IMPROVEMENTS IN FURNACES OR APPARATUS FOR SMELTING ORES AND MINERALS, AND FOR THE MAKING OF PIG IRON
Year: 1850

page_text: TO ALL TO WHOM THESE PRESENTS SHALL COME, I, MATTHEW
HODGKINSON, of Redstreet, near Newcastle-under-Lyme, in the County of
Stafford, Mine Agent, send greeting.
WHEREAS Her present most Excellent Majesty Queen Victoria, by Her
Royal Letters Patent under the Great Seal of Great Britain, bearing date at
Westminster, the Second day of November, in the fourteenth year of Her
reign, did, for Herself,. Her heirs and successors; give and grant unto me,
the said Matthew Hodgkinson, Her especial licence, full power, sole privilege
and authority, that I, the said Matthew Hodgkinson, my exors, adññors, and
assigns, and such others as I, the said Matthew Hodgkinson, my exors,
adiiors, or assigns, should at any time agree with, and no others, from time
to time and at all times during the term of years therein mentioned, should
and lawfully might make, use, exercise, and vend, within England, Wales,
the Town of Berwick-upon-Tweed, and in all Her Majesty's Colonies and
Plantations abroad, and in the Islands of Jersey, Guernsey, Alderney, Sark,
and Man, my Invention of "IMPROVEMENTS IN FURNACES OR APPARATUS FOR
SMELTING ORES AND MINERALS, AND FOR THE MAKING OF PIG IRON;" in which
said Letters Patent is contained a proviso, obliging me, the said Matthew
Hodgkinson, by an instrument in writing under my hand and seal, particu-
larly to describe and ascertain the nature of my said Invention, and in what
manner the same is to be performed, and to cause the same to be inrolled
in Her Majesty's High Court of Chancery within six calendar months next
and immediately after. the date of the said in part recited Letters Patent,
as in and by the same, reference being, thereunto, had, will more fully and at
large appear.

page_text: NOW KNOW YE, that in compliance with the said proviso, I, the said
Matthew Hodgkinson, do hereby declare that the nature of my said Invention,
and the manner in which the same is to be performed, is particularly described
and ascertained in and by the following description thercof, reference being had
to the Drawings hereunto annexed, and to the letters and figures marked
thereon (that is to say):-
:-
My improvements in furnaces or apparatus for smelting ores and minerals,
and for the making of pig iron, have for their object the economy of fuel in
the above operations, and to dispense with the use of an engine and blowing
apparatus for supplying the tuyere holes with air. These objects are effected
by the peculiar construction and arrangement of the parts of the furnace or
reducing apparatus, shewn in the accompany Drawings, in which Fig. 1
represents a longitudinal vertical section, taken through the middle of the
apparatus. Fig. 2 is a transverse vertical section taken in the line 1, 2, of
Fig. 1, looking towards the left-hand end; and Fig. 3 is another transverse
vertical section taken in the line 3, 4, of Fig. 1, and looking to the right
hand. Instead of placing the ores or minerals with the fuel in a high mass,
as is usually the case in blast furnaces, I place it on an inclined floor a, a,
Fig. 1, in such a manner that the charge does not lie in so solid and com-
pact a mass as in the ordinary blast furnace. Besides, this floor being inclined
downwards from the chimney or exit aperture towards the hearth or pot
which receives the melted metal, the sides of the chamber are inclined or
curved as shewn in the sectional Figures 2 and 3.
This chamber is repre-
sented in the Drawing as being about ten feet high, but it may be made
higher if thought desirable, and it is supplied through the openings b, b, b, b,
at the top, with the charge of fuel, and the ore or mineral to be acted
upon. At the lower part of this chamber there is a long narrow opening
c, c, c, c, about two feet deep and not more than a foot wide, and communi-
cating with another chamber or channel or channel d, d, d, d, below. Ore and
fuel being fed into the chamber a, a, through the apertures b, b, b, b, above,
falls on to the inclined floor, and the charge being ignited, the ore and
incandescent fuel will soon become white hot at the lower part, and will
gradually drop down to the narrow part of the chamber, and pass through
the long narrow opening c, c, into the chamber or channel d, d, below, where
it will meet with strong currents of air from the tuyere holes f, f, and the
metal will thereby soon become reduced to a liquid state, and run down the
channel d, d, into the pot, well, or hearth e, e. In the Drawing Fig. 1, I have
shewn a furnace or fire-place as adapted to one end of the apparatus; this,
however, is not absolutely necessary, and I sometimes dispense with it, and

