IMPROVEMENTS IN COATING AND RECOVERING METALS FROM CHLORIDES AND OTHER SOLUTIONS OF METALS
Year: 1866

page_text: LETTERS PATENT to James Webster, of Birmingham, in the County of
Warwick, Engineer, for the Invention of "IMPROVEMENTS IN COATING AND
RECOVERING METALS FROM CHLORIDES AND OTHER SOLUTIONS OF METALS."
Sealed the 8th February 1867, and dated the 15th August 1866.
PROVISIONAL SPECIFICATION left by the said James Webster at the
Office of the Commissioners of Patents, with his Petition, on the 15th
August 1866.
I, JAMES WEBSTER, of Birmingham, in the County of Warwick, Engineer,
"IMPROVEMENTS IN
do hereby declare the nature of my said Invention for
COATING AND KECOVERING METALS FROM CHLORIDES AND OTHER SOLUTIONS OF
METALS," to be as follows (that is to say):-
I proceed as follows:-1 use, by preference, the chloride of zinc, or what
is the refuse flux skimmed off galvanizing pots used in the present process of
galvanizing iron. I take the refuse flux or chloride of zinc and boil it down
in a cast-iron vat or boiler, as soon as the temperature is raised to about six
hundred degrees Fahrenheit I then add to the boiling chloride of zinc, scrap tin,
or thin sheet wrought-iron scrap, being most convenient and cheapest, but
prefer scrap tin, but either may be used. The cast-iron vat or boiler may
have a division in the middle running lengthways, one side being used to dip
any article that I desire to coat with zinc and tin, the other side being
used to place in the scrap tin or wrought sheet iron scrap before referred to;
the division in the vat or boiler being either grating or pierced full of holes to

page_text: allow the melted chloride of zinc to How through and amongst the un or
wrought-iron scrap. Scrap tin or iron must be placed at the bottom also of
the vat or boiler on the dipping side or other half of the vat or boiler, the
scrap being pressed or kept down by a plate of iron pierced full of holes to
allow the hydrogen gas to escape through the holes into the other part
of the chloride of zinc so that all copper or brass articles, or iron plated
with copper or brass, when dipped in this side of the cast-iron vat or boiler,
may come in contact with the scrap tin or wrought-iron scrap, and the
effect of hydrogen gas escaping from the decomposing iron scrap will be that
all copper, brass, or iron plated with copper or brass, will be coated with a
coating of tin, and zinc if scrap tin be used; or if wrought-iron scrap be used
only, the copper, brass, or iron coated with copper or brass will be coated with
metallic zinc in about one minute sufficient to protect the copper, brass, or
iron plated with copper or brass, from oxidation. This may also be accom-
plished to a great extent as follows, (that is to say), immerse copper and
wrought iron attached in the chloride of zinc liquid, viz., if oxide of zinc be
dissolved in hydrochloric acid and water any copper immersed attached to
wrought iron will in a short time be covered with metallic zinc, and the iron
will be dissolved in ratio to the zinc deposited on the copper; but if no iron
be used there will be no zinc deposited, and the copper must be connected in
some way with the iron, it will then receive a coating of metallic zinc at the
expense of the chloride of zinc and the decomposition of the iron. In this
process the whole of the zinc may be withdrawn from the chloride and chloride
of iron be formed instead of chloride of zinc: but it will be found more advan-
tageous to boil the chloride of zinc down to distill as much of the water from
it as possible without fusing the chloride, and then add the scrap. as before
stated.
All articles that are to be coated must be cleaned as in the usual way of
galvanizing iron, that is to say, be dipped into acid and water to free the
articles from all oxide and impurities; after the articles are dipped into the
hot chloride of zinc they must be immersed in a vat of boiling water to free
them from adhering chloride, the water they are so dipped in being boiled
down when charged sufficient with chloride of zinc and iron may be placed
into the chloride of zinc till such time as the vat or boiler is so charged with
chloride of iron that it will not give any suitable coating of metallic zinc upon
copper; the chloride may then be treated with water and crystalized in proper
vats and be utilized for dyeing and other purposes.
Should it be found that coating copper is not wanted, then copper sheets or
granulated copper, or copper scrap, may be placed in the hot chloride and

page_text: receive a coating, and then be withdrawn, dipped in water as above stated to
free it from the adhering chloride, and it may then be melted down, and the
coating of zinc will with the copper form brass, so that the metallic zinc will
not be required in the making or mixing of brass, as the zinc deposited upon
the copper will be sufficient of itself for many purposes: but should it be found
not to be sufficient, zinc deposited upon the copper, brass scrap, or thin sheet
brass, may be dipped into the chloride of zinc hot, in the same way as the
copper is melted and mixed with the copper that has had the zinc deposited
upon it, so that any quality of brass may be obtained; and the whole of the
zinc may in this way be recovered from the chloride of zinc, and the tin from
the scrap iron or tin scrap. In like manner a battery may be used to increase
the depositing zinc as in the ordinary way, but will incur extra expense, and
a sufficient coating of zinc may be given to copper, brass, or coppered iron, or
brozed iron without the use of the battery.
SPECIFICATION in pursuance of the conditions of the Letters Patent, filed
by the said James Webster in the Great Seal Patent Office on the
15th February 1867.
TO ALL TO WHOM THESE PRESENTS SHALL COME, I, JAMES
WEBSTER, of Birmingham, in the County of Warwick, Engineer, send
greeting.
WHEREAS Her most Excellent Majesty Queen
Patent, bearing date the Fifteenth day of August, in
thousand eight hundred and sixty-six, in the
Victoria, by Her Letters.
the year of our Lord One
year of Her reign, did,
for Herself, Her heirs and successors, give and grant unto me, the said
James Webster, Her special licence that I, the said James Webster, my
executors, administrators, and, assigns, or such others as I, the said James
Webster, my executors, administrators, and assigns, should at any time agree
with, and no others, from time to time and at all times thereafter during
the term therein expressed, should and lawfully might make, use, exercise, and
vend, within the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland, the Channel
Islands, and Isle of Man, an Invention for "IMPROVEMENTS IN COATING AND
RECOVERING METALS FROM CHLORIDES AND OTHER SOLUTION OF METALS," upon
the condition (amongst others) that I, the said James Webster, my executors
or administrators, by an instrument in writing under my, or their, or one
of their hands and seals, should particularly describe and ascertain the nature
of the said Invention, and in what manner the same was to be performed,
and cause the same to be filed in the Great Seal Patent Office within six

