Improvements in and relating to the Manufacture of Carbonates of Alkalies and Acetone.
Year: 1890

page_text: COMPLETE SPECIFICATION.
Improvements in and relating to the Manufacture of Carbonates of
Alkalies and Acetone.
I, FREDERICK WILLIAM ANTON FRERICHS a citizen of the United States of America,
residing at No. 1800 Second Carondelet Avenue, in the City of St. Louis and the
State of Missouri, Manufacturing Chemist, do hereby declare the nature of this
invention, and in what manner the same is to performed, to be particularly described
and ascertained in and by the following statement :-
My invention relates more particularly to the manufacture of carbonate of
potassium and acetone.
The manufacture of carbonate of potassium is now generally carried on according
to the so-called Leblanc process, but the wear of the furnaces used in its production
is considerable, and makes the manufacture an expensive one. No valuable
by-products are obtained in this process and hence the price of the article is very
high. My invention is based on the discovery, that by a combination of processes
as herein set forth, two valuable substances, carbonate of potassium and acetone,
can be produced at the same time in such a way that the total cost of production
is borne by the acetone, while at the same time a considerable amount of carbonate
of potassium is obtained at little cost. My process is carried out in the following
way :-
A solution of acetate of lime in water is mixed with a watery solution of sulphate
of potassium in equivalent proportion, whereby the following reaction takes
place:
or valuable acetone is obtained.
The output of carbonate of potassium is fully theoretical, and the value of the acetone
yielded as a by-product in the manufacture of carbonate of potassium according to my
process exceeds considerably the cost of the raw material employed. The excess of
value at the now prevalent market price is so large that it will fully cover the cost of
manufacture for itself and for carbonate of potassium.
The acetate of potassium could also be subjected to distillation together with
anhydride of acetic acid, whereby acetone and carbonate of potassium are produced
according to the following formula:
+
CH.COOK
OJ HRJ
CH
CO = K2CO3 + CO₂
+2
CO.

page_text: produce acetic acid and which yield by such distillation (in a similar way as anhydride
of acetic acid) acetone and at the same time carbonate of potassium.
Neither does it deviate from the spirit of my invention, if in place of acetate of lime,
acetate of barium or acetate of strontium be employed. It would also be possible to
substitute sulphate of sodium for sulphate of potassium, in which case valuable
carbonate of sodium would be obtained.
Having now particularly described and ascertained the nature of my said inven-
tion, and in what manner the same is to be performed, I declare that what I
claim is :-
--
1. The herein described process for the manufacture of carbonates of alkalies and
acetone at one and the same time, which consists in treating acetates of alkaline
earths with the sulphate of the desired alkali to make an acetate of such said alkali and
then subjecting such acetate to distillation, substantially as specified.
2. The herein described process for the manufacture of carbonates of alkalies and
acetones at one and the same time, which consists in treating acetates of alkaline
earths with the sulphate of the desired alkali to make acetate of said alkali, and then
subjecting such acetate to distillation, together with anhydride of acetic acid.
3. The herein described process for the manufacture of carbonate of potassium and
acetone at one and the same time, which consists in mixing a solution of acetate of
lime with a solution of sulphate of potassium to obtain acetate of potassium, and then
subjecting the acetate of potassium so obtained to destructive distillation, whereby
carbonate of potassium and acetone are formed at one and the same time for the
purposes described.
Dated this 94th day of Iun 1000
JENSEN & SON,
77, Chancery Lane, London, W.C., Patent Agents.