An Improved Process for the Treatment of Grain before Grinding and Apparatus therefor.
Year: 1899

page_text: Date of Application, 4th May, 1899-Accepted, 8th July, 1899
[Communicated from abroad by GUGLIELMO BIANCHINI, of 4, Via Cappellari,
Milan, in the Kingdom of Italy, Merchant.]
An Improved Process for the Treatment of Grain before Grinding and
Apparatus therefor.
I, HENRY HARRIS LAKE, of the Firm of Haseltine, Lake & Co., Patent Agents,
45, Southampton Buildings, in the County of Middlesex, 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:-
-
This invention relates to a process for the treatment of grain prior to its being
ground and to apparatus therefor.
In the following description the expression grain is used in the sense of
cereals of all kinds which are. milled, that is to say, wheat, Indian corn, rye and
so forth.
Attempts have long been made to obtain a perfect decortication of the grain
before milling, for the purpose of increasing the proportion of the resulting pro-
duct which is capable of being placed upon the market and for obtaining flour of
exceptional purity by the previous elimination of germs, dust and the cortical
envelope. These efforts have not hitherto met with success, because the decorti-
cating appliances at present in use produce too great a proportion of broken grains
or absorb too much power.
These defects are obviated by means of the process and apparatus which form
the subject of this invention. No rupture of the grains takes place, and from
1000 to 1200 kilogrammes of grain may be decorticated per hour with a force of
31/2 horse power, only 3% of the weight of the grain being removed; by employ-
ing a force slightly greater than this, and by moistening the grain rather more
than usual, an absolutely perfect decortication may be effected.
The treatment to which the grain is submitted is as follows: It is first of all
moistened by means of water in a very finely divided condition, heated slightly
and uniformly, more especially in winter, (to about 25° C.). The grain which has
been previously moistened in this manner is then worked by friction upon itself
and against the surface of a vessel which is open at its upper portion and having
the form of a solid of revolution, contracting from its maximum parallel situated
at approximately one half its height, towards its upper edge. The grain is
delivered from this vessel after having been carried against the cutting blades
with which the wall of the vessel is provided slightly below its upper aperture.
This rubbing of the grain upon itself, against the walls of the vessel and against
the cutting blades, is obtained by causing the grain to descend within the vessel
at its central portion and to then ascend along the walls of the vessel where it
comes into contact with the cutting blades.
The classing or separating of the products of the decortication (such as germs,
decorticated grains, bran and so forth) which are delivered through the upper
aperture of the vessel, is then effected by means of bolting and other known >
machines.

