CERTAIN IMPROVE- MENTS IN THE MANUFACTURE OF IRON AND STEEL, AND IN THE MEANS OB APPARATUS FOR EPPECTING THE SAME."
Year: 1867

page_text: LETTERS PATENT to William Haden Richardson, of Glasgow, in the
County of Lanark, North Britain, for the Invention of "CERTAIN IMPROVE-
MENTS IN THE MANUFACTURE OF IRON AND STEEL, AND IN THE MEANS OB
APPARATUS FOR EPPECTING THE SAME."
PROVISIONAL SPECIFICATION left by the said William Haden Richard-
son at the Office of the Commissioners of Patents, with his Petition, on
the 3rd June 1867.
I, WILLIAM HADEN RICHARDSON, of Glasgow, in the County of Lanark,
North Britain, do hereby declare the nature of the said Invention of "CERTAIN
IMPROVEMENTS IN THE MANUFACTURE OF IRON AND STEEL, AND IN THE MEANS OR
APPARATUS FOR EPPECTING THE SAME," to be as follows, that is to say :-
This Invention, which has for its object the purification of iron when in the
liquid state for the purpose of obtaining an improved metal from which
castings may be produced, or from which steel may be manufactured, also the
cheapening the cost of as well as the time occupied in producing such metals
or materials, consists as follows:-After the ore is reduced in the blast furnace
to the state of molten crude metal the furnace is tapped and the liquid metal
run off into a vessel or receptacle, when a blast of atmospheric air, which may
be of a pressure of 4 lbs. on the square inch and upwards is introduced into

page_text: its mass through a hollow or tubular rabble or stirring rod of dimensions
suitable to the mass of metal under treatment, similar to that shown and
described in the Drawings and Specification of Letters Patent, granted to
William Haden Richardson, dated the Fourth day of December, 1866, and
numbered 3189, and which may be operated by band or otherwise, the effect
of the blast being introduced into the mass of liquid metal in the vessel or
receptacle is that the impurities are very rapidly driven off, and a metal is
obtained specially adapted for producing castings of a high quality which may
be run from the melted metal direct as it is purified in the vessel or receptacle,
or it may be cooled and afterwards melted for being run into castings, and for
this purpose it may be used alone, or a proportion of pig iron or spiegel eisen,
or other compound of iron and carbon, may be mixed with it in the melted or
unmelted state, according to the temperature of the liquid metal in the vessel
or receptacle.
Crude steel may also be produced by the same process, and to produce a
steel of a finer quality after the metal has been purified in the manner
herein-before described it may be run off into the chamber of a puddling
furnace, where unmelted spiegel eisen or other compound of iron and carbon
is added to it to recarbonise the metal and so convert it into steel, which may
be run off into ingot moulds, or otherwise treated. To insure a thorough
admixture of the carbonised compound with the purified melted metal the
charge is stirred up in the puddling chamber with the ordinary rabble, and if
desired pulverised manganese or other oxidising compound of iron may be
added through a tubular rabble or stirring rod previous to the addition of the
carbonised compounds of iron. If desired steam may be introduced as in the
Specification of the Letters Patent herein-before referred to.
SPECIFICATION in pursuance of the conditions of the Letters Patent, filed
by the said William Haden Richardson in the Great Seal Patent Office
on the 3rd December 1867.
TO ALL TO WHOM THESE PRESENTS SHALL COME, I, WILLIAMS
HADEN RICHARDSON, of Glasgow, in the County of Lanark, North Britain,
send greeting.
WHEREAS Her most Excellent Majesty Queen Victoria, by Her Letters
Patent, bearing date the Third day of June, in the year of our Lord One
thousand eight hundred and sixty-seven, in the thirtieth year of Her reign, s
did, for Herself, Her heirs and successors, give and grant unto me, the

page_text: said William Haden Richardson, Her special license that I, the said William
Haden Richardson, my executors, administrators, and assigns, or such others
as I, the said William Haden Richardson, my 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 "CERTAIN IMPROVEMENTS IN THE MANUFACTURE OF IRON AND STEEL, AND IN
THE MEANS OR APPARATUS FOR EFFECTING THE SAME," upon the condition (amongst
others) that I, the said William Haden Richardson, by an instrument in writing
under my band and seal, should particularly describe and ascertain the nature
of the said Invention, and in what manner the same was to be performed,
ad cause the same to be filed in the Great Seal Patent Office within
uder months next and immediately after the date of the said Letters
På ani
NOW KNOW YE, that I, the said William Haden Richardson, do
hereby declare the nature of my said Invention, and in what manner the
same is to be performed, to be particularly described and ascertained in and
by the following statement, that is to say:-
This Invention, which has for its object the purification of iron when in
the liquid state for the purpose of obtaining an improved metal from which
castings may be produced from which steel may be manufactured, also the
cheapening the cost of as well as the time occupied in producing such metals
or materials, consists as follows:-After the ore is reduced in the blast furnace
to the state of molten crude metal the furnace is tapped and the liquid metal
run off into a vessel or receptacle, where a blast of atmospheric air which
may be of a pressure of 4 lbs. on the square inch and upwards is introduced
into its mass through a hollow or tubular rabble or stirring rod of dimensions
suitable to the mass of metal under treatment, similar to that shown and
described in the Drawings and Specification of Letters Patent granted to me,
bearing date the 4th day of December 1866, and numbered 3189, and which
may be operated by hand or otherwise. The effect of the blast being intro-
duced into the mass of liquid metal in the vessel or receptacle is that the
impurities are very rapidly driven off, and a metal is obtained specially
adapted for producing castings of a high-quality, which may be run from the
melted metal direct as it is purified in the vessel or receptacle, or it may be
cooled and afterwards melted for being run into castings, and for this purpose
it may be used alone, or a proportion of pig iron, spiegel eisen, or other com-
pound of iron and carbon may be mixed with it in the melted or unmelted

