THE MA KING SHA PING ,

AND

TREATING OF STEEL

BY

J M C AM P
. .

. 0
AND

C . B . F R AN C I S

SECOND EDITION

PU BL I S H E D BY

THE CA RNE GIE ST EE L COMPA NY

P I T T S BU R G H , PA .
 C o p yri g h t 1 920 b y
C A R N E G I E S T E EL C OM P A N Y
b
P i t t s urg h . Pa .
 H OM E R D . W I LL I AM S ,

President of the C a rne gie S teel C ompany

A ND

H I S A S S IS T A NT S

Fo r T heir V alue d S uggestions and Words of A ppre ci ation

T H I S BOOK I S D E D I C A T E D

4 2 527 4
 P RE F A CE T O S E CON D E DI T I ON

This book has been written espe cially for the nontechnical employees
of the C arne gie Steel C ompany and others who seeking self instruction , , , ,

may desire t o secure in the shortest time possible a general knowl edge o f
the metall urgy of iron and steel .

The boo k is the outcome of several years experience in at t empting t o

te ac h t he metallurgy of steel t o our salesmen and other nontechn ical
e mployees t he first the method pursued in this wor k has been that
. From ,

of t aking the students under proper guidance int o the mills where they
, , ,
O

obtain first h and and individually such information as t hey desire and
, ,

are able t o collect and of supplementing the knowledge gaine d from t hese
,

visits with tal ks and expl anations deli vere d in a cl assroom where conditions
are more favorable for t his kind o r instruction t han t hey are in the mills .

These tal ks in a c ondense d form were pu t in wr iting an d a copy given

, , ,

t o e ach of the students As the demand for these lectures increased it was
.
,

decide d that for the sake of convenience they shoul d be printe d ; an

, d ,

ac cordin gly they were revise d and are here assemble d in the presen t volume .

In order to increase the value of t he boo k as a re ference boo k , we

h ave aimed t o c ondense the i nformation and t o avoi d every unnecessary
word both by omitting al l ma t ter from the te xt no t absolutel y essential
,

and by the free use of tables drawin gs and diagrams w hi ch we permi t t o

‘

, ,

tell their own story H owever , knowin g our readers wil l be men imbue d
.

with a desire to learn we have no t avoide d discussing many scientific aspects

,

of o ur subj ects . But here we have t rie d t o make it e asy e ve n for t he

general reader . We have aime d t o use l anguage as simple as possible ,

c onsisten t with clearness and t o t reat our subj e cts in such a way t ha t
, ,

aside from what a limited e du cation supplies no prerequisites w ill be ,

.

require d . We start with t he elementary subj e cts of Physics and

C hemistry ,the l ogical prerequisites and buil d our met allurgy upon that
,

foundation . The boo k will ,

therefore prove of mos t value t o t hose
,

connecte d with the steel business , and no t t echni c all y e ducated , who are
really anxious t o learn more about the wonderful industry in which they
are engaged . Fo r such as these we have aimed t o make this boo k at
,

least a stepping stone t o hi gher and better things .

 l

With re gard to the subj e ct m atter o f t he b ook we c l

, aim but little in
the way of ori ginality . We have no new theories to advance and no new
discoveries to reveal . Our aim throughout has been t o describe c onditions
and things as they are and t o expl a in the c aus es for their being as they a re ,

rather than t o tell how they mi ght be or how t hey ought to be . To

ac complish our first purpose we have been compelle d t o rely mainly upon
,

our personal observa t ion and experiences but in expl ainin g the c auses of
,

things w e have freel y c onsulte d al l those whose publishe d Op i ni ons relating

to e ach particul ar subj ect have been available and of value . We are ,

therefore indebte d to many for aid and to all these we wish to express
, ,

our t hanks Wh erever we have drawn upon these sources of information

.

we have aimed to give the credit to the authors by m ention in the text
or by foot note
‘
references . As guides to collateral readin g these
references will have an additional value to o ur readers . We also desire to
thank the superintendents and the many heads of departments of our various
plants for the co urtesies they have sho wn us and for the many bits o f va l
a able information whic h they were ever ready to give
‘

.
 TA BLE OF CONT E NTS

P A RT I .

MA KING OF S T EEL
C H A PT ER I Som e P r i nc i p l
e s o f Ph y s i c s a n d C h e m i s t ry
S EC T I ON I . I NT ROD UCTI ON
1 . I ron , the M aster M etal .

2 . Metallur gy define d .

3 . M atter .

a Fundamental Laws and S tates of M atter

. .

b M olecules . .

c S ciences of M atter
.

II . PH YS I CAL P ROPE R TIE S OF M ATTE R .

C lasses of Properties
a . G eneral P roperties
i . I nertia .

ii . Extension
M ass
iii .

D ensity and Specific G ravity

iv .

P orosity
v . .

I mpenetrability
vi .

b . Spe cial P roperties .

i Cohesion and A dhesion

. .

ii E lasticity .

iii .

'

iv Ductili ty . .

v M allea b ility.

vi H ardness .

vii Crystalliz ation.

ix . Eff usion
x . A bsorption

S E C T I ON ENE R G Y , H E AT A ND TE MP E RAT U RE AND T HE

ET HE R
E nergy—Law of C onservation .

Kinds of Energy—Kinetic and Potential

a . . .

H e at and Temperature
a . of H eat—Law of gas e xpansion and
Effects
kinetic theory
b T emperature S cales
.

0 M easurement of H eat
.

T he E ther .
viii T A BLE OF CON TEN T S

IV . MA T T E R
CHAN G E S IN

Physical and C hemical C hanges

M echanic al Mixtures and C hemi ca l C ompounds
a S olutions and Alloys
.

b A cids bases sal ts an d non electrolytes

.
, , ,
-

T h e C hemical E lements .

a Cl
'

ass i fi cati o n o f the elemen t s

.

b C hemic al S ymbo s .

l
0 Fundamental Laws of Chemic a l C hanges
. .

Definite and M ultiple Proportions .

S E C T I ON V . T H E A T OMI C AND ELE CT RON THE ORI E S

1 . A toms
a . A tomi c weights
V alence
b .

c
Table of . E lements with symbols , e tc
2 . Ele ctrons ,

VI . C HE MI CAL FORM ULA A ND RE A CT IONS

F orm ula of C ompounds
F orm ul a of Molecules of Element s
C hemical E quations .

a . Balancing re actions
b . R adic als
I ons an d Electrolysis
Dry an d Wet C hemis t ry
a . bases and ”sal t s of Dry C hemistry
A cids , . .

b . Table of anhy dri des

Kinds of Re actions
Laws of Chemic al Re ac t ions .

V II . C H E MI CAL N OME NCLA T U RE

T h e G eneral Principle of Nomencl ature
Terminol ogy of Binary C ompounds .

Terminology of Ternary C ompounds

Terminology of A cids
Terminolo gy of B ases
Terminolo gy of S alts .

S E C T I ON V I II C HEMI CAL CAL CULATI ON S

.

