IMPROVE- MENTS IN PREPARING AND COMBINING IRON AND STEEL IN FORMS TO RESIST GREAT PRESSURE OR SHOCK, AND IN CONSTRUCTIONS FOR WHICH SUCH RE- SISTING POWER IS REQUIRED
Year: 1877

page_text: LETTERS PATENT to Charles William Siemens, of No. 12, Queen Anne's Gate,
Westminster, in the County of Middlesex, for the Invention of "IMPROVE-
MENTS IN PREPARING AND COMBINING IRON AND STEEL IN FORMS TO RESIST
GREAT PRESSURE OR SHOCK, AND IN CONSTRUCTIONS FOR WHICH SUCH RE-
SISTING POWER IS REQUIRED."
Sealed the 6th October 1877, and dated the 20th April 1877.
PROVISIONAL SPECIFICATION left by the said Charles William Siemens at
the Office of the Commissioners of Patents on the 20th April 1877.
CHARLES WILLIAM SIEMENS, of No. 12, Queen Anne's Gate, Westminster, in the
County of Middlesex. "IMPROVEMENTS IN PREPARING AND COMBINING IRON AND
STEEL IN FORMS TO RESIST GREAT PRESSURE OR SHOCK, AND IN CONSTRUCTIONS
FOR WHICH SUCH RESISTING POWER IS REQUIRED."
My Invention relates to methods of preparing iron and steel in forms suitable for
the construction of vessels or receptacles intended to resist great pressure, of coin-
bining the parts so prepared, of combining together iron and steel, or different
qualities of steel, so as to give both tenacity and hardness to objects exposed to
violent shocks, and of constructing such objects.
In constructing vessels intended to resist great internal pressure, such as
hydraulic cylinders or accumulators, receptacles for highly compressed air, shells of
locomotive or other high-pressure boilers, the metal employed should be put into
such a form as to combine strength and toughness to the utmost degree, and jointing
by screws, rivets, or welds should be avoided. For this purpose I cast or forge
masses of mild steel or of iron in the form of rings, which are subjected to circular
rolling, as in the manufacture of wheel tyres. Rings of metal are thus produced
with a low projecting flange at each end, which is faced in the lathe, and has one or
more V grooves turned into its face. Each flange is also turned on the back, slightly
tapering so as to be thinnest at the outer edge.
The rings so prepared are put face to face, with caoutchouc or other soft packing
material or cement between them, or with rings of copper or other comparatively

page_text: soft metal laid into the V grooves. The faces are then pressed together by means
of a ring of steel or iron, with an internal groove turned or rolled therein so as to
fit over the projecting flanges. This ring is put on in halves and closed by means
of screw bolts or otherwise, and thus the two flanges are drawn tightly together
and are held permanently in that position. Any number of rings may be thus
joined together so as to form a continuous cylinder, the ends of which may be
closed by strong flat or dished end plates, joined to the cylindrical portion by clip
rings, as above described. The rings may be rolled conical so as to produce a vessel
of tapering form, and the flanges may project inwards and be clipped by internal
rings divided into two or more parts forced outwards by wedges or screws.
This construction is applicable in cases where a smooth outer surface and tapering
form are required, as for the air vessels of fish torpedoes.
In constructing hydraulic accumulators in this manner the end ring is rolled into
such a form as to admit of the introduction of a cup leather or other packing. The
plunger may be constructed as above described, of rings of internal flanges and
turned on the outside to give a smooth working surface.
In constructing hollow cylindrical vessels intended to resist blows, such, for
example, as cylinders for the protection of riflemen in the field or for protecting
cannon, I prepare rings composed of two descriptions of metal, the one being
possessed of great toughness, and the other of hardness. For this purpose I cast or
forge a ring of mild metal, which may be steel or iron, and placing the same in a
circular mould while in a heated condition, I pour into the mould cast steel con-
taining considerable per-centage of carbon, say, from one-half to one per cent.,
according to the degree of hardness required. While the cast metal is setting and
contracting, the inner ring is cooled by currents of air or sprays of water directed
against its inner surface so as to allow the outer metal to shrink without cracking,
or for the same purpose the inner ring may be divided longitudinally. The two
metals are thus intimately united or welded together, forming a composite ring
which can be rolled out to the requisite thickness and diameter, with internal or
external flanges or grooves for connecting several such rings together as already
described. In producing in this manner thick rings for the construction of turrets
for the protection of cannon the rolling may be dispensed with.
For armour plates I adopt the same method of combining metals of different
tempers by pouring the harder metal in the fluid condition upon the metal of milder
temper.
Plates may be made to consist of several alternate layers of these different metals
by placing in the mould into which the harder metal is poured several parallel
plates of the more ductile metal. By directing a gas flame into the mould, these
plates may be heated sufficiently to prevent cracking of the harder metal in setting,
but the risk is also greatly diminished by dividing the plates by cross cuts or deep
incisions. Ingots or slabs are thus produced, which when hammered or rolled will
be found to resist the penetrative action of projectiles in a remarkable degree.
Their resisting power may be increased by hardening the surface of the finished
plate by subjecting it while red hot to the action of a spray of water.
For producing shells or hollow shot of composite metal, I prepare a hollow core
of iron or soft steel, and placing it in a heated condition in the mould, I pour over
it the harder metal, taking care to cool the interior of the core while the outer
metal is setting and contracting. The composite projectile thus produced is after-
wards heated and forced by hammering or pressure into a metal die, so as to
condense the material of its head and outer surface, which may be hardened by
sudden cooling.

