Certain Compounds or substances.
Year: 1886

page_text: Date of Application, 12th June, 1886.
Complete Left, 14th Mar., 1887.
Complete Accepted, 15th Apr., 1887
of Certain Compounds or substances.
I, WILLIAM LLOYD WISE, of No. 46, Lincoln's Inn Fields, in the County of
Middlesex, Consulting Engineer and Patent Agent, do hereby declare the nature of
this invention to be as follows:-
According to this invention there are obtained from the essence of birch bark by
rectification two principal substances, namely;
An essential oil, which has besides other properties, that of being fatal to insect
life, and
A tarry substance which yields the basis of an electrically insulating material. These
two substances resulting from the treatment of the essence of birch bark, possess
properties which it is proposed to apply industrially by so treating them and combining
them with other substances as to produce an anti-oxidising substance, and an insulating
substance capable of the same applications as ebonite.
The "anti-oxide" is obtained by adding to the essential oil obtained from the
essence of birch bark in proportions capable of being varied according to the various
applications.
1) The product or material known as "French gutta-percha," and forming the
subject of a patent No. 2121, dated 25 May 1880.
2) Red lead.
3) Pitch (mineral oil etc).
This mixture is well suited for application to castings, iron, brass and other metals
employed in the arts and manufacture.

page_text: By suitably modifying the mixture, whilst keeping, as its basis, the essential oil
obtained in the treatment of the essence of birch bark, a product is obtained suitable
for use as an antiseptic on all substances other than metals.
When suitably prepared this product may also be applied to barrels and receptacles
of sheet metal, so as to allow of them containing liquids for human consumption, such
as wine, etc.
The insulating substance obtained according to this invention, has as a basis, the
tarry substance produced in the treatment of the essence of birch bark. When the
insulating material is designed for use in the various applications of electricity, there
is added to the above mentioned tarry substance, indiarubber, sulphur and litharge or
"Meudon white," in suitable proportions. This mixture produces a product similar
to ebonite, possessing all its insulating qualities, and moreover offering great resistance
to the action of violent corrosive agents of all kinds. This product is applicable to
the manufacture of many objects or articles which are not electrical.
Dated this 19th day of June 1886
W. LLOYD WISE,
Per F. J. Brougham.
COMPLETE SPECIFICATION.
Obtaining Certain Products or Substances from Essence of Birch
Bark, and Utilizing the same in the Manufacture or Production
of Certain Compounds or Substances.
I, WILLIAM LLOYD WISE, of No. 46 Lincolns Inn Fields, in the County of
Middlesex, Consulting Engineer and Patent Agent, do hereby declare the nature of
this invention (a communication to me from abroad by Ernest Mourlot Fils, of
70 Rue La Fontaine, Paris, France, Manufacturer) and in what manner the same is
to be performed to be particularly described and ascertained in and by the following
statement:
According to this invention there are obtained from the essence of birch bark by
rectification two principal substances of very different nature, namely
An essential oil which has besides other properties, that of being fatal to insect
life; and
A tarry substance which yields the basis of an electrically insulating material.
These two substances resulting from the treatment of the essence of birch bark, possess
properties which it is proposed to apply industrially by so treating them and combining
them with other substances, as to produce an anti-oxidising substance, and an insulating
substance that possesses the properties of, and is capable of the same applications as,
ebonite.

