IMPROVEMENTS IN THE PROCESS OF AND APPARATUS FOR DISTILLING
Year: 1824

page_text: TO ALL TO WHOM THESE PRESENTS SHALL COME, I, JEAN
JACQUES SAINTMARC, of Belmont Distillery, Wandsworth Road, Vauxhall, in
the Parish of Saint Mary, Lambeth, in the County of Surry, Distiller,
send greeting.
WHEREAS His most Excellent Majesty King George the Fourth did,
by His Letters Patent under the Great Seal of that part of the United
Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland called England, bearing date at
Westminster, the Twentieth day of March, One thousand eight hundred and
twenty-four, in the fifth year of His reign, give and grant unto me, the said
Jean Jacques Saintmarc, my exors, admors, and assigns, His especial licence,
full power, sole privilege and authority, that I, the said Jean Jacques Saint-
marc, my exors, admors, and assigns, during the term of years therein men-
tioned, should and lawfully might make, use, exercise, and vend, within
England, Wales, and the Town of Berwick-upon-Tweed, the Invention of
"IMPROVEMENTS IN THE PROCESS OF AND APPARATUS FOR DISTILLING " (being
partly communicated to me by a certain Foreigner residing abroad, and partly
invented by myself); in which said Letters Patent there is contained a
proviso that if I, the said Jean Jacques Saintmarc, shall not particularly
describe and ascertain the nature of the said Invention, and in what manner
the same is to be performed, by an instrument in writing under my hand
and seal, and cause the same to be inrolled in His Majesty's High Court

page_text: of Chancery within six calendar months next and immediately after the
date of the said Letters Patent, that then the said Letters Patent, and all
liberties and advantages whatsoever thereby granted, shall utterly ceasc, <leter-
mine, and become void, as in and by the same, relation being thereunto had,
will more fully and at large appear.
NOW KNOW YE, that in compliance with the said proviso, I, the said
Jean Jacques Saintmarc, do hereby declare that the nature of the said
Invention which hath been communicated to me as aforesaid doth consist,-
First, in an improved process whereby a spirituous liquor is obtained or
extracted from potatoes, and-
Secondly, in certain improved apparatus, whereby the fermentation and
distillation of spirituous liquors is performed in an effective and convenient
manner so as to retain their natural flavour, and without occasioning an
unnecessary waste of combustible matter.
I will first describe the nature of the process for obtaining the liquor or
wash from the potatoes, and will afterwards explain the improvements in the
apparatus for distilling the same. The first operation is that of washing
the potatoes in order to remove all the earthy particles which are usually
found adhering to them. This is performed by a washing machine of the
ordinary description, consisting of a cylinder or drum composed of wooden
staves or rails, into which drum the potatoes are introduced, and the drum
being turned round in a trough or cistern of water, the washing is soon
effected. This machine is so well understood by persons conversant with
works of a similar nature as not to require a minute description. After the
potatoes are sufficiently washed, they are reduced to a paste by grinding or
grating them in a machine similar to what is represented in Figures 1 and 2,
upon the Sheet I. of Drawings hereunto annexed. It consists of a cylinder
or drum of metal marked A, the circumference of which is furnished with a
number of blades or cuttors lying in a direction parallel to the axis thereof.
These blades are notched similar to a saw and are fixed in grooves formed
on the circumference of the drum, so that the teeth may project only in a
slight degree from its surface. This drum is mounted upon an horizontal
axis, so as to be capable of revolving with a velocity of about four hundred
turns per minute, the motion being communicated to it from any convenient
first mover by the strap a and cog wheel 6, which engages with the teeth of
a pinion upon the axis of the drum. B represents a strong plank of oak or
other hard wood, which is placed in such a position that its edge comes into
contact with the teeth of the blades upon the drum. The plank B is adapted
to slide in horizontal grooves framed in the timber framing of the machine,

