IMPROVE- " MENTS IN THE MODE OF AN APPARATUS FOR THE EXTRACTION AND TREATMENT
Year: 1874

page_text: LETTERS PATENT to John Potter Wilkes, of Trinity Square, Great
Tower Street, in the City of London, Merchant,, and Anthony
Aunier, of Ladbroke Grove Road, Notting Hill, in the County of
Middlesex, Doctor of Chemistry, for the Invention of "IMPROVE-
"
MENTS IN THE MODE OF AN APPARATUS FOR THE EXTRACTION AND TREATMENT
Sealed the 5th March 1875, and dated the 9th September 1874.
PROVISIONAL SPECIFICATION left by the said John Potter Wilkes
and Anthony Aunier at the Office of the Commissioners of Patents,
with their Petition, on the 9th September 1874.
We, JOHN POTTER WILKES, of Trinity Square, Great Tower Street, in
the City of London, Merchant, and ANTHONY AUNIER, of Ladbroke
Grove Road, Notting Hill, in the County of Middlesex, Doctor of
Chemistry, do hereby declare the nature of our said Invention for
"IMPROVEMENTS IN THE MODE OF AN APPARATUS FOR THE EXTRACTION AND
TREATMENT OF SULPHUR," to be as follows:-
The said Invention relates to the extraction and treatment of sulphur,
and consists chiefly,-

page_text: First. In passing steam or other vapors or gases containing oxygen.
and hydrogen, or either of them through a retort or receptacle which
contains the ores or other substances to be treated, the said substances
being heated by the steam vapors or gases introduced, or by the
application of heat directly to the retort.
Second. In the combustion or heating of the sulpheretted hydrogen
generated by said process in combination with air or vapors, gases, or
substances yielding oxygen to produce sulphurous acid.
Third. The employment of the sulphurous acid thus or otherwise
produced, or vapors, gases, or substances yielding oxygen in a closed
chamber or vessel containing sulphuretted hydrogen, by which means
the sulphurous acid or the sulphuretted hydrogen, or both, are decomposed
and the sulphur precipitated.
.
Fourth. In the treatment as above stated of sulphurous acid or
sulphur fumes however generated.
Fifth. In the treatment of sulphuretted hydrogen with nitrous
compounds of oxygen by passing the same into a chamber containing a
vessel or vessels or trays, on which the nitrous compounds are placed for
the purpose of decomposing the sulphuretted hydrogen and depositing
the sulphur.
Sixth. In the novel construction and arrangement of the apparatus
employed in the carrying out the said process.
We employ a retort or other vessel, by preference a clay retort, in
which we place copper or iron pyrites or other sulphurous substances to
be treated, and into the said retort we introduce, by preference steam,
the gases, fumes, and vapors passing through pipes into vessels or
chambers, in the first of which the free sulphur is deposited. The
sulphuretted hydrogen is made to pass through the first vessel and then
through two pipes into a second vessel, and air being admitted into
one of these pipes in sufficient quantity to inflame the sulphuretted
hydrogen which is thus converted into. sulphurous acid, the latter
coming into contact with the sulphuretted hydrogen entering through
the other pipe into the closed vessel, and the sulphur is thereby
precipitated.
We may supply the sulphurous acid or the sulphuretted hydrogen

page_text: process. We may also precipitate the sulphur by placing nitrous
compounds of oxygen in vessels in the chamber containing the
sulphuretted hydrogen, the nitrous compounds recuperating themselves'
Iwith little waste.
The nitrous compounds are placed, by preference, in a series of flat
vessels. The fumes that remain uncondensed in the second chamber
pass through pipes into one or more vessels containing water, and are
thereby condensed.
TU
SPECIFICATION in pursuance of the conditions of the Letters Patent,.
filed by the said John Potter Wilkes and Anthony Aunier in the
Great Seal Patent Office on the 9th March 1875.
TO ALL TO WHOM THESE PRESENTS SHALL COME, wc, JOHN
POTTER WILKES, of Trinity Square, Great Tower Street, in the City of
London, Merchant, and ANTHONY AUNIER, of Ladbroke Grove Road,
Notting Hill, in the County of Middlesex, Doctor of Chemistry, send
grecting.
.
WHEREAS Her most Excellent Majesty Queen Victoria, by Her
Letters Patent, bearing date the Ninth day of September, in the year
of our Lord One thousand eight hundred and seventy-four, in the
thirty-eighth year of Her reign, did, for Herself, Her heirs and suc-
cessors, give and grant unto us, the said John Potter Wilkes and
Anthony Aunier, Her special licence that we, the said John Potter.
Wilkes and Anthony Aunier, our executors, administrators, and assigns,
or such others as we, the said John Potter Wilkes and Anthony
Aunier, our executors, administrators, and assigns, should at any time.
agree with and no others, from time to time and at all times there-
after 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 MODE OF AND APPARATUS FOR THE EXTRACTION AND
TREATMENT OF SULPHUR," upon the condition (amongst others) that we,