page_text: state, according to the temperature of the liquid metal in the vessel or
receptacle.
Crude steel may also be produced by the same process, and to produce
steel of finer quality after the metal has been purified in the manner herein-
before described it may be run off into the chamber of a puddling furnace,
where unmelted spiegel eisen or other compound of iron and carbon is added
to it to recarbonise the metal, and so convert it into steel, which may be run
off into ingot moulds, or otherwise treated. To insure a thorough admixture
of the carbonized compound with the purified molten iron the charge is
stirred up in the pudding chamber with the ordinary rabble, and if desired
pulverised manganese or other oxidising compound of iron may be added
through a tubular rabble or stirring rod previous to the addition of carbonised.
compounds of iron. If desired steam may be introduced, as in the Speci-
fication of Letters Patent herein-before referred to.
And in order that my said Invention may be properly understood I now
proceed more particularly to set forth the system, mode, or manner in or
under which the same is or may be used or practically carried into effect, in
manner following, that is to say:
The first part of my Invention, which relates to the purifying of iron
when in the liquid state for the purpose of obtaining an improved metal from
which castings may be produced, and which also is capable of producing such
metal in a more rapid and cheaper manner than at present practised, consists in
discharging molten crude iron from a blast furnace into a vessel or receptacle,
which vessel or receptacle may be similar to the refining vessel of a refinery,
or the hearth of a puddling, boiling, or other similar furnace. When the
metal is placed in the refining vessel or receptacle, or on the hearth of a
puddling, boiling, or other furnace, it is purified by the injection into its mass
of a blast of atmospheric air, which blast I prefer should be of a pressure of
not less than 4 lbs, on the square inch, whilst a higher pressure of blast may
also be used. The injection or diffusion of the blast I effect by means of the
hollow or tubular rabble or stirring rod, similar or generally similar to that
shown in the Drawings, and set forth in the Specification of the Letters
Patent berein-before referred to. The hollow tubular rabble or stirring rod
may be operated by hand labour or by mechanical means. After the metal
has been brought to the boil by the powerful oxidising effect of the blast, and
whilst the iron exists in the fluid state prior to assuming the granulated con-
dition, the slag and cinder may or may not be run off, after which the vessel
or hearth is tapped, and the refined fluid metal is discharged into a casting
ladle for the purpose of being formed into moulds or ingots.

page_text: When crude cast steel is to be produced from the metal treated as herein-
before set forth the requisite quantity of pig iron, speigel eisen, or other
compound of iron and carbon is added to it for the purpose of carbonising it.
to the required extent, after which it is cast in the ordinary manner.
In making improved steel under this Invention I first reduce the iron into
the liquid state from the ore by the ordinary method in a blast or smelting
furnace; when melted the furnace is tapped, and the fluid iron runs into the
hearth of a puddling furnace, wherein it is submitted to a diffusion into its
mass of a blast of air or steam, or air and steam, the injection of which is
effected by using a hollow or tubular rabble or stirring rod, similar or
generally similar to that shown and described on the Drawings and in the
Specification of the Letters Patent herein-before referred to.
The injection
of the air or steam, or air and steam combined, has the effect of rapidly
eliminating the impurities by oxidisation; after these substances are eliminated
I work it with a rabble or other similar tool in a manner similar to that in
which the operation of puddling iron is effected, and after the metal has
separated from the slag and cinder, and while still existing in the fluid or'
granulated form, I add melted or unmelted speigel eisen or other compound of
iron and carbon thereto in quantity sufficient to supply the amount of carbon
necessary for producing the steel sought to be obtained, after which the car-
bonised metal may be cast, but I prefer to work it up into balls and finish it
by shingling and rolling, and when required it is reheated and again rolled.
In puddling steel the slag may be allowed to remain on for a time, so that the
temperature may be a little reduced.
Having now described the nature of my said Invention, and the manner in
which the same is or may be used or practically carried into effect, I would
observe in conclusion that I make no claim for the production of an improved
metal from which castings may be made, or the production of crude steel in
the manner I have herein-before set forth; neither do I claim the addition of
speigel eisen or other compound of iron and carbon to molten iron for the
purpose of supplying the carbon necessary for its conversion into steel; but
what I do claim as the Invention secured to me by the herein-before in part
recited Letters Patent is,-
First, the use of a puddling, boiling, or other similar furnace as the vessel
or receptacle in which the improved metal for producing castings is manu-
factured, or in which the crude stee! is produced, in the manner berein-before
set forth.
Second, the process of purifying crude iron in a separate vessel and after-
wards discharging the refined or purified metal into a puddling, boiling, or

page_text: other similar furnace, wherein speigel eisen or other compound of iron and
carbon is added thereto, and the finishing of the steel thus produced by
the ordinary operation of puddling, substantially in manner.
Third, the process of discharging molten crude iron from a blast furnace
into a puddling furnace, wherein it is refined by the diffusion into its mass of
jets of air or steam, or air and steam, and afterwards finishing it as steel, as
berein-before described.
In witness whereof, I, the said William Haden Richardson, have here-
unto set my hand and seal, this Twenty-eighth day of November,
One thousand eight hundred and sixty-seven.
WILLIAM HADEN RICHARDSON. (L.s.)
Witness,
ST. JOHN VINCENT DAY, C.E.,
166, Buchanan Street,
Glasgow.