IMPROVEMENTS IN THE MANUFACTURE OF PULP
Year: 1866

page_text: LETTERS PATENT to David Adam Fyffe, of Glammis, in the County of
Forfar, North Britain, for the Invention of "IMPROVEMENTS IN THE
MANUFACTURE OF PULP."
Sealed the 18th December 1866, and dated the 20th June 1866.
PROVISIONAL SPECIFICATION left by the said David Adam Fyffe at the
Office of the Commissioners of Patents, with his Petition, on the 20th June
1866.
I, DAVID ADAM FYFFE, of Glammis, in the County of Forfar, North Britain,
do hereby declare the nature of the said Invention of "IMPROVEMENTS IN
THE MANUFACTURE OF PULP," to be as follows, that is to say :-
This Invention consists as follows:-A quantity of sawdust is put into a
hopper by which it is conducted to a pair of millstones, and ground as fine as
possible. As the action of grinding is attendant with the evolution of con-
siderable quantities of heat, it is desirable to get rid of this as speedily as can
be arranged, and in order to do so a fan or fans are placed connected by a
pipe or duct to a cross pipe, and from the cross pipe other pipes or passages
extend to the grindstone casing, the fan being put in motion the heat currents
caused by the grinding process are got rid of. In addition to drawing off the
heat in the manner herein-before mentioned a stream of water is admitted
which passes in with the sawdust as the latter is being ground, and when

page_text: ground this becomes at once converted into pulp. In addition to the cooling
effect produced by the water, the water has the advantage of enabling the
pulp, to be obtained with more fibre than could be produced if ground dry.
The stone which it is preferred to employ for grinding the sawdust is that
commercially known as the "Newcastle gritstone."
greeting.
WHEREAS Her most Excellent Majesty Queen Victoria, by Her Letters
Patent, bearing date the Twentieth day of June, in the year of our Lord One
thousand eight hundred and sixty-six, in the thirtieth year of Her reign,
did, for Herself, Her heirs and successors, give and grant unto me, the said
David Adam Fyffe, Her special license that I, the said David Adam Fyffe,
my executors, administrators, and assigns, or such others as I, the said David
Adam Fyffe, my executors, administrators, or assigns, should at any time
agree with, and no others, from time to time and at all times thereafter
during the term therein expressed, should and lawfully might make, use,
exercise, and vend, within the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland,
the Channel Islands, and Isle of Man, an Invention for "IMPROVEMENTS IN THE
MANUFACTURE OF PULP," upon the condition (amongst others) that I, the said
David Adam Fyffe, by an instrument in writing under my hand and seal, should
particularly describe and ascertain the nature of the said Invention, and in
what manner the same was to be performed, and. cause the same to be filed in
the Great Seal Patent Office within six calendar months next and immediately
after the date of the said Letters Patent.
NOW KNOW YE, that I, the said David Adam Fyffe, do hereby declare
the nature of my said. Invention, and in what manner the same is to be
performed, to be particularly described and ascertained in and by the following
statement, reference being, had to the accompanying Drawings, and to the
letters and figures marked, thereon, that is to say :--
My said Invention consists as follows:-A quantity of sawdust is put into a
hopper by which it is conducted to a pair of millstones and ground as fine as
possible. As the action of grinding is attended with the evolution of con-

