CA1089160A - Method of cleaning poultry feathers and the like - Google Patents
Method of cleaning poultry feathers and the likeInfo
- Publication number
- CA1089160A CA1089160A CA256,424A CA256424A CA1089160A CA 1089160 A CA1089160 A CA 1089160A CA 256424 A CA256424 A CA 256424A CA 1089160 A CA1089160 A CA 1089160A
- Authority
- CA
- Canada
- Prior art keywords
- cleaning
- cleaning method
- feather
- feather material
- washing
- Prior art date
- Legal status (The legal status is an assumption and is not a legal conclusion. Google has not performed a legal analysis and makes no representation as to the accuracy of the status listed.)
- Expired
Links
Classifications
-
- B—PERFORMING OPERATIONS; TRANSPORTING
- B68—SADDLERY; UPHOLSTERY
- B68G—METHODS, EQUIPMENT, OR MACHINES FOR USE IN UPHOLSTERING; UPHOLSTERY NOT OTHERWISE PROVIDED FOR
- B68G3/00—Treating materials to adapt them specially as upholstery filling
- B68G3/08—Preparation of bed feathers from natural feathers
- B68G3/10—Cleaning or conditioning of bed feathers
Landscapes
- Engineering & Computer Science (AREA)
- Mechanical Engineering (AREA)
- Detergent Compositions (AREA)
- Coloring Foods And Improving Nutritive Qualities (AREA)
- Treatment Of Fiber Materials (AREA)
Abstract
TITLE
METHOD OF CLEANING
POULTRY PEATHERS
AND
THE LIKE
INVENTOR
ERNST KRUCHEN
Abstract of the Disclosure A method for cleaning poultry feathers is disclosed which requires the washing of the feathers with the chlorinated hydro carbon in a vat and there-after drying the feather material in another vat at temperatures up to approximately 130° Centigrade such that the drying vat exposes of volume of about 3 to 10 times larger than the washing vat.
METHOD OF CLEANING
POULTRY PEATHERS
AND
THE LIKE
INVENTOR
ERNST KRUCHEN
Abstract of the Disclosure A method for cleaning poultry feathers is disclosed which requires the washing of the feathers with the chlorinated hydro carbon in a vat and there-after drying the feather material in another vat at temperatures up to approximately 130° Centigrade such that the drying vat exposes of volume of about 3 to 10 times larger than the washing vat.
Description
10~ 0 The present invention relates to a method of cleaning poultry feather wherein the feather material i~
washed with defatting and dirt dissolving and dispersing liquid media 2nd subsequently dried.
It i8 known to treat poultry feather material, particularly bed feather material or downs, conventionally in such a way that a washing liquid consisting of water with soap or detergents i~ provided, in which liquid the feather material is moved to and fro by means of beaters until the cleaning process i8 completed. Thereafter, the feather material is dried, generally at a temperature of --from 80 to 120C. In the conventional cleaning method, the water, optionally in a pre-clarified condition, i8 discharged into the drainage system. One kilogram of feather to be cleaned requires from about 200 to 300 kg of washing water. As the washing water i~ frequently contaminated to a substantial degree, especially by repugnant substance~, pre-clarification of the cleaning liquid in many cases requires substantial inve~titions to be made. Further, it has been found that poultry feather material~ particularly if obtained from animals which have been bred in intensive breeding farms, are greatly mudded by droppings 80 as to be very difficult to clean.
Accordingly, it i~ the object of the pre~ent invention to improve the conventional washing method in the following respects:
- The costs, in particular those resulting from the high demand of water and detergents, should be reduced. The same applies to cost resulting from the provision of clarification or sewage-treatment plants, grease separators and the like;
washed with defatting and dirt dissolving and dispersing liquid media 2nd subsequently dried.
It i8 known to treat poultry feather material, particularly bed feather material or downs, conventionally in such a way that a washing liquid consisting of water with soap or detergents i~ provided, in which liquid the feather material is moved to and fro by means of beaters until the cleaning process i8 completed. Thereafter, the feather material is dried, generally at a temperature of --from 80 to 120C. In the conventional cleaning method, the water, optionally in a pre-clarified condition, i8 discharged into the drainage system. One kilogram of feather to be cleaned requires from about 200 to 300 kg of washing water. As the washing water i~ frequently contaminated to a substantial degree, especially by repugnant substance~, pre-clarification of the cleaning liquid in many cases requires substantial inve~titions to be made. Further, it has been found that poultry feather material~ particularly if obtained from animals which have been bred in intensive breeding farms, are greatly mudded by droppings 80 as to be very difficult to clean.
