Improvements in Hydraulic Upward Current Separators for Treating Metals, Ores, Gems, and other Minerals or Mixed Substances.
Year: 1897

page_text: Date of Application, 23rd June, 1897
Complete Specification Left, 23rd Mar., 1898-Accepted, 23rd June, 1898
Improvements in Hydraulic Upward Current Separators for Treating
Metals, Ores, Gems, and other Minerals or Mixed Substances.
I, WILLIAM STRONACH LOCKHART, of 15, George Street, in the City of London,
Civil Engineer, do hereby declare the nature of this invention to be as follows:
My invention relates to hydraulic upward current separators for effecting the
separation of metals, gems or other minerals or substances from their gangue,
slimes, or materials, with which they are. mixed and consists of improvements
in such a device whereby the passage containing the separating stream of water
is also the last issuing confined exit of such stream and its velocity is controlled
by a finely adjustable adjacent head or weir, adapted so as to be absolutely
constant when set in a more reliable and effective manner than has hitherto been
done.
To carry my invention into effect I provide an apparatus adapted to receive into
a hopper a mixed material of gold, gems or minerals with associated slime,
gravel gangue or other substances either dry or wet and proviously classified or
sorted, so that there is approximate uniformity of particles as to size to suit any
specifically and correspondingly sized separator. The material to be treated is
received by vertical gravity full upon a spreading pointed coned surface and
conducted into the open mouth of an annulus containing a determined head of
water received into the apparatus from a suitable source of supply with constant
head controlled as to its flow into each individual separator by a finely adjustable
control valve.
From such external annulus containing dead water the material is allowed
to fall transversely into an upward flowing current of water in a separation
annulus in which the gold, gems, or minerals of high specific density full
through such current which is moving at less speed than the rate of their fall
through still water and therefore cannot support them into a locked receptacle
and the associated matter of lower specific density is carried by such upward
flowing current moving at a greater speed than their rate of fall through still
water to an internal overflow weir and thence by gravity to a waste discharge pipe.
The essence of my improvements in this apparatus as compared with somewhat
similar apparatus already known and patented to me is that the separation
annulus is the most constricted part of the system of the pipes, valves or channels
through which the water passes to the said annulus and that such separation
annulus is the last exit of the water from the system of confining channels, and
further that the apparatus shall have in itself adjacent to the separation annulus,
a specific finely adjustable head of water determining the velocity of the stream
through the separation annulus and lastly that such specific head shall be capable
after determination of amount of being controlled, if desired, by an overflow
weir, so that no acoidental access of water thereto shall cause the said head to
vary.
To carry out these improvements I arrange the annulus containing the specific

page_text: head of water on the external periphery of the apparatus with a finely adjustable
outer weir lip or several weir gates or notches and an external overflow therefrom.
The waste material and the stream from the separation annulus is caused to
overflow immediately froin the said annulus by an internal fixed lip or weir into
a chamber in the interior of the machine and thence to a waste exit pipe.
The combination of a specific self contained head with each apparatus enables
me to provide a constant head of supply to a number of machines, each supply
to individual machines being controlled by a valve capable of fine adjustment
regulating a specific self contained head in each machine.
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Dated this 10th day
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Improvements in Hydraulic Upward' Current Separators for Treating
Metals, Ores, Gems, and other Minerals or Mixed Substances.
"I; WILLIAM STRONACH LOCKHART, of 15, George Street, in the City of London,
Civil Engineer, do hereby declare the nature of this 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 relates to hydraulic upward current separators for effecting the
separation of metals, gems, or otlier minerals or substances; from their gangue,
slimes or materials with which they are mixed, and consists of improvements
in such a device, whereby the passage containing the separating stream of water
is also the last issuing confined exit of such stream and its velocity is controlled
by a finely adjustable adjacent head or weir, adapted so as to be absolutely
constant when set, in a more reliable and effective manner than has hitherto been
done..
To carry my invention into effect I provide an apparatus adapted to receive into
a hopper a mixed material of gold, gems, or minerals, with associated slime,
gravel, gangue, or other substances, either dry or wet, and previously classified or
sorted so that there is approximate uniformity of particles as to size, to suit any
specifically and correspondingly sized separator.
.
"
In order that my invention may be the better understood I now proceed to
describe the same in relation to the drawings annexed hereto and to the letters
and figures. marked thereon.
.
Fig. represents an outside view of my upward current separator and mode of
supplying it with the minerals and water.
igure 2 is a vertical section through the said separator:
Fig. 3 is a sectional elevation and plan of the adjustable outer weir and
Fig. 4 is, a modification of the same.
The slime, gravel, ore or gangue, of a uniform-fineness, containing the gold, metal,
gems, or other mineral that it is desired to separate therefrom, is fed; preferably
by mechanical means, into the hopper, A and thence falls by the nozzle a on to
the cone piece F, on which the said hopper A is supported by skeleton supports.
The supply of water to the separator is provided from a supply tank or stand-
pipe B, maintained at a constant level by a ball tap, or a constantly running
overflow. This first constant supply head of water from the tank or stand-pipe B
may be made available for several separators, the supply to each separator being
controlled by an intermediate finely adjustable valve Cwhich regulates the flow
into each separator, so as to maintain a definite and uniform head of water. at D

