18i8. 1 



THE CIVIL ENGINEER AND ARCHITECTS JOURNAL. 



169 



RAILWAY CARRIAGES. 



Thomas Dunn, of Windsor-bridge Iron Works, Manchester, for 

 " Improvements in rnilway wheels, jacks, Sjc." — Granted November 

 2, 1847 ; Enrolled May 2, 1848. 



This patent comprises several objects connected with railway loco- 

 motion. Mr. Dunn first describes several improvements in the con- 

 struction of wheels. One of the principal is the easy removal and 

 replacement of the tyre upon the wheel when it has become worn. 

 This he effects in several ways. His first method consists in 

 having the nave, arms, and an inner tyre cast in one piece, upon 

 which the outer tyre is bolted by means of a flange, which projects 

 inwards a few inches beyond the inner surface of tlie tyre. The 

 joint between these two pieces, out of which the wheel is formed, 

 is packed with gutta percha or some other elastic substance. A 

 second method consists in having the nave of the wheel cast with 

 mortices in it for the reception of wooden arms or spokes, and in 

 afterwards fixing the tyre to the nave, by bolts passing down 

 through the middle of the spokes. According to a third method, 

 that part of the wheel which is occupied by the arms is entirely 

 filled in with segments of wood, between which segments there are 

 driven wedges of either wood or iron, so that the wheel is almost 

 entirely solid. The tyre is attached to the nave by bolts, as in the 

 former instance. 



The patentee makes his axles of wood and iron, the wtood form- 

 ing an internal solid core, with an outer covering of iron. He also 

 makes axles of several pieces, by having the naves truly bored out, 

 and driving into them a short axle, or rather part of an axle, 

 which is formed on the outside of the wheel, into the journal or 

 bearing, and on the inside projects only a few inches, leaving suffi- 

 cient strength of material to pass a cotter through to retain the 

 axle in the nave. The two wheels are then connected by rods of 

 iron, which have collars formed upon them near to their ends. 

 The portions beyond the collars are passed through holes formed 

 in the naves of the wheels, and have screws upon their outer ends. 

 so that the wheels are, in a measure, devoid of axles — the connec- 

 tion between them being formed by the rods. 



The second portion of Mr. Dunn's improvements relates to the 

 construction of jacks for moving carriages and locomotives on to 

 the line of rails when they have got off. The chief feature of this 

 improvement consists in providing the jacks with four small fric- 

 tion-rollers at the bottom of the pillar, by which the jack, with its 

 load, is easily made to run upon a smooth surface in any direction. 



A third improvement consists of a means of removing carriages 

 from one line of rails to another, which the patentee effects by 

 means of a low truck, running upon a set of cross rails. A portion 

 of the main lines of rails is made to form an inclined plane at 

 pleasure, by means of cams fixed under the rails, whereby he is 

 enabled to run the carriages on to the low truck. 



LUBRICATING COMPOSITION. 



Thomas Denne, of Bermondsey, Surrey, strap manufacturer, 

 for ^^Improvements in the manufacture of grease or compositions 

 for atmospheric pipes, and for lubricating the axles and moving parts 

 of machinery." — Granted April 27; Enrolled October 27, 1847. 

 [Reported in Newton's London Journal.^ 



The improvements consist, first, in preparing a lubricating com- 

 position by combining oil, or tallow or other grease, with certain 

 light, soft, white, and unctuous precipitates or bodies, insoluble in 

 water (so as to be incapable of being used as detergents), and ob- 

 tainable in the manner hereafter described ; secondly, in preparing 

 a lubricating composition by combining oil, or tallow, or other 

 grease, with vegetable black or with lamp-hlack ; and thirdly, in 

 mixing the compositions, prepared according to the first and second 

 improvements, in such proportions as may be desirable, in order to 

 render the same more suitable than when used alone for the lubri- 

 cating purposes above mentioned. 



The mode of carrying out the first improvement is as follows :— 

 The patentee introduces into a vessel or tank such a quantity of 

 liquor calcis, or of a saturated or other solution of sulphate of mag- 

 nesia, or of sulphate of magnesia and ammonia, as he considers 

 will be sufficient for the quantity of composition required to be 

 prepared; he then gradually pours into and mixes with the same 

 a strong solution of such of the vegetable or animal oils as are 

 most suitable for the purpose, and which have been rendered 

 miscible in water by boiling the same with alkali or caustic ley ; 

 or, instead of the solution just mentioned, he employs a strong 



solution of either the soft or hard soap of commerce ; or he intro- 

 duces the liquor calcis, or the solution of sulphate of magnesia, or 

 of sulphate of magnesia and ammonia, into the pasty and sapo- 

 naceous fluid, obtained by boiling either oil, or tallow or other 

 grease, with alkali or caustic ley,— having first drawn the fire and 

 allowed the pasty mass to coo'l down to 100° Fahrenheit. The 

 patentee continues to add the saponaceous fluid so long as any 

 light, soft, white, and unctuous precipitate continues to be pro- 

 duced ; and then he separates such precipitate from the mother 

 liiiuor, by filtration through a fine linen sieve, — preserving the 

 mother liquor when it contains, in solution, any valuable salts, so 

 as to make it useful for manufacturing caustic leys. 



