Improvements in or connected with the Casting of Ingots.
Year: 1891

page_text: Date of Application, 6th Aug., 1891
Complete Specification Left, 26th May, 1892-Accepted, 9th July, 1892
PROVISIONAL SPECIFICATION.
Improvements in or connected with the Casting of Ingots.
I, WILLIAM RUSSELL HINSDALE, of No. 800 Broad Street, in the City of
Newark, in the County of Essex, and State of New Jersey, United States of
America, Engineer, do hereby declare the nature of this invention to be as
follows:-
In casting metal ingots cracks often occur in the lower ends, during the cooling
and consequent shrinkage of the same from the molten state. The opposed surfaces
of the metal in such cracks immediately become oxidized when exposed to the air
which prevents their welding together in the subsequent treatinent of the ingot by
rolling or other means.
At the upper end of such ingots a pipe occurs, which has been fully described in
my British Patents No. 251 and 5242 of 1891, in which are also described processes
for obviating this difficulty by the partial or entire reversal of the ingot while in a
fluid condition, requiring means to prevent the metal from flowing out of the top of
the ingot.
My present invention relates to means for protecting the ends of the ingots from
such injuries and is designed especially for use in practicing the method of
forming ingots described in the above named Patents.
The invention consists partly, in a thin metal shield placed in the mold and
preferably adapted, when the fluid metal is poured thereon, to attain sufficient heat
for welding with the fluid metal, thereby becoming an integral portion of the
ingot; and partly, in a self-anchoring cap or cover for application to the top of the
fluid metal immediately after pouring, thereby permitting the ingot to be wholly or
partially reversed and retaining the inolten metal in its interior.
Heretofore, in casting with inolds of the ordinary construction, the teeming of
the metal upon the bottom of the same has caused pits or cavities therein, whichi,
after repeated use, render the bottom jagged and irregular.
With a mold thus worn by several teemings, the bottom of an ingot cast therein
conforms to the irregularities of the mold, and obviously becomes anchored therein
at certain points.
As the mold becomes more and more heated and expanded and the superposed
metal is correspondingly cooled and contracted by its contact therewith, the
portions of the ingot anchored to the mold, as described,, are torn apart, thus
producing the crack above referred to.
To obviate this injury to the ingot, I first drop into the mold a thin metal plate
or shield.
Upon pouring the fluid upon this shield, it usually absorbs sufficient heat from
the fluid metal to be welded thereto and incorporated therewith; and it is by this
means heated to such degree as to yield readily during the contraction of the
superposed metal, thereby avoiding any tendency to rupture the metal to which it
is welded.
To prevent the discharge of the fluid interior of the ingot in partially or wholly
inverting the same, as described in my said Patents, the mold has heretofore been
provided with means for confining the same; but by my present improvement I am
enabled to apply a self-anchoring stopper directly to the top of the fluid metal.
This stopper consists in a metal plate dropped upon the top of the fluid metal with
its edges embedded therein to form an air tight cover for the ingot. The stopper
or cap may be made of sheet metal, like the shield for the bottom of the ingot, but
I prefer to make it of a thick plate provided with converging lateral grooves in two
of its sides into which the metal may penetrate, to lock the same upon the top of

page_text: the ingot in the latter case the stopper may be detached from the iugot, by a
lateral blow, at a point toward which the grooves converge.
The invention will be understood by reference to the annexed drawing, in which
Fig. 1 is a central vertical section of an ingot provided with my improvement in
an ordinary divided ingot mold, showing the stopper of the same form as the
shield for the bottom;
Fig. 2 is a similar view of the same with a stopper of different form;
Fig. 3 is an elevation of the ingot shown in Fig. 2 removed from the mold;
Fig. 4 is a similar view of the same with the protector or cap detached;
Fig. 5 is a bottom view, and Fig. 6 an edge view of the cap shown in Fig. 2, but
upon a larger scale.