Accordingly, it i~ the object of the pre~ent invention to improve the conventional washing method in the following respects:
- The costs, in particular those resulting from the high demand of water and detergents, should be reduced. The same applies to cost resulting from the provision of clarification or sewage-treatment plants, grease separators and the like;
- 2 -. . . i . _ - Environmental disturbance by the wa~te water (sewage) i~ to be avoided;
- Even greatly contaminated feather material should lend itself to be properly cleaned - The feather material should be adapted to be proces~ed or treated in the course of the cleaning process, for in~tance by means of bleaching agents and~or optical brighteners;
- The method should comply with every hygienic requirement in a particularly favorable manner These and urther advantages which become evident from the specification and which are known to the expert are solved by a cleaning method comprising said feather material i8 washed in washing chambers with an organic cleaning liquid consisting essentially of chlorinated hydrocarbons, and said feather material iB thereafter dried in on- or mor-drying compartment~ at temperatures of up to 130 C with the .- : -volume of said drying compartm~nts exceeding that of said washing chambers by from three to ten times, w ersby #aid cleaning liquid, in a manner Xnown per se, i8 passed in a closed recirculation 6yst-m The cleaning process is carefully perormed at a temperature of between 40 and 80C, preferably at about 60~C This relatively low temperature at the same time ~ ~
facilitates the drying step - -Actually, it i known to clean and degrease ~ ~ -textiles, fur and leath-r by u~ing especially chlorinated hydrocarbon cleaning liquid Until the present time, however, such cleaning method has never been taken into consideration, as far as i8 known, for he cleaning of poultry feather being a highly sensitive material .
~ .
- Even greatly contaminated feather material should lend itself to be properly cleaned - The feather material should be adapted to be proces~ed or treated in the course of the cleaning process, for in~tance by means of bleaching agents and~or optical brighteners;
- The method should comply with every hygienic requirement in a particularly favorable manner These and urther advantages which become evident from the specification and which are known to the expert are solved by a cleaning method comprising said feather material i8 washed in washing chambers with an organic cleaning liquid consisting essentially of chlorinated hydrocarbons, and said feather material iB thereafter dried in on- or mor-drying compartment~ at temperatures of up to 130 C with the .- : -volume of said drying compartm~nts exceeding that of said washing chambers by from three to ten times, w ersby #aid cleaning liquid, in a manner Xnown per se, i8 passed in a closed recirculation 6yst-m The cleaning process is carefully perormed at a temperature of between 40 and 80C, preferably at about 60~C This relatively low temperature at the same time ~ ~
facilitates the drying step - -Actually, it i known to clean and degrease ~ ~ -textiles, fur and leath-r by u~ing especially chlorinated hydrocarbon cleaning liquid Until the present time, however, such cleaning method has never been taken into consideration, as far as i8 known, for he cleaning of poultry feather being a highly sensitive material .
~ .
- 3 ~ `~
10~9160 Prior tests have shown that drying in large volume iR of major importance if the bed feathers are to be prevented from becoming "twisted", i.e. distorted in themselve6, or from becoming clotted in lumps. Rather, the material must exist in particularly high-bulk and tufty state if it i~ to ~
., meet the cons~mers' exacting quality requirements.
In particular, it is proposed that in the case of -~
using kown per se cleanng machines, e.g. such having a volume (rated capacity) of from 60 to l50 kg of leather or ;
textile material, this capacity is utilized by~only about from S to 20%, this means that the quantity o the feather material to be cleaned amounts to;only about~lO kg in the case of a rated capacity of l00 kg as regards the capacity for textile materia1s.
` ~ As a special feature, it i pro~osed~that~C2 hydrocarbon derivatives are used as the cleanlng liquid.
These derivatives include trichloroethylene, perchloroethylene, tetrachloroethylene, tetrachloroethene and mixtures thereof. Liqu1dJ oflthis type Lre~ cus~omary for dry cleaning purpose~, and they are availablej in great -~ , quantities and at low cost. Their technology can be fully controlled in cleaning machines operating with closed-loop ~`~ recirculation systems.
In order to~render possible the use of water-so1uble finishing materials, and in order to improve the cleaning process,~a quantity of from 5 to 20 and preferably 10~ of water may be added to the cleaning liquid for the cleaning prooess.
~; Depending on the specific requirements, the feather material may be treated until a predetermined degree of degreasing is obtained. However, it is furtber proposed .,'~
~0891~;0 to re-grease the feather material after the washing and/or drying steps if, for instance, specific synthetic greases or fats are desirable. Also, the cleaning liquid may be admixed with bleaching agents and/or optical brighteners, such that it becomes possible to bleach or brighten even originally darker or more pigmented feathers.
Furthermore, it should be possible to improve the properties of the feather material, particularly to provide such material with a finish or coloring, i.e. to process the feather material in a manner slmilar to textile fibers. ~
Moreover, it should be pos~ible to obtain specific ~`
electrostatic statesl Therefore, it i8 another ob1ect of -the present invention to prdvidé the facilities for the dyeing, the application of finishing agents and the j;~ provision of an electro-tatic tate.~
Additlonally, in order to improvè ~h- rlsilience ("springiness") and~the us~eful llfe of the feath-r material, not only a controlled degreasing, but also a re-greasing~
~should be feaslble. Also, it;should hereby be poLsible to '~;; 20 fully or partial~ly coat the feather material w1th coating -~` plastic materials. It 18 particularly such treatment that provides durable resilience and an electrostatic charge.
