176 NAVAL STORES, THEIR PRODUCTION AND MANUFACTURE 



(C) MANUFACTURE OF NAVAL STORES FROM PINE PRODUCTS: — 



I. From rosin of longleaf pine, &c., obtained by orcharding: - 



(a) Melting crude rosin in order to separate, from the liquid constituents, pieces of bark, wood, &c. 



(b) Dry distillation of the liquids in a copper distilling apparatus, heated usually from an open fire 

 beneath the apparatus; but preferably by superheated steam. 



(c) The gases are cooled in a worm and condenser, forming a layer of turpentine which is 

 redistilled frequently. 



(d) The rosin (colophony), now of a light yellow color escapes through a pipe in the bottom of the still. 



II. From the wood of the various species of pine:- 



(a) Cut or saw the wood into kindling sizes. 



(b) Fill it (from above) into a gas-proof brick still room some 15 feet high and 6 feet through, 

 holding from 2 to 6 cords of wood. The top and bottom of the still are funnel shaped and provided with 

 pipes. The still is surrounded by the fire room. 



(c) After closing the upper funnel, apply heat very gradually. Within 24 hours turpentine begins 

 to escape through the top pipe which leads through a worm into a condenser. When the gases appear 

 dense and thick, the top pipe is closed and the gases (now largely containing pyroligneous acid) are 

 forced through the bottom pipe to be condensed in another condenser. Light (at a later stage dark) tar 

 is let out through this same pipe. The fires are checked when the tar begins to flow freely. 



(d) The process takes, for heating, 3 days; for cooling, 8 days. Charcoal is left in the still room. 

 Proper regulation of temperature is most essential. 



(e) One cord of rich pine kindling yields about 25 gallons of tar, 1 gallon to IV2 gallons of machine 

 oil, V-, to 1 gallon of turpentine, some pyroligneous acid and '/• cord of charcoal. 



III. From stumps and roots of Pinus palustris and of Pinus resinosa:- 



(a) The stumps, left in the ground for a few years, then extracted by stump lifters, taken to the 

 plant and allowed to season further in the yard, are sawed up by a circular saw, sliced by a hog, and 

 ground by a grinder. 



(b) The mass of small irregular particles thus obtained is charged, four cords at a time, into 

 upright iron cylinders, at least four cylinders belonging to a "circuit." Then live steam is forced, for 

 90 minutes, through the circuit, the steam taking up the spirits of turpentine as it passes from the first to 

 the last cylinder. In the first cylinder, it finds old chips almost exhausted by previous extractions; and in 

 the last cylinder, it finds fresh chips full of turpentine. 



(c) Steam and water is withdrawn from the exhausted chips by the vacuum pump, and the wood 

 is dried simultaneously. 



(d) Next, the cylinders containing dry wood free from turpentine are filled with naphtha, a solvent 

 which, passing from one cylinder to the other, withdraws the crude rosin found in the wood. 



(e) The solvent is separated from the rosin and thus regained by fractional distillation. The wood 

 fiber left in the cylinders is used to feed the boilers. 



(f) The output per 4,000 pounds of stumps (costing ^4V2 per cord of 4,000 pounds delivered at the 

 plant) is :- 



15 gallons crude spirits of turpentine worth a few cents less than the product of the turpentine 

 orchards. 

 300 pounds of E grade crude rosin, worth x6'80 per barrel of 280 pounds. 



IV. Use of naval stores: - 



(a) Spirits of turpentine are used for colors, paints, varnishes, asphalt laying, solvent for rubber. 



(b) Colophony, the rosin of the trades, is used for glue in paper manufacture, varnishes, soap 

 making, soldering, manufacture of sealing wax. 



