US1676A - Improvement in the mode of - Google Patents

Description

I U 'rTeD ST TES;

PATE T cam;

FRANCIS o. SPILSBURY, MARIE 'F. c. D. CORBAUX, AND ALEX. s. BYRNE, OF

ENGLAND.

IMPROVEMENT IN THE MODE 0F APPLYING DISTEMP ER COLORS HAVING ALBUMEN OR GELATIHEFOR THEIR VEHICLE, 80 AS TO RENDER THE SAME MORE DURABLE, AN D PRESERVING THE S AME WHEN NOT WANTED FOR IMMEDIATE USE.

Specification forming part ofLetters Patent No. 1,676, dated July 10, 1840.

To all whom it may concern:

Be it known that we, FRANCIS GYBBON SPILsBURY, MARIE FRANCOISE CATHERINE DOETZER. GoRBAUX,and ALEXANDER SAMUEL BYRNE, all subjects of the Queen of Great Britain, haveinvented or discovered new and useful Improvements in Paints or Pigments andVehic-les, and in Modes ofApplying Paints, Pigments, and Vehicles; and we'do hereby declare that our invention is fully described in and by the following statement, viz:

In preparing andapplying paints or pigments and vehicles as at present generally practiced for painting or coating surfaces therewithvarious vehicles are employed, and when it is intended that the pigments or paints should be so fixed as to allow of being cleaned by washing with soap and water the pigments employed are mixed with oil or spirit,'or with oil or spirit varnishes; and it may be remarked that from the circumstance of employing the above-mentioned vehicles many of the cheaper pigments-such as earths and others-cannot be used with advantage; and pigments are also often;employed mixed with gelatine :or size, and known as water-colors, coloring', and dist'cmpering; but when such mode of employing pigments is resorted to, owing to the vehicle being soluble in water, the paints, when applied to surfaces, are not so fixed as to allow of washin g with water or with soap andwater, as practiced when cleaning paints prepared with oils, or spirits or varnishes produced therewith. Consequently, although by such means of employing soluble vehicles cheap as well as other pigments maybe employed, yet,

owing to these not being so fixed as to allow of cleaning, such application of paints or of pigments isnot suitable for the better class of painting nor for theuse of artists.

We would here remark that we are aware that it has been proposed to first coat over floors and other surfaces with pigments or paints combined with gelatine or size or with paste, and then to apply one or more coatings of drying-oils or oils mixed with Varnish; but we are not aware of the same having been performed to any extent or to any considerable advantage. a We have thought it desirable thus toxcall attention to the means of preparing paint-s or pigments and vehicles, and to the modes of applying the same now known and in use, in Zorder thatthe peculiar nature. of our invention may be readily understood and distinguishable from previously-known means of preparing pigments or paints and vehicles, andof the means of applying them. I g Now, the object of our invention, whetherin preparing pigments or paints and vehicles, or in'the mode of applying. them, relates to means of using soluble vehicles for applying paints or pigments, which vehicles by an after application of chemical agents or reagents arere'ndered insoluble in water, and will thus allow of paints or pigments so applied and so fixed to be afterward washed in order to clean them, and will at the same time admit of paints or pigments and vehicles so employed being'applied for the most elegant purposes of house and such like painting, and also to the purposes of the artist and for printing paper and other fabrics, and at the same time in their use they will'not emit that disagreeable smell consequent on using oils, or spirits or varnishes produced therewith, combined with paints or pigments.

In painting there are few of the coloring.

matters or pigments used as a single. pigment, but they are used as coloring substances to what may be called a body-pigment, and in most instances white lead (carbonate of lead) is used, when oils, o'rspirits or varnishes prepared with them, are the vehicles and the colored pigments are mixed therewith in order to produce the color or tint of color desired and in the quantity desired. Hence in any mode of compounding pigments for the purposes of being applied as paint itis important to have'a good and cheap white pigment, which can be obtained in large quantities, andlwe prefer for such purposes sulphate of lime, sulphatetof barytes, argillaceousearths, or other white pigments may be used,whicl1 should be free from iron, and we compound with the; white pi gment-the colored pigments in order to} produce the coloror the tintof color desired in the same manner as heretofore practiced.

