AN IMPROVEMENT IN APPLYING HEAT TO THE PURPOSE OF DISTILLATION
Year: 1827

page_text: TO ALL TO WHOM THESE PRESENTS SHALL COME, I, ROBERT
STEIN, of Regent Street, Oxford Street, in the County of Middlesex, send
greeting.
WHEREAS His present most Excellent Majesty King George the Fourth
did, by His Letters Patent under the Great Seal of Great Britain, bearing
date at Westminster, the Thirteenth day of December, One thousand eight
hundred and twenty-seven, in the eighth year of His reign, give and grant
unto me, the said Rob rt Stein, His especial licence that I, the said Robert
Stein, my executors, administrators, and assigns, and such others as I, the said
Robert Stein, my exors, admors, and assigns, should at any time agreed with,
and no others, from time to time and at all times during the term of years
therein mentioned, should and lawfully might make, use, exercise, and vend,
within England, Wales, and the Town of Berwick-upon-Tweed, and also
in His said Majesty's Colonies and Plantations abroad, my Invention of
" in
"AN IMPROVEMENT IN APPLYING HEAT TO THE PURPOSE OF DISTILLATION;
which said Letters Patent there is contained a proviso that I, the said
Robert Stein, should cause a particular description of the nature of my said
Invention, and in what manner the same is to be performed, to be inrolled
in His Majesty's High Court of Chancery within six calendar months next
and immediately after the date of the said in part recited Letters Patent,
as in and by the same, reference being thereunto had, will more fully and at
large appear.

page_text: NOW KNOW YE, that in compliance with the said proviso, I. the said
Robert Stein, do hereby describe the manner in which my said Invention is
to be performed by the following description thereof (that is to say):-
My improvement in applying heat to the purpose of distillation consists in
such an arrangement of apparatus used for distilling as will admit of using
some portion of the heat which is applied for distillation over and over again
(in the manner herein-after described) in order to distil different portions of
liquid one after the other by transferring such portion of heat successively
from the vapour which has been raised from one liquid into another liquid, so
as to convert a portion of the latter liquid into vapour, from which vapour the
heat is in turn to betransferred into other liquid, in order to vaporize a portion
thereof, and so on, as often as it can be advantageous to use the same heat
over and over again. For any liquid containing matter which is required
to be separated therefrom by distillation, being heated in order to convert the
distilable portion of such liquid into vapour aquantity of heat must necessarily
be withdrawn from such vapour in order to condense the same into distilled
liquid (that is to change it from the state of elastic vapour into the state of
distilled liquid). Now, I cause that quantity of heat to be transferred into
other liquid (which is required to be distilled) in such manner as to convert
the distillable portion of that other liquid into vapour, and which vapour
I cause to be condensed into distilled liquid by'again transferring that quantity
of heat there from into other liquid which is required to be distilled, and so on.
And whereas that portion or quantity of heat which must be added to liquids
in order to convert them into elastic vapours having the same temperatures as
the liquids from which such vapours are produced has been termed the heat of
elastic fluidity, or the latent heat of such vapours, I shall use the latter term to
designate that quantity of heat which is resident in any weight of elastic and
condensable vapour (at any given temperature) over and above the quantity
of heat resident in an equal weight of the liquid (of the same temperature)
which would be produced after the liquefaction of such vapour. Therefore,
by the term latent heat of any liquid or vapour, I mean that heat which
must be communicated toany liquid to change it into vapour without altering
its temperature, or that heat which must be withdrawn from such vapour to
change it into liquid without altering its temperature. And in applying heat
to the purpose of distillation according to my improvement, I combine three,
four,or more stills together into one apparatus,each still containing a portion
of liquid matter which is to be distilled. The first of these stills may be
treated by fire applied immediately beneath it after the usual manner, but
I prefer to convey steam from a steam boiler, such as is used for steain

