Chemalloy Article & Formula - 06/25/01
provided by Alex Peterson to Peter Lindemann who shared it at the KeelyNet Convergence 2001 conference and the text below is provided by Dan York

For historical purposes and to correct 'nuze' from various 'nuscammers' who seek to grab credit for anything and claim it as their own, this was posted on June 25, 2001 as; Chemalloy Recipe on the KeelyNet Interact discussion list.

From Science and Mechanics (I don't have the date on this article. All I know for sure about it was that it was published in the early 60's.)

CHEMALLOY - A New Alloy for the Science Student

Originally conceived as a soldering alloy, this patented substance has anti-friction properties, will aerate soil, improves seed germination, stimulates pant growth, will generate electricity, and ????

By Samuel Freedman

What relation there can be between soldering aluminum and promoting the growth of huckleberries is hard to see --- yet in the broadest view, scientists say, all things are in some way interrelated. Chemalloy, with its strangely diverse properties seems to support this view.

Put a Chemalloy rod in plain water (Fig. 1) and you have a battery of .55 volt potential that will last as long as the rod is kept wet, generating enough power to operate a voltmeter, milliameter or oscilloscope. In different liquids, voltage varies from almost zero for petroleum to 1.1 for certain types of chili sauce.

As a bearing material, Chemalloy in a solid dry state withstands friction without coolant or lubricant.

Chemalloy powderized to about 1,000,000 particles per pound exhibits the same elecritical properties (Fig. 2) as the solid rod. Here it generates slightly more than .5 volt, and in addition decomposes the water, liberating hydrogen.

This process is further examined in Fig 3. First fill three graduated cylinders with water, one cold, the second warm, and the third hot. Add equal amounts of Chemalloy to each graduated cylinder. Instantly, the graduated cylinder containing hot water liberates hydrogen (Fig. 3A).

Heat is generated by the reaction so that with the passage of a few minutes (Figs. 3B and C) the three graduated cylinders are equally warm and hydrogen production in all three is the same.

One of the most significant uses of powdered Chemalloy may be the warming and loosening of soils that are too cold or compact for optimum seed generation and plant growth. The warming and areation of soil on a laboratory basis is shown in Fig. 4. A sample of dry soil is placed on top of powdered Chemalloy in a glass case. Note the temperature rise from 94 degrees F. to 126 degrees F. Voltage remains approximately at .6.

From this point on, voltage will remain constant, but soil temperature will decline and finally stabilize at a point a few degrees above the environmental temperature. The electrical action will continue and will generate warmth at this reduced magnitude. To date, the capability of Chemalloy to generate electricity in water has been observed for seven continuous years, and no limit is known. The liquid, rather than the metal is the substance which is consumed and must be replaced.

A Provincial Horticulture Station in Alberta, Canada, summarizes an experiment in seed germination as follows:

                         %germinated             %germinated
Vegetable              (Chem. Treated)          (untreated)
Cucumber                        50                      16
Red Beet                        96                      70
Lettuce                         64                      34
Leek                            86                      54
Carrot                          68                      32

The assistant superintendent supervising this experiment stated that the addition of Chemalloy powder resulted in speedier germination of seeds as well as larger percentages germinated. Initial growth of the plants after emergence was also more rapid in the case of treated seeds.

For field crops, Chemalloy is applied at the rate of one to five pounds per acre, in the row or hill with the seeds. It is not broadcast over the entire field area, as this would waste material. It needs to be buried where it will be in contact with soil moisture since it is inert when dry.

The peach and nectarine trees in Fig. 5 were planted in poor compact clay soil in El Cajon, Calif., and stands in sharp contrast to anything else in the area having grown in 1 1/2 years to the height shown from 1-in. diameter stubs.

---

Patent with images only (no text)

Chemaloy Smelting Process from Patent # 2,796,345 of June 18, 1957

In preparing the alloy of the present invention, the following metals and metal alloys are melted together in a crucible in the following proportions to provide the metallic ingredients:

                                                      Pounds
Yellow brass (30% zinc and 70% copper)----------------  8
Aluminum --------------------------------------------   8
40-60 solder (40% tin 60% lead) ---------------------   1.5
Silver (.1%) or --------------------------------------  .1
Nickel (.1%) ---------------------------------------    .1
Zinc, to make up a 100 pound batch or --------------    82.3
                                                    -----------
                                                         100.0

The chemical ingredients are next prepared in approximately the following proportions, for a 100 pound batch of the above metal ingredients:

Powdered copper slag ---------------pounds---------     3.0
Yellow sulphur ----------------------do------------     1.25
Willow charcoal ---------------------do------------     0.75
Commercial muriatic acid ----------gallons---------     0.50

The chemical ingredients are mixed together thoroughly and the acid added and stirred into the dry ingredients until a thin or watery paste-like mass is produced.

