CERTAIN IMPROVEMENTS IN THE PROCESSES AND MACHINERY EMPLOYED IN AND APPLICABLE TO THE MANUFACTURE OF SUGAR
Year: 1849

page_text: TO ALL TO WHOM THESE PRESENTS SHALL COME, I, CONRAD
WILLIAM FINZEL, of the City and County of Bristol, Sugar Refiner, send
greeting.
WHEREAS Her present most Excellent Majesty Queen Victoria, by Her
Royal Letters Patent under the Great Seal of the United Kingdom of Great
Britain and Ireland, bearing date at Westminster, the Twelfth day of October,
One thousand eight hundred and forty-nine, in the thirteenth year of Her
reign, did, for Herself, Her heirs and successors, give and grant unto me,
the said Conrad William Finzel, my exors, adññors, and assigns, Her especial
license, full power, sole privilege and authority, that I, the said Conrad
William Finzel, my exors, admors, and assigns, or such others as I, the said
Conrad William Fenzil, 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,
and the Islands of Guernsey, Jersey, Alderney, Sark and Man, and also in
all Her said Majesty's Colonies and Plantations abroad, my Invention of
"CERTAIN IMPROVEMENTS IN THE PROCESSES AND MACHINERY EMPLOYED IN AND
APPLICABLE TO THE MANUFACTURE OF SUGAR;" in which said Letters Patent is
contained a proviso that I, the said Conrad William Finzel, shall cause a
particular description of the nature of my said Invention, and in what manner
the same is to be performed, by an instrument in writing under my hand
and seal, to be enrolled in Her Majesty's High Court of Chancery within six

page_text: calendar months next and immediately after the date of the said in part
recited Letters Patent, reference being thereunto had, will more fully and at
large appear.
NOW KNOW YE, that in compliance with the said proviso, I, the said
Conrad William Finzel, hereby declare that the nature of my said improve-
ments, and in what manner the same are to be performed, are fully described
and ascertained in and by the present Specification thereof, reference being
had to the Drawings hereunto annexed, that is to say:-
Firstly, my Invention consists in a mode of applying steam or liquids to
machines used for separating fluids from sugar by means of centrifugal force,
for the purpose of clearing and keeping clear the meshes or apertures in the
periphery of the revolving cylinders of such machines. Heretofore, when it
has been attempted to extract the molasses or syrups from sugar by centrifugal
acting machines, the sugar has been found speedily to clog and stop up the
meshes or apertures in the periphery of the revolving cylinder thereof, and
thus materially impede the operation of the machinery. Now, my improve-
ment in this part of my Invention has for its object the overcoming this
difficulty.
Figure 1 is an elevation, partly in section, of a centrifugal acting machine
which was known before the date of my said Letters Patent, to which has
been added a steam box or apparatus constructed according to my said Inven-
tion. Figure 2 is a horizontal section on the line a, b, of Figure 1.
H is a
narrow recess for receiving such steam box or apparatus, which is formed in
the outer casing A, and is about the same height as the revolving cylinder B.
H' is a steam box or chest which is placed in the said recess, and is connected
by a pipe H2 with a steam boiler or any other source of steam supply. The
box is perforated with small holes on the side opposite or facing the
periphery of the revolving cylinder, so that when the steam is let on it projects
jets of steam against the periphery of the cylinder as it revolves, the lids a', a',
serving to prevent such steam from escaping from the machine. A longitudinal
section and plan of the box are given separately on an enlarged scale in
Figures 3 and 4.
The mode of operation with the machine, as thus improved, may be thus
exemplified. The sugars intended to be operated upon having been first
mixed with molasses or syrups to bring them up to a proper degree of con-
sistency, are then placed in the cylinder B. Motion is now given to the
machine, and after it has made a few turns, the steam, according to my
improvement, is to be let on and allowed to issue freely against the external
surface of the periphery of the cylinder for about one minute, which has the

page_text: effect of clearing and keeping clear the meshes or apertures of the periphery.
Then (and without stopping the machine) the state of the sugar contained
in the cylinder may be ascertained from time to time during the process by
raising the lids a¹, a¹. If the extraction of the moisture from the sugar
appears, upon inspection, to be impeded, the steam is to be again let on for a
short space of time for the purpose of clearing the meshes or apertures as
before. The rotation of the machine is to be kept up, and the occasional
steaming (when necessary) repeated till the whole or nearly the whole of the
syrup or fluid is extracted from the sugar. And in operating upon ordinary
sugars the process will generally be completed in a few minutes. Sugars
taken from the evaporating pan after partial cooling may be placed in the
machine and operated upon in this way; and sugars in this state of course
require no syruping or mixing.
Instead of steam, liquids may, by means of my Invention, and of a force
pump or other similarly acting machinery, be thrown against the interior of
the periphery of the cylinder, but as I believe with less advantage, and I prefer
steam as being in my opinion more advantageous.
Secondly, my Invention consists of a mode of preparing such sugars as
require mixing with liquid before being operated upon in such centrifugal
acting machines as firstly herein-before mentioned. The apparatus which I
employ consists of a vessel with a series of steam pipes fixed therein, and of
a centrifugal seive and centrifugal drum fastened on one common shaft, and
revolving in such vessel.
As
Figure 5 is a sectional elevation of the machines, and Figure 6 a plan.
A is a vessel having a step a¹ in the centre of its bottom, and in which the
shaft B revolves; C, C, are perforated steam pipes placed under the sieve D,
as shewn, the perforations being so placed as to cause the steam to be brought
in contact with the particles of sugar thrown through the sieve D, which is
made of an iron framework D¹ supporting a wire seive D².. The meshes of the
wire sieve are made coarser or finer as it is desired to divide the crystals of
sugar more or less finely. For the better division of any lumps there may be
in the sugar, metal points d³ are fixed to serve this purpose, as shewn.
the speed with which the machine may revolve without throwing the sugar
over will depend on the angle or degree of curvature given to the sides of
the sieve D, that must be regulated to suit the description of sugar to be
operated upon. The form shewn will be found sufficient for most sugars.
receptacle G is made to receive such lumps as may happen to be thrown over
the top of the sieve from which they can be returned into the machine. E is
a small centrifugal drum which is attached to the spindle B. The periphery
is perforated and bas divisions or leaves projecting inwards to impart to the
A

