[STANSFIELD- TITANIFEROUS ORES OF IRON 35 
WISSLER] 
Silica is reduced to a small extent, furnishing one per cent or two per 
cent of silicon in the iron, but in general remains unreduced. When 
fusion takes place, the reduced metals (iron and silicon, with dissolved 
carbon), form the pig metal, while the unreduced oxides, silica, alum- 
ina, lime, and any unreduced iron oxide form the slag. In smelting 
titaniferous oresit is desired in general to obtain the iron in the metallic 
state and to leave the titanium unreduced so that it will pass into the 
slag as an oxide. Titanium is less easily reduced than iron, but about 
as easily as silicon, so that in smelting an ore that is rich in titanium, 
about as much titanium as silicon will enter the pig iron. Metallic 
titanium, if present in any considerable amount, is liable to cause 
trouble in the furnace by combining with the cyanides, that are always 
present, to form the well known copper coloured cyano-nitride of 
titanium, which ultimately causes serious obstructions in the furnace. 
To avoid the reduction of titanium it is necessary either to use a very 
large amount of flux,so as to reduce the proportion of titanium in the 
charge and to remove it almost completely in the slag, or else to have 
so moderate a reducing action in the furnace that the titanium re- 
mains almost entirely unreduced. With poor reduction the silicon 
entering the pig iron will also be small in amount and the pig will be 
“white” or “forge iron.” Foundry iron, high in silicon, cannot be 
produced from a highly titaniferous ore. 
In view of the scientific interest attaching to the reduction of 
titaniferous ores and to the economic importance of learning how to 
utilize the immense deposits of these ores in Canada, the authors have 
made a number of experiments on the subject. These experiments 
are not sufficiently numerous to enable a complete report to be made, 
but in view of the interest of this subject it appears desirable to pre- 
sent these observations (although incomplete) without any delay. 
The experiments consisted of attempts to smelt a titaniferous ore 
containing about 6-5 per cent of titanium and of a series of determina- 
tions of the melting points of titaniferous slags. The smelting tests 
were carried out in an electric furnace as this is far more easily operated, 
on the small scale, than a blast furnace. The first test was made with 
a charge calculated on the assumption recommended by Rossi that 
titania! should be considered as equivalent to an equal amount of 
silica. The charge was also arranged with a view to making foundry 
iron. The test demonstrated the difficulties that will be met under 
these conditions. A number of experiments were then made to 
find the composition of fusible slags of titanium, and finally a second 
smelting test was made using the fluxes indicated by the fusion point 

1 The authors suggest the use of the word ‘‘titania”’ in place of ‘titanium oxide’’ 
or “‘titanic acid.”’ 