1 . Kinds of Problems
2 . Problems invol ving weight o nly
3 . Pr oblems invol ving volume only
4 . Problems involvin g weight and volum e .
 TA BLE OF CON TE N T S ix

S EC T I ON I X . DE S CRI PT I ON OF ELE M E NT S I M P ORT A NT IN

I R ON AND ST EE L MA KI N G
Occurrence , Preparation , Properties and S ome
C ompo unds of Oxygen
Oc currence , Preparation , Proper t ies n
d
a S ome
C ompounds of
Oc currence , P reparation , Proper t ies and S ome
Compounds of Sulphur
Oc c urrence , P reparation , Properties and S ome
C ompo unds of C arbon
Occurrence , Preparation , Properties and S ome
Compounds of Silicon
Oc currence , Preparation , Properties and S ome
C ompoun ds of Nitro gen
Occurrence , P reparation , Properties and S ome
Compounds of Phosphorous .

Occurrence , Preparation , Properties and S ome

Compounds of C alcium and Magnesium
Oc c urrence , P reparation , Properties and Some
Compounds of Aluminum
Oc currence , Preparation , Proper t ies and Some
Compounds of C hromium
Oc currence , P reparation , Proper t ies and Some
C ompounds of Manganese .

Occ urrence , Prep aration , Pro pe rt ies and S ome

C ompounds Of I ro n

C HA PT ER l
l
. Re frac t o r ie s .

SECT I ON I . NAT U RE OF RE F RA CT ORIE S

1 . I mportance
2 . R e quirements of R efra c t ories
3 . C lasse s of Refrac t ories

S EC T I ON I I . ACI D RE F RA CT ORIE S

1 . Chemic al C omposi t ion

2 . Silic a Bric ks .

3 . C lay .

a . The Impuritie s in C l ays

b . The Proc e ss of M aking Fire C lay Bric k . .
x TA BLE OF CON TE N T S

S E C T I ON I I I BAS IC RE F R ACT OR I E S
’

1 . M agnesia
Lime .

3 . Dolomite
4 .

S E C T I ON I V . NE UT R A L RE F R A CT O RIE S
1 . The I de al Furnace Lining
2 . G raphite .

3 . Chromite
4 . Prote ction for Refractories
5 . Table —C hemic al Analyses of R efractories

V . TE S T I N G RE F RACT O RI E S
Tria l Tests and Laboratory Tests :
Fusion Temperature .

Resistance to C ompression
Expans ion and Cont r ac tion
S lagging Te st .

Densit y
The I mpac t Tes t .

The Abrasion T e st
‘

Spalling Te s t

CH A PT ER I I I . l
ro n O re s .

SE C T I ON I . ORE S A ND T HE I RON BEA RI N G MI NE RA LS

1 . M inerals and Ore s
2 . T he I ron B e aring M inerals

a M a gne tite G roup

’

b . H ematite G roup .

c . Limonite or Brown Ore G roup

d . The Ca rbonate G roup .

3 . T he M iner alo gi cal M a k e up of I ron Ore s -

II . V A LUATI ON OF ORE S

F actors in the V aluation of One s

a . T he tha t A re Ne ve r R educed in
I mpuritie s
the Blast F urnace .

b . The I mpuritie s that M a y Be Parti a lly

Re duced
c . The I mpurities A lways Re duce d .

(1 . Water
e . A cce ssibility
 T A BLE OF C ON T E N T S xi

III . T H E BI R MI N G H A M DI S T RI CT

Location and G eneral G eolo gy .

Metho d of M ining .

IV . T HE LA KE S UP E RI OR DI S T RICT
I mportance , Loc ation and G eneral G e ol o gy
a .

b . The M enominee R ange

c . The G ogebic R ange
d . The V erm i lion R ange
c . The M issabe R ange
f . The Cuyuna R ange .

V MI NI N G T HE L A KE ORE S
.

P rospe cting and Explorati on

a Pr ospe c ting .

b Dr i l l Expl oration .

Methods of M ining
a Open Pi t M ining .

i Ste am sh o ve lM ining .

ii M illing .

i ii S cramming .

iv A dvant ages of Open Pi t Mining .

b Under ground Mining S licing

.
-
.

i A dvantages of t he S licin g System of

.

Mining .

11 Depth of M ine S hafts . .

G rading the Ore s

Transp orting the Ores .

Minin g and G rading in Winter

C HAPT ER IV . Fu e ls .

SE C T I ON I . SOME P RE -REQ UI S I TE S T o T HE S T U DY OF F U ELS

1 . I ntroductory
2 . S ensible and Specific H e at
3 . Late nt He at and C hange of State
a Laws of .

b Laws of Evap Ora ti o n .

c Laws of E bullition ; .

4 . Transmission of He at
5 . Fuels and C ombus t ion
6 . Fuels an d C hemic al Energy
7 Measurement of C al o r ifi c

o rifi c P ower of S o me C o m
.

8 . The Cal mon Elements

9 . C al cul ating C al o ri fi c P ower .

10 . Practical H e a t Tests
xii T A B LE OF CON TE N T S

I —Continued
. .

Laboratory H e at Tests
C al
o ri fi c I ntensity .

Method s of C onserving He at
P yrometers
a . Specifi c He at , or Water , P yrometer
b . E le ctric R esistance P yrometers
c . Thermo— E le ctric P yrometers
d . R adiation Pyrometer s .

e . Optic al P yr ome t ers

II . CLA S S IFI CA T I ON OF F UELS

—
T able C l
a ssi fi c ati o n of F uels

P lan of S tudy
I NCI DE NT AL LI QUI D F UELS
'

III . A ND

I nc identa l Fuels

Petroleum
a . C omposition of Petroleum
b . Hydrocarbons —G eneralized , Empiric a l and

c .
—
Table The Different H omol ogous S eries of .

Hydroc arbons
.
m
d . F ue l Oiland Other P roducts of Petroleum .

IV . G A S E OU S F U ELS

A dvant ages of G aseous F uels .

Table—Hydroc arbons in Natural G a s and Petroleum

'

Na tura l G as .

A rtificial G ases .

—
a Table C omposition of G aseous Fuels
.

b Principle of t he G as P roducer
.

c F ac t ors Afi e cting the E ffi cie ncy of t he Producer

.

(1 The H ughes Producer as an Example of

.

Mechanic ally P oke d P roducer

e C onditions and Re actions
.

f Operation of the H ughes P roducer

.

V . T H E SOLI D N AT U RAL F UE LS
A nalysis of S olid Natural Fuels
a . Table —A nalysis of a S olid F ue l , C oal , by
t he Three Di fferen t Me t ho ds
2 . Wo od
3 . Peat .

4 . Li gnite and Brown C oal .

 T A B LE OF CON TE N T S xiii

V .
—Continued .

5 .
—
Table A pproximate A nalyses of the Di fferent
S ol id Fuels . .

6 . D iagram — Depictin g G e ol o gic Periods i n which

G a s Oi land t he V aluabl e Minerals are Found
, , .

a . Bit uminous C oal

b . As h in C o al

VI . P R E P A RE D SOLI D F UELS

P ow dere d C oa l
a . Re quirements for Use of P owdere d C oal
b . A dvantages of P owdere d C oal
c . The S haron P owdere d C oa l P l ant
i . Descrip t ion of Pul verizin g Pl ant
d . C l air t on an d H omes t ead P owdere d C oa l Pl ants
C oke
a. M ethods of M anufacturing C oke .

SEC T I ON V II . T H E BE E HI VE P ROCE S S FOR T H E MA N UF A CT U RE

OF COKE :

1 . The C ontinent a l No . 1 Pl
ant o f t he H C Frick
. .

C oke C ompany

b . The Co kin g P lant .

i . C onstruction an d Arrangemen t of Ovens

ii . Waste H e a t S ystem .

iii . C har gin g the Ovens .

