Glass Plate Negative - Young & Beilby's Retort
code: LVSAV1990.079
Collection code:
LVSAV1990.079
Collection:
Description
Glass plate negative of a technical drawing of Young & Beilby's retort for the distillation of oil shale erected at Pumpherston Works, Mid Calder, March 1884.
Box labelled "Young & Beilby Retorts, Young & Fyfe Retorts".
Young & Beilby's retort, patented in 1882, represented a major advance in retort technology. Its two part construction allowed for the efficient recovery of both oil and ammonium Sulphate. The Pumpherston Oil Company's adoption of this design allowed them to profitably exploit the Pumpherston shales which provided relatively little oil but were rich in ammonia.
One of a series of lantern slides / glass plate negatives, thought to be used by Scottish Oils Ltd for instructional lectures.