page_text: calendar months next and immediately after the date of the said Letters
Patent.
NOW KNOW YE, that I, the said James Webster, do hereby declare
the nature of my said Invention, and in what manner the same is to be
performed, to be particularly described and ascertained in and by the
following statement, that is to say:--
I proceed as follows:-I use, by preference, chloride of zinc, or what is
the refuse flux skimmed off galvanizing pots used in the present process of
galvanizing iron. I take the refuse flux or chloride of zinc and boil it down
in a cast-iron vat or boiler; as soon as the temperature is raised to about
600 degrees Fahrenheit I then add to the boiling chloride of zinc scrap tin
or thin sheet wrought-iron scrap, .being most convenient and cheapest, but
prefer scrap tin, but either may be used. The cast-iron vat or boiler may
have a division in the middle running lengthways, one side being used to dip
any articles in that 1 desire to coat with zinc and tin; the other side being
used to place in the scrap tin or wrought sheet iron scrap before referred to;
the division in the vat or boiler being either grating or pierced full of holes to
allow the melted chloride of zinc to flow through and amongst the tin or
wrought-iron scrap. scrap tin or iron must be placed at the bottom also of
the vat or boiler in the dipping side or other half of the vat or boiler, the
scrap being pressed or kept down by a plate of iron pierced full of holes to
allow the hydrogen gas to escape through the holes into the other part of the
chloride of zinc, so that all copper or brass articles, or iron plated with copper
or brass, when dipped in this side of the cast-iron vat or boiler may come in
contact with the scrap tin or wrought-iron scrap, and the effect of hydrogen.
gas escaping from the decomposing iron scrap will be that all copper, brass,
or iron plated with copper or brass will be coated with a coating of tin and
zinc, if scrap tin he used, or if wrought-iron scrap be used only the copper,
brass, or iron coated with copper or brass will be coated with metallic zinc in
about one minute sufficient to protect the copper, brass, or iron plated with
copper or brass, from oxidation. This may also be accomplished to a great
extent as follows, that is to say, immerse copper and wrought iron attached
in the chloride of zinc liquid, viz., if oxide of zinc be dissolved in hydro-
chloride acid and water any copper immersed attached to wrought iron will in
a short time be covered with metallic zinc, and the iron will be dissolved in
ratio to the zinc deposited on the copper; but if no iron be used there will be
no zinc deposited, and the copper must be connected in some way with the
iron, it will then receive a coating of metallic zinc at the expense of the
chloride of zinc and the decomposition of the iron. In this process the whole

page_text: of the zinc may be withdrawn from the chloride, and chloride of iron be formed
instead of chloride of zinc; but it will be found more advantageous to boil
the chloride of zinc down to distill as much of the water from it as possible
without fusing the chloride, and then add the scrap, as before stated.
All articles that are to be coated must be cleaned as in the usual way of
galvanizing iron, that is to say, be dipped into acid and water to free the
articles from all oxide and impurities; after the articles are dipped into the
hot chloride of zinc they must be immersed in a vat of boiling water to free
them from the adhering chloride, the water they are so dipped in being boiled
down when charged sufficient with chloride of zinc and iron may be placed
into the chloride of zinc till such time as the vat or boiler is so charged with
chloride of iron that it will not give any suitable coating of metallic zinc upon
copper; the chloride may then be treated with water and crystalized in proper
vats and be utilized for dyeing and other purposes.
Should it be found that coating copper is not wanted, then copper sheets or
granulated copper, or copper scrap may be placed in the hot chloride and
receive a coating, and then be withdrawn, dipped in water as above stated to
free it from the adhering chloride, and it may then be melted down, and the
coating of zinc will with the copper form brass, so that the metallic zinc will
not be required in the making, or mixing of brass, as the zinc deposited upon
the copper will be sufficient of itself for many purposes; but should it be found
not to be sufficient, zinc deposited upon the copper, brass scrap, or thin sheet
brass, may be dipped into the chloride of zinc hot, in the same way as the
copper is melted and mixed with the copper that has had the zinc deposited
upon it, so that any quality of brass may be obtained, and the whole of the
zinc may in this way be recovered from the chloride of zinc, and the tin from
the scrap iron or tin scrap. In like manner a battery may be used to increase
the depositing zinc as in the ordinary way, but will incur extra expense, and
a sufficient coating of zinc may be given to copper, brass, or coppered iron,
without the use of the battery.
In witness whereof, I, the said James Webster, have hereunto set my
hand and seal, this Fifteenth day of February, in the year of our Lord
One thousand eight hundred and sixty-seven.
JAMES WEBSTER. (L.S.)