page_text: engines, into a hollow casing surrounding the lower part of such still, as is
practised by some distillers in order to heat the liquid contained in the still,
and convert the distillable portion thereof into vapour, but instead of con-
veying that vapour immediately from the still-head into a worm or condenser,
as usually practised, I convey the same into a like hollow casing which sur-
rounds the lower part of a second still, in order to heat the liquid contained
therein so as to convert the distillable portion of that liquid into vapour by the
transfer of the latent heat of the vapour proceeding from the first still into
the distillable portion of the liquid contained in the second still, that heat
passing through the metal of which the bottom of the second still is con-
structed and becoming latent again in the vapour which it forms in the second
still. And as fast as the latent heat of the vapour proceeding from the first
still is so transferred through the metal bottom of the second still, the said
vapour will coudense into distilled liquid, which will collect in the bottom of
the casing, and may be drawn off therefrom as the product of the distillation
from the first still; and whereas the temperature of the distilled fluid so
collected will be the same as that of the vapour from which it is condensed,it
must be drawn off through a suitable worm or pipe surrounded with cold
water, or other adequate means must be used to cool the distilled liquid down
to the usual temperature at which similar liquids are drawn off from stills
according to the common process of distillation. The heat withdrawn during
such cooling of the distilled liquid is lost in the same manner as in common
distillation,but that portion of heat which constituted the latent heat of the
vapour raised in the first still is not lost when it is withdrawn from such
vapour in order to effect its condensation into distilled liquid, because that
latent heat is transferred through the bottom of the second still into the liquid
contained therein, and becoming latent in the distillable portion thereof
converts the same into vapour, which in its turn I convey into a like hollow
casing surrounding the lower part of a third still, where the latent heat,
leaving such vapour and passing through the metal of that still into the
liquid contained therein, converts the distillable portion thereof into vapour by
becoming latent in such vapour, and as fast as the latent heat so quits the
vapour proceeding from the second still that vapour condenses into distilled
liquid and collects within the casing around the third still and may be drawn
off therefrom as the product of the distillation from the second still, being
cooled during such drawing off, as before directed respecting the distilled
liquid from the casing around the second still; and so on in like manner
I convey the vapour thus raised from the third still into the casing around the
lower part of a fourth still, where the latent heat again quits such vapour

page_text: which then condenses into distilled liquid, and that liquid may be drawn off
and cooled as before stated, whilst the latent heat so quitting the vapour and
passing through the metal of the fourth still becomes latent again in convert-
ing the distilable portion of the contents of that still into vapour which
I convey into the usual kind of refrigeratory or worm pipe commonly used
by distillers in order to condense that vapour into distilled liquid; and also to
cool such distilled liquid after the usual manner, and by virtue of my improve-
ment in applying heat to the purpose of distillation in the aforesaid manner,
I obtain distilled liquid from all the several stills that I use, in combination
with much less expenditure of heat than what would be required on the
common plan of distillation to obtain the same quantity of distilled liquid,
because all that portion of heat which becomes latent in the vapour raised
from the first still I use over again to effect a second distillation, and that
heat which becomes latent in the vapour raised in that second distillation
I use over again for a third distillation, and the latent heat of the vapour
raised in that third distillation I use over again fora fourth distillation, and so
on, and ultimately the latent heat of the vapour raised in the last distillation
must of necessity be lost by communicating the same to the cold water used
in the refrigeratory. Part of the heat which is applied to the apparatus,
according to my improvement, is expended in raising the temperature of the
several portions of liquid which are to be distilled from a cold state to the
respective temperatures to which those several portions require to be raised in
order to effect the distillation and separation of the distillable portions. The
respective temperatures of the vapours in the different stills must necessarily
be progressively lower and lower, so that the liquid contents of the first still
will require to be raised to a higher temperature than the contents of the
second still, which again must be higher than the temperature of the contents
of the third still,and that must be higher than the contents of the fourth still,
and so on, the temperature of the contents of the last still of the series
being the same as would be required for the whole liquid contents of the still
in common distillation. Hence, all the heat that is required to raise the
temperature of the contents of each still respectively (as much as my improve-
ment requires the same to be raised) above the temperature of the contents of
the last still will be an additional expenditure of heat beyond what is ex-
pended in the common manner of distillation for raising the temperature of
the liquid before its distillation can begin. But on the other hand, by my
improvement, the expenditure of that part of the heat which is required to
become latent in raising the vapour is reduced to a small portion of the heat
that must be expended for raising vapour in the common process of distillation

