IMPROVEMENTS IN THE TREATMENT OF FLOUR AND THE MANUFACTURE OF BREAD."
Year: 1865

page_text: LETTERS PATENT to John Crawford Walker, of the Strand, in the
County of Middlesex, for the Invention of "IMPROVEMENTS IN THE
TREATMENT OF FLOUR AND THE MANUFACTURE OF BREAD."
PROVISIONAL SPECIFICATION left by the said John Crawford Walker
at the Office of the Commissioners of Patents, with his Petition, on the
18th November 1865.
I, JOHN CRAWFORD WALKER, of the Strand, in the County of Middlesex, do
hereby declare the nature of the said Invention for "IMPROVEMENTS IN THE
TREATMENT OF FLOUR AND THE MANUFACTURE OF BREAD," to be as follows:-
This Invention relates to certain improvements in the method of treating
flour, and in the manufacture of bread. I propose to take about 105 grains
of a dry excessively acid phosphate of lime extracted from the bones of beef
and mutton, boiled and calcined in the usual mauner, or otherwise obtained.
This substance will contain a certain amount of free phosphoric acid, and a
neutral phosphate of lime; to this substance I propose to add some vegetable
material, such as flour or starch, to give it a body or volume, and I subject
the whole to the process of pulverization.
I then mix therewith a dry

page_text: carbonate of soda in such proportion, according to the relative chemical
equivalents, as will exactly neutralize the free phosphoric acid, say 60 grains.
This dry chemical compound is to be thoroughly mixed and incorporated with
flour in proper proportions as experience may develop, say with one pound of
flour, and water is then to be added; after which by a suitable application
of heat the free phosphoric acid now in solution will decompose the carbonate
of soda, evolving carbonic acid gas and leaving in solution a phosphate of
lime and a phosphate of soda. The evolution of carbonic acid 'produces
cavities or cells in the dough essential to the formation of light bread. Now,
the proper chemical admixture of phosphoric acid, phosphate of lime, and
carbonate of soda will form a substance which, added to flour, may be used in
the manufacture of bread of a superior quality, and in the simplest possible
manner, without fermentation.
The Invention is of course also applicable to the production of the finest
quality of cake, pastry, and hot or cold biscuit. The phosphate of lime left in
the dough will correspond very nearly in quantity with the same material
taken with the bran from the wheat in the process of "bolting" or dressing,
and is simply a restoration to the meal or flour of a substance supplied by
nature to the husk of the grain from which flour is made. Phosphate of lime
is essential to the growth of the animal tissues or bones, the phosphate of soda
forms a normal constituent of the blood, and these salts, though lodged with
the dough in very small quantities, are invaluable additions to the nutrient
quality of the bread. What is intended to be claimed in this Invention is the
introduction of phosphoric acid and the phosphate of lime as ingredients in
the improvement or treatment of flour, and the manufacture of light bread,
pastry, cakes, biscuits, or other similar articles made from flour of grain
without fermentation and the loss of nutritious principle involved in such
process. The powder or compound may be termed a "phosphorous non-fer-
menting bread powder," and the flour treated with the compound may be
termed a "phosphorous non-fermenting self-rising flour." Other compounds
may be applied of a similar character to that described herein, provided that
phosphoric acid shall enter therein as an ingredient in bread, making by the
generation of carbonic acid gas and the deposit of the phosphates, the princi
ciple of the Invention being the same in all cases.

page_text: SPECIFICATION in pursuance of the conditions of the Letters Patent, filed
by the said John Crawford Walker in the Great Seal Patent Office
on the 18th May 1866.
TO ALL TO WHOM THESE PRESENTS SHALL COME, I, JONN
CRAWFORD WALKER, of the Strand, in the County of Middlesex, send
greeting.
WHEREAS Her most Excellent Majesty Queen Victoria, by Her Letters
Patent, bearing date the Eighteenth day of November, in the year of our Lord
One thousand eight hundred and sixty-five, in the twenty-ninth year of Her
reign, did, for Herself, Her heirs and successors, give and grant unto me, the
said John Crawford Walker, Her special licence that I, the said John
Crawford Walker, my executors, administrators, and assigns, or such others
as I, the said John Crawford Walker, 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 THE TREATMENT OF FLOUR AND THE MANU-
PACTURE OF BREAD," upon the condition (amongst others) that I, the said John
Crawford Walker, 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
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 John Crawford Walker, do bereby
declare the nature of my said Invention, and in what manner the same is to
be performed, to be particularly described and ascertained in and by the
following statement:-
My Invention relates to certain improvements in the method of treating
flour, and in the manufacture of bread. I take a dry excessively acid phos-
phate of lime extracted from the bones of beef and mutton, boiled and calcined
in the usual manner, or otherwise obtained, this substance will contain a certain
amount of free phosphoric acid, and a neutral phosphate of lime; to this
substance I add some vegetable material, such as flour or starch, to give it a
body or volume, and I subject the whole to the process of pulverization. I
then mix therewith a dry carbonate of soda in such proportion, according to
the relative chemical equivalents, as will exactly neutralize the free phosphoric

