IMPROVEMENTS IN THE METHOD OF AND APPARATUS FOR CARBONIZING AND DRYING WOOLLEN PIECES, WOOL NOILS, WASTE OR RAGS
Year: 1884

page_text: I, DUKE Fox of Uplands, Healds Road, Dewsbury in the County of York,
Wool Merchant do hereby declare the nature of my Invention for IMPROVEMENTS
IN THE METHOD OF AND APPARATUS FOR CARBONIZING AND DRYING WOOLLEN
PIECES, WOOL NOILS, WASTE OR RAGS, to be as follows:-
The object of this invention is to carbonize Rags or Wool in which it is desirable
to destroy the Vegetable matter therein, with a view to extract the Wool only from
the substances, subjected to the action of the apparatus in less time and under more
healthy conditions, than hitherto.
I accomplish my object by erecting two furnaces, over each I place a retort;
between the furnaces and retorts I erect a cast iron or other metal chamber of
rectangular form, and of such height as is found most convenient. This chamber
is fitted with horizontal Grids from bottom to top at convenient distances, these
grids by arrangement of ordinary balance levers to the outside of the chamber
I am enabled to let down at will; just below the top of the chamber I fix a
platform for the purpose for feeding into the top of the chamber the material I
wish to operate upon. By means of the fire in the furnace not only is the chamber
beated but the ordinary hydrochloric acid gas is generated in the retorts and driven
off through pipes connecting to the chamber between each grid.
The heat for warming the chamber is carried round the outer surface of the same,
and then into one or two chimneys.
The materials to be operated upon, is placed upon the top grid and is allowed to
stay a short time with the gas permeating the same; it is then dropt by means of
the balanced levers on to the second grid and so on to the bottom, the wool or rags
are then carbonized and dealt with in the ordinary manner.
By my improvements, I am enabled to pass a quantity of material constantly
through the apparatus. Hitherto the material to be operated upon has been
fastened up in a chamber for a time in order to effect to carbonization.
Dated this twelfth day June 1884
WAUGH AND CHAPMAN,
Agents for the Applicant.

page_text: I, DUKE Fox of Uplands, Healds Road, Dewsbury, in the County of York,
Wool Merchant, do hereby declare the nature of my invention; for IMPROVEMENTS
IN THE METHOD OF AND APPARATUS FOR CARBONIZING AND DRYING, WOOLLEN
PIECES, WOOL NOILS, WASTE OR RAGS; and in what manner the same is to be
performed, to be particularly described and ascertained in and by the following
statement:
The object of this invention is to carbonize rags or wool, in which it is desirable
to destroy the vegetable matter therein, with a view to extract the wool only from
the substances subjected to the action of the apparatus, in less time and under
more healthy conditions than hitherto; and consists in erecting two furnaces and
placing over each a retort, in which hydrochloric acid gas is generated, and
conveyed through pipes into a chamber in which are arranged a number of movable
grids or floors for the reception of the material to be operated upon; the same
being fed in at the top of the chamber, and lowered from grid to grid, after being
subjected to tlfe action of the gas for a short time.
In the accompanying drawing Fig 1 represents an elevation of my improved
apparatus; the chambers in which the material is carbonized being in section; and
Fig 2 is a sectional plan through line a. b. and with the brick work removed from
over the retorts for the purpose of shewing the flues around the same.
The retorts A are fitted with movable mouth pieces A¹ similar to those used
on ordinary gas retorts, and are heated by furnaces B underneath, by which
hydrochloric acid gas is generated from the usual compounds now used for
carbonizing rags or wool. The gas is conveyed from the retorts A, through the
vertical pipes C, and branches O' at each side, into one or all the divisions of
the central chamber D; the sides of which are formed of cast or wrought iron
plates, and heated by the gases passing through the flues E arising from the furnace
fires under the retorts A.
The material to be operated upon is spread evenly upon the top swing plate P,
and then dropped on to the perforated swing grid plate G below, in the manner as
'hereinafter described, where the material is allowed to stay a short time the
hydrochloric acid gas from the retorts permeating the same; it is dropped on to the
perforated swing grid plate G¹ below, by lowering the swing grid plates G to
the position indicated by the dotted lines, by the raising of levers H secured to the
shafts at each side of the chamber, and to which. the swing grid plates are also
secured.
The top division above swing grid plates G is then recharged in the manner
before described, and the material lowered from division to division, by which it is
turned over and more exposed to the carbonizing influence of the hydrochloric acid
gas, until it is finally discharged into the open space K between the brickwork L,
by the opening of the bottom swing plates P₁ operated upon by the levers in
connection therewith.

page_text: The perforated swing grids G and G', and swing plates P and P¹ are shewn in
two plates, each of which is secured to a shaft on each side of the central chamber D,
but they may be made in one, and secured to a shaft on one side of the chamber:
the weighted levers H when liberated cause the respective swing grids and plates
to assume a horizontal position.
By this my improved method of carbonizing, I am enable to pass a quantity of
material constantly through the apparatus; whereas by the methods now in
practice, the material is placed in a chamber, closed up, and then subjected to the
hydrochloric acid gas in order to affect the carbonization; the chamber having to
be opened, the material extracted, and another supply placed therein, thereby
loosing a great amount of time.
Having now particularly described and ascertained the nature of my said
invention, and in what manner the same is to be performed, I declare that what
I claim is
Wool or rag carbonizers constructed with a central chamber connected with
retorts, the chamber fitted with a series of swing grids arranged for lowering the
material to be operated upon from one grid to another.
Dated this 19th day of March 1885.
WAUGH & CHAPMAN,
70, Chancery Lane, W.C.,
Agents for the Applicant.
WAUGH & CHAPMAN,
70, Chancery Lane, W.C.,
Agents for the Applicant.