The invention relatingto modes of applying certain well-known chemical actions to the purposes oftheart of painting, itwill now be desira-t blc shortly to explain the principles of action which are brought about in carrying out curinvention, in order that therationale of the workingot'rounim provements may be readily understood t It is well known thatmany chemical agents or reagents hen brought in contact with gelatine or with albumen in solution coagulate them, andsuch coagulated substances, when dry, are insoluble, and such is the 'case withothermattershereinafterdescribed,which,

asaivelLtasgelatine and albumen, we employ as the soluble vehicles for mixing with pigmentsuin .order to their being used as. paints,

and -by-ithe subsequent application of chemical ageptstt or-rea gen ts such vehicles are rendered insolublem amlqthet paints or pigments cur. ployed fixed or set.

Hawinggthuscalled attention to the general natn'refof-ithe. invention, we will proceed to be moreaparticnlarin describing the processes of t preparing paints or pigments and vehicles, andvotl thei-rtcombination, in order to their beingia a tproperi state to :be kept prepared.

' and,allowofobeing transported from place to plaeeyuamltwe willtfirst describe the process oftpreparing a rwhitepigment in combination finemurselvesthereto; and it should be stated.

thatiastinost ofthe paints or pigments-will be found to be more or less acted on by thechemicnln'agent, or, reagent employed for fixing or rend-eringzthesolublevehicle insoluble, it is impontantithatthe pigment employed should be first asubjected tto theaction. ot'Lthe chemical t agentito ,beiafter-ward used in .fi'xing the ehicletor-ipaintia Thus, sup'posing the pigment intended to beused bean earth andthechemical ageutzalutmtthen we submittlie earth to the actioinofialummby mixing. and washing it with a coldasat-urated solution of .alum, andsubsequentlybyyrepeated washingsto remove the, I undecomtposedt.alum t therefrom, and it will then-belie a proper state to .beground up with gelatinettandnwater in the same way as pigmentsaortpaints-are usually ground. We employtsmall pug-mills for the, purpose of mixing, and, lif -for immmediate nse,'it mus't be reduced to the proper consistence with soft water, and

will then be laid onto thesurface or surfaces in like manner to ordinary paints,1each coat being allowed to dry before anothertis laid on,

and whenione, two, or more coats have been applied, according to the desire orjudgment of the painter or artist, and have become dry, the same .is to be fixed by applyingt a cold sa'tu-v rated solution of alum or such other chemical agent as may have been determined on. By this means the painton the surface will be fixed and insoluble in water. Thus surfaces i may be painted in the most finished andt elegant manner; and it is only requisite to'remark that in using colored pigments they should also be first treated with the alum or chemicalagent to be employed in fixing the vehicle, as above described, in order toprevent any prejudicial action taking place in re spect to the color and to the pigment itself, which in many cases would be the case should such pigment be used without preparation and subsequently brought in contact with' the chemical agent used to fix the paint.

It will be seen that so far as the simple compounding or mixing pigments with gelatine, when to'be immediately used, in carryingout our invention, is similar to the ordinary means now resorted toin coloring ordistempering; but it will be found that in order to carryout-our invention in the most-"finished manner a much larger proportion of gelatineisrequired, and we shallhereinaitergive such information-as to the relative quantities we have found most advantageous; and ourinvention, so far as relatesto the description above given, consists in the mode of treating the pigments employediwith theehemical agent as a preparatory process before mixing the gelatine and the important processof rendering the gelatine of the mixture or compound after thesamc is laid on to i surfaces msoluble by means ofalum or other chemical agent; andwe would remarktthat albumen may be used. in place of gelatin'e or in conjunction therewitb,'aud we recommend; theluse of albumen for the purposes of the artist t wlie'rethecost will not be considered an obijeet, yet for general purposes we recommend gelatinein consequence of the same being much less costly. t

We will nowdescribesuch mixtures or compounds as we have found to answer and believe willtbe found to be the best preparation-of paintorpigment when desired to bekept.

White paint: Takeone hundred and sixty pounds of sulphate ofzinc or sulphate of barytes, or white earth, well washed in order to separate all foreign matters, as is well understood, and which ha-sxbeentreated with the chemical agentas above explained. Mix

therewith about twenty pounds of solid gelatine and about fourteen pounds of sulphate'of zinc(orother suitable material to preserve the gelatine from decomposition may be used)-dissolved in onehundred andsixty pounds of warm water.

