US77591A - Improvement in collecting gold, silver, and other metals from their ores - Google Patents

Description

- J. OORSON. COLLECTING GOLD, SILVER, AND OTHER METALS PROM THEIR 011 No. 77,591. Pat nted May 5, 186 8.

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Letters Patent No. 77,591, dated May 5. 1868.

IMPROVEMENT Ill COLLECTING GOLD, SILVER, AND OTHER METALS FROM THEIR. ORES.

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TO ALL WHOM IT MAY CONCERN:

I Be it known that I, JOHN (Jonson, of Washington city, District of Columbia, have invented a new' Process for Collecting Gold, Silver, and Copper from their Ones, and aluminum from clay and spar; and I do hereby declare that the following is a full and exact description thereof, reference being hail to the accompanying drawings, and to the letters of reference marked thereon.

To enable others skilled in the art and mystery of mining to make use of'my invention, I will proceed to describe the process, and necessary means to be used in the practice of it, and theneccssary tools and machinery properly belonging to it.

I use two machines, auxiliary to each other, in order to complete the process of crystallization and amalgamation of the metals found in the ores. In one, I use independent currents of electricity, of sutlicient intensity to crystallize the metals sought for in the orcs. In the other, the amalgamater, I use no electricity whatever. Both machines must be insulated from earth-currents by glass pillars or globes, or other noorconducting substance.

The crystallizcr, Sheet No. 1, is built as follows: Atub or pan, of wood or iron, of suitable size, (say eight or ten feet in diameter and two or three feet high,) is constructed. If the panis of wood, a false bottom of glass, one and a half or two inches thick, or of well-burned and glazed tiles, is-provided.

The pan is set on a. suitable non-conducting substance, as glass pillars or balls, as shown at B. A glass shaft, G, is used to propel the mixing-wheels, or any other means as ell'ectual, to insulate the pan from earthcurrents. I

Four or eight arms, D, are attached to and are driven by the shaft. The arms carry'the mixing-wheels through the pulp. The mixing-wheels E E are made'ofwood, twenty-four to thirty inches diameter, and two to three inches thick, fastened to the arms by any suitable device. The face of the wheels is covered with a metal tire, and are arranged in pairs. One half of the wheels (numerically) are covered with one kind of metal tire, and the other half have adifi'erent metal tire, so that when arranged in the pan they will be in pairs, as set forth in the drawing, 0 representing one kind of metal and Z the other kind, as copper and zinc, in this wise: Beginning at the outer end of one a'rm, and looking toward the shaft, the first wheel is covered with the metal, C, the second wheel is covered with the metal,'Z, and sozon alternating to the end of the arm next the shaft. On the next arm the first metal is Z, the second is G, 360.

I now connect 0 on the first arm to Z on the second arm with an iron, copper, or othersuitable metallic rod, F. At each end of this metallic rod is a small friction-roller, H H, of some metal as the rod, resting on the tire of the wheels, thus forming a metallic connection between the upper side of each pair of wheels, then place a proper conducting-fluid in the pan, as salt, or very dilute acid, and the battery is ready for operation.

To put this pan in use as a crystallizer: First, the raw ore must be crushed, and by a rubbing process, as an arastre,rcduccd to an impalpable powder; then a sufiicient quantity of this prepared ore is put into the pan; then a proper amount of salt or dilute acid,mixcd with soft watcr,,must be put on the ore in the pan, rendering it a semi-fluid pulp. As soon as any one pair of wheels are wet with this fluid compound, electricity is geneated, and currents are established between each pair of wheels, causing crystallization immediately to commence.

A slow'motion is now given to the wheels, by means of suitable gears or-bclts, and continued until thcopen ation in completed. The time occupied in each operation will vary with the various kinds of ore, but from six to eight hours will be found suflicient. The experience gained in working a few panfuls will determine the timenecessary to complete the crystallization.

After crystallization has been completed in the pan, the whole mess is drawn oil, and the pan is ready for another operation.

The pulp is now put into the amalgamator, shown in Sheet No. 2, which is made as follows: I take a wooden or iron cylinder, or barrel, A, of suitable size, running on a hollow shaft, B. The pulp is introduced into the barrel through a suitable opening, 0, with the proper quantity of mercury; close thcbarrelperfect-ly tight, then give it very slow motion, by beltor otherwise, for from four to six hours.

After the amalgamation is completed, the amalgam is separatedirom the pulp by the introduction of a stream of water through the hollow shaft 13, by means of the stopcock D- 'l'he p ulphcing run into cisterns rnnning lengthwise east and west, a plate of suitable metal is put'in each end, and these plates connected by a wire outside the cistern. Here it is to remain as long as convenient, ortas long as anyremuining metals crystallize. This mass may then again botubjectccl to the action of mercury in the amalgamator.

What I claim as my invention amldevice, and desire to secure by Letters Patent, isi '1. The mode herein described of'collecting gold, silver, and copper from their ores, by the action of inde pendent currents of electricity; iacrystallizing the metals in an'insulated'pan: I

2 The amalgamating process, with mercury or any other suitable substance,- in an insulated pan or barrel, or other amalgamator.

3. The mode herein described of forming and applying the battery in thc'pun, or any other, sabstsntially equivalent.

4. The mode of the amalgamation ofgold and silver'nvith mercui'y-in an insulated vessel, pan, bai'rel or any other, substantially equivalent.

' 5. Thcstationary batteryiu the cisterns, 'in-the form described, orany other, substantially equivalent.

6. Using, forjhe purposes herein named, the aforesaid machinery and appliances, or anyother, substantially the same. in which the same principle is used or involved.

JOHN CORSON.

Witnesses;

1. G. Com oLLY, H. GARRETT.

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