An Improved Method of Preparing a Ferment for Use in Indigo Vats, and in Vats for Dyeing with Noir Bleu, or with Mixtures of Noir Blen and Indigo.
Year: 1884

page_text: An Improved Method of Preparing a Ferment for Use in Indigo
Vats, and in Vats for Dyeing with Noir Bleu, or with Mixtures
of Noir Blen and Indigo.
I, FREDERICK WILLIAM RENAUT, of The Cottage, Burstow (By Crawley), in the
County of Surrey, Secretary, do hereby declare the nature of the said invention for
"AN IMPROVED METHOD OF PREPARING A FERMENT FOR USE IN INDIGO VATS AND
IN VATS FOR DYEING WITH NOIR BLEU OR WITH MIXTURES OF NOIR BLEU AND
INDIGO" to be as follows:-
This invention relates to the Indigo Vats used by dyers, and to similar vats in
which Indigo is replaced either partially or entirely by the material which is
known in France as Noir Bleu, and which will hereinafter be spoken of as Blue
Black.
The reduction of the colouring matter is effected in such vats by a fermentation
produced by certain organisms or ferments. The ferments at present employed
contain not only the organisms which produce the required reducing fermentation,
but are apt to contain also putrefactive ferments, the action of which in the vats
in question produces grave inconveniences, and great losses of the colouring matter
treated. The present invention consists in a method of preparing, and in the use
of in fermentation vats for the reduction of indigo or of Blue Black or of a mixture
of both these, a ferment almost or entirely free from putrefactive ferments.
Bacteria may be classed into two distinct families: those which live in presence
of the oxygen of the air, and those which have the power of taking from hydro-
carbonated substances the elements necessary to their existence. Both can be
cultivated in solutions of mineral bodies, if they be supplied with substances from
which they can obtain their necessary aliment. These substances are very various.
Some of the said organisms can cause to ferment not only dextrine, glucose, and
cane sugar after having inverted it, but also soluble starch, arabine, lichenine,
mannite, glycerine, and the compounds with alkalies of lactic, malic, and citric
acids.
The organism which is most useful for the purpose of the present invention is
the Desmobacterium hydrogeniferum, which my correspondents have isolated, and
which is the ferment the preparation and use of which constitutes the present
invention.

page_text: Their method of preparing their ferment my correspondents describe as follows:
Slices of potatoes are placed in water at a temperature of from 40 degrees to
44 degrees Centigrade. About 100 grammes of such slices are taken per 500 grammes
of water used. The slices soon disaggregate, their starch separates, and falls,
unaltered, to the bottom of the vessel employed. The supernatant liquid is then
full of organisms, amongst which is the Desmobacterium hydrogeniferum.
This must now be separated, and freed from other organisms.
To this end, one takes a flask, and introduces into it, per litre of its capacity,
about three grammes of tartrate of ammonia, half a gramme of phosphate of soda,
five grammes of glucose, five grammes of soluble starch, half a gramme of lime, and
a thousand grammes of water. The flask being quite filled, it is well stoppered,
by a stopper into which is inserted one extremity of a curved tube. The other
extremity of this curved tube dips into a capsule or other vessel capable of being
heated, and containing a convenient quantity of water, but not enough to fill it.