Dyeing of the feather material i8 advantageous in ~-order to identify various degrees of quality or to give the ~;
feather material a uniformly white colouring. White coloring i8 obtained by~adding a specific blue shade or : ' ' !:
pigment, and ~uch coloring is of interest because, for historical reasons, the maximum quality is principally attributed to feathers or downs of completely white colour.
By impregnation or finishing of the feather -~
material it may be obtalned that such material becomes fully ~ ;~
~ .
~0891~i0 `
suitable to be washed, so as to provide hygienically improved usefulness even for the normal consumer. At the same time, the impregnation improves, or even furni~hes, the durability and the resilience, such as in the case of ;~
chicken feathers.
Still further, the usieable fini~hing agent may serve to broaden the range of usefulness of the feather material, particularly if the individual feather8 can be completely coated with a pla8tic material. Then, 8uch feather material can be used for novel industrial ~ ~-application8, too.
The abovementioned objects are aolved in accordance with the lnvention in that ehe abore-di~Ussed method of cleanihg poultry feather, the cleaning liquid has added thereto finishing ag-nt~land/or dye Normally, in the~ iop ~ u8ing~water and wa8hing-active 8 ~ 8tances~~di8Lolved ~re~n,~the feather ,~
,; material is dusted off prior to the wa~hing 8tep a~ such.
The du8t removal iB ~hygienically harmful ih 80 far as the feather material is not'8ubj~cted~to di8infec~10n a~d dry excrement and protein partlcles may pos8ibly become 8u8pended in the 8tmoop~ere 8uch that infectlons cannot be disregarded. In; the conventional method, however, a preceding dust removal step has been found to be necessary as the washing-active liquid is overloaded or not economically utilized, respectively.
: On the other hand, it i8 of advantage in the novel method that increa8ed capaclty of absoption for contaminants is provided by~the cleaning liquid being pa8sed in a recirculation 8ystem, such that dust removal, i.e. making ~` the feather material ~ree of any loose particles adhering - ' ~,..,, -,---1(385~16;0 thereto, may be effected after the drying operation. Only aseptic dust is produced during such dust removal from the already washed feather material, such that no injury to health can be caused.
Purther, it i8 of advantage in the novel method that animal fats or greases and/or solvents may be recovered from the distillation bottoms in the solvent recirculation system. Particularly the animal fats or greases as separated from the feather material represent valuable starting products for the cosmetics industries. The cost of the method can be further reduced by selling the distillation bottoms.
The method according to the present invention i8 explained in exemplary way by means of the attached drawing.
The figure of such drawing shows in schematical viéw a cleaning machine including a solvent recirculation system as well as drying and dust removing apparatuses.
The raw feather material i8 first stored in a reslervoir 1. By means of a blower 2, this feather material is ed directly into the washing chamber 3 of a drum-type washing machine 4. The drum-type washing machine contains an organic solvent, for in~tance a mixture of perchloroethylene and trichloroethene; Hereby, the capacity of the washing chamber 3 is utilized by only 10% of the ;~
- normal rated capacity for the cleaning of textiles. After a washing period of from 10 to 20 minutes, the washing -~
operation i~ completed. The washing liquid is separated from the feather material by centrifuging, and passed through the regeneration circuit 5 including a distillation vessel 6. In the distillation vessel 6, distillation bottom~ (fractions) 7 accumulate at the base, which bottoms conslst mainly of animal fats or greases and/or solvent residues.
The feather material moistened by only a minor quantity of ~olvent tthe feather material is centrifuged until "hand dry") is then blown, again through a ~uction pipe 8, into a drying apparatus 9. In 6uch drying ~' apparatus, the feather material is freed from the adhering solvent residues by means of hot air at a temperature of from about 80 to 120C. It is hereby important that the volume of the drying apparatus i8 equal to about from three to ten times the volume of the washing chamber 3 such that ~.
the feather~ are allowed to freely move and to retain their tufty consistency. A~ indicated in the sketch, the feather material may then be discharged from the apparatus 9 via a pipe or conduit 10, whereupon the material i~ fed into a dust removing apparatus 11 where the feathers are blown ~ ~ ;
through or purged from all side3 ~o a~ to remove any loose particles. Among other components, the dùst removlng apparatus comprise~ ~creens in front of which the feather material iB whirled around and blown through or purged. The ;~
dust particles are collected by a filter 12. Then, the feather material is filled into shipping containers 14.
