AN IMPROVED EVAPORATING APPARATUS AND PROCESS FOR THE TREAT- MENT OF SUGAR-PRODUCING JUICES, SALT-WATER, AND OTHER SUBSTANCES
Year: 1881

page_text: LETTERS PATENT to William Robert Lake, of the Firm of Haseltine, Lake,
& Co., Patent Agents, Southampton Buildings, London, for an Invention
of "AN IMPROVED EVAPORATING APPARATUS AND PROCESS FOR THE TREAT-
MENT OF SUGAR-PRODUCING JUICES, SALT-WATER, AND OTHER SUBSTANCES."
A communication from abroad by James Agustine Morrell, of the City and
State of New York, United States of America, Doctor of Medicine.
PROVISIONAL SPECIFICATION left by the said William Robert Lake at the
Office of the Commissioners of Patents on the 18th July 1881.
WILLIAM ROBERT LAKE, of the Firm of Haseltine, Lake, & Co., Patent Agents,
Southampton Buildings, London. "AN IMPROVED EVAPORATING APPARATUS AND
PROCESS FOR THE TREATMENT OF SUGAR-PRODUCING JUICES, SALT-WATER, AND
OTHER SUBSTANCES." [A communication from abroad by James Agustine Morrell,
of the City and State of New York, United States of America, Doctor of
Medicine.]
My said Invention relates to an improved process and apparatus for evaporating
purposes, and is designed for treating the juices extracted or expressed from sugar-
cane, sorghum, corn-stalks, and similar substances, the saccharine matter obtained
from beets and from corn and other sugar-producing grains, as well as salt-water
and liquids containing tannin and other substance capable of being reduced to a
semi-liquid or solid form by such process, the operation being a continuous one and
causing a continuous delivery of the resulting product at the outlet pipe so long as
it is continued.
In practicing this process the juice which has been expressed from cane and
other sugar-bearing stalks on which has been otherwise obtained and which has
been defecated in any approved manner, is passed by its own gravity or by a
pump or other forcing device in a continuous stream through a coil or coils of pipe,
or spirally or zig-zag formed channel or groove, which may be of increasing
diameter from the point where the liquid enters to the point where it is discharged;

page_text: or the passage may be of the same diameter throughout its entire length, care
being taken that when a pump or other forcing device is used it shall be so
constructed and arranged that the flow of the liquid shall be nearly or quite
continuous, said pipe or passage being placed in a suitable position for the
reception of heat from a furnace or other heating apparatus, such heat being
applied to its outer surface. The consistency of the resulting product may be
regulated by a cock or valve placed in the induction pipe, by which the quantity
of liquid entering the evaporator can be controlled and consequently the density or
consistency of the material discharged, as the smaller the quantity admitted in a
given period of time the longer it will remain in the pipe or channel and the
greater will be its density when delivered. The final separation of the steam
generated in the apparatus and the sugar or other substance takes place in the
pipe or channel at or near the point where they come in contact with the
atmosphere, from which point the resultant product may be conducted to any
suitable reservoir.
The apparatus I prefer to employ is constructed as follows:-I provide an
evaporator having an outlet for steam at its upper enlarged end, and one for the
escape of steam and the resulting product at its lower end. There is a metal
cylinder or casing which may be of any desired length and diameter, and is to be
lined with fire-bricks or some non-conducting substance for the purpose of
preventing the radiation of heat. The coil in this instance is composed of pipes of
five different diameters, beginning with a pipe of two inches in diameter at the
bottom and ending with one of four inches at the top, but other and greater
variations may be made if desired, or the pipe may be made of the same diameter
throughout its entire length; there are in practice as many coils of each size as
desired.
From the upper end of the coil there extends upward a pipe, or it may be a
portion of the coil, passing out through the upper end of the furnace or casing,
and having its upper end curved for the purpose of giving the proper direction to
the escaping steam, and it may have its outlet portion considerably enlarged if
desired.
