Improvements in the Process of Treating Gelatine, and the Production therefrom of Imitations of various Substances.
Year: 1898

page_text: PROVISIONAL SPECIFICATION.
Improvements in the Process of Treating Gelatine, and the Production
therefrom of Imitations of various Substances.
We, ALEXANDER MACFARLANE, of 149, Manx Terrace, Blackley, Manchester,
Fellow of the Chemical Society, London, and Analytical Chemist, and HERBERT
WILLIAM STANBURY, of Albion Place, Hanley, Staffordshire, Gentleman, do
hereby declare the nature of this invention to be as follows:-
This invention relates to the chemical treatment of gelatine whereby to render
it insoluble, resilient, and flexible and convert it into a substance resembling
celluloid, glass, ivory, or the like and adapted for the uses to which those sub-
stances are commonly put, the invention particularly comprising the application
of the gelatine so treated and suitably coloured, to the globes and bulbs of
electric arc and glow lamps, and to sheet glass to produce therewith a coloured
translucent medium usable as a substitute for what is known as flashed glass
and the like, and likewise its application to fabrics and materials for the
purpose of waterproofing the same and its application for the production of an
imitation of leather cloth and the like for covering tables, walls, and
other surfaces, and also its application as an enamel, varnish, or glaze to earthen-
ware and other substances.
The method of chemically treating the gelatine consists essentially in the
addition to the gelatine in solution and in admixture or not with suitable body
or colouring matters of a solution of formaldehyde (having the formula CHO
and known also under the names of formol and formalin) the operation being so
performed and the solution being of such strength and in such proportion as
hereinafter specified that the gelatine on being dried will be insoluble in water
or dilute acids or alkalis and will possess properties rendering it suitable for the
uses hereinbefore referred to.
The treatment should be effected as follows:- -A good clear gelatine is dis-
solved by first soaking it in cold water for a few hours until it has absorbed
twice its own weight of water and it is then heated in a suitable vessel, precau-
tions being taken to prevent the heat exceeding 100° Fahrenheit in order to avoid
brittleness of the resulting product. Should the weight of the soaked gelatine
before heating, not amount to three times the original weight of the gelatine,
water should be added to supply the deficiency. When the heated gelatine has
become limpid and while still warm, an aqueous solution of formaldehyde (of
about 40% strength of CH2O) is added in the proportion of one part by weight
of formaldehyde solution to one hundred parts of gelatine solution. At this
stage any desired colouring matter may be added, the most suitable being a trans-
parent aniline colour where transparency of the insoluble product is required. If
an opaque product is required, the same or any other suitable colouring matters
may be added in conjunction with suitable body materials such as sulphate of
barium or zinc oxide, in the case of ivory, or minerals finely ground, water glass,
and further ground waste products as waste cork or leather, and also further

page_text: cellulose, gutta-percha or india-rubber dissolved in a suitable medium and stirred
into the gelatine to form an emulsion.
At this stage the further treatment will be varied according to the nature of
the application of the new product or the form of the article to be produced,
and it comprises the application of the chemically treated gelatine solution by
spreading, rolling, dipping, painting, or otherwise applying it to fabrics or to
the surface of glass, wood, earthenware, or other solid substances to be coated,
or the moulding, pressing, or rolling of the gelatine where it is to be used alone
as a body substance without support, but in all cases it is essential that the
drying of the chemically treated gelatine from the solution to the solid form be
effected at a temperature not exceeding 70° Fahrenheit and preferably in vacuo
at, say, five to ten pounds pressure, otherwise the product will be unduly brittle.
For the production of imitations of what are known as flash ruby glass and the
like in different colours, a coating of gold size or shellac and the like gums
dissolved in alcohol or water glass is applied to the surface of plain sheet glass
and when nearly, but not quite, dry the solution of gelatine chemically treated
as above described is poured or spread on the coated surface to the desired thick-
ness which on being dried as above mentioned will form an insoluble coloured
layer firmly adherent to the glass support and forming in combination therewith
a substitute for flash-coloured window glass. While the gelatine is still plastic
it may be embossed or moulded with suitable patterns or designs.
When dry,
the gelatine may be cut out and stripped from the glass for the production of
colourless transparent designs upon a coloured ground and vice versa for artistic
decorative or other purposes. The globes and bulbs of electric arc and glow
lamps are similarly covered by dipping.