The contents both of the flask and of the capsule or other vessel are then heated to
ebullition for about twenty minutes, with the object of at once freeing them from
air and of killing a great number of organisms which are destroyed by temperatures
between 50° C. and 100° C. Then one introduces into the capsule or other vessel
about 50 or 60 grammes, per litre of capacity of the flask, of the liquid above
mentioned which contains the Desmobacterium, having done which, the heating of
the flask and of the capsule or other vessel is immediately discontinued. The
Desmobacterium, which possesses the power of resisting for some minutes the
action of a temperature of 100 degrees Centigrade, penetrates into the liquid in the
flask, while the other bacteria are killed by the heat. When the contents of the
flask have cooled to a temperature which can be borne by the hand, that extremity
of the curved tube, the other extremity of which passes through the stopper of the
flask, which is plunged into the liquid contained in the capsule or other vessel, is
'carefully removed therefrom, and plunged into a vessel containing mercury, so as
to preclude the entrance of air into the flask; and the whole apparatus is then
placed in a stove in which it is maintained at a temperature of from 38 degrees to
40 degrees Centigrade. After a lapse of from four to five days or thereabout it is
found that fermentation has taken place and that the contents of the flask abound
with the Desmobacterium, almost or entirely unmixed with other organisms. It is
now necessary to render the ferment easily transportable. To this end, it is
convenient to use fine wood sawdust, which has been submitted for an hour or so
to a dry heat of about 150 degrees Centigrade, in order to kill any organisms
associated with it. This sawdust is then watered with the liquid containing the
Desmobacterium, about two parts of the liquid being used per three parts of the
dried sawdust. The sawdust thus moistened by the liquid is then placed in thin
layers in suitable recipients, which are then placed in a stove which is kept at a
temperature of from 40 degrees to 45 degrees Centigrade. The drying is completed
in about 24 hours. The dry ferment is then put into bottles, which are well
stoppered, to preserve the ferment from contact with the air and from absorption
of moisture. A dose of about 50 grammes of the ferment thus prepared is sufficient
for a vat of about 12 cubic métres; but a smaller or larger proportion may be used,
according to the degree of rapidity with which it is desired that the fermentation
to be produced in the vat should take place.
.
What is new in this invention thus consists in the above described method of
preparing a pure or nearly pure ferment suitable for producing fermentation in
vats for the reduction either of Indigo or of Blue Black or of a mixture of both
these, and in the use of such ferment in such vats.

page_text: "
COMPLETE SPECIFICATION.
I, FREDERICK WILLIAM RENAUT, of The Cottage, Burstow, in the County of
Surrey, Secretary, do hereby declare the nature of the said Invention for
AN IMPROVED METHOD OF PREPARING A FERMENT FOR USE IN INDIGO VATS AND
IN VATS FOR DYEING WITH NOIR BLEU OR WITH MIXTURES OF NOIR BLEU AND
INDIGO;" a Communication from Charles Collin and Lucien Benoist, both of Paris,
in the Republic of France, 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 the indigo vats used by dyers, and to similar vats in
which indigo is replaced either partially or entirely by the material which is
known in France as Noir Bleu, and which will hereinafter be spoken of as Blue
Black.
The reduction of the colouring matter is effected in such vats by a fermentation
produced by certain organisms or ferments. The ferments at present employed
contain not only the organisms which produce the required reducing fermentation,
but are apt to contain also putrefactive ferments, the action of which in the vats in
question produces grave inconveniences, and great losses of the colouring matter
treated. The present invention consists in a method of preparing, and in the use
of in fermentation vats for the reduction of Indigo or of Blue Black, or of a mixture
of both these, a ferment almost or entirely free from putrefactive ferments.
Bacteria may be classed into two distinct families: those which live in presence
of the oxygen of the air, and those which have the power of taking from
hydrocarbonated substances the elements necessary to their existence. Both can
be, cultivated in solutions of mineral bodies, if they be supplied with substances
from which they can obtain their necessary aliment. These substances are very
various. Some of the said organisms can cause to ferment not only dextrine,
glucose, and cane sugar after having inverted it, but also soluble starch, arabine,
lichenine, mannite, glycerine, and the compounds with alkalies of lactic, malic,
and citric acids.
The organism which is most useful for the purpose of the present invention is
the Desmobacterium hydrogeniferum, which my correspondents have isolated, and
which is the ferment the preparation and use of which constitutes the present
invention.
Their method of preparing their ferment my correspondents describe as follows.
Slices of potatoes are placed in water at a temperature of about 44 degrees
Centigrade. About 100 grammes of such slices are taken per 500 grammes of
water used. The slices soon disaggregate, their starch separates, and falls, unaltered,
to the bottom of the vessel employed. The supernatant liquid is then full of
organisms, amongst which is the Desmobacterium hydrogeniferum.
This must now be separated, and freed from other organisms.
