AN IMPROVED PROCESS TO BE USED IN THE MANUFACTURE OF IRON AND STEEL, AND IMPROVEMENTS IN THE APPARATUS OR MEANS TO BE EMPLOYED
Year: 1868

page_text: LETTERS PATENT to William Haden Richardson, of Glasgow, in
the County of Lanark, North Britain, and William Beard-
more, of Parkhead, in the same County, for the Invention of
"AN IMPROVED PROCESS TO BE USED IN THE MANUFACTURE OF IRON AND
STEEL, AND IMPROVEMENTS IN THE APPARATUS OR MEANS TO BE EMPLOYED
39
Sealed the 21st July 1868, and dated the 28th January 1868.
PROVISIONAL SPECIFICATION left by the said William Haden
Richardson and William Beardmore at the Office of the Com-
missioners of Patents, with their Petition, on the 28th January
1868.
We, WILLIAM HADEN RICHARDSON, of Glasgow, in the County of
Lanark, North Britain, and WILLIAM BEARDMORE, of Parkhead, in the
same County, do hereby declare the nature of the said Invention of
"AN IMPROVED PROCESS TO BE USED IN THE MANUFACTURE OF IRON AND STEEL,
AND IMPROVEMENTS IN THE APPARATUS OR MEANS TO BE EMPLOYED THEREFOR,"
to be as follows, that is to say :-
"
This Invention relates to certain improvements in a process for
manufacturing iron and steel known as the "Richardson process,"
(Patent dated 4th December 1866, No. 3189). The improvements in

page_text: conducting the process consists in injecting air or other gases at the
proper time, and when the temperature of the furnace is raised above
what is required it is checked or lowered by withdrawing the blast of
air or other gases and in lieu thereof introducing steam, and if requisite
after the withdrawal of the steam a blast or blasts of air or other gases
may be again introduced. In this manner blasts of air or other gases
and steam may be introduced alternately for any number of times that
the nature of the iron under treatment may require. The iron may or
may not be worked about with an ordinary or other puddling or rabbling
tool during the time the air or other gases or steam are being introduced.
The means by which the air or other gases as well as the steam are
preferred to be introduced consists of a metallic pipe or tube which is
lowered into the molten metal when required through a hole or aperture
in the roof of the furnace. The metallic pipe is coupled to two flexible
or other pipes, one being in communication with the steam space of a
boiler, and the other with a blast or gas receiver or holder. The pipes
are provided with stop cocks or other means for regulating and cutting
off the passage through them of the air, gases, or steam, so that these
may be introduced at the proper intervals. Instead of introducing the
air or other gases or steam through a tube or tubes passing through a
hole or holes in the roof of the furnace, they may be introduced by
means of tubular rabbles or tools or other passages in any convenient
part of the furnace. In place of injecting steam into the liquid metal
it may be introduced above the metal in the puddling chamber or over
the fire-grate. The rabbles or puddling tools may be worked by
mechanical means as well as by hand, and the tube passing through
the roof may have motion imparted to it to facillitate the diffusion of
the air or other gases or steam.
SPECIFICATION in pursuance of the conditions of the Letters Patent,
filed by the said William Haden Richardson, and William Beard- 3
more, in the Great Seal Patent Office on the 27th July 1868.
TO ALL TO WHOM THESE PRESENTS SHALL COME, we, WILLIAM
HADEN RICHARDSON, of Glasgow, in the County of Lanark, North
Britain, and WILLIAM BEARDMORE, of Parkhead, in the same County,
*send greeting.
3

page_text: WHEREAS Her most Excellent Majesty Queen Victoria, by Her
Letters Patent, bearing date the Twenty-eighth day of January, in the
year of our Lord One thousand eight hundred and sixty-eight, in the
thirty-first year of Her reign, did, for Herself, Her heirs and successors,
give and grant unto us, the said William Haden Richardson and
William Beardmore, Her special license that we, the said William
Haden Richardson, and William Beardmore, our executors, adminis-
trators, and assigns, or such others as we, the said William Haden
Richardson, and William Beardmore, our executors, administrators,
'or 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 "AN IMPROVED PROCESS TO BE
USED IN THE MANUFACTURE OF IRON AND STEEL, AND IMPROVEMENTS IN THE
APPARATUS OR MEANS TO BE EMPLOYED THEREFOR," upon the condition
(amongst others) that we, the said William Haden Richardson and
William Beardmore, 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 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 we, the said William Haden Richardson
and William Beardmore, do hereby declare the 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 state-
ment, reference being had to the accompanying Drawings, and to the
letters and figures marked thereon, that is to say :-
Our said Invention relates to certain improvements in a process for
manufacturing iron and steel known as the "Richardson process."
The improvements in conducting the process consists in injecting air
or other gases at the proper time, and when the temperature of the
furnace is raised above what is required it is checked or lowered by
withdrawing the blast of air or other gases, and in lieu thereof intro-
ducing steam, and if requisite after the withdrawal of the steam or
blast or blasts of air or other gases may be again introduced. In this
manner blasts of air or other gases and steam may be introduced

