USRE8229E - Improvement i - Google Patents

Description

' DfM. MEPFORD.

Preserving Fruits.

" No. 8,229. Ressued May 14, 1878.

UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE.

DAVID M 'MEFFOEQ OF TOLEDO, OHIO.

IMPROVEMENT |.Nl PRESERVlNG FRUITS.

Specifica-tion forming part of Letters Patent No. 82,4529, datedlSeptember 22, 1568 Reissue No. 8,229, dated May 14, 1878; application filed May 2, 1878.

y To all whom it may concern:

Be itknown that I, DAvro M. MEFFORD, of Toledo, inthe county of Lucas and State of Ohio, formerly of Norwalk, in the county of Huron, in said State, have invented anew and useful process of treating fruit for thepreservation thereof, of which the following is a specification: Y

This process consists, first, in subjecting fruit, such as apples,pears, peaches, apricots, nectarines, plums, prunes, grapes, and the various kinds of berries, in their raw or uncooked con.

ble, arranged as shown. B B are the bellows or air-pumps, which are made -in two sections, C C', the same being separated by a diaphragm, a. In thisdiaphragm, and also in the upper and lower heads 'b b, are the valves c, all opening upward, as indicated by the dotted lines d, which are fora purpose hereinafter shown. is fixed the hook E. This chamber is designed to fit firmly over the gasket F on the tube F', which is secured to the table A. Leading from this chamber to the'lower part `of the vessel G is the tube or hose H, and

from the upper part of the vessel G is the hose I,`leading to the lower table A. In `thistable is the conduit J, with which this hose connects. In the upper table A' is a similar conlduit, K, connecting with the chamber D.

The manner in which this `apparatus is used is as follows: A wick of any flocculent material maybe prepared by charging or saturating it with sulphur. It is then hung on the hook E and ignited, the fruit having been previously prepared 'and placed in the vessel G in its raw condition. This vessel is provided with al close cover, and is perfectly tight. The

bellows B are worked by means of the rod L I) represents a chamber in which and lever M, and kept in constant motion, so that a perfect circulation may be kept up. By burning the sulphur wick sulphurous-acidv gas is produced, and the current from the bellows vcarries this into the hose H, and thence into the vessel G, where it permeates the fluid. After it has passed-through the fruit it enters the tube I at the top of the vessel, and thence into the conduit J, where it is drawn by the alternate action of the bellows into the section C. The valves all opening upward will close and prevent any of the gas passing back, but

'a complete and continuous circulation is established throughout the Whole apparatus, thoroughly permeating the fruit contained in the vessel.

The peculiar eiect of subjecting the fruit to the action of the gas is, that it bleaehes or whitens it, and prevents it from turning brown or dark colored by the oxidizing influencel of the air upon it, and it also preserves, in a high degree, its natural iiavor, causing it to retain the avor of fresh fruit. Even after cut fruit has, by exposure to the atmosphere, become partially oxidized andturned brown, this treatment will bleach and restore it to its original color.

After being impregnated with'the gas the fruit should be subjected to 'artificial heat to drive olf any excess of sulphurous-acid gas that may have combined with it; but the degree of heat, or the length of time of subjecting the fruit thereto, should not be such asto cook it or materially soften its tissues. This. heating'eliminates all the gas that is not incorporated with thev properties of the fruit, thus preventing any gaseous sulphurous taste, and the acid incorporated with the fruit is merged in its acid.

. The length of time required for properly impregnating the fruit will depend upon the intensity of the` gas in the treatin g-cllamber, the quantity of fruit under treatment, and whether it lies open and loose, aifording easy access of the gas among its interstices, or more compactly massed together. It also depends very much upon the kind of fruit under treatment, and the manner in which it is cut or prepared. Apples, peaches, pears, and the like, if cut very thin and the pieces fully exposed, may `become sufficiently impregnated in a minute of time, whereas, if cutin halves or quarters, they will require from five to fifteen minutes; but plums, gooseberries, and grapes, with their skins entire and unbroken, will require from thirty minutes to an hour or more..

.Fruit treated in this manner need not be sealed inorder tobe kept, but will remain withoutdecomposingin openvessels or receptacles.

This method of treating fruit admits of vav rious modifications inthe apparatus other than that herein described, such as burning sulphur in a box, chamber, or tower, wherein ,fruit is placed-insuch manner as to be accessible to` the sulphurous-acd gas produced by the combustionof the sulphur, or by burning the sul- 'phur in a separate chamber communicating with that containing the fruit, and'conductin g or forcing the gas into the treating-chamber.

'rl am aware that patents have been granted for preserving meats, sh, and vegetables by immersing them in solutions of sulphites, such as the sulphite of lime, soda, &c., and for preserving said snbstances by treating themwith sulphurous-acid gas in combination with other chemical antiseptic agents, and these processes I do not claim; but

- What I claim, and desire to secure by Letters Patent,'is i 'lhe method yor process of preserving fruit by treating or charging the same in` a raw" statewith free sulphurous-acid gas uncombined Withany other chemical antiseptic agent,

'and then .subjecting it to heat, in the manner substantially as set forth.

DAVID M. MEFFORD.

Witnesses J. W. HAMILTON JOHNSON, FLOYD NORRIS.

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