Improvements in the Manufacture of Alloys of Steel and Nickel.
Year: 1888

page_text: Date of Application, 2nd Oct., 1888
Complete Specification Left, 2nd July, 1889-Accepted, 3rd Aug., 1889
PROVISIONAL SPECIFICATION.
Improvements in the Manufacture of Alloys of Steel and Nickel.
I, HENRI SCHNEIDER, of the firm of Schneider & Co. of Le Creusôt in the
Republic of France, do hereby declare the nature of this invention to he as
follows:-
This Invention relates to the manufacture on the hearth or bed of a furnace as
hereinafter described of steel alloyed with nickel in order to obtain a product suitable
for the construction of ordnance armour plates gun barrels projectiles and other
articles for military or other like purposes.
In order to manufacture this combination of steel and nickel upon a bed or hearth
in such a manner as to obtain a homogeneous steel free from flaws or hollows it is
necessary on the one hand to avoid oxidising the nickel before it forms the alloy with
the iron and on the other hand it is necessary to cause the incorporation to take place at
as early a stage as possible in the operation or immediately on the commencement
of the fusion or liquifaction. This result is attained according to this invention
by introducing the nickel by the aid of a preliminary melt or mixture in fusion
containing say for example about thirty parts of nickel, sixty three of iron, three
of carbon and two of manganese and silica, this melt being placed on the hearth
or bed of an open hearth Siemens Martin or Martin or other like furnace together
with a suitable proportion of iron or scrap steel. It is preferred in general to
prepare the nickel soparately by melting the nickel in the presence of anthracito
and a suitable quantity of iron, steel, scrap or pure cast iron in proportions
regulated according to the nature of the product to be obtained the proportion of
anthracite being preferably about fifteen per cent.
In place of preparing this preliminary combination in a separate apparatus it may
be prepared in the same furnace itself before proceeding with the subsequent
operations. In this case a bed of anthracite is first prepared in the furnace and
the nickel is placed thereon with the requisite proportion of iron or steel. The
whole is then covered with anthracite in order to protect the metal from contact
with the air during the fusion. When the charge is melted the excess of anthracite
is removed and charges of iron or scrap are added in succession. Waste or scrap
steel alloyed with nickel obtained by preceding operations are to be employed in these
charges, preferably in the first.
From this time the operation is conducted in the same way as in making ordinary
steel care being at the same time taken to protect the bath from oxidation by means
of a layer of silicious slag or cinder which is continually renewed and also to take
precautions to prevent red shortness in the metal before the introduction of the final
recarbonising manganiferous addition of silico-spiegel or ferro-manganese.
Another method of conducting the manufacture consists in commencing the
operation on the hearth of a furnace in the ordinary manner that is to say with
cast metal and scrap or iron as the first charge adding the nickel to the bath
when the first charge of metal is in a state of fusion and at the proper temperature.
The nickel may be introduced at any other stage of the operation but the results
are less satisfactory with regard to homogeneousness of the metal and absence of
hollows than they are when it is introduced at the commencement of the operation.
The steel manufactured according to this invention usually contains about five
per cent. of nickel but the invention is not limited to this proportion.
Steel obtained by means of this improved method of manufacture is especially
adapted or suitable for use in the construction of ordnance, armour plates gun barrels,
projectiles and other articles employed for military or other like purposes. The per
,

