IMPROVE- MENTS IN TREATING BITUMINOUS SHALE, BOGHEAD MINERAL, AND OTHER LIKE SCHISTOUS BODIES, IN ORDER TO OBTAIN VARIOUS COMMERCIAL PRODUCTS THERE- FROM
Year: 1856

page_text: LETTERS PATENT to Richard Archibald Brooman, of 166, Fleet Street,
in the City of London, Patent Agent, for the Invention of "IMPROVE-
MENTS IN TREATING BITUMINOUS SHALE, BOGHEAD MINERAL, AND OTHER LIKE
SCHISTOUS BODIES, IN ORDER TO OBTAIN VARIOUS COMMERCIAL PRODUCTS THERE-
FROM." A communication from Pierre Gédeon Barry.
Sealed the 16th May 1856, and dated the 28th February 1856.
PROVISIONAL SPECIFICATION left by the said Richard Archibald
Brooman at the Office of the Commissioners of Patents, with his
Petition, on the 28th February 1856.
I, RICHARD ARCHIBALD BROOMAN, of 166, Fleet Street, in the City of
London, Patent Agent, do hereby declare the nature of the said Invention
for "IMPROVEMENTS IN TREATING BITUMINOUS SHALE, BOGHEAD MINERAL, AND
OTHER LIKE SCHISTOUS BODIES, IN ORDER TO OBTAIN VARIOUS COMMERCIAL PRODUCTS
THEREFROM," (communicated to me by Pierre Gédeon Barry, a foreigner
residing abroad), to be as follows:-
The Inventor operates upon the schistous bodies in order to obtain essential
and unctuous oils.
1st, highly rectified mineral oil; 2nd, mineral oil for lighting purposes;
3rd, fat, unctuous, paraphinized (paraphinée) oil; and 4th, mineral grease
through certain apparatuses, as follows:-
Retorts for decomposing the schistous bodies and a receiver are made use

page_text: of. The pipes which lead the gases from the retorts enter partly into the
receiver, which is placed at some distance from the retorts. A condenser pro-
vided with refrigerating tubes condenses the raw oils and the ammoniacal
waters. Purifiers, formed of two wooden cases or jackets, lined throughout
with lead, and provided each with an agitator, are employed to place the oils
(after having been separated from the thick tar, as will be hereafter ex-
plained) in contact with 5 per cent, by weight of sulphuric acid of commerce.
The matters must be agitated or stirred for about three hours, then left to
settle, and drawn off into a second purifier placed under the first, where they
have added to them about 5 per cent. by weight of caustic soda, or a sufficient
quantity of lime water, and the whole is to be well stirred for several
hours and then allowed to settle. A distilling apparatus for the raw oils is
composed. of a cucurbit, placed over a furnace. It is fitted with a man-hole
for clearing it out, and communicates by a pipe with a coil, from which the
products of distillation are discharged into a receiver.
The
After submitting the raw oils to a primary distillation, in order to separate
them from, the pasty or semi-liquid tar which remains in, the cucurbit, and
from which it is drawn while still hot, the oils are treated successively with
sulphuric acid, caustic soda, and lime water, and are-1 then re-distilled in such
a form of still as that employed in the distillation of molasses or rum.
oils separated from the thick 'tår yield, under a properly regulated distillation,
the light essential oil, the first streams of which are of about 70° Gay Lussac's
areometer of density. Distillation is carried on until the stream of liquid
reaches a density of 50°. The first results, being the very light essential oils,
should be collected separately, and proceeding with great care, the next batch,
until it attains 32° of the aroemeter, may also be collected and used for lighting
purposes. The process of distillation may be further proceeded with, but the heat
must be progressively increased, and the product resulting will be the unctuous
oil, fit for greasing and lubricating. A néarly liquid .tar. or tarry matter will
still remain.in the cucurbit, which may be converted into a black grease, by
mixing with it 10 or 15 per. cent. of liquid caustic soda at 36%. After being
well stirred at a temperature of 125° to: 30° (centigrade) above zero, for about
two to three hours, saponification takes place, and the matter, being run into
appropriate receivers, fornis: what I term mineral paraphinized grease. After
obtaining lighting oils at 32°, as herein-before stated, that which is afterwards
produced is deprived of all light liquid, and all that remains is to separate the
paraphine which is combined with it. For this purpose the unctuous, oil is
placed in refrigerators, with double bottoms, wherein it is submitted to a low
temperature, at which the paraphine will be separated, and the remainder is

