Production of organic acids

Claim 1

A PROCESS FOR THE PRODUCTION OF ORGANIC ACIDS FROM SOAP SKIMMINGS OBTAINED IN THE ALKALINE PAPER PULP INDUSTRY, SAID SOAP SKIMMINGS CONTAINING THREE BROAD CLASSES OF IMPURITIES, ONE OF WHICH CONSISTS ESSENTIALLY OF SOLIDS OF RELATIVELY HIGH DENSITY, ANOTHER OF WHICH CONSISTS ESSENTIALLY OF SUBSTANCE OF A LIGENOUS NATURE, AND A THIRD OF WHICH CONSISTS OF HIGH MOLECULAR WEIGHT ORGANIC SUBSTANCES, COMPRISING SUBJECTING SAID SOAP SKIMMINGS TO THE ACTION OF A MINERAL ACID IN AQUEOUS MEDIA TO RELEASE THE CORRESPONDING ORGANIC ACIDS, THEREAFTER TO SEPARATE SAID MASS INTO THREE EFFLUENTS SUBJECTING SAID REACTION MASS TO CENTRIFUGAL FORCE IN A CENTRIFUGING ZONE HAVING A PLURALTIY OF CIRCUMFERENTIALLY ARRANGED OPEN SEPARATING SPACES EXTENDING LONGITUDINALLY AND RADIALLY FROM THE INNER BOUNDARY OF THE ZONE TO THE OUTER BOUNDARY OF THE ZONE, DISCHARGING OTHER THAN TALL OIL FROM SAID CENTRIFUGING ZONE THROUGH THE PERIPHERY THEREOF AND ALSO AT A LOCUS POSITIONED RADIALLY INWARDLY OF SAID PERIPHERY, AND DISCHARGING SEPARATED TALL OIL FROM SAID CENTRIFUGING ZONE AT A LOCUS POSITIONED RADIALLY INWARDLY OF SAID FIRST-MENTIONED LOCUS, THE ACCUMULATION OF LIGNEOUS SUBSTANCES IN SAID CENTRIFUGING ZONE BEING AVOIDED IN LARGE PART BY EFFECTING SAID CENTRIFUGAL SEPARATION UNDER CONDITIONS OF LOWERED SEPARATING EFFICIENCY WHICH EXPRESSED IN TERMS OF SIGMA FALL BETWEEN 300 AND 3500 SQUARE METERS.