IMPROVEMENTS IN. THE MANUFACTURE OF IRON, COPPER, TIN, AND LEAD
Year: 1856

page_text: LETTERS PATENT to Abraham Pope, of Edgware Road, in the County
of Middlesex, Engineer," for the Invention of "IMPROVEMENTS IN. THE
MANUFACTURE OF IRON, COPPER, TIN, AND LEAD"
Sealed the 8th July 1856, and dated the 29th January 1856.
PROVISIONAL SPECIFICATION left by the said Abraham Pope at the
Office of the Commissioners of Patents, with his Petition, on the
29th January 1856.
I, ABRAHAM POPE, of Edgware Road, in the County of Middlesex, Engineer,
do, hereby declare the nature of the Invention for IMPROVEMENTS IN THE
MANUFACTURE OF IRON, COPPER, TIN, AND, LEAD, to be as follows:-
i
This Invention has for its object improvements in the manufacture of iron,
copper, tin, and lead. For these purposes, when manufacturing iron, anhydrous
silicate of aluminum is employed in combination with spent,oxide of man-
ganese. And it is preferred, in the first place, to cast the iron in chills, or
to run it into water, but these are not essential. The iron is melted,, anhydrous
silicate of aluminum and spent oxide- of manganese being present, by which
greater strength of iron will be obtained, and the slags resulting are beneficially.
employed when puddling and refining iron. In manufacturing copper, lead,

page_text: and tin, such metals are reduced from their ores, or melted in presence of and
by the aid of anhydrous silicate of aluminum.
The preparation of anhydrous silicate of aluminum preferred is that which
results from the manufacture of gas from boghead coal or torbane coal.
SPECIFICATION in pursuance of the conditions of the Letters Patent; filed
by the said Abraham Pope in the Great Seal Patent Office on the
29th July 1856.
TO ALL. TO WHOM THESE PRESENTS SHALL COME, I, ABRAHAM
Pore, of Edgware Road, in the County of Middlesex, Engineer, send
greeting.
WHEREAS Her most Excellent Majesty Queen Victoria, by Her Letters
Patent, bearing date the Twenty-ninth day of January, in the year of our
Lord One thousand eight hundred and fifty-six, in the nineteenth year of Her
reign, did, for Herself, Her heirs and successors, give and grant unto me,
the said Abraham Pope, Her special licence that I, the said Abraham Pope,
my executors, administrators, and assigns, or, such others as I, the said
Abraham Pope, 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 THE
MANUFACTURE OF IRON, COPPER, TIN, AND LEAD," upon the condition (amongst
others) that I, the said Abraham Pope, 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 calendar months next and
immediately after the date of the said Letters Patent.
.
NOW KNOW YE, that I, the said Abraham Pope, do hereby declare
the nature of the said Invention, and in what manner the same is to be per-
formed, to be particularly described and ascertained in and by the following
statement thereof, that is to say :-.
My Invention consists, first, in the improved manufacture of iron. I take
hematite iron ore or other iron stone, as free as possible from sulphur; I take
one ton of the above and melt the same in a short blast furnace or cupola with
anthracite coal or charcoal and carburetted anhydrous siliciate of alumina (the

page_text: residuum from the distillation of boghead or torbane coal or other bituminous
shale); of this fuel I use 250 lbs., composed of anthracite coal or charcoal
and rd boghead coke; the silica and alumina combines with the iron ore
without reducing the iron to the metallic state. I take this body so produced,
or other similar body, and crush to a coarse powder; I take one ton of the
above and mix with 200 lbs of boghead, broken to a coarse powder; I place the
same in a reverberatory or air furnace, and raise the temperature to.bright
redness, but not sufficient heat to melt the same, with a fuel as free as possible
from sulphur; I continue the heat for two hours, stirring the mass at times;
during the continuance of the before-mentioned heat, I add 2 per cent. of
spent oxide of manganese. I now raise the heat, so as to produce complete
fusion of the whole, and continue it in that state thirty to forty minutes, during
which time the bath must be stirred, so as to thoroughly mix the whole; the
slag or scoria should be removed at intervals. I now either reduce the
temperature, so as to render the iron pasty for the manufacture of bars, or I
run the whole charge into pigs for after manufacture.
I make a more highly carburetted or steely iron by following the samo
process as above, with from 250 to 300 lbs. of boghead to the ton, and continue
the first heat two and a half hours, and the second or melting heat, thirty to
forty minutes. I still more highly carbonate the iron so produced by following
the same process and using a larger quantity of boghead, 400 lbs. to the ton,
and the first heat three hours, the second heat the same as before. Second,
I take white or forge pigs produced by the above mentioned process, or
ordinary forge white pigs, or ordinary pig iron melted and chilled, so as to
produce a white iron of a crystalline fracture, and mix the same with ordinary
pig iron, from to of the white iron. I. take one ton of the mixed irons
and melt the same in a cupola, with a fuel composed of anthracite coal, or
charcoal, or coke, free from sulphur, and boghead refuse, before mentioned;
of this fuel I use 240 lbs., 3rd anthracite, charcoal, or coke, and 3 boghead, to
melt one ton. I add during the fusion 2 per cent. of spent oxide of man-
ganese and 10 lbs. of limestone as a flux; this will produce an iron of greater
strength than ordinary iron, and of a better colour, suitable for bright work.
The proportions of the mixed metals before alluded to should be determined by
the purpose for which the iron is required. I use any of the iron so produced
for the manufacture of wrought iron or steel, either direct from the air furnace
or by the ordinary process of puddling, using the before-named boghead or
shale in the manufacture. I also use the boghead as a fuel for the melting of
iron by the ordinary process, mixed either with anthracite, charcoal, or coke,
in proportion from th to boghead, according to what fuel be used.

