AN IMPROVED PROCESS AND APPARATUS FOR REMOVING PIECES OF STRAW, WOOD, AND OTHER VEGETABLE SUBSTANCES FROM FABRICS MADE OF WOOL, SILK, HAIR, OR OTHER ANIMAL FIBRES
Year: 1876

page_text: LETTERS PATENT to Henry Edward Newton, of the Office for Patents,
66, Chancery Lane, in the County of Middlesex, Civil Engineer, for tho
Invention of "AN IMPROVED PROCESS AND APPARATUS FOR REMOVING
PIECES OF STRAW, WOOD, AND OTHER VEGETABLE SUBSTANCES FROM FABRICS
MADE OF WOOL, SILK, HAIR, OR OTHER ANIMAL FIBRES." A communication
from abroad by Francois Delamare, the younger, of Paris, in the Republic of
France.
Scaled the 3rd November 1876, and dated the 13th May 1870.
PROVISIONAL SPECIFICATION left by the said Henry Edward Newton at
the Office of the Commissioners of Patents on the 13th May 1876.
HENRY EDWARD NEWTON, of the Office for Patents, 66, Chancery Lane, in the
County of Middlesex, Civil Engineer. "AN IMPROVED PROCESS AND APPARATUS
FOR REMOVING PIECES OF STRAW, WOOD, AND OTHER VEGETABLE SUBSTANCES FROM
FABRICS MADE OF WOOL, SILK, HAIR, OR OTHER ANIMAL FIBRES."
Woollen cloths are very often found to contain small pieces of straw, stick, wood,
teazle, or other vegetable substances which were originally mixed with the wool
of which the fabric is composed. These extraneous vegetable substances form
blemishes in the fabric, and the object of the present Invention is to remove them
therefrom without damaging the finished fabric. This is effected by subjecting
the fabric first to the action of an acid vapour and then to a very high temperature,
the effect of which will be to char the vegetable substances or to reduce them to
such a state as will admit of them being washed out or removed by beating,
brushing, or otherwise.
In carrying out the Invention the fabric to be operated upon is first passed
through a drying chainber, which is heated to about 80° centigrade, for the
purpose of driving off any moisture from the fabric. The fabric is then cooled
down by means of fan blowers or otherwise, and when quite cold is passed into
another chamber into which hydrochloric, sulphurous, or sulphuric acid gas is
admitted. The gaseous vapour attacks the vegetable substances or is absorbed
by them but does not injuriously affect the animal fibres of which the cloth or
fabric is made. From this acid chamber the fabric is conducted to another chamber
where it is subjected to a high temperature, say about 120° to 130° centigrade,
which, with the addition of the acid that the vegetable substances have absorbed,
[Price Gal

page_text: will have the effect of charring these matters so that they may be easily removed
from the fabric by washing, beating, or brushing. In order that the several
processes of drying, cooling, acidifying, and heating may have time to act on the
fabric the latter is passed slowly through the several chambers in a continuous
manner and in a serpentine direction by being made to pass over and under
supporting or carrying rollers, to some of which rotary motion may be given by
means of any suitable gearing. Extraneous vegetable substances may be removed
in a similar manner froin all kinds of fabrics composed of wool, silk, hair, or other
animal fibres.
SPECIFICATION in pursuance of the conditions of the Letters Patent filed by
the said Henry Edward Newton in the Great Seal Patent Office on the
13th November 1876.
HENRY EDWARD NEWTON, of the Office for Patents, 66, Chancery Lane, in the
County of Middlesex, Civil Engineer. "AN IMPROVED PROCESS AND APPARATUS
FOR REMOVING PIECES OF STRAW, WOOD, AND OTHER VEGETABLE SUBSTANCES FROM
FABRICS MADE OF WOOL, SILK, HAIR, OR OTHER ANIMAL FIBRES." A communi-
cation from abroad by François Delamare, the younger, of Paris, in the Republic of
France.
Woollen cloths are very often found to contain small pieces of straw, stick, wood,
teazle, or other vegetable substances which were either originally mixed with the
wool of which the fabric is composed, or have become added to the fabric during
the process of manufacture. These extraneous vegetable substances form blemishes
in the fabric, and the object of the present Invention is to remove them therefrom
without damaging the finished fabric. This object has usually been effected by the
action of a mineral acid on the vegetable substance adhering to the woollen or other
fabric. Two methods of applying the acid to the fabric have been used. One is by
dipping the fabric in an acid solution, and the other is by subjecting the fabric to
the action of an acid gas. The first of these plans is called the wet method, and
cannot be conveniently applied to dyed goods, as the wet acid would be liable
to injure the colour. The second is called the dry method, and has been found
the more convenient of the two, but as heretofore carried on is open to several
objections.