1121b. of the precipitate, obtained as above, are to be combined 

 with from 40 lb. to 1 12 lb. of palm or other oil or grease : the quan- 

 tity of oil required will vary according to the peculiar character 

 of the oil employed ; but about 56 lb. wUl, in most cases, be suffi- 

 cient. The apparatus used for effecting this combination is a 

 cylindrical iron vessel or mill, open at the top, containing a re- 

 volving agitator, and having two pipes at the bottom, furnished 

 with stop-cocks, for the purpose of discharging any water or other 

 fluid that might accumulate inconveniently during the process. 

 After tlie precipitate has been introduced into the mill, and the 

 agitator set in motion, the palm or other oil is gradually added ; 

 then, as soon as the proper quantity of oil has been used, the 

 mixture will thicken and assume a consistence considerably greater 

 than the oil or other ingredient or ingredients possessed in the first 

 instance ; and a chemical combination will so far take place, that 

 the greater portion of the mother liquor contained in the precipi- 

 tate will be driven out, and must be drawn off by the pipes above 

 mentioned. A supply of cold water is next allowed to run upon 

 the grease or composition in the mill, so that it may be washed 

 therein, in order to cleanse it from all adhesive impurities of the 

 mother liquor ; after which, the water is to be drawn off, and then 

 a few pounds of oil are to be mixed with the composition, to sepa- 

 rate any adhering particles of water, and to give it a finer and 

 better appearance. The grease or composition is now ready for 

 use ; but if it should not possess sufficient consistence for the pur- 

 pose to which it is to be applied, from 5 lb. to 28 lb. of melted 

 tallow should be mixed with it in the mill ; or, when the tallow is to 

 be used, it may be mixed with the composition before the latter is 

 washed with water, as before mentioned. 



The second improvement consists in the production of a black 

 grease or composition, which may be exposed to great extremes of 

 heat and cold, and does not readily freeze, by combining 160 lb. 

 of palm, olive, or other oil, or grease, with from 10 to 40 lb. of 

 vegetable black or lamp-black. The oil is first placed in the mill 

 before described, and then the agitator being put in motion, the 

 vegetable black or lamp-black is added in small quantities at a 

 time ; and the mixture is agitated until the black grease or compo- 

 sition has acquired a sufficient amount of consistence. 



The third improvement consists in combining a portion of the 

 black grease or composition with grease or composition made in 

 the manner described under the first improvement, to prevent the 

 same from freezing when exposed to frost or snow, or to protect it 

 from the action of extremes, either of heat or cold : the combina- 

 tion of the compositions is effected by the use of the mill before 

 described. 



BRONZING METAL SURFACES. 



Chakles de la Salzede, of Paris, for " Improvements in brass- 

 ing and bronzing the surfaces of steel, iron, xinc, lead, and tin," — 

 Granted September 30, 1847; Enrolled March 30, 1848. 



The improvements relate to coating steel, iron, zinc, lead, and 

 tin, with brass and bronze. For the purpose of coating metal with 

 brass, a bath is prepared, composed of the following ingredients : 

 — 5,000 parts by weight of distilled water, 610 parts of sub-car- 

 bonate of potash, 25 parts of chloride of copper, 48 parts of sul- 

 phate of zinc, 305 parts of azotate of ammonia, and 12 parts of 

 cyanide of potassium. The cyanide of potassium is dissolved in a 

 small portion (about 120 parts) of the cold distilled water ; at the 

 same time, the sub-carbonate of potash, chloride of copper, and 

 sulphate of zinc, are introduced into the remaining portion of dis- 

 tilled water (contained in a separate vessel, and having its tem- 

 perature increased from 144° to 172° Fahrenheit, to facilitate the 

 dissolution of these matters) ; and when they are perfectly dis- 

 solved, and the solution has become cool, the azotate of ammonia 

 is added. After the solution has been shaken for a long time, it i& 



23 



