IMPROVE- MENTS IN THE MANUFACTURE OF IRON AND STEEL
Year: 1869

page_text: LETTERS PATENT to Jacob Geoghegan Willans, of No. 9, St. Stephen's
Crescent, in the Parish of Paddington, for the Invention of "IMPROVE-
MENTS IN THE MANUFACTURE OF IRON AND STEEL."
Sealed the 7th January 1870, and dated the 18th September 1869.
PROVISIONAL SPECIFICATION left by the said Jacob Geoghegan
Willans at the Office of the Commissioners of Patents, with his
Petition, on the 18th September 1869.
I, JACOB GEOGHEGAN WILLANS, of No. 9, St. Stephen's Crescent,
in the Parish of Paddington, do hereby declare the nature of the said
Invention for "IMPROVEMENTS IN THE MANUFACTURE OF IRON AND STEEL," to
be as follows:-
In the Specification of my Patent, dated the 8th day of March 1866,
No: 702, I describe a process of puddling wherein a mixture of cast iron
and oxide, both in a divided state, are first heated without fusing the
oxide preparatory to their removal for further treatment, and in the
Specification of my Patent, dated 3rd day of February 1869, No. 326,
I.describe a process wherein the granules of cast iron are mixed with

page_text: oxide, and afterwards placed in the furnace in which the puddling was
completed. In both cases the oxide was added in a crushed state. I
have since discovered that to obtain a mixture of granules of cast iron
and oxide for subsequent treatment in other places the oxide or oxide
cinder may first be brought to a molten state and the granules of cast
iron may be intermixed therewith in moulds or other convenient
manner, or the two may be intermixed in the cold state and the oxide or
oxide cinder fused before their removal, or the two materials may be run
together in a molten state (or one of them only molten, the other being
in a divided state) upon a centrifugal machine, such as used for granu-
lating cast iron, by which both will become intermixed and thrown off
together; or one of the materials may be granulated and the other
material brought into contact with the granules before their descent, so
that the latter material may coat the granules and separate them the one
from the other. Water may be used if desired for cooling the mixture.
The metal and oxide may be proportioned to about two to three parts by
weight of the former to one of the latter, but I do not confine myself to
these proportions.
My Invention further relates to the bottoming, lining, or fettling
puddling, steel melting, or cupola furnaces or vessels in which cast iron
or steel along with fused oxide or alkaline substances are together at a
high heat.
My improvement is to have granulated (or divided) cast iron and
oxide, such as iron ore in its natural state or fused, or oxide cinder,
such as tap cinder, intimately intermixed, and that the oxide be about
sufficient to decarburet the cast iron and thus to render it of a more or
less infusible malleable nature; but I do not confine myself to thise
proportion. Instead of adding oxide or oxide cinder the metal granules
may be rusted to a sufficient extent. I prefer to have the granules and
oxide in a fine state of division. I apply the mixture to those parts of
the furnaces or vessels above mentioned that need fettling or repair.
I sometimes apply this fettling over a fettling of silicious substances. It
will be found less acted upon by iron oxide or alkaline substances, and
when necessary may be renewed in like manner as crushed gannister or
ordinary fettling is applied.

page_text: SPECIFICATION in pursuance of the conditions of the Letters Patent,
filed by the said Jacob Geoghegan Willans in the Great Seal Patent
Office on the 18th March 1870.
TO ALL TO WHOM THESE PRESENTS SHALL COME, I, JACOB
GEOGHEGAN WILLANS, of No. 9, Saint Stephen's Crescent, in the Parish
of Paddington, send greeting.
WHEREAS Her most Excellent Majesty Queen Victoria, by Her
Letters Patent, bearing date the Eighteenth day of September, in the
year of our Lord One thousand eight hundred and sixty-nine, in the
thirty-third year of Her reign, did for Herself, Her heirs and successors,
give and grant unto me, the said Jacob Geoghegan Willans, Her special
licence that I, the said Jacob Geoghegan Willans, my executors, admi-
nistrators, and assigns, or such others as I, the said Jacob Geoghegan
Willans, 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 AND STEEL," upon the con-
dition (amongst others) that I, the said Jacob Geoghegan Willans, my
exccutors 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 Jacob Geoghegan Willans, do
hereby declare the nature of the said Invention, and in what manner
the same is to be performed, to be particularly described and ascertained
in and by the following statement thereof, that is to say :-
In the Specification of a Patent granted to me for "Improvements in
Puddling Iron and in Apparatus employed therein," and dated the 8th
March 1866, No. 702, I describe a process of puddling wherein a mixture
of cast iron and oxide, both in a divided state, are first heated without
fusing the oxide preparatory to their removal for further treatment, and
in the Specification of a Patent granted to me for "Improvements in the
Manufacture of Iron and Steel," dated the 3rd February 1869, No. 320,

