Making Iron

Making Iron. . , EVOLUTION OF THE FURNACE , The "new” furnace, south of the village, was the culmination of 30 years of experimentation aimed at producing high quality iron efficiently. European experts were consulted, and metallurgists were hired to refine the process to make the best iron. The approach was part science and part craft, implemented by backbreaking and blistering labor., IRON MAKING FORMULA , Iron Ore - Iron oxide, along with other trace elements considered impurities. A very pure iron oxide ore was found here, easily accessible and close to the surface. +. Flux - Marble and other substances are added to bind the impurities together into a layer of slag that floats on top of the molten iron.+. Charcoal Fuel - Wood is converted to charcoal to provide carbon without impurities that would diminish the quality of the iron. EQUALS. Pig Iron - The molten iron is drawn off and cooled to form pigs (ingots) for later processing.+. Slag - The bound impurities solidify into a waste product called slag.+. Gases - Gases released from the furnace: carbon dioxide, carbon monoxide, nitrogen, and water vapor, exit the stack , , BLOOMERY FORGE , The earliest type of forge produced a crude form of iron that required further processing to remove impurities. , - Iron and charcoal added through the top , - Air from bellows , - "Bloom", a molten mass of iron and slag , - Slag [tapped off the top of the bloom], CUPOLA FURNACE , A simple furnace that used cold blast air. The stack from a cupola furnace lies alongside the ruins of the 1844 blast furnace. , - Iron ore, charcoal, and flux added through the top , - Round steel stack, lined with firebrick , - Blast air from a bellows , - Molten iron and slag [tapped from the bottom], HOT BLAST FURNACE , The most sophisticated furnaces built here were hot blast furnaces, one built in 1844, and the "new” furnace built in 1854. These furnaces used water powered air cylinders to blast pre-heated air into the furnace. - A major improvement in efficiency came when the design was changed to preheat the blast air using hot gases from the chimneys , - Charcoal, iron ore, and flux were added in alternating layers , - The furnace could be tapped twice a day, yielding about six tons of iron each time