According to the present Invention the fabric is first subjected to the action of
an acid vapour and then to a very high temperature, the effect of which will be to
char the vegetable substances or to reduce them to such a state as will admit of
their being washed out or removed by beating, brushing, or otherwise.
Hydrochloric acid gas, sulphurous acid gas, or sulphuric acid gas may be used for
the purposes of the Invention, but the inventor of the present improvements
prefers to use hydrochloric acid gas, which may be easily and cheaply made either
by the distillation of concentrated hydrochloric acid or by the decomposition of
common salt or other chlorides by means of sulphuric acid at the strength of sixty-
six degrees B., or by the direct action of heat upon any suitable metallic or earthy
chlorides.
In carrying out the Invention, the fabric to be operated upon is first passed
through a drying chamber, which is heated to about eighty degrees centrigrade, for
the purpose of driving off any moisture from the fabric. The fabric is then cooled
down by means of fan blowers or otherwise, and when quite cold is passed into
another chamber into which the hydrochloric, sulphurous, or sulphuric acid gas
from whatever source it may be obtained is admitted. The gascous vapour attacks
the vegetable substances or is absorbed by them but does not injuriously affect
the animal fibres of which the cloth or fabric is made, nor yet the colouring matter
with which the fabric has been previously dyed. From this acid chamber the
fabric is conducted to another chamber, where it is subjected to a high temperature,

page_text: say about one hundred and twenty degrees to one hundred and thirty degrees
centrigrade, which, with the addition of the acid that the vegetable substances have
absorbed, will have the effect of charring these matters so that they may be easily
removed from the fabric by washing, beating, or brushing.
I would here observe that instead of generating the gas outside the apparatus
and carrying it in in the state of vapour, the fabric may be soaked in a solution
of any suitable chloride and passed in succession through two chambers in the first
of which (being at a comparatively low temperature) the water alone will be evapo-
rated from the solution with which the fabric has been wetted. The dried fabric
will then pass into the second chamber and be subjected to a much higher tempera-
ture, whereby the chloride will be decomposed and the acid gas will be disengaged
therefrom and in its nascent state will be made to act on the fabric under the most
favorable conditions.
I may here observe that other acids will produce the desired effect, and that if
the fabric be soaked in a bi-sulphate or other suitable solution instead of the
chloride it will (upon issuing from the heating chambers) be deprived of the vegetable
matters previously adhering thereto. Inferior acids, such as sulphurous acid and the
bi-sulphites, may also be employed, and when such is the case it will be necessary
(when the fabric has been impregnated with the sulphurous acid or the bi-sulphite)
to employ an oxidizing agent in order to convert the sulphurous into sulphuric acid,
which by the action of heat will destroy the vegetable matters and convert them
into products which can be easily removed from the fabric by beating or washing.
As the acid will only act properly when in a dry state it is absolutely necessary
that the fabric when it reaches the hot chamber should be perfectly dry; if not,
there would be a combination of the acid with the water, and the fabric would then
be subjected to a damp or wet acid which would occasion the inconveniences already
mentioned, and which it is the special object of the present Invention to avoid.
The apparatus employed for the purposes of this invention, and which forms part
of the present improvements, is composed of three chambers, and a cooler and also
an apparatus for producing the acid gas. In order that the several processes of
drying, acidifying, heating, and cooling may have time to act on the fabric, the
latter is passed slowly through the several chambers in a continuous manner and in
a serpentine direction by being made to pass over and under supporting or carrying
rollers, to some of which rotary motion may be given by means of any suitable
gearing. Extraneous vegetable substances may be removed in a similar manner
from all kinds of fabrics composed of wool, silk, hair, or other animal fibres.
In the accompanying Drawings, Fig. 1, Sheet I., is a longitudinal vertical section
of the apparatus. Fig. 2 is a transverso vertical section of the same.
Fig. 3, Sheet II., is a sectional plan view of the apparatus complete, showing
also the gas holder in horizontal section. Fig. 4 is a vertical section of the gas
holder, showing some of the pipes connected therewith.
A is the chamber for drying the fabric before it is subjected to the action of the
gas. B is a refrigerator for cooling the fabric after it has been dried in the
chamber A. C is the acidulating chamber. It is in this chamber that the fabric,
after it has been dried and cooled, is brought into contact with the dry and cold
acid gas. D is the chamber in which the fabric is subjected to a temperature of
from one hundred and twenty degrees to one hundred and thirty degrees cen-
trigrade, whereby the acid is made to act on the vegetable matters which adhere to
the fabric. F is the apparatus for making the acid gas.
