IMPROVEMENTS IN THE MANUFACTURE OF SULPHATE OF COPPER, AND IN OBTAINING METALS FROM THE MATERIAL USED IN SUCH MANUFACTURE
Year: 1862

page_text: LETTERS PATENT to Balthasar Wilhelm Gerland, of Newton-le-Willows,
in the County of Lancaster, Chemist, for the Invention of "IMPROVEMENTS
IN THE MANUFACTURE OF SULPHATE OF COPPER, AND IN OBTAINING METALS
FROM THE MATERIAL USED IN SUCH MANUFACTURE."
Sealed the 9th December 1862, and dated the 11th June 1862.
PROVISIONAL SPECIFICATION left by the said Balthasar Wilhelm Gerland
at the Office of the Commissioners of Patents, with his Petition, on the
11th June 1862.
I, BALTHASAR WILHELM GERLAND, of Newton-le-Willows, in the County
of Lancaster, Chemist, do hereby declare the nature of the said Invention for
"IMPROVEMENTS IN THE MANUFACTURE OF SULPHATE OF COPPER, AND IN OBTAINING
METALS FROM THE MATERIAL USED IN SUCH MANUFACTURE," to be as follows:-
My Invention refers to obtaining sulphate of copper and other substances
from solutions arising from the treatment of copper ores, or other compounds,
with hydrochloric, sulphuric, or other acids. To this solution (if the former)
I add sulphuric acid with heat and thus cause a substitution of the one acid
for the other, and the greater part of the iron is then rendered insoluble by
calcination. The remainder I subsequently precipitate with carbonate
of copper after the crystallization of sulphate of copper; the mother liquors
and washings contain all the cobalt and nickel. To obtain these pure the
lees are heated by methods already in use. I extract the silver from the
insoluble remains after the calcined residue by smelting or by solution in
[Price 8d.]

page_text: hyposulphite of soda or other suitable solvent. The sulphate of copper
obtained as above is comparatively pure, and metallic copper unmixed with
base metal may be precipitated therefrom.
SPECIFICATION in pursuance of the conditions of the Letters Patent, filed
by the said Balthasar Wilhelm Gerland in the Great Seal Patent Office
on the 11th December 1862.
TO ALL TO WHOM THESE PRESENTS SHALL COME, I, BALTHASAR
WILHELM GERLAND, of Newton-le-Willows, in the County of Lancaster,
Chemist, send greeting.
WHEREAS Her most Excellent Majesty Queen Victoria, by Her Letters
Patent, bearing date the Eleventh day of June, One thousand eight
hundred and sixty-two, in the twenty-fifth year of Her reign, did, for
Herself, Her heirs and successors, give and grant unto me, the said
Balthasar Wilhelm Gerland, Her special licence that I, the said Balthasar
Wilhelm Gerland, my executors, administrators, and assigns, or such others
as I, the said Balthasar Wilhelm Gerland, 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 SULPHATE OF COPPER, AND IN
OBTAINING METALS FROM THE MATERIAL USED IN SUCH MANUFACTURE," upon the
condition amongst others, that I, the said Balthasar Wilhelm Gerland,
by an instrument in writing under my hand and seal, 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 Balthasar Wilhelm Gerland, 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):
My Invention refers to obtaining sulphate of copper in a compara-
tively pure state, and also other substances (cobalt, silver, nickel, and
uranium,) from solutions of copper ores, or other compounds of copper.
In order to carry out this Invention it is necessary to convert the copper

