1. business and industrial
2. metals

‘Oct. 6, 1931.
C. THURNEYSSEN
PROCESS OF METALLURGICAL TREATMENT
Filed Feb. 19, 1927
in re/17‘br
1,826,583
1,826,583“
Patented Oct. 6, 1931
UNITED" STATES
PATENT OFFICE .
cnnrsrrenrnunnnrssnn, or mars, rmcn' nssrenon ro socmrn Ln'nroxnn, or
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Application ?led February 19, 1927, Serial No. 169,494, and ‘in France February Q8, 1928.
The present invention relates to a, process cates'and will form a slag; this is separated
fortreating alloys of non-volatile metals, one fromthe metal sought for, and the metal is
,
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of which is more oxidizible than theother and cast into ingots. ' > '
particularly to ‘the treatment, of ferro-alloys . My said process can be substituted to ad-. ‘
5‘. corresponding to the'above conditions for .the vantage for the known - converter process
purpose of. enriching them by removingpart which is in many cases dii?cultof application 55
of the iron.
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Y
by reason of the high temperatgire required
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The said process consists essentiall in for the melting of the iron alloys, or due to the
spraying the metal or alloy by ajet 0 gas insu?icient heat from. the combustion of the -
iron, or. to the rapid wear of the converter lin-. 6o"
0 delivered into a suitable atmosphere. '
The invention further relates to an appara
' tus comprising in combination suitable means
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\
It should be noted that in its-various appli- '
for projecting the metal or alloy in a stream cations the saidiprocess may comprise, among
or jet, a noz e for delivering a strong blast others,- the followin ‘modi?cations:
.5 of a suitable gas u on the metallic jet, and ‘
_
-_ 1. The compresse gas which is employed ‘5'
va chamber traverse by a suitable current‘of for spraying purposes may be carbon dioxide, '
nitrogen, or like gases under pressure.
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2. .The walls of the pulverizing chamber,
_ The said invention has chie?y for its object
the removal of iron from its alloys, in which instead of being metallic, may be, forjexam _ j
gas.
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I0 the iron is more readily oxidized than‘the T ple’, cement mortar or reinforced cement 70'
‘other metals in the alloy. For such purposes
. I proceed in the following manner.
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The drawing illustrates the process dia
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, 3. In the ‘case of treating ferro-alloys- the
metallic powder obtained after pulverization
is collected, then treated in a second opera
The iron alloyiis poured in a thin stream in tion to'carry it‘to the desired degree .of oxida- 76'
an oxidizing atmosphere, ‘and it is sprayed by tion. If oxidation has been insu?icient in
any suitable gas. The ?ne metallic drops are the pulverization 's'tep'the powder is roasted.
thus partially oxidized, and the resulting ' If, on. the contrary, oxidation is “exaggerat-'
powdered substance is melted in a furnace to-b ed” the powder collected is melted in the
grammatically.
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(concrete);
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l0 gether with adequate scorifyin substances so chambers "after .pulverization and metal not
_ as to separate the oxide of iron rom the metal
which is to be obtained.
.
so .
yet’
' 4. pulverized
In the same-treatment,
is added. ‘_ the
' oxide
of iron
The metal delivered ‘from the melting fur may be scori?ed without the use of a scori nace is poured in a stream having a few milli ing substance, such as sand or mineral su '
‘5 meters diameter, into a chamber or pit with .' stance, by melting the material in an electric
' metallic walls, having several meters length furnace; for example, and herein the slag
and several square meters cross section, in will consist of nearly pure oxide of iron.
5. The current of .gas ‘employed ' for the
' which is circulated a strong blast of oxidizing
gas or air. After a few centimeters of free . required ‘oxidizing or like atmosphere may be
‘0 fall, the metallic jet is broken up by a power delivered-by oneor more blowers or _a venti-'
ful jet of‘compressed ‘as which sprays the lating chimney, or it may be withdrawn by
metal into ?ne drops, an these drops will take the suction which may be created by the
' ?respontaneously in contact with the oxidiz-'
=5
ing gas or air.
spraying'nozzle itself.
- . u
6.. The thickness of the stream of liquid
The combustion. is completed within§a very metal which can be properly oxidized by the 95'
short time,and all the iron is oxidized. When spraying \process‘depends chie?y upon the
cold, the'met'al is'mixed with a silicious sub amount and the pressure of the gas employed
stance such as sand or even a silicious mineral for the spraying, and ‘also upon' the size of -
substance. The whole is melted in a furnace, the spraying chamber and the composition of
"0 and the oxide of ironv will ‘thus produce sili 4 the atmosphere therein.
2
1,826,583
Example A.—A ferro-nickel containing '
' 60% of nickel and 40% of iron is obtained
by melting garnierite electrically. _ This fer‘
ro-nickel is pulverized and remelted accord;
ing to the process claimed, and we thus ob
tain a metal containing no more than 5 to 6%
of iron. Although the process permits of
further considerably reducing this iron con;
tent, we do not, however, exceed this limit in
10 practice‘ to reduce the loss of nickel in the
slag. The deferrized ferro-nickel that is,
the nickel from which the iron has een re
moved) is then re?ned by electrolysis.
Having now particularly described and
ascertained the nature of my invention and
in what manner the same is to be performed,
I declare that what I claim is:
1. Process for separating out the iron of
ferro-nickel, ferro-cobalt and the like, con
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sisting in melting the alloy to be puri?ed,
carrying it to a temperature of about 1500°,
appreciably above the fusion temperature of
said alloy, pouring said liquid alloy in the
form of a liquid thread, atomizing said liquid
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in an. oxidizing atmosphere ‘through a jet of
gas under pressure into liquid droplets so as
to oxidize the iron of these droplets durin _
‘ their'passage through the air, collecting sai
solidi?ed and oxidized droplets, remelting '
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said droplets, carrying the degree of oxida
‘tion of the’ bath to ‘the desired extent and
separatingthe non-oxidized parts from the
oxidized parts.
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2. Process for separating out'the iron of
ferro-nickel, ferro-cobalt and the like, con
' sisting in melting the alloy to be puri?ed,
carrying it to a temperature of about 1500°,
appreciably above the fusion temperature of
said alloy, pouring said liquid alloy in the
40
form of a liquid thread, atomizing said liquid
'in an oxidizing atmosphere through a jet of
gas under pressure into liquid droplets so as
to oxidize the iron of these droplets durin
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their passage through the air, collecting said
solidi?ed and oxidized droplets, remelting
said droplets with the alloy to be puri?ed .
and carrying the oxidation to the desired ex
tent and separating the oxidized from the
non-oxidized parts.
50
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day of February, 1927.
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CHRISTIAN THURNEYSSEN.
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' In testimony whereof, I have signed my
name to this speci?cation at Paris this 2nd
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