US1679035A

US1679035A - Concentrator

Info

Publication number: US1679035A
Application number: US129310A
Authority: US
Inventors: William A Huelsdonk
Original assignee: Individual
Current assignee: Individual
Priority date: 1926-08-16
Filing date: 1926-08-16
Publication date: 1928-07-31
Anticipated expiration: 1945-07-31

Description

W. A. HUELSDONK July 31, 1928.

CONCENTRATOR Filed Aug. 16, 1926 2 Sheets-Sheet 1 WmA.Hae 53222: BY QM Q mm ATTORNEY July 31, 1928.

W. A. HUELSDONK GONCENTRATOR Filed Aug. 16, 1926 2 Sheets-Sheet 2 WinA.Hue9Zl211Z/c BY Q ATTCRN EY Patented July 31, 1928.

UNITED STATES WILLIAM A. HUELSDONK, OF MERCED FALLS, CALIFORNIA.

concnn'rnaron.

Application. filed August 16, 1926. Serial No. 129,310.

Thisinvention relates to improvements in devices for saving or concentrating precious metals of all kinds, such as gold, silver, platinum, etc.

The principal object of my invention is to provide an apparatus of this character especially adapted for separating such metals from the accompanying sand, gravel and the like, by means of a flow of water and vibration, when such metals are in a finely divided condition and are in such minute particles or flakes that ordinary concentrating apparatus can not separate the same from the lighter material generally termed tailings.

A further object of the invention is to provide a concentrator which can work on mill pulp, and all placer mining material, and the like, without the use of quick silver or other amalgam, and which will operate to save and concentrate sulphides and the precious metals very quickly and separately at one operatlon, and insuring a very high percentage of concentration of such precious metals and sulphides being obtained.

A further object of the invention is to provide a simple and inexpensive device and yet one which will be exceedingly effective for the purpose for which it is deslgned.

These objects I accomplish by means of such structure and relative arrangement of parts as will fully appear by a perusal of the following specification and claims.

In the drawings similar charactersof reference indicate corresponding parts. in the several views:

Fig. 1 is a side elevation of the complete apparatus.

Fig. 2 is a sectional elevation of the concentrator table. and trough unit detached.

Fig. 3 is a top, plan view of said unit with certain "parts broken out,

Fig. 4 is a cross section on the line 4-4 of Fig. 2. a a

Fig. 5 is a longitudinal section of a concentrating attachment to be added as an extension to the main concentrating unit when desired.

Referring now more particularly to the characters of reference on the drawings, the numeral 1 denotes a rectangular open topped body in the'form of a deep trough of suitable dimensions and construction. This body adjacent its opposite ends has bearin plates 2 whose under edges have an upwar and forward slope. These edges ride on longit-udinally spacedand transversely extend- 1 counteracting 'These sprlngs are arranged relative to each .tudinal troughs 20.

ing rollers 3 supported in a fixed position on a base 4. The member 1 is agitated or shaken longitudinally by means of a longitudinal rod 5 mountedat one, end in connection with an eccentric structure 6 which: is

associated with a fixed transverse shaft 7 mountedabove the member 1. This shaft'is driven at any desired speed by any suitable form of power plant, which it is not thought necessary to show. The other end of the rod 5' is slidable througha block 8 fixed between supports 9 which are attached to and pro-' 'ject upwardly from thesides of the member 1. The rod on both sides, of the block has compression springs 10.

other and to the blockand are of such relative strength or pressure as to cause the member 1 with the reciprocation of the rod to be agitated or shaken with a relatively sharp movement in a longitudinal direction from itsforward toward its rear end.

Themember 1 has a bottom floor or table 11 extending the full length and width thereof. Toward the sides of the member 1 the floor is formed with a plurality of longitudi nal rillie grooves'12 extending from end to end of the floor. Between the sets of grooves the floor is formed with a longitudinally extendingshallow well 13 terminatingshort of both ends of the member 1. Projecting upwardly at intervals from the bottom of the well toa point a certain distance above the floor are outlet members 14, while between said members the bottom of the well has other and smaller outlet openings 15 therethrough; Both the

openings

14 and 15 dischargeinto' a longitudinal sluiceway 16 mounted in" unitary connection with the member 1 and'open across the rear end there- 'of. The floor is flexible and is supported. v along its center at intervals by vertically adjustable hangers '17 sup'portedhby cross beams 18 mounted on top of the member 1. By raising and lowering these. rods the floor may therefore be given a transverse,

convex, orconcave curvature for the purpose hereinafter seen.

Extending lengthwise in the member from the forward toward the rear end thereof and from the top downwardly toward the floor are transversely spaced plates 19. These plates extend to and upwardly of the sides of the member 1 for a certain distance and form with said sides, angle bottomed longi The bottoms of said troughs are some distance above the floor and the peak or apex is located in a transverse plane adjacent the outermost rlfi'le grooves 12. Cut at longitudinal intervals through the upwardly sloping sides of the plates 19 between the bottom peaks and the adjacent sides of the member 1 are open ings 21, while between the sides of the member l and plates 19 are longitudinally spaced outlet openings 22, which extend downwardly from the top of the troughs and also discharge onto the floor. Feed chutes 23 carry ing the water and material to be worked on discharge into the forward ends of the troughs 20.

