SMELTING ORES BY ELECTRICITY 



under Government auspices in the smelting of Canadian 

 iron ores. 



Steel refining in the electric furnace is considerably 

 cheaper than the crucible process. The cost depends 

 largely on the degree to which the impurities are to be elim- 

 inated, and is relatively small if steel to be refined is sup- 

 plied to electric furnace in molten state from the open 

 hearth or Bessemer converter. 



Especially in two departments of iron and steel indus- 

 tries lias the electric furnace been commercially successful 

 and applied for various purposes. The production of ferro 

 alloys, such as ferro-silicon, lerro-chromium, etc., it is 

 specially adapted to the required work through the high 

 temperature available. 



While in the manufacture of special steels, its value 

 lies in tlie ease of control and the possibility of preventing 

 impurities in tb.e finished product and the various alloyS) 

 especialh' those of high percentage and low in carbon are 

 quite successfully produced. 



The usual reducing agent is carbon. But silicon or 

 ferro-silicon or carborundum is also used for the production 

 of other ferro-alloys free from carbon. 



BRIEF REVIEVv^. ' 



Electro-chemistry embraces so many and varied indus- 

 tries to-day, that we meet almost daily new processes in 

 successful operation, so rapid is the progress in this branch 

 of the science, and present systems are being continually 

 improved and rendered more efficient. But fifteen years 

 ago many of its products were unknown, as carborundum. 



A brief summary of the most important commercial 

 products of the electric processes can be given in a paper on 

 the subject. 



Of these industries, that of greatest importance is 

 copper refining. The electrolitic copper produced during 

 1903 is estimated at 318,000 tons, of which the United 



