Improvements in the Process of and Apparatus for Purifying Alcoholic Liquids.
Year: 1890

page_text: Date of Application, 26th June, 1890
Complete Specification Left, 24th Mar., 1891-Accepted, 2nd May, 1891
PROVISIONAL SPECIFICATION.
Improvements in the Process of and Apparatus for Purifying
Alcoholic Liquids.
We, DESIRE AIMÉ BOULLANGER, of Catenoy, Oise, France, Distiller, and
ARNO SCHEUNERT, of No. 7, Werder Strasse, Dresden, Saxony, formerly Distiller,
do hereby declare the nature of this invention to be as follows:-
The object of our invention is to purify alcoholic liquids from aldehydes,
essential oils and other substances contained in the alcohol, and which are comprised
under the general term of "fusel-oils." The said alcoholic liquids may consist
in fermented but undistilled mashes, or in products of distillation obtained there-
from.
For this purpose at first purified hydrogen is driven through the liquid. The
hydrogen converts the fusel-oils by reduction into a resinous and insoluble matter.
Subsequently air or oxygen is passed through the liquid in order to free the same
from the bad odour and taste which it assumes from certain compounds produced
by the treatment with hydrogen. The liquid is then filtered, or it is left for some
time to repose whereupon the purified portion is decanted from the sediment, or the
liquid is at once submitted to distillation
The hydrogen may be obtained by any known means, such as the decomposition
of water through the medium of zinc and sulphuric acid. For purifying the
same and freeing it from particles of acid, a lye of chloride of lime may be
employed.
The apparatus which we use by preference for carrying out the described process,
consists in a vessel for generating hydrogen, a vessel containing the said lye, a tank
holding the alcoholic liquid, an air-pump, and a vessel containing water for puri-
fying the air supplied by the pump, the said parts being so connected together by
pipes provided with cocks, that first the hydrogen produced may be passed through
the lye to the alcoholic liquid, that thereupon air may be forced through the air-
purifyer, the gas-generator and the gas-purifyer to the liquid, and that finally
purified air can be directly driven into the liquid.
Dated the 26th June 1890
-
COMPLETE SPECIFICATION.
Improvements in the Process of and Apparatus for Purifying
Alcoholic Liquids.
We, DÉSIRÉ AIMÉ BOULLANGER, of Catenoy, Oise, France, Distiller, and
ARNO SCHEUNERT, of No. 7, Werder Strasse, Dresden, Saxony, formerly Distiller,
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:-
The object of our invention is to purify alcoholic liquors from aldehydes,
essential oils and other substances contained in the alcohol, and which are com-
prised under the general term of "fusel-oils." The said alcoholic liquors may
consist in fermented but undistilled mashes, or in products of distillation obtained.
therefrom.
For this purpose at first purified hydrogen, produced without the liquor, is driven
through the same. The hydrogen converts the fusel-oils by reduction into a resinous