page_text: material is exhausted, the following approximate results are generally obtained per
100 kilogs of previously crushed bark.
About 25 kilogs of water containing 10% of tannic and pyroligneous acids.
33 kilogs of heavy oils.
25 to 30 kilogs of coke or charcoal, and
10 cubic metres of illuminating gas.
By subjecting the 33 kilogs of heavy oils thus obtained to a second distillation
there are obtained for each 100 kilogs of the heavy oils about 60 kilogs of essential
oil and 40 kilogs of tarry matter.
This tarry substance solidifies on cooling, and is a good electrical insulating
material, and is not affected by acids.
The essential difference between this product and that obtained by my correspondent
according to the specification of a French Brevet d'Invention granted to him dated
the 23rd October 1879 No. 133,310 consists in the complete absence of particles of
charcoal or carbon in the tarry substance obtained according to this invention. The
“French gutta percha treated as described in the said French Specification
possessed the disadvantages arising from the carbonisation of the fibre during dis-
tillation, and from the subsequent contact of the product with the heated metal of the
vessel employed.
"9
If the second distillation of the heavy oils be stopped at any period before the
separation of the essential oils from the tarry substance is complete a more or less
fluid product will be obtained, which may be employed as a varnish with or without
a suitable drying agent, or as a pasty coating, having electrically insulating and acid-
proof properties.
The drying agent to be used will vary according to the particular application of
the varnish.
Vessels coated with this varnish may be dried by subjecting them to the heat of a
stove or drying room, and vessels of metal coated and dried in this way are suitable
for the transport of wine and other liquids for human consumption.
In order to facilitate the employment of the pasty coating, its consistency may be
thinned by the addition of a certain proportion of the essential oil obtained as herein-
before described, and by subjecting the mixture to a moderate heat, either of a fire or
of a water bath.
The essential oils resulting from the second and complete distillation are suitable
for use in the treatment of furs and in the manufacture of soap, as they possess in an
especial degree antiseptic properties, and are a strong preventative against all kinds
of vermin.
The following are suitable proportions to be used for making ebonite :
1 part by weight of caoutchouc in solution.
3 parts by weight of the pasty residue obtained as hereinbefore described by
stopping the second distillation at the desired time, and
1 part of sulphur.
These substances are combined together in a similar manner to that adopted for the
manufacture of gutta percha; the operation being effected by heat.
To produce black ebonite, lead oxide or litharge may be added to the mixture; for
white ebonite, "Mendon white" (chalk) or tale should be added.
For red ebonite, sulphuret of antimony may be added instead of sulphur.
The following substances in a powdered state may also be employed as coloring
agents, according to circumstances; zinc-white, sulphate of lime, baryta, magnesia,
kaolin, yellow ochre, red ochre, and the like.
The application of the product is not limited to the uses herein before mentioned,
and it may be employed in the manufacture of all objects or articles to which its
qualities may render it suitable.
The tar of the second distillation which forms the base of my improved coating has
the advantage of being inodorous, whilst the tar obtained in the first distillation

page_text: contains not only an empyreumatic oil, which does not volatilize, but also contains
carbon particles which are injurious to its insulating properties.
These two properties of the improved coating compound, viz, inodorousness and
power of adhering strongly to metals, render it suitable for coating metallic casks for
holding liquids for human consumption, as hereinbefore mentioned, whilst tar of
mineral origin, and coating substances containing such tar, are unsuitable for this
purpose.
It is to be clearly understood, relative to the employment of the essential oils
resulting from the second distillation, for perfuming leather such as Russia leather, or
fur articles, that this invention does not relate at all to the preparation of the leather,
but only to the employment or application of the properties of these oils.
Having now particularly described and ascertained the nature of the said invention,
and in what manner it is to be performed, I declare that what I claim is :—
1. The soparation by means of a second distillation from the essence of the bark of
the birch tree, of an essential oil and of a tarry residue, the former possessing anti-
oxidising, and insect-destroying properties, and the latter insulating qualities, substan-
tially as hereinbefore described.
2. An anti-oxidising mixture or compound consisting of the essential oil and of the
tarry substance produced by the second distillation of the essence of the bark of the
birch tree, with or without the addition of a drying agent substantially as hereinbefore
described.
3. An insulating mixture or compound obtained by adding to the tarry residue
referred to in Claim 1, caoutchouc and sulphur with oxide of lead or other colouring
agent, substantially as hereinbefore described for the purposes specified.
Dated this 14th day of March 1007
W. LLOYD WISE,
Per F. J. Brougham