Vol. XV. No. 37.5. 



THE AGRICULTURAL NEWS. 



irjo, 



ja. 



SIMPLE STILLS FOR ESSENTIAL OILS. 



AVitli increasing attention to the production ot tlie 

 essential oil of Bay leaf and otlier essential oils, there arises 

 a demand for a convenient type of still. In the West 

 Indian Bulletin, Vol. IX, p. 276, suggestions were made for 

 simple stills, two forms being described. Both types have 

 been in experimental use for a number of years. As the 

 result of this experience it is found that the simple still of 

 the first type there described is quite satisfactory in operation, 

 but it has the defect that it soon corrodes and has to be 

 entirely renewed. 



It occurs to the writer to .sugs^'est that if the still is con- 

 structed in segments, the corroded parts may be readily 

 renewed at little expense and with little loss of time. Further- 

 more, should it be required to increase the capacity of the 

 still, this may be done by add- 

 ing segments. 



A still of the kind suggest- 

 ed is shown in the accompany- 

 ing illustration. It consists of 

 segments formed by riveting 

 sheet-iron to rings of angle iron, 

 thus forming hollow drums 

 which can be bolted together 

 one on top of the other until 

 a still of the required capa- 

 cit)- is constructed. The bolts 

 connecting the segments can be 

 disconnected at any time for 

 the replacing of a segment, 

 while the joints between the 

 rings can be made tight in 

 the usual manner with asbestos 

 or other packing. 



The sides of the drums 

 may be made of sheet-iron of 

 -|^-inch thickness. 



The bottom of the still 

 should be made of thicker 

 material, and may be of J- or 

 |- inch iron sheet. In mount- 

 ing the still over the fire-place, 

 the ring with the bolts should 

 be embedded in the mason still. 



work so as to protect it from 

 the direct action of the fire. 



This will reduce the difficulty of removing the bolts 

 it becomes necessary to renew the bnttom plate. 



The top of the still should also be made of -|-iDch to 

 -|-inch iron sheet; it should be held in place by bolts and 

 nuts (not shown in the drawing): these should be placed 

 sufficiently close together to make a good joint, which may 

 also be fitted with asbestos packing. A coating of blacklead 

 on the cover will prevent this from sticking to the asbestos, 

 and in this way the joint may be broken and renewed with- 

 out difficulty. 



If the top bolts are permanently fixed in the angle iron 

 ring they will always be in place and cannot be lost: the 

 nuts may be winged so as to enable them to be screwed down 

 by hand without the u.se of a spanner. 



Connexion with the condenser may be made through 

 the side of the upper segment and near the top. This is 

 preferable to making the connexion through the cover, for 

 in this way the joint has not to be broken when the cover 

 is removed. 



In the drawing the still is .shown connected to an 

 'Ideal' condenser. As this is made of copper, it is suggested 

 that the connexion between the still and condenser should 

 be made by means of a short length of flanged pipe made of 

 vulcanite, so as to obviate galvanic action which would be 

 induced by the cont-ict of iron and copper, and would lead 

 to the corrosion of the still. 



The still is operated in the manner described in the 

 West Indian Bulletin above referred to. A perforated 

 grating is fixed in the bottom segment at a convenient 

 distance from the bottom; a sufficient quantity of water 

 is placed at the bottom of the still and the leaves or 

 other material placed above the grating. For convenience 

 in handling and removing, the leaves may be contained 

 loo.sely in cages or baskets of iron wire; these baskets can be 



lifted out by means of the 

 same hoist which is used to 

 I ,/- ^ remove the cover, and this 



~ ^Zn_KJ I '^^''^ ^^ *^''"® without waiting 



((pglftZ for the still to cool. 



The hoist referred to 

 may consist of a simple 

 wooden tripod standing over 

 the still, and provided with 

 a pulley and hoisting rope. 



If the discharge orifice of 

 the condenser can be placed 

 at a height of some 3 feet or 

 so above the level of the water 

 in the still, it is possible to 

 arrange that the distilled water 

 separating from the oil in 

 the Florentine fiask, commonly 

 used as the collecting vessel, 

 may be conducted by a pipe 

 directly back to the still, thus 

 maintaining a constant water- 

 level in the still and obviating 

 the risk of burning from lack 

 of water: at the same time- 

 it automatically leads to the- 

 recovery of any essential oil 

 that may inadvertently escape 

 in the waste water. T o- 

 e fif e c t this, the conden.ser 

 should be placed relatively 



much higher than is shown in the accompanying drawing: 



this may readily be done by lengthening the pipe connecting 



the still with the condenser. 



F.W. 



CONnENSEK. 



Scale, A-inch = 1 foot. 



when 



British Cotton Growing Association.— A 



report of a meeting of the Council held on July 4, 

 refers to the possibility that the Association will definitely 

 co-operate with the Indian Government with a view to the 

 improvement of the cotton grown in India. As regards 

 Africa, the report shows a very satisfactory state of afl'airs to 

 exist. The purchase of cotton in Lagos to the end of June 

 amounted to 8,748 bales, as compared with 4,318 bales for 

 the corresponding period of last year. Similar increases are 

 recorded for Northern Nigeria. It is mentioned that the 

 quality of Nyasaland cotton has recently shown signs of 

 deteriorating, and arrangements have been made for the 

 Association to send supplies of the best quality of seed for 

 planting purposes from l^ganda. 