page_text: :
and insoluble matter. Subsequently, air or oxygen is passed through the liquor in
order to free it from the bad odour and taste which it assumes from certain com-
pounds produced by the treatment with hydrogen. The liquor is then filtered, or,
after having been left for some time to repose, the purified portion is decanted from
the sediment. If the liquor is to be distilled, it may, however, also be submitted to
distillation without filtration or decantation.
The hydrogen may be obtained by any known means, such as diluted sulphuric
acid or muriatic acid and zinc. For purifying the same and freeing it from
particles of acid carried over from the generating-vessel, preferably a lyc of chloride
of lime is employed.
In the annexed drawing an apparatus is represented for carrying out our
invention.
A is an air-pump, B a vessel containing water for purifying the air supplied
by the pump, C the hydrogen-generator, D the hydrogen-purifyer, E the tank
holding the alcoholic liquor, and G a water-reservoir. The air-pump A shown in
the drawing, works by means of a plunger 1 and a column of water contained in the
vertical pipe 2. 5 and 6 are the suction and discharge-valves. The valve-box 3 is
connected at the bottom by a bent pipe with the upper portion of a tank 4, to be
filled to a suitable height with water and provided with the air induction pipe 7,
which dips into the water, this arrangement serving for the purification of the
atmospheric air drawn in by the pump, the said air being compelled to pass
through the water in tank 4. Any other suitable air-pump may, however, be
employed, and the purifying tank 4 may be dispensed with. At the top the valve
box 3 is connected by pipe a with the bottom of vessel B, designed to hold the
water whereby the air delivered by the pump A, is subjected to a purifying
operation. From the top of vessel B a pipe c leads to the bottom of the gas-
generator C, from the top of the latter a pipe d to the bottom of the gas-purifyer D,
and from the top of the said purifyer a pipe f to the bottom of tank E. Besides
this, the pipes c and fare connected together by a pipe e, and the water-reservoir G
by the pipe p and branches p¹ p² p³ with the respective vessels B, C, D. All the
said pipes are provided with the requisite cocks; the vessel B has a gange-
glass h¹, the vessel C a gauge-glass, screw-plugged orifice i, safety-valve,
pressure-gauge k and door l, and vessel D a gauge-glass ³ and screw-plugged
orifice i¹.
At the beginning of an operation the vessel B is filled to about two thirds with
water from reservoir G by opening cock 9', the cocks 92 and 3 being closed.
Thereupon zink is put through door into vessel C, and after the door has been
tightly closed, a quantity of water, say 10 litres, is admitted thereinto by cock q².
Subsequently, about 3 litres of lye of chloride of lime are poured through orifice
which is then plugged, and about 30 litres of water are admitted through cock q³
into vessel D. The said quantities of water may be determined by marks on the
respective gauge-glasses. Finally, all cocks of the apparatus which may still be
open, are closed, and the acid is run into vessel C through the aperture i, which is
thereupon also closed, the apparatus being then ready to operate.
After the evolution of hydrogen-gas by the action of the acid on the zinc has
produced in vessel C a pressure of from one half to one atmosphere above the
pressure of the air, the cocks t and s are opened in view of allowing the gas to pass
through the lye in vessel D, by which it is purified, and into the liquor contained
in tank E. This treatment of the liquor is continued until the conversion of the
fusel-oils aimed at has been completed. For determining whether sufficient
hydrogen has been introduced, permanganate of potassium is added to a sample of
the liquid. If the same is discoloured, hydrogen is present in excess. But other
reagents may be employed for this purpose. Ordinarily this part of the process
will be finished in about a quarter of an hour, the quantity of acid employed for
the generation of hydrogen being with advantage, so determined that, after the
lapse of this time, there will be no more any pressure indicated by gauge k.
Thereupon communication between the vessels C and B, and the air-pump A. is

page_text: established by opening the cocks u and r, and the pump is started. Air is thereby
driven through vessel B to vessel C, where it mixes with the hydrogen that is still
being evolved, and the mixture of air and gas is forced onward through vessel D
to the liquid in tank E, whence it escapes through pipe g. This part of the
operation, which may last about half an hour, is however not indispensable.
Y,
The next step is to cut off the gas-generator C and the gas-purifyer D from
vessel B and tank E by closing the cocks u, t, s, and establishing a direct com-
munication between the said vessel B and the tank E by opening the cocks v and
one of which may, however, be omitted. The air supplied by pump A will then
pass from vessel B through pipe e to pipe f, so as to be introduced in unmixed state
into the liquor in tank E, the operation of expelling from the said liquor the
disagreeable odour resulting from the reduction of the fusel-oils, and which
operation had already commenced in the foregoing part of the process, being
thereby completed in the course of about two hours. At the same time any carbonic
acid contained in the liquor is driven off.
After another period of about two hours, during which the liquor is left to
repose, the same may be filtered, or if it consists in mash it may then be
distilled.
Having now particularly described and ascertained the nature of this inven-
tion and in what manner the same is to be performed, we declare that what we
claim is :
1. The process of purifying alcoholic liquors from the fusel-oils contained in the
alcohol, which consists in first passing purified hydrogen and thereupon air or
oxygen through the liquor, and finally separating the purified liquor from the
insoluble products obtained by the action of the hydrogen on the fusel-oils, by
filtration, decantation or distillation, substantially as described.
2. An apparatus serviceable for carrying out the process set forth in the first
claim, and which consists in the combination of the air-pump A, the air-purifyer B,
the hydrogen-generator C, the hydrogen-purifyer D, the liquor-tank E, the pipe a
leading from the air-pump to the bottom of purifyer B, the pipes c, d, f, connecting
the top of the respective vessels B, C, D with the bottom of the succeeding vessels,
the pipe e connecting together the pipes c and f, and cocks inserted into the said
pipes, substantially as specified.
Dated the Twentieth day of March 1891.
J. H. JOHNSON & Co.,
Agents.