Fig. 7 is a transverse section upon a similar scale of another form of stopper, and
Fig. 8 is a transverse section, upon the same scale, of the lower protector or
shield.
u is an ingot mold of the ordinary type, shown herein divided longitudinally into
two sections.
The shields is shown herein upon the bottom of the mold and the metal m
superposed thereon is welded to the same as above described.
This shield consists in a thin metal plate, preferably cup-shaped.
In casting crucible steel it is desirable to form the shields of wrought iron or
steel-disks which may be stamped or otherwise formed into the desired concavo-
convex shape, as shown in the drawing. This latter form is preferable to that of a
flat plate to avoid the splashing of the metal poured thereon upon the sides of the
mold and it is also desirable to apply it to a mold having a bottom of similar
form to prevent the cutting of the metal through such thin plate.
above
In Fig. 1, I have shown the stopper as an inverted cup el like the shields,
poured upon the top of the ingot; a film of the fluid metal having penetrated
between the edge of the shield and the interior of the mold to form a bead
the edge of the said shield. This bead b, which remains integral with the top
of the ingot, anchors the stopper c in place and hermetically seals the joint between
the stopper and the upper end of the ingot in which the "shrinkage cavity" occurs,
and excludes the air therefrom.
The flat plate 2 shown in Fig. 7, which is provided upon its edges with the
downwardly inclined flanges, may be similarly used and with a like result.
The cap shown in Figs. 2, 5 & 6 is provided upon two of its edges and
adjacent to its lower face with converging grooves g, thereby forming beads d upon
the lower corners.
These beads do not project the full width of the plate but, when the stopper is
applied to the bore of the mold, leave a small crack between the latter and the
beads through which the fluid metal penetrates to fill the grooves where it chills
and thus anchors the cap in place.
The goooves are shown herein formed in two adjacent edges of the cape but
they may, if desired, be formed upon opposite edges thereof provided they are-
made more or less convergent; so as to permit them to be readily detached by a
lateral blow in the opposite direction to their convergence.
When the mold is inverted, the cap or stopper upon the upper end of the ingot
prevents the discharge of its still fluid interior therefrom.
It is evident from the above description that my protectors for both the top and
bottom of the ingot are wholly independent of the mold, and that it is not absolutely
necessary in the use of my present invention, to invert the ingot before its interior
is solidified, as in my said British Patents.
Dated this 6th day of August 1891.
FELL & WILDING,
1, Queen Victoria Street, London, E.C., Agents for the. Applicant,,

page_text: COMPLETE SPECIFICATION.
Improvements in or connected with the Casting of Ingots.
I, WILLIAM RUSSELL HINSDALE, of No. 800 Broad Street, in the City of
Newark, County of Essex, and State of New Jersey, United States of America,
Gentleman do hereby declare the nature of my invention and in what manner
the same is to be performed, to be particularly described and ascertained in and by
the following statement :-
My invention consists in a method of excluding the air from the shrinkage cavity
in the head of an ingot, and in means for protecting both ends of the ingot from
injury during the casting operation.
The invention also includes the product, namely, an ingot having a protector of
the class described herein secured upon one or both ends of the same in the process
of casting.
•
In casting metal ingots cracks often occur in the lower ends, during the cooling
and consequent shrinkage of the same from the molten state. The opposed surfaces
of the metal in such cracks immediately become oxidized when exposed to the air
which prevents their welding together in the subsequent treatment of the ingot by
rolling or other means.
At the upper end of such ingot a pipe occurs, which has been fully described in
my British Patents No. 251, and 5242 of 1891, in which are also described
processes for obviating this difficulty by the partial or entire reversal of the ingot
while in a fluid condition, requiring means to prevent the metal from flowing out of
the top of the ingot.
My present invention relates to means for protecting the ends of the ingots from
such injuries; and is adapted especially for use in practicing the method of forming
ingots described in the above named Patents.
