Improvements in or relating to the Clarifying or Fining of Worts and Apparatus therefor.
Year: 1897

page_text: Date of Application, 2nd July, 1897-Accepted, 1st Jan., 1898
COMPLETE SPECIFICATION.
Improvements in or relating to the Clarifying or Fining of Worts
and Apparatus therefor.
I, GABRIEL PUTZ of 5, Schützen-Allée Hildesheim in the Empire of Germany,
Restaurant Proprietor, 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:-
In drawing off worts from the fining or clarifying vat, channels are always formed
in the lees or grounds towards the exits in consequence of the suction action of
the worts in the discharge pipe, so that the worts are discharged in a turbid state
and the grounds are not thoroughly utilised. Attempts have been made to overcome
this drawback by carrying the clarifying pipe up to slightly under the surface of
the worts, whereby the discharge of the worts takes place only under the pressure
of the difference of level between the orifice of the clarifying pipe and the surface
level of the worts. The clarifying pipe must therefore be lowered from time to
At each lowering
time to correspond with the sinking of the level of the worts.
however a sudden alteration in the pressure is produced which always forms channels
in the lees or grounds and gives rise to an irregular and turbid discharge of the
worts.
This invention has for its object a means and apparatus for fining or clarifying
worts which avoids any sudden alteration in the lowering of the decanting or
clarifying pipe by the latter automatically adjusting itself to the level of the worts,
and consequently any sudden movement of the worts in the clarifying vat during
the clarifying process is avoided and a constant and clear discharge of the worts
and also a thorough utilisation of the lees or grounds is obtained.
An apparatus for carrying out this invention is shown in the accompanying
drawings, in which,
Figure 1 is a vertical section and
Figure 2 a plan view.
In order to
The worts with the lees or grounds are in the clarifying vat a.
examine whether the lees have settled down enough, the cocks are opened so
that some of the wort runs off from the vat through the pipes which are provided
with sieves into the clarifying channel c. As soon as the wort runs clearly the
cocks are closed and the three-way cocks are so adjusted that the wort passes
into the mash tub g through the pipe f. When the wort has entirely run off, the
three-way cocks d are closed and the stirrers are put into action to stir up the
remaining lees; hot water is then poured over the loosened lees and the process
is proceeded with as usual.
It will be readily understood that instead of the draw-off pipes of the clarifying.
vat being provided with sieves, a perforated false bottom may be employed in the
vat, as the construction of the vat is immaterial to the invention.
In order to provide that the discharge opening of the clarifying pipe f shall
always remain 10 to 15 centimetres below the level of the worts in the vat a, the
pipe fis suspended on a roller k by means of a chain h and counterweight i. The
moller is firmly connected with a second roller / operated by a chain n of a float o,
If the level of the worts in the vat a
said chain n running over a guide roller m.
falls, the float o descends and the rollers k l m revolve in such a way that the

page_text: chain n running over the roller k allows the clarifying pipe f to correspondingly
descend.
A difficulty in carrying out this automatic adjustment of the clarifying pipe f
consists in that the float o in the clarifying vat a can only descend until it rests
on the lees or grounds, whilst the clarifying pipe f should further descend with
the sinking of the surface level of the worts. To overcome this difficulty the pro-
portions of transfer of the rollers k and 7 may be so selected that the clarifying
pipe descends the entire depth of the worts in the vat a, whilst the float o is
travelling the distance between the highest level of the worts and the surface of
the lees or grounds. If for instance the lees make up a third of the worts, the
speed of the float o and the clarifying pipe f must stand in the proportion of 2 to 3,
that is to say the circumference and also the diameter of the rollers and k must
be in proportion of 2:3 to one another. Although in this arrangement the
discharge orifice of the clarifying pipe f stands abnormally deep in the last period
of the drawing off of the worts, this increase in the difference of level between
the surace of the worts and the discharge orifice and the increase of the suction
action of the clarifying pipe produced thereby does not cause any difficul-
ties because the worts are already inside the lees or grounds and therefore any
formation of channels in consequence of the sudden influx of large quantities of
worts is prevented.
The above mentioned difficulties may be further avoided by simply allowing
the float o to rise and fall in a separate vessel communicating with the vat and
containing liquid free from lees. For this object a vessel is employed provided
with a sieve or strainer at its lower part, said vessel being either inserted in the
vat itself or suitably arranged outside the same and connected with the vat by
'means of a pipe.
Having now particularly described and ascertained the nature of my said
invention and in what manner the same is to be performed, I declare that what I
claim is:-
1. A means for clarifying or fining of worts, consisting of a clarifying pipe a
arranged between the vat and the clarifying apparatus, said pipe being carried up
to almost the level of the worts, and automatically adjusted thereto with the object
of preventing any sudden movement of the worts in the clarifying vat during the
process of drawing off, and also for drawing off the worts in a constantly clear
condition whilst fully utilising the lees or grounds, substantially as hereinbefore
described.
+
2. In the clarifying or fining of worts an apparatus consisting of a discharge
pipe connected with a float (o) resting on the surface of the. worts in the rat (a),
or on the surface of the worts in a separate vessel communicating with said vat
in such a way that on the float descending the discharge pipe (f) also descends with 4
it substantially as herein before described and shown in the accompanying
drawings.
3. In the clarifying or fining of worts, an apparatus in which chains or the like
(h n) connected with a float (o) and a discharge pipe (f) are caused to travel over
firmly connected rollers (k ), the roller for the discharge pipe having preferably 4
a larger diameter, than that for the float, in order that said discharge pipe may
descend more rapidly than the float, substantially as hereinbefore described and
shown.
WM. P. THOMPSON & CO.,
Of 6, Lord Street, Liverpool, Agents for the Applicant.