Process of Treating Ores. Page: 4 of 6
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571,468
of the contents of the tank the same is pro-
vided with a circular series of metal-lined
bung-holes G, regularly spaced apart and kept
closed during the rotation of the tank by
5 means of well-fitting wooden bungs II, which
are sufficiently long to project beyond the
outer surface of the tank to facilitate their
removal when necessary.
Arranged inside of the tank A, at a point
to adjacent to and parallel with the opposite
end heads thereof, are the metallic pole-disks
I. These pole-disks are solid plates of cop-
per designed to be deeply chined into the
body of the tank, so as to make water-tight
15 joints, and are intended to serve as poles for
the transmission of electric currents through
the fluid pulp, which fills the whole space in-
tervening between them. To prevent the
sagging and bending of the pole-disks under
20 the outward pressure of the ore under treat-
ment, and at the same time completely in-
sulating them, insulator bracing-posts J are
arranged between the disks and the outer
heads of the tank. Connecting-pins K pro-
25 ject through and are insulated from the op-
posite heads of the tank and are connected
at their inner ends to the pole-disks, while to
their outer extremities are connected the cir-
cuit-wires 1 2, which are connected in circuit
30 with a suitable battery or other electric gener-
ator. The tank thus described being charged
with the proper quantity of ore, finely-pul-
verized black oxid of copper (monoxid) is
added in the proper proportion of about six
35 or eight pounds to a ton of ore and the mixed
ores treated with sufficient water to make a
pulp of the consistency of thin mortar. The
manhole a is now closed and sealed and one
of the upper bungs removed, and into this
40 open bung-hole sulfuric acid is carefully in-
troduced in a quantity equaling about two-
thirds of the weight of the copper oxid em-
ployed; but, if found desirable, instead of in-
troducing the chemicals in this manner the
45 oxid of copper may be treated with water
and sulfuric acid in a separate vessel and the
resulting pulp, when the combination is fin-
ished, added to the charge of ore.
After the oxid of copper and the acid have
50 been introduced into the tank, together with
the pulverized ore, the rotation of the tank
is begun. This rotation should continue for
at least one hour and a half, or as long as
may be found necessary, and after a suffi-
55 cient agitation of the materials contained
within the tank it will be found that such
materials have become thoroughly mixed and
the various reactions completed by which the
gold and silver are reduced to such a condi-
6o tion as to be readily seized by chlorin gas.
These reactions and their rationale are not
sufficiently clear for a character explanation
of the same, but for the purposes of the pres-
ent invention it is thought to be sufficient to
65 state that this preliminary treatment of the
ores is a perfect substitute in every respect
for the ordinary "roasting process," and pre-pares the ores whereby a very rapid chlorina-
tion thereof may be effected. After the pre-
liminary treatment of the ore in the manner 70
just described the rotation of the tank is
stopped and a second charge introduced into
the same, consisting of eight pounds of black
oxid of manganese, thirty pounds of salt, and
twelve pounds of sulfuric acid, or in lieu 75
thereof any suitable bisulfate in equivalent
proportions. The tank is again given a roll-
ing motion through the means described and
the electric current closed over the circuit
1 2, so that the chlorlilating-tank, by reason 8o
of the pole-disks therein, will be included in
such circuit, whereby electric currents may
be continually passed through the pulp with-
in the tank during the rotation thereof, and
these currents are maintained until the chlo- 85
rination is completed. Ordinarily an hour
and a half or two hours suffices to complete
the chlorination, according to the strength of
the electric current, and this rapid chlorina-
tion is primarily due to the favorable condi- 90
tion in which the ores of the precious metals
are left by the oxid-of-copper treatment, com-
bined with the powerful energizing effect of
the electric currents on the reagents em-
ployed, as well as to the intimate mixture 95
brought about by the constant agitation,
whereby every particle is brought into inti-
mate contact with the nascent chlorin at the
very instant of its generation. After the
chlorination is completed the circuit over the ioo
wires 1 2 is broken, while the tank still con-
tinues to revolve. One by one as the bungs
come into a favorable position the same are
loosened by a smart blow of a hammer and
are at once driven out by the force of the 105
pulp, which, being kept fluid by constant agi-
tation, at once finds vent or escape through
the open bung-holes, and continues to do so
till the tank is completely emptied, such pulp,
as it is delivered, being adapted to fall into a rio
suitable gutter or trough L, (shown in dotted
lines,) by means of which it may be conveyed
to the desired point. After the pulp has been
discharged from the chlorinating-tank, as just
noted, all the bungs are secured in the holes, 115
excepting one of the lower ones, and a hose is
introduced through the manhole, whereby the
interior of the tank may be thoroughly cleaned
of any pulp remaining, the wash-water run-
ning out of the lower bung-hole and being 120
conveyed to mix with the chlorinated pulp.
At this stage of the process the gold and sil-
ver of the ore are held in solution in the form
of the chlorids of such metals, and if the de-
tails of the chlorination have been properly 125
managed not a grain of either the gold or sil-
ver will be found in the pulp or solid matter.
This enables the remainder of the process or
treatment of the ores to be carried out either
by amalgamation or lixiviation, by either of 130
which methods the gold and silver can be re-
covered with nearly equal results. In case
the next step of the process is the preparation
of the materials for amalgamation, the chlo-
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Reference the current page of this Patent.
Barbour, Thomas P. Process of Treating Ores., patent, November 17, 1896; [Washington D.C.]. (https://texashistory.unt.edu/ark:/67531/metapth174437/m1/4/?q=%22%22~1: accessed July 12, 2024), University of North Texas Libraries, The Portal to Texas History, https://texashistory.unt.edu.; crediting UNT Libraries Government Documents Department.