The means for protecting the ends of the ingots consists partly, in a thin metal
shield placed in the bottom of the mold and preferably adapted, when the fluid
metal is poured thereon, to attain sufficient heat for welding to the adjacent metal,
thereby becoming an integral portion of the ingot; and partly, in a self-anchoring
cap or cover for application to the top of the fluid metal immediately after pouring,
thereby permitting the ingot to be wholly or partially reversed and retaining the
molten metal in its interior.
Heretofore, in casting with molds of the ordinary construction, the teeming of
the metal upon the bottom of the same has caused pits or cavities therein, which,
after repeated use, render the bottom jagged and irregular. With a mold thus
worn by several teemings, the bottom of an ingot cast therein conforms to the
irregularities of the mold, and obviously becomes anchored therein at certain
points. As the mold becomes more and more heated and expanded and the superposed
metal is correspondingly cooled and contracted by its contact therewith, the portions
of the ingot anchored to the mold, as described, are torn apart, thus producing the
crack above referred to.
To obviate this injury to the ingot, I first drop into the mold a thin metal plate
or shield.
Upon pouring the fluid upon this shield, it will, if made of suitable material and
proportions, absorb sufficient heat from the fluid metal to be welded thereto and
incorporated therewith; and it is also heated to such a degree as to yield readily
during the contraction of the superposed metal, thereby avoiding any tendency to
rupture the metal to which it is welded.
To prevent the discharge of the fluid interior of the ingot in partially or wholly
inverting the same, as described in my said Patents, the mold has heretofore been
provided with means for confining the metal; but by my present improvement 1
am enabled to apply a self-anchoring stopper directly to the top of the fluid metal,
and thus avoid securing the cover to the mold.

page_text: This stopper consists in a metal plate placed upon the top of the fluid metal
with its edges embedded therein to form an air-tight cover for the ingot.
The stopper or cap may be made of sheet metal like the shield for the bottom of
the ingot, or of a thick plate provided with converging lateral grooves in two of
its sides into which the metal may penetrate, to lock the same upon the top of the
ingot in the latter case the stopper may be detached from the ingot, by a lateral
blow at a point toward which the grooves converge.
3
The invention will be understood by reference to the drawings filed with the
Provisional Specification in which
Fig. 1 is a central vertical section of an ingot mold containing an ingot provided
with my improvements, the stopper being shown of the same form as the shield' for
the bottom;
Fig. 2 is a similar view with a stopper of different form;
Fig. 3 is an elevation of the ingot shown in Fig. 2 removed from the mold':
Fig. 4 is a view of the ingot with the protector or cap detached;
Fig. 5 is a bottom view, and Fig. 6 an edge view of the cap shown in Fig. 12
upon a larger scale.
Fig. 7 is a transverse section upon a similar scale of another form of stopper, and
Fig. 8 is a transverse section, upon the same scale, of the mold protector or
shield.
a is an ingot mold of the ordinary type, shown herein divided longitudinally into
two sections.
The shield s is shown of cup shape in correspondence with the bottom ordinarily
formed in an ingot mold, and is in practice inserted in the bottom of the mold, and
the metal m poured thereon. The shield may be preferably made of thin wrought
iron or steel adapted to attain its maximum expansion before the metal in chills or
solidifies in any appreciable degree. The sheet metal is preferably made of such
proportions that its inner surface at least will be raised to a welding heat and thus
become firmly adherent to or incorporated with the end of the ingot, as shown in
Figs. 3 and 4.
The hot steel is wholly prevented by the shield from adhering to the bottom of
the mold, and the shrinkage of the ingot when cooling is not in any way hindered
by the contrary movements of the mold during its expansion. The cup shape is
preferable to that of a flat plate, as it avoids the splashing of the metal poured
thereon upon the sides of the mold, and it is also desirable to apply the shield to a
mold having a bottom of similar form, to prevent the cutting of the metal through
such thin plate. The shields are readily made of sheet metal by stamping them
into the desired concavo-convex shape, and they differ from the false bottoms which
have been heretofore used in ingot molds, by their attachment to the ingot when
cast, which adapts them for only a single use, and prevents them from becoming
pitted and injured as occurs when false bottoms are repeatedly used, and which
would occasion the same injury to the ingot as if no protection were employed.
