US1454067A - Container and mold for molten metal - Google Patents

Description

Patented ll/iay 8, 1923.

rasrosz HUBEBT A. MYERS, OF TOLEDO, AND ARTEEMES D. STRAW, OF WAUSEON,-OHIO,

ASSIGNORS TO THE HUBERT A. MYERS RATION OF OHIO.

COMBANY, OF TOLEDO, OHIO, A CORPO- COITTAINER/ AND HOLD FOR MOLTEN METAL.

No Drawing. Original application filed January 27, 1921, Serial No. 440,501. Divided and this application filed. January 13,

To all whom it may concern:

Be it known that we, HUBERT A.. MYERS and ARTEEMES D. STRAW, citizens of the United States, and residents of Toledo, Lu-

cas County, Ohio, and Wauseon, Fulton County, Ohio, respectively, have made an Invention Appertaining to Containers and Molds for Molten Metal; and we do hereby declare the following to be a full, clear,

and exact description of the invention, such as will enable others skilled in the art to i which it appertains to make and use the same.

This ap lication is a division of our apw plication, r. No. 440,501, filed January 27,

Our invention has for its object to pro-. vide articles or devices for manipulating molten metal, such as for containing or conveyingo'r casting molten metal, and where-' in free flow or free delivery of the metal from the article may be obtained, either while the metal is in a molten, in a semlplastic, or in a solid state. The invention particularly has for its object to produce articles for manipulating molten metals, such as runners, troughs, ladles, or molds, containing metal at or near the contact surfaces of the article with the molten metal, that are so constructed that erosion or pitting of the article by the metal will be avoided. When our invention is embodied in molds, rapid and economical production of smooth, perfect castings may be made without injury to the molds.

Heretofore unsuccessful efforts have been made to prevent the destructive action of molten metal on metal articles orarticles containing metal at or near the contact surfaces of the article with the molten metal, by the use of coatings or linings formed of various materials, such as clay, graphite,

and similar surfacing materials, since such coatings easily crack or are brushed from the permanent parts of the ladles or molds or pots, thus destroying their utility. Also some coating materials heretofore used cause pitting of the hot metal if it is allowed 1922. Serial No. 529,030.

to solidify within the article, and other materials will not adhere to the surface of-the I article if the heated metal is moved over the surface, and others will not withstand high tem eratures.

etal articles or metal containing articles for manipulating molten metal and embodying our invention are provided with a protective material that will not be removed or destroyed, or its efliciency injuriously affected, either by heat or from the contact and flow of the molten metal. The protec- If the gasifiable material is oxidizable in air at a temperature below the melting oint of the metal manipulated or containe in the article, a coating of the oxide will also be formed over the article which will be heat insulating in character, and thus reduce the effect of the molten metal'on' the article and on the gas formi substance deposited at the surface of th article. We preferably use a material that will alloy with or have an aflinity for or an ionic or electric attraction for the substances of which the body of the article is wholly or partially composed; .or a material that will readily penetrate the surface of the article and thus impregnate the article; or a metalliferous gasifiable or vaporizing material that will deposit on or become incorporated within the surface of the article.

The gasifiable substance used is of such a character that it will gasify at a temperature below the melting point of the metal to be brought in contact with the article. In the preventcase of molds,'th'e gasifying point of the'gas forming substances should be above the temperature at which the mold is maintained in order to produce soft castings, and below the temperature of the molten metal to be cast in the mold. The selection of the gas forming substances will therefore depend upon the melting point of the metal to be brought in contact with the article. For instance, if molten brass is to be manipulated, gas form* ing substances having relatively low gasifying points'should be used, such as cadmium and zinc chloride. In manipulating iron, materials such as zinc magnesium, cadmium and barium may beused. If high speed steel is to be cast it may be found desirable to use zinc, barium or bismuth as a gas forming material, since these substances and compounds thereof, and mixtures containing them, are gas or vapor forming substances, and produce a substantially perfect protective coating between the article and the metal. The term gas will be used herein to include both gas and vapor.