page_text: because I only expend as much heat for latent heat as is necessary to raise the
vapour from the first still, and I make that same heat serve over and over
again by way of latent heat to raise vapour from all the different stills that
I use in succession one after another. Whereas, in the common process of
distilling, as much heat must be expended for latent heat as will vaporize the
whole quantity which is required to be distilled. The elastic force of the
vapour which is raised in each of the different stills that I use (and which is
conveyed into the case surrounding the next succeeding still, will necessarily
be different conformably to the differences of temperatures of those different
vapours, as before mentioned, for in every case the temperature and the
clastic force of the vapour which I apply within the casing which surrounds
the lower part of each still (and which vapour is in the act of condensing into
liquid therein) must be considerably greater than the temperature and the
elastic force of the liquid and vapour contained in that still, in order that
the bottom of each still (although really hot) may act as a cooling surface to
the vapour which is applied in contact with it, and it is bysuch relative cooling
of the vapour that it is condensed into liquid in each casing.
The form,
arrangement, and construction of the apparatus to be used for the purpose of
distillation by applying heat, according to my improvement, admits of very
great variations. The stills may be made of any form which is used by
distillers, and those forms which expose the greatest extent of surface to the
vapour in proportion to the quantity of liquid they contain, will produce the
greatest effect in a given time with a given magnitude of apparatus. The
forms must be such as will enable the vessels to resist the elastic force of the
coutained vapour with perfect safety, and also which will admit of keeping the
internal surfaces clean. I have stated that I apply a hollow casing around
the bottom or lower part of each still, to receive the vapour which pro-
ceeds from the preceding still, but that is only one of the constructions
of the apparatus which may be used for transferring the latent heat of the
vapour arising from one portion of the liquid which is to be distilled into
another portion of that liquid, and causing such heat to pass through the
metal of the vessel in which the latter portion of liquid is contained, for
instead of external casings round the lower parts of the stills, pipes may be
applied withinside each still, to be immersed in and surrounded by the
liquid contents of the still, the vapour being conveyed into and through the
interior of such pipes.
For the complete description of my Invention, and for explaining the
manners of carrying the same into effect, I have hereunto annexed two Sheets
of Drawings, representing an apparatus with four stills combined together.for

page_text: the
purpose e of distillation, by applying heat to them according to my improve-
ment. Figure 1 of the Drawing Sheet I. is a horizontal plan of the apparatus,
looking down upon the same; Figure 2, a vertical section through the middle
of all the four stills; and Figure 3, Sheet II., is an elevation of the apparatus
taken in front of the four stills. The same letters of reference are used to
denote the same parts in all the different Figures. A, C, E, and G, are the
four stills, of an oblong form, and round at the ends, as is shewn in the
plan, Figure 1, and flat, so as to have but little depth, as is shewn in the
section Figure 2. The lower half of each still is surrounded by and enclosed
within a casing B, D, F, and FI, which is closely joined to the still all round,
so that the space between the still and the casing will form a receptacle for
vapour or steam. These four stills, and their casings beneath them, are
placed in a row side by side, being mounted upon two parallel brick walls
I, I, or other suitable supports. To the upper part of each still an ascending
pipe a, c, e, and g, is joined to convey away the vapour which rises from each
still. A cock b, d, and f, is adapted to the upper end of three of those upright
pipes, and a side branch proceeds from each of those cocks to convey the
vapour into a pipe h, i, j, which extends backwards and at the same time
descends obliquely to join to the casing D, F, and H, of the next still, at the
further end thereof. Hence, when the three cocks b, d, and f, are set open
towards their branches h, i, and j, the vapour proceeding from each of the
three first stills A, C, and E, will have free entrance into the casing D, F, and
H, beneath the three next succeeding stills. The upright pipe g from the
last still G joius to a horizontal pipe K, which is conducted to a common
worm pipe, or any other refrigeratory, such as is used in the common mode
of distillation. Hence the vapour which rises from the last still G can pass
freely away into the said worm pipe, there to be condensed into liquid spirit,
according to the usual manner. Each of the three cocks b, a, and f, has an
additional side branch l,m, and n, Figure 1,joining to the same horizontal pipe
K, which leads to the worm pipe, and therefore, when all the three cocks b, d,
and /, are set open towards their three branches l, m, and n respectively, the
vapour proceeding from the interior of all the four stills A, C, E, and G, will
have free passage by the pipe K to the common worm pipe, and at the same
time the other side branches leading to the oblique pipes h, i, and j,will be all
closed by those cocks, so as to cut off all communication from each still
to the casing beneath the next still. All the four stills are heated in the
first instance, to bring their contents to therequisite temperature to commence
distillation by steam, which is furnished to the apparatus from a steam boiler
such as is usually employed for steam engines. This steam is conveyed from