For the purpose of feeding the material to be evaporated to the evaporator there
is provided a tank, which is placed at any desired elevation above said evaporator,
into which the juice or other substance is placed, and from which it is conducted
to the evaporator through a pipe which is provided with a valve for the purpose of
regulating the quantity that shall be allowed to enter in any given period of time,
and thus the density or consistency of the product delivered at the outlet. This
pipe enters the vertical pipe at the upper end of the evaporator and passes down
some distance therein, the object being to prevent the liquid substance from being
carried out of the evaporator at that point by the ascending steam, it being an
ascertained fact that when thus arranged the pressure of steam which obtains in
the evaporator is never sufficiently great to produce that result. The lower portion
of the furnace or casing is provided with a suitable grate upon which the fuel is
burned, an ash-pit being formed beneath it; two doors are also provided, one for
the insertion of the fuel, and the other for the removal of ashes and the admission
of air. For conducting away the smoke and other heated products of combustion
a pipe may be attached to any part of the casing above the evaporator, an aperture
being formed therein for their passage to said pipe. Anchors may be jused for
holding the evaporator in position, but these may be omitted, if preferred, and the
evaporator may be supported upon ledges formed in or on the wall of the
furnace.
I may employ a modified form of apparatus in which there is an evaporator
consisting of a double coil of pipe through which the substance to be treated is
made to pass. There is a furnace of any desired dimensions in which the fuel
necessary for causing the evaporation of the liquid is burned, it resting upon a
grate, below which there is formed an ash pit. The grate above alluded to may
be placed directly under the evaporator, or it may be below, but at one side

page_text: thereof. In either case the arrangement of the flue leading therefrom is to be such
as to direct the heated products of combustion upon the evaporator, which is
located in a chamber formed in the furnace or casing, and provided with a flue for
discharging the smoke into the atmosphere. The evaporator in this arrangement
consists of a pipe, having an increasing diameter from the point where the material to
be treated enters to the point where it escapes, in order that all the steam generated
from the water contained in such material may freely escape, it being caused to
pass out with the resultant product, which passes into a receptacle where the final
separation takes place, the steam passing off into the atmosphere, while the sugar
or other substance falls of its own gravity into any suitable receptacle. Instead
of the coil of pipe the evaporator may consist of a vessel composed of cast metal,
having in it the requisite spiral passage of increasing or of equal diameter, and the
heated products of combustion be made to surround it. In either case the passage
for the material through the evaporator is to be so constructed and arranged that
no air can enter it between the point where the liquor or fluid enters and that
where it is discharged.
For the injection of the substance to be treated to the evaporator a tank is
provided for containing such substance from which a pipe leads to the lower
portion of the evaporator, it being provided with a valve for regulating the
quantity allowed to pass, as previously described.
According to another modification the grate is not placed directly under the evapo-
rator, but there is a curved flue leading from the furnace to the evaporator through
which the heat passes and surrounds said evaporator, and finally escapes through a
pipe above it. In this modification the evaporator consists of a single coil of pipe of
increasing diameter or of differing diameters from the point where the material to be
treated enters to the point where it is discharged into a central pipe, which passes down
through the coil and out through the wall of the furnace, and enters the receptacle
where the steam is finally separated from the resultant product. When this form
of evaporator is used the usual tank is provided for containing the substance to be
treated, and also the feeding pipe controlled by a valve, the use of which has been
above described; and it is also desirable to use a small pipe attached to the upper
portion of the evaporator, having in it a valve or cock so that a small quantity of
steam may be allowed to escape through it, and thus relieve the pressure in the
evaporator to such an extent as to prevent pulsations therein or an intermittent
discharge of material therefrom.
This apparatus is peculiarly adapted for the production of syrup and sugar from
saccharine juices or liquors, but it will be found to be well adapted for the
evaporation of salt water for producing salt and for evaporating liquors containing
tannin, gelatinous, or albuminous substances, and other substances which it is
desirable to concentrate or convert into a semi-liquid or solid form, and for the
condensation of milk.

page_text: SPECIFICATION in pursuance of the conditions of the Letters Patent filed
by the said William Robert Lake in the Great Seal Patent Office on the
18th January 18S2.
WILLIAM ROBERT LAKE, of the Firm of Haseltine, Lake, & Co., Patent Agents,
Southampton Buildings, London. "AN IMPROVED EVAPORATING APPARATUS AND
PROCESS FOR THE TREATMENT OF SUGAR-PRODUCING JUICES, SALT-WATER, AND
OTHER SUBSTANCES." A communication from abroad by James Agustine Morrell,
of the City and State of New York, United States of America, Doctor of
Medicine..
The said Invention relates to an improved process and apparatus for evaporating
purposes, and is designed for treating the juices extracted or expressed from sugar-
cane, sorghum, corn-stalks, and similar substances, the saccharine matter obtained
from beets, corn, and other sugar producing grains, as well as salt water and
liquids containing tannin and other substances capable of being reduced to a
semi-liquid or solid form by such process, the operation being a continuous one,
and causing a continuous delivery of the resulting product at the outlet pipe so
long as it is continued.