page_text: centage of carbon can be regulated according to the degree of hardness required but
the product whether forged or cast must invariably be tempered in an oil or other
bath.
Dated this and do of Antohou 1000
J. H. JOHNSON & Co.,
47, Lincoln's Inn Fields, London, W.C., Agents.
COMPLETE SPECIFICATION.
Improvements in the Manufacture of Alloys of Steel and Nickel.
I HENRI SCHNEIDER of the firm of Schneider & Co. of Le Creusôt in the
Republic of France do hereby declare the nature of this Invention and in what
manner the same is to be performed to be particularly described in and by the
following statement :—
This Invention relates to the manufacture on the hearth or bed of a furnace as
hereinafter described of steel alloyed with nickel whereby a product is obtained
which is employed with great advantage in the construction of ordnance, armour
plates, gun barrels, projectiles and other articles for military or other like purposes
such as the manufacture of sheet or bar metal for example.
In order to manufacture this combination or alloy of steel and nickel upon a furnace
bed or hearth it is necessary on the one hand to avoid oxidising the nickel before it
forms the alloy or combines with the iron and on the other hand it is necessary to
cause this incorporation to take place at as early a stage as possible in the operation
or immediately on the commencement of the fusion or liquefaction in order to obtain
a homogeneous steel free from flaws or hollows. This result is obtained according to
this invention by introducing the nickel by the aid of a preliminary melt or mixture
in fusion containing say for example about thirty parts of nickel sixty three parts of
iron three parts of carbon two parts of manganese and two of silicon this melt being
placed on the hearth or bed of the furnace together with a suitable proportion of iron or
scrap steel.
It is preferred in general to prepare the aforesaid melt or mixture of nickel and
iron separately by fusing this metal or an alloy thereof with iron or steel in the
presence of coal or other forms of carbon or under a layer of anthracite and a suit-
able quantity of iron, steel scrap or pure cast iron in proportions regulated according
to the nature of the product to be obtained the proportion of anthracite being pre-
ferably about fifteen per cent. of the whole.
In place of preparing this preliminary combination or melt separately it may
sometimes be prepared in the furnace employed for the manufacture of the alloy at
the commencement that is to say before proceeding with the subsequent operations.
In this case a bed of anthracite is first prepared in the furnace and the nickel is
placed thereon with the requisite proportion of iron or steel. The whole is then
covered with anthracite in order to protect the metal from contact with the air during
the fusion. The quantity of anthracite employed in this operation is about 15 per
cent. of the weight of metal (iron and nickel) in the melt prepared in the first
instance.
When the charge is melted the excess of anthracite is removed and charges of iron
or scrap are added in succession. Waste or scrap steel alloyed with nickel obtained
by the process forming the object of this invention are most suitable for being
employed in these charges preferably in the first.
From this time the operation is conducted on the hearth or open furnace in the
same way as in making ordinary steel care being at the same time taken to continally
protect the bath from oxidation by means of a layer of slag or cinder which is renewed
as required and also to take precautions to prevent red shortness in the metal
before the final introduction of the recarburising and manganiferous charge of
silico-spiegel iron or ferro-manganese which is regulated according to the ordinary

page_text: rules for the addition of manganese being say about 2 per cent. of the total weight
of the melt or more or less according as the melt is more or less oxidised.
Another method of conducting the manufacture consists in commencing the
operation in the furnace in the ordinary manner that is to say with cast metal and
scrap or iron as the first charge adding the nickel to the bath when the first charge
of metal is in a state of fusion and at the proper temperature say about 1500 or
1800 degrees Centigrade.
The nickel may be introduced at any other stage of the operation but the results
are less satisfactory with regard to the homogeneousness of the metal and absence
of flaws or hollows than they are when it is introduced at the commencement of the
operation.
The steel manufactured according to this invention usually contains from about two
to five per cent. of nickel this being a quantity sufficient to impart a remarkable
degree of strength to the product but I do not limit myself to this proportion one
per cent. and even less being capable of influencing the product and on the other
hand the quantity of nickel may be increased to 30 per cent. and upwards in certain
cases.
Steel alloyed with nickel according to this invention is especially adapted or suitable
for use in the construction of ordnance armour plates gun barrels projectiles and other
articles employed for military or other like purposes or the manufacture of commercial
sheets or bars being subjected to any ordinary or suitable process of forging rolling
or the like. The per centages of carbon silicon and manganese can be regulated
according to the degree of hardness required but in all cases in order to obtain
the best result possible the product must be tempered in an oil or other equivalent
bath.
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 :-
1. Obtaining alloys of steel and nickel suitable for the manufacture of ordnance
armour plates, gun barrels projectiles and materials for military and other purposes
in general such as commercial sheets or bars the said alloys being produced by a
fusion of the materials on the hearth or bed of a furnace in combination with
suitable proportions of carbon silicon and manganese substantially as herein before
described.
2. As a new article of manufacture the alloy of steel and nickel obtained as herein-
before described and claimed.
11
T1
1000