page_text: in the separator, conveniently adjoining the annular issue nozzle of the separator
annulus E, in which the actual separation of the gold, metals, gems or other
desired minerals from the slime, gangue, or substances with which they arg
mixed; takes place.
The gold, gems, metals or minerals with their associated gangue, gravel, or
slime, after passing down the outside of the cone F enters the separation annulus E
by the external channel or trough d, where is maintained a constant head of
water from the supply pipes bb, the inlet e, and annular and serpentine
passages e e. These passages are made of larger area than the annulus E and of
serpentine form to ensure solid water without eddies, and the highest parts of such
serpentine channels are ventilated by the pipes el into the interior chamber of the
separator, which is maintained in constant communication with the atmosphere
by ventilation tubes f, passing through the cone-piece F.
According to the flow of water permitted from the main lead in the tank or
stand pipe B, through the valve C, the specific height or head of water D in the
annulus d'is determined, to maintain a required flow through the separation
annulus E.
Where little water enters with the mineral to be treated from the hopper A,
and where a very small fluctuation of the head of water D is not of consequence,
the outer lip of the annulus or trough d' may be continued upwards as shown.in
dotted lines d' up to the hopper nozzle a, but where there is much water entering
with the slime or gangue, and where it is necessary to maintain the head of
water I) very exact, the outer lip of the annular trough d or part of it, is made
adjustable by an outer screwed ring G provided with handles. g g shown in detail
in Fig. 3 by which the outer lip may be accurately adjusted at will, or by one or
more weirs or notchies g³ therein as shown in Fig. 4 similarly adjustable as -to
height by an internal screw thread or by separately adjustable weir gates to
determine an overflow at any desired point, should the head D.. tend. to rise by
access of water through any means.
The overflow from the outer weir is collected in any convenient manner such
as by the annular trough g or by one or more issue pipes to waste g³.
The heavier gold, gems or minerals, when they have entered the separation
annulus E, are not supported by the upward flowing stream of water, but fall
through such stream into the outer part of the lower casing, and thence through
the collecting nozzle h, the valve chamber K, to the locked receptacle L, which
may be of glass or provided with sight holes to show the accumulation of the
gold, gems or minerals.
The valve chamber K is provided with a push and screw-down valve k, so that
the valve k may be closed when desired and the locked receptacle L removed for
collection of the genus, gold or minerals.
On the other hand the lighter slime, gangue or material mixed with the gold,
gems, or minerals, is carried up by the force of the current of water in the
separation annulus E, and flow with the water over the lip of the inner annular
weir into the internal waste collecting chamber M, and are carried away to waste
by the exit nozzle and pipe N, N.
In order to obtain perfect and accurate separation of gold, gems, or other
minerals from their slime, gangue, or other substances with which they are
mixed, I find it important that the separation annulus E shall be the most constricted
part of the system of various pipes, valves or channels, through which the water
enters the separator; and that such separation annulus shall be the last exit of
the water from such system of confining channels; and that the head of
water determining the velocity of the water in such separation annulus, shall be
capable of very fine adjustment as to height, and shall be adapted to be maintained
absolutely constant in level, when determined, for the treatment of substances
such as slimes and float gold.
These essential points for successful operation are embraced in the apparatus
I have just described.

page_text: 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. In combination in a hydraulic gravity separator, an annular chamber,
receiving the material to be separated, and in communication with the water
supply of separation; a vertically adjustable ring connected to the outer edge
of said annular chamber adapted to adjust height of local head of still water in
said annular chamber to control speed of adjacent separation current; an annulus
chamber beneath the upper receiving, chamber admitting gravity separated
particles through a contracted annular neck; a contracted annular overflow orifice
forming a. vertical extension of said contracted neck; and an annulus circuitous
water supply passage, leading to the said lower chamber, substantially as described.
2nd. In combination, the cone for receiving at its point and spreading by its
coned surface the material to be separated; tlie annular receiving chamber at the
base of the cone, adapted to discharge outwardly any excess of water with material,
having a lateral communication with a narrow adjacent annular and vertical
water exit passage between its inner wall and the edge of the said cone; a chamber
to receive the separated material beneath the said contracted annular passage,
between the cone and inner wall of upper chamber; and an annular circuitous
water supply passage to said lower chamber, substantially as described.
3rd. In combination, the cone for receiving at its point and spreading, the
material to be separated; the aunular chamber at the base of the cone, having a
narrow water exit space between its inner wall and the wall of the cone; a chamber
beneath to receive the separated material and having a contracted annular passage
in line with the space between the cone and inner wall of the upper chamber;
and an annular circuitous water supply passage to said lower chamber, substan-
tially as described.
4th. A self contained hydraulic gravity separator consisting of, in combination;
a hopper for mixed wet material to be separated with central discharge; a cone
spreader with apex upwards, supporting said hopper on skeleton supports; an
annular receiving trough at base of cone, adapted to discharge outwardly, free
from apparatus, exit water with material, to receive and maintain a constant head
of water from other constant supply to interior of apparatus, and to transmit
into an adjacent upward current annulus the particles to be separated; a down-
ward means of exit to locked receptacles from base of upward current of heavy
gravity separated particles; and a free unrestricted exit inwardly, towards centre
of apparatus, of the light waste particles and separating current of water, sub-
stantially as described.
Dalad this and dat V
1000