The Cokin g Proc ess .

v . Waterin g an d Drawin g the C oke

VI . Longitudinal Ovens .

SECTI ON V I II . T HE BY - P R ODU CT P R OCE S S F OR MA NUFAC

T U RI N G COK E :

G eneral Fe ature
s of the P rocess
A dvantages of t he By Produc t Process -

The Pl an t of the C lairton By— Produc t C oke

Company
a Constructi on of the Ovens
. .

b Heatin g the Ovens .

c Drying and Heatin g Ne w Ovens

-
.

d Operation of the Ovens

‘

.
xiv T A B LE OF CON TE N T S

IX . T H E BY - PR ODUCT P LA NT

The V olatile M at t er of C oal .

G a s M ains and C oolers .

S eparation of the Tar and Ammonia Liquor .

C ompressors and Tar Extractors

Rec overy of Ammonia
De b e nz o l
ati ng the G a s

X . T H E BE N Z OL PLA NT

Li ght Oi l
C omposition of Ligh t Oi l
C onstruction an d Principles of t he S till
Operation of t he C rude S til
l
Washin g t h e Products of t he C rud e S tills
The P ure S til l s .

S E C T I ON SOME PR OPE RT I E S
U S E S OF T H E R AW BY AND

P ROD UCT S F ROM T HE C OK E WO R Ks :

C haracteristic s of Benz ol , Toluol and Naphtha .

a S ome Members of t he Benzene S eries and

.
,

t heir P hysic al P ro per t ies .

C ommercial Benz ol .

a U se s o f C ommerci a l Benz ol
.

b Mo t or Benz ol
. . .

P roper t iesand Uses of Pure Benzo l or Benzene , .

.
—
a Table Di agram S howing S ome of t he
Product s Derive d from Benzene Their ,

F ormula s an d Their Uses .

—
b Table Re actions S howing H o w
. P henol ,
i

P icri c A cid and Resorcinol may be

Derive d from Benzene
c .
—
Table Reactions S ho win g H o w Aniline and
Benzidine are D erive d from Benzene
U ses of Toluene
a Table—S ome P roduc t s De rive d from Toluene
.
,

Their F ormul as and

b Commercia l Toluo l an d Solven t Naptha
. .

U ses of Naphthalene
a Table—S howin g S ome Products Derived
.

from N aphthalene .

6 . Tar
a Diagram —I llustrative of the R efining of Tar
. .

7 . A mmonia
a Ammonium Sulphate
. .

b U se of Ammonium Sulphat e as a Fertili z er

. ,
. .
 T A B LE OF CON T E N T S XV

C HAPT ER Fl
uxe s a nd S l ag s .

SE CT I ON I FLU X E S

1 . Smelting and the Func t ions of a Flux

2 . The Selection of the Prop e r F lux for a G iven Process
3 . A cid F luxes
a A lumina .

4 . B asic F luxes .

a A vail able Base .

b Limest one . .

0 S upply of Limestone
.

(1 A ction of Limestone in Furnaces

.

5 . Neutral F lux es

S ECT I ON I I . S LA G s

F unc t ionsof S la gs
Importance of S lags
Chemic al C omposition of S l a gs
R el ation of A cids t o Bas e s in Bl a s t Furnace S lag s .

R atio of A cids t o Bases in Open H e arth S lags

A ci d to Base in A cid Furna ce s
Electric Steel F urnace S lags .

A cids F orme d by S ilicon

S o calle d A cid an-
d Basic S lags
C lassific ation of S lags
Uses of Sl ags

C HA PT ER V I . T he Manu fac t u re o f Pi g I ro n .

I . SOME I NTE R E S TI N G H I S T ORI CAL FA CT S

E arly H istory
of I ron .

Old Americ an F urnaces

The I mportance of I ron

II . COMP OS I T I ON A ND CONS TI T UTI ON OF PI G I RON

C onstitution Of Pi g I ron
C hemic al Elements in Pi g I ron
a . C arbon
b . S ilicon
M anganesec .

S ulphur d . .

P hosphorus
e .

G rading P i g I ron
xvi TA B LE OF CON T E N T S

SE C T I ON A B R I E F OUT LI N E OF T H E PR OCE S S AND E Q UIP

MA N UFA CT U R E OF PI G I RON :
ME NT F OR T H E

Tren d of Modern I mprovement s .

E ssentials of the Pro cess .

Essentia l E quipment .

IV C ON S T R UCTI ON OF T HE BLA S T F U R NA CE P ROPE R

.

The G ross Fe at ures of the Furnace Proper

The F oundation .

The H eart h or C rucible

The Bott om .

Tappin g H ole
C inder Notches
Tuyeres .

Tuyere C onnections
B oshes .

M antle .

S haft or S tack and I n Walls

, ,
-

a Thi c k Wal l Type

.

i The Furnace Lines and Bosh Angles

b I ntermediate , or Semi—
.

. Thin Wall Type ,

c Th i n Walle d Type
.

d Furnace Linings
.

Water Trough

a . S toc k Distributor
b . H oistin g Appliances
0 . Top Openings
d G enera l C onsideration for Top C onstruction
. .

R unners

V . BLA S T F U R NA CE ACCE S S ORI E S

The Stoves .

a S t ove Burners and V alves

.

b Other S to ve Openings
.

c St ove Li ni ngs
. .

Dus t C at cher and G a s M ains

A rrangemen t of Furnaces an d C leaning Pl ant at
Duquesne
a Primary Division
.

i Methods of S crubbing t he G a s
.

ii The F ans . .

iii Water S eparat or .

b The Se condary Division

.

SECT I ON EQ UIP ME NT FOR H AN DLI N G RAW AN D F I NI S H E D

MA T E RIA L?
The Boiler H ous e P ower P l ant Pumping Station ,
‘

, ,

Bl owing E ngines et c ,
xviii T A BLE OF CON T E N T S

S E C T I ON I X — Continued . .

9 .A ction of Less Ab undant Elements

10 . The Re actions Within the F urnace
11 . Tracin g t he M aterials Through the Furnace .

12 . C onditions Affe ctin g the Amount of S ilicon and

S ulphur in the

C HAP T ER V II . T h e Be s s e m er P r o ce ss o f Ma n u f act u ri ng S t e e l .

SE CT I ON I . T HE CLA S S I FI CAT I ON OF FE R R O U S P R OD U CT S

1 . I ntr oductory .

2 . Pi g I ron and C ast I ron

3 . M alle able C ast I ron
Wrough t I ron .

5 . S teel
6 . M ethods of Makin g Steel
7 . G enera l P rinciple s of t he Methods of Purifying
Pi g I ron .

SEC T I ON I I . P RI NCI P LE S AND HI S T OR Y OF T HE BE S S E ME R

P R OCE S S
1 . P rinciple sof the Process .

2 . S ome I nc idents C onnecte d wi t h the E arly H is t o ry

of the P ro cess I .

3 . I mportance of M anganese
Thom as and G ilchrist P rocess .

5 . Other I mprovements .

6 . P l an of

S EC T I ON I I I . EQ U IP M E NT AN D A R RA N G E ME NT OF T HE ED G A R
TH OMS ON PLA NT :
1 . The C onverter H ouse
2 . The Large r A c cessories
a . The Cupol as
b . Chargin g the Cupola
c .
'

The Bl ast .

d . The M ixers
i I mportanc e of t he Mixer
.

The Stripper
The C asting E quipment
i The I ngot M oulds
.