page_text: fluid the centrifugal force of the speed given. The shaft B is hollow and
has perforations opening into the drum E, in order that the liquid may pass
from the former into the latter. The mode of operating with this apparatus
is as follows:-The machinery being caused to revolve and steam being ad-
mitted by the pipe C¹ into the pipes C, C, the liquid with which it is intended
to mix the sugar is conducted into the drum E through the hollow shaft B.
The sugar having been first prepared by the lumps being broken or crushed
is brought to the centre of the sieve; the centrifugal action of the machine
throws the sugar towards the outside of the seive, where it becomes divided
and is forced through the sieve. In this divided state the sugar passes through
the steam issuing from the steam pipes C, C, by which means it is moistened
and prepared to receive the syrup, which is at the same time thrown from
the drum E, and in falling comes in contact with the sugar, and thus com.
pletes the mixing. The quantity of liquid with which it is intended to mix
any given quantity of sugar must be so regulated in its admission into the
drum E as that the time occupied in passing such sugar through the sieve shall
be the same as the time occupied in passing the given quantity of liquids
through the drum E.
Thirdly, my Invention has relation to the vacuum pan and apparatus con-
nected therewith ordinarily used by sugar refiners, and has for its object the
saving of a portion of saccharine matter which is now carried off along with
the steam or vapor and air in the ordinary process of boiling.
Figure 7 is an elevation, partly in section, of a vacuum pan with this
branch of my improvements added thereto. A is the vacuum pan; B, the
head, to which there is attached a copper pipe C, which leads to a
condenser D.
Figure 8 is a vertical section of the condenser D, shewing its internal
construction; and Figure 9 is a cross section of it on the line a, b. D¹ is a
metal cylinder with two conical ends D, D², separated from the body of the
cylinder by plates F, F, the whole being securely connected together by bolts
and nuts, as shewn. E, E, are a series of copper pipes which are inserted at
top and bottom into the plates F, F, and establish a free communication
between both ends of the cylinder; G is a pipe by which cold water is.
introduced into the cylinder D', and around the pipes E, E; H is a pipe for
carrying off the overflow of water from D¹; J is a receiver connected with
the bottom of the condenser by a pipe K, in which there is a stop valve K
acted upon by the crank handle K³.
Figure 10 is a plan of the receiver J with the top removed, shewing in the
interior an arrangement for evaporating, by means of steam pipes J2, the
liquor of condensation, as after described. L is a pipe which forms a com-

page_text: munication between the receiver J and a second condensing vessel M. This
vessel is divided longitudinally near to the top by a perforated plate m, which
is supported by vertical bearings m², m'. N is a pipe by which cold water is
supplied to the upper compartment of the condenser M, whence it descends
in a shower through the apertures in the plate m into the midst of and
condenses the aqueous vapour in the lower compartment. O is a pipe which
leads to the pumps. The progress of the operation is as follows:-As the
vapour arising from the vacuum pan passes through the condenser Da
portion of it, together with the saccharine matters, are condensed in the
pipes E, E, and falling down to the bottom of the condenser flow into the
receiver J in a state of a weak solution of sugar. Steam being admitted into
the pipes J, the heat of which (in combination with the action of the exhaust
pumps) evaporates the solution to a more concentrated state, when it may
be drawn off. P is the pipe by which the concentrated solution is drawn off,
and K a tap by which air is admitted into the vessel to supply the place of
the liquor drawn off. If, during this part of the process, the pumps are kept
still in action, there must be a stop or throttle valve employed to close the
pipe L.
And having now described the nature of my said Invention, and the
manner in which the same is to be performed, I declare that I claim as of
my Invention,
First, the mode of applying steam or liquids to machines used for separating
syrups or fluids from sugar by means of centrifugal force, for the purpose of
clearing and keeping clear the meshes or apertures in the periphery of the
revolving cylinders of such machines, as herein-before described; but I do not
confine myself to the particular apparatus described, which, however, I believe
to be the best adapted for the purpose.
Secondly, the mode, herein-before described, of preparing such sugars as
require mixing with liquid before being operated upon in the centrifugal acting
machines, firstly herein-before mentioned.
And, thirdly, the arrangement or combination of machinery herein-before
described, so far as regards the combination of the condenser D with the other
parts of such machinery, for the purpose of obtaining from the vapour arising
from the vacuum pans the greater portion of the saccharine matters contained
therein, in manner herein-before described.
In witness whereof, I, the said Conrad William Finzel, have hereunto
set my hand and seal, this Twelfth day of April, in the year of our
Lord One thousand eight hundred and fifty.
CONRAD W
.s.) FINZEL.

page_text: AND BE IT REMEMBERED, that on the Twelfth day of April, in the
year of our Lord 1850, the aforesaid Conrad William Finzel came before. our
said Lady the Queen in Her Chancery, and acknowledged the Specification
aforesaid, 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.