The statein which we prepare this compound is that of very thick paste, which we pack in small easks; or the compound may be dried with or without sulphate of zinc or other preservative; or the dry pigment may be prepared or mixed with dry gelatine or albumen; but

we prefer the semi-fluid or very thick pasty state, which is a very convenient one for transport. It should, however, be remarked that if albumen be employed sulphate of zinc is not to be used.

We would remark that we do not claim the application of sulphate of zinc or any other'of the known modes for preserving animal matter from decomposition generally, the same not being new in itself, and we only employ such mode or modes when compounding pigments with gelatine, or when preparing gelatine for the purpose of being used in compounding paints and pigments in order to preserve the gelatine,thatthe prepared pigments and vehicles may be transported from place to place and keep good for a considerable length of time, and the-use of sulphate of zinc other.- wise improves the quality and increases the durability of the paintwhen applied.

It should be stated that the means of pre-' serving gelatine heretofore most generally practiced in order to its keeping for some timeviz., sulphurous acid, acetic acid, and alum-are not proper for the purposes of. our invention, and therefore are not to be used; but in employ,- ing preservatives to gelatine it must be done in reference to the fixing process after application to surfaces, as herein described, and we use by preference sulphate of zinc or other soluble salts of zinc, the soluble salts of magnesia, the soluble salts of lead. In case the pigment is to be tinted or colored, then the white pigment is employed to have colored pigments combined or intimately mixed therewith, in order to produce the tint of color desired, unless the colored pigments by themselves are to be employed, which is seldom the case in coloring or painting, and such colored pigments are to be first treated with a cold saturatedsolution of alum or other material to be afterward employed in fixing the soluble vehicle by rendering it insoluble;

It may be desirable to remark that we have found that some specimens of pigments have not required any previous preparation, while others from the same place have been prejudicially acted on when used without previous preparation or treatmentby the chemical agentto be afterward used. Under these circumstances we have found it desirable, as the trouble and cost are but small, to prepare all the pigments we employ by first subjecting them to the action of alum or other material afterward to be used in fixing by rendering the vehicle employed insoluble and we would remark that the mere rendering gelatine and albumen insoluble by alum or other known chemical means forms no part of our invention, and as the chemical agents which so act are .known-to chemists, and as we, in carrying out our invention, have, as before described, used alum when gelatine or albumen is used .forthe be tested byit by applying asmall quantity or them to a surface,inorderto-ascertainwhether itwill retain its property of fixing, and not have any prejudicial action in respect to the pigment or vehicle when combined or to the color thereof. 7

Another part of our invention relates to a like mode'of employing other soluble vehicles 1 for pigments, in which the vehicles are to be afterward rendered insoluble by alum or other known chemical reagents, and this part of the invention relates to the employment of resinous matters dissolved in a solution of borax or in an alkaline lye, and this part of the invention also relates to the employment of wax dis solved in an alkaline lye. As an example of the former, we take we1l-bleached shellac and combine it with borax in the proportion of about'five pounds of the former to one pound of the latter. These are boiled until dissolved in about four gallons of water. With this vehicle the pigments required are to be ground to the proper consistency of paint, which isto be laid on the usual way, one or more coats, as

required, and when dry it is to be washed over with a solution of alum orother chemical agent which is known to destroy the combination of the lac and the borax, rendering the lac insoluble.

, As an example of the second vehicle, we

take a lye of caustic soda, specific gravity 1.04, to which wev add an equal weight of white wax as'of lye. This mixtureis boiled several hours, adding half a gallon of water to every pound of wax afterv the solution is effected, and We prefer to add four poundsdry starch, calcined or nncalcined, to each poundof wax. To this vehicle is to be added as much of such pigments which by previous test are not acted upon prejudicially by an alkaline solution.v as shall bringit to the consistency of honey. Reduce this mixture to a proper state for paintin g by the addition of soft water-the softer the better-and when the surface paintedwith it is dry wash over. as before with a solutionof alum or other chemical agent whichis-known to destroy the combination of wax and an alkali, leaving the wax insoluble in water.

It is obvious that the above vehicles may be used in combination with each other as well as'separately.

