This is the residual class for thermolytic distillation processes not otherwise provided for. For purposes of this class thermolytic distillation is limited to the heating of a solid carbonaceous material (distilland) to vaporize the portion volatile under the conditions employed and to cause a compound or compounds in the material to undergo chemical decomposition (thermolysis) to form different chemical substances, at least some of which are volatile under the condition employed and an unvaporized solid carbonaceous material (residue). At least a part of the vaporized material is usually condensed to a liquid (distillate). See Lines With Other Classes, below, for lines between this class (201) and other classes having processes including thermolysis of carbonaceous material.
Solid carbonaceous materials within the purview of this class (201) include (exemplary but not limiting) such minerals as coal and oil shale and substances of an organic nature such as organic wastes and wood. Inorganic carbonates are excluded.
LINES WITH OTHER CLASSES
LINES WITH CHEMICAL COMPOSITION CLASSES
(1) Product whether claimed in terms of their composition or claimed in terms of the process of making are classified in the appropriate composition class even if the process merely recites a thermolytic distillation operation.
(2) Processes for heating solid, carbonaceous material to cause decomposition of compounds therein and to produce a
solid, carbonaceous residue are classified here only if not otherwise provided for.
(a) Processes of thermolytically decomposing a carbonaceous material to produce carbon black, graphite, or other purified carbon are classified elsewhere. See References to Other Classes, below, for specific classes/subclasses. (b) Processes for carbonizing a solid carbonaceous material to produce an electrically conductive product are classified elsewhere. A carbonized composition (e.g., activated carbon) claimed or disclosed solely as a sorbent or catalyst or a method of making such composition is classified elsewhere. See References to Other Classes, below, for specific classes/subclasses.
(c) The line between processes in this class (201) and Class 44, Fuel and Related Compositions, is that this class (201) takes a carbonization process wherein the carbonization is specified as being complete or a vaporized component is intended to be recovered, while Class 44 takes a process wherein the extent of carbonization is not specified or the disposition of any vaporized component is irrelevant to the process, only the final solid fuel product being of concern.
(d) Class 48, Gas: Heating and Illuminating, takes processes and apparatus for making heating and illuminating gases when no solid carbonaceous residue is left.
(e) The line between this class (201) and Class 208, Mineral Oils: Processes and Products, is (1) thermolytic distillation of a distilland consisting predominately of solid carbonaceous material and a minor amount of a mineral oil material to produce a char is in this class (201), (2) thermolytic distillation of a distilland consisting predominately of a mineral oil material and a minor amount of a previously charred material is classified in Class 208, (3) for processes including extracting mineral oils from natural, solid, carbonaceous material as well as the digestion or conversion of the same as the digestion or conversion of the same to obtain mineral oils see Class 208, Mineral Oils: Processes and Products, subclass 8 for the line.
PROCESSES INCLUDING EVAPORATION
Processes for evaporating without a condensing step are generally excluded from this class. For specific lines between the processes of this class and other processes including an evaporating step, see below.
(1) This class (201) is distinguished from Class 34, Drying and Gas Or Vapor Contact With Solids, in that the material herein is a solid or semi-solid which is chemically changed by the heating step so as to yield volatile substances containing condensable or absorbable components, while the material of Class 34 is a solid or semi-solid from which it is desired to remove an extraneous liquid, leaving the
residue chemically unchanged, even though the volatile material be condensed.
(2) Class 134, Cleaning and Liquid Contact With Solids, takes claimed combinations of work handling or supporting means or steps with means or steps to apply a liquid to the work, as by spraying or immersion, where said liquid is distilled or evaporated, whether or not the resulting vapor is (1) directly contacted with the work or (2) condensed for re-use to contact the work. When only the liquid distillation subcombination or the vapor-phase work contact subcombination has been claimed, see above for the line between Class 201 and Class 34.
(3) Evaporation Processes
Processes in which volatile components of the material being heated are removed as vapor without at least a portion of the vapor being condensed to a liquid are not within the purview of this class (201). See References to Other Classes, below, for some classes which provide for processes that include an evaporating or concentrating step.
CLASS 201 IS SUPERIOR TO CLASS 203, DISTILLATION: PROCESSES,SEPARATORY.REFERENCES TO OTHER CLASSES
SEE OR SEARCH CLASS
23, Chemistry: Physical Processes, for processes that include an evaporating or concentrating step.
44, Fuel and Related Compositions,
500+, for a particulate solid fuel composition and subclasses 550+ for a consolidated fuel solids composition.
48, Gas: Heating and Illuminating,
200, 201 and 202 for a process for gasifying a mixture which includes coal and subclass 210 for a process for gasifying coal alone.
75, Specialized Metallurgical Processes, Compositions for Use Therein, Consolidated Metal Powder Compositions, and Loose Metal Particulate Mixtures, appropriate subclasses for a process of reducing an ore to the metallic state or refining molten metal involving distillation or for a sublimation process.
95, Gas Separation: Processes, for processes of gas separation.
106, Compositions: Coating or Plastic, appropriate subclasses for a coating composition which may be applied to surfaces of the distillation apparatus or utilized for making apparatus
of a particular composition.
