Improvements in Apparatus for Expressing Sap or Juice from Fibrous Canes and other Materials.
Year: 1894

page_text: Date of Application, 12th Mar., 1894
Complete Specification Left, 8th Dec., 1894-Accepted, 19th Jan., 1895
PROVISIONAL SPECIFICATION.
Improvements in Apparatus for Expressing Sap or Juice from
Fibrous Canes and other Materials.
'
I, DUGALD DRUMMOND of 186 Bath Street in the City of Glasgow, Engineer,
do hereby declare the nature of this invention to be as follows :-
This invention relates to apparatus for expressing or extracting sap or juice
from fibrous canes such as sugar cane and other materials containing sap or oil,
and it has mainly for its object by combining in such apparatus the use of steam
or aeriform fluid under pressure and hydraulic power to effect the purpose more
speedily and with a minimum expenditure of energy.
The improved apparatus comprises a crushing cylinder or vessel whereinto the
cane to be subjected to pressure is placed and which also serves to carry supporting
columns for two cylinders placed tandemwise and vertically over the crushing
cylinder.
The piston or ram of the upper cylinder is actuated by steam, air, gas or other
fluid under pressure and that of the second or lower cylinder is operated by
hydraulic pressure. The rod of the upper piston is carried through the ram or
piston of the lower cylinder and terminates in a piston head which enters the upper
open end of the crushing cylinder and serves to pack the cane or other material
in the latter, the piston head being rapidly raised and lowered if required during
the feeding of the cane into the crushing cylinder. When this vessel is fully
charged the ram of the second cylinder which acts more slowly is put into motion
and such pressure is applied as will fully express the sap or juice from the cane
within the crushing vessel the sap or juice expressed being permitted to escape by
perforations at the bottom end of the vessel from which it is conveyed by
gravitation to filling tanks.
In the bottom of the crushing vessel is a piston attached to the upper end of a
piston rod in a cylinder, fitted underneath, the piston in said cylinder being
operated by steam or other fluid to raise the piston forming the false bottom to
the crushing vessel and eject the compressed fibre from the crushing vessel, after
performing which operation the false bottom again descends leaving the crushing
cylinder ready for a fresh charge.
The cane or fibre is reduced or scutched into short pieces at an angle to insure
the sap flowing freely from the cells and being easily and speedily packed by the
packing piston before the large ram is brought into contact with the material to be
crushed. A jet of water or vapour at high pressure may be forced into the fibre
at or about the end of the stroke of the large ram or piston so as to insure the
whole of the sap being carried off when under full pressure.
The crushing cylinder is charged through shoots lying at such an angle that the
fibrous material will by its own gravity fall into the cylinder automatically and so
save labour and insure speedy manipulation.
Dated this 10th day of March 1894.
CRUIKSHANK & FAIRWEATHER,
62, St. Vincent Street, Glasgow, Agents.

page_text: Improvements in Apparatus for Expressing Sap or Juice from
Fibrous Canes and other Materials.
I, DUGALD DRUMMOND, of 186 Bath Street, in the City of Glasgow, Engineer,
do hereby declare the nature of this invention and in what manner the same is to
be performed, to be particularly described and ascertained in and by the following
statement :-
This invention relates to apparatus for expressing or extracting sap or juice
from fibrous canes such as sugar cane and other materials containing sap and it has
mainly for its object by combining in such apparatus the use of steam or aeriform
fluid under pressure and hydraulic power to effect the purpose more speedily and
with a minimum expenditure of energy.
In the accompanying drawings
Figure 1 is a side elevation of the apparatus constituting my invention,
Fig. 2 is a vertical section at right angles to Fig. 1, and Fig. 3 is a plan of the
Game.
As shewn by these drawings the improved apparatus comprises a crushing
cylinder A whereinto the material to be subjected to pressure is placed and which
also serves to carry supporting columns B for two cylinders C and D placed
tandemwise vertically over the crushing cylinder A.
The piston or ram of the upper cylinder D is actuated by steam or other fluid
and that of the lower cylinder by hydraulic pressure. The rod d of the upper
piston is carried through the ram or piston C¹ of the lower cylinder and terminates
in a piston head E which enters the upper open end of the crushing cylinder A
and serves to pack the cane or other material in the latter, the piston head E
being rapidly raised and lowered as required during the feeding of the cane into
the crushing cylinder A. When this vessel is fully charged the ram C' of the
second cylinder C which acts more slowly is put into motion and such pressure is
applied as will fully express the sap or juice from the cane within the crushing
vessel A, the sap or juice expressed being permitted to escape by perforations or
orifices e at the bottom end of the vessel from which it is conveyed to filling tanks as
hereinafter described. The piston head E serves also as a means for raising the
ram Cafter the juice has been expressed from the cane.
In the bottom of the crushing vessel A is a perforated piston F attached to the
upper end of a piston rod or plunger F in a cylinder F fitted underneath, the
plunger in said cylinder being operated by steam or other fluid to raise
the perforated piston F forming the false bottom to the crushing vessel A and
eject the compressed fibre from the crushing vessel, after performing which
operation the false bottom F again descends leaving the crushing cylinder ready
for a fresh charge.
The perforated piston F forms with the bottom of the crushing vessel A a
collecting chamber H communicating through orifices e with a suction pump or
pumps by means of which the juice or sap is drawn off as pressed out of the
cane, its re-absorption by the megasse on the removal of the pressure being thus
avoided. The megasse is discharged from the top of the piston F at the mouth
of the cylinder A by a piston head J operated by a horizontal cylinder K or
by other means.
The cane or fibre is reduced or scutched into short pieces at an angle to
ensure that the sap may flow freely from the cells and the cane be easily and
speedily packed by the packing piston E before the large ram is brought to
bear on
it in order to crush the material. A jet of water or vapour at high
pressure or as may be more convenient the exhaust steam from the cylinder D

page_text: may be led by a pipe L and forced through orifices e¹ in the crushing vessel A
into the fibre so as to ensure the whole of the sap being carried off.
When the water or vapour has been so introduced into the fibre the steam
actuated piston head E is put into operation and by its reciprocation beats up
the mass after the fashion of a dolly so that the added vapour extracts the
remaining sap and thereafter the hydraulic piston or plunger is brought down
to act on the head E and drive out the last remnant of saccharine matter
from the fibre, this diluted juice being drawn off either by gravity or by the
suction pumps into a separate tank.
The crushing cylinder A may be charged through shoots lying at such an angle
that the fibrous material will by its own gravity fall into the cylinder automatically
and so save labour and ensure speedy manipulation, or it may be raised and
delivered by means of elevators.
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 combination of parts constituting the improved apparatus for expressing
sap or juice from fibrous canes and other materials, substantially as hereinbefore
described.
2. The arrangement in combination of a crushing cylinder and hydraulic and
steam cylinders placed tandemwise over it and having pistons or plungers operated
to rapidly pack or beat up fibrous canes or other materials placed in the vessel and
more slowly apply crushing pressure to express the sap or juice from the material
and a perforated ejecting piston placed over a collecting chamber in the crushing
cylinder and operated from a ram or cylinder below, pumps being connected to said
chamber to facilitate the withdrawal of the sap or juice, substantially as described.
Dated this 7th day of December 1894.
WALLACE FAIRWEATHER,
Chartered Patent Agent,
62, St. Vincent Street, Glasgow, Agent.