page_text: gathered in bags, and submitted to pressure, in order to extract whatever
little oil it may contain. By means of ice and sulphate of soda, a tempe-
rature from 10° to 20° (centigrade) below zero may be attained. In the
decomposition of schistous substances, the heat for the production of the
oily matters must never exceed 200° to 300° centigrade, for if carried beyond;
all the gases would be converted into carbonated hydrogen and carbonic
oxide, to the detriment of the hydro-carbonated and hydro-carburetted liquids
which are obtained.
SPECIFICATION in pursuance of the conditions of the Letters Patent, filed
by the said Richard Archibald Brooman in the Great Seal Patent Office
on the 27th August 1856.
TO ALL TO WHOM THESE PRESENTS SHALL COME, I, RICHARD'
ARCHIBALD BROOMAN, of 166, Fleet Street, in the City of London, l'atent
Agent, send greeting.
WHEREAS Her most Excellent Majesty Queen Victoria, by Her Letters
Patent, bearing date the Twenty-eighth day of February, in the year of our
Lord One thousand eight hundred and fifty-six, in the nineteenth year of Her
reign, did, for Herself, Her heirs and successors, give and grant unto me, the
said Richard Archibald Brooman, Her special licence that I, the said Richard.
Archibald Brooman, my executors, administrators, and assigns, or such others
as I, the said Richard Archibald Brooman, my executors, administrators, and
assigns, should at any time agree with, and no others, from time to time and
at all times thereafter during the term therein expressed, should and lawfully.
might make, use, exercise, and vend, within the United Kingdom of Great
Britain and Ireland, the Channel Islands, and Isle of Man, an Invention for
"IMPROVEMENTS IN TREATING BITUMINOUS SHALE, BOGHEAD MINERAL, AND OTHER
LIKE SCHISTOUS BODIES, IN ORDER to OBTAIN VARIOUS COMMERCIAL PRODUCTS THERE-
FROM," (a communication from Pierre Gédéon Barry, a foreigner residing
abroad,) upon the condition (amongst others) that I, the said Richard Archi-
bald Brooman, my executors or administrators, by an instrument in writing
under my, or their, or one of their hands and seals, should particularly describe
and ascertain the nature of the said Invention, and in what manner the same
was to be performed, and cause the same to be filed in the Great Seal
Patent Office within six calendar months next and immediately after the
date of the said Letters Patent.

page_text: NOW KNOW YE, that I, the said Richard Archibald Brooman, do hereby
declare the nature of the said Invention, and in what manner the same is
to be performed, to be particularly described and ascertained in and by the
following statement thereof, reference being had to the Drawings hereunto
annexed, that is to say:-
The object of the present Invention is to obtain from bituminous shale,
boghead, mineral, and other like schistous bodies, the following products:-
1st. Essential oil (of 60° of Gay Lussac's areometer) which may be used
, as a solvent for caoutchouc for scouring woollen and other fabrics, and other
purposes.
.
2nd. An oil for lighting purposes (of a density of from 32° to 40°)
3rd. A fatty unctuous oil for lubricating machinery.
4th. A liquid tar, for lubricating purposes.
5th. A solid tar.
6th. A "black," which may be used as a coloring matter in painting and in
the manufacture of printing ink.
7th. A black," having the same properties as animal black, and which
may be used in the decolorization of liquids, vinegar, raw sugar, &c., and also
in the manufacture of blacking.
·
8th. Paraphine (white and transparent like sperm).
9th. Ammoniacal water, containing six per cent. of liquid ammonia.
And the Invention consists in operating upon the schistous bodies, in order
to obtain the aforesaid products, by means of certain apparatus herein-after
described, and in the following manner:-The products to be obtained are
divided into four classes, 1st, highly rectified mineral oil; 2nd, purified mineral
oil for lighting purposes; 3rd, fatty unctuous paraphinized (paraphinée) oil; 4th,
mineral grease. Retorts for decomposing the schistous bodies, and a receiver,
are made use of. Some of the pipes which lead the gases from the retorts enter
into the receiver, which is placed at some distance from the retorts.
A con-
denser provided with refrigerating tubes condenses the raw oils and ammoniacal
waters. Purifiers, consisting of two wooden cases or jackets lined throughout
with lead, and provided each with an agitator, are employed. In these puri-
fiers the oils (after having been separated from the thick tar, as will be
hereafter explained) are brought in contact with about 5 per cent. by weight
of sulphuric acid of commerce. The matters must be agitated or stirred
for three hours, more or less, then left to settle, and drawn off into a second
purifier, placed under the first, where they have added to them about five per
cent. by weight of liquid caustic soda, or a sufficient quantity of lime water,
and the whole is to be well stirred for several hours and then allowed, to settle.