Zinc is especially suitable for use in'protecting' ferrous metal articles, or articles containing ferrous metals, from molten metals, particularly ferrous molten metals, for the reason that zinc has a vaporizing point as well as a boiling point, that is, it has a gasifying point, below the melting point of iron, and thus will produce a small amount of gas substantially in film form between the article and the molten metal when subjected to the heat of the molten metal. This will operate to protect the article and, if the metal is allowed to cool within the article, as in a mold, the metal contained in the article will be delivered with smooth surfaces and without pits or blow-holes. In case of a mold, some of the vapor or gas may be partially taken up by the mold or the casting, or both, and if any remains after the casting is discharged it will be precipitated as white oxide of zinc on the surface of the mold. Also the zinc metal on its surface will be oxidized by contact with the air. Furthermore, the zinc has an afiinity for and is electropositive to the iron and will automatically distribute itself under the action of the heat of the molten metal so as to keep the surfaces of the article supplied with the proper amount of zinc, and in case of molds, a sufficient quantity of the zinc will be drawn to the surface of the mold to metals, the molds may be heated and maintained at a substantially uniform temperature to produce soft castings and ejected, if desired, while the interior of the casting is still in a molten condition. Also ferrous castings may be made in ferrous molds without preheating, and the casting left in the mold until it has hardened throughout. any case, the casting and the mold are read-- ily separated, which enables an assured delivery of allparts of the casting from the mold, even though some of the surfaces of the casting may be drawn over or parallel with the surface of the mold. Articles containing our invention thus may be used continuously or repeatedly without repeating the treatment or depositionof the protective material on their surface s,.and in the case of molds, repeated castings may be made without repeating the treatment, or, if desired, the molds may be quickly and easily treated after each casting or pouring operation. Also castings may be easily discharged from the mold when they have set sufficiently to retain their form, or they may be permitted to remain in the mold as long as desired, whether the mold is hot or cold, and without injuriously affecting the matrix thereof or adhering to the mold.

When the articles have been properly treated with the protective material, only a small volume of gas will be formed from the gas forming material. If the gas forming substances are incorporated in the body of the article the heat from the molten metal will cause the formation of a limited amount of gas and will automatically and regulatively approach the heated surface of the article, and thus replenish the supply of such substances at the surface where itis needed. Also the oxide of the gas forming material, as in the case of zinc, will be produced when it comes in contact with the air, as upon removal of the molten metal from the article, or of a casting from "a mold, if the article be a mold, and form a surface coating of metallic oxide on the article, which will tend to reduce the amount of the gas formed'because of the heat resisting character of a finely divided oxide or of the. gas confining character of an encrusted oxide. If the oxide is itself gasifiable it ,will generally only be .so at a higher temperature than that at which the oxide is formed, and the amount of gas produced from the oxide will be comparatively small. If, on the other hand, the gas forming substance is located only on the molding surface the amounts of gas that are successfully formed may be controlled either by regulating the amount of the gas forming substances placed on the surface. or by depositing with it or upon it a suitable heat insulating material, such as lamp black, or oxide of a'metal, such as zinc oxide.

We use preferably materials that will alloy with or be absorbed or have an affinity for the material of. which the article is composed so that the gas forming substances may be readily incorporated in the article or will adhere thereto and thus insure a suitable supply of gas for continuous or repeated use of the article.

Iffthe article material and the gas forming substance are such that the former will absorb the latter, as when iron molds 'are used with zinc as the gas forming material, the article may be impregnated or covered with the gas forming material in any suitable way, such as by submerging the article in the molten gasifiable metal until the artitle at its surface has become saturated therewith. The article is then removed from the molten inetaland all the surplus free metal brushed from the surfaces, when it is ready for use in making a large number of castings. The gas forming material.

may be deposited on the article by directing it in a gaseous condition against the article surface where it willcongeal in the form of a powder in some instances, or form a smooth surface metallic coating, depending on the temperature of the article. ticles may be placed in a metallic gas which will result in surfacing the article with a gasifiable metal. If oxygen is present some of the metal will be oxidized and deposited. The amount of oxide of the metal that will thus be formed will depend upon the amount If oxygem]v or concentration of the oxygen. such as atmospheric oxygen, has opportunity to completely burn the heated vapor, then only the oxide will be deposited on the article. The oxide thus deposited may be partially reduced, either by the reducing action of molten iron and carbon of the iron, if the article is to be used for the manipu'la tion of molten iron, or by the carbon deposited as a coating, as when lamp black is used in connection with molds, or by a reducing flame or it may remain and act as a heat insulating neutral coat that will protect the metal of the mold. The protective material may be applied in any suitable way, such as sprayingor painting the material on the article.

Articles formed of compositions or mixtules'of certain materials may also be treated with )IOtGCtlYQZSUBStHIICGS in the same way that fhe metallic articles described above are treated, and which will coact in the same manner in connection with the articles and the heated metal.

The articles may be formed of a variety of materials. We have, however, found it preferable to use compositions that contain clav as one of the ingredients. To the clav may be added one or more metals which will melt during the calcination of the clay and thus bind the clay. The composition of the article may therefore be made up of a mix ture of clay, won and nickel, or other ma- Also the ar-I terials, if desired. Articles formed of clay and nickel or of clay and iron, we have found, will take up or absorb large quantities of zinc and will deliver it ,to the sur fore be such that it will be absorbed by the clay or it may be such that it will forin an alloy with or have an affinity for one ormore of the metals incorporated in the article, such as the iron of the article. The protection afforded to the article by the gasifiable material prevents the molten metal from attacking and disintegrating the materials of which the article is composed, thus materially adding to the life of the article.

