Ships' Bottoms or other Submerged Structures.
Year: 1885

page_text: Ships' Bottoms or other Submerged Structures.
We, DAVID MELVILLE and JAMES FENWICK WHITNEY, both of 10 King Street,
Liverpool, in the County of Lancaster, Master Mariners do hereby declare the
nature of our said invention for "IMPROVEMENTS IN PAINTS COATINGS OR
COMPOSITIONS FOR COATING SHIPS' BOTTOMS, OR OTHER SUBMERGED STRUCTURES
to be as follows:-
"
This invention has for its object a coating which shall be useful as a paint, and
shall prevent corrosion and fouling through living organisms, animal and vegetable.
To prevent shellfish attaching themselves to ships' bottom's, numerous poisons have
from time to time been used; among the rest, mercury, and organic poisons. The
latter are expensive and are liable to get washed out or decay, the former if in the
metallic state separates from the material in a short time settling in a liquid form
at the bottom of the cask, while, if the artificial compounds of mercury be used
their cost is a serious matter.
Now our invention'consists, firstly, in the use of the ground cinnabar or raw ore
of mercury as a poison in compositions of this sort, secondly, in improved com-
positions preferably containing this matter for the aforesaid use.
We prefer to put on the materials in two distinct coatings, a grounding of anti-
corrosive qualities, and an outer coating of a greasy slippery nature, both being also
of strong anti-fouling tendencies.
The ground coating is composed as follows: (1) boiled linseed or other oil
(2) terebene or other dryer (3) poisonous matter preferably ground cinnabar
(4) lime or cement, preferably Portland or Roman, and (5) (usually) tar, pitch or
bitumen. Over this we apply a varnish or outer coating composed of (1) colo-
phony or other resin (2) cinnabar and arsenic or other poison (3) tallow or other
grease (4) dryers if required.
In some cases for cheap work, we simply apply the cinnabar mixed in with tar.
c

page_text: °
Ships' Bottoms or other Submerged Structures.
We DAVID MELVILLE and JAMES FENWICK WHITNEY both of 10 King Street,
Liverpool in the County of Lancaster, Master Mariners do hereby declare the.
nature of our said invention for "IMPROVEMENTS IN PAINTS COATINGS OR
COMPOSITIONS FOR COATING SHIPS' BOTTOMS, OR OTHER SUBMERGED STRUCTURES,
and in what manner the same is to be performed, to be particularly described and
ascertained in and by the following statement :-
This invention has for its object a coating which shall be useful as a paint, and
shall prevent corrosion and fouling through living organisms, animal and vegetable.
To prevent shell fish attaching themselves to ships' bottoms, numerous poisons have
from time to time been used; among the rest mercury and organic poisons. The
latter are expensive and are liable to get washed out or decay, the former, if in the
inetallic state separates from the material in a short time, settling in a liquid form
at the bottom of the cask, while, if the artificial compounds of mercury be used,
their cost is a serious matter.
Now, our invention consists, firstly, in the use of the ground cinnabar or raw ore 1
of mercury, as a poison in compositions of this sort, secondly in improved com-
positions preferably containing this matter for the aforesaid use.
We prefer to put on the materials in two distinct coatings, a grounding of anti-
corrosive qualities, and an outer coating of a greasy slippery nature, both being also
of strong anti-fouling tendencies.
The anti-corrosive coating consists 1st of boiled linseed oil, or other oil, drying
into a resin or resinous material or a resin such as colophony or rosin or a mixture
of these. 2nd. Terebene or other dryer. 3rd poisonous matter preferably ground
cinnabar. 4th a pulverulent matter capable of setting into a hard material not
liable to disintegrate, decompose or admit water through its pores or act injuriously
on the structure to be coated. We find some of the earthy metal oxides, such as
lime, alumina or zinc oxide, all white insoluble powders answering the above
description, to act well, also many chemically indifferent powders used as pigments,
but we at present prefer zinc oxide. 5th. tar, pitch or bitumen; this can however
be dispensed with, if the oil or resin used be sufficiently viscid.
*
One receipt, we have found very good for this purpose, as far as our experiments
have gone, is as follows: 6 lbs rosin gallon of terebene 5 lbs finely ground cinnabar,
100 lbs white zinc (zinc oxide).
C. S
The exterior or anti-fouling coat is composed of (1st) colophony, or other resin.
If there be much of this in the lower coat it may be omitted in the outer coat.
(2nd) cinnabar, arsenic, or other poison. (3rd) tallow or other grease. 4th a
pigment to give it body and consistency, preferably white zinc.
A good receipt is as follows;a
TO 100 lbs tallow or other fat.

page_text: These two compositions mixed with linseed oil to the ordinary consistency of
paint, are applied with a brush in the usual manner, the first or anti-corrosive
paint being applied first, and then on top of that the second or anti-fouling.
Having now particularly described and ascertained the nature of our said
invention, and in what manner the same is to be performed, we declare that
we are well aware that all the materials we have named except ground cinnabar
have been used before in coatings for ships' bottoms, and we make no claim for
such individually, but that what we claim is
B
1st. The manufacture and use of paints or coatings for ships' bottoms, and other
submerged or partially submerged structures, containing ground cinnabar as an
anti-fouling poison.
2nd. The paints, coatings or compositions for coating ships' bottoms, composed
substantially as herein described and used in successive coats (1st) an anti-corrosion
coat, then over that an anti-fouling one, each substantially as specified.
Dated this seventh day of August 1885.
WP. THOMPSON & Co.,
Of 6, Lord Street, Liverpool, and
323, High Holborn, London,
Patent Agents for the Applicants.