US746249A - Converting copper matte. - Google Patents

Description

No. 746,249. PATENTED DEC. 8, 1903. R. BAGGALEY. CONVERTING COPPER MATTE.

APPLICATION FILED APR/7, 1903.

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No. 746,249. PATENTED DEC. 8, 1903.

R. BAGGALBY.

CONVERTING COPPER MATTE.

APPLIGATION FILED APR. 7. 1903.

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No. #145,249. PATENTED DEC. 8, 1903..

- R. BAGGALEY. CONVERTING COPPER MATTE.

APPLICATION FILED APR. 7. 1903. I R0 :(ODEL. 4 BHEETB-SHEIFT 3.

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RfBAGGALBY. Y r CONVERTING COPPER MATTE.

APPLICATION FILED APR. 7. 1903. no MODEL. 4 SHEETS-SHEET 4.

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Patented fDecember s, 1903.

PATENT OFFICE.

RALPH BAGGALEY, OF PITTSBURG, PENNSYLVANIA.

" CONVERTING COPPER MATTE.

SPECIFICATION forming part of Letters Patent No. 746,249, dated December 8, 1903. Application filed April '7, 1903. Serial No. 151,529. (No specimens.)

To all whom it may concern;-

Be it known that I, RALPH BAGGALEY, of Pittsburg, Allegheny county, Pennsylvania, have invented a new and useful Method of Converting Copper Matte, of which thefollowing is a full, clear, and exact description, reference being had to the accompanying drawings, forming part of this specification,

converter as at present used will be quickly destroyed by higherheats. For this reason 7 the blast is delivered to the converter in moderate volume, and the converting process is therefore continued-sometimes for more thanthree hourssimplybecausethe converterwalls will not admit of higher temperatures being used. In addition to this, in the pres-. ent converters it is impossible to. use brick linings, notwithstanding the fact that such linings would be much cheaper than others, because of the fact that it has been found that the heat of the interior walls will rapidly penetrate any kind of brick and will weaken and destroy the'meta l shell of the converter itself. a n

The refining of copper by my process consists simply in the elimination of various elements successively in the order in which each can be oxidized. l

The atmosphere furnishes the cheapest source of supply of oxygen, and the reason that copper, gold, silver, nickel, and cobalt are freed from their impuritiesthrough the action of the converting-blast is becauseiron, arsenic, selenium, tellurinm, bismuth, antimony, lead, and other elements are oxidized,.

and thus eliminated, before oxidizing commences in the case of the above-mentioned metals, whichit is desired to recover. Hence the larger the volume of air that is delivered into the molten mass the greater the result- :ing heat and the quicker the desired result is accomplished.

vIn my process I use a greater volume of blast, preferably two, three, or even five times the volume of blast, in a given time than is used in present practice, and I accomplish a given amount of work for this reason in a fraction of the time at present required.

Should converters as at present used be provided with water-jackets or even with coils for the circulation of water orair throng-h thelining at the latter portion of the converting process whenthe heat begins to fail through the reduced percentages of oxidizable inipurities,or when the matte has reached approximately seventy per cent. or eighty per cent. of copper, the contents oft he converter will solidify and the process will be brought to a standstill and the desired refining mm In the ordinary converterv dered abortive. not provided with water-jackets, even with the addition of blocks of cord-wood from time to time in a feeble effort to maintain the temperature until the process can be rushed through to, completion, great difficulty is experienced and great expense is incurred.

' .Sometimes the refiningprocess is brought to a standstill through the obstruction of the' blast'by the formation of copper noses on the ends of the twyers in the converter. The

final operation is thus rendered erratic and uncertain andis'at times unduly hastened in order to complete the work before the mass solidifies. .The net result of these conditions is necessarily .po or work, or at all events not such good and perfect work as would be possible where the temperature of the molten mass can be regulated at will and held just high enough so that it would be impossible for copper noses to form.

I provide for and counteract the injurious eifects that would otherwise result from the greatly-increased volume ofblast with its consequent increasedheat'sin theea'rlylstages of the converting process by means of abundant streams of cooling water flowing through a number of narrowmetal jackets, which cooling streams are capable of regulation at will in each separate jacket,- whileduringthe later stages of the converting process. I. supply to the converter the auxiliary heat of a flame that is also capable of regulation at will and by means of which I am enabled to produce the best work and with the greatest economy, dispensing entirely with the present tedious, expensive, andunworkmanlike practice of removing copper noses by steel bars, sledgehammers, and manual labor.

Fluxes of any kind, whether they be silica, iron, lime, dolomite, or other flux, will be quickly melted through the intense heat and violent agitation of the molten mass produced by the great volume of air and will be quickly mixed and readily taken up by the mass as a means of forming the desired slag.

In the accompanying drawings I showa converter suitable for the practice of my invention.

2 2 are metal end plates of the converter, which are preferably dished and are connected by longitudinal bars or channels 3, which constitute therewith a supporting-cradle for the water-jackets and the contained refrac tory lining. These water-jackets are made of parallel sections 4 4, which are shaped to suit the contour of the converter and are preferably long and narrow. They are set edge to edge, being connected by bolts passing through marginal flanges 5, and they are provided with transverse flanges 6, which fit against the sides of one of the channel-bars, as shown in Fig. 4, and are secured thereto and to each other by bolts 7. The waterjackets at the ends of the converter are constituted by hollow plates 8 8, set on the inner side of the end plates 2 2.