The protective material may be incorporated in an article formed of the composition described above bygasifying the protective material, preferably in a closed receptacle, so as to exclude air and prevent oxidation of the protective material as in the case of zinc, and thus causing absorption of the gas forming material, which, upon chilling, Will be deposited as a solid within the body of the article, such as in the clay as well as in the iron of the article. Articles formed of such compositions may also be coated with suitable gas forming substances in the same manner that iron articles may be coated as described above.

Our invention contemplates the production of articles for treating molten metals having protective material at or near the surface to be brought in contact with the molten metal, that is, the protective mate rial is located Where it will have an active protective relation to the article or the molten metal brought in contact therewith, and the word at as used in the claims includes broadly at the surface, on the surface, or within material near the surface of the article, but in'each case located in a po sition where it will function in its action, as between the article and the metal manipulated by the article.

Whether the gas producing-substance is incorporated in the article or located merely on the surface of the article, the amount of gasification produced by the heat of the molten metal may be regulated by depositing with or upon the gas forming material a heat insulating material, such as lamp black or metallic oxide that will not chemically react deleteriously on the materials of the article on the gas forming substances or on the metal manipulated by or contained in the article lVhen lamp black is used it may be deposited on the surface bymeans of an incomplete combustion flame ,tproduced from hydrogen, carbon gas, such as I acetylene gas. When the article is coated as distinct from being impregnated with the gas forming substances the heat insulating material may be deposited on the mold over the gas forming substances, or it may be deposited with the gas forming substances. Thus lamp black or graphite may be used to cover the coatings of the metalliferous material or the oxide of its metal, or

it may be deposited with the metalliferous material or the oxide of its metal.

Since gas forming substances, such as zinc, magnesium, cadmium, etc., or their oxides prevent the adherence of molten metal to metal or of molten metal to calcined clay,

ladles, crucibles, troughs, spouts, and other articles or parts of furnaces used in manipulating certain metals, suchas iron, brass, ctc.-, while in a molten state, may be treated with the metalliferous substances. This will not only protect the articles from the effect of the molten metal but will also assure. free flow and complete delivery of the hot' metal manipulated in the use of the article,

and will permit the formation of smooth castings.

We claim:

1. An iron'mold for casting metals. having zinc distributed over'its matrix surface.

2. A mold for fusible materials having incorporated therein a material gasifiable be-- 3. A metal mold for fusible materials having incorporated therein a metal that will be absorbed by the castings.

4. A metal mold for fusible materials having a material that will melt below the temperature of molten steel incorporated withlow the melting point-of steel.

. in the surfaceof the mold.

5. A metal mold for fusible materials having a metal that will melt below the tem- '10. A metal mold for casting fusible mate-' rials having a metal fusible below the temperature of the fusible materials incorpor ated Wlthin the surface of the matrix.

11. A metal container having a'material the wall of the container having zinc incor- I porated therein;

14. Aniold for castingmetals, the mold having zinc located at the molding surface. 15. A mold for casting metals the mold having zinc incorporated therein contiguous to the moldingsurface.

16. A mold containing iron and having zinc incorporated therein.

17. A mold for casting metals, the mold having a metalliferous substance at the surface of the mold that will form a gas below the temperature of molten iron.

18. A metal container for containing molten metals and having a protective material containing zinc located at the inner surface of the container.

19. A metal container for containing molten metals and having a protective material containing zinc oxide located at the inner surface of the container.

20. A metal mold for casting ferrous metals and having a protective material containing zinc located at the surface of the matrix of the mold.

21. A metal' mold for casting ferrous metals and having a protective material containing zinc oxide located at the surface .of the matrix of the mold.

22. A container for containing molten metals formed of a material containing iron located near the inner surface of the contamer and havlng a protective mater1al contamlng zinc located at the inner surface of the container.

23. A container for containing molten metals formed of a material containing iron located near the inner surface of the container and having a protective material containing'oxide of a metal located at the inner surface 'of the container.

24:. A container for containing molten metals formed of a material containing iron located near the inner surface of the container and having a protective material containing zinc oxide located at the inner surface of the container.

25. =A ferrous mold for casting ferrous metals, the surface of the matrix coated with zinc.

v 26. A ferrous mold for casting ferrous metals. the surface of the matrix coated with zinc oxide.

27. A ferrous mold for casting ferrous lic oxide on the inner surface thereofythe metal of the oxide having a melting point I below that of the said molten metal. 7 metal and having a finely divided adhering In testimony whereof, We have hereunto 5 metallic oxide on the inner surface thereof. signed our names to this specification. 29. A mold for containing molten metal HUBERT A. MYERS. and having a finely divided adhering metal- AR'ITEEMES D. STRAW.

metals, the surface of the matrix coated with I zinc and zinc oxide.

28. A container for' containing molten