IMPROVEMENTS IN FURNACES FOR MELTING METALS AND SMELTING ORES."
Year: 1865

page_text: LETTERS PATENT to William Woodward, Robert Woodward, John
Woodward, and Adam Woodward, junior, of Queen's Foundry; New
Islington, in the City of Manchester, and County of Lancaster,
Engineers, for the Invention of "IMPROVEMENTS IN FURNACES FOR MELTING
METALS AND SMELTING ORES."
PROVISIONAL SPECIFICATION left by the said William Woodward, Robert
Woodward, John Woodward, and Adam Woodward at the Office of the
Commissioners of Patents, with their Petition, on the 24th January 1865.
We, WILLIAM WOODWARD, ROBERT WOODWARD, JOHN WOODWARD, and
ADAM WOODWARD, junior, of Queen's Foundry, New Islington, in the City
of Manchester, and County of Lancaster, Engineers, do hereby declare the
nature of the said Invention for "IMPROVEMENTS IN FURNACES FOR MELTING
METALS AND SMELTINGS ORES," to be as follows:-
Firstly, our Invention consists in supplying air to furnaces for melting
metals or smelting ores, by applying one or more jets of steam in the flue,
funnel, or chimney leading from the furnace, so as to create a partial vacuum
above the fire or fuel in a state of combustion, the required air to support the
combustion entering at proper orifices arranged at the lower part of the furnace.
Secondly, our Invention consists in the construction of furnaces for melting
metals or smelting ores according to the first part of our Invention, so that the
waste heat of such furnaces is applied to generate steam to create the partial
vacuum above the fire by making the sides of the furnaces or the flues or
chimneys of such furnaces wholly or partially of a hollow vessel, or of hollow
[Price 8d1

page_text: vessels to contain water, these vessels forming steam boilers; or a hollow
vessel or vessels to contain water may be arranged in the flue or chimney of
the furnace so as to be acted upon by the waste heat. By these improvements
the furnaces, boilers, and engines, and fans commonly used for supplying air
to furnaces for melting metals and smelting ores are dispensed with.
SPECIFICATION in pursuance of the conditions of the Letters Patent, filed by
the said William Woodward, Robert Woodward, John Woodward, and
Adam Woodward in the Great Seal Patent Office on the 22nd July 1865.
TO ALL TO WHOM THESE PRESENTS SHALL COME, we, WILLIAM
WOODWARD, ROBERT WOODWARD, JOHN WOODWARD, and ADAM WOODWARD,
junior, of Queen's Foundry, New Islington, in the City of Manchester, and
County of Lancaster, Engineers, send greeting.
WHEREAS Her most Excellent Majesty Queen Victoria, by Her Letters
Patent, bearing date the Twenty-fourth day of January, in the year of our
Lord One thousand eight hundred and sixty-five, in the twenty-eighth year of
Her reign, did, for Herself, Her heirs and successors, give and grant unto us,
the said William Woodward, Robert Woodward, John Woodward, and Adam
Woodward, junior, Her special license that we, the said William Woodward,
Robert Woodward, John Woodward, and Adam Woodward, junior, our
executors, administrators, and assigns, or such others as we, the said William
Woodward, Robert Woodward, John Woodward, and Adam Woodward,
junior, our 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
FURNACES FOR MELTING METALS AND SMELTING ORES," upon the condition
(amongst others) that we, the said William Woodward, Robert Woodward,
John Woodward, and Adam Woodward, junior, by an instrument in writing
under our hands and seals, should particularly describe and ascertain the
nature of the said Invention, and in what manner the same was to be per-
formed, 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 we, the said William Woodward, Robert Wood-
ward, John Woodward, and Adam Woodward, junior, do hereby declare the

page_text: 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
and accompanying Drawings, that is to say :-
Our Invention consists, firstly, in arranging and combining furnaces for
melting metals and smelting ores, so that air may be supplied thereto by
applying and using in furnaces so arranged and combined one or more jets
of steam in the flue, funnel, chimney, or chimneys leading from the furnace,
thereby creating a partial vacuum above the fire or fuel in a state of com-
bustion, the required air to support the combustion entering at proper orifices
arranged at the lower part of the furnace.
Our Invention consists, secondly, in the construction of furnaces for
melting metals and smelting ores according to the first part of our Invention
by arranging and combining therewith steam boilers, and applying the waste
heat of the furnace to generate steam for creating the partial vacuum above:
the fire, the sides of the furnaces or the flues or chimneys of such being.
formed wholly or partially of a hollow vessel or hollow vessels to contain
water, these vessels forming steam boilers; ora hollow vessel or hollow vessels
to contain water may be arranged in the flue, chimney, or chimneys of the
furnace so to be acted upon by the waste heat passing therefrom. By these
improvements the furnaces, boilers, steam engines, blowing cylinders, and
centrifugal fans commonly used for supplying air to furnaces for melting metal
or smelting ores are dispensed with.
We will now more particularly describe the nature of our Invention, and
the modes of carrying the same into effect, by the assistance of the accom-
panying three Sheets of Drawings.
The Figures upon Sheet 1 illustrate our improvements as applied to cupola
furnaces for melting metals.
Fig. 1 is a vertical section; Fig. 2, an outside elevation; Fig. 3, a plan
section at A, B, Fig. 1; and Fig. 4, a plan section at C, D, Fig. 2, of our
improved cupola furnace, where the steam for supplying the jet is obtained
from an independent boiler (or from any other source) according to the first
part of our Invention.
a, the base of the cupola; b, its exterior, formed of metal lined with fire-
brick in the usual mauner; c, a series of orifices formed all round the lower
part of the furnace (as shewn best in Fig. 4) for the admission of air. Wedge
or conical plugs may be placed in these orifices, so that by pushing them
inwards or drawing them outwards the spaces left in these orifices for air
may be diminished or increased at pleasure. Above the orifices (c) another
series of orifices (d) for the admission of air may be made, as shewn best in

