(No Model.

)
W. ERWIN,
PROCESS OF MAKING HYDROGEN PEROXIDE,
No. 440,792, Patented Nov. 18, 1890.

3
NS
N

:%AA

22e 2ccessame 22
77-2et2a2 /m. fg Md
O

Pi(TWESSAS WWJAEWTOR

Te 9-6---9-8,
THE NORRIS. PETERs co., FHoTo-Litho, wASHINGTON, d. c.
 UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE.
WILLIAM ERWIN, OF PHILADELPHIA, PEN NSYLVANIA.
PROCESS OF MAK NG HYDRO GEN PEROXDE.

SPECIFICATION forming part of Letters Patent No. 440,792, dated November 18, 1890.
Application filed August 20, 1889, Serial No. 321,432, (No specimens.)
To all whom it may concern: the quantity of hydrogen peroxide desired to
Beitknown that I, WILLIAM ERWIN, a citi be made at one operation, balanced upon lat
Zen of the United States, residing at Holmes erally-placed trunnions pp, is preferably bal'
burg, in the city and county of Philadelphia, rel-shaped, but may be of cylindrical, spher- 55
and State of Pennsylvania, have invented ical, frusto-conical, or other suitable shape,
certain new and useful Improvements in and is preferrbly placed horizontally, but
the Manufacture of Hydrogen Peroxide; and be madeplacedmay be at any convenientangle. It may
I do hereby declare that the following is a or, betterofstill, wood, as shown in the drawings,
of iron, copper, or other suit- 6o
full, clear, and exact description of the inven
O tion, which will enable others skilled in the able metal, and lined with lead, platinum,
art to which it appertains to make and use the gold, silver, nickel, or other substance capa
ble of resisting the action of the acid.
Sae.
Heretofore hydrogen peroxide has been byEthread is a safety attachment, which is screwed
into the upper part of the vessel. 65
made by adding in small portions, from time The
to time, the peroxide of barium, calcium, po mentcap g is screwed upon the safety attach
and holds in place the diaphragm l.
tassium, Sodium, or strontium, mixed with The vent
Water, to a diluted acid contained in a ves the vessel,j or may be used for a filling-hole for
a separate filling-hole or man
sel surrounded by a refrigerating mixture,
the liquid being gently stirred to facilitate hole may be made. -
L is a faucet for drawing off the contents.
7o
the reaction.
My invention consists in the manufacture The dotted line J K represents the line of
of hydrogen peroxide by the addition of such axis when tilted by the screw R, which is op
an acid asis ordinarily used for the purpose to erated by crank S.
T is the bearing for the lower end of the 75
an oxide (protoxide or peroxide) of lead, chro screw, which rotates in box Z, which is piv
25 inium, or manganese, previously intimately oted upon pins a ac, the screw being retained
mixed with water and kept in gentle agita
tion during the reaction,and in conducting the in The the box by rivet 2.
process under pressure, varying in amount, level ofdotted line at . shows the approximate
the sediment which will be deposited 8o
according to the size of the vessel used, from at the close
a few pounds to fifty or more pounds if the is tilted for of the operation when the vessel
that purpose.
vessel be very large, thereby avoiding all ef The acid-chamber
fervescence of newly-formed hydrogen pe tions did, united at b BbyB,screws shown in two sec
roxide, and also the necessity of using any trolled by Valve H, surmounted orbybolts, con
pressure- 85
refrigerant. gage F, and lined c with some substance, as
35 In order that my invention may be clearly above mentioned, as a lining for the vessel,
understood, I have illustrated in the annexed is of such size that the required amount of
drawings one practical form thereof, and will acid shall just fill it. The gage-tube e may
proceed to describe it. be unscrewed from the acid-chamber and the 90
Figure 1 is a sectional elevation of my ap opening used for a filling-hole, or a separate
paratus for making hydrogen peroxide, taken
through the axis of rotation of the dasher filling-hole
acid-chamber
inay be made. The size of the
as compared with that of the
shaft. Fig. 2 is also a sectional elevation on vessel is as one
the line f r of Fig. 1, looking from the right, one-half, or othertosuitable about twenty-seven and
with the acid-chamber broken away. Figs, ing to the desired strengthproportion, of the
accord-95
hydrogen
45 3, 4, 5, and 7 are details of Fig. 1, Fig. 4 being
taken in lateral section on linest of Fig. 1 peroxide to be made.
The tube G equalizes the pressure between
and showing the female screw o pivoted upon them.
pins in n. Figs, 3, 4, and 7 are drawn upon ings U, The dasher-shaft C, rotating in bear
an enlarged scale. Fig. 6 shows a modified boxes Mprovided with suitable packing in the Ioo
form of attaching the dashers D to the arms Y. the vessel,where it emerges from the ends of
may be operated by crank I by
The vessel W. 1, of suitable size to contain
 440,792
pulley and belt or by spur-gearing, or by any acid. In this case the reaction is more com
other
lean S.
Well-known and suitable mechanical plex, and gentle heat must be applied to Se
The dasher-blades D, usually two, three, or cure it. This may be done by a suitable Wa
four in number, preferably perforated by vessel ter bath, steam bath, or sand bath; or, if the
holes l, are set vertically edgewise on the arms be the be made of metal and lined, as should
Y, as in Fig. 2, or obliquely edgewise, as in heat may bewhen
case sulphuric acid is used, the
applied directly by a suitable
Fig. 6, and are so distanced that when in ro furnace or its equivalent. The sulphuric
tation they shall run close to the inner side acid will then unite with the base of the 75
O
of the vessel, but shall not touch it. The fluor-spar, forming sulphate of lime, which
dasher-shaft, dasher-blades, and arms are will be no material disadvantage, as it is
Coated with the same material that lines the practically insoluble. The liberated fluoric
acid-chamber. .