SEC T I ON I V . CON VE RT E R CON S T R U CT I ON A ND REPAI RS

1 . G eneral Fe atures Pertaining to C onverters
2 . P arts of C onverter
a Linin g of the C onverter
. .

b The Bottom .

i Relining t he Bottom . .
 T A B LE OF CON T E N T S xix

SE C T I ON V . T HE CON VE RT E R .
IN OP E R AT I ON — P U RI F YI N G
M E T AL : THE

1 C harging the V essel

.

2 The
.

3 Controlling the B low

.

4
. The End of the Blow
S E CT I ON V I FI NI S HI N G
. OPE RAT I ON S C ON VE RTI N G THE
-

P U R IF IE D M E T A L I NT O S T E E L :
l Deoxidation and R e carb II ri z ati o n
'

2 Loss of R ec arburizer and Deoxidizer

.

3 Examples of R e c arb ur i z ing

. .

4 Lad l
. e R eaction
5 Teeming
.

6 S ampling the S te e l for C hemic al Analyses

.

SE C T I ON V I I C HE MI S T R Y OF T H E P R OCE S S
.

1 The Order of E limination of the E lements

.

2 The Laws and C onditions G overning the R e actions

.

in the C onverter
3 R eactions of the F irst
.

4 R eactions of t he Se c ond Peri od

. .

5 C hemistry of R e c arb uri z ing and Deoxidizing

.

C HA PT ER V I I I T h e Ba s i c O pe n He ar t h P ro ce s s
. .

SE C T I ON I SOME G E NE RA L F E AT U R E S OF T H E S I E M E N S
P R OCE S S
1 E arly H istory of the P rocess
. .

2 P rinciples of S iemens P i g and Ore Process

. .

3 A dvantage s of the Process

. .

4 M echani cal C hanges,and I mprovements I n S iemen s

.
’

Process l .

5 Met allur gic al I mprovements

.

6 The P rocess for the P ittsburgh District

.

S E C T I ON I I E Q U I P M E NT F OR A MODE R N BA S I C OP E N
.

H EA R T H PLA NT
1 The M odern P lant
.

2 C al cinin g Pl ant
.

3 .

4 F uel Consumption
5 . H o t M et al M ixer
6 . Spie ge lC upol as .

7 T h e S tee l La di e s
8 . T he S tripper
9 . M oulds
10 . The C harging M achine
11 . C harging Boxes .

12 . Sto c k Yard
13 . A rrangement of the Pl ant
XX T A B LE O F CON T EN T S

S E C T I ON C H I EF FE A T U R E S OF BA S I C OP E N H E A RT H
C ON S T R U CT I ON
P arts of the Open H e arth F urnace and Their
Arrangement
The Furnace P roper
a The H e arth
.

b The Walls . .

c The R oof
. .

d The Bul k H eads

.

T h e P orts
The Up and D own Takes
- - -

a A rrangement of Up—
. and D o wn Takes for -

Natural G a s C oke OV e n G a s P owdere d , ,

C oal and Tar .

Slag P ockets .

R egenerators for Producer G a s .

R egenerators for Natura l and Co k e Oven G ases .

R e generators for P owdere d C oal

Flues and V al ves
The Stack .

IV . OP E R ATI ON OF A BA S I C OP E N H E A RT H
P U R IF YI N G T HE ~
MET AL
F urnace Attendants and Their Duties .

Pre p ara ti o m o f t he F urnace for its F irst C harge .

C har ging .

a The Order of C hargin g R aw M aterials

.

Melting D own the C harge .

T h e A ddition of the H o t Metal

T he P urification P eriods
a The Ore Boil
. .

i The Run o ff .

b The Lime Boil

. .

c The Working Period

.

i M ethods of Working the

.

ii Testing for Carbon

.

iii C ontrol of C arbon and Temperature

.

i v Judging the Temperature of t he

.

T apping .

V . FI NI S H IN G T HE H E AT —MA KI N G ST E E L F ROM

T HE P U R I FIE D ME T A L :
M ethods of Finishing the Steel .

S ome F eatures that M ake the Finishin g of the S teel

Di fficult .

T eeming
S ampling
 T A B LE OF CON TE N T S xxi

S E C T I ON V I . KEE PI N G T HE FU R NACE IN RE PA I R
1 . Preparation of the Furnace for t he Next Charge
2 . Furnace Troubles .

3 . R epair M ateri als

a Dolomite .

b M agnesite . .

c C hrome Ore .

S E C T I ON V I I . C HE MI S T R Y OF T H E BA SIC P R OCE S S
1 . S ome of the Principles and C onditions I nvolve d
2 . P roperties of I ron and I t s Oxi des
a The I mportance of Ferrous Oxi de Fe O, in the
.
,

Par t Playe d by t he Oxi des of I ron in t he

Process
3 . Properties of S ilicon and I ts Oxi de S ilic a ,

4 . Proper t ie s of Manganese an d I ts Oxi des

5 . S ulphur and I ts Oxi des
a Sul phur from the F ue l
.

6 . Phosphorus an d I ts Oxi des .

7 . C arbon and I ts Oxi des

a The A ction of the Limestone
.

b Effe ct of C arbon Elimination

.

239
8 . The Order of E limination . 239
a F actors Opposing this Order of Elimination
. 240
9 . R esum é 24 1

C H A PT ER I X Ma n u fac t u re o f S t e e l
. i n Ele c t r i c F u r n ace s .

SE C T I ON I I NT R OD U CT O RY
.

1 The P l an of Study
.

2 F orce Work Ener gy and P otential

.
, ,

3 P ower
. .

4 Transmission of Energy
. .

5 Elec t romotive F orce (E M

. . .

S E C T I ON I I T H E DE VE LOP ME NT OF ELE CT R OM OTI VE FORCE S

.

—OR
“
G E NE RA TI ON OF C U R R E NT :
”

1 Methods for Settin g Up Electri c Currents

.

2 M a gnetism
.

a Magne ts and Magn etic S ubstances

.

b M agn etic Fields and Electri c Currents

.

3 E le ctrom agnetic I nduc t ion

. .

a Laws of Electrom a gneti c .

S E C T I ON I I I KI N D S OF C U RRE NT
.

1 . Alternatin g Current
a G raphic Representation of A lternating C urrent
.
xxii T A B LE OF CON TE N T S

S E C T I ON I I I .
—C ontinue d .

D irect Current s . 253

3 . P olyphase C urrents 253
4 . The Two S chemes of Wiring for Three P hase Current 254

S E C T I ON I V . T RA N S MI S S I ON OF T H E C U R RE N T
Ohm s Law
’
1 . . .

2 . Resistance of C onductors
a Effe ct of Temperature on
.

b Resistance in Series and P arallel

.

c Currents Through D ivi ded

.

3 4 Self induction I mpedance P ower F actor

-
, ,

He at Develope d in C onductors
5 . The Stationa ry Transformer ,

a Kinds of Stationary Transformers

.

SE C T I ON V T H E UT I LI Z AT I O N OF T H E C U R R E NT IN ELE CT RI C
F U R NA CE S
E ffects P roduced by E lectric Current
a Chemic al A ction P roduce d by the E le ctri c
.

Current .

i Electric al Units of M easurements

.

b The M agnetic I nfluence Of the Current

. .