page_text: the boiler by a steam pipe L, L, which passes horizontally across the ends
of all the four stills, with branches proceeding from it to join to 'the
casing beneath each still, and a stopcock q, r, s, and 2, is provided in each
branch to admit the steam freely from the steam boiler into the casings of all
the stills, or to shut the same off at pleasure. To discharge the air from the
several casings as fast as the steam is admitted into them, blowing-off pipes,
t, v, w, and x, Figures 1 and 3, are joined to each casing, at one end thereof;
aud at the highest part, the blowing pipe t, from the casing B of the first
still, has a cock at the end which, being opened, will allow the air to blow
out into the external atmosphere, until it is all discharged, and the steam
from the boiler follows it. The other three blowing pipes v, w, and x, are
brought together and joined to the three branches of a common blowing cock
M, see Figure 1 and Figure 3, Sheet II., which, being turned towards any
one of those branches, will convey the air therefrom into a common pipe y,
which ascends and joins to the horizontal pipe K, proceeding to the worm
pipe, or the conical plug of the said blowing cock M, being pushed inward,
so as to displace it from the fitting in its conical socket. It will then open
free passages by all the three blowing pipes v, w, and, from the casings
D, F, and H beneath the three last stills, and through the pipes y and K,
into the worm pipe in order to allow the steam which is adinitted from the
steam boiler into those casings through the cocks q, r, s, and z, to drive out
the air before it from those casings until it is completely discharged, and the
steam follows it into the worm pipe. The liquid which is condensed beneath
the bottom of each still collects at the bottom of the casing of that still, and is
drained away by a pipe 1, 2, 3, and 4, from each casing. The drain pipe 1,
froin the casing B of the first still, conveys the water that is condensed therein
back to the steam boiler, to replenish the evaporation from the same. The
three drain pipes 2, 3, and 4, from the casings D, F, and H. of the three last
stills, draw off the spirit condensed in these casings when the distillation is
going on; they extend to the front of the apparatus, as is shewn in Figures 1
and 3, and these join by stopcocks 5, 6, and 7, to the branches of a common
spirit pipe 8, which is either carried upwards to join the pipe K, in order to
convey the spirit into the common worm pipe or refrigeratory at the end of
the pipe K, or else the spirit pipe 8 may be joined to a separate worm pipe or
refrigeratory of its own, or a distinct spirit pipe may be conveyed from each
of the stopcocks 5, 6, and 7, to a separate worm pipe or refrigeratory of its
own, according as it is desired to keep the products of the different dis-
tillations from the several stills separate from each other, or to mix all these
products together into one. To indicate the height at which the spirit stands

