The Lambertville record. [volume] (Lambertville, N.J.) 1872-1968, 1885-02-04
nom WHITE PAINT is MADE.
The Conversion of Dull CoI0rec Lead Int
Glittering White.


To begin with, what is white lead, which
Is the basis of nearly all paints?
Don't know"
1t would be odd if you did. Now and
then you may find some one to tell you that
the same lead you mold into bullets is the
white lead you see in the paint-pot, but you
will ask a great many people before you find
one to explain the process of manufacture.
Let us follow it out
Iron is melted into what is called pigs =
for shipment and for convenient use. tt is
the Same with lead, only the "pigs" are
not ms large and heavy. The first step in
the manufacture is to corrode the lead. We
will take what is called the " old Dutch
process because that makes the best arti-
cle. The "pigs are tossed into melting
furnace, and when reduced to a liquid
state the metal is drawn of into molds
which are called buckle-molds." The
lead thus nodded is called buckle" be-
ing a little round cake nearly as large as o
saucer, but not so thick, and perforated in
many places.
These buckles " are carried by an end
less belt and dropped into carthern jars oil
various sizes. At the bottom of each jar is
3 small quantity of acetic acid. When q jar
is full of g buckles" which have been drop
ped in without regard to order, it is remov-
ed to the corroding house. Here the jars
are placed in a row, covered by boards, the
boards covered by two inches of tanbark,
and then another course of jars is added un-
til all the room is taken up. There is moth.
ing more to do for ninety days except tc
wait. The acid at once begins its work on
the buckels," and corrosion is the result.
1t isn't the acid direct, but its fumes, and
The perforations of which spoke permit
the fumes to get at all parts of the little
cake.
AT the end of ninety days the lead should
be corroded. The buckles are Their
bleached out until they look like crackers,
and will crumble to pieces at the touch.
The same acid which has befriended us in
the corrosion is now our worst enemy, and
must be got rid of. Haven't you rubbed
your hand along the clapboards of house
and found it smeared with white powder
Well, that house was painted with lead
from which tho acetic acid was not thor
oughly washed out, and the paint was killed
and powdered up.
The jars are taken to the washing troughs
md their contents emptied in, and the
water is then let in and the batch is sluiced
until we have u mixture tho color of milk
and scarcely heavier. After deal of wash
ing the water is drawn of aud the lead is
found OF the bottom of the troughs. If the
acid has been taken ont it is shoyeled into
jars again, and these are carried into hot
air room and left for tho water to evapo.
rate. When this has been accomplished
the contents of the jars are emptied ON cop
per drying pans heated by steam. The stuff
now looks like leo cream, but soon dries
until it is as fin, nnl almost as white as
-four. To make paint it simply has to be
ground in Oil
Let me ask you if that wasn't curious
discovery? Who could have got the idea
into his head ~ he looked ut "a bar of lead
that it wonld preserve und beautify the
buildings of the worll? Aud the process
requires 80 much time that men must
have spent y rs ii experimenting to ge,
tbs right aei "a ..1e frapsr method of US
ing.
Now, to prove to you that this white
paint was once metal, we'll take this piece
Of charcoal, dig out small hole in the cen.
ter, and fill the cavity with paint. Now
light your coal, and put your blow-pipo al
work, and what is the result? A ragged
button of lead Acid made it paint-frc
turns 1t back to its original state.
The corroder ships to the paint factories
by the barrel. At the factories the dry stuff
is poured into paint mills, oil added, and
the stuff is ground through three differen,
mills before it comes out as you see it in
the paint cans If the paint man is making
pure lead he adds nothing. II he SO desires
the lead is adulterated while grinding,
There is species of quartz rock called
barytes. When this is pulycrizcd it closely
resembles. lead, and is largely used to adul.
tsrate it.