page_text: alternately for any number of times that the nature of the iron under
treatment may require. The iron may or may not be worked about
with an ordinary or other puddling or rabbling tool during the time
the air or other gases or steam are being introduced. The means by
which the air or other gases as well as the steam are preferred to
be introduced consists of a metallic pipe or tube which is lowered into
the molten metal when required through a hole or aperture in the
roof of the furnace. The metallic pipe is coupled to two flexible or
other pipes, one being in communication with the steam space of a
boiler and the other with a blast or gas receiver or holder. The pipes
are provided with stop-cocks or other means for regulating and cutting
off the passage through them of the air, gases, or steam, so that these
may be introduced at the proper intervals. Instead of introducing
the air or other gases or steam through a tube or tubes passing through
a hole or holes in the roof of the furnace they may be introduced by
means of tubular rabbles or tools, or other passages in any convenient
part of the furnace.
In place of injecting steam into the liquid metal it may be introduced
above the metal in the puddling chamber or over the fire-grate. The
rabbles or puddling tools may be worked by mechanical means as
well as by hand, and the tube passing through the roof may have
motion imparted to it to facilitate the diffusion of the air or other gases
or steam.
And in order that our said Invention may be properly understood,
we shall now proceed more particularly to describe the system, mode,
or manner in or under which the same is or may be used or practically
carried into effect, reference being had to the accompanying Drawings
and to the letters and figures marked thereon, that is to say :-
Figure 1 is a transverse section of a puddling furnace in which is
shown the means of introducing air or other gases as well as steam into
the charge of molten iron. This is effected by means of a pipe or
tube a which is lowered into the molten metal through the hole or
aperture 6 in the roof c of the furnace. The upper end of the pipe a
is formed into two branches, to each of which there is coupled a
flexible pipe, one of the pipes d may be in communication with the
steam space of a boiler and the other pipe e with a compressed air or
other gas reservoir. Each of the pipes d, e, is furnished with a stop
cock not shown in the Drawings, so that the supply of air, gas, or

page_text: steam may be cut off when necessary. By keeping open both cocks,
air or gås and steam may bé injected into the molten metal at the same
time, or one or other may be cut off so that the air of gas and steam
may be injected at the. proper time or for any number of times that
the nature of the iron under treatment may require. We inject. air
or other gas or gases for the purpose of raising the temperature of the
molten metal and at the same time freeing it from impurities, and
when the temperature of the furnace is raised above the degree required,
steam may be introduced for the purpose of reducing the temperature,
or steam may be first injected to partly desulphurise and partly:
decarburise and enable the production of the boiling action of the iron,)
and air or oxygen may afterwards be introduced to decarburise the;
iron, and by the evolution of heat thereby increase the temperature of
the furnace: The tube a is attached to a chain f passing over the anti-
friction rollers 9, 9, and hangs in front of the puddling furnace, so;
that the depth of the pipe a in the metal may be regulated by the
puddler or other attendant. The pipe a may also be moved about in
the furnace; to allow of that being done, the aperture in the roof
may be bevilled as shown or otherwise, and during the time the air,
steam, gas, or gases are being injected, the 'iron may be worked about
with an ordinary puddling rabble h, or a tubular rabble may 'be used
to inject other gas or gases. Instead of injecting the air, steam, or
other gases through a hole or holes in the roof the pipes or tubes
may be inserted through the door of the furnace as shown at i, i,
Figure 2, and the iron may be worked about by an ordinary solid or
other puddling rabble inserted through the stopper hole of the door
as shown at k, Figure 2.
Another method of introducing air or other gases or steam is
shown in red lines in Figure 1, a pipe or pipes is or are introduced
through a hole or holes in front of the furnace on a level or thereabouts
with the hearth. The pipe is connected by a flexible tube m or a
universal joint to a pipe n leading to a steam boiler or other air or
gas receiver. The distance which the pipe is introduced into the
furnace may be regulated by the puddler, and the supply of air or
steam may be cut off by the stop cock o. The pressure of the air or
steam must also be sufficient to prevent the molten metal or cinder
from running into the tube while in the furnace or during the time
when the pipe is being withdrawn and the hole plugged up. It
is to be understood that while injecting air or steam by this method,

page_text: the charge is rabbled in the usual manner by an ordinary rabble, or a
hollow rabble such as is shown in Figures 3 and 4 may be used. This
rabble is formed by a tube P bent at one end, which is screwed into
or welded to a semicircular plate or shield 2, the ends being open
so that the air or steam may escape into the molten metal, or the
blasts of air or steam may be introduced by any of the methods which
have been patented or used in connection with the process known as
the "Richardson process."
.
Having now described the nature of our said Invention and the
manner in which the same may be used or practically carried into
effect, we would observe that what we consider novel and original
and therefore claim as the Invention secured to us by the herein-
before in part recited Letters Patent is, the use or employment of
blasts of air and steam alternately in lieu of being introduced separately
at the same time or combined at one time as herein-before described
or any mere modification thereof.
s whereof, we, the said William Haden Richardson
and William Beardmore, have hereunto set our hands and seals,
this Twenty-fourth day of July, One thousand eight hundred
and sixty-eight.
WILLIAM HADEN RICHARDSON. (L.S.)
W, BEARDMORE.
(L.S.)