Meanwhile, the metal ingredients in the crucible have been heated until they reach the temperature of approximately 1450º F. and a layer of fine grain powdered charcoal of approximately a half-inch thickness is deposited on top of the molten metal to form an insulating blanket. When this charcoal layer has become red in color, the wet mass of chemical ingredients is deposited entirely over the top of the charcoal blanket in a thick layer. Using a suitable pushing device, such as a metal rod, the chemical mass is forced down through the charcoal blanket into the molten metal mixture, a small area at a time. The charcoal blanket shields the remainder of the mass from explosion or excessive reaction.

As the chemical mass is pushed into the molten metal mixture in the crucible, a multitude of tiny reactions occurs throughout it, instead of a single large explosion, due to the fact that the chemical particles are separated from one another by the porous inert slag and by the particles of charcoal.

As each portion which has been pushed down into the molten mixture is absorbed into the latter, another portion is pushed down and so on, until each portion of the chemical mass or layer has been pushed through the insulating charcoal blanket, a small area at a time.

After all of the wet chemical mass has been pushed downward into the molten metal mixture in the crucible, the entire mixture is stirred thoroughly to release all of the chemicals from the pores of the copper slag and to cause the tiny reactions and the explosions to be completed. When this has been done, and the slag has lost its chemical impregnations by these reactions and minute explosions, the slag floats to the surface of the molten metal mixture, along with other impurities or superfluous materials, these being skimmed from the surface of the molten mixture, leaving the latter in its finished state. The chemically-impregnated alloy thus formed is then poured out and formed into suitable shapes such as rods, bars or ingots.

During the period in which the chemical ingredients are being pushed downward through the charcoal blanket into the molten metal mixture, corrosive fumes are emitted which must be carefully disposed of or they will discolor paint, corrode ferrous metals, and cause annoyance to persons in the vicinity. After the alloy has been made in the above manner, however, it may be subsequently remelted without the formation of such fumes. The chemically-impregnated alloy remaining after the process has been completed is a finely homogenized, high quality alloy which is easily machined, plated or painted, as desired.

The present process also enables the combining of zinc and lead in an alloy, even though these metals are normally incompatible. For example, only one-half of one percent of lead in a zinc based die, such as is used in aircraft production, causes the die to crack during use, because lead will not ordinarily mix with zinc satisfactorily.

The copper slag mentioned in the foregoing process is the waste slag produced in copper smelting plants, and is useful because of its porosity and inert characteristics. It will be obvious that other porous materials which are similarly inert may also be employed to subdivide the chemical ingredients in the above manner and thereby convert an otherwise dangerous single explosion into a multitude of tiny harmless explosions and reactions.

The chemical ingredients thus incorporated into the metal alloy impart to the alloy the capability of flowing naturally and easily by capillary attraction when the alloy is applied to the junction of metal parts, such as aluminum to be united, without the previous use of a flux. Hitherto, it has been necessary to apply a flux in order to form a flux path at the junction of the metal parts to be united, or otherwise the welding metal does not flow well, and does not easily enter the junction between the metal parts to be united.

The proportions, and indeed, the components of the metallic mixture are not critical and many variations may be used. In place of the brass, pure copper or even bronze can be employed, more copper giving greater strength. The nickel and silver components are mere traces which produce better uniting of the metal components with one another. The chemical components of the alloy enable the alloy to penetrate the oxide film on aluminum without wire brushing or other previous preparation and to penetrate the crack or other junction between the parts to be united and to emerge on the opposite side thereof.

Proof that the chemical ingredients remain in the alloy is found in the fact that shavings of the alloy placed in a glass of ordinary tap water cause the flow of an electric current which may be detected by a voltmeter, milliampmeter or cathode ray oscilloscope when leads or electrodes connected thereto are inserted in the water. Moreover when the alloy particles or shavings have been permitted to remain in the water for several hours, gas bubbles will emerge from the water and form on the surface. Each of these bubbles explodes upon the application of a match, showing that chemicals in the alloy shavings produce hydrogen and other gases when placed in water. A still more powerful effect is obtained when salt water is used. Moreover, if the alloy is prepared in the form of a powder, this powder tends to come to the surface of the water and float thereon even though its specific gravity or weight is nearly seven times that of water.