acid will in turn unite with the oxide, and
The dasher-shaft bearings U, by means of the balance of the process be conducted as
their flanges U and the lug X, are secured to already described.
the vessel by bolts k. I am aware that prior to my invention gener
In Fig. 1, a is a cock for drawing off accu ators of carbonic-acid gas for charging Soda
mulations of moisture in gage-tube e. fountains, in which were horizontal generators
The mounting frame or stand, composed of containing revolving agitators and surmount
20
PO O N N N, secured by bolts at m, m, re ed by one or two acid-chambers, have been
ceives the vessel-trunnions at V. V. made apparently somewhat similar in Con
In operation the moistened oxide is placed struction to my apparatus for making hydro
in the vessel W y while it is in the horizontal gen peroxide, but quite different in purpose
position, with sufficient water, so that when and detail, because (a) my acid-chamber bears
the acid is all added it shall be almost full, a necessarily definite proportion in point of
only a very small air-space being allowed to size to that of the main vessel, this size being
remain. The acid-chamber is fillied with the regulated by the desired strength of the hydro
Strong or concentrated acid, and while the con gen peroxide to be made; (b) my agitator must 95
tents of the vessel are maintained in a condi be of entirely different construction, as it is
tion of gentle agitation throughout the reac required to sweep close to the entire inner
tion by the revolution of the dashers the acid surface of the vessel and to produce only a
is allowed to trickle slowly into it. This re very gentle agitation of its contents; (c) my
action is conducted at any ordinary tempera object in using a closed vessel at all being Od
ture and should be accomplished slowly, so solely to apply pressure to prevent the escape
35 as to avoid undue internal pressure by the by effervescence of the newly-formed hydro
tendency of the newly-formed hydrogen per gen peroxide, and also to avoid the use of a
oxide to escape into the air-space in the up refrigerating mixture around the vessel; (d)
per part of the vessel. After sufficient time my whole apparatus is differently mounted,
has elapsed for the reaction to be complete because it is required to be operated in more
the revolution of the dashers is ceased by than one position.
means of the screw R, the vessel is tilted, as I therefore do not broadly claim the entire
indicated by the dotted line JK, and the matcombination as wholly original; but
ters in Suspension allowed to subside, after What I do claim as my invention, and de IO
which the clear liquid may be drawn off sire to secure by Letters Patent, is
45 through the faucet after the safety-cap has 1. The method of making hydrogen peroxide
been opened. The amount of oxide used under pressure, said pressure being obtained
should be so proportioned to the amount of either by confining upon the surface of the
acid that a slight excess of undecomposed forming mixture that portion of the nascent II 5
Oxide shall remain after the acid is all neuhydrogen peroxide which ordinarily escapes
tralized, so as to prevent the presence of any
into the atmosphere until this self-formed
free acid in the finished preparation. The pressure prevents further escape or by forc
exact amounts of oxide and of acid which ing air into the containing-vessel until suffi
will be required are calculated according tocient pressure has been obtained to prevent
the chemical law of atomic equivalents and all effervescence of nascent hydrogen perox
55 combining proportions. Consequently to ob ide, when the reaction can be conducted with
tain a fifteen-volume solution of hydrogen out loss.
peroxide by means of lead protoxide and hy 2. The method of making hydrogen peroxide
drofluoric acid about two and five-eighths by decomposition of a metallic protoxide (for I 25
pounds of the oxide and six fluid ounces of example, lead, protoxide) in fine powder, sus
the acid will be required for every gallon of
pended in water, maintained throughout the
the finished preparation. I may also, if I reaction in gentle agitation or circulation
Wish, place in the vessel an intermediate sub
and under pressure by such an acid ordina
stance, which, being decomposed, shall fur rily used in making hydrogen peroxide, as hy
nish the acid which is to act upon the oxide.
drofluoric acid.
For instance, the protoxide of lead being the 3. The method of making hydrogen peroxide
oxide used, I may add to the vessel moistened
by decomposition of the peroxide of lead, chro
fluor-spar and to the acid-chamber sulphuric mium, or manganese infine powder, suspended
 440,792
in Water, maintained throughout the reaction
in gentle agitation or circulation by such an
acid as is ordinarily used in making hydrogen
peroxide.
5 4. The methodof inakinghydrogen peroxide
by adding to the finely-powdered metallic
Oxide, (protoxide or peroxide,) suspended in
water, an intermediate substance in fine pow
der, such, for example, as fluor-spar, which,
upon treatment by an acid, such as sulphuric
acid, will liberate the acid required for the
decomposition of the oxide, and by gently
warming such mixture sufficiently to produce
the reaction, substantially as described.
5. The combination of revolving dashers,
crank or power shaft, safety-cap, pressure
gage, faucet, equalizer-tube, tilting Screw,
and mounting-frame, substantially as de
scribed.
6. The apparatus described, comprising, in
combination, the strong closed tilting vessel
or receptacle, acid-chamber, revolving dash
ers, crank or power shafts, safety-cap, press
ure-gage, faucet, equalizer-tube, tilting Screw,
and mounting-frame, substantially as Set 25
forth.
Intestimony whereof Iaffix my signature in
the presence of two subscribing witnesses.
WM. ERWIN.
Witnesses:
GEORGE L. BATTERSBY,
ANDREW KEISER.
"I"