page_text: -
siderable quantities of beat it is desirable to get rid of this as speedily as can
be arranged, and in order to do so a fan or fans are placed connected by a
pipe or duct to a cross pipe, and from the cross pipe other pipes or passages
extend to the grindstone casing, the fan being put in motion the heat currents
caused by the grinding process are got rid off. In addition to drawing off
the heat in the manner herein-before mentioned a stream of water is admitted
which passes in with the sawdust as the latter is being ground, and when
ground this becomes at once converted into pulp. In addition to the cooling
effect produced by the water the water has the advantage of enabling the
pulp to be obtained with more fibre than could be produced if ground dry.
The stone which it is preferred to employ for grinding the sawdust is that
commercially known as the Newcastle gritstone.
And in order that my said Invention may be. properly understood I shall
now proceed more particularly to. set forth the system, mode, or manner in or
under which the same is or may be used or practically carried into effect,
reference being bad, for the sake of more complete elucidation, to the Sheet
of Drawings which I have hereunto appended, that is to say :-
The Figure 1 is a sectional elevation showing the arrangements of mechanism
or apparatus which I employ for manufacturing pulp from wood. Before,
however, proceeding to specify the mechanical arrangements I shall first
explain the chemical process to which the sawdust or finely divided wood is
submitted, premising, however, that in the manufacture of pulp from wood,
sawdust of poplar wood, lime tree wood, Scotch fir-tree wood,. Norwegian fir-
tree wood, or American pine-tree wood may be employed. In treating the
sawdust or finely divided timber preparatory to the grinding a quantity of it
is spread out over the floor of a store room or loft, and sprinkled with a liquid
composed in the following proportions:-One gallon of pure spring water to
one pound of chloride of lime.. The proportions in which I prefer to use this
liquid is one gallon of the liquid to one hundredweight of the sawdust. After
the sawdust has been thus treated it is allowed to remain on the floor for
about two weeks after being turned over and trimmed into a heap before it is
taken to the stones to be ground..
ค
The mechanical treatment is as follows, reference now being had to the
appended Sheet of Drawings. The sawdust or finely divided timber is put
into the chamber A, and falls into the hopper a, a, by which it is conducted to
the interior of the grindstone casing B, thence to the eye of the upper grind-
stone C, from which it passes into the space between the grinding surfaces of
the upper and lower stones C and D, where it is reduced to the fineness
requisite. On emerging from the grinding surfaces the ground sawdust passes

page_text: to the lower part of the casing, whence it is educed by the duct E into the
elevator case F; G is a pulley for driving the elevator, which (by preference)
consists of a chain or belt of buckets passing over a drum on the shaft of the
pulley G, and over a similar drum at the upper end of the elevator case, on
arriving at the upper end the buckets of the elevator overturn and the ground
sawdust is discharged by the duct H into the hopper I, from which it is led
into the dressing machine K, shown also in end elevation at Figure 2. The
dressing machine consists of a wooden frame hexagonal in form covered with
brass wire, cloth woven by preference, with oblong holes in it, a mesh of 60 by
40 having been found on trial to answer the purpose required, the object of
this form of hole being to allow the pulp to pass through in a fibrous' form.
The dressing machine revolves in an outer closed frame or casing as shown,
to which the shakers 6 are attached, as shown, for the purpose of beating the
dresser as it revolves, thus assisting the sifting of the pulp; the-sifted pulp
passes down into a receptacle through the conductor L, and is then packed
into bales. The remainder of the pulp which does not pass through the wire
gauze is taken out of the revolving drum and ground over again. A blast or
draft is supplied to the stones. _by_a_fan_or_other_suitable apparatus, but I pre-
fer to employ one of Schiele's spiril blasts, as shown in elevation at M, M,
Figure 1. N, N', are the pipes by which the exhaustion is supplied to the
stones, and by the drawing or exhausting action the finer portions of the pulp
and the hot air are carried up through the pipes N, N¹, through the spiral and
"afterwards deposited in the chamber O, which is covered with canvas to allow
the heated air to pass off. I prefer to out the groove in the millstones after
the form and manner shown in the plan of one of the stones at Figure 3.
Having now described the nature of my said Invention, and the manner
in or under which the same is or may be used or practically carried into effect,
I would observe in conclusion that I do not claim to have invented any new
'machinery or apparatus; but what I do consider novel and original, and there-
fore claim as the Invention secured to me by the herein-before in part recited
Letters Patent is,―
First, the arrangement and combination of machinery or apparatus to be
' employed in the manufacture of wood pulp, as herein-before described, or any
mere modification thereof.
"
Second, the reducing of sawdust for the purpose of manufacturing pulp by
means" of grinding, as herein-before described; or any mere modification
thereof.
Third, the application and use of the "Newcastle gritstone" to and for the
manufacture of wood pulp, as herein-before described.

page_text: Fourth, the chemical process for preparing the sawdust or finely divided
wood preparatory to its conversion into pulp, as herein-before described, or any
mere modification thereof.
In witness whereof, I, the said David Adam Fyffe, have hereunto set
my hand and seal, this Fifteenth day of December, One thousand eight
hundred and sixty-six.
DAVID ADAM FYFFE. (L.B.)