H e ating the Bath .

a H eating by Direct Resistance

.

b I ndire ct R esistance H e ating

.

c Ar c He ating
.

d Methods of Applying the Ar c in A r c F urnaces

. .

i The St as sano F urnace .

ii G irod Furnaces .

iii The P rinciple of the H eroult Furnace

. “

S ome G eneral C onclusions

S ECT I ON G E N E RAL F E AT U R E S PE R TAI NI N G TO T HE

MET ALLU R G Y OF ST EE L MA DE BY E LE CT R O
TH E R MAL P ROCE S S E s z
A dvantages of Electri c H e ating .

R efining P rocedure .

a The Oxidizin g Period

.

b The Reducing Period.

i Oxygen . .

ii Remova l of Sulphur .

c The Fi ni shin g Period

. .

S ome C omparisons
F luxing M aterials
G eneral M anufacturing Practice .
 TA B LE OF CON TE N TS

S E C T I ON VII . T H E D U Q UE S NE PLA NT —F E A T U R E S P E R T AI N
ING To IT S C ON S TR U CT I ON
1 . Equipment .

2 . C onstruction t he M na ce Shell Of

3 . T h e F urnace Lining
T he R oof
5 . C ontrollin g t h e Electrodes
a The Ele ctrode H olders .

6 . T h e E lectrodes .

7 . Furnace Openings .

SE C T I ON V I I I OP E RAT I ON OF T H E F U R NA CE .

1 Practice a t Duquesne Pl ant

.

a C harging . .

b Deoxi dizing . .

0 Finishin g t he H eats . .

d Tapping and Teeming .

e S crap He ats . .

S EC T I ON I X T H E C HE MI S T R OF T H E P R OCE S S
.

Y
1 Deoxidation of the B ath
.

2 Desulphurizing the Metal

.

3 Difficult Specific ations

. .

S E C T I ON X PR OP E RT I E S A N D U S E S OF ELE CT R I C
. ST EE L
1 Properties of Electric S teel
. .

I llinois S teel C ompany s Tests on R ails

’
2 .

3 Uses of E lec t ri c S teel

.

4 .

C H A PT ER X . T h e Du pl
e x a nd T ri p l
e x P r o ce ss e s .

SE C T I ON I . G E N E RA L F E ATU R E S OF T H E D UP LE X P ROCE S S
1 . Wha t the Duplex P rocess I s .

2 . A dvantages and Disadvantages of the

3 Methods of Duplexing
‘

4 . The Talbo t
S E CT I ON I I . OP E R ATI ON OF T H E P ROCE S S
1 . An Exampleof the Duplexing P rocess
2 . Preparing the Furnace for C harging .

3 . C har ging Molten Meta l from the Converters for

the Firs t Heat
4 . Tappin g an d Re c arb uri z ing t he First He at
5 . Preparing t he Fur nace for t he Second H eat
6 . Closin g D own the Furnac e for the We e k End
7 . Slag
S E C T I ON I II . COMBI NA TI ON PR OCES S E S I N T HE SO UT H
1 . The Duple x P rocess in t he S outh .

2 . The S outhern T ri pl
e xi ng P rocess
xxiv TA B LE OF CON TE N T S

P A RT II .

T H E S HA P ING OF S T EEL
C H A PTER I . T he Me c h a ni calP r o p e r t ie s o f S te e l .

SE C T I ON I . G E N E R A L R E M A R K S PERT AI NI N G To T HE T E S TI N G
OF S T EE L :

1 . T he F actors that Affe ct the Me chani ca l Properties

of S tee l .

2 . T h e Two Obj e cts in the Testing of Steel

3 . Rel ati ve I mportance of P hysi cal and C hemical Testing
4 . N ature of P hysical Testing .

S EC T I ON II . TE S TI N G OF ST R UCT U RAL A N D OT HE R SOFT

T HE
ST EE LS
1 . T h e P ullin g Tes t .

a P ro curing the Test Pieces

.

b Preparation of t he Test Pie ce

. .

c Pulling t he Test
. .

i G raphic R epresentation o f Tests

.

ii Re asons for the P oints o f Yiel d and

.

Maximum Stress
d Ex amination of Tes t After Pulling
.

e Cal culatin g the R esults of the Test

.

2 . The Modulus of Elasticity or Young s ,

’

3 . R elative I mportance of the Mechani cal Properties as

Determine d by the Pullin g Test .

4 . Bending Tests

S E C T I ON I II TE S TI N G OF T H E HI G HE R CA RB O N A N D
. T HE
HE AT T RE A TE D ST EE Ls z
1 . Kinds of Tests Applie d t o the Higher C arbon and
H eat treate d Steels -
.

2 . The Tensile Test .

3 . The I mpact Test .

4 . H ardness Tests
a S hore S cleroscope
.

b Brinell .

i Rel ation of Brinel l Number to Tensile

.

S trength

C HAPT ER I I Me c h a n i c a l
. T re a t m e n t o f S te e l
T he .

S EC T I ON I M E T H ODS A N D EFF E CT S OF M E CH A NI CALLY

.

WO R KI N G ST EEL :
1 M ethods of S haping S teel
.

2 Benefits of M e chanical Working

.

3 H o t and C ol d Working
.
xx vi T A B L E OF CON T E N T S

S E C T I ON I I . C ontinued .

3 . The P inions
4 . The C o nnections
5 . G uides and G uards
6 . A dditional E quipment

S E C T I ON I I I . S OM E G E NE R AL FE AT U R E S PE RT AI NI N G
OP E RATI ON OF T H E ROLLI N G MILL :
i . T he M il l F orce
a Dut ies of the R oller
. .

2 . F ins
3 . The D ifferen t P asses an d S tands
4 . F acto rs Affe c t in g th e Ro ll in g Op era t ion
5 . Effec t s o f Temperat ure
6 . Effe ct of C hemi cal C omposition
7 . The E ffect of Spee d
8 Draught ”

The Effe c t o f Di ame t er of RO

.

9 . l
ls .

C H A PT ER IV . Pre p a ra t io n o f th e S te e lfo r l
Ro li ng .

S E C T I ON I . I N G OT S A ND TH E I R DEFE CT S
1 . Preparation of I n gots
2 . I ngot Defects .

3 . The Nature of t he C oolin g of an I ngot

a Pipes .

i Methods Of Reducin g Waste due t o

. .

the Pipe
b Blow H oles . .

c Crystallization
.

d Se gre gation .

e Che ckin g an d S cabs

f S lag I nclusions
. .

S ize and S hape of I ngots

S E C T I ON I I . T HE CON S T R U CTI ON OF T H E SOA KI N G PIT

1 . G eneral Fe atures of the P i t
2 . Arrangemen t of the P its .

3 . E quipment for H andling I ngots

4 . C onstructio n of the P its
a The A i r Re generators
.

b The P i t C overs
.

0 F uel and Ai r V alves etc

.
,

d Stack F lues and S tack

.
-

e The C ourse of t he G ases Through the Pits

. .

5 . E ight I ngot P its

6 . M aking up the Bottom of the Pit .
 T A B LE OF CON T E N T S xxvii

S E C T I ON I I I . S OA K I N G T HE I N GOT S F OR ROLLI N G
1 . C harging the I ngots
2 . H eating the I ngot s
a Week end C harges
.
-
.

b S oaking H o t an d C ol d I ngots
.

c S oaking H o t Sprin g Steel

.

d S oaking Low C arbon Ho t Steel

.

e S oaking Medium S teels

. .

f S oakin g S cre w S tock

. .

g Soa kin g A l l oy Steels

.