page_text: SPECIFICATION in pursuance of the conditions of the Letters Patent filed
by the said Charles William Siemens in the Great Seal Patent Office on the
20th October 1877.
CHARLES WILLIAM SIEMENS, of No. 12, Queen Anne's Gate, Westminster, in the
County of Middlesex. "IMPROVEMENTS IN PREPARING AND COMBINING IRON AND
STEEL IN FORMS TO RESIST GREAT PRESSURE OR SHOCK, AND IN CONSTRUCTIONS
FOR WHICH SUCH RESISTING POWER IS REQUIRED."
My Invention relates to methods of preparing iron and steel in forms suitable for
the construction of vessels or receptacles intended to resist great pressure, and of
combining the parts so prepared.
In constructing vessels intended to resist great internal pressure, such as hydraulic
cylinders or accumulators, receptacles for highly compressed air, shells of locomotive
or other high-pressure boilers, the metal employed should be put into such a form
as to combine strength and toughness to the utmost degree, and jointing by screws,
rivets, or welds should be avoided. For this purpose I cast or forge masses of mild
steel or of iron in the form of rings, which are subjected to circular rolling, as in the
manufacture of wheel tyres. Rings of metal are thus produced with a low pro-
jecting flange at each end, which is faced in the lathe, and has one or more ✓ grooves
turned into the face. Each flange is also turned on the back, slightly tapering so as
to be thinnest at the outer edge.
The rings so prepared may be put face to face, with caoutchouc or other soft pack-
ing material or cement between them, or with rings of copper or other comparatively
soft metal laid into the V grooves. The faces are then pressed together, and a ring
of steel or iron with an internal groove turned or rolled therein is fitted over the
projecting flanges. This ring is put on in halves, and closed by means of screw
bolts or otherwise, and thus the two flanges are drawn tightly together, and aro
held permanently in that position. Any number of rings may be thus joined
together so as to form a continuous cylinder, the ends of which may be closed by
strong flat or dished end plates, joined to the cylindrical portion by clip rings, as
above described. The rings may be rolled conical so as to produce a vessel of
tapering form, and the flanges may project inwards and be clipped by internal rings
divided into two or more parts, forced outwards by wedges or screws.
This construction is applicable in cases where a smooth outer surface and tapering
form are required, as for the air vessels of fish torpedoes.
In constructing hydraulic accumulators in this manner, the end ring is rolled
into such a form as to admit of the introduction of a cup leather or other packing.
The plunger may be constructed as above described of rings with internal flanges
and turned on the outside to give a smooth working surface.
In constructing hollow cylindrical vessels intended to resist blows, such, for
example, as cylinders for the protection of riflemen in the field, or for protecting
cannon, I prepare rings preferably composed of two descriptions of metal, the one
being possessed of great toughness, and the other of bardness. For this purpose I
cast or forge a ring of mild metal, which may be steel or iron, and placing the same
in a circular mould while in a heated condition, I pour into the mould cast steel
containing a considerable per-centage of carbon, say, from one-half to one per cent.,
according to the degree of hardness required. While the cast metal is setting and
contracting, the inner ring is cooled by currents of air or sprays of water directed
against its inner surface so as to allow the outer metal to shrink without cracking,
or for the same purpose the inner ring may be divided longitudinally. The two
metals are thus intimately united or welded together, forming a composite ring
which can be rolled out to the requisite thickness and diameter, with internal or
external flanges or grooves for connecting several such rings together, as already
described. In producing in this manner thick rings for the construction of turrets
for the protection of cannon, the rolling may be dispensed with.

