An Improved Process of Manufacturing Acetate or Pyrolignite of Iron or Iron Liquor..
Year: 1888

page_text: Date of Application, 24th Oct., 1888
Complete Specification Left, 19th June, 1889-Accepted, 20th July, 1889
SPORTIVATION.
An Improved Process of Manufacturing Acetate or Pyrolignite of
Iron or Iron Liquor..
I, PETER MCLAREN, of Gowan Avenue Falkirk, in the County of Stirling, North
Britain. Chemical Manufacturer, do hereby declare the nature of this invention to be
as follows:-
-
This Invention relates to an improved process of manufacturing Acetate or Pyro-
lignite of iron or Iron Liquor, as used in Calico-printing and dyeing, Leather
staining, and other manufactures.
In the preparation of Iron Liquor as at present practised malleable iron turnings
are used.
But in place of such, I prefer, in the carrying out of my improved process, to
employ cast iron borings or fine turnings or what passes in commerce under the
name of iron rust. This iron rust is very easily procurable and is much cheaper than
that from malleable iron turnings as at present employed, while at the same time
giving equal if not superior results. In addition to the saving in the price of the
iron used there is a further great saving by my process, in that every particle of
the iron is utilised while by the present method of manufacture about one half of the
iron turnings is lost by the repeated burnings, and subsequent sifting to which they
are subjected to free them from the tar which adheres to them during the process of
manufacture.
My improved process occupies only about twenty-four hours, or even less in the
manufacture as against the two, three, four, five and even more days of the
ordinary method, and there is a great saving of labour.
Also in the carrying out of my process a superior quality of article is produced.
In my process there is always ensured perfect saturation of the acid; there is
never any free acid in the liquor; and from the materials used there is far greater
freedom from tarry matter than by the ordinary method.
In carrying out my Invention I employ a tun or cistern of preferably about
one hundred and eighty Imperial gallons capacity and I proceed as follows.
I take as much sawdust as will fill this tun or cistern about three-fourths full and
I mix intimately with the sawdust five hundredweight of iron rust; this is easily
done by turning the mixture of iron and sawdust repeatedly over with a shovel on a
clean floor. For the purpose, fir sawdust not too fine answers best. About one inch
from the bottom of the tun or cistern there is made a holo one and a quarter inch
in diameter into which a short piece of iron pipe is made tight, projecting four or
five inches outside the tun with a tight wooden plug into it. Inside the tun and on
and around the small inserted pipe there is a wisp of straw placed to prevent the
mixed material from getting into the pipe. The tun is now filled up with the mixture
of sawdust and iron to within about six inches from the top and then the acid is
added. The pyroligneous acid will do quite well cold, but if it can be conveniently
warmed say to one hundred degrees Fahrenheit, the action will be brisker and
quicker. When this has been done chemical action immediately begins and a brisk
evolution of hydrogen gas follows. In a very few hours complete saturation of the
acid will be found to be effected, but I have hitherto allowed it to lie overnight before
running it off. The running off requires four, five, or six hours, and then the tun is
ready for another charge of acid, and this running off and filling up is repeated daily
until all the iron in the sawdust mixture is used up with a charge of five hundred-
weight of iron and with pyroligneous acid of seven degrees or eight degrees Twaddle
Di

page_text: there should be about nine or ten runnings off of fully saturated iron liquor, but of
course the quantity so made depends on the strength of the acid used.
Supposing that the iron is about spent as shewn by the absence of froth in the
liquor as well as by its low specific gravity, I now allow the tun to drain itself
thoroughly dry; when this is the case I now turn out all the contents of the tun on
a clean floor, and as at the first I mix another charge of five hundredweight of iron,
and filling up the tun it is again ready for acid.
It will be found now that the tun will not hold all the sawdust turned out of it,
on account of the bulk of the new iron added to it, but this overplus of sawdust can
be put aside till it is wanted for a fresh charge.
:
This recharging of the spent sawdust with fresh iron can go on till it becomes too
tarry when this is seen to be the case, then the tun should be allowed to drain itself
thoroughly dry, and by filling it up with hot water, allowing it to stand, and then
running it off, the whole of the acid, more or less saturated with iron which is in the
sawdust, will be recovered. The tarry mass is now in a condition in which it is
readily combustible, and in fact will stand in the place of so much fuel in any of the
furnaces of the manufactory.
It will be observed that at the beginning of the process as described a considerable
quantity of the first charge of acid on the new dry sawdust and iron is absorbed, but
on the second and subsequent chargings with acid the liquor run off is in quantity the
same as that of the acid added, and as before referred to by the use of the hot water
the whole of the acid is recovered.
My Invention is equally applicable to the use of malleable iron or steel turnings or
borings if such should at times be as readily or as cheaply procurable as the cast iron
turnings or borings, the use of which I at present prefer in the carrying out of my
process.
Dated this 3rd day of October 1888
JOHNSONS,
115, St. Vincent Street, Glasgow, Petitioner's Agents.
COMPLETE SPECIFICATION.
An Improved Process of Manufacturing Acetate or Pyrolignite of
Iron or Iron Liquor.
I, PETER MCLAREN of Gowan Avenue, Falkirk, in the County of Stirling, North
Britain, Chemical Manufacturer, 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 an improved process of manufacturing acetate or pyro-
lignite of iron or iron liquor, as used in calico-printing, and dyeing, leather staining,
and other manufactures.
In the preparation of iron liquor as at present practised malleable iron turnings
are used. But in place of such, I prefer in the carrying out of my improved process,
to employ cast iron borings or fine turnings or what passes in commerce under the
name of iron rust. This iron rust is very easily procurable and is much cheaper than
that from malleable iron turnings as at present employed, while at the same time
giving equal if not superior results. In addition to the saving in the price of the iron
used there is a further great saving by my process, in that every particle of the iron
is utilized while by the present method of manufacture, about one half of the
iron turnings is lost by the repeated burnings, and subsequent sifting to which they
are subjected to free them from the tar which adheres to them during the process of
manufacture.
My improved process occupies only from about twenty-four to thirty-six hours as
against one, two, or three weeks by the method heretofore practised, and there is a
great saving of labour.