In practicing this process, the juice which has been expressed from cane and
other sugar-bearing stalks, or which has been otherwise obtained, and which has
been defecated in any approved manner, is passed by its own gravity or by a
pump or other forcing device in a continuous stream through a coil or coils of
pipe or a spirally or zig-zag formed channel or groove which may be of increasing
diameter from the point where the liquid enters to the point where it is discharged,
or the passage may be of the same diameter throughout its entire length, care
being taken that when a pump or other forcing device is employed it shall be
so constructed and arranged that the flow of the liquid shall be nearly or quite
continuous, the said pipe or passage being placed in a suitable position for the
reception of heat from a furnace or other heating apparatus, such heat being
applied to its outer surface. The consistency of the resulting product may be
regulated by a cock or valve placed in the induction-pipe, by which the quantity
of liquid entering the evaporator can be controlled, and consequently the density
or consistency of the material discharged, as the smaller the quantity admitted in
a given period of time the longer it will remain in the pipe or channel, and the
greater will be its density when delivered. The final separation of the steam™
generated in the apparatus, and the sugar or other substance takes place in the
pipe or channel at or near the point where they come in contact with the
atmosphere, from which point the resultant product may be conducted to any
suitable reservoir.
In the accompanying Drawing I have illustrated several forms for carrying my
Invention into practice.
Figure 1 is an elevation, partly in section, showing one form of my improved
evaporator, having an outlet for steam at its upper enlarged end, and one for the
escape of steam and the resulting product at its lower end.
In this Figure, A refers to a metal cylinder or casing which may be of any
desired length and diameter, and is to be lined with fire-bricks or some 4
non-conducting substance for the purpose of preventing the radiation of heat. The
coil in this instance is composed of pipes of five different diameters, beginning with
a pipe of two inches in diameter at the bottom, and ending with one of four
inches at the top, but other and greater variations may be made if desired, or the
pipe may be of the same diameter throughout its entire length. This coil, as a t
whole, is designated by the letter B, and the different parts by the letters and
figures B1, B2, B3, B4, and B', there being in practice as many coils of each size as
desired. From the upper end of the said coil B there extends upward a pipe,
or it may be a portion of the coil, passing out through the upper end of the
furnace or casing, and having its upper end curved for the purpose of giving the

page_text: proper direction to the escaping steam, and it may have its outlet portion
considerably enlarged if desired.
For the purpose of feeding the material to be evaporated to the evaporator
there is provided a tank C which is placed at any desired elevation above the said
evaporator into which the juice or other substance is placed, and from which it is
conducted to the evaporator through the pipe D, provided with a valve D', for
the purpose of regulating the quantity that shall be allowed to enter in any given
period of time, and thus the density or consistency of the product delivered at the
outlet. The said pipe D enters the vertical pipe at the upper end of the evaporator,
and passes down some distance therein, the object being to prevent the liquid
substance from being carried out of the evaporator at that point by the ascending
steam, it being an ascertained fact that when thus arranged the pressure of steam
which is produced in the evaporator is never sufficiently great to produce that
result. The lower portion of the furnace or casing is provided with a suitable
grate E upon which the fuel is burned, an ash-pit being formed beneath it; two
doors E¹ and E2 are also provided, the former for the insertion of the fuel, and the
latter for the removal of ashes and the admission of air. For conducting away
the smoke and other heated products of combustion a pipe may be attached to any
part of the casing above the evaporator, an aperture being formed therein for their
passage to the said pipe. Anchors F, F, are shown for holding the evaporator in
position, but these may be omitted if preferred, and the evaporator be sported
upon ledges formed in or on the wall of the furnace.
In Figure 2 I have illustrated a modified form of apparatus in which there
is shown an evaporator, consisting of a double coil of pipe, through which the
substance to be treated is made to pass.
A in this Figure indicates a furnace of any desired dimensions in which the
fuel necessary for causing the evaporation of the liquid is burned, the said fuel
resting upon a grate B, below which there is formed an ash pit D.
