IMPROVED APPARATUS FOR DRYING BONE-BLACK
Year: 1876

page_text: LETTERS PATENT to Alexander Melvillo Clark, of 53, Chancery Lane, in the
County of Middlesex, Patent Agent, for the Invention of "IMPROVED
APPARATUS FOR DRYING BONE-BLACK." A communication from abroad by
Lewis Colwell, of New York City, in the County and State of New York,
United States of America.
aled the 6th February 1877, and dated the 22nd December 187
COMPLETE SPECIFICATION filed by the said Alexander Melville Clark at
the Office of the Commissioners of Patents on the 22nd December 1876.
ALEXANDER MELVILLE CLARK, of 53, Chancery Lane, in the County of Middle-
sex, Patent Agent. "IMPROVED APPARATUS FOR DRYING BONE-BLACK." A
communication from abroad by Lewis Colwell, of New York City, in the County
and State of New York, United States of America.
This is an Invention designed to dry animal charcoal or bone-black preparatory
to exposing the same to the burning or revivifying process which is necessary
in order to restore bone-black after it has been used for filtering to renewed
efficiency.
•
By drying bone-black before revivification fuel is economised as the revivifying
furnace will not be charged with the moisture which adheres to the bone-black before
it is dried. The kiln will consequently affect a larger proportion of bone-black with
a given quantity of fuel. Labor is also economized as the drier feeds the retorts
automatically, rendering it unnecessary to keep men on the kiln heads for that
purpose, and finally the revivifying process is more thoroughly effected as the heat
of the kiln is not spent upon the expulsion of moisture as heretofore.
The Invention consists principally in providing the drier with a series of
transverse heating pipes, through which hot gases are conducted, also in providing
it with a series of air pipes and flues for allowing currents of fresh air to pass
through the bone-black and withdrawing the moisture therefrom, also in providing
the heating pipes with pendent shields or flanges for forming enlarged passages or
channels through the mass of the bonc-black, through which channels the air can
circulate; also in a new arrangement of horizontal slide for arresting when desired
the flow of the bone-black from the drier to the kiln, and finally, in placing a series
of bins over the kilns for receiving the bone-black from the drier and transmitting
it to the kiln.

page_text: DESCRIPTION OF DRAWINGS.
Figure 1 is a vertical longitudinal section of the improved bone-black drier.
Figure 2 is an end view partly in section thereof, showing it placed over a revivify-
ing apparatus, the line a, b, c, d, e, Figure 1, indicating the plane of section.
Similar letters of reference indicate corresponding parts in the two Figures.
The letter A represents the chamber of the improved dryer. The same is made
of cast or sheet iron or other proper material of rectangular or other fit form. It
is open on top to admit the wat bone-black, and has discharge orifices f, f, near its
lower end for the escape of the dried bone-black into bins B, B, which are situated
directly above the open retorts C, C, of the revivifying furnace. The bottom of the
chamber is preferably ridge shaped, as indicated by dotted lines in Figure 2 to
direct the escaping bone-black to the discharge orifices. The chamber A is traversed
by horizontal or inclined pipes D, D, whose open ends communicate with flues E
and F that are formed at the ends of the chamber, as shown in Figure 1. The flue
E is open at its lower part, and there receives the hot gases that escape from the
revivifying kiln. These hot gases pass through the pipes D, D, into the flue F and
escape through the open top thereof into a suitable chimney. The flues E and F
are traversed by open ended air pipes G, G, and H, H, respectively, which com-
municate with the chamber A directly beneath the pipes D, D. Through the pipes
C cold air is conducted into the chamber A, and this air escapes again through the
pipes H into a discharge flue I, as indicated by the plain arrows in Figure 1. The
double or thickened arrows show the course of the hot gases. Each pipe D is
provided with a pair of pendent flanges g, g, as shown in the upper part of
Figure 2. These flanges cause the bone-black to form spontaneously under cach
pipe D an enlarged longitudinal channel for the passage of air from the pipe G to
the pipe H.
From the foregoing description the operation of the apparatus will be readily
understood. The wet bone-black is thrown into the drier. It is heated by its
contact with the pipes D, through which the hot gases escape and its moisture is
removed by the constant currents of fresh air that enter through the pipes G, pass
beneath the pipes D, and escape through the pipes H. The dried bone-black is
discharged into the bins B through the holes f and from these bins it falls into the
retort C as fast as the revivified black is withdrawn from the coolers below
the kiln. In the bins, too, the bone-black is subjected to an economical drying.
process.
In order to enable the operator to stop the discharge of bone-black from the drier
whenever desired there are attached to the sides of the dryer below the orifices f &
series of projecting pins or fingers h, k, upon which sliding platforms J, J, are
supported. When such platform is slid away from the drier, as on the left-hand
side of Figure 2, it will not obstruct the escape of the dried bone-black into the
bin; but when the platform is moved into contact with the drier, as on the right-
hand side of Figure 2, it will receive a prismatic load of bone-black, which being
thus held will prevent the further escape of bone-black from the drier. Removable
gates i, i, are placed over openings in the outer face of the flue E to give access to
the pipes D for cleaning purposes.
Having described the nature of the said Invention, and the manner of perform-
ing the same, I declare that what I claim as new and desire to secure by Letters
Patent is,
1st. The bone-black drier A provided with traversing heating pipes D, D, through
which hot gases are conducted, and under which air channels are formed, substan-
tially as specified.
2nd. In a bone-black drier the combination of the heating pipes with the air
pipes G and H that lead air against and withdraw it from the under side of the
respective pipes D, substantially as herein shown and described.
3rd. The heating pipe D of a bone-black drier provided with pendent shields g, g,

page_text: or flanges for forming enlarged air passages through the mass of the bone-black,
substantially as specified.
4th. In a bone-black drier having discharge orifices f. f, the projecting fingers h
and sliding platforms J, substantially as herein shown and described.
5th. The combination of a bone-black drier A with the bin or bins B and revivify-
ing retorts C, the bin or bins being interposed between the drier and the retorts,
substantially as hercin shown and described.
In witness whereof, I, the said Alexauder Melville Clark, have hereunto set
my hand and seal, this Twenty-first day of December, in the year of our
Lord One thousand eight hundred and seventy-six.
A M CLARK (1.8)
A
M CLARK (LS)