page_text: the said John Potter Wilkes and Anthony Aunier, our executors or
administrators, by an instrument in writing under our, or their, or one
of their hands and seals, 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 we, the said Jolin Potter Wilkes and Anthony
Aunier, do hereby declare the nature of our said Invention, and in
what manner the same is to be performed to be particularly described
and ascertained in and by the following statement:-
-The said Invention relates chiefly to the extraction of sulphuretted
hydrogen from ores containing sulphur by subjecting them to the action
of steam or other vapors, gases, or substances containing oxygen and
hydrogen, either separately or in combination in a closed vessel from
which air is preferably excluded, the said ores being heated by the steam
vapors or gases introduced, or by the application of heat in any other
manner to the retort. It also relates to the production of sulphur from
the sulphuretted hydrogen so obtained, and to apparatus employed
therefor, and to the treatment of the sulphur as herein-after described.
First. We pass steam or other vapour or gas containing oxygen and
hydrogen, either separately or in combination, but by preference steam,
into a retort or receptacle which contains the ore to be treated. We heat'
the retort or the steam or other vapor, or gas containing oxygen and
hydrogen, to facilitate the liberation of the sulphur and the combination
therewith of the hydrogen contained in the steam or vapor, or gas used
in this part of the process so as to form sulphuretted hydrogen.
Secondly. We burn the sulphuretted hydrogen thus produced in com
bination with a sufficient quantity of air either in the retort or out of
it, in order to produce sulphurous acid, or we mix the sulphuretted
bydrogen in combination with air or oxygen or any substance containing
oxygen, and heat the same to produce the desired result.
Thirdly. We use the sulphurous acid in a close vessel or chamber,
together with the sulphuretted hydrogen obtained in the first process, by
which means the sulphur contained in both gases is precipitated.
Fourthly. We employ sulphurous acid and sulphuretted hydrogen to
deposit the sulphur.

page_text: of
Fifthly. We also precipitate the sulphur by placing nitrous compounds
oxygen in vessels in the chamber containing the sulphuretted
hydrogen, the nitrous compounds recuperating themselves from the
atmospheric air with little waste. The nitrous compounds are placed,
by preference, in a scries of flat vessels. The gas that remains
undecomposed in the second chamber passes through pipes into one or
more similar chambers for the completion of its decomposition..
Sixthly. The sulphuretted hydrogen generated by our process may be
advantageously used in the manufacture of sulphuric acid.
>
We do not limit ourselves to any particular construction of apparatus:
for carrying our said Invention into practise, but we find the following
to answer well, that is to say, an apparatus which has a boiler or vessel
from which steam or other vapor or gas containing oxygen or hydrogen,
or both, but by preference steam is obtained. A pipe is connected to this
boiler or vessel to convey the steam or vapor or gas to a retort, wherein is
placed the ore from which the sulphur is to be extracted. A pipe extends
from this retort and conducts the sulphuretted hydrogen and sulphur
fumes to one or more chambers in which any free sulphur is deposited.
We provide an apparatus in which a portion of the sulphuretted
hydrogen is burnt in combination with air to form sulphurous acid,
which, together with the remaining or other sulphuretted hydrogen, is
admitted into a chamber in which the sulphur is precipitated. Suitable
pipes are provided for carrying off any undecomposed gases to other
similar chambers in which they are retained. These chambers or vessels
may or may not be supplied with water.
When we use a nitrous compound of oxygen we place it, by preference,
in trays or vessels in the chamber or chambers into which sulphuretted
hydrogen is admitted with atmospheric air, or we pass the sulphuretted
hydrogen as it comes from the first-named chamber, or from the retort,
over or through a series of small chambers containing the nitrous
compounds.
When we use our process for the manufacture of sulphuric acid we
convert the sulphuretted hydrogen into sulphurous acid as before
described in one of the chambers of the sulphuric acid apparatus, and
as the sulphurous acid so generated contains steam or vapor it materially
facilitates the formation of sulphuric acid.

page_text: Having thus described an ascertained the nature of our said Invention
and the manner of performing the same, we wish it understood that we.
claim,―
First. The production of sulphuretted hydrogen by subjecting ores
containing sulphur to the action of steam or other gases or vapours
containing oxygen and hydrogen, either separately or in combination, in
a closed vessel.
Second. The treating of the sulphuretted hydrogen obtained by our
process by heating the same, and using therewith atmospheric air for
the production or precipitation of sulphur, as herein set forth.
Third. The treating of the sulphuretted hydrogen obtained by our:
process with nitrous compounds of oxygen for the production or
precipitation of sulphur, as herein set forth.
:
Fourth. The apparatus with parts arranged and combined, as herein
set forth and for the purposes specified.
Fifth. The application of our process or a part of such process to the
manufacture of sulphuric acid.
In witness whereof, we, the said John Potter Wilkes and Anthony
Aunier, have hereunto set our hands and seals, this Ninth day
of March, in the year of our Lord One thousand eight hundred
and seventy-five.
Witness,
W. ROBT. LAKE.
J. P. WILKES. (L.S.)
A. AUNIER.
(L.S.)