IMPROVEMENTS IN TREATING STRAW, SPANISH GRASS, AND OTHER VEGETABLE FIBRES, IN PREPARING A BLEACHING AGENT FOR VEGETABLE FIBRES, AND IN RECOVERING AND TREATING AN ALKALI RESULTING FROM THE TREATMENT OF THE SAID FIBRES, AND IN APPARATUSES EMPLOYED THEREIN " PROAL SP
Year: 1862

page_text: LETTERS PATENT to Isham Baggs, of Cambridge Terrace, in the County
of Middlesex, Chemist and Engineer, and William Simpson, of Tovil
Upper Mills, Maidstone, in the County of Kent, Paper Maker, for the
Invention of "IMPROVEMENTS IN TREATING STRAW, SPANISH GRASS, AND
OTHER VEGETABLE FIBRES, IN PREPARING A BLEACHING AGENT FOR VEGETABLE
FIBRES, AND IN RECOVERING AND TREATING AN ALKALI RESULTING FROM THE
TREATMENT OF THE SAID FIBRES, AND IN APPARATUSES EMPLOYED THEREIN "
PROVISIONAL SPECIFICATION left by the said Isham Baggs and William
Simpson at the Office of the Commissioners of Patents, with their
Petition, on the 15th May 1862.
WE, ISHAM BAGGS, of Cambridge Terrace, in the County of Middlesex,
Chemist and Engineer, and WILLIAM SIMPSON, of Tovil Upper Mills, Maid-
stone, in the County of Kent, Parer Maker, do hereby declare the nature of
the Invention for "IMPROVEMENTS IN TREATING STRAW, SPANISH GRASS, AND
OTHER VEGETABLE FIBRES, IN PREPARING A BLEACHING AGENT FOR VEGETABLE
FIBRES, AND IN RECOVERING AND TREATING AN ALKALI RESULTING FROM THE
TREATMENT OF THE SAID FIBRES, AND IN APPARATUSES EMPLOYED THEREIN," to
be as follows:-
Our Invention consists, first, in removing the silex from straw, Spanish
grass, and other vegetable fibres, by means of hydrofluoric acid, either in a
liquid form or in the form of gas. We construct an apparatus or vessel, in
[Price 8d.1

page_text: which the fibres are subjected to the action of the gas, as follows:-We
take a cylinder formed with screw vanes or blades on the interior thereof,
and carry a perforated pipe through the centre; this pipe is in communi-
cation at one end with the gas supply, and also with an air pipe, through
which air is forced by a fan or otherwise. The straw or other fibre is fed
in by a tilting rake or other like. contrivance at one-end-of the cylinder,
which being caused to revolve, carries the fibres gradually along and finally
out at the opposite end.
Second, in the partial-recovery-of-the-alkali-from-the-liquor in which the
straw or other fibre has been boiled by means of steam or hot water.
Third, in the distillation of the residuum, after boiling and evaporation,
in a close retort, whereby we obtain a gas fit for illuminating purposes.
Fourth, in manufacturing chlorine for bleaching the said fibres and others,
as follows: We take two separate vessels, one of which contains substances
from which muriatic acid gas is generated, while the other contains the
materials which decompose the muriatic acid and give off chlorine. We
prefer to mount this second vessel upon trunnions. The gas is led from the
first into the second vessel, and the chlorine evolved in the second vessel
is led into a third vessel containing water, or water and lime, or other base,
and an agitator. The chlorine is absorbed and a bleaching liquid obtained.
SPECIFICATION in pursuance of the conditions of the Letters Patent, filed
by the said Isham Baggs and William Simpson in the Great Seal
Patent Office on the 15th November 1862.
TO ALL TO WHOM THESE PRESENTS SHALL COME, we, ISHAM
BAGGS, of Cambridge Terrace, in the County of Middlesex, Chemist and
Engineer, and WILLIAM SIMPSON, of Tovill Upper Mills, Maidstone, in the
County of Kent, Paper Maker, send greeting.
WHEREAS Her most Excellent Majesty Queen Victoria, by Her Letters
Patent, bearing date the Fifteenth day of May, in the year of our Lord Que
thousand eight hundred, and sixty-two, in the twenty-fifth year of Her
reign, did, for Herself, Her heirs and successors, give and grant unto us,
the said Isham Baggs and Willliam Simpson, Her special licence, that we,
the said Isham Baggs and William Simpson, ourexecutors, administrators,
and assigns, or such others as we, the said Isham Baggs and William
Simpson, our executors,administrators, and assigns, should at any time agree
with, and no others, from time to time and at all times thereafter during the

