IMPROVEMENTS IN EXTRACTING THE SALT PROM SEA AND OTHER WATER, AND IN RENDERING IT PURE AND DRINKABLE, AND IN PURIFYING OTHER WATER
Year: 1838

page_text: COTELLE'S SPECIFICATION.
TO ALL TO WHOM THESE PRESENTS SHALL COME, I, THEODORE
COTELLE, of the Haymarket, in the County of Middlesex, Civil Engineer,
send greeting.
WHEREAS Her present most Excellent Majesty Queen Victoria, by Her
Letters Patent under the Great Seal of Great Britain, bearing date at West-
minster, the First day of December, in the second year of Her reign, did, for
Herself, Her heirs and successors, give and grant unto me, the said Theodore
Cotelle, Her especial license, full power, sole privilege and authority, that I;
the said heodore Cotelle, my exors, adñors, and assigns, or such others aś
I, the said Theodore Cotelle, my exors, admors, or assigns, should at any time
agree with, and no others, from time to time and at all times during the term
of years
therein expressed, should and lawfully might make, use, exercise, and
vend, within England, Wales, and the Town of Berwick-upon-Tweed, my
Invention of "IMPROVEMENTS IN EXTRACTING THE SALT PROM SEA AND OTHER
WATER, AND IN RENDERING IT PURE AND DRINKABLE, AND IN PURIFYING OTHER
WATER;" in which said Letters Patent is contained a proviso that I, the said
Theodore Cotelle, shall cause a particular description of the nature of my
said Invention, and in what manner the same is to be performed, to be inrolled
in Her said Majesty's High Court of Chancery, within six calendar months next
and immediately after the date of the said in part recited Letters Patent, as
in and by the same, reference being thereunto had, will more fully and at
large appear.
NOW KNOW YE, that in compliance with the said proviso, I, the said
Theodore Cotelle, do hereby declare the nature of my Invention, and the
manner in which the same is to be performed, are fully described and ascer-

page_text: tained in and by the following statement thereof, reference being had to the
Drawings hereunto annexed, and to the figures and letters marked thereon
(that is to say) :-
My Invention consists in extracting the salt and other impure matters from
sea water, by means of an apparatus hereafter described; and also in improv-
ing the quality of such and other impure waters, by filtering them in a mode
hereafter described. I will first describe the mode of separating the salt from
the water.
I construct an apparatus consisting of three vessels, which I call the boiler,
the rectifier, and the condenser. The salt water is placed into the first, and
subject to the action of the fire; the water, as steam, passes into the rectifier
through a series of bent tubes, placed as shewn in the Drawing at Figure 2,
and into which the steam enters as it passes from the boiler, and from thence
it passes into the condenser; any water that may remain in the rectifier, when
the process is stopped, is drawn off at the cock c", when it becomes condensed
into water, depositing in its passage through the rectifier any impurity that may
remain in the water after it comes from the boiler. This condensed water is
then in a fit state for cooking purposes, but I improve the quality of it,
and render it drinkable by using my mode of filtering, which may be used in
combination with my evaporating apparatus, or, it may be used alone, as an
This filter may be con-
ordinary filter for improving any impure waters.
structed of any suitable material, but I prefer that it should be made of
wood, I prefer oak, from its being more durable. The upper part is closed by
a cover which is hermetically sealed to prevent the admission of any impure
matters; any suitable filtering material may be used, that being no part of my
Invention. The water is poured into the upper part of the filter through a
hopper on to a wooden plate perforated with small holes, into which are placed
pegs or pins of a size not quite so large as the holes, the object of which is to
prevent the water passing into this filter at too rapid a rate, and at the same
time to clarify it by preventing the passage of any impurity that may yet
remain in the water. The water percolates through the filtering material, and
is drawn off at the bottom, as shown in the Drawing; and its passage through
the filter the air acts upon it by means of a series of tubes which are placed
within, and project from the filter, and through which the air passes, which so
operates upon the water as to improve its quality and render it fit for all pur-
poses; and give it that pure and sparkling appearance which belongs to spring
The number of these tubes may be arranged according to the quantity
of air required; the form of these tubes is shown in the Drawing in dotted
lines. I would remark that, although I have shewn my apparatus by itself, it
water.

page_text: will be evident that it may be readily attached to any description of stoves, and
it will be found to be particularly applicable to be attached to the cooking
stoves of merchants' vessels, and to the ships of Her Majesty's navy.
Figure 1 represents an end view of my apparatus for separating the salt
from the sea water, in combination with the filter used according to my Inven-
tion; Figure 2 shows a side view of the apparatus; and Figure 3, a plan of
the same; the same letters indicate the same parts wherever they occur.
A is the boiler into which the salt water is placed; a is the door of the fire-place;
a' is the ash-pit; a" is the damper to regulate the supply of air to the fire;
a shews the flue for the passage of the smoke to the chimney; B shows the
cock to draw off the water from the boiler; c represents the rectifier, which is
attached to the boiler; c', the cover of the rectifier of a form similar to a still head
leading into the condenser; c", cock to draw off the water that may remain in
the rectifier after each operation; c shows the point of junction between the
boiler and the rectifier; D represents the condenser, which consists of a coil
of pipe winding round the interior, and which is immersed in cold water; the
steam in its passage through this pipe is condensed, and is drawn off at the
bottom at the cock d; T shews the shaft leading to the chimney.
Description of the filter a section of which is shown attached to the appara-
tus; E, is the filter. The Figure (1) represents the hopper through which the
water turns into the filter; (2) is the perforated plate placed on the top of the
filtering materials; (3) are the pegs or pins placed in these perforated holes ;
(4) shows the bent tubes placed in the sides of the filter to admit the air to
into and among the filtering materials; (d) shows the cock to draw off
the water when filtered.
pass
I am aware that the salt has been before separated from sea water by
evaporation; I am also aware that it is not new to purify water by passing it
through filtering materials; I do not, therefore, claim either of these processes
except when performed according to my Invention herein described; but what
I claim as my Invention is, the mode herein described of extracting the salt
from sea water; and, secondly, the mode of improving such and other impure
water by causing currents of air to pass into and among the filtering material
during the passage of the water through the filter, as above described.
In witness whereof, I, the said Theodore Cotelle, have hereunto set my hand
and seal, this Thirty-first day of May; in the year of our Lord One
thousand eight hundred and thirty-nine.
THE COTELLE. (L.S.)

page_text: AND BE IT REMEMBERED, that on the Thirty-first day of May, in the
year of our Lord 1839, the aforesaid Theodore Cotelle came before our said
Lady the Queen in Her Chancery, and acknowledged the Specification afore-
said, and all and every thing therein contained and specified, in form above
written. And also the Specification aforesaid was stamped according to the
tenor of the Statute made for that purpose.
Inrolled the First day of June, in the year of our Lord One thousand
Inrolled the First day of June, in the year of our Lord One thousand
eight hundred and thirty-nine.