To produce a waterproof non-inflammable, resilient and flexible product in
imitation of leather, leather cloth, waterproof fabrics, and the like, we add to the
solution of gelatine treated with formalin and suitably coloured as above described,
tungstate of soda, castor oil, glycerine, and silicate of soda or potash (commonly
known as water glass) of each, say, 1% and spread, roll, or otherwise incorporate
the mixture upon or with any suitable fabric, the coating, after drying, being
(if desired) embossed by any suitable means in order to produce a decorative
effect upon the coated surface.
To produce sheets of the insoluble gelatine for use as substitutes for plain or
coloured glass in lead lights or as window glass, moulds of wax or camphor,
moulds of glass, metal, or earthenware may be used if coated with some sub-
stance insoluble in water but which melts readily when heated such as stearin
or paraffin wax, to permit of stripping the insoluble gelatine from the mould.
The gelatine sheet should be stripped off after remaining about two days in
the moulds but before it has become thoroughly set, and should then be stretched
in a marginal frame of wood or other material, giving a margin of about half
an inch round the plastic gelatine, in which frame the edges of the gelatine
sheet are clamped by means of thumb-screws so that curling up of the edges will
be prevented and contraction of the gelatine on drying will only be permitted
in the direction of its thickness and not in that of its length and breadth. The
drying of the gelatine in the frame is effected by the exposure of both sides of
the gelatine to dry air not exceeding 70° Fahrenheit for at least a week in order
that it shall be set in the desired shape and thickness. The product thus
obtained may be used directly in imitation of lead lights and plain or coloured
glass, or it may first be 'vulcanized by contact with a solution of one part of
chloride of sulphur (CIS) and ten parts of carbon di-sulphide (CS,) to give it
more tenacity or it may be coated, impregnated, saturated, or incorporated with
linseed oil, paraffin wax, carnauba wax, pyroxilin, or gums such as copal,
dammar, or the like in order to render it non-absorbent.
The product in imitation of transparent coloured or opaque celluloid is non-
inflammable and hygienically harmless and from it domestic articles such as
trays, napkin-rings, knife-handles, and the like can be made.

page_text: With the gelatine treated with formalin as above described, waste cork may be
mixed in a suitable proportion to form a homogeneous mass which may be applied
as a coating to a backing fabric, to form a floor cloth or be pressed into any
desired shape and utilized for decorative or commercial purposes.
Instead of drying the chemically treated gelatine before use, it may be applied
in the liquid form for glazing earthenware by dipping, painting, or otherwise
and when used as a varnish or an enamel an extra 10% of water and 1% of
glycerine should be added to it. For glazing earthenware it is best to take
biscuit ware and dip it in the warm solution. This gives a fine glaze and can
be printed or painted on but will not require further firing, the same precau-
tions as to temperature being taken in drying coated articles as in the case of
the solid material.
"
Dated this 11th day of Wahmim 1900
Improvements in the Process of Treating Gelatine, and the Production
therefrom of Imitations of various Substances.
We, ALEXANDER MACFARLANE, of 149, Manx Terrace, Blackley, Manchester,
Fellow of the Chemical Society, London, and Analytical Chemist, and HERBERT
WILLIAM STANBURY, of Albion Place, Hanley, Staffordshire, Gentleman, do
hereby declare the nature of this invention to be as follows:-
This invention relates to the chemical treatment of gelatine whereby to render
it insoluble, resilient, and flexible and convert it into a substance resembling
celluloid, glass, ivory, or the like and adapted for the uses to which those sub-
stances are commonly put, the invention particularly comprising the application
of the gelatine so treated and suitably coloured, to the globes and bulbs of
electric arc and glow lamps, and to sheet glass to produce therewith a coloured
translucent medium usable as a substitute for what is known as flashed glass
and the like, and likewise its application to fabrics and materials including paper
for the purpose of waterproofing the same and its application for the production
of an imitation of leather or leather cloth and the like for covering tables, walls,
and other surfaces, and also its application as an enamel, varnish, or glaze to
earthenware and other substances.
