Improved Means for Clarifying, Purifying, Disinfecting, and Utilizing Sewage and other Foul or Waste Waters.
Year: 1888

page_text: PROVISIONAL SPECIFICATION.
Improved Means for Clarifying, Purifying, Disinfecting, and Utilizing
Sewage and other Foul or Waste Waters.
I, HUGO WOLLHEIM, Chemist, of No. 101 Leadenhall street, in the city of London,
county of Middlesex do hereby declare the nature of this invention to be as
follows
°
I use in the treatment of sewage and other foul! or waste waters a new reagent,
produced by the chemical combination of Lime with Trimethylamine or isomeres
The effect of the said treatment is:
thereof or salts or combinations of the same.
1) complete clarification and 2) partial purification (by precipitation of the solids in
suspension and a portion of those in solution 3) radical disinfection (by the extirpation
i.e. the destroying of the vitality of all gerins and spores capable of inducing chemical
change or disease) 4) production of a precipitate (sludge) which can be pressed into.
cake or further dried or powdered by air or heat, and which, by different scientific
treatments can be made to yield products of commercial value, manurial or otherwise.
The clarified purified and disinfected liquid (effluent) which is brilliantly clear and
bright, is free from offensive odour or deleterious matter and not injurious to fish
life; it is also free from liability to new infection by contact with air or water, even
under a high temperature, and therefore admissible into open water courses under all
conditions of temperature and tide.
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page_text: COMPLETE SPECIFICATION.
Improved Means for Clarifying, Purifying, Disinfecting, and Utilizin
Sewage and other Foul or Waste Waters.
I, HUGO WOLLHEIM, of 101 Leadenhall Street, in the City of London, county o
Middlesex, chemist, do hereby declare the nature of this invention and in what manne
the same is to be performed to be particularly described and ascertained in and by
the following statement :-
My invention relates to the treatment of sewage or other foul or waste waters for
their clarification, purification, disinfection, and utilisation of the resulting matters and
consists in the treatment of the said sewage, or other foul or waste waters, essentially
by a new reagent formed by the action of lime (or other alkalis with a similar reaction)
on trimethylamine or isomers thereof, or salts or combinations of the same, or com-
pounds containing such. The line in sewage treatment serves the double purpose of
producing the necessary reaction upon the trimethylamine to release the new reagent,
and at the same time to precipitate solid matters as in ordinary use.
The total effect of the said treatment is :-
First, complete clarification and partial purification by the precipitation of tho
solid matters in suspension, and a portion of those in solution.
Second, absolute disinfection, by the extirpation (ie. the absolute destruction of the
vitality) of all germs and their spores, which, if undestroyed, would be capable of
inducing thereafter, chemical change or disease.
Third, the production of a precipitate or sludge which can be pressed into cakes or
further dried and powdered by air or heat or be otherwise manipulated, and which by
suitable treatment, may be made to yield various products af agricultural or com-
,mercial value, or which may also be utilized as a precipitant for further quantities of
sewage..
The clarified, purified, and disinfected liquid (effluent) produced by this process is
clear and bright, and free from offensive olour and deleterious matter.
from liability to putrefactive change thereafter, even at high temperatures and conse-
quently admissible into open water courses, without risk of nuisance or danger to the
It is also free
health. It may be advantageously applied for irrigation.
I carry out my process in the following manner :-
For the clarification and purification of sewage for instance I prefer to use lime in 3
the condition of milk of lime, varying in strength according to the degree of clarifi-
cation which is required in each particular case.
can be reached in the treatment of ordinary fresh town sewage, for instance, I have
The maximum of clarification which
found to be obtainable by adding to such sewage and thoroughly mixing therewith,
the milk of lime in such proportion that about one gramme of quicklime is added to 3
every litre of sewage but the precipitate or sludge resulting from such treatment, if
fortified by the addition of about one fourth of the quantity of quicklime used in the
first instance, will treat another like volume of sewage and this procedure can be
repeated with good effect once or twice more, so that eventually the quantity of quick-
lime actually used would amount to less than half a gramme to every litre of sewage 40
treated.

page_text: I do not claim particular novelty for the said clarification and partial purification of
the sewage or other liquid treated, but the absolute disinfection which is the essential
part of my process is accomplished as follows:-
Before applying to the sewage or other liquid the milk of lime, as above stated I
introduce into the said milk of lime when it is freshly prepared, trimethylamine, or an
isomer, or salt or combination of the same or a compound containing such. By such
introduction a very soluble gas is evolved and is retained in the solution with very
great tenacity. Its presence may be observed by a marked, peculiar, and rather
agreeable odour, quite distinguishable from that pertaining to the trimethylamine or
other compounds before their introduction into the milk of lime. This gas I have
found to be capable, even in very minute quantities of destroying in a remarkably
short space of time, every species of micro-organism occurring in sewage and other
foul or waste waters.
The said gas is therefore a true and most powerful disinfectant, and it has great
advantages over other powerful disinfectants in that it is non-poisonous and compara-
tively cheap.
For the proper evolution of the said gas 1 add trimethylamine, or isomers, thereof,
or salts or combinations of the same or compounds containing such, in the proportion
of about one fourth of a gramme of trimethylamine to every such volume of the milk
of lime as is intended for the treatment of about 1000 litres of ordinary fresh town
sewage which charge of trimethylamine I have generally found sufficient for the
evolution of the new reagent to effect thorough disinfection.
Thus by adding to the sewage or other foul or waste waters and thoroughly inter-
mixing therewith a suitable quantity (varying of course in accordance with the nature
of the liquid to be treated) of the precipitant, formed as above described, such liquid
is clarified and partially purified by the action of the lime whilst simultaneously the
sewage or other liquid is absolutely disinfected by the effect of the new gaseous
reagent (evolved from the trimethylamine) on the micro-organisms as above stated.
When the precipitated solid matter is sufficiently settled to leave a perfectly clear
and bright supernatant liquid (effluent) the latter can be drawn off for discharge or
utilisation as the case may be, and the sediment or sludge can be removed for pressing
and powdering or such other manipulation as may be desired.
Having now particularly described and ascertained the nature of my said inven-
tion and in what manner the same is to be performed, I declare that what I
claim is :-
1st. The improved means for clarifying, purifying and disinfecting sewage and
other foul or waste waters by the chemical combination of quicklime or other alkalis
of similar reaction and trimethylamine or isomers thereof, or salts or combinations of
the same, or compounds containing such substantially as and for the purposes
described.
2nd. The formation and utilisation of the special products obtained from the said
process or treatment of sewage or other foul or waste waters, substantially as herein-
before described.
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