3 . Drawi n g t he I ngots
4 . H eat Bal ance of Pits
5 . Disposition of I ngot P roducts

C HA PT ER V . T h e Ro l
li ng o f Bl
oo m s a nd Sl
ab s .

S E C T I ON I . I NT R OD U CT O R Y
1 . Ou tline of t he Pl an of S tudy
2 . Bl ooms , S l abs and Billets

S E C T I ON I I SOME G E N E R AL FEAT U R E S PE RT AI NI N G
‘

. To

BLOOMI N G MILLS
1 . Siz e of Blooming M ills
2 . Types of Bloomers , Their A dvantages an d Di s
advantages
3 . Drive for Reversin g Mills .

SE C T I ON I I I . A N E X A MP LE OF )RE VE R S I N G M I LLS -
T H E 40
x MI LL AT DU Q UES NE :
1 . The E ngine
2 . Driving C o nne ctions .

3 . Pinions an d P inion H ousings

4 . Spindles an d Coupling Boxes
5 . R ol l H ousings
6 . R ol ls
7 . Ro l lBearings
8 . H ydrauli c S hears
9 . S te am S hears .

10 . M anipula t or
11 . Desi gn of t he Rolls
12 . Operation of R olling

S E C T I ON I V . E XA MP LE OF A TH REE H I G H BLOOMI N G MI LL
-

1 . P l an Of Study
2 . The 40 Three hi gh Mill at E dgar Thomson
” -

a . The Engine and C onnections .

xx viii TA B LE OF CON TE N T S

SE C T I ON I V .
—
C ontinued .

b . The P inions and Spindles

c . The R ol l H ousings
d . The R olls
e . Liftin g Table s .

3 . R oll D esi gn for Three hi gh Bloomers-

a . An Example of R oll Desi gn for Thr ee high -

Blooming Mill .

SE C T I ON V . T H E R OLLI N G OF SLA E S
1 . T h e R ollingof the S lab
2 . The 32 Mill at H omestea d as an Example
"
Of a
S labbing Mill .

a The H oriz ont al M ill

.

b The V ertical Mi l
. l .

3 . P re cautions t o be Observed in R olling S l abs

4 . Removal of S cale
5 . Shearing S labs at 3 2 M ill

C HA P T ER V I . T he Rol l
i ng of l
Bi le ts a nd Ot h e r Se m i
Fi n is h e d P r o d u c t s .

S E CT I ON I . T H E T H R E E HI G H BILLET
-
MI LL
1 . G eneral F eatures of R olling Billets
2 . E xample of Three H i gh Bille t M ill —The -
28 Mill
at Duquesne
” Engine
5

7
9 Drive .

9 P inions and Their H ousings

1
5 H ous ings and R oll Bearings
9
7
7 G uide C ages
8
1
0
Tables .

SEC T I ON I I . T H E CON T I N UOU S BILLE T MILL

1 . G eneral Features of the Continuo us Mill

2 . A dvantages and Disadvantages of C ontinuous Mi l
ls .

3 . Example of C ontinuous Billet M ill

a Drive .

b P inions and H ousings

. .

0 R ol ls and H ousing s
. .

i A djustment of R olls
.

d A rrangement of R oll S tands and G uides

. .

e T h e R olls
.

f Cropping S hears
.

g Flying S hears
.

h H o t Beds .
 T A B LE OF CON TE N T S xxix

S E CT I ON I I I . R OLLI N G OF S H E E T BA R S A ND S KE LP ‘

1 . D ifficulties and Methods of R olling Semi -

F inished Fl ats
2 .
The Tongue and G roove P ass
3 . S heet Bar
”
4 . The 21 M ill a t Duquesne
a The Layou t for t he Mill
. .

b A rrangement of the R 0 11 Tables

c H o t S aws and S hears
. .

d Drive .

e Pinions and H ousings

. .

f .R olls and R oll H ousings

S E CT I ON I V . SOM E G E NE R AL P RE CA UT I ON S To BE OB S E RVE D
”
IN ROLLI N G S E MI F I NI S HE D P RODU CT s :
-

1 . R easons for S tudying Defe cts

2 . R ough Surface Due t o S cale
3 . C obbling
4 .

5: M arks
C oll ar
6 . G uide M arks
7 . R aggin g M arks
8 . Off S ize .

9 .

10 . Seams
11 . S livers .

12 . S c abs .

13 . S hearin g Defe cts

14 . Split s o r Crac ks i n Billet s and Bl ooms
15 . I nspe ction .

C HA PT ER V I I . l
T h e Ro li ng o f t h e H eavi e r Fi n i s h e d P r o d u c t s
—Pl
ate s .

S E C T I ON I . P R E P A RAT I ON OF T HE ST E E L F OR R OLLI N G
FI NI S H E D PR OD U CT s :
1 . R ehe ating
2 . Types of Rehe atin g F urnaces
a T he Re generative R ehe atin g Furnace
.

“ ”
b The R ecuperative or Continuous Furnace
.
,
.

3 . T he A dvantages of C ontinuous R eheating Furnace s .

S E C T I ON I I . T H E ROLLI N G OF S HEA R E D PLAT E S

1 . Methods o f R olling P lates
2 . T h e 140 Mil l at H omestead as an Example of a
S heare d P late M ill
a The D rive and C onnections
.
xxx TAB LE OF CON TE N T S

S E C T I ON I I .
—Continued .

3 . Difficulties in Rollin g S he are d P lates

The R olling P rocess .

Coolin g and S traightening

Laying out and S tamping -

Test P ieces .

S hearing .

a Shearin g To l erances
.

9 . S iz e I nspe ction
10 . Weighers .

11 . C heckers .

12 . S lip M aker
13 . R ec order .

S E CT I ON III . U NI V E R S AL MI LL PLA T E S
1 . The 48 Mill a t H omestead as an Example of Universal
”

Pla te Mills

0
5 The Operation of Rolling .

3
9 S traightening M ar kin g and S hearing U M Plate f
, . . .

9 A dvantage s of Universa l Mill Plates

Physic al Properties of P lates
1
9

I nspection of P l ates
3
9

C HA PT ER VIII . T h e Ro l
li ng o f Lar ge S ec t i o n s .

SE C T I ON I . RAILROA D R A I Ls :

1 . Development of R ail M anufacture

2 . Methods of R olling R ails .

3 . H o w t o S tudy R oll Desi gn .

P re cautions t o be Observe d in Desi gnin g t he

5 . S tages of R eduction .

6 . T h e D i fferent S teps in t he Desi gn of t he R olls

a The Section
.

b The Col d Templet

.

c The H o t Templet
. .

d The P ass Templet

.

e Preparation for t he R olling

.

7 . The Diagona l Method .

8 . The M ills
9 . R ollin g H e avy R ails .

10 Unavoidable V ariations
11 . The V arious S teps in S hapin g of R ails
12 . Cutting
13 . R e cording .

14 . F inishing and I nspection .

15 . Li ght R ails .
 T A B LE OF CON TE N T S xx xi

S E C T I ON I I . T H E S H API N G OF RAIL JOI NT S

1 . R olling R ail J oints
2 . M ethods of Finishing R ail Joints
a C ol d Worked B ars
.

b Col d Worke d and A nneale d Bars

.

c H o t Worke d B ars
.

(I Ho t Worke d and Oi l
. Quenched
3 . T he E dgar Thomson Splice B ar S hop

S EC T I ON I I I ST R UCT U RAL AND OT HE R S H AP E S

.

