Improvements in or relating to the manufacture of Ammonium Nitrate from Ammonium Bicarbonate or the Components thereof and Sodium Nitrate

16,455. Freeth, F. A., and Cocksedge, H. E. July 9. Ammonium nitrate; sodium bicarbonate.- Pure ammonium nitrate is obtained by double decomposition between sodium nitrate and ammonium bicarbonate, or its components, by arranging that at the end of the reaction a solution is obtained, which, after separation of the precipitated sodium bicarbonate, is saturated with ammonium nitrate and bicarbonate, and sodium bicarbonate, from which solution the ammonium nitrate is separated by cooling after the bicarbonates have been destroyed. The removal of the bicarbonates may be effected by heating the liquor, and they may be neutralized with nitric acid or by other means. The precipitated ammonium nitrate is washed, and the mother liquor may be re-used in the process, after reheating, by the addition of quantities' of ammonium bicarbonate and sodium nitrate equivalent to the ammonium nitrate removed in the process. If the cooling be carried to only such an extent as to separate a' quantity of ammonium nitrate not greater than is equivalent to that quantity of sodium nitrate which will dissolve in the. mother' liquor after re-heating, then the presence of undissolved sodium nitrate in the reaction solution is avoided. An artificial mother liquor may be prepared fulfilling these conditions. According to the Provisional Specification, the greater part of the ammonium nitrate can be separated from the mother liquor by concentrating until the liquor is saturated with it from 50 to 60‹ C., separating the'sodium nitrate precipitated at this temperature, and adding such quantities of water as will prevent the separation of sodium nitrate during the subsequent cooling for the separation of ammonium nitrate.