IMPROVEMENTS IN UTILIZING WASTE OR SPENT LIME OF SOAP AND GASWORKS, AND OTHER WORKS AND FACTORIES IN THE MANUFACTURE OF BRICKS, TILES, DRAIN-PIPES, AND OTHER ARTICLES." PROVISIONAL SPECIFICATION
Year: 1881

page_text: LETTERS PATENT to Ernest Leslie Ransome, of the City and County of San
Francisco in the State of California, United States of America, for an
Invention of "IMPROVEMENTS IN UTILIZING WASTE OR SPENT LIME OF
SOAP AND GASWORKS, AND OTHER WORKS AND FACTORIES IN THE
MANUFACTURE OF BRICKS, TILES, DRAIN-PIPES, AND OTHER ARTICLES."
PROVISIONAL SPECIFICATION left by the said Ernest Leslie Ransome at
the Office of the Commissioners of Patents on the 29th November 1881.
ERNEST LESLIE RANSOME, of the City and County of San Francisco, in the
State of California, United States of America. "IMPROVEMENTS IN UTILIZING
WASTE OR SPENT LIME OF SOAP AND GAS WORKS, AND OTHER WORKS AND
FACTORIES IN THE MANUFACTURE OF BRICKS, TILES, DRAIN PIPES, AND OTHER
ARTICLES."
My. Invention has for its object to utilize the waste or spent lime from gas
works, soap works, or other works and factories in the production or manufacture
of bricks, tiles, blocks for building and paving purposes, drain and water pipes and
conductors, and other articles which are or may be made of clay, cement, or
concrete, by which I am able to render of practical value this otherwise waste
material and turn it to useful account.
My Invention or discovery consists in converting this waste material or product
into bricks, tiles, building and paving blocks, pipes, and conductors, or other
articles as herein described, by subjecting it to great pressure in moulds or
"forms
of the shape and structure required to produce the given article.
"
It consists also in imparting to the article produced or manufactured from waste
or spent lime, in the manner herein described, qualities of hardness, durability, and
imperviousness to water in greater or less degree, as may be desirable or necessary
by adding to and mixing or otherwise combining with the waste or spent lime
before subjecting to the moulding process or operation any or either one of the
following ingredients, substances, or compounds, in about the proportions and
manner as hereinafter specified, namely, silicious earth, such as is readily soluble
in solutions of soda or potash, silicate of soda or potash, or both together with or
without a salt that will combine with the silicate of soda or potash and form an
insoluble compound, such, for instance, as chloride of calcium or alum, or by
[Price 4d1

page_text: adding to and mixing or otherwise combining with the said material or product a
weak solution of soap or other oily or fatty matter.
It consists also in imparting to the articles of the aforesaid kind as produced or
manufactured from waste or spent lime qualities of hardness, durability, and im-
perviousness to water in greater or less degree by immersing the article or
production after it has been formed or moulded, first into a solution of silicate of
soda or potash, or both together, and then treating it with a solution of chloride of
calcium or alum, or other equivalent, that combining with the soluble silicates would
form an insoluble compound.
It consists also in imparting to the articles of the aforesaid kind as produced
or manufactured from waste or spent lime, qualities of hardness, durability, and
imperviousness to water in degree as required, by immersing the articles after they
have been formed or moulded into a bath or preparation of tar or asphaltum, such
as is used for coating bricks and similar substances and surfaces.
In order to carry out my said Invention I subject the waste or spent lime in
the condition as it comes from the works or factory to a grinding or pulverizing
operation in such quantities as may be required for use, for the purpose simply of
reducing any hard cores and lumps in the mass and bringing it into an uniform
granular or homogeneous condition, and then, after placing or filling this product
into moulds or "forms" of the shape or shapes required in the production of the
brick, tile, or other article, I subject it to great pressure by means of a press,
machine, or apparatus of suitable construction and power; by the term " great-
pressure," I mean as great a pressure as can be practically and economically
employed, conveyed, or applied to the material or product in the mould by
machinery in contra distinction to such maximum pressure as can be conveyed or
imparted by hand with tools, and in all cases I use as great pressure as circum-
stances will admit of.
To the articles thus produced from waste or spent lime I can add or impart an
increased condition or degree of hardness and durability, and also imperviousness
to water and moisture, as may be required in the article or the uses to which it is
to be put, by employing one or the other of the following steps, methods, or
processes in connection with and either before or after the operation of moulding
under pressure which constitutes the first part of my Invention.
1st. To the lime as it is brought into condition for moulding under pressure I
add from one to ten per centum of silicious earth of a kind that is soluble in cold
solutions of soda or potash, and which is found in abundance in certain localities,
and if sufficient alkali be not present I add about one half to one per centum of
either soda or potash and then mould under pressure as before described.
2d. To the lime as it is brought into condition for moulding under pressure, I
add from one to five per centum of either silicate of soda or potash, or of both, and
then mould under pressure, as before described; and then in cases where sufficient
free lime be not present I treat the moulded forms or shapes with a solution of any
salt that will combine with the silicate of soda or potash and form an insoluble
compound with it, such for instance as chloride of calcium.or alum.
3rd. To the lime as it is brought into condition. for moulding under pressure
I add a weak solution of soap or other oily or fatty matter in solution.
4th. After moulding the lime under pressure, as before described, I immerse the
forms or shapes in a solution of either silicate of soda or potash, or of both, having
a specific gravity of from 1050 to 1200, and then if sufficient free lime be not
present in the stone I subsequently treat the article with a solution of chloride
of calcium, alum, or other equivalent, that combining with the soluble silicates will
form insoluble compounds therewith.
5th. After moulding the lime under pressure, as before described, I immerse
the forms or shapes in any of the ordinary preparations of tar or asphaltum, such
as are used for coating bricks and similar substances.