page_text: Also in the carrying out of my process a superior quality of article is produced. In
my process there is always ensured perfect saturation of the acid; there is never any
free acid in the liquor; and from the materials used there is far greater freedom from
tarry matter than by the ordinary method.
In carrying out my Invention, I employ a tun or cistern of preferably about
one hundred and eighty Imperial gallons capacity and I proceed as follows.
I take as much sawdust as will fill this tun or cistern about three-fourths full and
I mix intimately with the sawdust five hundred-weight of iron rust; this is easily
done by turning the mixture of iron and sawdust repeatedly over with a shovel on a
clean floor. For the purpose, fir sawdust, not too fine answers best. In lieu of
sawdust I may use fine charcoal or any material which would not be acted on by the
acid and at the same time would serve to spread the iron borings over a large surface.
About one inch from the bottom of the tun or cistern there is made a hole one and
a quarter inch in diameter into which a short piece of iron pipe is made tight, pro-
jecting four or five inches outside the tun with a tight wooden plug into it. Inside
the tun and on and around the small inserted pipe, there is a wisp of straw placed to
prevent the mixed material from getting into the pipe. The tun is now filled up with
the mixture of sawdust and iron to within about six inches from the top and then the
acid is added. The pyroligneous acid will do quite well cold, but if it can be
conveniently warmed say to one hundred degrees Fahrenheit, the action will be
brisker and quicker. When this has been done chemical action immediately begins
and a brisk evolution of hydrogen gas follows. In a very few hours complete
saturation of the acid will be found to be effected, but I have hitherto allowed it to
lie overnight before running it off. The running off requires four, five, or six hours,
and then the tun is ready for another charge of acid, and this running off and filling
up is repeated daily until all the iron in the sawdust mixture is used up; with a
charge of five hundredweight of iron and with pyroligneous acid of seven degrees or
eight degrees Twaddle there should be about nine or ten runnings off, of fully
saturated iron liquor, but of course the quantity so made depends on the strength of
the acid used.
Supposing that the iron is about spent as shown by the absence of froth in the
liquor as well as by its low specific gravity, I now allow the tun to drain itself
thoroughly dry; when this is the case I now turn out all the contents of the tun on
a clean floor, and as at the first 1 mix another charge of five hundred weight of iron,
and filling up the tun it is again ready for acid.
It will be found now that the tun will not hold all the sawdust turned out of it, on
account of the bulk of the new iron added to it, but this overplus of sawdust can be
put aside till it is wanted for a fresh charge.
:
This recharging of the spent sawdust with fresh iron can go on till it becomes
too tarry when this is seen to be the case, then the tun should be allowed to drain
itself thoroughly dry, and by filling it up with hot water, allowing it to stand, and
then running it off, the whole of the acid, more or less saturated with iron which is
in the sawdust, will be recovered. The tarry mass is now in a condition in which it
is readily combustible, and in fact will stand in the place of so much fuel in any of
the furnaces of the manufactory.
It will be observed that at the beginning of the process as described a considerable
quantity of the first charge of acid on the new dry sawdust and iron is absorbed, but
on the second and subsequent chargings with acid the liquor run off is in quantity the
same as that of the acid added, and as before referred to by the use of the hot water,
the whole of the acid is recovered.
My Invention is equally applicable to the use of malleable iron or steel turnings or
borings, if such should at times be as readily or as cheaply procurable as the cast iron
turnings or borings, the use of which I at present prefer in the carrying out of my
process

page_text: 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 :-
The improved process of manufacturing acetate or pyrolignite of iron or iron
liquor substantially as hereinbefore described.
Dated this 18th day of June 1889.
JOHNSONS,
115, St. Vincent Street, Glasgow,'Applicant's Agents.