1 Plan of S tudy
. .

2 Angles , Methods of R olling

. .

a The Three Methods C ompare d

.

3 The Channel .

4 Beams Ties and P iling , ,

5 Zees and Tees .

6 . F inishing Sections
7 . R ounds .

8 Cutting and Straightening R ounds .

9 F lats
10 H exagons .

11 . Deforme d Bars

C HA P T ER IX . T h e Ro l
li n g o f S t r i p a nd l
Me rc h a n t Mi lPro d uc t s

SE C TI ON I . HOOP , MILLS A N D THEI R P ROD U CT S

ST RIP , OR

1 . M eanin g of t he Word H oop

2 . H oop as a R ollin g Spe cialty
The C arne gie H oop M ills
I

3 .
,

4 . Methods o f R olling H oop l

5 . Precautions R e quire d in R olling H oop
6 . F inishing H oop

SEC T I ON I I ME R CHA NT MI LLS

.

1 . What the M erchant Mill I s

2 . Kinds of Merc hant M ills .

a The G uide M ill

.

b The Bel gian and Looping M ills

.

c T he S emi continuous or C ombination Mill

.
-
.

d The Cross C ount ry Mill

.

3 . Future Developme nt

SECT I ON I I I . DE S I G NI N G R OLLS A ND M A KI N G UP SCH E DULE S

ME RCH A NT MI LLs :
F OR

1 . R oll Desi gning for Merchan t Mills .

2 . E conomi c Fe a t ures of R ol l Desi gning

3 . The Order in the Offi ce
T he Order at the Mill —S ize of Billet or
.

4 . Bloom .
xxxii T A B LE OF CON TE N T S

S E C T I ON I V . R OLLI N G P RACTI CE IN M E R CH A NT M I LLS

1 .
—
The R oller H i s I mportance
2 . Pre cautions in R olling
3 . R olling
4 . Two Di fferent F inishes
a C ommon F inish .

b Spe cial F inish .

S E C T I ON V . S HEA R I N G A ND B U N DLI N G M E R CH A NT M I LL
P R OD U CT s :

The Methods of S hearing and Bundling

Duties of t he S he ar F oreman .

Bundling Export M aterial

Spe ci a l Bundling .

H andling t he Materi a l i n t he Warehouse .

Strai ghtening
I nvoicing .

S E C T I ON V I . I N S P E CT I ON DE P A R T ME NT OF A M E R CH A NT MI LL
PLA NT

1 . T h e I nspe ction Department

2, F unction of the I nspe ction Department
3 . S urface Defe cts
a Buckles an d Kinks
.

c Und e rfi lls .

d S livers .

e .

f S eams .

g Burne d Steel.

h R oll M arks .

i F inish. .

j Pipe . .

Testing for Defe cts

Other Duties of I nspe ctors
M anner of G auging Di fferent Se ctions

C HA PT ER X . ar S h a p e s
Ci rc u l .

S E C T I ON I . SOME G E NE RA L FE A T U R E S PE RT A I NI N G To T HE

ROLLI N G OF CI RC ULA R S H AP E S

1 . The R olling of C ircular S hapes .

2 . P reparing the B l anks .

xxxiv T A B LE OF CON T E N T S

PA R T I II .

T H E C ONS T IT UT ION, H EAT T REAT M ENT

A ND C O M POS IT IO N OF S T EEL .

1. I NT R OD UCT O R Y

C HA PT ER I . T h e C o ns t i t u t io n a nd S t r uc t u r e o f Pl
ai n S te e l
.

SE CT I ON I . ST EE L AS AN ALLO Y OF I R ON A ND CA RB ON

T he C onsti t uent s of S teel

a Ferrite . .

b Cementite .

c P earlite
. .

M a nner of Freezing of S olutions an d A lloys

a An Example of the First C lass of
.

b Example of the Se cond C lass of S olutions— S alt

.

and Water .

0 Lead an d Tin S olutions as Another Example of

.

the Second Kind of Freez ing .

d The I ron Carbon Eute ctic

.
-

i F ormation of Pearlite and the Eutect oid

. .

Structural C omposition of S lowly C oole d S teel

a E ffe ct of the C onstituents F orme d Upon the
.

Physical Propertie s .

S E C T I ON I I . T HE R MA L C RITI CAL POI NT S OF S TE E L

Nature of Critical P oints or R anges of S teel

Thermal C ritical P oint for Eute ctoid
Thermal C ritical Po ints fo r P ure I ron .

Therm al C ritical P oints o f LOW C arbon S teel

T hermal C ritical P oints of Medi um C arbon
T h e C arbon I ron Diagram for S teels and Methods
-

of Notation
T h e P ositi on of the C ritical R anges
C hanges at the Therma l C ritic al P oints
a Changes at A 3
.

b Changes at A 2 .

i The Magneti c Properties

.

0 C hanges at A 3 2
.
,
.

(1 C hanges at A 1
. .

C auses of the T hermal C ritic al P oints in S teel

 T A BLE OF CON T E N T S xxxv

S E C T I ON I I I . T HE CR YS T ALLI NE ST R U CT U RE OF S TE EL

Crystals and G rains

C rystallization of S tee l
a . Crystalliz ation of Eutectoid S teels .

b . Crystalliz ation of H ypo E ute ctoid Steel -

c . C rystalliz ation of H yper -

E ute c t oid Steels
d . The Effect of Wor k on G rain S ize .

e . C rystalline C hanges on Heatin g S teel

i Crystalline Re finement on He ating
.

Pra ctical I mportance of G rain Structure

S ummary of Chapter I

C HA PT ER I I . He a t T re a ti ng T h e o ry a nd P rac t ice .

0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0

S E CT I ON I .

1 . The A nnealin g Opera t ion

2 . Purpose of Annealing .

“ ” ”
3 . True Annealin g an d Process o r Wor ks A nne aling
4 . He ating for True A nne aling
a I mportance of Time in He a t in g fo r Annealing
. “

5 . C ool ing
a Effe c t o f C oolin g on t he Ne t Wor k
.
-

b The E fle ct of C ooling Upon P e arlite

.

0 Othe r Factors
. .

d Methods of Cooling :
.

e C ombination Method s of C ooling

.

6 . Double Annealing
7 . Bo x Anne aling
8 . A nne aling Hyper E ute ctoid S teels -

9 . Normalizing and Spheroidizing

S E C T I ON I I . H A R DE N I N G

The H ardening Operation

H eatin g for H ardening
Coolin g for H ardening
a C ooling o r Que nching Media
'

b Combinatio n Metho d s o f Q uenchi n g

.

c M anner of Q uenching
. .

P rogressive H ardening
H ardening Eute ct oi d S teels .

H ardening H yper E ute ctoi d S teels -

H ardening H ypo E ute ctoid Steels -

xxxvi T A B LE OF CON T E N T S

SE C T I ON I I I . T HE TE MPE RI N G OF HA RDE N E D ST EE L

The Tempering P rocess

Nature and T heory of Tempering
M ethods of Determining Tempering Temperatures
I nfluence of Time in Tempering .

P hysical P roperties A ffe cte d by Tempering .

Tempering the Steels of Di fferent Structural

Composi t ion .

a Tempering Austeniti c S teels

.

b Tempering M artensitic Steels

.

c Tempering Troostiti c S teels

.

d S orbite
.

SE C T I ON I V . T H E T O U G HE NI N G OF ST EE L

1 . Toughening D efine d
2 . Benefits of Toughenin g .

