IMPROVEMENTS IN MASHING AND PROVISIONAL SPECIFICATION
Year: 1873

page_text: LETTERS PATENT to Moritz Hatschek, of Pesth, Hungary, Technical
Merchant, for the Invention of "IMPROVEMENTS IN MASHING AND
PROVISIONAL SPECIFICATION left by the said Moritz Hatschek at
the Office of the Commissioners of Patents, with his Petition, on
the 9th June 1873.
I, MORITZ HATSCHEK, of Pesth, Hungary, Technical Merchant, do
hereby declare the nature of the said Invention for "IMPROVEMENTS IN
MASHING AND FILTERING FOR BREWERIES, AND IN APPARATUS THEREFOR," to be
as follows:-
This Invention relates to the preparation of wort for brewing from
malt, raw grain, potatoes, and other feculent substances by subjecting
the materials in close vessels to suitable degrees of temperature and
pressure, and filtering the liquid products. For this purpose I prefer to
employ apparatus consisting of the following parts:-
First. A vessel of cylindrical shape with hemispherical ends placed
unright and provided with a steam jacket at its lower end. This vessel

page_text: is chiefly applicable to the mashing of malt; in it is mounted a vertical
shaft which passes through a stuffing box in the top of the vessel, and is
provided with arms arranged helically round it for the purpose of stirring
the contents of the vessel, the lower arms having boards, plates, or chains
for scraping the bottom. The vessel is farther provided with pressure
and vacuum gauges, water gauge, thermometer, a man-hole for giving
access to the interior, orifices provided with cocks and valves for filling and
emptying, and pipes connecting it to the other parts of the apparatus.
Secondly. A vessel of like construction, and similarly provided, but
without steam jacket, which vessel may be of plain cylindrical form.
Thirdly. A condenser which may also be of cylindrical form with one
or more pipes passing through it, cooled by streams of cold water.
Fourthly. A double-acting air pump provided with valves so that it
can be used either for exhaustion or for compression of air.
Fifthly. A filter which is conveniently placed below the vessels first
named and the condenser, and which may be a vertical cylindrical
vessel having near its bottom a sieve of wire gauze or perforated plate
over which is stretched woollen fabric. This filter has a man-hole near
the sieve to give access for the removal of sediment, and for taking out.
and replacing after cleansing the woollen fabric. It is also provided with
a water gauge and with an outlet pipe and cock, which pipe is bent a
little upwards outside the vessel so as to leave a little liquid in the
bottom of the filter.
The two mash vessels above described, the condenser and the filter, are
connected with each other and with the air pumps by pipes provided with
valves or cocks so that they can be put into communication with one
another at different stages of the process hereafter to be described. The
stirring shafts of the two first-named mash vessels are driven from any
convenient prime mover, and the filter is likewise provided with a stirrer
which can be raised or lowered.
In employing this apparatus for the preparation of wort from malt
with raw cereals, or from malt with potatoes or other feculent substances,
the two mash vessels are charged with a suitable quantity of cold or
warm water, the agitator of the second vessel is put to work and the
potatoes (previously peeled) or other raw materials are introduced. The
vessel being then closed steam is admitted, and when raw grain is being

page_text: operated on the air pump is worked to exhaust from the vessel; with
potatoes this is not necessary. In exhausting the mash vessel is con-
nected to the condenser, and the latter to the air pump, so that the
vapour withdrawn from the mash vessel is condensed before reaching the
pump. By admission of steam to the mash vessel the temperature of its
contents is gradually raised to about 150° or 160° Fahr., whereupon the
air pump is stopped until steam of sensible pressure begins to issue from
the vessel. The vessel is then completely closed and the boiling is con-
tinued until excess of pressure is manifested, which pressure should be
regulated according to the substances treated. For maize and rice it
should be from 30 to 40 lbs., for corn or barley 28 to 32 lbs., and for
potatoes 25 to 28 lbs.
In order to give more fluidity to the paste produced by the boiling, it
is better to introduce before boiling about 5 per cent. of malt. When
the due pressure has been reached the steam is allowed to blow off
through the condenser, or it may be used to heat water for cleansing or
other purposes for which hot water is usually required in breweries.
When the pressure in the mash vessel is reduced to that of the atmo-
sphere it is again put in communication with the condenser and air
pump, and the agitator is worked till the temperature is reduced to
about 160° Fah". During this operation in the second mash vessel,
malt charged with cold or lukewarm water in the first mash vessel is
heated by steam in its jacket to about 120° Fah., its infusion being
thereby effected. The contents of the two vessels are now mingled in
one of them by opening a communication between their bottoms, and
creating a vacuum in either by the air pump so that the contents of the
other are sucked thereinto. The mixture is stirred till its temperature
is about 150° Fahr., when it is allowed to remain from an hour to an
hour and a half for saccharising, care being taken to maintain the
temperature within the proper range for this reaction, that is to say,
from 150° to 170° Fahr., for which purpose and for hastening the process
the air in the vessel may be compressed by means of the pump, such
compression being advantageous but by no means indispensable.
When the saccharising is completed or nearly so the mass is heated
by steam to the boiling point and kept boiling for about three-quarters
of an hour, or the pressure may be raised by boiling somewhat above
that of the atmosphere according as a lighter or a heavier beer is
desired. Under the boiling point an infusion is effected, and above it a