As mentioned in the introductory pare, it is possible to re-grease or re-fat the feather material by using dissolved sheep's wool fat ~lanoline) in the washing chamber 3 or in the drying compartment, e.g. to spray the feather material with a fat or grease solution after the centrifuging step. A1BO, it is possible to add to the cleaning liquid bleaching agents te.g. a 1 - 2%
concentration of hydrogen peroxide H202) and/or optical brighteners andlor antistatic agents (e.g. Reginal0 -.
.,.... .. . ~
manufacturer Ciba-Gei9yJ~ whereby the properties of such agents are transmitted to the feather material such that the latter is briyhtened or imparted a higher degree of optical reflection and the feathers appear to be brighter or more tufty, respectively.
The solvent i9 substantially not lost during the cleaning operation; rather, the solvent is regenerated, filtered and distilled after each cycle. The machinery required to this end i8 well known in cleaning industry.
The requisite modifications involve particularly the facilities for conveying the feather material by means of a blower pipe which, as customary, facilitates handling of the feather material.
The cleaning operation as such with the addition of finishing and dyeing agents is preferably performed in ~
such a manner that charges ~batches) of the cleaning liquid -are introduced into the drum-type washing chamber ts) and ~` ;
after the cleaning operation subjected to filtration and diseillation for the purification of such cleaning liquid proper, while the respective next charge effects the cleaning of the feather material, and that during the subsequent purification of the liquid of this (next) charge ~ ~ , . . .
another charge or a previously used, already purified charge .. .
is used for cleaning purposes, whereby other or incremented finishing a~ents, dyeing agents or coating plastics may be supplied with each charge or batchO The same applies also with resQect to the addition of fats or greases for the re-greasing of the feather material.
In detail, this can be done, for example, in such a way that the content of a first tank is initially fed into rotating washing drum and retained in the latter for a ., g --. . . . . . , ~
.:,: - ' ' ........ ', ..... :............. . , . . ~' ., ~ .. . . . ...
10891~0 washing period of from about 5 to 15 minutes, depending on the degree of contamination, the finishing agent added and ~ -the like, as well as on the degree of cleaning desired.
Following the partial cleaning and/or fini~hing steps, an intermediate centrifuging ~tep for ~eparating the feather material from the cleaning liquid and draining of the liquid into an empty tank take place. While the liquid from the tank i~ now being subjected to distillation and filtration so as to purify this liquid it~elf, cleaning liquid from a second tank is fed into the cleaning or washing drum, and the cleaning and finishing process is repeated. If required, another charge or batch of the cleaning liquid i8 supplied after the repeated separation between feather material and cleaning liquid, which liquid either may be supplied from another tank, or consist of the first charge which has meanwhile been purified.
Accordingly, several cleaning steps may be -~
performed with only two feede of the cleanlng llquid, whereby a third tank is filled with a reserve quantity. In : ~
other embodiments, however, any desired number of fillings may be used in combination with any desired number of cleaning ~teps.
Advantageously, the cleaning li~uid i8 heated to e.g. 60~C, and it may have a water content of about 10%.
The additives for dyeing (e.g. P-pigments or dyes ~; -manufacturer Pfersee, 89 Augsburg/Germany), finishing and .
full or partial coating with plastic material may be added in each bath, whereas the fat or grease for the re-greasing . .
~ of the feather material, of course, can be added to the last ~ ~
~- , - -.
bath only. In addition to complete cleaning, it is in this way possible, for the first time and in a manner being '~ ~
,i ,. . - 1 0 -;:
surprising to the expert, that a quality of the feather material, as far as the grease content and the useful life are concerned, can be o~tained which is equal to that of uncleaned f~athers.
By using the cleaning liquid, it i6 pos~ible to employ all agents as customarily used for textile finishing, also for the finishing of the feather material and to deposit auxiliary agents. To this end, the carrier liquid may have admixed thereto a "reinforcing material" such as is Xnown from the textile finishing. Likewise, coating with plastic materials, e.g. ~ynthetic resins and the like (for ~
example, Braxan SF~, manufactured by Ciba-Geigy), may be ~
effected in the drum'during the cleaning treatment. Such -'' -coating may be effected both to 100% and partially.
Particularly the partial coating resulted, in a manner being ~-absolutely surprising to the expert, in a specifically high degree of electrostatic charge of the feather material, which charge i8 variable and durable or permanent. This electrostatic charge forms a basis for an anti-rheumatic therapeutical effect to the final users of the Leather material.
The coating with synthetic resins results particularly in a sub~tantially improved resilience or "6pringines~", and it serve~ to substantially improve the insulation and heat-retaining effect of the feathers in addition to improving their useful life.
' Summarizing, the subject matter of the present invention provides a not unessential improvement of the ' ~~
:.
method of the prior art. The increase of the resilience is of particular importance for the reason that such resilience - ;
allows tc process even such feather materials which as such - 11 - '~ ; ' ' , . , . . ~
10891~i0 do not show any elasticity or a very low degree of elasticity only. Feathers of this kind which, naturally, prevail over feathers showing inherent elasticity, may then be used on large scale for the filling of bed articles. Due to the extremely fine branching of a natural feather bearing a plastic material coating of minimum thicknesQ, there i8 further provided a plastic body having an extremely great surface area and minimum weight. Such plastic bodies find a number of industrial applications in the filtration and filling field, which applications cannot yet be fully over looked at the present time.