The method of chemically treating the gelatine consists essentially in the
addition to the gelatine in solution, and in admixture or not with suitable body
or colouring matters of a solution of formaldehyde (having the formula CH₂Ŏ
and known also under the names of formol and formalin) the operation being so
performed and the solution being of such strength and in such proportion as
hereinafter specified that the gelatine on being dried will be insoluble in water
or dilute acids or alkalis and will possess properties rendering it suitable for the
uses hereinbefore referred to.
The treatment should be effected as follows:-A good clear gelatine is dis-
solved by first soaking it in cold water for a few hours until it has absorbed
twice its own weight of water and it is then heated in a suitable vessel, precau-
tions being taken to prevent the heat exceeding 100° Fahrenheit in order to avoid
brittleness of the resulting product. Should the weight of the soaked gelatine
before heating, not amount to three times the original weight of the gelatine,
water should be added to supply the deficiency. When the heated gelatine has
become limpid and while still warm, an aqueous solution of formaldehyde (of

page_text: about 40% strength of CH₂O) is added in the proportion of one part by weight
of formaldehyde solution to one hundred parts of gelatine solution. At this
stage any desired colouring matter may be added, the most suitable being a trans-
parent aniline colour where transparency of the insoluble product is required. If
an opaque product is required, the same or any other suitable colouring matters
may be added in conjunction with suitable body materials such as sulphate of
barium or zinc oxide, in the case of ivory, or minerals finely ground, water glass,
and further ground waste products as waste cork or leather, and also further
cellulose, gutta-percha or india-rubber dissolved in a suitable medium and stirred
into the gelatine to form an emulsion.
At this stage the further treatment will be varied according to the nature of
the application of the new product or the form of the article to be produced,
and it comprises the application of the chemically treated gelatine solution by
spreading, rolling, dipping, painting, or otherwise applying it to fabrics or to
paper for ordinary uses for the purpose of waterproofing the same and also to
wall paper for the manufacture of hygienic or washable wall papers, also the
application of the chemically treated gelatine to the surface of glass, wood, earthen-
ware, or other solid substances to be coated, or the moulding, pressing, or rolling
of the gelatine, where it is to be used alone as a body substance without support,
but in all cases it is essential that the drying of the chemically treated gelatine
from the solution to the solid form be effected at a temperature not exceeding
70° Fahrenheit and preferably in vacuo at, say five to ten pounds pressure, other-
wise the product will be unduly brittle.
For the production of imitations of what are known as flash ruby glass and the
like in different colours it is preferable that a coating of gold size or shellac and
the like gums dissolved in alcohol or water glass be first applied to the surface of
uncoloured glass and when this coating is nearly, but not quite, dry the solution
of gelatine chemically treated as above described is poured or spread on the coated
surface to the desired thickness. The gelatine on being dried as above mentioned
will form an insoluble coloured layer firmly adherent to the glass support and
form in combination therewith a substitute for flash coloured window glass. While
the gelatine is still plastic it may be embossed or moulded with suitable patterns
or designs. When dry, the gelatine may be cut out and stripped from the glass
for the production of colourless transparent designs upon a coloured ground, and
vice versa, for artistic decorative or other purposes.
The globes and bulbs of electric arc and glow lamps are similarly covered by
dipping.
To produce a waterproof non-inflammable, resilient and flexible product in
imitation of leather, leather cloth, waterproof fabrics, and the like, we add to the
solution of gelatine treated with formalin and suitably coloured as above described,
tungstate of soda, castor oil, glycerine, and silicate of soda or potash (commonly
known as water glass) of each, say, 1% and spread, roll, or otherwise incorporate
the mixture upon or with any suitable fabric, the coating, after drying, being
(if desired) embossed by any suitable means in order to produce a decorative
effect upon the coated surface.
To produce sheets of the insoluble gelatine for use as substitutes for plain or
coloured glass in lead lights or as window glass, moulds of wax or camphor,
moulds of glass, metal, or earthenware may be used if coated with some sub-
stance insoluble in water but which melts readily when heated, such as stearin
or paraffin wax, to permit of stripping the insoluble gelatine from the mould.
