1868. | Metallurgy and Mining. 413 
demand for tungsten falling off, this process has been abandoned. 
Experiments are now in progress at East Pool mine, near Redruth 
in Cornwall, for separating the wolfram from the tin, the worth of 
which it considerably lowers, and it is hoped that the value of tung- 
sten as an alloy with iron or steel may render the results profitable. 
A considerable improvement has been made in the extraction of 
sulphur from its ores in Italy. It has usually been sublimed by 
different, but in all cases by wasteful processes. The new process 
is as follows :—A vessel made of boiler plate, in the form of a trun- 
cated cone, is filled with the ore of sulphur. There is a grating at 
the bottom to prevent the ore from falling through into the receiver, 
and under this a strainer of sheet-iron pierced with small holes. Up 
the centre,—passing from top to bottom,—is a pipe communicating 
with a steam boiler, which pipe is perforated with small holes. The 
vessel containing the ore is carefully closed, the steam is turned on, 
and issuing from the perforated pipe, it finds its way amidst the 
ore. In the course of a short time the sulphur melts, becoming 
very liquid it flows through the grate and the strainer into the 
receiver, in which it is kept in a liquid state until all the ore in the 
vessel is exhausted; it is then run off into moulds. 
An apparatus of this kind has been put up at the Elvetica Iron 
Works, and the saving in time—and therefore of money—is very 
great. The production of sulphur appears to be increased from 
20 per cent.—the quantity obtained by the old processes—to 37} 
per cent. by the new one. 
One of the largest blast-furnaces in Europe was blown in re- 
cently at Ferry Hill, Durham. Two furnaces have been built, 
105 feet in height, and 28 feet diameter, blown by four powerful 
blast-engines. The experiment appears to have been most successful ; 
and if it continues to prove so, the problem of monster furnaces 
would appear to be solved. 
The manufacture of the metal aluminium has entirely ceased 
in this country, the works which were established at Washington, 
near Newcastle-on-Tyne, having been stopped. Aluminium bronze 
is, however, still made in small quantities. The ‘American Artizan’ 
informs us of a new process for making this beautiful alloy, which 
offers some advantages over the original process. Mr. Evrard, to 
whom this new process is due, uses pig-iron containing aluminium : 
this is slowly heated to fusion, and copper is added to the melted 
mags. After the mixture has been well stirred together, it is allowed 
to cool very slowly, when the aluminium bronze settles at the bottom 
of the crucible, it being much denser than iron. 
A similar process is said to have been adopted for the separation 
of silicium from iron, the affinity of copper for silictum being ex- 
ceedingly energetic. 