The grate B
may be placed directly under the evaporator as shown, or it may be below but at
one side thereof. In either case the arrangement of the flue leading therefrom is
to be such as to direct the heated products of combustion upon the evaporator
which is located in a chamber formed in the furnace or casing, and provided with
a flue E for discharging the smoke into the atmosphere. The evaporator in the
example here shown consists of a pipe F having an increasing diameter from the
point where the material to be treated enters to the point where it escapes, in
order that all the steam generated from the water contained in such material may
freely escape, the said steam being caused to pass out with the resultant product
which passes into the receptacle G where the final separation takes place, the
steam passing off into the atmosphere while the sugar or other substance falls. by
its own gravity into any suitable receptacle. Instead of the coil of pipe the
evaporator may consist of a vessel composed of cast metal, having in it the
requisite spiral passage of increasing or of equal diameter, the heated products of
combustion being made to surround it. In either case the passage for the material
through the evaporator is to be so constructed and arranged that no air can enter
it between the point where the liquor or fluid enters and that where it is
discharged.
In providing for the injection of the substance to be treated to the evaporator
a tank H is provided for containing such substance, from which a pipe I leads to
the lower portion of the evaporator, the said pipe being provided with a valve for
regulating the quantity allowed to pass, as previously described.
Figure 3 shows another form of furnace and evaporator. In this example A
indicates the furnace in which the fuel is burned, B the grate, and D the ash-pit.
The grate in this Figure is not placed directly under the evaporator, but there is a
curved flue leading from the furnace to the evaporator, through which the heat
passes and surrounds the said evaporator, and finally escapes through the pipe E
above it. In this modification the evaporator consists of a single coil of pipe F of
increasing diameter or of differing diameters from the point where the material to

page_text: be treated enters to the point where it is discharged into a central pipe F¹ which
passes down through the coil and out through the wall of the furnace, and enters
the receptacle G, where the steam is finally separated from the resultant product.
When this form of evaporator is used the usual tank H is provided for containing
the substance to be treated; also the feeding pipe I controlled by a valve, the use
of which has been above described. And it is also desirable to use a small pipe K
attached to the upper portion of the evaporator, the said pipe K having in it a
valve or cock, so that a small quantity of steam may be allowed to escape through
it, and thus relieve the pressure in the evaporator to such an extent as to prevent
pulsations therein or an intermittent discharge of material therefrom.
This apparatus is particularly adapted for the production of syrup and sugar
from saccharine juices or liquors, but it will be found to be well adapted for the
evaporation of salt-water for producing salt, and for evaporating liquors containing
tannin, gelatinous or albuminous substances, and other substances which it is
desirable to concentrate or convert into a semi-liquid or solid form, and for the
condensation of milk.
Having thus fully described the said Invention as communicated to me by my
foreign correspondent, and the manner of performing the same, I wish it understood
that I claim,
First. The herein described process of evaporating sugar-producing juices or
liquors and other substances, which process consists in passing the material to be
treated through a heated coil of pipe, or otherwise formed spiral or zig-zag passage
in a continuous stream, and delivering the same therefrom in the form of syrup,
sugar, or other concentrated substances, and of steam, as above set forth.
Second. An apparatus for the evaporation of sugar-producing juices or liquors
and liquids containing salt, gelatinous or albuminious substances, and tannin, and
for condensing or concentrating milk, the said apparatus consisting of a coil of pipe
or a vessel having in it a spiral or zig-zag passage, the said passage being of even
diameter throughout or of differing diameters in parts thereof in which steam is
generated from the water contained in the material to be treated and caused to
travel with the heavier products to a common point of delivery, substantially as
above set forth.
Third. In an apparatus for evaporating and concentrating sugar-producing
juices or liquors and other liquids, an evaporator consisting of a coil of pipe of
differing diameters, or of the same diameter throughout its entire length, having
an outlet at its upper end for steam and an outlet at its lower end for the escape
of steam and the discharge of the concentrated or condensed substance.
Fourth. In an apparatus for evaporating cane-juice and other substances, the
combination of a tank for containing the substance to be treated, a feeding pipe,
and a regulating valve for controlling the amount of liquid that shall pass to the
evaporator in a given space of time, and thereby the density or consistency of the
condensed matter delivered.
Fifth. In an apparatus for evaporating cane-juice and other substances, the com-
bination of a heating furnace, an evaporator having in it a spiral or zig-zag passage
for the material to be treated, a receptacle for the material, and a regulating valve,
substantially as above set forth.
In witness whereof, I, the said William Robert Lake, have hereunto set my
hand and seal, this Eighteenth day of January, in the year of our Lord
One thousand eight hundred and eighty two.