Projectile consisting of Malleable Tungsten Alloy.
Year: 1898

page_text: Date of Application, 29th Nov., 1898-Accepted, 11th Feb., 1899
Projectile consisting of Malleable Tungsten Alloy.
We, GEORGES ROTH, Manufacturer, of 50, Rennweg Vienna III, and CHARLES
KRNKA, Engineer, of 14, Erzherzog Karlplatz, Vienna, Il Austria do hereby declare
the nature of our invention and in what manner the same is to be performed to be
particularly described and ascertained in and by the following statement:-
Modern projectiles for hand fire arms consist, as is well known of a hard lead
alloy lead containing about 2% of antimony] and are provided with a mantle or
casing of steel, copper or nickel plate.
The object of the present invention is to render the encasing of the projectile
unnecessary, to which end the projectiles consist of an entirely novel alloy, the
resisting powers of which are much greater than any projectile material hitherto
employed, so that the projectile is not noticeably deformed on entering the object
struck. Thus the penetrating capacity of the same is increased, whilst at the same
time the material is sufficiently yielding to enable the projectile to conform to the
rifling of the barrel without being stripped in the same.
According to the invention the projectile is not made of lead but of copper or
nickel or an alloy of copper and nickel, the said metal or alloy being alloyed with
a correspondingly high percentage of tungsten, and thus producing a malleable
tungsten alloy. This mixture not only imparts to the projectile the necessary
toughness and hardness but also gives the same the required specific gravity.
The invention is specially characterised by the fact that the alloy contains a
comparatively high percentage of tungsten, which is so dissolved in the alloy that
it will not separate out whenthe alloy is subsequently worked (hammered rolled
or drawn). Thus, if tungsten is simply mixed with alloy (without being properly
alloyed) the barrel soons gets worn out, because the unalloyed hard grains of
tungsten which appear on the surface of the projectile, rub off and damage the
interior of the barrel. Apart from this fact, a greater or less loss of tungsten is
caused, whilst the projectiles are being made, so that difference in the weight of
the various projectiles occurs and it is very difficult to attain the necessary specific
gravity with such ordinary mixture.
According to the present invention these disadvantages are obviated and the alloy
produced may be hammered whilst in a hot or cold condition without causing the
tungsten to separate out, owing to the fact that the latter is so dissolved in the
mass that it appears as a flour-like powder, i.c. in an entirely changed form, when
the alloy is dissolved in acids.
The amount of tungsten employed may. be decreased or increased in proportion
to the effect desired to be obtained by the projectile, i.e. whether rasante or
penetrative power is required of the same.
In any case the amount of tungsten must be considerable, in order to attain a
sufficiently high specific weight of the projectile.
If the projectile consists of 20% of tungsten alloyed with 80% of copper or

page_text: nickel or advantageously an alloy of these two metals, the specific weight of the
projectile will be equal to that of the present hard lead projectiles with steel
mantles or casings. If this proportion or a still greater proportion of tungsten is
employed it is necessary to add to the alloy, the moment it reaches its melting
point, a small percentage,-02 to 1%-of an aluminium or magnesium metal,
which renders the projectile less brittle and more easily workable, in spite of the
comparatively large amount of tungsten contained in the same, and also effects a
more intimate alloy.
Such slight addition of aluminium or magnesium metal will only reduce the
specific weight of the projectile to a very slight extent owing to the fact that the
metal added is almost entirely burnt, which causes a most intimate combination of
the metals employed and renders the alloy very dense and of even quality. This
is a very important point in connection with projectiles, since if the metal is of an
uneven quality, the weight of the projectiles differs and consequently they spread
unevenly and impair the precision of the weapon.
metal mass.
pro-
Thus it is not only necessary to attain the requisite specific gravity of the projectile,
but also the even quality of the metallic alloy. It is further necessary that the
jectiles should be rendered more dense by mechanical means, for instance, by
rolling and drawing the cast mass of alloy, several times, during which process the
tungsten must, by the nature of the alloy, be prevented from separating out of the
The fact that no tungsten rubs off in the form of powder, when the
castings are worked proves that the tungsten is properly alloyed. When the pro-
jectiles have been properly formed by being rolled or drawn, they are shaped or
turned and finally pressed. This class of projectile cannot therefore be cast. One
of the main advantages of the present invention, in addition to those previously
set forth, is that the specific weight of the projectile may be varied according to
its shape by varying the proportion of tungsten in the alloy.
Having now particularly described and ascertained the nature of our said
invention and in what manner the same is to be performed we declare that what
we claim is:
-
1: Projectiles of malleable tungsten alloy, in which the percentage of tungsten
may be made to correspond to the required specific weight and hardness of the
projectile, and in which the tungsten is alloyed in such manner in the said pro-
jectile, that if the latter is dissolved in acids, the tungsten will appear in the form
of flour-like powder 2.e. in an entirely changed condition substantially as described.
2: A process for producing the projectile covered by Claim 1 which consists
in adding to the alloy at the moment the same has reached its smelting point 02
to 1% of aluminium or magnesium metal, in order to prevent the tungsten from
separating out of the alloy,-when the same. is worked,-to a noticeable extent,
substantially as described.
DL
M011
T
1000
JOHNSONS,
Applicant's Agents,
115, St. Vincent Street, Glasgow.