The drying chamber A is constructed of masonry or brick work, and it contains
a series of wooden cylinders or rollers a, a, a, a, over which passes the fabric M.
These rollers are placed horizontally in two parallel lines, the one at the top and
the other at the bottom of the chamber, and are so arranged that the fabric in
passing from the top to the bottom series of rollers will be inclined about ten
inches from the vertical line. The rollers have an uniform and continuous rotary
motion given to them, and they revolve at the same speed as the rollers in the
other chambers. The chamber A is warmed by a heating chamber E', from which

page_text: the hot air passes through the openings h, h, on the floor of the chamber A. When
the hot air comes in contact with the damp fabric it absorbs the moisture and is
drawn off through openings f. f, in the roof by means of a fan or exhauster, and is
discharged at N. The fabric Al is introduced into the chamber A through a
narrow slit or opening m provided with a grooved lip n for the purpose of removing
any creases froin the fabric after it has passed the rollers c, c, and the bar el, and
before it enters the chamber. Just below the upper series of rollers a, a, there are
three stretching cylinders b, b, which are grooved throughout their length, and
have an independent rotary motion communicated to them by the pulleys d, d, d,
and friction gear, as shown at Fig. 3, Sheet II. The object of these rollers is to
keep the fabric strained out laterally, quite flat, and without creases throughout its
whole width. By means of the rollers a, a, the fabric is made to travel forward
through the chamber A from the entrance at m to the exit aperture m¹, from
which it passes into the refrigerator B, which is constructed of an iron framework
for supporting five ventilating fans h, k, k, between which the fabric M passes over
and under the rollers a', a', c', c', and is cooled by the motion of the air produced
by the fans. The fabric, after passing through the refrigerator, and having thus
become quite cool, enters through the opening m into a second chamber C, where
it is subjected to the action of the dry acid gas. This chamber, like the first,
contains a series of carrying rollers all, , and stretching rollers b', 6', upon which
the fabric M travels. The dry hydrochloric acid gas is introduced at the bottom
of the chamber by the earthenware pipe j, and is drawn off at top by the earthen-
ware pipes ff, which communicate with a draught flue N, as shown at Figure 2,
Sheet I. The fabric, after travelling in this gascous atmosphere, and having
become saturated with acid, passes through the opening m", m¹ into a third
chamber D, where, assisted by a temperature of from one hundred and twenty
degrees to one hundred and thirty degrees centrigrade, the acid is made to act
energetically on the vegetable matters adhering to the fabric.
The chamber D is constructed in masonry or brickwork, and like the other two
is provided with a series of carrying rollers a, a, and stretching rollers b,
over which the fabric passes. The stretching rollers have an independent
motion given to them by means of the pulleys and the friction gear 0% The
chamber is heated to a temperature of from one hundred and twenty degrees to one
hundred and thirty degrees centrigrade, by means of a heating apparatus E, which
sends its heated air into the chamber D through the openings,, constructed in
the floor. By means of the fan X, Fig. 3, the draught flue NT and the openings f
made in the ceiling or roof of the chamber a constant current of heated air is
maintained therein. The acid then (under the action of this heat) continues to act
on the vegetable matters, and disintegrates and completely carbonises them, and in
order to entirely remove them from the fabric it will only be necessary to beat or
wash it. From the hot air chamber D the fabric is conducted through the
opening m to a folder R. All the carrying rollers have an uniform rotary motion
given to then by means of the Devil wheels, 2, and the horizontal and vertical
shafts ', ', ', which are driven by the friction gear O³, Fig. 3.
The apparatus for producing the hydrochloric acid gas is composed of a bench F
of several retorts placed over a fire. The gas is produced by the decomposition of
common salt by means of sulphuric acid at sixty-six degrees B. To make the gas 1
equivalent of dry chloride of sodium=730+ is placed in the retort and 1 equivalent
of anhydrous sulphuric acid=612.5. Under the action of heat 1 equivalent
4557 of hydrochloric acid gas is given off and is then cooled in the refrigerating
apparatus G, which may be combined or arranged in different ways. In the Drawing
is shown an arrangement consisting of earthenware pipes connected together by
elbows or junction pieces, the lower ones being provided with short branch pieces
for the purpose of from time to time running off any liquid that may accumulate
there owing to the condensation of the gas by the refrigerating or cooling process.