page_text: SPECIFICATION in pursuance of the conditions of the Letters Patent filed by
the said Ernest Leslie Ransome in the Great Seal Patent Office on the 19th
May 1882.
ERNEST LESLIE RANSOME, of the City and County of San Francisco, in the
State of California, United States of America. "IMPROVEMENTS IN UTILIZING
WASTE OR SPENT LIME OF SOAP AND GASWORKS, AND OTHER WORKS AND
FACTORIES IN THE MANUFACTURE OF BRICKS, TILES, DRAIN PIPES, AND OTHER
ARTICLES."
My Invention has for its object the production of bricks, tiles, and blocks for
building and paving purposes, drain pipes, water conductors, and other articles
from the waste or spent lime of gas, soap, and other works.
By means of my Invention or discovery I am enabled to utilize this waste
material or substance and turn it to practical account in the manufacture of a
variety of forms of slabs and blocks having qualities of hardness and durability
that render them of value for constructive purposes; and also in the production
of drain pipes, tiles, water pipes, and other articles, where hardness and resistance
to the action of water are necessary qualities.
In the manufacture of such forms and articles from cement, concrete, and various
mixtures or compounds of the kind, the cost of the ingredients, besides the time
and labor involved in the production of the material itself, largely increases
the cost of manufacture and the consequent market price of the articles.
I have found however that many forms and articles can be successfully and
practically manufactured from waste or spent lime as it is thrown out from gas
or other works if the substance is treated in molds or forms with great pressure
from suitable machinery or apparatus, and that the bricks and other articles thereby
produced will have the required solidity, hardness, and other qualities of durability.
My Invention or discovery consists therefore in converting this waste material or
product into bricks, tiles, building and paving blocks, and other articles as berein
described, by simply subjecting the waste or spent line to great pressure in molds
or "forms" of the shape and structure required to give shape to the article; and
in order to carry out my Invention I treat when necessary the waste or spent lime
in the condition as it comes from the works or factory, and in such amounts as
may be required for use at the time, to a grinding, pulverizing, or sifting process
or operation for the purpose simply of reducing or removing any hard lumps or
cores formed of partially slaked particles, that if permitted to remain and become
incorporated, would affect the structure of the molded article through subsequent
slacking.
"
Then after this preliminary treatment, or without it, if the substance is already
sufficiently granular or homogeneous, I place it directly into molds or forms of the
required shape or shapes, and subject it to great pressure by means of a press,
machine, or apparatus of suitable construction and required power. By the term
"great pressure," I mean as great a pressure as can be practically and economically
obtained and applied to the material or product in the mold by machinery in contra
distinction to such maximum pressure as can be conveyed or imparted by hand'
with tools, it being necessary for the purpose of my Invention to use in all cases as
great a pressure as circumstances will admit of.
Ordinary pressure, such as would be ordinarily used in the manufacture of blocks
and other articles from concrete and similar compositions, will fail to produce from
this waste-lime product an article capable of withstanding exposure to weight and
blows, as in the form of paving blocks and slabs; or of resisting atmospheric