page_text: decoction; when either of these results are attained the vessel is again
put in communication with the condenser and air pump till the tem-
perature is reduced to about 150° Fahr. From 5 to 10 per cent. of malt
which had previously been soaked in cold or lukewarm water in a separate
vessel is then sucked in, and the whole is allowed to stand from half an
hour to an hour for farther saccharising of such portions of the pasty
mass as had in the first instance escaped the reaction. After this the
agitator is again put to work while the contents of the mash vessel are
allowed to flow into the filter, their passage thereinto being accelerated
either by creating an excess of pressure in the mash vessel or by reducing
the pressure in the filter by means of the pump. It should be under-
stood that the filter was previously warmed by water heated to 170° or
190° Fahr. run through it, a portion being left in the bottom as deter-
mined by the height of the bend of the outlet pipe previously referred to.
The filter being charged with the mash, the deposit of the sediment
thereof can be observed through the gauge glass, it being usually
effected in about a quarter of an hour, during which the contents of
the filter are left still to settle. The outlet cock is then opened, when
clear wort will run off, and its issue may be accelerated by employing
the air pump to raise the pressure a few pounds within the filter which
should be provided with a safety valve to prevent excess of pressure.
When the wort has ceased flowing, the sediment being left almost dry
in the filter, the latter is charged with water at 170° to 190° Fahr. of
temperature, and the agitator of the filter is put to work so as to
thoroughly break up the sediment. The mass is then left a few minutes
to settle when the wort is again run off; and this can be repeated until
the resulting wort is reduced to a very low strength. Such weak wort
may be used instead of water for treating the sediment, and thus wort
of any degree of strength may be obtained.
Although I have described above the process as effected with two
mash vessels it might be effected with one. The raw grain or feculent
matter might first be infused with steam of considerable pressure and
the paste cooled in vacuo to 150° or 170° Fahr., the temperature suited
for saccharising. The malt infused in the ordinary manner in a separate
open vessel might then be introduced at once or in successive portions,
and the saccharising effected, after which the process of boiling and
filtering might be completed as above described. Farther, instead of
employing steam for heating, direct firing might be applied, and cooling

page_text: effected by the application of cold water. When raw grain or feculent
substances are not to be treated malt may be operated on in a vessel like
that first described, the second vessel being then unnecessary.
It is to be understood that after each operation the apparatus should
be thoroughly cleansed, particularly the filter which should be supplied
with a clean sifting cloth, and it would be convenient to have the filter
in duplicate to avoid loss of time in cleansing. To avoid cooling of the
contents of the filter the air forced into it to give compression may be
warmed, or steam may be used or hot water under pressure, but the use
of warm air for this purpose is to be preferred.
SPECIFICATION in pursuance of the conditions of the Letters Patent,
filed by the said Moritz Hatschek in the Great Seal Patent
Office on the 25th November 1873.
TO ALL TO WHOM THESE PRESENTS SHALL COME, I, MORITZ
HATSCHEK, of Pesth, Hungary, Technical Merchant, send greeting.
WHEREAS Her most Excellent Majesty Queen Victoria, by Her
Letters Patent, bearing date the Ninth day of June, in the year of
our Lord One thousand eight hundred and seventy-three, in the thirty-
sixth year of Her reign, did, for Herself, Her heirs and successors,
give and grant unto me, the said Moritz Hatschek, Her special license
that I, the said Moritz Hatschek, my executors, administrators, and
assigns, or such others as I, the said Moritz Hatschek, 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
MASHING AND FILTERING FOR BREWERIES, AND IN APPARATUS THEREFOR," upon
the condition (amongst others) that I, the said Moritz Hatschek, 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