The gas after passing through the cooling apparatus is conducted by a pipe G¹ to a
gas holder E, E, where it is stored ready for use. The gas holder consists of a tank

page_text: constructed in masonry coated with a cement which is impermeable and resists the
action of the hydrochloric acid gas. The bell or moveable holder is made of wood,
and is plunged in a bath of oil i, i, (some dense bydrocarbon). This bell commu-
nicates with the gas generating apparatus F by means of the refrigerating apparatus G
and a tubular channel G, also with the acidulating chamber by the pipe G² and a
tube j, which opens directly in the floor of the chamber C. The channel may be
stopped when desired by means of a cock conveniently placed for the purpose. The
apparatus above described answers very well practically, and it is independent of
the hot chamber so as to admit of the stopping of one part of the apparatus for a
greater or less length of time without interrupting or interfering with the operation
of the other. What is important in the process is that the fabric to be operated
upon should pass through all the hot chambers and the cooling chambers in a
constant and uniform manner, as any stoppage of the fabric might occasion accidents
which it would be desirable to avoid.
From what has been already said it will be understood that the operation of the
whole apparatus is extremely simple. The fabric passes into the first chamber in
order that any water or dainpness it may havo absorbed may be driven off. From
thence it is conducted through the refrigerator, and when in a cool and perfectly
dry state it is brought into contact with the acid gas, and when well saturated
therewith it passes into another chamber which is heated to a high temperature,
and by the action of the heat the acid is caused to act energetically on the vegetable
matters so as to carbonize them and bring them into a state which will admit of
their being easily removed from the fabric by washing or beating.
It has been stated that although hydrochloric acid gas is preferred, another acid
may be used in place thereof. In fact, the same result has been obtained (that is to
say, the celluloso matter has been eliminated without affecting the dye or colour of
any substance that is not cellulose) by simply using as the chemical agent sul-
phurous acid and sulphuric acid in a gaseous state.
The apparatus above described for the use of dry hydrochloric acid does not
require any modification of its essential features for the use of the new chemical
agent. It will only be necessary to uso, instead of the generator for producing
hydrochloric acid gas another apparatus capable of producing the mixture of
sulphurous acid and sulphuric acid in a gaseous state.
The apparatus which it is proposed to use for this purpose consists of a cast-iron
retort in which sulphurous acid is produced by burning sulphur in the presence of a
current of air forced into the retort by an air pump or other suitable blowing device.
There is also a cast-iron condenser or worm submerged in a current of cold water
and connected at one end to the retort, and at the other by means of a leaden pipe
with a receiver containing sulphuric acid at sixty-six degrees B. This receiver is a
close one and is lined with lead. It contains a bath of sulphuric acid in which the
sulphurous acid gas is made to bubble up. The gas chamber of this receiver com-
municates with the acidulating chamber by means of a leaden pipe. The action of
this apparatus is as follows:-The retort having been charged with ignited sulphur
and perfectly closed the air pump is set in action, and as the sulphurous acid is given
off in the retort it is driven forward into the worm of the condenser where it is
cooled, and from thence it descends to the bottom of the receiver containing the
sulphuric acid. It passes through the bath and becomes charged with the acid
vapours, which it carries forward into the acidulating chamber. The fabric to be
operated upon being in a dry and cold state absorbs these vapours and passes into
the hot air chambers where, excited by a temperature of from one hundred and
twenty degrees to one hundred and thirty degrees centrigrade, the sulphuric acid
will act energetically on the vegetable matters without affecting the coloring
matters with which the fabric was dyed previous to the operation.
Having now described the Invention of "An Improved Process and Apparatus
for Removing Pieces of Straw, Wood, and other Vegetable Substances from Fabrics
made of Wool, Silk, Hair, or other Animal Fibres," and having explained the manner
of carrying the same into effect as communicated to me by my foreign correspondent

page_text: as aforesaid, I would observe that the improved system and apparatus herein set
forth is applicable for removing from woollen, silk, or other cloths or fabrics made
of animal fibres, extraneous vegetable matters or cellulose which is capable of being
acted upon by acid gas in combination with a dry heat. I therefore claim as the
Invention secured to me by Letters Patent as aforesaid the improved process
herein set forth for removing extraneous vegetable matters from fabrics made of
animal fibres, such improved process consisting in first drying the fabric for the
purpose of removing any moisture it may have absorbed, then subjecting it to the
action of a dry acid gas and a dry heat for the purpose of charring or carbonizing
the vegetable matters that may adhere to the fabric as and for the purpose herein
set forth.
I also claim the construction, arrangement, and combination of parts herein
shewn and described and constituting an apparatus for effecting the object herein
Bet forth.
In witness whereof, I, the said Henry Edward Newton, have hereunto set my
hand and seal, the Thirteenth day of November, in the year of our Lord
One thousand eight hundred and seventy-six.
H. E. NEWTON. (L.S.)