page_text: influences as in building blocks, or the action of water as in pipes, tiles, and con-
ductors; and it is only by subjecting the material to extreme pressure that I have
found it can be made of practical value and utility.
The pressure I employ for this purpose generally varies from one ton to ten
tons per superficial inch of surface, and is controlled by or depends on the form
and purpose to which the article is to be put. For instance, in paving blocks and
slabs a maximum pressure; in bricks of the ordinary commercial sizes a pressure of
about two tons to the inch; for faced or highly finished bricks about six tons to the
inch, always bearing in mind in working with such material that the greater the
pressure employed the better will be the result.
Secondly. My Invention consists in imparting to the articles produced or
manufactured from the spent lime of gas and other works as before described,
qualities of hardness, durability, and imperviousness to water in greater or less
degree as may be desirable or necessary by adding to or mixing and combination
with the waste or spent lime before subjecting it to the molding process or
operation any or all of the following ingredients in about the proportions and
after the manner herein specified, namely, silicious earth, soda, potash silicates of
soda and potash, or a weak solution of soap or other oily or fatty matter, and with
or without a subsequent immersion into a solution of a salt that will combine with
the silicates of soda or potash, and form an insoluble compound, such, for instance,
as chloride of calcium or alum.
These substances or ingredients impart hardness and imperviousness to water in
greater or less degree according to the quantity employed, and by using them
singly or in connection different qualities may be obtained that are best suited to
the articles being formed. The proportions which I have found best adapted for
my purpose are of silicious earth, fron one hundred to two hundred pounds
avoirdupois, according to its richness; of soda or of potash, twenty five to fifty
pounds; of silicates of soda and potash, from two gallons to ten gallons, either
singly or both together; and of soap or oily matter, from five to fifteen gallons of
about the specific gravity of one thousand and fifty. These quantities being used
for each ton of the waste or spent lime, and one or more of these substances being
combined with the material as before stated.
Thirdly. My Invention consists in imparting to the articles produced and
manufactured from spent or waste lime as before described qualities of hardness,
durability, and imperviousness to water in greater or less degree by treating the
articles after the forming or moulding operation with a soluble silicate, and then
to a solution of chloride of calcium or not as may be desirable; the same being
performed and accomplished by providing a solution or bath composed of a salt
that will combine with the silicates in the formed or molded articles, and form
therewith insoluble silicates, such, for instance, as the chloride of calcium, which
will form insoluble silicate of lime or alum, which will form silicate of alumina, etc.
The first solution into which the articles are immersed is composed of either the
silicates of soda or potash having a specific gravity of from one thousand and fifty
to twelve hundred, while the strength of the bath or solution in which the articles
are subsequently treated, having generally a specific gravity of from one thousand
and fifty to eleven hundred, being reduced sufficiently to allow proper penetration
into the material or substance of the molded article.
Fourthly. My Invention consists in imparting to the forms or articles produced
and manufactured from the spent or waste lime, as before described, qualities of
hardness, durability, and imperviousness to water in degree as required by
incorporating or combining with the product a certain quantity of tar or asphaltum
before molding, or by immersing the articles after the molding process or operation
into a bath or preparation of the tar or asphaltum.
The substance or ingredient I employ for this purpose is that generally used for
coating bricks, roofs, and metal surfaces, and the quantity or proportion which I
use to combine with the lime before molding is about seventy five gallons to one
ton of the waste or spent lime.

page_text: In this last mentioned treatment where the blocks and other formed articles are
immersed it may not be found desirable to employ a great degree or amount of
pressure as in the first described process of molding the waste lime product, because
the solution will penetrate into and combine with the substance to the required
extent more readily and effectively if the surface of the articles be not rendered too
compact or highly finished.
Therefore it will be found in practice that by the use of this ingredient less
pressure will be required in forming the articles, but where it is not used, that the
waste or spent lime product requires great pressure to produce articles of practical
value or utility.
Having thus fully described my Invention, I claim,―
First. The utilization of the waste or spent lime from gas and other works in
the manufacturing of bricks, slabs, tiles, pipes, and other articles as above described
by molding it under great pressure, as set forth.
Secondly. The utilization of the waste or spent lime from gas and other works as
above described by treating it with silicious earth, with or without the addition
of an alkali after the manner and in about the proportions herein set forth.
Thirdly. The utilization of the waste or spent lime from gas and other works as
above described by first treating it with silicates of soda or potash, either or both,
and then molding it under pressure, with or without the subsequent application of
a solution of chloride of calcium or its equivalent after the manner and about the
proportions herein set forth.
Fourthly. The utilization of the waste or spent lime from gas and other works
by adding a weak solution of oily or fatty matter and then molding under pressure
after the manner and in about the proportions set forth.
Fifthly. The utilization of the waste or spent lime of gas and other works as
above described by molding under pressure and then immersing in a solution of
soluble silicate with or without the subsequent employment and application of a
solution of chloride of calcium in the manner and about the proportions herein set
forth.
Sixthly. The utilization of the waste or spent lime from gas and other works by
combining therewith tar or asphaltum after the manner and in about the proportions
herein set forth.
Seventhly. The utilization of the waste or spent lime from gas and other works
by molding under pressure and then immersing in a bath of tar or asphaltum
employed after the manner and in about the proportions herein set forth.
In witness whereof, I, the said Ernest Leslie Ransome, have hereunto set
my hand and scal, this Eighth day of February, A.D. One thousand eight
hundred and eighty two.
Witness,
EDWARD ELNATHAN OSBORN,
WILLIAM WRIGHT OSBORN,
San Francisco,
California, U.S.A.
ERNEST LESLIE RANSOME. (L.S.)
Witness,
EDWARD ELNATHAN OSBORN,
WILLIAM WRIGHT OSBORN,
San Francisco,
California, U.S.A.