IMPROVEMENTS IN TREATING MANGANESE ORES, OXIDES, OR SALTS, AND IN MAKING FERRO- MANGANESE
Year: 1870

page_text: LETTERS PATENT to George Thomson, of Glasgow, in the County of
Lanark, North Britain, Chemist, for the Invention of "IMPROVEMENTS
IN TREATING MANGANESE ORES, OXIDES, OR SALTS, AND IN MAKING FERRO-
MANGANESE."
"
Scaled the 20th December 1870, and dated the 25th June 1870.
PROVISIONAL SPECIFICATION left by the said George Thomson at the
Office of the Commissioners of Patents, with his Petition, on the
25th June 1870.
I, GEORGE THOMSON, of Glasgow, in the County of Lanark, North
Britain, Chemist, do hereby declare the nature of the said Invention
for "IMPROVEMENTS IN TREATING MANGANESE ORES, OXIDES, OR SALTS, AND IN
MAKING FERRO-MANGANESE," to be as follows, that is to say :-
This Invention has for its object the making of ferro-manganese in a
more convenient, satisfactory, and economical manner than heretofore,
and consists, firstly, in reducing ores, oxides, or salts of manganese into
the metallic state by heating them in a reverberatory furnace in presence
of carbonaceous matter in a bath of a fused salt such as sodium chloride

page_text: or other chloride which is volatile at the temperatures employed. The
terms ores, oxides, or salts of manganese are herein intended to include
such ores, oxides, or salts of manganese as are ordinarily met with, and
which generally contain also some iron, the metallic manganese resulting
from the process having in such cases a corresponding proportion of iron
associated with it, and being in fact ferro-manganese with the manganese
in excess.
The Invention consists, secondly, in making ferro-manganese by
mixing or fusing together metallic manganese obtained as herein-before
indicated or otherwise instead of manganese ores, oxides, or salts as
hitherto used, with cast iron, malleable iron, or steel, the metals being
covered whilst being combined with a layer of a fused salt such as
sodium chloride or other chloride. In both operations the use of the
fused chloride or other salt is to prevent the access of air to the metallic
manganese. It is preferred to add the manganese in the spongy metallic
state as obtained by the reducing process to the iron or steel, the latter
being in a fused state, but the combination may also be made by adding
the iron or steel to the manganese in the furnace in which the latter has
been reduced. It is also preferred to use cast iron of the kind known as
spiegeleisen which having already manganese combined with it is treated
by the improved process to make it richer in that metal and more
suitable for use in making steel by the Bessemer process. A valuable
ferro-manganese is also formed by fusing the spongy or reduced
manganese with any desired proportion of iron in the spongy state
obtainable by various well known processes of reduction, the metals being
in all cases covered by a layer of a fused chloride or other suitable salt
whilst being fused together.
SPECIFICATION in pursuance of the conditions of the Letters Patent,
filed by the said George Thomson in the Great Seal Patent Office
on the 23rd December 1870.
TO ALL TO WHOM THESE PRESENTS SHALL COME, I, GEORGE
THOMSON, of Glasgow, in the County of Lanark, North Britain, Chemist,
send greeting.
WHEREAS Her most Excellent Majesty Queen Victoria, by Her
Letters Patent, bearing date the Twenty-fifth day of June, in the year

page_text: of our Lord One thousand eight hundred and seventy, in the thirty-
fourth year of Her reign, did, for Herself, Her heirs and successors, give
and grant unto me, the said George Thomson, Her special licence, that
I, the said George Thomson, my executors, administrators, and assigns,
or such others as I, the said George Thomson, my executors, adminis-
trators, 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 TREATING
MANGANESE ORES, OXIDES, OR SALTS, AND IN MAKING FEIRC-MANGANESE," upon
the condition (amongst others) that I, the said George Thomson, my
executors 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 George Thomson, 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 in writing, that is to say :-
My said Invention has for its object the making of ferro-manganese
in a more convenient, satisfactory, and economical manner than hercto-
fore, and consists, firstly, in reducing ores, oxides, or salts of manganese
into the metallic state by heating them in a reverberatory or other
suitable furnace in the presence of carbonaceous matter in a bath of or
covered by a fused salt, such as sodium chloride or other chloride which
is volatile at the temperatures employed.
My said Invention consists, secondly, in making ferro-manganese by
mixing or fusing together metallic manganese obtained according to
the first part of my Invention, or otherwise, instead of manganese ores,
oxides, or salts, as hitherto used, with cast iron, malleable iron, or steel,
the metals being covered whilst being combined with a layer of a fused
salt, such as sodium chloride or other suitable chloride.
And in order that my said Invention and the manner of performing
the same may be properly understood, I now proceed to particularly
describe what I believe to be the best mode of practising it, promising

