Year: 1889

page_text: Date of Application, 5th Feb., 189
Specification Accepted, 11th May, 1839
We, SAMUEL McColley Godfrey of the City of New York, State of New York,
United States of America, now residing at No. 17 Salisbury Street, Strand,
London, W.C. Attorney at Law, and JOHN BELL ALLEN, of No. 26 Red Lion Square,
Holborn, in the County of Middlesex, Manufacturer, do hereby declare the nature of
our said invention and in what manner the same is to be performed, to be particularly
described and ascertained in and by the following statement :-
The object of our invention is to obtain various metal alloys, and to impregnate
metals with any desired metal or metals, by a process more effective, simple, easy, and
much less expensive than any hitherto employed
It consists, substantially, in extracting the metal or metals, desired to be employed
as an alloy, directly from the ores or earth containing them, and combining them with
any metal it is desired to alloy, at one and the same operation or process of smelting.
In carrying our invention into effect we proceed as follows:-We take the ore or
earth containing the metal it is desired to employ as an alloy, or any two or more of
them, and in any desired quantities, and thoroughly dry them, employing for this
purpose either natural or artificial heat; then pulverize them to a moderately fine
powder, and place them in a suitable pot, crucible or furnace, either iron or fire brick;
those employed in ordinary smelting will answer the purpose. We may then heat the
contents of crucible or furnace to a moderately high degree of heat, say 1000° to
1200° Fahrenheit, but we do not consider this as imperatively necessary, except,
perhaps, when the metal in the ore or earth requires a high degree of heat to fuse. In
heating, care must be taken that the degree of heat is not raised quite to the fusing
point of the metal the ore or earth contains. We then prepare a flux, using, for this
purpose, varying combinations of the following materials: Carbonate of soda,
powdered charcoal, finely pulverized fluor-spar, carbonate of lime, chloride of sodium,
and powdered borax. The proper combination of said materials is to be determined
by the kind of metals employed. We sometimes use a combination of all these
materials as a flux, and sometimes a combination of three or more of them as circum-
stances may require. As, for instance, in treating ore or earth that fuses at a

page_text: comparatively low degren of heat, we may employ a combination of powdered
charcoil, chloride of sodium, and boras in about the following proportions, by
weight ten parts of powdered charcoal, eighty-six parts chloride of sodium, and four
parts borax.
:
We intimately mix these materials, and with them cover the ore or earth in the pot,
crucible or furnace, to a depth of from three to six inches, according to the quantity
of such or or earth, or, if heat bo not first applied, wo may intimately mix the con-
stituents of the flux with the ore or earth, by stirring them together; either way will
be found to give good results. Care must be taken that all those materials be
thoroughly dry to avoid explosion at a subsequent stage of the process.
The rule by which to determine the propor combination of the materials forming
the flux, and their respective quantities, is fixed by the higher or lower degree at
which the metal it is desired to alloy, fuses. As, for instance, if it is desired to alloy
a metal which fuses at a high degree of heat with lead or zinc, a larger proportion of
fluor-spar and carbonato of lime would be required, in order to prevent the volatilization
of the lend or zinc by the extreme hunt.
Any desired quantity of metal it is desired to alloy is melted, and is then carefully
poured into the vessel containing the ore or earth and flux. The flux melts very
readily, and immediately rises to the top; the molton metal descends through it,
mingles with the oro or earth, fuses the metal contained therein, and takes it up or
combines it with itself in a uniform manner throughout. Stirring will assist the
process.
As soon as all agitation of the contents of the crucible ceases, the operation is
complete, and the metal, thus alloyed, may be drawn off into molds or bars as
desired.
In order that the practical working of our invention may be more fully understood,
we will describe in detail, a specific operation. For instance if it is desired to alloy
copper or brass with zinc or lead, or with both, we first ascertain the per centum of
metal the zinc or lead ore or earth contains, and by this determine the quantity to be
employed, we then treat it as above described, that is dry and pulverize it moderately
fine. We then prepare a flux as follows :—
"
11
20
Chloride Sodium
Charcoal
"
We reduce these ingredients to a fine powder, and intimately mix them together,
using a sufficient quantity to cover the zinu or lead ore or earth in the crucible or
furnace to a depth of four to six inches, when fairly well pressed down.
A quantity of brass or copper is then melted, such quantity being determined by
the per centum of alloy it is desired to give it, say 100 pounds of brass or copper to
10 pounds of zine or lead oro, and it is poured carefully into the furnace or crucible
containing the ore or earth and flux, when the action ensues as is described above.
It is found, by experience, that ore or earth, to the number of at least three, each
bearing a different metal, may be stirred together in the furnace or crucible, and be
treated at one and the same operation.
When it is desired to use bismuth, antiniony, cadmium or platinum, in connection
with other metals as an alloy, we recommend that they be added, in any quantity
desired, as pure metal to the compound in its molten state, and be mingled therewith
by stirring.
Having now particularly described and ascertained the nature of our said Inven-
tion and in what manner the same is to be performed, we declare that what we
claim is :-
First. The process of separating metal from the natural ore or earth containing it,
and combining it with other metal, or impregnating other metal with it, as an alloy,

page_text: at one and the same operation, and the manner of carrying such process into effect,
substantially as set forth.
Second. The use or employment as a flux of carbonate of lime, carbonate of soda,
fluor-spar, powdered charcoal, chloride of sodium, and borax, in various combinations
of all, or of any three or more of them, and in varying proportions, in the process of
extracting metal from the natural ore or earth containing it, and combining it with
other metal, as an alloy, at one and the same operation.
February 5th 1880
SAMUEL MCCOLLEY GODFREY.
JOHN BELL ALLEN.