Each of the jacket-sections 4 4 and each of the sections 8 S has a waterinlet 9, communicating with a water-supply pipe 10, which derives its water from a swiveled water connection 11 at the axis of rotation at one end of the converter, and at the upperend each of the sections has an outlet-passage 12, connecting with apipe 13, leading to a vertical flexible stand-pipe 14, which being elevated insures that the water-jackets are always kept full of water and that escape of bubbles of steam and air can freely occur. Being flexible the stand-pipe does not interfere with the rotation of the converter.

Inside the water-jackets is a refractory lining 15, made of bricks composed of chrome ore, lnagnesite, silica, or dolomite, or the lining may be made of plastic refractory material rammed in place. I prefer, however, to make the lining of bricks. This has not hitherto been done in copper-converters, and I am enabled to do it by the use of the waterjackets, which keep the outer surface of the converter from becoming overheated.

The upper part of the converter is constituted bya removable section 16, composed of a metal shell 17 with an interior refractory lining, and it is provided with suitable lifting rings or lugs 18, by which when desired it can be removed to afford access to the interior for purposes ofrepair.

The converter has twyers 19, extending through the refractory lining and through the water-jackets to a wind-box 20, which derives its supply of air from a pipe 21, swiveled at the end of the converter in the axis of rotation. l i

The converter is preferably mounted on wheels 22, which are journaled in a founda tion 23, the end plates 22 being formed with a peripheral rim 24, which bears on the wheels. The wheels 22 at one end of the con-- verter are provided with flanges which engage and hold the rim 24-; but the wheels 22 at the other end are uniianged, so as to permit free longitudinal expansion of the converter.

In order to rotate the converter, I provide it at one end with a segmental pinion 25, engaging a rack 26, which may be reciprocated by a power-cylinder 27 or other suitable means. This rack may be held in engagement with the pinion by a cam 28, which bears against the back of the rack and constitutes a guide. By rotating the cam the rack is freed and can be disengaged from the pinion.

S is a spout by which fluxes can be delivered to the converter, Fig. 4.

The converter is provided with means for supplying the heat of a flame to the surface of the charge at the end of the blow when nearly all the bases of the matte have been oxidized, and the heat of oxidation has thus failed. For this purpose I introduce at the end of the converter one or more burners 29, adapted to supply a jet of gas or of oil sprayed with air or steam, and I am enabled thereby to generate in the converter as intense degree of heat as may be required. The pipes 30 and 31, which supply the burner, are provided with swinging joints, so that they will not interfere with the rotation of the converter. In using the converter it is charged with molten matte, and jets of air are blown into it from the twyers, the air being supplied in large volume, as above stated. This effects the conversion much more rapidly than at present, and I am enabled to do this by the use of the water-jackets back of the refractory lining, which prevent the destruction of the converter-shell at the beginning of the blow, when the oxidation and generation of the heat are rapid, and by the use of the burner 29, from which I supply heat to the surface of the charge toward the end of the blow, when the oxidation and heat of chemical combination fail. By the auxiliary heat of the burner Ican retain the matte during the final stage of the blow in the necessary hot and liquid condition without danger of chilling it by the water in the jackets or by the cooling effect of the large blast of air. The heat from the burner also prevents the formation of copper noses atthe twyers,which heretofore have constituted a source of annoyance and expense. It will thus be seen that by the cooling action of the water I prevent the destruction of the converter by the high temperature generated ITO the water-jacket and the air-blast, would be.

greater than in ordinary converters, and that the large volume of air-blast enables me to carry on the process very rapidly. By the term large volume of air I mean larger than is employed in ordinary converters per unit of charge in present practice.

My invention enables me to work with a I minimum of labor and to produce converted I metal at a temperature suitablefor casting or for delivery in molten condition into a furnace for subsequently refining. It also enables me to add silica and other fluxes to the charge instead of depending upon the con- 2o verter lining to supply the silica needed for the slagging of the impurities.-

By reason of the intense heat and greater fluidity of the contents of my converter the slag will contain a lower percentage of metal than do the converter slags of the present practice. 7

By handling the metal in small batches and by hastening the work of the converter I am enabled to lessen the long intervals of inaction of the men employed at the converter in vail; the ability to use a cheaper lining made of refractory brick and the long life of the lining; the ability to open up the entire top of the converter quickly by machinery and without manual labor for repairs or for other purposes while in place; the ability to raise the matte to a high enough temperature to admit of its being transferred by gravity from one furnace to another, thus eliminat- 5o ing entirely the investments for lifting machinery and the heavy cost for labor; by reason of the great and controllable heat the ability to add a large proportion of silica flux, thus producing a lighter slag, and consequently a'better separation of the slag from the matte than at present prevails; the ability to dispense with the present expensive method of lining converters with silica, which linings are from eighteen to twenty four inches in thickness and are provided for the purpose of satisfying the iron; a large reduction in the item of labor, and the ability to convert copperin much less time than at present required.

I claim- The method of converting copper, which consists in introducing into the molten matte a large volume of air, creating thereby an intense heat in the'matte, abstracting a portion of such heat by a cooling medium at the beginning of the blow, while the oxidation is rapid, and supplementing the heat by a flame at the end of the blow when the oxidation fails; substantially as described. '75

In testimony whereof I have hereunto set .my hand.

RALPH BAGGALEY.

Witnesses:

GEO. B. BLEMING, H. M. OORWIN.

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