page_text: collected in the bottom of each casing, an upright glass tube 9, 10, and 11, is
connected with the blowing pipes, w, and r, at the upper end, and with
each of the drain pipes 2, 3, and 4, at the lower end, so that the interior of
each glass tube will have an open communication with the interior of the
corresponding casing, both at the highest and at the lowest part thereof, and,
consequently, the liquid will stand in the glass tube at the same level as it
stands in the bottom of the casing, whereby that height can be seen by inspec-
tion, to enable the attendant to regulate the tap cocks 5, 6, and 7, properly,
for if the spirit accumulates at the bottom of either of the casings, it will rise
in the glass tube belonging to that casing, and shew that the tap cock of that
casing must be opened a little wider, to allow the spirit to drain away faster ;
or on the other hand, if the spirit drains away 100 fast, so that none is left
at the bottom of the casing, so that the spirituous vapour would begin to
follow it through the drain pipe, then the spirit will subside in the glass tube
and shew that the tap cock must be closed a little. To indicate the elastic
force of the steam or vapour in each casing B, D, F, and H, a mercurial gage
12, 13, 14, and 15, Figure 3, Sheet II., such as is commonly used for ordinary
steam boilers, is connected with each of the blowing-off pipes t, v, w, and a;
and the indexes of these guages apply to divided scales. The four stills A, C,
E, and G, are all charged with the liquid material from which spirit is to be
distilled by'a discharging pipe Q, which is common to all the stills, and extends
horizontally over all the stills, with a stopcock at P, and a branch 17, 18, 19,
and 20, entering into each still. The lower end of each of these branches
is furnished with a valve within the still, which valve is opened by a lever
with a ball at the extremity, floating on the surface of the liquid contained
in the still, so as to open the valve whenever the surface of the liquid in the
still subsides below the level to which the still is intended to be charged, and
the float closes the valve as soon as the surface rises to that level, and thus
prevents the still being overcharged.-Note, instead of these valves and floats
within each still, a separate charging cock may be applied upon each of the
branches 17, 18, 19, and 20, and a small guage cock being provided to each
still, at the level to which it is intended to be charged, may be set open, to shew
when the still is properly charged, and then the charging cock is to be shut
off. To discharge the spent liquid or residuum from all the stills after the distil-
lation is over a common discharging pipe R is conveyed horizontally beneath all
the four stills, and is connected with the lowest part of each still by an upright
branch 21, 22, 23, and 24. These branches join to the bottoin of each still
and pass through the bottom of each casing, the junction with that bottom
being made by a stuffing box joint, to allow for any unequal expansion between

page_text: the metal of the still and that of the casing. The extremity of the discharging
pipe R rises up to the same level as the bottoms of the stills, and has a dis-
charging cock S which, when opened, will draw off the spent liquid from all
the stills at once, leaving the pipe R itself remaining full of that spent liquid.
15,15,15,15,Figure 1,are the manlioles to give entrance into eachof the stills,
in order to clean the same when necessary. To avoid any unnecessary loss of
heat by radiation from the external surfaces of all the stills, they are covered up
and contained within a tight enclosure, as shewn by V, V, V, Figure 1. which
is made of some material that will not conduct heat rapidly, and the various
pipes are arranged so as to come through such enclosure, having all the
cocks,gage tubes, and mercurial gages at the outside thereof, in order to allow
all the requisite manipulations to be performed, without ever opening the
enclosure whilst the distillation is going on. The manner of conducting the
operation of the said apparatus is as follows, supposing the whole to be cold,.
and the stills and casings to be all empty :-To begin a distillation the three
cocks b, d, and f, must be all set open towards the pipe k, which leads to the
worm pipe, thus making a free communication from the interior of each still
through the worin pipe to the open air, and at the same time shutting all
communication between thestillsandthecasings; then, by opening the charging
cock P, the liquid which is to be distilled will flow through the several
branches and valves 17, 18, 19, and 20, and fill all the stills A, C, E, and G
up to their proper levels. The floats and levers will then close the valves and
stop the further entrance of the liquid, and the discharging cock P must then
be closed. The steam in the steam boiler is to be got up in the usual manner
of steam boilers for steam engines, and the steam cocks q, 1, 8, and 2, being
set open, the steam from the boiler will have free entrance into the casings
B, D, F, and H. The cock of the blowing pipe t is set open at the same
time, and also the plug of the blowing cock M is discharged from its socket
in order to open the passages from the three blowing pipes v, w, and x,
and allow the air contained in the several casings to escape freely out into
the atmosphere through the pipes t, v, w, x, and K, and the worm pipe, as
fast as the steam from the boiler enters into the casings at the opposite ends
thereof, through the steam cocks q, r, s, and 2.
The coldness of the liquid
contained within the stills will produce a profuse condensation of the steam
within the casings at first, and the water resulting from that condensation
will collect at the bottom of the casings, and will drain off therefrom through
the drain pipes 1, 2, 3, and 4, and the tap cocks 5, 6, and 7, which were all
set open at first, as well as the cock W, which is provided to run off that
condensed water into any waste drain. The heat passing continually through