The stopper or cap is secured to the head of the ingot not by welding thereon,
but by constructing it a little smaller than the bore of the mold so that when pressed
upon the top of the fluid metal a film of the latter is crowded between the cap and
the mold and forms a fin or bead which anchors the cap firmly upon the ingot.
In Fig. I have shown the stopper as an inverted cup c' like the shields, placed
upon the top of the ingot a film of the fluid metal being shown between the edge
of the cap and the interior of the mold to form a fin above the edge of the
stopper.
This fin, which remains integral with the top of the ingot, anchors the stopper e
in place and hermetically seals the joint between the stopper and the upper end of
the ingot, in which the "shrinkage cavity" occurs, and excludes the air therefrom.
The flat plate 2 shown in Fig. 7, which is provided upon its edges with the inclined
flange may be similarly used and with a like result. The cap e shown in
Figs. 2, 5 and 6, is formed of cast metal and is provided upon two of its edges
adjacent to its lower face with converging grooves g, thereby forming beads & upon

page_text: the lower corners to engage the fin formed when the cap is pressed on the fluid
metal: These beads do not extend to the edges of the cap but when the stopper is
applied to the bore of the mold leave a small crack between the mold and the beads
through which the fluid metal penetrates to fill the grooves where it chills and
this anchors the cap in place. The grooves g are shown herein formed in two
adjacent edges of the cap c but they may, if desired, be formed upon opposite edges
thereof provided they are made more or less convergent; so as to permit them to
be readily detached by a lateral blow in the opposite direction to their
convergence.
When the mold is inverted, the cap or stopper upon the upper end of the ingot
prevents the discharge of fluid metal remaining in its interior.
It is evident from the above description that my protectors for both the top and
bottom of the ingot are wholly independent of the mold, and that it is not absolutely
necessary in the use of my present invention, to invert the ingot before its interior
is solidified, as in my before mentioned British Patents.
It will be readily understood that the shields may be made of wrought sheet
metal homogeneous with the body of the ingot, so that when it becomes welded
thereon in the process of casting it may without detriment to the product be
subsequently worked with the ingot in the manufacture of bars and other
articles.
I have therefore claimed as a new article of manufacture the ingot having a
protector integral therewith.
Having now particularly described and ascertained the nature of my said inven-
tion and in what manner the same is to be performed, I declare that what I
claim is:
1st. The method of casting steel ingots, which consists in first pouring the fluid
metal into a suitable mold, and second, embedding in the top of the fluid metal a
cover of suitable metal and of smaller dimensions than the bore of the mold to
form and engage with a fin upon the head of the ingot, substantially as herein
set forth.
2nd. A shield or protector for the ends of ingots, consisting in a metal plate to
be used in contact with the fluid metal in the mold, and of such thickness as to
attain its maximum expansion prior to the solidification of the adjacent portion of
the metal, substantially as herein set forth.
3rd. A shield for the lower end of an ingot mold, consisting in a sheet metal
plate of cup shape of such thickness as to attain its maximum expansion prior to
the solidification of the adjacent portion of the metal, substantially as herein set
forth.
4th. A cover for the upper end of an ingot, consisting in a sheet metal plate
of smaller dimensions than the bore of the mold and adapted to form a fin upon
the head of the ingot when pressed upon the fluid metal, substantially as herein
set forth.
5th. A steel ingot having a sheet metal plate secured upon the end in the process
of casting, substantially as herein set forth.
6th. A steel ingot having a sheet metal protector welded upon the end in the
process of casting, substantially as herein set forth:
Dated this 26th day of May 1892
FELL & WILDING,
1, Queen Victoria Street, London, E.C., Agents for the Applicant.