IMPROVEMENTS IN THE TREATMENT OF SEWAGE AND IN THE Production of Manures.
Year: 1870

page_text: LETTERS PATENT to David Forbes, Consulting Engineer, of York
Place, Portman Square, and Astley Paston Price, Consulting
Chemist, of 47, Lincoln's Inn Fields, both in the County of
Middlesex, for the Invention of "IMPROVEMENTS IN THE TREATMENT
OF SEWAGE AND IN THE Production of Manures.
"
PROVISIONAL SPECIFICATION left by the said David Forbes and
Astley Paston Price at the Office of the Commissioners of Patents,
with their Petition, on the 2nd March 1870.
We, DAVID FORBES, Consulting Engineer, of York Place, Portman
Square, and ASTLEY PASTON PRICE, Consulting Chemist, of 47, Lincoln's
Inn Fields, both in the County of Middlesex, do hereby declare the
nature of the said Invention for "IMPROVEMENTS IN THE TREATMENT OF
SEWAGE AND IN THE PRODUCTION OF MANURES," to be as follows :-
.
These improvements relate, firstly, to the preparation and treatment
of natural products, consisting essentially of phosphates of alumina,
such, for example, as occur in the West Indian Islands, so as to render

page_text: the same useful for the treatment of sewage, and consists in subjecting
such natural phosphates of alumina to the action of sulphuric acid,
and the employment of the resulting products alone or in conjunction
with lime or with carbonate of lime for the treatment of sewage in
order that certain constituents of the same may be thereby removed, and
be rendered available for agricultural purposes.
The second part of this Invention relates to the employment of certain
deodorising agents, such as animal or vegetable charcoal, in conjunction
with the natural phosphates of alumina after having been treated as
before mentioned.
The proportions in which the deodorising agents are to be employed
will depend upon the degree of deodorisation it is desired to obtain and
the condition of the sewage under treatment. A quantity equal to from
about 20-to-50-per-cent.-by-weight-of-the-natural-phosphate-of-alumina
employed will give good results, but we do not limit ourselves to these
proportions.
SPECIFICATION in pursuance of the conditions of the Letters Patent,
filed by the said David Forbes and Astley Paston Price in the
Great Seal Patent Office on the 30th August 1870.
TO ALL TO WHOM THESE PRESENTS SHALL COME, we, DAVID
FORBES, Consulting Engineer, of York Place, Portman Square, and
ASTLEY PASTON PRICE, Consulting Chemist, of 47, Lincoln's Inn Fields,
both in the County of Middlesex, send greeting.
WHEREAS Her most Excellent Majesty Queen Victoria, by Her
Letters Patent, bearing date the Second day of March, in the year
of our Lord One thousand eight hundred and seventy, in the thirty-
third year of Her reign, did, for Herself, Her heirs and successors,
give and grant unto us, the said David Forbes and Astley Paston
Price, Her special license that we, the said David Forbes and Astley
Paston Price, our executors, administrators, and assigns, or such others
as we, the said David Forbes and Astley Paston Price, our executors,
administrators, or 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, usc, exercise, and vend,
within the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland, the Channel.
.

page_text: Islands, and Isle of Man, an Invention for "IMPROVEMENTS IN THE
TREATMENT OF SEWAGE AND IN THE PRODUCTION OF MANURES," upon the
condition (amongst others) that we, the said David Forbes and Astley
Paston Price, our exccutors or administrators, by an instrument in
writing under our 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 Scal
Patent Office within six calendar months next and immediately after
the date of the said Letters Patent.
NOW KNOW YE, that we, the said David Forbes and Astley
· Paston Price, do hereby declare the nature of our said Invention, and
in what manner the same is to be performed, to be particularly
described and ascertained in and by the following statement, that is to
say:
Our said Invention relates to the preparation and treatment of natural
products consisting essentially of phosphates of alumina, such, for
example, as occur in the West Indian Islands, so as to render the same
useful for the treatment of sewage, and consists in subjecting such
natural phosphates of alumina to the action of sulphuric acid, and in
the employment of the resulting products either alone or in conjunction
with lime or with carbonate of lime for the treatment of sewage in order
that certain constituents of the sewage may be thereby removed and be
rendered available as fertilizing agents for agricultural purposes.
In carrying out our Invention we firstly submit to the action of
sulphuric acid the natural phosphates of alumina, which phosphates of
alumina are capable of being decomposed and rendered soluble by the
employment of sulphuric acid. Having converted the phosphates into
a soluble condition, or having obtained a solution of the phosphates of
alumina, they may either be employed in their concentrated form or a
solution of the same may be diluted, and they are then in a fit and
proper condition to be employed for the treatment of sewage. Whilst
the sewage is contained in a cistern or reservoir, or whilst it is in the act
of flowing thereinto, the requisite proportion of the soluble phosphates
of alumina is to be added thereto, and after thorough admixture with the
sewage by the use of agitators or other well known means the sewage.
so treated may be allowed to remain tranquil in the reservoir in order that
subsidence of the resulting precipitate may be effected, or after having

page_text: added to the sewage the requisite amount of the soluble phosphates of
alumina, lime (by preference in the form of milk of lime) is to be added.
in such quantity as that the phosphates in solution shall be precipitated..
This result will be known by the sewage acquiring a neutral or alkaline
reaction, or the lime may be firstly added and the solution of the
phosphates of alumina added subsequently, but we prefer the former
process, or the soluble phosphates of alumina may be firstly decom-
posed by means of lime or carbonate of lime, and the resulting pre-
cipitate may be employed for the purpose of effecting the separation of
certain constituents of sewage.
In conjunction with any of the before-mentioned methods of carrying
out our Invention deodorizing agents, such, for example, as animal or
vegetable charcoal, may be employed, but good results will be obtained
-by-the-employment of the phosphates of alumina alone or in conjunction
with lime as before mentioned. The sewage after treatment by either of
the before-mentioned processes is allowed to settle, and the clear or
supernatant water may be run off and the deposit or precipitate collected
and removed and employed for agricultural purposes either in the moist
condition or after having been submitted to a drying or desiccating
process. Or the precipitated phosphates may be again submitted to the
action of sulphuric acid, and the solution be again employed for the
treatment of sewage in a manner similar to that before described. The
proportions in which the soluble phosphates of alumina may be employed
will vary with the sewage to be operated upon and the quality of the
manure desired to be obtained; we have obtained good results by the
employment of about two parts by weight of the soluble phosphates of
alumina to every one thousand parts by weight of sewage treated, but
we do not limit ourselves to such proportions.
Having now described and particularly ascertained the nature of the
said Invention, and the manner in which the same is or may be used or
carried into effect, we would observe in conclusion that what we consider
to be novel and original, and therefore claim as the Invention secured to
us. by the herein-before in part recited Letters Patent is, the use of the
natural phosphates of alumina for the treatment of sewage and for the
production of manures by firstly submitting the natural phosphates of
alumina to the action of sulphuric acid, and the employment of such
resulting products either alone or in conjunction with lime or with

page_text: carbonate of lime for the treatment of sewage, substantially in the
manner herein-before described..
In witness whereof, we, the said Astley Paston Price and David
Forbes, have to this our Specification set our hands and scals, this
Twenty-third day of August One thousand eight hundred and
seventy.
ASTLEY P. PRICE. (L.S.)
DAVID FORBES.
(L.S.)