page_text: In the accompanying drawing I have shown by way of example one method of
carrying my invention into practice.
Figure 1 is a vertical section through the upper portion of the apparatus in
which the moistening of the grain is effected.
Figure 2 is a lateral view corresponding to that shewn in Figure 1.
Figure 3 is a sectional view taken upon the line A-B of Figure 1.
Figure 4 is a vertical section of the lower portion of the same apparatus
where the decortication properly so called takes place.
Figure 5 is a plan view as seen from above corresponding to Figure 4.
Figure 6 is a detail view corresponding to Figure 4.
That portion of the apparatus in which the moistening of the grain takes place
consists of a box or casing 1 (preferably of copper) traversed by tubes 2 which
are supplied with cold water from the reservoir 3 provided with a cock 4, also
serving for filling the box or casing 1. The water contained in the box or casing
is heated by the furnace 5 and slightly heats in its turn the water coming from
the reservoir 3 and traversing the tubes 2 2.
When the register 6 is opened, this water enters the chamber 7, from which,
being finely subdivided by means of the holes 8, it falls upon the grain which
has been previously cleaned and which issues from the hopper 9.
The grain is conveyed to the lower portion of the apparatus by means of an
Archimedian screw 10 which is of such a length that the moisture may be disturbed
upon the grain in a uniform manner. This lower portion of the apparatus, which
is that in which the decortication takes place, (see Figures 4 and 5) consists of
a vessel which is preferably spherical in shape and which may be of metal,
cement, wood emery or any other suitable material. This vessel is open at its
upper portion and is traversed by a vertical shaft to which movement is imparted
by any appropriate means. A circular aperture is provided at the lower portion
of the vessel and enables it to be completely emptied at the termination of the
operation; this aperture is normally closed by means of an obturator 11.
The large opening at the upper portion of the vessel, corresponding to a parallel
of the sphere is surrounded by à gutter 12, provided with apertures 13, and
terminating in conduits 14. The inner wall of the vessel is provided, slightly
below the said upper opening, with cutting blades 15 of steel. The shaft 16 is
provided with a screw 17 which also has a cutting edge, and with an S-shaped
vane 18, of which Figure 6 is a plan view.
The pipe 19, which is attached to the shaft 16 in the manner shewn in the
drawing, or fixed to the sphere, receives the grain conveyed by the screw 10. The
shaft 16 imparts motion to the metal scoop 20 which passes along the surface of
the cutting blades 15 and to the leather scoop 21 which adapts itself to the form
of the gutter 12 upon the bottom of which it passes.
The grain is introduced into the sleeve 19 in a uniform and continuous manner,
the screw 17 conveying it to the lower part of the apparatus; the vane 18 then
directs it towards the walls of the vessel along which it is forced to ascend.
In this manner the grain is worked by the rubbing of the grains one against
the other, by friction against the walls of the vessel, and by the cutting action
of the screw 17 and of the blades 15. The introduction of the grain through the
pipe 19 may be regulated in such a manner that the quantity which enters the
vessel, is invariably equal to that which issues therefrom at the upper opening,
and in such a manner that the grain remains in the machine during the time
necessary for undergoing complete decortication.
Immediately the grain, in ascending, reaches the height at which the scoop 20
is situated, this latter throws it, owing to centrifugal force, against the lid 22
from which it falls into the gutter 12 and is removed therefrom by the scoop 21,
which directs it towards the apertures 13 and the discharge con-
duits 14. The apparatus thus operates in a continuous manner until, the treat-
ment of a portion of the grain having been terminated, the vessel is emptied by
opening the obturator 11.

page_text: Having now particularly described and ascertained the nature of my said
invention and in what manner the same is to be performed, as communicated to
me by my foreign correspondent, I declare that what I claim is;-
1. A process for the treatment of grain before milling, characterized by the
fact that the grain, which has been previously cleansed and moistened by means
of finely divided water at a temperature of about 25° C., is submitted to the
action of a propelling member provided with cutting blades which first of all
force it to descend in proximity to the axis of the apparatus and then to ascend
along the walls of the vessel, which walls are smooth at their lower portion and
provided with cutting blades above.
2. An apparatus for carrying into effect the process described in Claim 1, and
consisting essentially of a water bath heating device serving to moisten the
grain, after the water has been finely divided, and of a vessel open at its upper
portion having the form of a solid of revolution and contracting from its maximum
parallel, situated at approximately one half its height, up to the upper opening,
the walls of this vessel being lined with cutting blades arranged close to the said
opening, a rotating shaft being arranged at the geometrical axis of the vessel,
such shaft being provided with a cutting screw which rotates in such a direction
as to force the grain downwards, and beneath the screw a vane impelling the
grain towards the periphery, in such a manner as to force it to descend along the
axis of the vessel and then to ascend along its walls until it reaches the upper
opening.
3. In an apparatus such as described in Claim 2, the application of a central
admission tube and of an upper opening, corresponding to a section of the vessel
along a horizontal parallel, in such a manner that by means of a rotating scoop.
or any other equivalent device forcing the grain which has reached the upper
opening to enter a gutter which surrounds the said upper opening of the vessel
and conduits opening into the gutter and terminating outside the apparatus, the
machine may be caused to operate in an absolutely automatic manner, by suitably
regulating the quantity of grain introduced into it, the grain entering in the
direction of the axis of the vessel, remaining there a sufficient time for decorti-
cation to be effected and then issuing from the upper opening in a quantity ¨
exactly equal to that which enters the apparatus in the same time.
1
1
1000
HASELTINE, LAKE & Co.,
.45, Southampton Buildings, London, W.C.,
Agents for the Applicant.
HASELTINE, LAKE & Co.,
. 45, Southampton Buildings, London, W.C.,
Agents for the Applicant.