:, :
~w ~
10~9160 Prior tests have shown that drying in large volume iR of major importance if the bed feathers are to be prevented from becoming "twisted", i.e. distorted in themselve6, or from becoming clotted in lumps. Rather, the material must exist in particularly high-bulk and tufty state if it i~ to ~
., meet the cons~mers' exacting quality requirements.
In particular, it is proposed that in the case of -~
using kown per se cleanng machines, e.g. such having a volume (rated capacity) of from 60 to l50 kg of leather or ;
textile material, this capacity is utilized by~only about from S to 20%, this means that the quantity o the feather material to be cleaned amounts to;only about~lO kg in the case of a rated capacity of l00 kg as regards the capacity for textile materia1s.
` ~ As a special feature, it i pro~osed~that~C2 hydrocarbon derivatives are used as the cleanlng liquid.
These derivatives include trichloroethylene, perchloroethylene, tetrachloroethylene, tetrachloroethene and mixtures thereof. Liqu1dJ oflthis type Lre~ cus~omary for dry cleaning purpose~, and they are availablej in great -~ , quantities and at low cost. Their technology can be fully controlled in cleaning machines operating with closed-loop ~`~ recirculation systems.
In order to~render possible the use of water-so1uble finishing materials, and in order to improve the cleaning process,~a quantity of from 5 to 20 and preferably 10~ of water may be added to the cleaning liquid for the cleaning prooess.
~; Depending on the specific requirements, the feather material may be treated until a predetermined degree of degreasing is obtained. However, it is furtber proposed .,'~
~0891~;0 to re-grease the feather material after the washing and/or drying steps if, for instance, specific synthetic greases or fats are desirable. Also, the cleaning liquid may be admixed with bleaching agents and/or optical brighteners, such that it becomes possible to bleach or brighten even originally darker or more pigmented feathers.
Furthermore, it should be possible to improve the properties of the feather material, particularly to provide such material with a finish or coloring, i.e. to process the feather material in a manner slmilar to textile fibers. ~
Moreover, it should be pos~ible to obtain specific ~`
electrostatic statesl Therefore, it i8 another ob1ect of -the present invention to prdvidé the facilities for the dyeing, the application of finishing agents and the j;~ provision of an electro-tatic tate.~
Additlonally, in order to improvè ~h- rlsilience ("springiness") and~the us~eful llfe of the feath-r material, not only a controlled degreasing, but also a re-greasing~
~should be feaslble. Also, it;should hereby be poLsible to '~;; 20 fully or partial~ly coat the feather material w1th coating -~` plastic materials. It 18 particularly such treatment that provides durable resilience and an electrostatic charge.
Dyeing of the feather material i8 advantageous in ~-order to identify various degrees of quality or to give the ~;
feather material a uniformly white colouring. White coloring i8 obtained by~adding a specific blue shade or : ' ' !:
pigment, and ~uch coloring is of interest because, for historical reasons, the maximum quality is principally attributed to feathers or downs of completely white colour.
By impregnation or finishing of the feather -~
material it may be obtalned that such material becomes fully ~ ;~
~ .
~0891~i0 `
suitable to be washed, so as to provide hygienically improved usefulness even for the normal consumer. At the same time, the impregnation improves, or even furni~hes, the durability and the resilience, such as in the case of ;~
chicken feathers.
Still further, the usieable fini~hing agent may serve to broaden the range of usefulness of the feather material, particularly if the individual feather8 can be completely coated with a pla8tic material. Then, 8uch feather material can be used for novel industrial ~ ~-application8, too.
The abovementioned objects are aolved in accordance with the lnvention in that ehe abore-di~Ussed method of cleanihg poultry feather, the cleaning liquid has added thereto finishing ag-nt~land/or dye Normally, in the~ iop ~ u8ing~water and wa8hing-active 8 ~ 8tances~~di8Lolved ~re~n,~the feather ,~
,; material is dusted off prior to the wa~hing 8tep a~ such.
The du8t removal iB ~hygienically harmful ih 80 far as the feather material is not'8ubj~cted~to di8infec~10n a~d dry excrement and protein partlcles may pos8ibly become 8u8pended in the 8tmoop~ere 8uch that infectlons cannot be disregarded. In; the conventional method, however, a preceding dust removal step has been found to be necessary as the washing-active liquid is overloaded or not economically utilized, respectively.
: On the other hand, it i8 of advantage in the novel method that increa8ed capaclty of absoption for contaminants is provided by~the cleaning liquid being pa8sed in a recirculation 8ystem, such that dust removal, i.e. making ~` the feather material ~ree of any loose particles adhering - ' ~,..,, -,---1(385~16;0 thereto, may be effected after the drying operation. Only aseptic dust is produced during such dust removal from the already washed feather material, such that no injury to health can be caused.