page_text: An apparatus, consisting of a cucurbit placed over a furnace, is employed for
distilling the raw oils. This apparatus is provided with a man-hole for cleaning
it out, and communicates by a pipe with a coil, from which the products of
distillation are discharged into a receiver.
After submitting the raw oils to a primary distillation, in order to separate
them from the pasty or semi-liquid tar which remains in the cucurbit, and
from which it is drawn while still hot, the oils are treated successively with
sulphuric acid, caustic soda, and lime water, and are then re-distilled in a still
of the description employed in the distillation of molasses or rum. The oils
separated from the thick tar yield, under a properly regulated distillation, light
essential oil, the density of the first streams of which are about 70° of Gay
Lussac's areometer. Distillation is carried on until the stream of liquid reaches
a density of 50°. The first results,, being very light essential oils, should be
collected separately; proceeding with great care, the next batch may be
collected until it attains 32° of the areometer; this oil may be used for
lighting purposes. The distillation may be further proceeded with, but the
heat must be progressively increased, and the product resulting will be the
unctuous oil fit for greasing and lubricating purposes. (A nearly liquid tar or
tarry matter will still remain in the cucurbit, which may be converted into a
black grease by mixing with it 10 or 15 per cent. of liquid caustic soda at 36°.
After being well stirred at a temperature of 25° to 30 (centigrade) above zero,
for about two to three hours, saponification takes place, and the matter being
run into appropriate receivers forms what I term mineral paraphinized grease.
The fatty oils collected are treated in agitators or purifiers with sulphuric acid
and caustic soda, as before stated, and then distilled over again, in order to
collect all the light oil suitable for lighting purposes, that is to say, distillation
is continued until the liquid products are at 32°. After obtaining lighting
oils at 32°, that which is afterwards produced is deprived of all light liquid,
and all that remains is to separate therefrom the paraphine which is combined
with it. For this purpose the unctuous oil is placed in refrigerators with
double bottoms, wherein it is reduced to a very low temperature, at which
the paraphine will be separate, and the remainder is gathered in bags and
subjected to pressure, in order to extract whatever little oil it may contain.
By means of ice and sulphate of soda a temperature of from 10° to 20°
(centigrade) below zero may be attained. In the decomposition of schistous
substances the heat for the production of the oily matters must never exceed
200° to 300° centigrade, for if carried beyond, all the gases would be con-
verted into carbonated hydrogen and carbonic acid, to the detriment of the
hydro-carbonated and hydro-carburetted liquids. The retorts employed in

page_text: carrying out this Invention may be made of iron, fire-clay, or other suitable
materials, and of cylindrical or of any other 'shape, and they may be placed
in any convenient position with respect to the furnace.
Figure 1 of the annexed Drawings is a front elevation of one description
of retort in which the decomposition of the substances is effected. Figure 2
isa view of the 'receiver, which should be placed at a suitable distance from
the retort, and into which sonie of the tubes which convey the gases from
the retort lead. A is the retort; B, (Figure 2) receiver; C, condenser, for
condensing the raw oils and ammoniacal waters. The condenser is a vessel in
which a coil of refrigerating pipes is placed and kept immersed in 'cold water,
or in a position in which cold water may be sprinkled over them.. Figures 3
is a sectional elevation, Figure 4 a plan, and Figure 5 a section of the purifier
in which the oils (separated from the thick tar) are brought into contact with
sulphuric acid, and agitated, as previously mentioned. The purifiers consist of
wooden cases K, K, lined with sheet lead. Each purifier is provided with an
agitator L Figures 6 and 7 are views of apparatuses for distilling the raw
oils. This apparatus consists of a vessel or cucurbit D, placed over a furnace
E; F is a pipe for connecting the cucurbit with a coil S, from which the pro-
ducts of distillation are discharged into a receiver. There is a man-hole in the
cucurbit-D, to allow of the clearing out of the same.
And having now described the nature of the said Invention, and in what
manner the same is to be performed, I declare that I claim the improvements
in treating bituminous shale, boghead mineral, and other like schistous bodies,
in order to obtain various commercial products therefrom, by means of the
processes and apparatuses herein-before described, with reference to the
Drawings annexed."
In witness whereof, I, the said Richard Archibald Brooman, have here-
unto set my hand and seal, this Eighteenth day of July, One thousand
eight hundred and fifty-six.