US336792A

US336792A - Vibginia

Info

Publication number: US336792A
Authority: US
Publication date: 1886-02-23
Anticipated expiration: 1903-02-23

Description

UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE.

ST. GEORGE T. BRYAN, OF UNIVERSITY OF VIRGINIA, VIRGINIA.

PROCESS OF SEPARATING PRECIOUS METALS FROM SPEISS.

SPECIFICATION forming part of Letters Patent 110,336,792, dated February 23,1886.

Application filed April 4, 1885. Serial No. 161,234. No specimens.)

To (LZZ whom it may concern:

Be it known that 1, ST. GEORGE T. BRYAN, of the University of Virginia, in the county of Albemarl'e, in the State of Virginia, have invented a new and useful Process of Separating Precious Metals from Speiss, of which the following is a specification.

Speiss is a furnace product, and is essentially iron, lead, gold, and silver mineralized by arsenic, sulphur, antimony, 85c. Vast amounts of speiss are practically at present mere waste for want of a proper process for its treatment to thoroughly extract the valuable metals contained in it.

The object of my improvement is to more perfectly and thoroughly extract the lead and the gold and silver than has heretofore been done. I have ascertained that if air be passed through molten speiss the arsenic and other readily-oxidizable constituents may be easily and entirely burned off. On applying the blast at first that portion which mineralizes the lead is removed, and if the air continues to be forced through theportion mineralizing the iron is next removed.

My improved method consists in forcing air through molten speiss until the arsenic which mineralizes the lead is burned off and the lead set free. The lead can now be separated from the speiss along with the gold and silver by keeping the mixture fluid, the lead sinking to the bottom of the vessel used. Instead, however, or" depending upon the lead contained in the speiss to remove all the gold and silver, I mix with the molten product more lead, which on separating will remove the lead with the gold and silver originally in the speiss. An oxide of lead may be used in this process in place of metallic lead,as the arsenic while present will reduce the oxide to the metallic state.

Heretofore, so far as I am aware, there has been no method known by which the lead originally in the speiss can be wholly or in part separated industrially or on a practical commercial scale.

So far as I am aware, there has been heretofore serious loss in lead and gold and silver whenever molten speiss has been treated with lead orits oxide; but by my process ofcontinually forcing air through the fluid mass and adding lead to the fluid mass I am enabled to greatly increase the amount of lead and gold and silver taken from the speiss, and, in fact, to extract all originally there without material loss or waste. The gold and silver can be separated from the lead after the operation of my improved process in ordinary well-known ways. As by the burning of the arsenic much heat is evolved, it will be practicable in well-known ways to utilize this heat for the further fusion of the speiss, and thus save fuel.

Any ordinary furnace adapted for melting speiss may be employed, and any ordinary means for forcing a blast of air through a molten mass may also be used.

I am aware that a blast of air has been applied to molten iron for burning out carbon, silica, 82c, and that such a blast has also been applied to molten pyritous ores for burning out sulphur, arsenic, &c., and I do not claim, broadly, the use of a blast of air applied to a molten mass.

Various patents have been granted for the treatment of ores, matte, or regulus for special purposes; but none of them discloses the method of treating speiss in the way that I do, so as to accomplish the object of my pro cess. Of course there is something of similarity in these various patented methods to each other and to my process, but not such substantial identity as readers these patented processes interchangable with each other or with mine. See, for example, United States Patents Nos. 57,376, 130,433, and 234,129, and English Patents No. 390 of 1855, No. 2,913 of 1862, No. 3,892 of 1872, No. 1,131 of 1878, No. 983 of 1879, and No. 955 of 1882. All these inventions I disclaim because each one of them differs more or less from my process for the treatment of speiss; but

\Vhat I have discovered and what I claim to be new, and desire to secure by Letters Patent of the United States, is-

The improved process herein described for treating speiss for the extraction of lead and gold and silver, which consists in forcing a blast of air through the molten mass until the I In testimony whereof I have hereunto subarsenic and other oxidizable and mineralizscribed my name.

ing constituents are burned off and the lead set ST. GEORGE T. BRYAN. free, carrying with it the gold and silver, and \Vitnesses: 5 adding lead to the molten mass, and continu- MARCUS S. HOPKINS,

ing the blast of air until the lead and gold and GEO. W. MORRIs, silver have all sunk to the bottom. WM. R. DUKE.