Purther, it i8 of advantage in the novel method that animal fats or greases and/or solvents may be recovered from the distillation bottoms in the solvent recirculation system. Particularly the animal fats or greases as separated from the feather material represent valuable starting products for the cosmetics industries. The cost of the method can be further reduced by selling the distillation bottoms.
The method according to the present invention i8 explained in exemplary way by means of the attached drawing.
The figure of such drawing shows in schematical viéw a cleaning machine including a solvent recirculation system as well as drying and dust removing apparatuses.
The raw feather material i8 first stored in a reslervoir 1. By means of a blower 2, this feather material is ed directly into the washing chamber 3 of a drum-type washing machine 4. The drum-type washing machine contains an organic solvent, for in~tance a mixture of perchloroethylene and trichloroethene; Hereby, the capacity of the washing chamber 3 is utilized by only 10% of the ;~
- normal rated capacity for the cleaning of textiles. After a washing period of from 10 to 20 minutes, the washing -~
operation i~ completed. The washing liquid is separated from the feather material by centrifuging, and passed through the regeneration circuit 5 including a distillation vessel 6. In the distillation vessel 6, distillation bottom~ (fractions) 7 accumulate at the base, which bottoms conslst mainly of animal fats or greases and/or solvent residues.
The feather material moistened by only a minor quantity of ~olvent tthe feather material is centrifuged until "hand dry") is then blown, again through a ~uction pipe 8, into a drying apparatus 9. In 6uch drying ~' apparatus, the feather material is freed from the adhering solvent residues by means of hot air at a temperature of from about 80 to 120C. It is hereby important that the volume of the drying apparatus i8 equal to about from three to ten times the volume of the washing chamber 3 such that ~.
the feather~ are allowed to freely move and to retain their tufty consistency. A~ indicated in the sketch, the feather material may then be discharged from the apparatus 9 via a pipe or conduit 10, whereupon the material i~ fed into a dust removing apparatus 11 where the feathers are blown ~ ~ ;
through or purged from all side3 ~o a~ to remove any loose particles. Among other components, the dùst removlng apparatus comprise~ ~creens in front of which the feather material iB whirled around and blown through or purged. The ;~
dust particles are collected by a filter 12. Then, the feather material is filled into shipping containers 14.
As mentioned in the introductory pare, it is possible to re-grease or re-fat the feather material by using dissolved sheep's wool fat ~lanoline) in the washing chamber 3 or in the drying compartment, e.g. to spray the feather material with a fat or grease solution after the centrifuging step. A1BO, it is possible to add to the cleaning liquid bleaching agents te.g. a 1 - 2%
concentration of hydrogen peroxide H202) and/or optical brighteners andlor antistatic agents (e.g. Reginal0 -.
.,.... .. . ~
manufacturer Ciba-Gei9yJ~ whereby the properties of such agents are transmitted to the feather material such that the latter is briyhtened or imparted a higher degree of optical reflection and the feathers appear to be brighter or more tufty, respectively.
The solvent i9 substantially not lost during the cleaning operation; rather, the solvent is regenerated, filtered and distilled after each cycle. The machinery required to this end i8 well known in cleaning industry.
The requisite modifications involve particularly the facilities for conveying the feather material by means of a blower pipe which, as customary, facilitates handling of the feather material.
The cleaning operation as such with the addition of finishing and dyeing agents is preferably performed in ~
such a manner that charges ~batches) of the cleaning liquid -are introduced into the drum-type washing chamber ts) and ~` ;
after the cleaning operation subjected to filtration and diseillation for the purification of such cleaning liquid proper, while the respective next charge effects the cleaning of the feather material, and that during the subsequent purification of the liquid of this (next) charge ~ ~ , . . .
another charge or a previously used, already purified charge .. .
is used for cleaning purposes, whereby other or incremented finishing a~ents, dyeing agents or coating plastics may be supplied with each charge or batchO The same applies also with resQect to the addition of fats or greases for the re-greasing of the feather material.
In detail, this can be done, for example, in such a way that the content of a first tank is initially fed into rotating washing drum and retained in the latter for a ., g --. . . . . . , ~
.:,: - ' ' ........ ', ..... :............. . , . . ~' ., ~ .. . . . ...
10891~0 washing period of from about 5 to 15 minutes, depending on the degree of contamination, the finishing agent added and ~ -the like, as well as on the degree of cleaning desired.
Following the partial cleaning and/or fini~hing steps, an intermediate centrifuging ~tep for ~eparating the feather material from the cleaning liquid and draining of the liquid into an empty tank take place. While the liquid from the tank i~ now being subjected to distillation and filtration so as to purify this liquid it~elf, cleaning liquid from a second tank is fed into the cleaning or washing drum, and the cleaning and finishing process is repeated. If required, another charge or batch of the cleaning liquid i8 supplied after the repeated separation between feather material and cleaning liquid, which liquid either may be supplied from another tank, or consist of the first charge which has meanwhile been purified.