Anothermode of employin g gelatine and the other vehicles described for fixing paints or pigments is to apply a coating of either of the vehicles over a painted or printed surface and.

solution, as above described. By this means' paints or pigments may be set withou'tthe neces'sity of putting the above-mentioned vehicles in the'paint or pigment before using the same.

Another form of our invention is to mix pigments with sulphate of zinc or other preserva-j the material, as above described, but without any vehicle, directing the painterto supply the necessary gelatine. The object of this mode is to enable the mixture with gelatine, when made, to keep a reasonable time in hot weather,

at thesame time that not being mixed till,

wanted the pigments can be kept an unlimited time. This mode of preparation is particularly applicable for hot climates.

We would, in conclusion, remark thatwe believethe best vehiclcsto be employed are gela- 1 tine and. albumen, and, as above stated, that 1 the best chemical agent known for rendering I the soluble vehicles herein described insoluble isalum. c It may be desirable to state that pigments and vehicles treated according to our inven tion are applicablein printing and painting; paper and other fabrics as well as othersurfacesusing pigments andvehicles according. to our invention in place ot'pursuing the means heretofore resorted to, and we have found that in using a solution of alum as the'fixin'g materialit is desirable to apply a small quantity of dissolved starch-say a hundredth partof the solution-by which the same will work bet- Q ter and .not be liable to run when laying it on. Another part of our invention relates to a mode of applying certain vegetable matters in y the preparations and application of paints or pigments. For this part of our invention'the glutinous or adhesive products of vegetable 1 matters generally will do; but wepreter gluten, albumen, gums, mncilage. These may be used either separate or in combination with other: products usually found therewith. For'example, we takeflour mixed with water. in such.

' other preservative, as described in the preced- 1 ing part ofour specification. w

This paint or .pigme'n t, i't necessary, isto be reduced with wateiyland is to be laid on inthe usual manner, and when dry may, according to our invention, befixed by an application of, a suitable chemical agent or reagent. We prefer. silicate of potassa or of soda, commonly called liquor ot'flintflor other chemical agent known to render such vegetable products insoluble in water, and we would remark that we dilute the liquor of flint as much as possible, so long as'the liquor willrhave the desired effect of fixing and rendering the. paint on the surfaces insoluble by water, whichlis readily tested by laying aflsmall quantity of the pigmentor paint prepared with a solublevehicle .intended to .be used, and when .dry by applying the liquor and letting the same dry for forty-eighthours, when bywashin g the surface it will beyseen whether the strength ot' -the silicate. of potassa or ofsoda which by previons test is not found to injure the color to be employed'with this mixture. The paint or pigment is to be brought to a proper consistency for working and then applied in the usual way to surfaces, and when well dried the same willcallow of being washed and cleansed, owing to the paint on thesurface being insoluble in water. i a Having thus described the nature of our invention, and the; best manner in performing the same, we would have it understood that we do not confine ourselves to theprecise quantities describedpas' they may be varied; but we have: given the best preparations, according. to our present experience; and we would have itunderstood that What we claim is- 1 a a 1.The mode of employing paints. or pigments and soluble vehicles, gelatine, and albumen; by afterward rendering such paints or pigments and vehicles insoluble, as abovedescribed, l 1 2. As a newmanufacture, the combining pigments withgelatineand albumen" in a dry mass or in: a paste with suitable materials for prcservingthe latter from decomposition in order to allow of keeping the paints or pigments so prepared in order to their being transported from place to place, and only require to be rendered liquid by hot soft water for use when gelatine is employed as the vehicle, and cold soft water when albumen is employed. I 3. As a new manfacture, the mode of preparingpigments with resinous matters or Wait dissolved. in an alkaline lye ,or solution of b'o-' rax made into a thickpaste, (or dry,) andthus to allow of the prepared pigments being transported. fronrplace to'place and only requiring v hot soft water to liquefy'it for use.-

I 4... The mode herein described of applying of rendering; the painted surfaeeiusoliible in ments and vehicles insoluble, as above (le- 1 \vaten as above described,

seii-bed.

8 The combining pigments with vegetable FRANOISGYBBON SPILSBURY. products and preserving materials, as above FANNY CORBAUX. described; ALEXANDER S. BYRNE.

9. The mode of preparing pigments or paints Witnesses: S. GARPMAEL,

and vegetable products with silicate of potesse or soda or other materials'having the property M. BETELIN