Apparatus therefor.
Year: 1884

page_text: Apparatus therefor.
We, HENRY WHITEHEAD and RALPH HODGSON, both of Sandbach in the County
of Chester, Chemical Manager and Engineer respectively do hereby declare the
nature of our said invention for "IMPROVEMENTS IN THE MANUFACTURE OF SALT
" to be as follows:-
FROM BRINE AND IN APPARATUS THEREFOR
This invention has for its object the renewal or reissue of our former provisional
application No 4115 8.
The invention consists in a new or greatly improved system of evaporating
and in apparatus necessary for carrying it into effect. All previous systems of
evaporating with which we are acquainted consist either of the steady evaporation
or boiling down of the liquid by means of a constant heat or exposing.the solution
to currents of dry air or to a partial vacuum.
Now our process differs from all these, and consists in alternately heating the
liquid to the boiling point or thereabouts and then letting it cool while exposed to
the air, at the same time fishing out the crystals, then taking the cool mother liquor
and heating it again to boiling point and again cooling in contact with air and so
on till all is evaporated. In actual practice we make it a continuous process by
dividing the pan into a series of troughs communicating alternately at each end,
sending the hot liquor in at one end and pumping the cool out at the other for
re-heating. It will be obvious however that the plant can be largely varied and
a sort of hermaphrodite use of our invention made by adopting existing plant to it,
and using such parts of the invention as would come in with the old plant. As
however we prefer to use a new plant for a new system and it is very easy to see
how it could be modified where it is necessary to bring in old plant, we will
merely describe our own improved apparatus as at present worked out without
however binding ourselves to the exact details.
The apparatus consists of two cylinders containing a series of pipes through
which the brine is made to pass by means of a steam pump, the upper cylinder is
supplied with steam direct from the boiler, the lower cylinder receives the condensed
steam or water from the upper cylinder and also the exhaust steam from the steam
pump; the brine in passing through the pipes contained in the cylinders becomes
heated to its boiling point, a temperature of about 225 degrees Fahrenheit. It

page_text: then flows into an open surface pan or cistern divided so as to form one continuous
channel of any required dimensions, from one side of the pan to the other, and in
its passage the brine Lecomes reduced in temperature to about 80 degrees Fahrenheit.
A constant forming and depositing of salt is thus produced throughout the pan, the
brine is continually flowing through the overflow from pan into a tank, from which
the steam pump passes it through the pipes contained in the cylinders and into the
pan as before. This tank is automatically supplied with new brine as required.
The salt is drawn from the pan when required by putting in motion the scrapers,
which are secured to a beam across the pan from side to side, this beam is
secured at each end to a framing containing two wheels which run on rails fixed at
each side of the pan, and are propelled forwards and backwards from one end of
pan to the other with ropes or chains regulated by reversing motion, and worked
from steam pump, thus taking the salt before it, carrying it up an incline over
each end of the pan alternately. It will be seen from this that as no heating of
the pan is required the latter can be built of cement and tiles or any material
capable of withstanding hot brine, and consequently the great wear and tear
incident on beating brine tanks by firing below is avoided.

page_text: Apparatus thereior.
We, HENRY WHITEHEAD and RALPH HODGSON both of Sandbach in the County
of Chester Chemical Manager and Engineer respectively do hereby declare the
nature of our said invention for IMPROVEMENTS IN THE MANUFACTURE OF SALT
FROM BRINE AND IN APPARATUS THEREFOR and in what manner the same is to be
performed, to be particularly described and ascertained in and by the following
statement:-
This invention has for its object the renewal or reissue of our former provisional
application N° 4115.
The invention consists in a new or greatly improved system of evaporating
and in apparatus necessary for carrying it into effect. All previous systems of
evaporating with which we are acquainted consist either of the steady evaporation
or boiling down of the liquid by means of a constant heat or exposing the solution
to currents of dry air or to a partial vacuum.
Now our process differs from all these, and consists in alternately heating the
liquid to the boiling point or thereabouts and then letting it cool while exposed to
the air, at the same time fishing out the crystals, then taking the cool mother liquor
and heating it again to boiling point, and again cooling in contact with air, and so
ou, till all is evaporated. In actual practice we make it a continuous process by
dividing the pan into a series of troughs communicating alternately at each end,
sending the hot liquor in at one end and pumping the cool out at the other for
re-heating. It will be obvious however that the plant can be largely varied and
a sort of hermaphrodite use of our invention made by adopting existing plant to it,
and using such parts of the invention as would come in with the old plant. As
however we prefer to use a new plant for a new system and it is very easy to see
how it could be modified where it is necessary to bring in old plant,-we will
merely describe our own improved apparatus as at present worked out without
however binding ourselves to the exact details.
The apparatus consists of two cylinders containing a series of pipes through
which the brine is made to pass by means of a steam pump, the upper cylinder is
supplied with steam direct from the boiler, the lower cylinder receives the condensed
steam or water from the upper cylinder and also the exhaust steam from the steam
pump, the brine in passing through the pipes contained in the cylinders becomes
heated to its boiling point, a temperature of about 225 degrees Fahrenheit. It then
flows into an open surface pan or cistern divided so as to form one continuous
channel of any required dimensions, from one side of the pan to the other, and in
its passage the brine becomes reduced in temperature to about 80 degrees Fahrenheit.
A constant forming and depositing of salt is thus produced throughout the pan, the
brine is continually flowing through the overflow from pan into a tank, from which
the steam pump passes it through the pipes contained in the cylinders and into the
pan as before. This tank is automatically supplied with new brine as required,
The salt is drawn from the pan when required, by putting in motion the scrapers,

page_text: This condensed steam together with the exhaust from steam pump through the
exhaust pipe P, pass into the steam space p in the lower cylinder G, surrounding
the pipes contained therein. Thus the brine is partially heated in its passage,
before reaching the pipes of the upper cylinder H. The condensed waste steam
passes from the lower cylinder G, out into the boiler feed pipe Q. Figure 6 shows
a section of one of the pipe joints which connect the series of pipes ƒƒ contained in
the cylinders G H, into one continuous pipe.
Having now particularly described and ascertained the nature of our said
invention and in what manner the same is to be performed, we declare that what
we claim is
1st. The herein described process of manufacturing salt from brine, which consists
in heating the brine to boiling point in a closed chamber, or apparatus and then
passing it into open cooling pans or troughs, whereby the brine is heated without
deposition of salt upon the heating surfaces, and the evaporation of aqueous matter,
and the deposition or crystallising out of the salt takes place in an apparatus, not
exposed to external or other heating appliances.
2nd. The apparatus for boiling brine by means of steam and condensed water,
substantially as described.
3rd. The scraping apparatus in combination with brine pans constructed and
arranged substantially as described.
Dated this 31st day of July 1885.
WM P. THOMPSON & Co.,
Of 6, Lord Street, Liverpool, and
323, High Holborn, London,
Patent Agents for the Applicants.