page_text: DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS.
Fig. 1 represents in elevation, and Fig. 2 in plan, apparatus for compressing air,
which I will describe as an example of a case in which reservoirs subjected to great
internal pressure are constructed according to my Invention. In this apparatus the
air is forced by the air pump a alternately into the vessels o and c¹, through the
pipes which are fitted with suitable valves. When the vessel c has been filled
with compressed air, the hydraulic pump b is made to compress this air still further
by forcing water through the pipe k and the valve h into the vessel c. The highly
compressed air escapes to the collecting vessel e through the pipe l, which is fitted
with a valve to prevent the back flow of the air. The collecting vessel e communi-
cates by the pipe m with the accumulator f, which regulates the maximum pressure
maintained in e in the usual manner. When all the air has been forced out of the
vessel c into the collecting vessel e, the valves h are reversed, and the water is
sucked out of c and pumped into c¹, thereby compressing the air, which had been
pumped into c¹ by the air pump, while the air in c was further compressed by the
hydraulic pump. From the collecting vessel e the air passes through the pipe n to
the vessel g, where all moisture taken up in c or e is deposited, and the pipe o
delivers the dry compressed air ready for use. To take up the heat set free by the
compression of the air, the vessels c and c¹ are placed under water in the tank d.
Figs. 3 and 4 represent to an enlarged scale the longitudinal and transverse
sections of a vessel, such as one of those shewn in Figs. 1 and 2, or other vessels
intended to sustain great internal pressure. The cylindrical pieces a, rolled with a
flange at each end, and the end pieces b are fastened together by the clip rings c,
which are put on in halves and tightened by the screws e. The joints are made
tight in the manner shewn in Figs. 5 and 6, or in that shewn in Fig. 7, which
represent part sections to an enlarged scale through a joint. According to the
method shewn by Figs. 5 and 6 the flanges, which are turned slightly inclined on
their backs, have V grooves turned in their faces. A ring d of copper or other
comparatively soft metal is inserted into the grooves and tightly closes all passage
between the flanges when they are forced towards each other by the tightening of
the clip ring c. According to the method shown in Fig. 7, the flanges are turned
true on the face, and also turned slightly inclined on the back, and a portion of the
interior surface of each ring is also turned so as to form a shallow recess, in which
is placed a ring e¹ of leather or other soft material, which is pressed outwardly by a
steel spring ring f
Fig. 8 represents a longitudinal section of a locomotive boiler, the barrel of which
is constructed in the manner above described.
Fig. represents a half vertical section of part of an armour-plated turret ;
Fig. 10, a half sectional plan of the same, Figs. 11 and 12, shewing to an enlarged
scale in vertical section and sectional plan the manner of jointing the rings
together. For this purpose the rings are grooved on the inside, and a ring f grooved
to fit them is put on in pieces, which are tightened in their places by driving in
wedge pieces g, which are secured by burring over the adjacent parts of the ring f
Fig. 13 represents a sectional plan; and Fig. 14, a part longitudinal section to an
enlarged scale of a vessel consisting of cylindrical parts, jointed together by
internal rings h, which are put on the internal flanges in pieces, forced into position
by wedges k, which themselves are pressed into their seats by set screws / passing
through an interior ring m. The joints may in this case be made tight by a ring n
of leather or other yielding material squeezed against the edges of the flanges.
Fig. 15 represents a vertical section of a hydraulic cylinder or accumulator and
its plunger (shewn partly in elevation) constructed as above described. The
cylinder has its joints secured by external rings, and the plunger is jointed
internally. The upper ring of the cylinder is recessed at o for reception of the
backing

page_text: Having thus described the nature of my Invention and in what manner the
same is to be performed, I claim the method, substantially as herein described, of
constructing vessels intended to resist great pressure or shocks, by making the parts
in the form of seamless cylinders or portions of cones in malleable material with
tapering flanges, and uniting these parts by grooved clamping rings, forced or fitted
on the flanges.
In witness whereof, I, the said Charles William Siemens, have bereunto set my
hand and seal, this Nineteenth day of October, in the year of our Lord One
thousand eight hundred and seventy-seven.
Witness,
JNO. A. HEAD,
12, Queen Anne's Gate,
Westminster,
S.W.
C. WILLIAM SIEMENS. (LS.)