page_text: acid. This dry chemical compound is to be thoroughly mixed and incorporated
with flour in proper proportions as experience may develop, and water then
to be added. After which by a suitable application of heat the free phos-
phoric acid now in solution, will decompose the carbonate of soda, evolving
carbonic acid gas, and leaving a phosphate of lime and a phosphate of soda.
The evolution of carbonic acid produces cavities or cells in the dough, essen-
tial to the formation of light bread. Now the proper chemical admixture of
the acid, phosphate of lime, and the bicarbonate of soda will form a substance,
which, added to flour, may be used in the manufacture of bread of a superior
quality, and in the simplest possible manner, without fermentation.
My Invention is of course also applicable to the production of the finest
quality of cake, pastry, and hot or cold biscuit. The phosphate of lime left
in the dough will correspond very nearly in quantity with the same material
taken with the bran from the wheat in the process of "bolting" or dressing,
and is simply a restoration to the meal or flour of a substance supplied by
nature to the husk of the grain from which flour is made. Phosphate of lime
is essential to the growth of the animal tissues or bones, the phosphate of soda
forms a normal constituent of the blood, and these salts, though lodged with
the dough in very small quantities, are invaluable additions to the nutrient
quality of the blood. The powder or compound may be termed a phospho-
ratic non-fermenting bread powder, and the flour treated with the compound
may be termed a phosphoratic non-fermenting self-rising flour. Other com-
pounds may be applied of a similar character to that described herein,
provided that phosphoric acid shall enter therein as an ingredient in bread
making by the generation of carbonic acid gas and the deposit of the
phosphates, the principle of the Invention being the same in all cases.
I will now proceed to state more minutely the operation of my said Inven-
tion, and also the quantities of the chemical ingredients which I find by
experience most suitable.
The bicarbonate of soda and the superphosphate of lime are so related in
chemical properties that when dissolved together in cold water the free
phosphoric acid of the latter will feebly attack the former; and when heat is
applied so as to raise the temperature of the solution to or near the boiling
point the attack becomes vigorous, and if the proportions be correct the whole
of the free phosphoric acid present will enter into combination with the
sodium, decomposing the carbonate; the reaction resulting in carbonic acid
gas (or carbonic anhydride), the neutral phosphate of calcium (or phosphate
of lime), the rhombic phosphate of sodium (or phosphate of soda), and
water, with sometimes a trace of the carbonate of calcium (carbonate of

page_text: lime. Now I propose to manufacture all sorts of light bread, rolls, pastry;
and cake, by incorporating with flour (to which the proper amount of commou
salt has been added) the bicarbonate of soda and the superphosphate of limo
in the proper quantities and relative proportions. When this flour so treated
is converted into dough, by the introduction of a sufficient amount of cold
water for that purpose, the free acid of the superphosphate of lime attacks
the bicarbonate of soda feebly, giving time to make and knead the dough
before the escape of any material quantity of gas generated by such action.
When the dough is placed in the oven and subjected to heat the action
becomes vigorous, and all the phosphoric acid present is consumed, and all
the bicarbonate of soda present is decomposed. The escape of the liberated
carbonic acid gas (or carbonic anhydride) at the time the dough is com-
mencing to harden into bread separates the minute particles of the dough,
and gives a cellular structure to the loaf. The neutral phosphate of lime,
the phosphate of soda, and the occasional trace of carbonate of lime resulting
from the reaction are lodged in the dough and baked in the bread, adding
materially to its nutrient qualities. For one pound of flour sixty-nine grains
of the bicarbonate of soda may be used, but this quantity may vary with circum-
stances, more or less of this article frequently answering equally well.
Theoretically, seventy-five grains of the superphosphate of lime will furnish a
sufficient quantity of free phosphoric acid to decompose sixty-nine grains of
the bicarbonate of soda, but these proportions will vary in practice according
to the purity of the ingredients used. The superphosphate of lime usually
contains an excess of water, and as prepared in the manner herein-after
described it will contain a foreign material, for either or both of which due
allowance must be made. The proportions of the bicarbonate of soda and
the superphosphate of lime used in this process must be determined by testing
the materials from time to time as they are manufactured. The bicarbonate
of soda may be incorporated with the flour, and the superphosphate of lime
may be dissolved in the water used in making the dough, all in the proper
proportions, at the time the bread is to be made.
Or the flour may be
treated with the bicarbonate of soda, the superphosphate of lime, and common
salt, in the proper proportions, so that it will only be necessary in making the
bread to add the requisite amount of water, and to knead and bake the dough.
For this purpose I prepare the superphosphate of lime in the following
manner: The bones of beef or mutton are calcined and the bone ash is
treated with dilute sulphuric acid, when the sulphuric acid unites with a part
of the calcium of the bone ash, forming an insoluble sulphate of calcium,
and leaving in solution an excessively acid phosphate of calcium. This solution