page_text: provided with a man-hole a and glass guage b, with a valve e by which
it can be charged from A. or C, a valve c by which steam can be
admitted to it, and a safety valve k. Near the bottom of the filter is
placed a screen or grating of wire gauze or perforated metal, upon which
is laid a sheet of flannel, felt, or other like fabric held down by a ring
secured by set screws. The discharge pipe is turned a little upwards
g
so that a quantity of liquid is retained in the lower part of the filter.
Within the filter is a rotating agitator consisting of radial blades
arranged helically on a screwed spindle. The spindle itself as well as
the nut in which it works is connected by gearing to a handle outside
the filter, as shown in Fig. V., so that the agitator can be made to rotate
and also to rise or to descend according to he direction in which the
handle is turned.
A is a mash vessel of cylindrical form with hemispherical ends, the
lower end having a steam jacket. Internally it has a rotating agitator
consisting of blades arranged helically on a vertical spindle with a chain
or scraper at bottom, and it is provided with man-hole a, glass gauge b,
steam valves c for the supply of steam either to its interior or to the
jacket, a discharge valve d at bottom, a presser gauge 1, thermometer m,
and vacuum gauge n. At top it is connected with the condenser B by
a pipe provided with a stop valve h.
C is a mash vessel fitted in a manner similar to A. but without steam
jacket, and therefore it has only one steam valve c by which steam can.
be admitted to a pipe with numerous small perforations placed near the
bottom of the vessel. It has however a stop valve e for the supply of
the materials to be operated on. The discharge valves d, d, of the
vessels A and C are connected by a pipe communicating with the valve e
of the filter E, which pipe has also a communication with a water supply
cock f¹.
It may be readily understood that instead of employing a special air
pump D in connection with the rest of the apparatus, the compression
or exhaustion of the air might be effected by other known means.
The apparatus arranged and connected as described above is applied
to the production of wort from malt, or from malt with maize, rice, oats,
rye, and other cereals, or with potatoes and other feculent substances in
the following manner :—

page_text: Closing the filter valve e and opening the valve d of one of the
vessels A and C it is charged from f¹ with the necessary quantity of
cold or warm water. The other of the two vessels is charged in like
manner. The agitator of C being then put to work, that vessel is
supplied by its valve e with the bruised grain, or if potatoes be treated
they may be supplied by the man-hole, after which the valve or man-
hole is tightly closed. Steam is then admitted, and when grain is
treated the air pump is also brought into operation to exhaust by
opening the valve i to the condenser B, and the valve h between C
and B, the condenser being at the same time cooled by cold water from
the cock f. Thus a vacuum of 22 to 27 inches of mercury may be
maintained, the vapour passing from C to the condenser being condensed
therein.
For potatoes the exhaust is not required. The temperature in C
slowly rises till it reaches 150° to 160° Fahrenheit, upon which the air
pump is disconnected, and air is admitted to the mash vessel by opening
a bib cock or valve; the heating is continued till steam issues from the
cock or valve with some pressure. The cock or valve is then closed and
the boiling is continued till the pressure considerably exceeds that of
the atmosphere. For potatoes the excess of pressure should be 25 to 28
lbs., for corn 28 to 32 lbs., and for fully dried maize or rice 32 to 40 lbs.
per square inch. It will be found that the pasty mass is rendered more
fluid by the presence of about 5 per cent. of malt mingled with it before
treatment.
When the treatment has been effected as above described, the steam
is allowed to escape either through the condenser and air pump or by a
separate valve or cock on the vessel C, and in the latter case the waste
steam may be utilised for heating water or other
purposes. The pressure
within the vessel C being thus reduced to that of the atmosphere, con-
nection is made from C to the condenser and air pump, and the con-
denser is kept cool by the flow of cold water through the pipes within
it. The agitator in C being also kept at work, the temperature of its
contents falls rapidly to about 160° Fahrenheit.
While the operation described above is in progress in the vessel C,
the quantity of bruised malt required for a mashing (or only 90 or 95
per cent. of the whole quantity required) charged with cold or lukewarm
water into the vessel A may be warmed by steam introduced into the
jacket to a temperature about 120° Fahrenheit, the agitator being kept