page_text: "
term therein ex ressed, 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 TREATING STRAW.
SPANISH GRASS, AND OTHER VEGETABLE FIBRES, IN PREPARING A BLEACHING AGENT.
FOR VEGETABLE FIBRES, AND IN RECOVERING AND TREATING AN ALKALI RESULTING
FROM THE TREATMENT OF THE SAID FIBRES, AND IN APPARATUSES EMPLOYED THEREIN,
upon the condition (amongst others) that we, the said Isham Baggs and Williain
Simpson, or one of us, our executors or administrators, by an instrument in
writing under our, or one of our, or their, or one of their hands and seals,
should particularly describe and ascertain the nature of the said Invention,
and in what mauner 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 we, the said Isham Baggs and William Simpson,
do hereby declare the nature of our said Invention, and in what manner the
same is to be perforined, to be particularly described and ascertained in aud
by the following statement thereof, that is to say :-
Our Invention consists, firstly, in treating straw, Spanish grass, and other
vegetable fibres, in order to separate and remove the silex therefrom, by sub-
jecting the fibres to the action of hydrofluoric acid in a gaseous or liquid form.
When in a gaseous form we apply it through an apparatus constructed and
acting as next herein-after described. We take a cylinder or other vessel,closed
except at points for the admission and discharge of the straw or other fibres
acted upon. We mount inside the cylinder an archimedean screw, the axis of
which is perforated and is made to communicate at one end with a supply of
hydrofluoric acid gas, which may be generated in a leaden still from a mixture
of powdered fluor spar and oil of vitriol or other suitable materials developed
under heat. When we employ the still for generating the gas we connect the
neck thereof with the hollow axis of the screw through a leaden pipe working
in a stuffing box and vulcanized india-rubber tubing. We also connect to the
gas supply pipe a pipe leading from a fan or bellows and provided with regu-
lating cocks, through which atmospheric air is admitted, when and in the
proportions required, to dilute the gas. In order to economize the gas the
hollow perforated axis may be plugged to stop the passage of the gas and air
through it beyond a certain point in the vessel. A supply of straw or other
vegetable fibres, after having been cut in lengths, which should not exceed
one inch, as fed into the vessel at one end, the screw is caused to revolve,
whereby the fibres become distributed along the vessel, the gas, or gas and air,
are admitted, and issuing into and among the fibres, as they are carried through

page_text: the vessel, the gas removes the silex therefrom. The fibres, on reaching the
further end of the vessel, are delivered therefrom into receivers or into boilers
to be subjected to the action of boiling caustic alkali. When the hydrofluoric
acid is used in a liquid form we prefer to aid its action by raising it to a tem-
perature of about 212° Fahrenheit. In order to keep the fibres well under
the action of the liquor, we place over them, below the level of the liquor,
perforated plates or textile or open-work fabric. The fibres will require to be
subjected to the liquor for from one hour upwards, varying with the strength
of the liquor and the nature of the fibres. After the steeping the fibres may
be removed drectly to the boilers. The vessels used, whether for the gas or
liquid process, should be of.lead or other material not readily acted upon by
the acid; or if of wood, they should be lined with lead or coated with some
protective varnish or coating, such as marine glue or gutta percha. The
fibres, after having been treated by the hydrofluoric acid, are next boiled in
the ordinary manner in caustic alkaline solution.
Now the second and third parts of our Invention consist in the recovery of
part of the alkali so used, heretofore generally wasted, and in the production
of illuminating gas resulting from our treatment for the recovery of the said
alkali. After the boiling of the fibres in the alkaline liquor we cause the
liquor to trickle in showers through roses or perforated pipes upon heated
metal tubes, which we prefer to place horizontally. The tubes are united by
pipes common to the whole of the tubes or otherwise, in order that the heating.
medium, steam, air, or water, may pass through a series of several tubes.
The heat causes the evaporation of the liquor and the deposit on the tubes of
a solid matter, we scrape this deposit off the tubes when a sufficient quantity
has accumulated, and subject it to distillation under heat in retorts; the gas
evolved is collected and stored, and is applicable fer illuminating purposes.
The substance remaining in the retorts is caustic alkali, which may be used
again in the treatment of vegetable fibres or otherwise. Instead of the
liquor being evaporated upon tubes, heated cellular plates or slabs may be
employed.
The fourth part of our Invention consists in manufacturing chlorine, or
bleaching agent for straw and other vegetable fibres. We proceed as follows:
-We take two separate vessels, one of which is a retort made of iron, clay,
or other fire-resisting material, in which we place chloride of sodium or
common salt and close the retort. For the purpose of readily charging the
retort with sulphuric acid, in order to generate muriatic acid gas, we insert
one or more safety tubes with funnel mouths into the crown or upper part of
the retort. Instead of the vessel being of the description last described an

page_text: ordinary apparatus for the generation of muriatic acid gas may be used. The
second vessel is hermetically closed, and contains black oxide of manganese
and water, the materials which decompose muriatic acid and give off chlorine.
The muria'ic acid gas is led from the first into the second vessel, the gas is
absorbed and heat is generated, which heat causes the muriatic acid to decom-
pose the manganese and suffers decomposition itself, and chlorine is evolved,
according to well-known chemical law. The chlorine evolved in such second
vessel may be either conducted into a chamber containing slaked lime, as
ordinarily practised in the preparation of chloride of lime, or it may be con-
ducted into a cistern containing a mixture of fresh lime and water, which,
while the chlorine is passing into it, must be kept well stirred, in order that
As it
the gas may be absorbed and a powerful bleaching liquid obtained.
is preferrable to allow the pipe supplying the muriatic acid to dip into the
mixture of manganese and water we employ an exhauster to effect the more
ready passage and consequent decomposition of the gas.
And having now described the nature of our said Invention, and in what
manner the same is to be performed, we declare that we claim,―
First, the employment of hydrofluoric acid, in a liquid or in a gaseous form,
for the purpose of separating straw, Spanish grass, and other vegetable fibres
from the silex contained in or combined with them.
Second, recovering the alkali, or a portion thereof, employed in the
treatment of vegetable fibres, by the means and in manner herein-before
described.
Third, the preparation of chlorine, the bleaching agent for vegetable
fibres, by means and in manner herein-before described.
And, fourth, the apparatus employed in subjecting the vegetable fibres to
the hydrofluoric acid in a gaseous state, and the construction and employment
of retorts as herein-before described in the manufacture of the bleaching
agent, all as herein-before described.
In witness whereof, I, the said William Simpson, for myself and on
behalf of the said Isham Baggs, have hereunto set my hand and seal,
this Fourteenth day of November, One thousand eight hundred and
WM. SIMPSON. (L.S.)