page_text: being furnished with an adjusting screw c, for the purpose of advancing its
edge towards the drum in proportion as it wears away by the continual
action of the teeth. C shews another plank of wood placed at right angles
to the former, being mounted upon pivots or centres at the top, whilst the
lower part is kept as close as possible to the teeth upon the circumference of
the drum. The potatoes are thrown into a receptacle or hopper D so as to
rest with their weight upon the circumference of the drum, which, by turning
round in the direction of the arrow shown in the Fig. 1, carries the potatoes
down and rubs them forcibly against the surface of the plank C, and then
against the edge of the plank B so as to deliver them in the state of a fine
paste or pulp upon the bottom of the trough E which is situated beneath
the drum. The plank C is furnished at the back with a steel spring c, e. so
that its lower edge has the liberty of retreating or yielding slightly when the
large-sized potatoes come in contact with it. d represents a slight adjustable
board, the edge of which is placed as near as possible to the circumference of
the drum, in order to prevent the paste or pulp of the potatoes from being
carried entirely round by the motion thereof.
Fig. 2 shews an horizontal plan of this machine, wherein the same letters
of reference are used to denote corresponding parts. The framing and minor
parts of this machine will be sufficiently understood from inspection of the
Figure without entering into a farther description thereof. The paste or
pulp of the potatoes is removed from the trough E, and is introduced into
fine sieves where a quantity of clear water is added to it in order to cause
the finer parts of the pulp to pass through the sieve into a vat which is placed
beneath. The gross particle which remain in the sievo are removed, and being
of no further use in the process are disposed of as food for animals. When a
sufficient quantity of fine pulp has passed into the vat, it is allowed to subside
and the water is drawn off from the surface, after which the pulp is removed
from the vat, and is introduced into small tubs pierced full of holes, having
first a loose lining of coarse linen introduced into them to prevent the pulp
from escaping through the holes. In this state the water is suffered to drain.
away and the mass of pulp is turned out by inverting the tubs, in which
state it is either employed directly in the process, or, if desired to be kept for
any length of time, the masses are cut in small pieces and disposed upon a
plaistered floor in order to imbibe as much of the water as possible, after
which it is dried in a stove or kiln, with a heat of about 80 or 90
degrees of Farenheat, in which dry state it may be kept for a great length
of time. The next process is that of decomposing the pulp of the potatoes
to procure the saccharine matter therefrom, which is performed as follows:-

page_text: A convenient quantity of the potatoe palp, equal to two or three cwt., either
in a wet or dry state, is introduced into a vat or vessel, marked A in the
Fig. 1, Sheet II. of Drawings hereunto annexed, and is well mixed with
such a quantity of hot water as will render it of the consistence of cream.
During this operation a quantity of water is let into the decomposing vat,
marked B, so as to cover the bottom thereof to about six inches in depth,
after which about 20lb. of sulphuric acid are introduced into the vat (the
vat being lined with lead to prevent the effect of the acid upon the wood); in
this state the cock a, which is situated in a pipe proceeding from a steam
boiler, is turned, and steam is suffered to flow into the liquor in the vat
through the pipe b, b, and steam box c, where it escapes and rises through
the liquor until it is made to boil, at which time the cock d is turned so as to
discharge the contents of the vat A into the vat B, where it is well mixed with
the dilute sulphuric acid. The same operation is repeated, viz, of introducing
fresh portions of acid, and then fresh quantities of potatoe pulp (previously
mixed with hot water) until the vat B contains as much as is desired to be
subjected to the process at one time. The steam cock a is now opened, and
the whole mass contained in the vat is caused to boil for 4 or 5 hours, during
which time the steam which escapes from the top of the vat is conducted
through a spiral pipe immersed in a vessel of water, as seen at e, e, being
situated upon
the top of the vat B, by this means none of the heat is lost,
since the water in the vessel e, e, becomes hot ready to be let off through the
pipe f to the vat A, to serve for mixing a fresh quantity of the potatoe pulp,
and as soon as the hot water has been drawn off from the vessel e, e, it may be
replenished with cold water from the service pipe g. The quantity of sulphuric
acid which will be required to a certain weight of potatoe pulp will be found
to vary according to the strength of the acid and the quality of the potatoes;
but as a general guide it may be stated that about 2 pounds of concentrated
sulphuric acid will serve to decompose about 100 lbs. of the pulp if used in a
wet state, or 3 lbs. of acid if the pulp is used in a dry state. After the boiling
of the matters in the vat B is completed the steam cock a is shut, and the
large cock h, which is situated at the bottom of the vat B is opened in order
to let off the contents of the vat B into another vat C, which we will
denominate the saturating vat; during the time that the liquor is flowing into
the vat Ca quantity of water containing lime or chalk in solution is added
for the purpose of saturating and thereby neutralizing the sulphuric acid
which had been introduced during the previous process. This causes a great
effervessence to take place, and the chalk or lime water must be added until
the effervessence is observed to cease. I have found that it requires generally