page_text: I describe a process wherein granules of cast iron are mixed with oxide,
and afterwards placed in a furnace in which the puddling was com-
pleted. In both cases the oxide in a crushed state was intermixed with
the granules. I am aware also that cast iron has been whilst in a molten
state intermixed with oxide, and that the mixture has subsequently been
puddled.
My present Invention relates to obtaining a mixture of granules of
cast iron and oxide in a more perfect manner than heretofore for sub-
sequent treatment in other places. For this purpose the oxide or oxide
cinder is brought to a molten state and the granulated cast iron added
thereto in a reverberatory furnace, and the oxide and granules are then
removed from the furnace, and if desired they may be placed in moulds
to form blocks of a convenient size for use in the furnace in which the
mixture is to be rendered malleable; or the granules may be placed
in moulds and the melted oxide or oxide cinder run into the moulds.
amongst the granules so as to produce blocks convenient for removal;
or the two materials (cast-iron granules and oxide or oxide cinder) may
be placed together in the cold state in any convenient vessel or furnace,
and the cinder melted through the granules and the mixture removed
and moulded or otherwise treated, as may be convenient, to prepare it
for use in the furnace in which the mixture is to be rendered malleable;
or the two materials may be run in a molten state (or one of them only
molten, the other in a finely divided state) in a combined stream or
in separate streams at the same time upon a centrifugal granulating
machine (such as described in my Patent herein-before referred to, and
dated the 8th day of March 1866, No. 702), by which both will be thrown
off in an intermixed state; or one of the materials may be run in a fluid
state on the granulator, and the other in a divided state be brought into
contact with such material by being made to fall on and impinge on the
granules during their descent, so that the materials may be intermixed
and the granules thus kept more or less from contact with each other.
In any of these methods water may be applied to cool the mixture.
In the carrying out any of these processes the metal and oxide may
be proportioned to two or three parts by weight of the former to one of
the latter; but I do not confine myself to this proportion. I prefer to
make the mixture by running both the metal and the oxide in a molten
and combined stream upon the granulating machine, and to apply jets of
water at the same time for cooling the mixture.

page_text: I claim the forming a mixture of granulated iron and oxide or oxide
cinder, and the removal of such mixture from the place where the
mixture is made into a puddling furnace, and there puddling the
mixture.
My Invention further relates to the bottoming, fettling, and lining
puddling, steel melting, or cupola furnaces or vessels in which cast iron
or steel along with fused oxide or alkaline substances are together at a
high heat.
My improvement is to use granules from cast iron or cast iron which
has been otherwise subdivided whilst in a heated state, with which oxide of
iron (either in its natural state or in the fused state or cinder) is mixed, the
oxide being in sufficient quantity to decarburet the metal and to combine
with the carthy part of the oxide, ore, or cinder. Instead of applying
oxide to the granules or particles they may be rusted to a sufficient
extent. I prefer to use granules, and that the granules be of small size,
say under one-eighth of an inch diameter, and contain little carbon (say
2 per cent. or less), or that the granules be more or less decarburetted
before their application. The mixture may be made outside the furnace
or in the furnace or vessel by first applying the granules and afterwards
the oxide in such manner as to get it intermixed. I bottom puddling
furnaces with the mixture and afterwards melt down scrap iron thereon,
as now commonly practised in bottoming puddling furnaces, or part of
the mixture may be burned down into a rich cinder (instead of using
any scrap iron). I also fettle with the mixture, which when some time
heated (say half an hour or more) should be compressed together by any
suitable tool so as to diminish the porosity occasioned by the escape of
gaseous matter. Cupolas or vessels in which cast iron or steel is in
contact with oxide or alkali at a high heat may also be bottomed, lined,
or fettled therewith; and if the bottoms or sides of the furnace or vessel
be constructed of silicious matter a covering of the mixture of granules
and oxide or oxide cinder will protect the silicious matter from being so
much acted upon by the oxide or alkali applied to the cast iron or steel
under treatment. The term granules in this Specification signifies the
particles formed from cast iron by running it when melted into water or
upon the surface of a centrifugal granulating disc.
I claim the bottoming, lining, or fettling furnaces or vessels in which
cast iron or steel is melted or treated at a high red or white heat in con-
tact with oxide or alkali with a mixture of oxide or cinder and granules.

page_text: from cast iron, or particles from cast iron otherwise subdivided whilst in
a heated state.
In witness whereof, I, the said Jacob Geoghegan Willans, have
hereunto set my hand and seal, this Eighteenth day of March
One thousand eight hundred and seventy.
J. G. WILLANS. (L.S.)