page_text: the bottoms or lower parts of the stills from the steam contained in the
casings to the liquids contained in the stills heats the same by degrees,
whereupon the rapidity of the condensation of the steam diminishes,and steam
will begin to blow out at the blowing pipe t, and the cock M, which may
be partially or entirely closed, as soon as all air is effectually cleared out from
every part of the casings. This action continues until the contents of all
the stills acquire that temperature at which some of the spirituous portion of
these contents will begin to rise in vapour,and such vapour rises up from each
still by the pipes a, c, e, and g, and (driving the air and carbonic acid gas
before it) passes through the cocks b, d, f, and by the pipe K into the worm
pipe, where the vapour is condensed into liquid spirit. The above operation
of
my apparatus, whilst the stills are thus heating up to the proper state to
begin the distillation, is precisely the same as that of common distillation into
one common worm pipe; from four stills combined together and heated
by steam instead of by a naked fire to each still, but as soon as the whole
apparatus has acquired a proper heat, as is shewn by the distillation
of liquid spirit from the worm pipe, the whole of the condensed water
must be completely drained out of the casings D, F, and H, of the three
last stills, until the steam follows it at the tap cock W, then the steam
cocks r, s, and z, must be shut to stop the further entrance of the steam from
the boiler into the casings D, F, and H, of the three last stills, and at the
same time the three cocks b, d, and f, must be turned so as to open their
passages to the oblique pipes h, i, and j, in order to communicate from the
interior of each still to the casing beneath the next succeeding still, viz³,
from the still A to the casing D, from the still C to the casing F, and from
the still E to the casing H; the casing B of the first still being already in
open communication with the steam boiler through the steam cock 2 and
pipe L; and also the interior of the last still G being already in open com-
munication with the worm pipe through the pipe K. The apparatus being
put in this state the operation is continued according to my improvement
in applying heat to the purpose of distillation; thus the spirituous vapour
which is raised within the first still A by the heat of the steam from the boiler
acting in the casing B, beneath that still, will pass by the pipe a, the cock b,
and the oblique pipe h, into the casing D beneath the second still C, the.
bottom of which being at the same temperature as the said spirituous vapour
no condensation thereof will take place at first, whereupon that vapour will
accumulate in the casing D so as to increase in temperature and in elastic
force according as more and more of such spirituous vapour is continually
raised from the liquid of the first still A by the heat of the steam in the

page_text: casing B beneath the same. The consequence of such increase of the
temperature of the spirituous vapour contained in the casing D is that the
bottom surface of the still C, although hot, will begin to act as a cooling or
condensing surface to the vapour in consequence of being colder than that
vapour, which will accordingly begin to condense into liquid spirit by the
abstraction of heat from it by the colder bottom of the still, and that liquid
spirit will collect by degrees at the bottom of the casing D ; the heat that
was latent in the spirituous vapour which is thus condensed passes at the
moment of such condensation through the bottom of the second still C, and
heating the contents thereof becomes latent again in the spirituous portion of
those contents, causing the same to rise in spirituous vapour, which passes by
the pipe c, the cock d, and the oblique pipe i, into the casing F beneath the
third still E, the bottom of which being at first of the same temperature as
that vapour, will produce no condensation thereof until, by the consequent
accumulation of such vapour in the casing, and by its increase of elastic force
and temperature above the temperature of the bottom of the still E, a corre-
sponding condensation of that vapour into liquid spirit will begin to take place
as fast as the latent heat of the vapour is transmitted through the bottom of
the third still E, thereby heating the contents of that still and raising
spirituous vapour therefrom, which vapour passes by the pipe e, the cock.f,
and oblique pipej, into the casing H, beneath the fourth still G,and accumu-
lates therein in the manner above described, until, its temperature exceeding
that of the bottom of the still, condensation of that vapour into liquid spirit
begins, and a corresponding transmission of heat through the metal into the
contents of the still, whereby spirituous vapouris raised therefrom and passes
away by the pipe g, the branch o, and the pipe K, to the worm pipe, where it
is condensed in the usual manner into liquid spirit. During the above opera-
tion, which is the commencement of the application of heat according to my
improvement, the elastic force and temperature of the vapour in all the-stills,
except the last, and in the casings communicating therewith, will be pro-
gressively increasing until the temperature of the steam or vapour in each
casing becomes sufficiently elevated above the temperature of the contents of
the still included within that casing to cause asufficiently rapid transmission of
heat to take place through the metal bottom of that still, and thereby to cause
a consequent condensation of the vapour into liquid in the manner herein-
before stated. The liquids so condensed collect at the bottom of each casing:
D, F, and H, to a depth therein, which is shewn in the glass tubes 9, 10, and
11, and when a sufficiency of spirit is so collected the tap cocks 5, 6, and 7,
are opened (the drain cock W.being previously closed, and the spirit will be.