Accordingly, several cleaning steps may be -~
performed with only two feede of the cleanlng llquid, whereby a third tank is filled with a reserve quantity. In : ~
other embodiments, however, any desired number of fillings may be used in combination with any desired number of cleaning ~teps.
Advantageously, the cleaning li~uid i8 heated to e.g. 60~C, and it may have a water content of about 10%.
The additives for dyeing (e.g. P-pigments or dyes ~; -manufacturer Pfersee, 89 Augsburg/Germany), finishing and .
full or partial coating with plastic material may be added in each bath, whereas the fat or grease for the re-greasing . .
~ of the feather material, of course, can be added to the last ~ ~
~- , - -.
bath only. In addition to complete cleaning, it is in this way possible, for the first time and in a manner being '~ ~
,i ,. . - 1 0 -;:
surprising to the expert, that a quality of the feather material, as far as the grease content and the useful life are concerned, can be o~tained which is equal to that of uncleaned f~athers.
By using the cleaning liquid, it i6 pos~ible to employ all agents as customarily used for textile finishing, also for the finishing of the feather material and to deposit auxiliary agents. To this end, the carrier liquid may have admixed thereto a "reinforcing material" such as is Xnown from the textile finishing. Likewise, coating with plastic materials, e.g. ~ynthetic resins and the like (for ~
example, Braxan SF~, manufactured by Ciba-Geigy), may be ~
effected in the drum'during the cleaning treatment. Such -'' -coating may be effected both to 100% and partially.
Particularly the partial coating resulted, in a manner being ~-absolutely surprising to the expert, in a specifically high degree of electrostatic charge of the feather material, which charge i8 variable and durable or permanent. This electrostatic charge forms a basis for an anti-rheumatic therapeutical effect to the final users of the Leather material.
The coating with synthetic resins results particularly in a sub~tantially improved resilience or "6pringines~", and it serve~ to substantially improve the insulation and heat-retaining effect of the feathers in addition to improving their useful life.
' Summarizing, the subject matter of the present invention provides a not unessential improvement of the ' ~~
:.
method of the prior art. The increase of the resilience is of particular importance for the reason that such resilience - ;
allows tc process even such feather materials which as such - 11 - '~ ; ' ' , . , . . ~
10891~i0 do not show any elasticity or a very low degree of elasticity only. Feathers of this kind which, naturally, prevail over feathers showing inherent elasticity, may then be used on large scale for the filling of bed articles. Due to the extremely fine branching of a natural feather bearing a plastic material coating of minimum thicknesQ, there i8 further provided a plastic body having an extremely great surface area and minimum weight. Such plastic bodies find a number of industrial applications in the filtration and filling field, which applications cannot yet be fully over looked at the present time.
:, :
~w ~
Claims (14)
1. A method of cleaning poultry feather wherein the feather material is washed with defatting and dirt dissolving and dispersing liquid media and subsequently dried, said feather material is washed in washing chambers with an organic cleaning liquid consisting essentially of chlorinated hydrocarbons, and said feather material is thereafter dried in one or more drying compartments at temperatures of up to 130°Cwith the volume of said drying compartments exceeding that of said washing chambérs by from three to ten times, during which said cleaning liquid, is passed in a closed recirculation system.
2. The cleaning method according to claim 1, wherein said cleaning operation is carried out at temperatures of from 40 to 80°C.
3. The cleaning method as claimed in claim 2 wherein the cleaning operation i8 carried on at about 60°C.
4. The cleaning method according to claim 1, wherein the mass or volume of one charge or batch of feather material to be cleaned corresponds to only from about 5 to 20% of the rated capacity of said washing chamber.
5. The cleaning method according to claim 1, wherein C2 hydrocarbon derivatives are used as said cleaning liquid.
6. The cleaning method according to claim 1 or 5 wherein a quantity of from 5 to 20%, of water is added to said cleaning liquid for the cleaning process.
7. The cleaning method according to claim 1 or 5 wherein a quantity of approximately 10% of water is added to said cleaning liquid for the cleaning process.
8. The cleaning method according to claim 1 or 5 wherein said feather material is re-greased after the washing and/or drying steps.
9. The cleaning method according to claim 1 or 5 wherein bleaching agents and/or optical brighteners are added to said cleaning liquid.
10. The cleaning method according to claim 1 or 4 wherein finishing and/or dyeing agents are added to said cleaning liquid.
11. The cleaning method according to claim 1 or 5 comprising cleaning and coating said poultry feather material completely or partially with a plastic material in order to provide permanent resilience and/or an electrostatic charge to said material for an anti-rheumatic therapeutical effect to the final user.
12. The cleaning method according to claim 1, wherein said cleaned and dried feather material is subjected to a dust removing step.