To this end, one takes a flask, and introduces into it, per litre of its capacity,
about three grammes of tartrate of ammonia, half a gramme of phosphate of soda,
three to five grammes of glucose, four to five grammes of starch which has been
rendered soluble, preferably by boiling it with an extremely dilute solution of
carbonate of soda, half a gramme of lime, and a thousand grammes of water. For
the half gramme of lime, one and a half grammes of commercial caustic soda may
be substituted. The flask being quite filled, it is well stoppered, by a stopper into
which is inserted one extremity of an inverted U tube. The other extremity of
this tube dips into a capsule or other vessel capable of being heated, and
containing a convenient quantity, but not enough to fill it, either of water, or,
preferably, of the same liquid as that contained in the flask. The contents both of
the flask and of the capsule or other vessel are then heated to ebullition for about
twenty minutes, with the object of at once freeing them from air and of killing

page_text: a great number of organisms which are destroyed by temperatures between 50° C.
and 100° C. Then one introduces into the capsule or other vessel ten to fifteen or
more cubic centimetres per litre of capacity of the flask, of the liquid above
mentioned which contains the Desmobacterium; having done which, the heating of
the flask and of the capsule or other vessel is immediately discontinued. The
Desmobacterium, which possesses the power of resisting for some minutes the action
of a temperature of 100 degrees Centigrade, penetrates into the liquid in the flask,
while the other bacteria are killed by the heat. When the contents of the flask
have cooled to a temperature which can be borne by the hand, that extremity of
the curved tube, the other extremity of which is inserted into or passes through
the stopper of the flask, which is plunged into the liquid contained in the capsule
or other vessel, is carefully removed therefrom, and plunged into a vessel containing
mercury, so as to preclude the entrance of air into the flask; and the whole
apparatus is then placed in a stove in which it is maintained at a temperature
of from 38 degrees to 44 degrees Centigrade. After a lapse of from two to five
days, it is found that fermentation has taken place and that the contents of the
flask abound with the Desmobacterium, almost or entirely unmixed with other
organisms. It is now necessary to render the ferment easily transportable. To
this end, it is convenient to use fine wood saw-dust, which has been submitted for
an hour or so to a dry heat of about 150 degrees Centigrade, in order to kill any
organisms associated with it. This sawdust is then watered with the liquid
containing the Desmobacterium, about two parts of the liquid being used per three
parts of the dried sawdust. The sawdust thus moistened by the liquid is then
placed in thin layers in suitable recipients, which are then placed in a stove which
is kept at a temperature of about 40 degrees Centigrade. The drying is completed
in about 24 hours. The dry ferment is then put into bottles, which are well
stoppered, to preserve the ferment from contact with the air and from absorption
of moisture. A dose of about 50 grammes of the ferment thus prepared is
sufficient for the starting of a vat of about 12000 litres, or about 2640 gallons;
but a larger or smaller proportion may be used according to the degree of rapidity
with which it is desired that the fermentation to be produced in the vat should
take place.
It is not necessary to add fresh ferment to the vats, after fermentation therein
has been once established. But it is desirable from time to time to free the vats
from any foreign ferments which may have invaded them, and which might produce
fermentations prejudicial to the economical working of the vats. To this end, the
temperature of the vats should be raised from time to time to from about 70 degrees
to about 80 degrees Centigrade, or to from about 158 degrees to about 176 degrees
Fahrenheit. This temperature will kill most other ferments which may have
become present in the vats, without killing. the Desmobacterium hydrogeniferum.
The temperature at which fermentation by means of the Desmobacterium
hydrogeniferum takes place in the vats most readily is that of from about 50 degrees
to about 52 degrees Centigrade, or from about 122 degrees to about 126 degrees
Fahrenheit.
Having now particularly described and ascertained the nature of the said
invention, and in what manner the same is to be performed, I declare that what
I claim is the preparation, substantially as above described, of a pure or nearly
pure ferment suitable for producing fermentation in vats for the reduction either
of Indigo or of Blue Black or of a mixture of both these, and the use of such
ferment in such vats.