The times. [volume] (Richmond, Va.) 1890-1903, 1894-12-25
COPPER PLATING VESSELS.

An experiment Is being made In Jersey
| city which, if successful, will revolution
| i've shp-bulding. The tug Assistance,
| formerly Of the Anchor Line IS IN yard
there undergoing the operation OF having
| her hull electroplated-in other words
copper is being placed on her hull by
electricity TO the thickness Of about one
sixteenth Of an inch
| For years past this problem has en-
gagged the attention Of ship-builders 1t
| has been widely discussed in naval and
other circles, but up to this time it was
| declared to be an impossiblity. The own
ers Of the new process claim 10 have
! fully solved the problem.
If what they say is true, and it is as
| serted that there Is ocular demonstration
| Of it, a remedy has been discovered to
| prevent foul bottoms on ocean-SolnS and
| other ships With such remedy at
| hand hulls of ships can be practically
coppered at small cost. and the result
will be an enormous saving in coal, the
prevention of pitting and the collection
| of barnacles.
"Only recently" says the New York
| sun zone of our war ships burned lyyJ
more tons of coal on her homcward Try
| from Rio than on her journey there, and
! her speed was two or three knots less,
| because of a foul bottom. Every two or
| three months it is nece sary TO place the
| liners in dry dock to cleanse the hulls,
! ami each time this is done 10 entails an
| enormous cost Even in the boats that
ply between New York and New Orleans
| this causes an expense of at least 500
each time they are cleaned. Constant
painting Of the hulls is necessary in all
vessels, and if this new process can "a
compl.sh what its owners say it can, u
means that henceforth there will be no
more need of paint on any Of the hulis.'
The officials of the Navy Department
are said TO be watching with the deepest
interest the experiment going ON at Jer-
| sey city, having an agent constantly on
hand to observe every step made.
The New York sun thus describes this
new process:
The process now in operation in Jersey
| city ls oil the simplest design. In fact q
| IS nothing more than the ordinary pro-
| cess of cIectrOplatlug that is IN constant
| use in hundreds oil places ia TINS &ai
| other cities The Snip Copper Plating
| Company, OF which Mr.. James II. George,
| of this city, Is president, OWNS the patents
| in tnis country and an the chief European
| countries. The patent consists OF the
| method of the application OF the copper,
/ eleCtrOplatiUS itself being TOO old and
! too common 10 Doe secured by any patent.
Mr.. George bought the patents from
| patent solicitor who had never tired his
! invention. and without any practical
| demonstration that the patents were teas-
ible. Mr.. George, however Is shreWd
| man, and from his study of the process
| was convinced of its utility, and has spent
| large sums already to prove his faith in
| the invention. Ills first step, after he Se-
! cured the patents. was to send TWO hun
! dred miles of Sandy Hook 10 secure some
! water that ne was sure was absolutely
| salt ana not tainted 10y any fresh water
| that might come down TO the ocean from
| the rivers. Then he took an iron tube
| four inches IN diam ter sealed up one
| end and had II appropriated by the pro-
| cess. He then stood the tube in this salt
| water and kept il there for many months.
| The tube showed no deterioration, and ne
| was convinced that he had solved the
! puzzle that had been troubling ship
| builders for scores OF years.
! The tug Assistance was purchased, ana
! the plating Is now t"o-thirds hh'sArd.
! II VIII be completed in about month.
| and the tug VIII be placed i'm the scOW-
| towing business of the city for demon
| stratOn of its utility. II, after few
! months, the hull of the tug shows 20
accumulation of barnacles and no pittng
| or galVanic action. caused by the action
! of the sea water the success Of the ven
| ture viii he complete. and company
! viii be formed TO put the invention in
| actual use. not only in this country, but
| abroad as we'll
THE Assistance was found TO be espe-
| Cially adapted for the test she rs nVe
| years old, and had been painted only
J twice in all that time. Her hull was not
| only badly ptted, but was so scanned ana
| rough that IL a success could be made
| with her IL could probably be achieved
| with any vessel atlOat The tug is also
| sufficiently lar-c to demonstrate that the
! process could Ice applied 10 any vessel
| She is 100 feet long and of nearly ninety
| tons After having purchased the tux the
| first thing to do was 10 dry dock her and
| clean her absolutely This IS said 10 be
! the most difficult part of the new pro
| cess. An a-id bath was given 10 the tug.
! and then she was washed clean and every
| bit of paint that c.ung to the iniental-ns
| in the huh had TO be PICKED out. IL was
! necessary that the hull should be free
| from every kind OF impurity. or the cop
! per would not stJrk. II the slightest place
| should not be covered by the copper the
| salt water would cause gdlvanic action and
| the hull would Ice destroyed IN time.
! Having cleaned the hull thoroughly. an
| electric plant was set upon the land Just
| alongside the dry dock to use IN the
! elcctroplating. Several dynamos were put
! in operation to secure the necessary guam
! tity Of electricity for the process OF plat
! ing and the electric lights that are in con-
slant use day and night