page_text: Fig. 3. e is the usual door for cleaning out the bottom of the furnace, and
fis the spout for conveying molten metal from the furnace. The upper
part of the furnace is contracted to a diameter most suitable for obtaining the
best effect from the steam jet, and the chimney (g) begins at this point and
extends upward to any required height. The nozzle (h) for the steam jet is
placed upon the end of a pipe (h) passing through the side of the lower part
of the chimney (g), as shewn, which pipe is provided with a tap (2) to
regulate and turn on or off the supply of steam. The orifice of the nozzle (h)
for the steam jet is placed at about the bottom of the chimney(9), as shewn,
the jet being discharged up the chimney. When the furnace is at work it is
kept air-tight, or as nearly so as possible, above the orifices for admission of
air, so that no air can enter except at those orifices, and for this purpose the
opening at the upper part of the furnace for supplying the fuel and metal to
be melted is provided with a close-fitting door (k), and that the fuel and
metal may be passed into the furnace quickly a hopper (¹) is used, as shewn.
The door in the opening forms the bottom of the hopper, this door (k) opening
into the furnace, and turning on a shaft having a lever (2) fiexd upon it at
one end; this lever is weighted so that when left free it will shut the door
and when shut a latch (3) jointed upon the side of the hopper (1) catches
upon the lever (2), which will prevent the door (k) from opening till the
latch is lifted by the handle attached to it. Each charge of fuel and metal
to be fed to the furnace is placed in the hopper, and then when the latch is
released the weight of the material resting against the door (k) will overcome
the balance weight and force the door open, and when the charge has entered
the furnace the weight will shut and latch the door again, so that the draught
is but slightly interrupted. The line (1) represents the level of the platform
used for charging the furnace, and (11), Fig. 1, is intended to represent the
side wall of a foundry.
Fig. is a vertical section, and Fig. 6, an outside view of a combined
boiler and cupola furnace for melting metals according to the second part of
our Invention. We need not again describe those parts shewn in these views,
which are similar to those in Figs. 1 to 4, as they will be understood by
inspection, and by the letters of reference marked thereon. It will be seen
that the upper part of the furnace is surrounded by a casing, so as to form a
steam boiler (m), as shewn. It is provided with a double safety valve (n),
and with steam and water guages. The boiler is fed with water through the
pipe P provided with stop-cocks (p¹), the water being forced into the boiler
by a pump, or by means of a Giffard's injector. The steam for supplying the
jet is taken from the upper part of the boiler by a pipe (h) (provided with a

page_text: stop-cock), which passes (steam-tight) through the sides of the boiler. The
boiler may be formed by a series of tubes to contain water, the exterior being
acted upon by the heat of the furnace, or the boiler may be formed of a series
of tubes surrounded by water, the heat passing through the interior of the
tubes. It will be seen that when a Giffard's injector is attached to the
combined boiler aud cupola it is portable and complete in itself, and can be
readily set to work when supplied with water, as an engine and fan are not
required. Instead of one outlet or chimney from each cupola furnace two or
more may be used, each having a separate jet or jets of steam. The steam
jet for cupola furnaces may be wholly or partially supplied by exhaust steam
from a steam engine or engines.
The Figures on Sheet 2 and 3 illustrate the manner of applying our improve-
ments to furnaces for smelting iron and other ores. Fig. 7 is a vertical section
of a smelting furnace and boiler house attached, Figure S is a plan section of
the furnace at A, B, Fig. 7, and a plan of the boilers and boiler house; Fig. 9
is an outside elevation of the furnace, and Fig. 10 a plan view of the same,
these views shewing a smelting furnace where the steam for the jet or jets to
form the partial vacuum is obtained from independent boilers, according to
the first part of our Invention. The furnace is constructed somewhat similar
to the ordinary smelting furnace. The upper part of the furnace is contracted
to the size of the required chimney (g) which is formed of metal lined
internally with fire brick; represents the boilers for generating the steam
to supply the jet; is the pipe conveying the steam from the boiler
to the jet nozzle (h) in the chimney (g); h³ is a valve for regulating the
supply of steam to the nozzle. The charges of fuel and material are fed to
the furnace through the holes () (see Figs. 7 and 1), each of which is
closed by a door. Air is admitted to the lower part of the furnace through
several openings (c) (see Figs. 7 and 8), and may be also admitted at a series
of holes (d) above the opening (c) if desired. If the air supplied is to be
heated before entering the furnace, this is done by any ordinary heating
apparatus into and through which the air passes directly from the atmosphere,
then along a pipe, passage, or flue (t) which encircles the base of the furnace,
and from this enters the orifices (c). The orifices (d) are supplied with air
from a hollow belt or chamber (¹) round the furnace which receives the air
from the flue (t) at the base of the furnace through the hollow columns (62)
(supporting the furnace), which form the means of communication between
the two; f is the orifice for the escape of the metal from the furnace. Figs.
11, 12, 13, aud 14 are views corresponding respectively to Figs. 7, 8, 9 and
10, but showing a combined smelting furnace and steam boiler, according to

