USED IN THE SAID PURIFICATION," upon the condition (amongst
others) that we, the said Christopher Rawson, and John William
Slater, our executors or administrators, by an instrument in writing
under our or their hands and seals, or under the hand and seal of one of
us or them, 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 Christopher Rawson, on behalf
of myself and the said John William Slater, do hereby declare the
nature of the said Invention, and in what manner the same is to be
performed, to be particularly described and ascertained in and by the
following statement thereof, that is to say:-
Our Invention relates, firstly, to certain processes for purifying by
precipitation sewage liquid, night soil, dye waters, or other refuse waters,
or such waters mixed with sewage and other liquid matters. In such
processes as ordinarily practised alum or sulphate of alumina, or other
salts of alumina or alum sludge, either alone or in combination with
other agents is or are mixed with the sewage to be purified. Now the
object of this part of our Invention is to provide a cheap substitute for
the manufactured alum or sulphate of alumina or other salts of alumina
or alum sludge thus used.
According to this part of our Invention we substitute for the said
manufactured alum sulphate of alumina or other salts of alumina or
alum sludge, raw or natural aluminous schists or shales, or minerals.
These schists or shales contain sulphate and sulphide of iron, sulphate of
alumina, alumina and sulphur, which sulphur in contact with moist air
becomes oxidised to sulphuric acid, which forms a crude sulphate of
alumina suitable in its raw state for the treatment of sewage and other
matters. Some shales contain ready formed sulphate of alumina, potash,
alum, and other salts useful for the treatment of sewage and other
matters, and such shales are applicable to our purpose. We use the
said schists or shales in their natural or raw state (i.e. without ustulation
or calcination), either alone or in admixture with the steamed or

page_text: enter the sewage simultaneously with the schists or shales, but that it is
cither mixed with the sewage previously to the introduction of the
schists or shales, or else not until they have been fully incorporated
with the sewage.
When we use the said schists or shales in substitution for the alum
referred to in the A. B. C. mixture described in the aforesaid Specifi-
cation of William Cameron Sillar, Robert George Sillar, and George
William Wigner, we add to the said mixture a quantity of the said
schists or shales equal to twice or thrice the weight of the said alum.
When we add so the said A. B. C. mixture, a mixture of the aforesaid
raw schists or shales, and the steamed or prepared schists or shales
herein-after referred to, we use equal weights of both classes of shales.
Or instead of using the aforesaid schists or shales with the aforesaid
D A
D A

page_text: in drying native guano and other matters (which cylinders are described
in the Specification of a Patent granted to William Alfred Gibbs and
Alfred Borwick, and dated 31st January, A.D., 1872, No. 314, or from
any other drying apparatus available for our said purpose. When the
said schists or shales have been thus steamed or treated we apply them
to the treatment of sewage, and other matters either alone or in addition
to or admixture with the raw aluminous schists or shales, or the other
agents used for purifying sewage, as herein-before described.
When the said schists or shales to be used are deficient in sulphur
we add to them in the heaps aforesaid, minerals, or residues, containing
sulphur in a cheap and available form.
We are aware that aluminous schists or shales have been ustulated
or calcined (sometimes with the addition of sulphur minerals) for the
manufacture of alum, and sulphate of alumina, and alum sludge, and
that such schists or shales have been exposed to air and rain for
considerable periods without ustulation and then lixiviated. We are
also aware that calcined or ustulated schists or shales have been treated
with sulphurous acid gas, steam, and air; but we dispense with the
ustulation or calcination of the said schists or shales, and also with the
prolonged exposure to air and rain aforesaid, and thus prevent the
escape of sulphurous fumes and the consequent nuisance, and save
money, time, and labour.
Having now described the nature of our Invention, and the manner
in which the same is to be performed, we wish it to be understood that
we do not limit ourselves to the proportions herein before stated, as
they may be varied, without departing from the nature of our said
Invention; but we claim as our said Invention,―
Firstly. The substitution of raw or natural aluminous schists or
shales, or minerals, or of a mixture of such schists or shales, and the
steamed or prepared aluminous schists or shales herein-before referred
to for the alum, sulphate of alumina, or other salts of alumina or alum
sludge ordinarily used in purifying by precipitation sewage liquid or
semi-liquid night soil, dye waters, and other refuse waters.
Secondly. Treating or preparing aluminous schists, or shales, or
minerals, as herein-before described, for purifying by precipitation
sewage and other matters, that is to say, passing through such schists,

page_text: or shales, or minerals, steam, or steam and atmospheric air, or hot air
charged with moisture, or a mixture of sulphurous acid gas and steam,
or a mixture of sulphurous acid gas and hot air.
In witness whereof, I, the said Christopher Rawson, have hereunto
set my hand and seal, this Twenty-fourth day of April, in the 5
year of our Lord one thousand eight hundred and seventy-six.
Witness,
GEORGE BAXTER,
262, Vauxhall Bridge Road,
Pimlico.
C. RAWSON. (L.S.)