56 



THE CIVIL ENGINEER AND ARCHITECT'S JOURNAL. 



[Fkhruabv, 



STOVES AND FURNACES. 



^^■ILLIAM Edward Newton', of Chancery-lane, Middlesex, for 

 •' improvements in the construction of xtoven, griilet:^ furimcex, orfire- 

 plncex, for various useful purposes." (A communication.) — Granted 

 .luly 6th, 1818; Enrolled January 6th, 181.9. 



The improvements relate to the construction of stoves and 

 other closed furnaces, for the more perfect development of the 

 heat produced by the combustion of fuel, and the prevention of 

 smoke. The fire-place containina^ the fuel is either completely 

 surrounded by an outer case, forminfj a chamber within which the 

 atmos])heric air is heated, or only partially closed, leaving the 

 front of the fire exposed. In either case means are provided for 

 replenisliing the fire. The atmospheric air passes through holes 

 in the sides, and is regulated by registers over the holes. The 

 outer case which incloses the fire-place is not the shell of the stove, 

 l)ut there is another, partially inclosing both the fire-place and the 

 case immediately surrounding it : this ease may be ornamented in 

 any tasteful manner. Above the stove just described there is 

 another chamber, into which the products of the combustion in 

 the fire-place, and the heated atmospheric air from the chamber 

 surrounding the fire-place, are conveyed, by means of a conical- 

 shaped pipe, called a throat ; the area of which where it is con- 

 nected to the fire-place, is larger than the upper end, where there 

 is a i>late which divides the lower portion of the stove from the 

 upper chamber ; the products of combustion in the fire-place, pass 

 through this throat from the fire to the upper heating chamber, at 

 the same time the heated air in the chamber, sun-ounding the fire- 

 place, is also passed into the throat at its lowest part, and conse- 

 quently ensures an admixture of the heated atmospheric air with 

 the inflammable products from the fire-place. The heated products 

 pass and circulate round the interior of the upper chamber, and 

 then pass downward through a vertical pipe, into the outer chamber 

 of the lower part of the stove, by which the external case of it is 

 heated ; thence by a pipe to the chimney. The heated air from 

 the chamber immediately surrounding the fire-place, in passing 

 into the throat, intimately mixes with the inflammable products 

 from the fire-place, and is thereby consumed. 



The improvements are also applicable to furnaces for puddling 

 and making iron. The atmospheric air may be admitted to the 

 throat direct from without, in its natural state of temperature, 

 instead of passing it to the chamber, and thereby heating it. 

 Steam, as well as the atmospheric air, may be admitted to the 

 throat; the mode also of applying the atmospheric air to the 

 throat may be varied, as it may be admitted at the sides, by several 

 openings, or by one opening, or in the middle of the throat ; the 

 object being to intimately mix the atmospheric air and the inflam- 

 mable matters from the "fire-place together ; the throat may also 

 be increased in size between the upper and lower apertures, for 

 tlie purpose of giving longer time for the air and products to mix, 

 previous to passing into the heating chamber. 



EXTRACTION OF METALS. 



William Hunt, of Dodder-hill, Worcester, chemist, for " I'm- 

 prorement.s- in obtaining certain metals from certain compounds con- 

 tainimj those metals ; and in obtaining other products by the use of 

 certain compound^! containing metal." — Granted June 21; Enrolled 

 December 22, 1 818. 



