IMPROVEMENTS IN THE MANUFACTURE OF SODA
Year: 1838

page_text: TO ALL TO WHOM THESE PRESENTS SHALL COME, I, EDWARD
SAMUEL, of Liverpool, Merchant, send greeting.
WHEREAS Her present most Excellent Majesty Queen Victoria, by Her
Letters Patent under the Great Seal of Great Britain, bearing date at West-
minster, the Thirteenth day of November, in the second year of Her reign, did,
for Herself, Her heirs and successors, give and grant unto me, the said Edward
Samuel, Her especial license, full power, sole privilege and authority, that I,
the said Edward Samuel, my exors, adññiors, and assigns, or such others
as I, the said Edward Samuel, my exors, adñiors, or assigns, should
at any time agree with, and no others, from time to time and at all times
during the term of years therein. expressed, should and lawfully might
make, use, exercise, and vend, within England, Wales, and the Town of
Berwick-upon-Tweed, my Invention of "IMPROVEMENTS IN THE MANUFACTURE
OF SODA;" in which said Letters Patent is contained a proviso that I, the
said Edward Samuel, shall 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 Her said Majesty's, High Court of Chancery within six calendar
months next and immediately after the date of the said in part recited Let-
ters 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
Edward Samuel, do hereby declare the nature of my said Invention, and
the manner in which the same is to be performed, are particularly described
and ascertained in and by the following statement thereof, that is to say:-
My Invention relates to certain modes or processes applicable to the
manufacture of soda, which I will proceed to describe. First, I take of
sulphate of barytes any convenient quantity, say one hundred and sixteen
parts, and of coal or coke about forty parts. Having mixed these together,
I roast them at a red heat for some hours in a brick or iron retort, or in a
kiln, until the sulphate of barytes becomes converted into a sulphuret of
barium, which is the case as soon as the contents of the retort or kiln is found
to be soluble in water. The quantity of sulphuret of barium which should be
obtained from the one hundred and sixteen parts of barytes are eighty-four
parts. I take from the retort or kiln the eighty-four parts of sulphuret of
barium and dissolve them in hot water. I dissolve in a separate pan seventy-
two parts of sulphate of soda, to which I then add the solution of the
sulphuret of barium. A decomposition takes place; sulphate of barytes is
precipitated, and a hydro-sulphuret of soda remains in solution. I draw off
into another vessel the hydro-sulphuret of soda and pass through it streams of
carbonic acid gas, until the whole of the solution is saturated. I evaporate to
dryness the saturated solution of soda, and I then have the common subcarbonate
of soda of commerce. The carbonic acid gas may be obtained by pouring
muriatic acid gas upon carbonate of lime, or by any other convenient method.
What I claim in the above detailed process is adding sulphuret of barium
to sulphate of soda for the purpose of obtaining mutual decomposition. I also
claim the passing of streams of carbonic acid gas through a solution of
sulphuret of sodium, or hydro-sulphuret of soda, obtained through the medium
of decomposition by sulphuret of barium.
I will now describe my second method of obtaining the hydro-sulphuret
of soda, which is as follows:-I take of sulphate of strontites any con-
venient quantity, say ninety-six parts, which I mix with about thirty parts
of coal or coke, and roast them together at a red heat in a brick or
iron retort or kiln until the sulphate of strontites becomes converted into
a sulphuret of strontium, which is the case as soon as the contents of the
retort or kiln is soluble in water. The quantity of sulphuret of strontium
which should be obtained from the ninety-six parts of strontites are sixty
parts. I take from the retort or kiln the sixty parts of sulphuret of stron-
tium and dissolve them in water. I then dissolve in a separate pan
seventy-two parts of sulphate of soda, to which solution I add the solution

page_text: of sulphuret of strontium; a decomposition takes place, sulphate of stron-
tites is precipitated, and hydro-sulphuret of soda remains in solution. I
draw off into another vessel the hydro-sulphuret of soda, and pass through
it streams of carbonic acid gas until the whole of the solution is saturated. I
evaporate to dryness the saturated solution of soda, and I then have the
common subcarbonate of soda of commerce.
What I claim in the above process is adding sulphuret of strontium to
sulphate of soda for the purpose of obtaining mutual decomposition. I also
claim the passing of streams of carbonic acid gas through a solution of
sulphuret of sodium, or hydro-sulphuret of soda, obtained through the medium
of decomposition by sulphuret of strontium.
I will now proceed to describe the third part of my Invention. I decompose
sulphate of soda by means of the hydrates of barytes and strontites, obtained
by boiling any metalic oxide with the sulphurets of strontium or barium.
I prefer oxide of copper, of which I use thirty-one parts to eighty-four of
sulphuret of barium, or to sixty of sulphuret of strontium. I then pursue
the same plan with the remaining solution as if I used the sulphurets of barium
or strontium, until I obtain the subcarbonate of soda, and which methods are
fully detailed above.
What I claim as the third part of my Invention is adding, as above, the
hydrates of barytes or strontites to sulphate of soda for the purpose of
obtaining mutual decomposition. I also claim the passing of streams of
carbonic acid gas through a hydrate of soda, obtained through the medium of
decomposition, by the means of such hydrate of barytes or strontites.
The fourth part of my Invention consists in the decomposition of chloride
of sodium by oxalic acid, for this purpose I mix together a saturated solution
of common salt with a saturated solution of oxalic acid. The result of
this is that the greater part of the soda is thrown down as an oxalate
or a binoxalate of soda. The liquid being poured off, I either expose the
binoxalate or oxalate of soda so obtained to a red heat, by which it is at
once converted into carbonate of soda, or else I mix it with a sufficient
quantity of carbonate of lime and water, and boil the mixture, by which
operation I have a solution of carbonate or bicarbonate of soda, and an
insoluble precipitate of oxalate of lime. The solution is salted down, and,
being heated in a furnace, becomes carbonate of soda. The oxalate of lime
is to be decomposed with sulphuric acid, and the resulting oxalic acid used
for another operation.
What I claim in respect to this part of my Invention is the use of oxalic

page_text: AND BE IT REMEMBERED, that on the Eleventh day of May, in the
year of our Lord 1839, the aforesaid Edward Samuel came before our said
Lady the Queen in Her 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.