Adjacent the rear end of the member 1 the plates 19 make water-tight connection with a downwardly and rearwardly sloping transverse apron 24 which extends the full distance between the sides of the member 1, openings 24 being cut through the apron to communicate with the troughs 20, said open ings being located below the upper ends of outlets 22. At the bottom this apron has a substantially horizontal rearwardly projecting extension 25 which likewise projects the full distance between the sides of the memher 1. This extension has a slight clownward slope towardits rear end and at such end; which is a short distance from the rear end of the member 1, it terminates a slight distance above the fioorll. The well 13 terminates ahead of said extension. The rear end wall of the member 1 preferably has a rearwardly extending slope toward its upper end as shown. A. water pipe 26 by means of which freshwater may be fed into the chamber 27 formed rearwardly of the apron 24:, is positioned to discharge water onto the apron 24. The water generally used however is that which passesinto the chamber through openings 24 i In operation the material with the previous metal particles tobe concentrated is discharged into the troughs 20 in connection with a sufiicient quantity of water to oflset the out-flow through the openings 21 and maintain a continual flow lengthwise ofthe troughs toa certain height therein. The material and water passing through said openings 21 drop onto the floor 11 vfrom which the water, etc. must flow transversely rather than longitudinally owing to the central transverse location of the discharge The material therefore passes transversely of the riflles and the precious metal particles being the heaviest will be caught and retained by such ritlles. The tailings fall into the well 13 and pass through the outlets 15 into the sluiceway 16. The openings 15 are so restricted in size relative to the volume of water passing onto the floor as to cause the water on the floor to be maintained at a level thereabove, this level being governed by the height of the relative to the floor at the sides of the memher 1 may be altered, so that the depth of water retained on the fioor may be varied to suit different conditions.

I have found from actual operation that over 99% of any precious metal particles will be retained in the riilie grooves of this device. so that it is extremely efiicient in operation.

lVit-h the peculiar longitudinal shaking movement imparted to the apparatus, as previously described, the heavy particles in the rii'llo grooves are gradually moved along said grooves toward the rear end of the member 1 and finally pass under the apron extension 25 into the chamber 27. The water from the pipe 26 or troughs 20 is fed into said chamber in such quantities as to maintain the water level therein higher than that on the floor ahead of said chamber. This causes a forward current or circulation of water to be set up from the chamber 27, betwen the extension 25 and the floor 11 to a point ahead of said chamber. This current acts on any comparatively heavy but non-precious particles in the riiiies, and in the water, such as sulphides, and carries themforwardly to where they will discharge through the rearmost tailing outlet 15 of the floor well. without disturbing the precious metal particles.

A cover 28 is preferably maintained over said chamber 27 and kept locked until it is desired to remove the contents, which may be done at any time by means of an outlet 27 in the bottom of the chamber, and normally closed from the inside.

If the condition of the material being worked on requires a concentration of the sulphides and the precious metals separate from each other, I may apply an extension member 29 to the rear end of the member 1 (see Fig. 5). This extension has rifiie grooves 12 in the bottom, the same as the grooves 12, a shortcentral well 13 between theriflles with

outlets

14 and 15, atransverse apron structure 2 1 beyond the well similar to the apron 24:, and an additional water pipe 26 to discharge onto the apron 24 In this case the rear end of the member 1 has side openings 30 to enable the mineral contents still in suspension in chamber 27 to flow onto the side ritllcs 12 of the extension. Here they are further acted on by the additional rifll'es in connection with the flow of water from the pipe 26*, which acts to separate the precious metals from the heavy sulphides in the same manner as described in connection with the flow of the water from the chamber27;

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In this operation, the water level in chamber 27 becomes lowered so that the heavy sulphides pass into the same under the member 25. They then pass through the openings 30 onto the floor 12*, being then discharged through openings 15. The heavy metals in the water pass under the apron 24 into the chamber beyond the same, which is also kept locked. -The sulphidesas discharging may be saved, and in any event are separated from the precious metals.

The purpose of the outlets 22 from the troughs 20, in addition to the bottom outlets 21, is to enable water to be discharged onto the floor in the event that said outlets 21 are full of solid material, and will not allow suflicient Water to pass onto the floor.

While -I have here described one full working unit, such units may be arranged as a battery in side by side relation, to be driven by a single engine and eccentric mechanism.

Whilethis specification sets forth in detail the present and preferred construction of the device, still in practice such deviations from such detail maybe resorted to as do not form a de arture from the spirit of the invention, as efined by the appended claims.

- Having thus described my invention what I claim as new and useful and desire to secure by Letters Patent is:

1. A concentrator including a main body member, a floor in said member having longitudinally extending riflie grooves therein, a chamber at the rear end of the member and into which the grooves lead, means for discharging .water and the material to be treated onto and from said floor in a manner to cause a flow of water and material to take place across the riflles whereby precious metal particles in said material will be caught and deposited in the riflles', means for shaking said member longitudinally to cause said particles to advance along the grooves toward and into the chamber, and means for maintaining a supply of water in the chamber at a level higher than that of the grooves whereby to set up a forward flow of water along thegrooves from the ceive water and the material to be treated extending lengthwise of the floor above the same and to the side thereof opposite the outlets, said trough having discharge openings at intervals in its bottom, and additional outlets discharging onto the floor between said openings and the adjacent side of the floor from a level in the trough higher than that of the first named outlets.

4:. A concentrator including a fioorplate having-a plurality of longitudinal. rifilegrooves therein, means for feeding material onto the floor, a chamber at one end of the floor into which the grooves lead, means for causing the material in the grooves to advance to the chamber, means for maintaining Water in the chamber, and means acting to cause such water to flow alongthe grooves and onto the floor ahead of the V chamber and against the movement of the material therein toward the chamber.

5. A concentrator including a floor plate having a plurality of longitudinal riiilegrooves therein, means for feeding material onto the fioor, a chamber at one end of the floor into which the grooves lead, means for causing the material in the grooves to advance to the chamber, means for maintaining water in the chamber at a predetermined level, and a substantially horizontal apron projecting into the chamber from the forward end thereof and disposed across and adjacent the floor with a slight upward slope from its rear end.

In testimony whereof I afiix my signature.

WILLIAM A. HUELSDONK.