page_text: +COPPER I take oresas is generally received for smelting; I roast the
same, as is usually done in the manufacture of copper.; I continue the melted
state three hours;-at. the expiration of the second hour I add to each 'ton of
copper ore 70 lbs. of. iron scale, or oxide of iron, or iron' slags, or other body:
containing a sufficient quantity of iron; the iron will combine with a large,
quantity of earthy matter and form a scoria or slag, which must be removed;
after the scoria has been removed, at the end of the third hour, I,add to the
melted mat or bath 200 lbs of oxide of iron or hematite iron ore, and 4 cwt. of
thesanhydrous silicate of alumina, or boghead refuse, or other carburetted
shales; having a similar.composition. The oxygen of the iron ore combines with
the yet remaining sulphur, and drives it offy in the form of sulphurous gases;
the silicate of alumina combines with the iron and other impurities, reducing
by the carbon contained any oxide of copper that may have been formed by
the oxide of iron used; the mass should be agitated at times. A very fusiblė
slag will be produced, containing very little copper 'in the metallic state. I
allow the bath to be acted upon by the above-mentioned materials in a full,
melted state for four hours, when the slág being removed; metallic copper will
remain. If the reduction should be. found not complete,ra second, application
of the boghead refuse and continuance of the beat. will be necessary;' samples:
should now be taken from time to time; so as, to enable the.workman-to
ascertain the progress of the reduction, "which; when satisfactory; the slag
should be removed, and the copper run into ingots, as is usual: Copper ores
vary. very considerably in quality, therefore the proportions must be varied; to
suit each ore, which proportion tlie workman must determine by experiment:
The before-mentioned proportions are suitable for a sulphuret.or.ore of copper
containing from 20 to 25 per cent. of copper; the fuel used on the grate of the
furnace should be anthracite coal, or a fuel as' free as possible from sulphur::
I melt in a short furnace or cupola with a low blast one: ton.of roasted copper.
ore; I use as fuel a mixture' of anthracite coal: 'or charcoal and carburetted
anhydrous silicate of alumina," or other similar shale; of this fuels I use:
200 lbs., composed of anthracite coal and boghead refuse; I.melt-the
ore alternately in the furnace; 1 cwt of ore, 10lbs of mixed fuel; I add and
equally divide 1.cwt. of! hematite iron ore or oxidex of iron't to: the charge; fa
large quantity of very fusible slag will be produced, which should be either.
tapped out at intervals, or allowed to run into a receptacle, where the:slag can.
be separated 'from the metallic copper produced. I refine this copper in a
reverberatory or air furnace using for every civt.Iof copper 2 lbs. of. oxidé of:
iron and 10 lbs. of boghead; samples must be taken to ascertain the state of
the metal produced. Should the slags contain sufficient copper; I crush them:

page_text: and mix with boghead, in bulk equal to one-fourth of the broken slag; I
remelt the slag in a common reverberatory furnace, and continue in a melted
state two hours, agitating the mass at times. I take samples for the quality
of the metal so produced, from which the workman will determine the extent
of the operation.
TIN. I take ordinary tin ore, as is usually received for smelting; I roast
the same, as is usually done, to expel arsenic or sulphur; I mix the roasted
ore with boghead refuse, or other similar body, in equal proportions, bulk for
bulk; I submit the mixture to a red heat in a reverberatory furnace for two
hours, agitating at times; a quantity of slag will be formed, consisting of
earthy impurities and iron contained. I now raise the heat to whiteness, and
continue one hour, not stirring the mass; I tap the melted mass into a proper
receptacle and allow to cool, I then separate the slag from the metal; I
take the slags, if found to contain sufficient metal, and crush them to a coarse
powder; I mix, in equal proportions, with boghead refuse crushed to a coarse
powder, and submit the mixture to a full red heat for one and a half hours;
the metal, if any, will be reduced, and can be run into proper moulds.
LEAD. I take lead ore, as is usually received for smelting, and roast, to
expel arsenic; I mix the same with 3rds boghead refuse crushed; I submit
the mixture in a reverberatory furnace to a red heat until the reduction be
judged to be completed, a slag will be produced containing earthy impurities
and iron; the reduced metal can be run from the slags, as is usually done,
leaving a portion of the slag for the commencement of the next charge.
I claim the use of boghead or torbane mineral after the distillation for gas
or other purposes, or similar bituminous or carburetted shale, either as a fuel
mixed with other fuel, or as a reducing agent, for the manufacture of metals
generally requiring a red heat for their reduction or manufacture.
In witness whereof, I, the said Abraham Pope, have hereunto set my
hand and seal, this Twenty-ninth day of July, in the year of our Lord
One thousand eight hundred and fifty-six.
Witness,
JNO. ALCOCK.
ABRAHAM POPE. (L.S.)