page_text: driven (by the elastic force of the vapour contained in each casing) through the
spirit pipe 8. which, as before mentioned, may either join the pipe K in
order to convey the collected spirit from all the three casings D, F, and H,
into the common worm pipe, or else each one or any two of the tap cocks, 5, 6,
and 7, may be made to deliver into a separate spirit pipe, which is immersed
in cold water in order to cool the spirit in its passage through such pipes to
the intended receptacles. The person appointed to attend theapparatus must
constantly watch the glass tubes 9, 10, and 11, and if the spirit collects in the
casings faster than it is drained away, he must regulate the tap cocks 5, 6,
and 7, so as to leave only a small quantity of spirit standing at the bottom of
each casing without accumulating; he must also observe the indexes to the
mercurial gages 12, 13, 14, and 15, to know whether the elasticities of the
vapours contained in the several casings preserve such a relation to each other
as has been found by previous observation to perform the distillation with
advantage, for the rapidity of the distillation will depend upon the difference
of temperature that is kept up between the vapours contained in the
casing beneath each still and the contents of that still. There must be a
consequent difference between the elastic force of the vapour contained in the
casing and that of the vapour contained in the still, and also in the next
adjoining casing which communicates freely with that still; such differences are
indicated by the indexes to the two adjacent guages 12 and 13, or 13 and 14,
or 14 and 15, belonging to each casing, and to the still which is included
within that casing, whereby the said indexes become indications of the
differences of temperature. No rule can be prescribed for the difference of
elastic force that should be kept up within the several casings and stills ofthe
apparatus,, because it will depend entirely upon the quality ofthe liquor which
is to be distilled, and the rapidity with which the distillation thereof is to be
carried on; it must be determined by trial what pressures will produce the
most advantageous result for each different kind of distillation that is to be
performed by the apparatus, and the height at which the several mercurial
guages then stand being observed, the operation may by their indications be
carried on in the same manner on every future occasion; the force to which
the steam is kept up in the steam boiler is the chief point of regulation, and
that must be managed by the intensity of the fire, and by the opening of the
damper in the same manner as is practised in steam boilers for steam engines,
and the steam cock q, which admits the steam from the boiler into the
casing B, beneath, the first still A, may be regulated to keep up a proper
degree of elastic force of the steam in that casing, as indicated by the
guage 12. The elastic force of the vapours contained within all the other

page_text: casings D, F, and H, as indicated by the other guages 13, 14, and 15, ought
then to assume of themselves such a relation one to another as has been
observed to have been indicated during previous distillations, whilst the
operation was performed in an advantageous manner. And if any one of the
said Iguages rises higher than it ought to do in respect to the other guages, it
is an evidence that air or some uncondensable gas has become mixed with the
vapour contained within that casing which communicates with the guage, thus
indicating two great an elasticity; the attendant must then turn the blowing
cock M, so as to open its passage from the blowing pipe v, 10, or xr, of that
casing to the pipe y, to allow such air or uncondensable gas to escape, leaving
the casing filledwith pure condensible spirituous vapour, and any such vapour
which may escape at the same time will be condensed into spirit in the worm
pipe with which the pipe K communicates.
In witness whereof, I, the said Robert Stein, have hereunto set my
hand and seal, this Thirteenth day of June, in the year of our Lord
hundred and twenty-eight
AND BE IT REMEMBERED, that on the Thirteenth day of June, in the
year of our Lord 1828, the aforesaid Robert Stein came before our said
Lord the King in His Chancery, and acknowledged the Specification afore-
said, 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.
Inrolled the Thirteenth day of June, in the year of our Lord One
thousand eight hundred and twenty-eight.