page_text: merely admit streams of either hot or cold air through the tuyere holes g, g,
to the chamber a, a, for the purpose of increasing the intensity of the heat
therein. When, however, the furnace or external fire-place is employed as
shewn in the Drawing, the heated air and gases and other products of com-
bustion arising therefrom are made to pass through the tuyere holes g,g,
instead of having an open passage of considerable size. The draft from this
external place is caused by the chimney at the other end.
One of the principal advantages of this construction or arrangement of
furnaces is, that the charge of materials instead of lying in a solid mass as
in a high furnace, and having nothing to support it below, is in this instance
supported by the inclined floor, which is constructed on such an inclination,
that the materials when fed in from above shall slip down the incline and
fall lightly together, instead of becoming condensed into a solid mass, as is
the case in high blast furnaces; the consequence is, that the draft to support
combustion and carry on the operation in a proper manner need not be so
powerful as is required in high blast furnaces. Another very important point
in my improved furnace is, that instead of forcing the blast through tuyeres
into the lower part of the furnace, and causing it to pass upwards out at the
opening at the top of the furnace, where the furnace is charged, thereby
losing a considerable portion of heat, I, by means of a draft chimney, draw
the air in the opposite direction, that is, from the feeding apertures through
the mass of materials in the apparatus to the most highly heated part of the
furnace, and from thence into the draft chimney. By this means it will be
seen that an engine and apparatus to create a powerful draft is dispensed with,
and a considerable economy thereby produced. It will now be understood,
that as the melted metal falls into the chamber or channel d, d, this latter
being on an incline, the metal and scoria will run down into the pot, well, or
hearth, from which the scoria and metal may be tapped off in the usual way.
I would here observe, that I sometimes make furnaces without the long
narrow opening c, c, and channel or chamber d, d; and in the Drawing I
have shewn at Fig. 4 a longitudinal vertical section, and at Fig. 5 a plan
view of a furnace constructed in this manner. In this case the long narrow
opening c, c, and channel or chamber d, d, below, being dispensed with, the
floor A, A, may be either flat or slightly curved in a concave form, but being
inclined from end to end at an angle of about forty-five degrees, the molten
metal will easily find its way down into the well, pot, or hearth, as in the
former instance. In Fig. 4 it will be seen, that a fire is adapted to the lower
end, and that the heat and products of combustion pass therefrom through a
contracted opening h, h, into the exterior of the reducing furnace. The fuel

page_text: and other materials are supplied to the chamber a, a, through the funnels or
openings i, i, above; these funnels may be of various shapes, as shewn in
Figure 4, or in the detached views, Figures 6 and 7. Sometimes I find it
convenient to feed the apparatus at the first and uppermost funnel or opening,
only leaving the others for the admission of air to the interior of the furnace,
in the same manner as in the former instance. It will be understood that
the chamber a, a, must be furnished with tuyere holes at its lower part, as
in Fig. 1, to admit either hot or cold air to the melting metal.
Having now described my Invention, and the best means with which I am
acquainted for carrying the same into effect, I would observe in conclusion,
that although I have mentioned forty-five degrees as the angle at which I
prefer to incline the floor of the furnace, yet I do not mean to confine myself to
such angle or inclination, as. I have found other degrees of inclination to give
satisfactory results,, although in practice. I find that the above-mentioned
angle, or a little, more or less, will answer better than a greater approach to
the vertical or horizontal line. Neither do I intend to confine myself to the
precise arrangement or construction of parts herein shewn and described, as
they may doubtless be varied without departing from the nature and object
of my Invention, but that which I consider to be new, and therefore wish to
claim as the Invention secured to me by the herein-before in part recited
Letters Patent, is,-
First, constructing furnaces for smelting ores or minerals, or making pig
iron, with an inclined floor, on which the charge of fuel and other materials
is supported while under the action of the fire, the whole being combined and
arranged in such a manner as to admit the air to support combustion to the
upper part of the charge, the molten metal being allowed to run down the
inclined floor to the pot, well, or hearth.
Second, I claim in combination with an inclined floor the narrow longitu-
dinal opening c, c, and chamber or chamel d, d, below, and also the means
shewn and described, or any mere modification thereof for, admitting air at
the top or upper part of the chamber a, a, and causing the said air to pass
through the charge to the under part thereof, and from thence to the
chimney, after having acted on the incandescent fuel and semi-molten
materials.
In witness whereof, I, the said Matthew Hodgkinson, have hereunto set
my hand and seal, this Second day of May, in the year of our Lord
One thousand eight hundred and fifty-one.
MATTHEW (L.S.) HODGKINSON.

page_text: AND BE IT REMEMBERED, that on the Second day of May, in the
year of our Lord 1851, the aforesaid Matthew Hodgkinson came before our
said Lady the Queen in Her Chancery, and acknowledged the Specification
aforesaid, and all and every thing therein contained and specified, in form
above written. And also the Specification aforesaid was stamped according to
the tenor of the Statute made for that purpose.
Enrolled the Second day of May, in the year of our Lord One thousand