The gelatine sheet should be stripped off after remaining about two days in
the moulds but before it has become thoroughly set, and should then be stretched
in a marginal frame of wood or other material, giving a margin of about half
an inch round the plastic gelatine, in which frame the edges of the gelatine
sheet are clamped by means of thumb-screws so that curling up of the edges will
be prevented and contraction of the gelatine on drying will only be permitted
in the direction of its thickness and not in that of its length and breadth. The

page_text: drying of the gelatine in the frame is effected by the exposure of both sides of
the gelatine to dry air not exceeding 70° Fahrenheit for at least a week in order
that it shall be set in the desired shape and thickness. The product thus
obtained may be used directly in imitation of lead lights and plain or coloured
glass, or it may first be vulcanized by contact with a solution of one part of
chloride of sulphur (CIS) and ten parts of carbon di-sulphide (CS2) to give it
more tenacity or it may be coated, impregnated, saturated, or incorporated with
linseed oil, paraffin wax, carnauba wax, pyroxilin, or gums such as copal,
dammar, or the like in order to render it non-absorbent.
The product in imitation of transparent coloured or opaque celluloid is non-
inflammable and hygienically harmless and from it domestic articles such as
trays, napkin-rings, knife-handles, and the like can be made.
With the gelatine treated with formalin as above described, waste cork may be
mixed in a suitable proportion to form a homogeneous mass which may be applied
as a coating to a backing fabric, to form a floor cloth or be pressed into any
desired shape and utilized for decorative or commercial purposes.
Instead of drying the chemically treated gelatine before use, it may be applied
in the liquid form for glazing earthenware by dipping, painting, or otherwise
and when used as a varnish or an enamel an extra 10% of water and 1% of
glycerine should be added to it. For glazing earthenware it is best to take
and dip it in the warm solution. This gives a fine glaze and can
be printed or painted on but will not require further firing, the same precau-
tions as to temperature being taken in drying coated articles as in the case of
the solid material.
biscuit ware
"
Having now particularly described and ascertained the nature of our said
invention and in what manner the same is to be performed, we declare that
what we claim is :-
1. The herein described improved process for the treatment of gelatine whereby
to render it insoluble when dried, which consists in the admixture, with a warm
solution of gelatine, of an aqueous solution of formaldehyde of substantially the
strength and in substantially the proportions herein specified.
2. The production of insoluble gelatine in imitation of glass, celluloid, ivory, or
other solid substance, by the admixture with a warm solution of gelatine, of a
solution of formaldehyde of substantially the strength and in substantially the
proportions specified, and of colouring and body matters, casting the plastic
mixture in a mould, stripping the moulded product from the mould before
thoroughly setting, clamping it in a marginal frame and drying by exposure
of both surfaces to air at a temperature below 70° Fahrenheit as specified.
3. The production of imitation flash ruby or other coloured glass, consisting
of plain sheet glass covered with a strongly-adherent coating of insoluble coloured
gelatine, by mixing with a warm solution of gelatine, a solution of formaldehyde
of substantially the strength and in substantially the proportions specified, and
of a transparent colouring matter, and then spreading the gelatine so treated, in
a thin layer upon sheet glass previously coated with a substance such as gold
size, or water glass, the gelatine being applied when the said coating is nearly
but not quite dry, and then drying the gelatine at a carefully regulated tem-
perature as specified.
4. Coating globes and bulbs for electric arc and glow lamps with a strongly
adherent translucent coating of insoluble coloured gelatine, by dipping them in
a warm solution of coloured gelatine having mixed therewith a solution of form-
aldehyde of substantially the strength and in substantially the proportions
specified.
5. The application in the manner specified to fabrics and materials, including
paper for the purpose of waterproofing and rendering the same suitable for the
various purposes specified, of a coating consisting of a warm solution of gelatine
to which has been added a solution of formaldehyde of substantially the strength

page_text: and in substantially the proportions specified, together with body colouring and
other matters as described.
6. The production of an insoluble glaze or coating upon earthenware, wood,
or other solid substance, by mixing, with a warm solution of gelatine, a solution of
formaldehyde of substantially the strength and in substantially the proportions
herein specified, applying the solution so treated to the surface to be coated by
dipping, painting, or otherwise, and drying it at a carefully regulated temperature
as specified.
Dated this 14th day of September 1898.
A. M. & WM. CLARK,
Chartered Patent Agents, 53, Chancery Lane, London.