page_text: of the material used into sulphate of copper if it does not already exist in that
state. It is in most cases convenient to extract the copper and other metals
from the ores, or other compounds, while in their native state, or after some pre-
paration with muriatic acid, by which means solutions are obtained containing the
chlorides of silver, copper, cobalt, nickel, and uranium, together with more or
less impurities. These liquors I treat in the following manner, with the object
of converting the chloride of copper into sulphate of copper, and of obtaining
the expelled bydrochloric acid in a state fit for other use. They are for this pur-
pose boiled down in a reverboratory furnace with a large shallow bed, and con-
nected with two flues which can be shut or opened as is desired. The first of
these flues leads to the chimney, and is used for the time that the solution in the
furnace is evaporated, during which time only steam escapes with the fire gases,
As soon as nearly all the water is driven off, this flue is closed, the second flue
opened, and a quantity, of sulphuric acid added to the charge in the furnace
sufficient to convert the copper into sulphate of copper. Hydrochloric acid
is then driven off rapidly, mixed with but little steam, and this is conducted
through the second flue, which must be of sufficient length to cool the gases.
and from this into an ordinary condensing apparatus where a down current of
water will effectually dissolve the acid gas, and the liquid acid produced here,
and drawn from the foot of the condenser, has all the properties of the commer-
cial muriatic acid, and can be used for extracting fresh quantities of ore. The
condenser, and the long flue connected with the same, are worked at intervals
so that this part of the apparatus has time to cool, and thus a strong muriatic
acid can be obtained without loss of gas. The charge in the furnace is then
dried and calcined whilst being stirred up until the greater part of the iron
salts is decomposed, and converted into the red oxide. The furnace is then
emptied and can be used for a new operation. The calcined material is then
treated with hot water in such quantity as to produce a concentrated solution
of all soluble substances, which are separated from the insoluble matter by
filtration or decantation, and the residue exhausted by washing with water.
This weak liquor is to be used for dissolving a fresh quantity of the dry
salts. The residue is free from copper, cobalt, and nickel, but contains all
the silver, as chloride of silver, provided the material was not calcined with an
excess of sulphuric acid, which would decompose the silver salt, in which case
it is necessary to add sufficient muriatic acid before separating the soluble
from the insoluble part. From this residue the silver is extracted either by
the ordinary smelting process or by solvents in aqueous solutions, in which
case the remaining oxide of iron can be used for any purposes to which
it is ordinarily applied. The liquors separated from the oxide of iron contain

page_text: iron in solution, which has to be rendered insoluble. For this purpose I
add oxide of copper or carbonate of copper in the state of malachite or other
form to the hot liquor, and all peroxide of iron will precipitate readily, but if
any protosalt be present it is necessary before adding either of these copper
compounds to peroxidize the iron, which is easily accomplished by means of
chlorine or a hypo-chloride. After the separation of the iron from the solution
the sediment is separated from the liquor, and the latter allowed to cool in
suitable vessels when sulphate of copper will appear in crystals. The mother
liquors are boiled down and left to cool to obtain another crop of these crystals,
and the same operation repeated as long as sulphate of copper will crystallize
free from cobalt and nickel, which may be known by the color and form of
the crystals. The two first crops are with careful working, and after removing
the adhering mother liquor by a superficial washing with water or a solution
of sulphate of copper, pure, and have only to be dried to become ready for the
market. The other charges are purified by redissolving in hot water, and
recrystallization. The mother liquors from the last crystallization contain all
the nickel and cobalt of the original material mixed with a small proportion
of sulphate of copper. They are treated for the metals by methods already in
use. Sometimes the material subjected to the process above described
contains uranium. This metal is precipitated as oxide by the malachite, and
can be separated by methods well known from the sediment produced by the
same after the copper solution has been removed. The excess of malachite
used for precipitating the iron is easily regained without loss by washing
the precipitate with water, when the lighter oxide of iron will float after the
heavier particles of the malachite have collected at the bottom of the vessel,
and can thus easily be removed by pouring off the superabundant water.
Having thus described and ascertained the nature of my said Invention, and
the manner in which the same is to be performed, I desire it to be understood
that I claim as secured to me under the above in part recited Letters Patent,
and for the purposes above set forth, the process or processes substantially as
above described.
In witness whereof, I, the said Balthasar Wilhelm Gerland, have here-
unto set my hand and seal, this Tenth day of December, in the year of
our Lord One thousand eight hundred and sixty-two.
B. W. GERLAND. (L.S.)