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THURSDAY, OCTOBER 24, 1895. 



THE METALLURGY OF IRON. 

 The Metallurgy of Iron and Steel. By Thomas Turner, 

 Associate of the Royal School of Mines, Vol. i. "The 

 Metallurgy of Iron." (London : Charles Griffin and 

 Co., Limited, 1895.) 



THIS is the third volume of a valuable series of 

 treatises on metallurgy, written by Associates of the 

 Royal School of Mines, under the able editorship of 

 Prof. Roberts-Austen. It occupies an intermediate position 

 between a text-book and an e.\haustive treatise, and is 

 intended not only for the use of the student, but also of 

 persons who are connected with the manufacture of iron 

 and steel, and who, therefore, may be assumed to have 

 already some knowledge of the subjects discussed. 



The attempt made by the author to compress within 

 the space of 367 pages a useful account of this vast 

 subject — the metallurgy of iron— has been satisfactorily 

 accomplished ; and although in some of the chapters the 

 condensation is perhaps unduly great, yet this fault is 

 minimised by the numerous references, which abound in 

 the te.xt, to original papers where full details may be found. 

 In preparing these references, the author appears to have 

 made a painstaking research into the literature of the 

 entire subject, and this, together with his practical 

 knowledge of its chief branches, has resulted in the pro- 

 duction of a valuable treatise, which covers the whole field 

 of the metallurgy of iron more completely than any other 

 Ijook in our language. .As a standard of reference for 

 <lctailed information, the Journal of the Iron and Steel 

 Institute has been wisely chosen, as in it all advances in 

 the metallurgy of the metal are recorded, and the more 

 important are dealt with by specialists of note ; it is, 

 Ijesides, easily accessible. 



The volume begins with a patiently compiled summary 

 >if the history of iron, in which the origin and develop- 

 ment of the metallurgical processes for the production 

 .ind purification of the metal, and of the furnaces and 

 appliances used, are clearly traced from the earliest times 

 up to the present day. 



.\ condensed resunu' of the nature, composition and 

 characteristics of the chief iron ores, and of the modes 

 of preparing them for smelting, follows in chapters iv. 

 and V. In a future edition the latter chapter might be 

 extended with advantage, for, although no important 

 methods are omitted, the descriptions of some are very 

 Ijrief 



The next five chapters (vi., vii., viii., i.\. and x.) deal 

 respectively with the blast furnace, the blast, the re- 

 actions which occur in smelting, the fuels used, and 

 slags and fluxes. The general arrangement of a blast 

 furnace plant is illustrated by sketch plans of a modern 

 Cleveland and American (Edgar Thomson) works, and 

 under " Construction of the Blast Furnace " a typical 

 furnace of each of these works is selected for detailed 

 description. The marked diflferences which are found in 

 the internal lines and dimensions of the furnaces of the 

 two countries, and in their practical working, are com- 

 pared, and the reasons which have been advanced in 

 favour of each are clearly stated and discussed ; all of 

 NO. 1356, VOL. 52] 



which tend to demonstrate that there can be no universal 

 standard form, size, or method of working for a blast 

 furnace. There are, howe\er, undoubtedly some points 

 in American practice which might be adopted with 

 advantage in this countr)'. 



The diagram given on p. 127, illustrating the applica- 

 tion of the recording pyrometer, as devised by Prof. 

 Roberts-Austen, for the measurement of the temperature 

 of the hot blast, is instructive, and shows conclusively 

 the value of this instrument to the blast furnace manager. 



The reactions which take place in the blast furnace, 

 and the conditions which regulate the consumption of 

 fuel, are very fully considered. Here the editor has 

 allowed the author to state his own view of the theory 

 of reduction, probably because it is evidently a " theory." 

 It differs from that which Prof. Roberts-.A.usten is known 

 to teach in his lectures at the Royal School of Mines. 

 In chapters .\i. and xii. the "Properties of Cast Iron' 

 and " Foundry Practice " are discussed with a thorough 

 knowledge of the subjects, both chapters being full of 

 important matter. The effects of the presence of other 

 elements, especially of silicon, on the physical characters 

 of cast iron, are ably and comprehensively set forth, and 

 experimental data of much value to the practical founder 

 are given in demonstration of the relations which exist 

 between the chemical composition of the metal and its 

 fitness for special purposes. The necessity for a know- 

 ledge also of the relations between its hardness and 

 strength is wisely insisted on, as, when these are fully 

 grasped, the iron-founder requires only the information 

 how to harden or soften his metal at will by the use of 

 silicon or other agents, to produce castings in which 

 the crushing, transverse and tensile strength, or othe 

 characters, shall predominate as desired. These chapters 

 deserve the careful study not only of the student, but 

 also of the practical man, if he wishes to work intelli- 

 gently, and so avoid the uncertain results which follow 

 the " rule-of-thumb " methods still too often practised 

 in our foundries. In no other text-book are the subjects 

 of these chapters so lucidly and completely treated. 



A description of the methods for the " Direct Produc- 

 tion " of wrought iron — the subject of numerous modern 

 patents, and of probabh' more failures — follows ; and the 

 three next chapters (xiv., xv. and xvi.) deal with the 

 " Indirect Production " of the metal. Of these, the 

 chapter devoted to " Puddling " is one of the best in 

 the book. The account of the process and its various 

 modifications it contains is worthy of high commenda- 

 tion. The concise descriptions and explanations which 

 are given, many of which are based on the author's 

 personal experience and investigations, and the useful 

 practical suggestions which abound regarding the rela- 

 tive economy and extent of purification resulting from 

 modifications in the method of conducting the process, 

 cannot fail to be of great value to all iron-workers. 



The corrosion of iron, a subject of not a little im- 

 portance when we consider the disastrous results which 

 may arise from the oxidation of a boiler-plate, a girder, 

 a rivet, or a wire rope, is reserved for the last chapter 

 of the book. The conditions under which this change 

 occurs, the methods which are adopted for preventing 

 or retarding it, and the experimental data on which these 

 are founded, are carefully summarised here. 



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