110, Furnaces, 235+, for a device for burning garbage or sewage, subclass 229 for a furnace having a special repository for fuel for eliminating the combustible gases and burning them before the coked fuel is fed to the fire and subclasses 101+ for a device for feeding fuel to a furnace. Under Class 110, class definition, see Class 122, Liquid Heaters and Vaporizers, and Class 126, Stoves and Furnaces, for the lines among these classes.
122, Liquid Heaters and Vaporizers, for apparatus and methods for heating liquids, generating vapors from liquids, treating the vapors generated and conserving the heat remaining in the liquid or vapor after part of the heat has been used. See particularly
66, for devices containing a water cooled coking chamber for fuel.
127, Sugar, Starch, and Carbohydrates, for processes that include an evaporating or concentrating step.
134, Cleaning and Liquid Contact With Solids,
1+, for a cleaning process particularly subclasses 20 and 39, for a process of removing carbon, subclass 12 for a cleaning process including distilling the cleaning agent and subclass 31 for a cleaning process including the step of condensing a gas or vapor.
159, Concentrating Evaporators, for processes that include an evaporating or concentrating step.
162, Paper Making and Fiber Liberation,
30.1+, for a process of destroying the organic constituents of the waste liquor.
252, Compositions,
502+, for an electron conductive or emissive composition containing free carbon and process of making.
252, Compositions, appropriate subclasses, for processes of thermolytically decomposing a carbonaceous material. 260, Chemistry of Carbon Compounds, for processes that include an evaporating or concentrating step.
264, Plastic and Nonmetallic Article Shaping or Treating: Processes,
29.1+, for processes for carbonizing a solid carbonaceous material to produce an electrically conductive product
266, Metallurgical Apparatus, for apparatus peculiarly adapted for the treatment of metals or metalliferous material.
299, Mining or In Situ Disintegration of Hard Material,
3+, for a process of converting coal or oil shale in place to fluid material, whether a coke-like residue remains or not.
366, Agitating,
219+, for apparatus for agitating a liquid or a particulate material by motion of the container, and subclasses 241+ for a fixed container with movable stirring apparatus, particularly subclasses 262+ for pump type stirrers.
406, Conveyors: Fluid Current, appropriate subclasses for apparatus for conveying solid material in a current of air or other gas.
414, Material Article or Handling,
147+, for charging devices for placing a charge in or removing one from an oven or furnace, and subclasses 800+ for a process of material or article handling. 423, Chemistry of Inorganic Compounds, appropriate subclasses for processes of producing inorganic compounds and nonmetallic elements by chemical reaction, which may include a distillation step.
423, Chemistry of Inorganic Compounds,
445+, for processes of thermolytically decomposing a carbonaceous material.
426, Food or Edible Material: Processes, Compositions, and Products, for processes that include an evaporating or concentrating step.
502, Catalyst, Solid Sorbent, or Support Therefor: Product or Process of Making, especially
174+, and 416+ for a catalyst or sorbent containing carbonized material or a process of making such composition.
502, Catalyst, Solid Sorbent, or Support Therefor: Product of Process of Making, for a carbonized composition (e.g., activated carbon) claimed or disclosed solely as a sorbent or catalyst or a method of making such composition
585, Chemistry of Hydrocarbon Compounds, for processes that include an evaporating or concentrating step.
588, Hazardous or Toxic Waste Destruction or Containment, appropriate subclasses for the use of process distillation
and thermolytic processes to destroy hazardous waste.
GLOSSARY:
AUTOTHERMIC DISTILLATION A thermolytic distillation operation in which the distilland, either by combustion of a portion of itself or by other chemical change, furnishes at least part of the heat for thermolysis and volatilization of either the inherent or the thermolized volatile matter.
CARBONACEOUS MATERIAL
Any solid material (mixture or compound) other than an inorganic carbonate which contains carbon or carbon containing compounds such as coke or wood.
CHAR
The generic term applied to the carbonaceous residue from a thermolytic distillation of any carbonaceous material. It encompasses such terms as bone black, charcoal and coke.
COKE
Strictly this is the amorphous, solid residue of coal after the volatile material has been distilled off in a thermolytic distillation. The term is also applied in the art to the solid, carbonaceous residue from the thermolytic distillation of such materials as oil shale, petroleum and pitch.
CONDENSATE
See Distillate in the Class Definition section.
DESTRUCTIVE DISTILLATION
See thermolytic distillation.
DISTILLAND For the purpose of this class is the carbonaceous material which is undergoing a distillation operation.
DISTILLATE
The liquid product condensed from vapor during the distillation operation.
EVAPORATION
The process of changing a solid or liquid into a vapor. This is the generic term for both sublimation and vaporization. It differs from "distillation" in that distillation includes the additional step of condensing vapor produced to a liquid.
SEPARATORY DISTILLATION
A process of vaporizing at least a portion of a liquid mixture (distilland) and condensing at least a portion of the vapor to separate the liquid mixture into distinct parts. The substances recovered as products must have preexisted in the original mixture.
SUBLIMATION
A process in which a solid passes into the vapor state without liquefaction and the vapor returns to the solid state without passing through the liquid phase.
THERMOLYTIC DISTILLATION
A distillation in which material found in the distilland undergoes chemical decomposition (thermolysis) to form different substances at least some of which are volatile at the temperature employed. The volatile substances are recovered by condensation or sorption.