page_text: about two or three lbs. of chalk to be added for each lb. of sulphuric acid
which had been employed in the previous process, but this will be easily
determined by observing the effervessence; as above mentioned. The liquor
in the vat C is left a short time in order that the gross particles may
subside, after which the clear liquor or wash is drawn off by a cock K
into the fermenting vats D, where a quantity of yeast is added to pro-
mote the fermentation in the proportion of about 3 lb. for each 100 lb:
of dry potatoe pulp); during this process the temperature of the liquor
should be kept up to about 90 or 100 degrees of Farenheits, and the
temperature of the room wherein the fermentation is carried on should
be maintained at about 80 or 85 degrees until the fermentation has been
completely effected, which will generally occupy 15 or 20 days. I facilitate
the process of fermentation and render it more effective by introducing a por-
tion of hydrogen gas into the vat during the fermentation. This I effect by
having a small metal pipe disposed horizontally in a serpentine direction upon
the bottom of the vat, which pipe is pierced full of small holes upon the upper
or under side thereof, to allow the hydrogen gas to escape and rise in small
bubbles through the liquor, the gas being forced into the pipe by means of a
pump sufficiently to overcome the pressure of the liquor in the vat. By this
means the fermentation is accelerated and a better result is produced than by
the ordinary process of fermentation. The gas pipe is furnished with a cock,
so as regulate the supply at pleasure or shut it off entirely when it is found
by experiment that the carbonic acid gas which escapes from the vat contains
an excess of hydrogen. I consider this process as applicable to all descriptions
of fermentation where the wash or liquor produced is intended for distillation.
-Note, the sediment which is found at the bottom of the vat C is mixed with
water, and agitated in order to extract any portion of saccharine matter it
might contain. This water is added to that in the fermenting vat, after
which the residue is rejected as useless. As soon as the fermentation of the
wash is completed it may be run off into the still, as shewn at E in Fig. 1,
Sheet II. This still is of the ordinary construction, except that it is not
furnished with a large head for carrying off the vapour in the usual manner;
but instead of this it has a perpendicular pipe rising from the centre of the
dome to a considerable height in order that the watery vapour which rises
during the distillation may be condensed and run down again into the still, the
spirituous vapour only finding it may through the condenser or worm pipe F,
which pipe is surrounded by a cold medium being contained in a vessel of
water. During the first distillation, the liquor which comes over is called low
wine. This is introduced into the still shewn at II, in Fig. 2, Sheet II.

page_text: This still is termed the low wine still, and is generally of smaller dimensions
then the wash still. The vapour is conducted off by a pipe m to a close
vessel I, which is kept cool at the upper part by a supply of cold water from
the service pipe i. This vessel receives a portion of the liquor in a condensed
state, and the pipe m proceeds near to the bottom of the said vessel, so that
its extremity becomes plunged beneath the surface of the liquor contained
therein, and by the vapour coming over continually from the still it causes the
liquor in the vessel I to boil, and the most spirituous part to pass off in the
form of vapour through the pipe 22 (which proceeds from the vessel I at the
upper part thereof) into the end of a cylindrical vessel K which is partly
immersed in a vessel containing cold water, and is divided into six compart-
ments, marked Nos. 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, and 6, by vertical partitions, having pipes
O proceeding from the uppermost part of one compartment to near the bottom
of the next, as shewn in the Figure upon the Drawing. By this arrangement
the spirituous liquor will first begin to condense in the compartment No. 1,
where the heat occasioned by the vapour passing continually through it will
cause the finer particles of spirit to rise in vapour and pass into the compart-
ment No. 2, from whence a portion will pass into No. 3, and so on throughout
the whole, until the remaining portion of vapour will be finally condensed by
passing through the spiral or worm pipe contained in a vessel of cold water,
as shewn at L, where it will pass off nearly-in a state of pure alcohol. The
various compartments of the vessel K have each a short pipe proceeding from
them, furnished with cocks in order to draw off the liquor from either one of
the compartments into a pipe p (which either conveys it away or returns it
.into the vessel I, to be submitted to a second distillation together with the
liquor which had been condensed in the vessel I, and which may be drawn off
by a pipe r, and returned to the still again in order to repeat the process of
distillation if necessary, and procure the liquor of the desired strength.
I have now described the Invention of improvements in the process of and
apparatus for distilling by reference to the annexed Drawings in such a
manner as to enable persons conversant with works of a similar nature to put
them in practise, and I hereby declare that I consider the Invention to
consist,―
First, in the improved proċess, as herein-before described, whereby a spi-
rituous liquor is obtained or extracted from potatoes; and,
Secondly, in the improved arrangement and combination of apparatus for
effecting the process of fermentation and distillation, as herein-before described
with reference to the annexd Drawings, observing that the form and propor-
tion of the various parts of the apparatus may be varied according to the

page_text: discretion of the workman employed in constructing the same, as well as the
materials of which the same may be made.
In witness whereof, I, the said Jean Jacques Saintmarc, have hereunto
set my hand and seal, this Twentieth day of September, in the
of our Lord One thousand eight hundred and twenty-four.
year
JEAN JA
(L.S.) SAINTMARC.
AND BE IT REMEMBERED, that on the Twentieth day of September,
in the year of our Lord 1824, the aforesaid Jean Jacques Saintmarc came
before our said Lord the King in His Chancery, and acknowledged the
Specification aforesaid, and all and every thing therein contained and specified,
in form above written. And also the Specification aforesaid was stamped
according to the tenor of the Statute made for that purpose.