The improvements relate to the extraction of certain metals 

 from compounds containing them, and also to the manufacture of 

 sulphate of soda and carbonate of soda from common salt. The 

 first improvement, relating to the extraction of metals, consists in 

 obtaining in a metallic state, from iron slag of iron furnaces, the 

 iron contained therein ; and obtaining in a metallic state the cop- 

 ])er and tin from the slags containing those metals. The iron is 

 extracted from the slag in the following manner : — First, the iron 

 slag from puddling and refining furnaces is (instead of being al- 

 lowed to run from the furnace, and cooled in masses) granulated 

 by running it from the furnace into a vessel of water ; or, if more 

 convenient, the slag may be crushed by proper machinery ; the 

 object being to reduce the slag into very small pieces. The gra- 

 nulated or i:rushed slag is then mixed with small coal, in the pro- 

 portion of about ;jth of the slag. This mixture is then placed in a 

 reverberatory furnace, and covered with a thin layer of small coal, 

 and exposed to a full red heat for about 24 hours, at the end of 

 wliich time the iron will be produced fnuu tlie slag. It shouhl be 

 tlieu taken from the furnace, and cooled i[uickly in water. The 

 metallic iron tlius obtained may be used for the production of pig- 



iron (by mixing it with the ordinary burden of the blast furnace) 

 or for bar-iron, in which case it is charged into the puddling or 

 refining furnaces with the ordinary metal. — For extracting the 

 copper contained in the slags of copper, the slag is granulated or 

 crushed, as in the case of iron slags, and mixed with raw sulphur- 

 ous ores and small coal, in the proportion of 30 lb. of sulpluir con- 

 tained in the raw ores, 10 lb. of lime, and 20 lb. of small coal, to 

 one ton of the granulated slag. These are mixed together with 

 water, to form a paste, and submitted to operation in a reverbera- 

 tory furnace, as in the former case, the resulting products being a 

 regulus of copper and a slag. In the ordinary copper slags the 

 quantity of copper contained therein is about one-half jier cent., 

 and the regulus contains about 35 per cent, of copper, in conse- 

 quence of the process of calcination of the ore being only carried 

 a certain height ; but the patentee proposes to carry it so far that 

 the regulus shall contain about (iO per cent, of copper, and the slag 

 about one per cent. 



The second improvement is for obtaining sulphate of soda from 

 common salt ; and also in obtaining from the sulphate of soda thus 

 produced, carbonate of soda. In the process, for the purpose of 

 decomposing the salt, artificial sulphuret of iron or artificial sulph- 

 uret of manganese is used. The quantity of sulphur and of iron 

 contained in the artificial sulphuret is first ascertained, and should 

 the proportion of iron to the sulphur therein not be equal to about 

 three of iron to one of sulphur, then about that proportion is to 

 be made up by the addition of a proper quantity of oxide of iron, 

 in a powdered state. It is then mixed with common salt, in the 

 proportion of about two parts of salt to one of sulphur contained 

 in the compound. AVhen mixed, it is to be placed in a furnace, 

 and subjected to a transmitted heat ; atmospheric air being at the 

 same time admitted into the furnace, by which chlorine gas and a 

 small quantity of hydrochloric acid are evolved. If it is not de- 

 sirable to cidiect the chlorine gas for any subsequent purpose, then 

 steam is passed into the furnace, which has the effect of facilitating 

 the operation, but converts nearly all the chlorine gas into hydro- 

 chloric acid. The chlorine gas being now present only in small 

 quantity, the products from this operation are sulphate of soda and 

 oxide of ieon, which may be separated in any ordinary manner. 



The annexed engniving is a section of the furnace. A, is a 

 chamber for iron jiyrites, the gaseous products from wliicli pass 

 through an opening near the top, and through the vertical cham- 

 ber B, and then through the horizontal passage C ; tlie vertical 

 chamber B being charged with a quantity of the compo\uul of the 

 artificial sulphuret of iron and common salt, through wliich the 

 products from the pyrites in their passage pass. When exposed in 

 this chamber a suflicient length of time, it is raked and sjiread 

 over the bottom of the chamber D, where being exposed to an 

 increased temperature, the process is completed ; the resultants 

 being, as before stated, sulphate of soda and oxide of iron. E, the 

 fire-grate of the furnace; the products of combustion passing from 

 thence through the flues in the direction indicated by the arrows, 

 and finally through the flue F, to the chimney. The olitaining 

 carbonate of soda from the sulphate of soda thus produced, is 

 elfected by fidlowing nearly the same process as that described 

 with respect to the production of sulphate of soda. 



