Method of drying and impregnating wood

Claim 1

A WOOD TREATMENT PROCESS WHICH COMPRISES SUBMERGING THE WOOD IN A LIQUID BATH IN A CONTAINER CLOSED TO THE ATMOSPHERE, SAID BATH CONTAINING AS THE ESSENTIAL DRYING AGENT A HALOGENATED HYDROCARBON SOLVENT WHICH IS IMMISCIBLE WITH AND HEAVIER THAN WATER, A SOLVENT FOR RESIN, NON-FLAMMABLE, AND HAS A CONSTANT WATER-SOLVENT AZEOTROPE BOILING POINT, THE BATH BEING AT A TEMPERATURE RANGE BETWEEN THE SOLVENT BOILING POINT AND THE BOILING POINT OF THE AZETROPE OF THE SOLVENT WITH WATER, AND WHILE MAINTAINING THE BATH WITHIN THE SAID TEMPERATURE RANGE CONTINUOUSLY DRAWING OFF FROM THE BATH THE EVOLVED AZETROPIC VAPOR WITH ITS WATER CONTENT EFFECTIVE FOR MAINTAINING THE BATH WATER-FREE THEREBY REMOVING FROM THE WOOD A FIRST PORTION OF THE WATER CONTENT THEREOF, THEREAFTER EFFECTING THE CONDENSATION OF THE VAPORS WITHIN THE WOOD AND THEREBY CAUSING THE BATH SOLVENT TO PENETRATE THE WOOD SUBSEQUENTLY RESUMING VAPORIZING OF MOISTURE FROM THE WOOD TO REMOVE A SECOND PORTION OF THE WATER CONTENT THEREFROM WHILE DRAWING OFF THE EVOLVED VAPOR WITH ITS WATER CONTENT, SUBJECTING THE THUS TREATED WOOD TO SUB-ATMOSPHERIC PRESSURE WHILE REMOVING SOLVENT THEREFROM, THEN SUBMERGING THE WOOD IN A LIQUID BATH COMPOSED OF A SIMILAR SOLVENT CONTAINING A WOOD PRE-