page_text: is strained off and evaporated down to about the consistency of cream, when
it is mixed with flour, or starch, or some other farinaceous substance, and dried
by the application of heat, and afterwards reduced to a pulverent. This powder
may be mixed with the bicarbonate of soda in the proper proportions, making
due allowance for the farinaceous substance it may contain; or the super-
phosphate of lime thus prepared, and the bicarbonate of soda in the proper
proportions, may be put up in separate packages, and in either or both cases
these materials may be termed, if preferred, "The non-fermenting bread
powder," and the flour treated with these materials may be termed "The
non-fermenting self-rising flour."
The advantages claimed for the process of bread making and the treatment
of flour, as described herein, are chiefly the following:-
:-
1st, it saves about five per cent. of the flour used, which is practically
destroyed in the process of fermentation.
2nd, it is perfectly simple, and easily comprehended by an inexperienced
operator, while to the professional baker, it saves the labor of making a
batch of ferment, and the anxiety of watching over it during the night.
3rd, the bread made by this process is more nutritious than other plain
bread, it is perfectly wholesome, and equally so either hot or cold. It retains
its moisture for a longer period than bread made by other processes, and may
be preserved free from mould or mildew for a much greater time than that
made by ferment.
4th, the bread manufactured by this process is made light, cellular, and
digestible without the use of ferment, and it is consequently free from those
vegetable germs or fungi which are lodged with the dough in the process of
fermentation, a part of which are known to survive both heat and cold and
frequently result in great injury to the digestive organs.
5th, the neutral phosphate of calcium lodged and baked in the loaf restores
an ingredient of the wheat taken away from the flour in the bran in the
process of bolting or dressing, which ingredient was designed by nature for
food and is exceedingly important as entering into and forming nearly the
whole of the solid part of the animal skeleton.
6th, the trace of carbonate of calcium (when it occurs) left in the dough
is valuable as entering to a limited extent into the formation of the bones of
the body.
7th, the phosphate of sodium, lodged and baked in the dough is known as
a normal constituent of the blood, and is essential to the healthy action of
the vital fluid, and is consequently an important addition to the nutrient
quality of the bread into which it enters.

page_text: 8th, by the addition to the flour of the proper ingredients the best of
pastry and cake may be produced, by the use of spices an aromatic flavor may
be imparted, and by substituting ale or wine for a part of the water ordinarily
employed the flavor of alcohol, as produced by yeast fermentation, may be
given to the bread.
Having now described the nature of my Invention, and the manner in
which the same is to be performed, I would remark in conclusion that I do
not limit myself to the exact relative proportions of chemical ingredients
which I have described, as the same may probably be varied slightly according
to circumstances, or as experience may determine; but what I claim and
desire to be secured to me by the herein in part recited Letters Patent is, the
treatment of flour and the manufacture of bread by the introduction or
admixture with flour of a carbonate of soda and the superphosphate of lime
in such a manner that the excess of acid contained in the phosphate liberated
at the proper time will attack and decompose the carbonate, evolving a
sufficient quantity of carbonic acid gas to give a cellular structure or lightness
to the loaf, and at the same time depositing the neutral phosphate of lime and
the phosphate of soda in the bread without decomposing and destroying any
of the flour or leaving in the dough any injurious materials, as is done by the
process of yeast fermentation. I do not propose in this to confine myself to
the superphosphate of lime, but may avail myself of other phosphoratic salts,
or of the phosphoric acid in its liquid state, in which latter case the reaction
would result in phosphate of soda and carbonic acid gas; nor do I propose
to confine myself to the carbonate of soda, but reserve to myself the right of
using with the phosphate or phosphoric acid any other carbonate which may
answer the object intended.
In witness whereof, I, the said John Crawford Walker, have hereunto set
my hand and seal, this Seventeenth day of May, in the year of our
Lord, One thousand eight hundred and sixty-six.
Witness,
ALEX. M. PRINCE,
Office for Patents,
4, Trafalgar Square,
Charing Cross.
J. C. WALKER. (L.S.)