222 FOREST PRODUCTS 



Charcoal. 



Until about 1905 the great market for charcoal was in the reduction 

 of iron ores. Important methods of steel production within recent years, 

 however, have gradually eliminated the strong demand for charcoal for 

 this particular purpose. Charcoal iron or Swedish iron, as it is often 

 called in the trade, is still in demand for certain specialized uses, espe- 

 cially for high-grade steel used for tools, instruments, car wheels, etc. 

 Pig iron reduced with charcoal commonly brings $5.00 a ton more than 

 coke iron. A single blast furnace uses between 10,000 and 12,000 bu. 

 of charcoal a day. Where there are from 5 to 10 blasting furnaces at a 

 single ore-reduction plant, it is easily seen that the consumption of char- 

 coal may be very large. A great many of the hardwood distillation 

 plants in Michigan and Wisconsin have ore-reducing plants in connection 

 with them. These are the conditions under which the greatest economy 

 in charcoal utilization is practiced. Much of the charcoal for these plants, 

 however, is made by the open-pit or bee-hive kiln as well as by the oven 

 plants. An investigation carried on by the U. S. Forest Service showed 

 the consumption of charcoal in this country to be as follows : 76 per cent 

 went to blast furnaces; 19.5 per cent is utilized in domestic uses; 1.9 

 per cent is used for chemical purposes; 1.03 per cent is used for powder 

 mills and the remainder went to smelters, railroads, etc. However, 

 replies from only 60 per cent of the plants were received, so that it is not 

 likely that a large number of plants throughout New York and Pennsyl- 

 vania are properly represented by this estimate. 



Charcoal from the New York plants is probably used in a greater va- 

 riety of ways than from those in other states. There is no question but 

 that the major portion of charcoal produced in this country is still 

 used in blast furnaces and for the manufacture of gunpowder. 



One New York plant screens it and ships it in five different grades. 

 When the charcoal is shipped, it is screened to remove the finer pieces. 

 This is ground up in some cases and pressed into briquettes and used for 

 fuel. Other common uses for charcoal are for medicinal purposes, for 

 poultry and cattle food, in chemical manufacture and for fuel in a great 

 variety of ways. 



Wood Tar. 



At the present time practically all of the wood tar is used for fuel under 

 the ovens or boilers. Throughout the country it is estimated that 

 between 30^000,000 and 40,000,000 gal. of wood tar are used in this way. 

 In some cases, prices of between 4 and 8J cents have been received per 



