IMPROVEMENTS IN MANUFACTURING IRON;
Year: 1837

page_text: TO ALL TO WHOM THESE PRESENTS SHALL COME, I, EDOUARD
FRANCOIS JOSEPH DUCLOS, late of Samson, in the Kingdom of Belgium, but
now of Church, in the County of Lancaster, Gentleman, send greeting.
WHEREAS Her present most Excellent Majesty Queen Victoria, by Her
Letters Patent under the Great Seal of Great Britain, bearing date at
Westminster, the Twentieth day of October, in the first year of Her reign,
did, for Herself, Her heirs and successors, give and grant unto me, the
said Edoward Francois Joseph Duclos, my exors, adiñiors, and assigns, or such
others as I, the said Edouard Francois Joseph Duclos, my exors, adñiors,
or assigns, should at any time agree with, and no others, from time to time
and at all times during the term of years therein expressed, should and lawfully
might make, use, exercise, and vend, within England, Wales, and the Town
of Berwick-upon-Tweed, my Invention of "IMPROVEMENTS IN MANUFACTURING
IRON;" in which said Letters Patent is contained a proviso that I, the
Edouard Francois Joseph Duclos, shall cause a particular description of the
nature of my said Invention, and in what manner the same is to be performed,
to be inrolled in Her said Majesty's High Court of Chancery within six
calendar months next and immediately after the date of the said in part
recited Letters Patent, as in and by the same, reference being thereunto had,
will more fully and at large appear,

page_text: NOW KNOW YE, that in compliance with the said proviso, I, the said
Edouard Francois Joseph Duclos, do hereby declare that the nature of my
said Invention, and in what manner tho same is to be performed, are parti-
cularly described and ascertained in and by the following statement thereof,
reference being bad to the Drawing hereunto annexed, and to the figures and
letters marked thereon (that is to say):-
The nature of my Invention consists in introducing and combining with cast
iron and with its scoria, while they are in a state of fusion. certain substances
which, by means of their chemical action, detach from the cast iron the
impurities which it contains, by forming with them volatile mixtures and
compounds, as well as scoria which, though not volatile, are more fusible than
those produced by the usual processes. These volatile matters, by mixing with
the flame which fill the cavity of the furnace in which the operation is carried
on, protect the iron from injury, while at the same time a metal is set free in
such proportions as are requisite to form, with the iron, an alloy which, both in
physical and chemical properties, bears a close resemblance to the best qualities
of malleable iron obtained by the use of wood charcoal. In the conversion of
cast iron into malleable iron it is the usual practice to pass it first through the
process of refining, and afterwards through that of puddling. My improve-
ments apply to both these processes. For refining, I make use of a rever-
beratory furnace such as is represented by the annexed Figure, in which a is
the door through which fuel is introduced into the fireplace c, and 6 is the bars
lying about the ashpit. d is the bridge; e, the crucible; f, a door opening
into the furnace a little above the crucible g, the sole being sloped towards the
crucible; h, the chimney. The fuel employed in this furnace is blazing pit
coal; and as soon as by means of it the sole g has been brought to a white
heat, I place on it thirty hundredweight of cast iron of good quality, and
immediately afterwards I introduce into the crucible e through the door f 8
mixture of three hundred and thirty-six pounds of dry chloride of manganese,
and six pounds and three quarters of bichloride of calcium, otherwise called
bleaching powder, the quantity of these two ingredients being respectively in
the proportions of ten per cent. and one fifth per cent. compared with the
quantity of cast iron employed. Over this mixture I put a layer of wood
charcoal about two or three inches in thickness, and cover this latter with iron
scoria, otherwise called cinder, of a similar thickness, mixed with a sufficient
quantity of quick lime to engage and combine with the free silica contained in
the scorin. This being done, I bring up the heat of the furnace as fast as
possible, till the cast iron, which had been previously placed on the solc, melts
and runs down into the crucible, filling it up to within a few inches of the

page_text: door f. The fusion of the cast iron being completed, its surface is to be
covered with wood charcoal. The usual tools for working the melted metal
are then introduced through the hole in the door f. During the working,
portions weighing ten pounds each, of the same mixture of chloride of man-
ganese and of bleaching powder as has been already described, are thrown
in at intervals of about four minutes according to the state of fluidity
of the materials, the register of the chimney being closed for a few seconds
after each addition. Care must be taken to keep the metal constantly covered
with charcoal, and in about half an hour the process will have been completed,
and the refined metal may be run out of the furnace in the usual manner.
The chemical action that takes place during the operation just described
appears to be the following:-The sulphur, the arxmix, and the phosphorus
contained in the cast iron unite with the chlorine of the chloride of manganese
and of calcium, forming gaseous compounds which are volatilized, while part
of the manganese unites with the iron. The scoria, consisting chiefly of silicates
of iron, are partly decomposed by the concurrent action of the lime and charcoal,
producing metallic iron and a fusible slag, consisting chiefly of silicate of lime
with some silicate of oxide of iron and silicate of oxide of manganese. The iron
refined as above described is next to be submitted to the puddling process, which
differs from that usually practised in the following particulars, namely, that
about one per cent. of the mixture of chloride of manganese and of bleaching
powder, already described, is thrown in from time to time during the operation
in order to prevent the injurious effect which the sulphur and other substances
contained in the flame of the pit coal would otherwise have on the iron.
Likewise the carbonic acid contained in the flame is converted for the most
part into carbonic oxide before it reaches the iron, by making the bridge of
the puddling furnace double, or in other words composed of two parallel walls,
and filling up the space between them with wood charcoal. When the metal
is come into nature, as the workmen call it, the slag or scoria are let out, and
then small charcoal is thrown into the furnace for the purpose of protecting the
iron as far as possible from the injurious action of the flame, while in the act
of being collected into lumps preparatory to shingling.
I make no claim to the particular modifications in the form of the refining
furnace and of the puddling furnace described in this my Specification; but I claim
the use and application, in the conversion of cast iron into malleable iron, of all
those metallic chlorides which are capable of being so decomposed that their
basis shall combine with the iron while their chlorine shall form volatile com-
pounds with the sulphur and other impurities usually existing in cast iron. I also
claim the use and application, in the conversion of cast iron into malleable

page_text: iron, of all those metallic chlorides the base of which, by combining with the
earthy impurities of cast iron, converts them into slag, and thus facilitates their
separation from the iron by means of such furnaces as those employed in the
manufacture of iron for the place, and which are called wollow fires.
After the slag has been let out, when the operation is come at that period
which workmen term into nature, in order to obtain a metal more free from every
atomic parcel of silex or cinders, which are almost always combined with the
puddled iron, I take out from the puddling furnace the metal in that
chrystalline state of division, and submit it then to the action of a charcoal
fire, of which the combustion is supported by a blast common chaufferies
charcoal, where it agglomerates or refines, and is then formed in bloom of a
proper side, which are shingled. In order to avoid the inconvenience generally
experienced in heating the iron, in the following processes by means of
reverberatory furnaces I heat those blooms of iron.
In witness whereof, I, the said Edouard Francois Joseph Duclos, have
hercunto set my hand and seal this Ninth day of April, One thousand
AL
Inrolled the Twentieth day of April, in the year of our Lord One 2
thousand eight hundred and thirty-eight.