page_text: the second part of our Invention. It will be seen by inspecting the Drawings
that the lower part of this furnace is similar to that shewn by Figs. 7, 8, 9
and 10, except that there are only one set of orifices (e) for the admission of
air to the furnace, and that a larger annular chamber for hot air is formed round
the base of the furnace, which is supplied by pipes as shown. 2 are air-tight
doors, so that the lower part of the furnace may be got at when required, t³
being dampers for shutting off the hot air from this compartment when the
doors (12) are opened. The upper part of the furnace is formed into a boiler m,
as will be understood by inspecting the Drawings. The chimney (9) passes
through the centre of the boiler (m), and is cased with fire-brick after
passing through the water space of the boiler. The boiler (m) is provided
with suitable safety valves, steam and water guages; ¹ is the pipe for con-
veying steam from the boiler to the nozzle (h) and are hoppers through
which the furnace is supplied with material, which hoppers are provided
with doors (c), each closed by a balance weight.
Figs. 15, 16, 17, and 18, are views corresponding respectively to Figs. 11,
12, 13, and 14, of another combined boiler and smelting furnace according to
the second part of our Invention. This furnace is similar to those previously
described, except that the boiler is not all in one, but is formed of a series of
boilers (m), which are duplicates of each other, arranged together so that one
or more may be lifted out of its place without disturbing the other boilers,
and while the furnace is in operation. There is a steam pipe (³) encircling
all the boilers, with which each boiler communicates by a pipe h, there
being a suitable stop valve in each pipe. There is also a common pipe (p)
for feed water, with which each boiler is connected, the branch to each boiler
having a stop-cock. A Giffard's injector may be used for each boiler, and
each boiler may have a separate safety valve. In changing a boiler it is only
necessary to disconnect the steam and water of the boiler to be removed and
then connect these when the duplicate boiler has been placed in position.
The boilers may be lifted by a crane in connection with a jib arranged to
turn round the chimney as a central pillar. The nozzle (h) is supplied with
steam from the pipe ³ encircling the boilers, as shewn.
Figs. 19, 20, and 22, are views corresponding respectively to Figs. 15, 16,
17, and 18, of another combined boiler and smelting furnace according to
the second part of our Invention, and this furnace is similar to that last
described, except that the furnace is oval in form, which admits of a larger
number of duplicate boilers, but there are three separate chimneys, cach
having a steam jet supplied from the common pipe (3) encircling the boilers.
We have now particularly described the nature of our Invention, and the

page_text: manner in which the same may be carried into effect, and claim as our
Invention,-
Firstly, the application of one or more jets of steam in cupola furnaces for
melting metals, and in furnaces for smelting ores, to produce a partial vacuum
so as to draw the air to be supplied to the furnace from the atmosphere
through the fuel in a state of combustion, as herein-before described.
Secondly, the application of one or more jets of steam in cupola furnaces,
combined and arranged substantially as herein.before described and shown
by Figs. 1 to 4 of the Drawings.
Thirdly, the application, in cupola furnaces for melting metals, and in
furnaces for smelting ores, of the waste heat of such furnaces for generating
the steam used to produce the partial vacuum for drawing air through the
fuel in the furnaces in a state of combustion, as herein-before described.
Fourthly, the combination and arrangement of a cupola furnace and steam
boiler, substantially as herein-before described and shown by Figs. 5 and 6
of the Drawings.
Fifthly, the application of one or more jets of steam to smelting furnaces
constructed, combined, and arranged so that either hot or cold air may be
drawn into the furnace, and through the fuel in a state of combustion, sub-
stantially as herein-before described and shewn by Figs. 7, 8, 9, and 10 of
the Drawings.
Sixthly, the combination and arrangement of a smelting furnace and steam
boiler or boilers when the steam generated is used for the production of the
draft to supply hot or cold air for the combustion of the fuel in the furnace,
substantially as herein-before described and shown by Figs. 11 to 22 (both
inclusive) of the Drawings.
In witness whereof, we, the said William Woodward, Robert Woodward,
John Woodward, and Adam Woodward, junior, have hereunto set our
hands and seals, this Twenty-first day of July, in the year of our Lord
One thousand eight hundred and sixty-five.
WILLIAM WOODWARD