Aluminium and Double Chloride of Aluminium and Sodium.
Year: 1886

page_text: Aluminium and Double Chloride of Aluminium and Sodium.
I, HENRY HARRIS LAKE, of the firm of Haseltine, Lake & Co Patent Agents,
Southampton Buildings, in the County of Middlesex, do hereby declare the nature of
my invention and in what manner the same is to be performed, to be particularly
described and ascertained in and by the following statement:-
The invention relates to the manufacture of chloride of aluminium, or the double
chloride of aluminium and sodium, from the oxide of aluminium and certain other
substances combined therewith; and consists in a retort furnace wherein said
chloride and double chloride are obtained from said aluminium oxide and other
substances. The invention consists more particularly in the construction and
arrangement of said furnace as hereinafter set forth and as represented in the
accompanying drawings.
.
In said drawings, Fig. 1 is a longitudinal section of said furnace, and Fig. 2 is a
transverse section on the line XX of Fig. 1. Similar letters of reference indicate
like parts.
The body or main portion of the furnace is built of brick-work in the usual
way, and substantially of the form shown. At one side is a chamber A in which
is placed a retort B. Said retort is provided with a suitable cover C; surrounding
said retort is a jacket D, which may be of iron. One or more retorts may be
arranged in the chamber A, each retort being jacketed as described.
Heat is imparted to the chamber A through the burning of an oil-spray: the oil
being delivered from the pipe E in a fine jet, through the agency of any con-
venient atomizing device actuated by an air blast. The burning of the oil-spray
in the air-jet, results, as is well known, in the production of intense heat. The
flame and products of combustion circulate in the chamber A around the exterior
of the jacket or jackets D and finally escape by the vertical passage G in the
roof of the furnace.
Entering the retort B is a perforated pipe H. Said pipe communicates with a
chlorine gas generator of any suitable construction, and its function is to deliver

page_text: said chlorine gas into the retort while the lumps or blocks of oxide of aluminium
compound are being heated therein.
At I on the other side of the furnace is a chamber communicating with the
retort B, by a tube or passage J. Into this chamber the products of distillation
(chloride of aluminium and double chloride of aluminium and sodium) pass and are
precipitated. Access to the chamber I, for the removal of said chlorides is had
through the removable door or cover L.
Above the chamber A on the opposite side of the furnace may be arranged
smaller chambers K. These chambers become heated through the walls of the
furnace, and may be utilized for drying the material previous to treating the same
in the retort.
Having now particularly described and ascertained the nature of the said
invention, and in what manner the same is to be performed as communicated to
me by my foreign correspondent I declare that what I claim is,
1. The combination in a furnace for the production of aluminium chloride, of a
retort for containing the material to be treated, a depositing chamber communi-
cating with said retort, a means of heating said retort and a means of conducting
chlorine gas into said retort, substantially as described.
2. The combination in a furnace for the production of aluminium chloride, of a
retort, a jacket enclosing the same, a means of imparting heat to the exterior of
Baid jacket, a depositing chamber communicating with said retort and a means
of conducting chlorine gas, into said retort, substantially as described.
3. The combination in a furnace for the production of aluminium chloride, of
the chamber A, the retort B, jacket D, perforated pipe H, chamber I, passage J
and pipe E for conducting an oil spray into said chamber A, substantially as
described.
4. The retort furnace for the manufacture of aluminium chloride and double
chloride constructed and arranged substantially as herein shown and described.
Dated this 4th day of August 1886.