page_text: that I by no meaus restrict myself to the precise details or proportions
which I shall have occasion to mention.
The terms ores,
oxides, or salts of manganese are herein intended to
include such ores, oxides, or salts of manganese as are ordinarily met
with, and which generally contain also some iron, the metallic manganese
resulting from the process having in such cases a corresponding pro-
portion of iron associated with it, and being in fact ferro-manganese
with the manganese in excess.
In practically carrying out the first part of my Invention good
common coal may be employed as the carbonaceous matter, and thirty
parts by weight of it and thirty parts of sodium chloride are mixed
with every hundred parts of manganese ore of average richness together
with ten parts of lime for a flux. The mixture is, by preference, pul-
verised altogether, and is heated to about a white heat in a reverbatory
or other suitable furnace. A metallurgist will with a very little
experience be able to judge by the appearances presented as the
smelting proceeds whether more chloride is required or whether the
proportion of the carbonaceous matter is too much or too little. It is
an advantage of the improved process that considerably less carbonaceous
matter is required with it than with processes previously in use, and
this enables the smelting to be effected at a less temperature and more
rapidly. The use of the chloride is to prevent the access of air to the
metallic manganese, and if it appears likely to become all volatilised
before the smelting operation is completed more of it most be added in
order to maintain the protective covering layer.
In practically carrying out the second part of my Invention the
chloride is used for the same purpose as in the first process, and the
layer of it must similarly be maintained until the union of the manganese
and iron or steel is accomplished. I prefer to add the manganese in the
spongy or metallic state as obtained by the first process to the iron or
steel, the latter being in a fused state, but the combination may also
be made by adding the iron or steel to the manganese in the furnace in
which the latter has been reduced. I also prefer to use cast iron of the
kind known as spiegeleisen, which having already manganese combined
with it is treated by my improved process to make it richer in that
metal and more suitable for use in making steel by the Bessemer
process. A valuable ferro-manganese is also formed by fusing the spongy
or reduced manganese with any desired proportion of iron in the spongy

page_text: state obtainable by various well-known processes of reduction, the metals
being in all cases covered by a layer of a fused chloride or other
suitable salt whilst being fused together. The process may also be
modified by taking the iron in the form of "scale" or refuse produced
in the manufacture of malleable iron and steel, such iron being oxidised
but easily reducible on account of its freedom from silica, and being
added along with sufficient carbonaceous matter for its reduction to the
reduced and fused manganese, and the mixture covered with a layer of
a chloride, as before.
Having thus particularly described my said Invention, and the manner
in which the same is to be performed, I have to state that what I
believe to be novel and original, and claim as the Invention secured to
me by the herein-before in part recited Letters Patent is,-
1. The using of a bath or layer of a fused chloride or other suitable
salt in the operation of smelting or reducing manganese ores, oxides, or
salts, as herein-before described.
2. The combining of iron or steel and manganese to form ferro-
manganese by fusing the reduced metals under a layer of a fused
chloride or other suitable salt, as hercin-before described.
In witness whereof, I, the said George Thomson have hereunto set
my hand and seal, this Twenty-second day of December, in the
year of our Lord One thousand eight hundred and seventy.
5
Witness,
EDMUND HUNT,
Patent Agent,
Glasgow.
GEORGE THOMSON. (L.S.)