150
and subjected the mixture in a q shaped retort to a bright red heat for twelve or m? ^hours, till the ore be reduced to the metallic state, as is easily ascertained by apply 111 'a file to one of the fragments. When discharged, the metal is to be transferred, into ‘balling or puddling furnace, along with about five per cent, of ground coke or anthcite, and worked therein in the usual way. He also proposes to use a conical kiln, 11 'that for burning lime, instead of the retorts. ,
In his second patent, dated March, 1840, Mr. Clay prescribes above 28 per cep •(from 30 to 40) of carbonaceous matter to be mixed with the ground-iron ore, contp 1 ^ing at least 45 per cent, of metal, which mixture is to be directly treated in a pudufi ^furnace. He also proposes to use a mixture of pig or scrap iron and ore, in e( l°quantities. ■ t0
The application of the waste gases (carbonic oxide chiefly) of the blast furnace ^the purpose of heating the puddling or balling furnace, was made the subject 0patent in June, 1841, by a foreigner not named. The process had been previo ^practised in Germany , and is fully described in the Annales des Mines , about two Jago. ace
In Jig. 74 the manner of conveying the waste carbonic oxide from a blast l ur ^is shown : a, a, a, are openings leading into the vertical channels or passag es > g
and thence into the chamber c. There is a
top
the
this chamber, with openings corresponding t0 j.passages b. These openings are closed withiron plates that can be taken off for the purpos Cpclearing out the passages b, and the chain 0From the chamber c, the gas may be conduct ,any direction, and to a distance of several h un
feet.
re-
in some localities, and in cases where it 19 ; nquired to take the gas from a blast furnacoperation, a metal cylinder, of a smaller d ia ® j t0than the top of the furnace, and of a depth equ ^its diameter, is suspended vertically within lhe ^eof the blast furnace the whole of its length-space between the cylinder and the furnace a^top or mouth is to be hermetically sealed, aD r j 1 | C lifurnace is to be charged through the cylinder,j eS .must be leapt full of minerals and combus 1Thus the space between the cylinder and therior of the furnace remains vacant, but the " aS - re d.be conducted out of that part laterally, if re(1 „ ifThe gases led off from the blast furnace ffl J’potneed be, pass through heated pipes, as fo r *blast.
Figs. 75 and 76 represent a refining furnace for iron, with the necessary a PF -j c alfor working it with the gases, without the use of other fuel; Jig. 75 being a vsection, and fig. 76 a sectional plan view.
mu
The gas from the blast furnace is brought into the chamber a a, and passing w hichan opening b b, it enters the furnace; c c are a series of blow pipes, throug J ai»dthe heated air is forced into the furnace. In the space between the part n> arthe tubes c, the gas becomes mixed with the heated atmospherical air. _ n du ces a "This combustible gas from the blast furnace, mixed with the heated air, P r burn-intense heat in the furnace, adequate to the refining of iron. The warm airing the gas is usually obtained from the blowing machine and hot blast ptp e9 ‘ j n ( 0 tin?
For giving a still greater heat, the air may be carried through the tube J> ^ [0 (heiron chambers g g, or a system of pipes, whence it is led through the '““/Jace.semi-circr.lar chamber?, and then through the small pipes c, c, c, into the lu arran ge-The metal to be refined is placed in the space Ad, in a liquid state, u in" ^ nD t, itment of the furnaces will admit of its being so taken from the blast furnac e , car j ) oni z;emay be nearly melted by the waste heat in the chamber t e. In order to