Applications for soldering left out

In the process of preparing the alloy of the present invention, if the furnace heat is inadvertently raised to too high a temperature so that some of the metal ingredients start to volatize, particularly the zinc, the operator immediately covers the top of the molten metal in the crucible with a layer of willow charcoal, which stops the volatilization.

Normally, however, the operator does not use more charcoal after the layer which he initially applies, and waits until this charcoal powder has become completely red before he attempts to push the chemical ingredients downward through it into the molten metal. In practice, if the chemical ingredients are forced through the charcoal blanket prematurely, that is before it becomes fully red, the charcoal powder will puff up in clouds of black smoke which is irritating to the lungs and soils the clothing and the surroundings. It has been found best to permit the charcoal to ignite and burn at the outer periphery of the crucible and gradually consume itself toward the center of the blanket, whereupon the flame disappears and the top of the molten metal in the crucible becomes tightly sealed with a red charcoal coating.

To improve the free machining characteristics of the alloy, the proportion of solder may be increased, the machinability increasing as the proportion of solder is increased. Thus, in the formula given above, instead of 1.5 pounds of solder for a hundred pound batch, as much as 3 to 5 pounds of solder may be beneficially employed.

Additional sulphur is employed occasionally if, for example, it is found that high melting components of the alloy are not properly melting, even though the temperature has been raised to the point where other ingredients, such as zinc, are ready to volatize. IN that instance, the operator throws yellow sulphur into the portion of the crucible where the unmelted brass is located, whereupon a blue flame arises and increases the temperature in the immediate vicinity of the sulphur, causing the brass to melt readily. Thus, the addition of sulphur has the opposite effect from the addition of charcoal in that sulphur increases the heat or fire where charcoal puts it out or minimizes it.

The muriatic acid may volatize, to some extent, when it encounters the molten metal, but it undoubtedly reacts chemically with the metals in the crucible to produce salts such as chlorides which increase the tenacity of adhesion of the alloy in welding or soldering, and thus render the use of a separate flux unnecessary. The charcoal blanket however, reduces the tendency of the muriatic acid to volatilize, especially if only small portions of the chemical ingredients are pushed through the charcoal layer into the molten metals at a given time. The copper slag of the formula, being inert and heat-resistant, merely serves as a vehicle or carrier or modulator in a manner analogous to the phenomenon of modulation in radio wave transmission. Thus, the alloy of the present invention is characterized by the presence of chemicals in solution with the metals, these chemicals remaining in the alloy upon solidification and enhancing the flow of the alloy by capillary action during welding without the use of a separate flux.

The use of the alloy of the present invention enables aluminum to be substituted for critically scarce copper in many installations or applications where aluminum was previously considered unsatisfactory because of the difficulty of welding or soldering it. The present alloy may also be used to coat aluminum wire by a procedure analogous to "tinning" copper wire so that the thus coated aluminum may be soft-soldered to other metals. The present alloy may also be used in the form of a molten bath for "tinning" aluminum articles for soldering them or for hermetically sealing them.

What I claim is:

1. The process of producing an alloy including zinc and lead having increased homogeneity suitable for fluxless soldering or welding of aluminum or zinc comprising the steps of preparing a dry mixture of pulverized porous copper slag, finely divided charcoal and powdered sulphur, to said mixture adding muriatic acid in quantity sufficient to form a paste-like consistency, sufficiently heating up a major proportion by weight of zinc and a minor proportion by weight of lead together to bring them to the molten state, to the surface of said molten metals adding a quantity of finely divided charcoal, burning the charcoal by the ambient heat required to maintain the metals in the molten state, continuing said burning of the charcoal until the same is reduced to a hardened read-heat layer capable of supporting the weight and mass of said muriatic acid paste mixture thereon, depositing and spreading a layer of said paste mixture on said hardened charcoal layer, forcing small areas of said paste layer through said hardened charcoal layer and into the molten metals bit by bit to generate a plurality of minute prolonged explosions and agitations within the molten metals, skimming off the flotation material forming at the surface when the agitation has subsided, and pouring the alloy into product molds for chilling and solidifying.

--------that last sentence/paragraph was like that in the patent-------

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