page_text: in motion. A vacuum may then be formed in A, and the contents of C
sucked into A, or conversely the contents of A may be drawn into C.
The mixture in A in the former case is to be warmed up by steam in the
jacket to about 150° Fahrenheit while the agitator is kept at work, and
it is then allowed to stand from an hour to an hour and a half for
saccharising, which reaction may take place at various temperatures
from 150° to 170° Fahrenheit. It may be accelerated by increasing the
pressure of air in the vessel, care being taken to avoid injurious
variations of temperature beyond the proper limits; but such compression,
though advantageous, is by no means necessary. When the saccharisa-
tion is complete the mass is heated to boiling point and kept boiling for
about three-quarters of an hour. As it is boiled in a close vessel, the
pressure and temperature may be raised somewhat above that due to
open boling, when a beer of greater body and darker colour is desired.
The treatment of the mass under boiling point, which may be called
infusion, or its treatment above boiling point, which may be called
decoction, being completed, the vessel A is put in communication with
the condenser and air pump until the temperature is reduced to about
150° Fahrenheit. There is then drawn into the vessel the 5 or 10 per
cent. of malt that had been kept back on first charging, which malt had
been steeped in cold or lukewarm water in a separate vessel, and the
whole is then allowed to stand from half an hour to an hour for a
second and complete saccharisation. The agitator then being worked,
the contents of the mash vessel are run into the filter E, the steam
supply c and the discharge g of the latter being closed, but the cock of
the gauge 6 being opened to permit the escape of air. The settling of
the sediment may be observed through the glass of the gauge. In
about a quarter of an hour the sediment subsides and the discharge 9 is
then opened, yielding clear wort. Before operating thus with the filter
the space at its bottom below the screen should be filled with clean
water admitted by the cock f until it flows out at g. The discharge of
the wort from the filter may be accelerated by forcing air into it from
the
pump D so as to produce a pressure of 2 to 6 lbs. per square inch, as
determined by the load on the safety valve k, this pressure not being
enough to force the sediment through, but being sufficient to effect the
filtration rapidly, and to leave the grounds comparatively dry on the
screen. When wort ceases to flow the discharge g is closed, water
heated to 170° or 190° Fahrenheit is admitted to the filter, and the
agitator is worked so as to mix the grounds thoroughly with the water.
b

page_text: The mass is then allowed to rest for a few minutes to settle, and clear
wort is again drained off. This may be repeated till the wort becomes
very weak, the quantity of sugar in it being reduced to 1 or 2 per cent,
and in this manner may be obtained worts of various degrees of
strength.
I have described the process as conducted with two mash vessels A
and C, one of these however may be dispensed with by proceeding in
the following manner:-The raw materials are first heated in the close
vessel with high-pressure steam, and the mass is cooled under exhaust to
the saccharising temperature 150° to 170° Fahrenheit. The malt
infusion prepared in an open vessel is then drawn in either at once or in
successive portions, and the process is completed by filtration as
described above. For operating in this manner only one vessel such
as C, or such as A with steam jacket is required along with a condenser
and air pump or other exhausting apparatus. Moreover instead of
drawing the malt wort into the close vessel, the contents of the latter
may be discharged at the proper temperature and in successive portions
into the open vessel containing the malt infusion, and being thoroughly
mingled therewith left to stand for saccharisation.
The heating instead of being effected as above described, by steam,
may be effected by direct firing, and the cooling and exhaustion by
simple condensation. When malt only is employed the operation is
effected as described in reference to the use of the single vessel A. In
all cases after each operation the vessels and filter should be thoroughly
cleaned. The filter may be cased with non-conducting material to
prevent radiation, or it may be jacketted and heated by steam or hot
water or cooled by cold water. For producing the pressure in the filter
heated air may be forced in or steam admitted to it.
Having thus described the nature of my Invention, and in what
manner the same is to be performed, I claim,-
First. The treatment of malt for the production of wort by exposing
it to steam heat in a close vessel in which a partial vacuum is main-
tained, and then if requisite to a pressure exceeding that of the atmo-
sphere, substantially as herein described.
Second. The treatment of raw grain and feculent substances for the
production of wort in like manner, with exhaust and pressure in a
closed vessel, or with pressure only, substantially as herein described.

page_text: Third. The use for the production of wort in the manner referred to
bove, of close vessels the pressure in which can be varied as required,
he influence of the external atmosphere being excluded.
Fourth. The use for the filtration of wort of a closed filter constructed
nd operating substantially as herein described.
In witness whereof, I, the said Moritz Hatschek, have hereunto
set my hand and seal, this Nineteenth day of November, in the
year of our Lord One thousand eight hundred and seventy-
three.