13. The cleaning method according to claim 1, wherein animal fats are recovered from the distillation bottoms in the solvent recirculation system.
14. The cleaning method according to claim 1, wherein solvent residues are recovered from the distillation bottoms in the solvent recirculation system.
Applications Claiming Priority (4)
| Application Number | Priority Date | Filing Date | Title |
|---|---|---|---|
| DEP2532158.8 | 1975-07-18 | ||
| DE19752532158 DE2532158B2 (en) | 1975-07-18 | 1975-07-18 | CLEANING PROCEDURES FOR POULTRY FEATHERS |
| DEP2612589.3 | 1976-03-25 | ||
| DE19762612589 DE2612589A1 (en) | 1976-03-25 | 1976-03-25 | Cleaning poultry feathers with chlorinated hydrocarbons - with reduced cost and without polluting environment with waste water |
Publications (1)
| Publication Number | Publication Date |
|---|---|
| CA1089160A true CA1089160A (en) | 1980-11-11 |
Family
ID=25769170
Family Applications (1)
| Application Number | Title | Priority Date | Filing Date |
|---|---|---|---|
| CA256,424A Expired CA1089160A (en) | 1975-07-18 | 1976-07-06 | Method of cleaning poultry feathers and the like |
Country Status (9)
| Country | Link |
|---|---|
| CA (1) | CA1089160A (en) |
| CH (1) | CH614912A5 (en) |
| DK (1) | DK148063C (en) |
| FR (1) | FR2318264A1 (en) |
| GB (1) | GB1503087A (en) |
| IT (1) | IT1065087B (en) |
| LU (1) | LU75395A1 (en) |
| NL (1) | NL178504C (en) |
| SE (1) | SE423379B (en) |
Families Citing this family (5)
| Publication number | Priority date | Publication date | Assignee | Title |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| FR2573102B1 (en) * | 1984-11-09 | 1986-12-26 | Geloen Roland | PROCESS AND DEVICE FOR THE PREPARATION OF A TRIM MATERIAL IN PARTICULAR FOR A BODY PROTECTION ARTICLE |
| AU1049588A (en) * | 1987-11-24 | 1989-06-14 | Nordisk Fjerfabrik A/S | A process for improving the properties of feathers and down for use as heat insulating materials |
| IT1233697B (en) * | 1989-06-02 | 1992-04-14 | Cinelli Piume Spa | METHOD AND SYSTEM FOR THE AUTOMATIC AND CONTINUOUS WASHING OF FEATHERS |
| DE4003405A1 (en) * | 1990-02-05 | 1991-08-08 | Malomipari Kutato Es Fejleszto | Feather bulking for construction of textile industry - reduces outer feathers to appearance and handle of down in wadding |
| CN112575526B (en) * | 2020-11-28 | 2022-09-27 | 珠海格力电器股份有限公司 | Down feather drying control method and device, storage medium and washing machine |
Family Cites Families (2)
| Publication number | Priority date | Publication date | Assignee | Title |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| FR351868A (en) * | 1905-02-28 | 1905-07-28 | Ottilia Ezold | Method and apparatus for cleaning feathers, duvets, horsehair and the like bedding with chemicals |
| NL106507C (en) * | 1956-05-14 |
-
1976
- 1976-06-02 NL NL7605929A patent/NL178504C/en not_active IP Right Cessation
- 1976-06-08 SE SE7606396A patent/SE423379B/en not_active IP Right Cessation
- 1976-06-09 CH CH729076A patent/CH614912A5/en not_active IP Right Cessation
- 1976-06-29 DK DK291076A patent/DK148063C/en not_active IP Right Cessation
- 1976-07-06 CA CA256,424A patent/CA1089160A/en not_active Expired
- 1976-07-07 FR FR7620744A patent/FR2318264A1/en active Granted
- 1976-07-15 LU LU75395A patent/LU75395A1/xx unknown
- 1976-07-16 GB GB2979376A patent/GB1503087A/en not_active Expired
- 1976-07-16 IT IT2536976A patent/IT1065087B/en active
Also Published As
| Publication number | Publication date |
|---|---|
| IT1065087B (en) | 1985-02-25 |
| LU75395A1 (en) | 1977-02-28 |
| DK291076A (en) | 1977-01-19 |
| GB1503087A (en) | 1978-03-08 |
| CH614912A5 (en) | 1979-12-28 |
| SE7606396L (en) | 1977-01-19 |
| DK148063C (en) | 1985-09-30 |
| NL178504C (en) | 1986-04-01 |
| NL178504B (en) | 1985-11-01 |
| FR2318264A1 (en) | 1977-02-11 |
| DK148063B (en) | 1985-02-18 |
| FR2318264B1 (en) | 1980-06-13 |
| NL7605929A (en) | 1977-01-20 |
| SE423379B (en) | 1982-05-03 |
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| MKEX | Expiry |