3 . Quenching for Toughening .

4 . Change of C onstituents Due to Toughening F i g . 118 .

5 . Physic al Propertie s of Toughene d S teel Tab 62 .

SE C T I ON V . CA S E H A R DE NI N G

1 . The P rocess of C arb urizing I ron

2 . Applicat i on of C ase H ardening
3 . The Two P eriods of the C ase H ardening Pro cess .

4 . Kinds of Steel Suitable for C ase H ardening

5 . C ase H ardening P roperties of the Elements
a C arbon .

b M anganese . .

0 S ilicon
. .

d Phosphor us and S ulph ur

.

e Nickel . .

f .V anadium
g C hromium .

6 . The C arburizing A gent

7 . C arburizing M aterials :
a P acking and the A ction of Charcoal C arb u
. rizer
b C a rburizing M ixtures and C ompounds
.

8 . H e at i ng t he C arburizing P ac k
a Co ntrolling the Temperatur e
.

R emoval of the A rticles from the Boxes After

'

9 .

C arburizing
10 . H e a t Treatment of C ase H a r dene d A rticles
11 . Superficial H ardening
 TA BLE OF CON TE N T S l
Xx xv l

C HA PT ER I II . C o n s ti t u e nt El
em e n t s o f C o m m e rc i a lC a r b o n
S tee l and T h e i r I nfl u e nce Up o n Its
Me c h a ni calP ro p e r ti e s .

I NT ROD UCT O R Y .

1 . of I ron
Properties .

2 . Effe c t of C arbon .

3 . I nfluence of M an ganese
a I nfluence of M anganese in He at Tre atment
. .

b I nfluence of Manganese on S ulphur

.

4 . I nfluence of S ulphur
a Why M anganese N e utr al
. i z e s Effe c t of S ulphur .

'

b U ses for Sulphur in Steel

. .

5 . I nfluence of P hosphorus ,

a The T wo Evils of Phosphorus

.

6 . I nfluence of S ilicon
7 . T h e I nfluence of Oxygen .

8 . C ombine d Eff e c t of t he Elements on Tensile S trength

of Steel
9 . The I nfluence of C opper .

10 . I nfluence of Tin .

11 . I nfluence of A rsenic

C H A PT ER I V . Al
loy S te e l
s .

S E C T I ON I . I NT R OD U CT OR Y .

1 . Definitions
2 . C arne gie Types and G rades
I
S E CT I ON I I NI CKE L ST EEL :
.

i
1 . M anufacture of S imple N i rke l S t eel
2 . T he Different Nicke l S teels an d Their G eneral
Characteristics
3 . R easons for These P e culiarities of t he Nickel Steels .

4 . S tructural C hanges Due t o Ni c k el

a Pe arlitic Ni cke l
. S te e ls -
.

b M artensitic Nickel S teels

.
-

c Austeniti c Nickel S teels

.
-

5 . The C onstitut ional Theory of Ternary S teels

6 . H e at Treatin g Pearlitic Nicke l St eels

S E CT I ON I I I C H R OME ST EE L
'

1 . The M anufacture of S imple Chromium St eels

2 . I nfluence of C hromium .

a The M icroscopic Constituents of the Chrome

.

Steels
3 . Uses of the S imple Chrome Steels
4 . H ea t Trea t ment o f Chrome S tee l . .
xxxv u l TA B LE OF CON T E N TS

SE C T I ON I V .
—
C H ROME N I CKEL ST E E LS

1 . I nfluence of C hromium and Nic kel When Combine d .

2 . Types of Chrome Nickel S teel

-

3 . M ayari Steel
4 . Uses of Chrome Nickel Steels
-

5 . He a t Tre atment of C hrome Nicke l S teels

-

6 . Physi ca l Proper t ies of Chrome-Nic kel Steel s

SE C T I ON V . VANA DI UM STEELS
1 . S imple V anadium Steels
2 . I nfluence of Vanadium

S EC TI ON V I . CH ROME -VA NA DI U M STE E LS

1 . Effectof Combining Chromium and V anadium .

2 . Properties and Uses of Chrome V anadi um S teels

-
 PA RT 1 .

T HE M A KI N G OF S T E E L .

C H APT ER 1 .

S OM E FU N DAM E N T A L P R I N C I P L E S OF P H Y S I CS A N D
C H E M I ST RY
’

S E CT I O N 1 .

I N T R OD U CT I ON .

1
. I ro n, M a s t e r Me t a l
th e : I n beginn i ng this very brief study
of the metallurgy of the most important metal of a metallic age it is difficult ,

to refrain from pointing out a few (i f the qualities that have made ir on the
maste r metal , al
,
though its importance really needs no comment here A .

li ttle reflection shows it to be as vital to modern civiliz ation as air and water
are to l ife ; and it has become so common that , li ke air and water its true ,

imp ortance is l os t sight of by most people Who l ook u pon its abundance as
,

a m atte r of course and val ue it accordingly No other one metal has contributed
.

so much t o the w elfare and comfort of man There is scarcely an article .

used in our daily lives t hat has no t been produce d from iron or by means
of it Consider bread as an example PIOWS made of iron turn the soil
. .
,

b arr o w s of iron leve l it , and drills of iron so w th e seed ; machines o f iron harvest
the Whea t and thras h it ; rolls o f iron crush the grai n to separate the flour ;
engines o f iron bring the flour to o ur homes where it is made into dough in ,

iron pans an d baked in an iron stove ; finally the bread is slice d from the loaf
'

with an iron k nife and served to us at a table made with iron tools It has no
,
.

exact substitute in nature , an d withou t it mos t of our modern conveni ences

would have been impossible of development The railroads , the automobile ,
.

an d t he watch are three of the many notable examples of such conveniences

No other metal is capable of givin g the grea t range in physic al properties .

that makes iron available for an almost unlimited number of purpo ses Thus .
,

from our towerin g skyscrapers , o ur massive bridges and our immense ships ,
where , as great beams , c ables and plates , it supports loads almos t greater
than t he mind can conceive , we c an trace it even t o our parlors where as , ,

invisibl e hairpins it supports milady s tresses and , as the strings of her piano
,
’
,

sends forth at her magic t ouch sweet sounds of melody One property which .

it posses ses in a far greater d e gre e than any of the other metal s is that of
magnetism This property is so pronounced in iron and so sligh t in other
.

metals t hat , from a practic al viewpoint iron and one of its compo unds may
,

be considered as the only magnetic substances H ence , our mo d ern magnetic .

2

and e le tri cal

c
t
‘
i

l
ap p i anc e si are d p e nd eht upon this one metal ; and we find
'

it forming the essential parts of the dynamo , the electric motor , the telegraph ,

the telephone the wireless telegraph , the compass , and a l arge number of other
,

instruments of less importance And so we might continue a t great length .

upon this one topic of the importance of iron but our t ime is t oo S hort to ,

permit our givi n g much of it to a theme which the reader may develop for
himself H astening on then to more importan t matters we find the first
.
, , ,

question that confronts us is, What is M etallur gy ?

l
Me t a lu r gy : I n ge ne ra l M etallurgy
is define d as the science which
,

deals with the preparation of the metals and their adaptation t o the uses
for which t hey are intended I t is an advance d and specialize d science .
,

hence a difficult one Even a slight understanding of the subj ect requi res
.

a previ ous knowledge of t he fundamental sciences of P hysi cs and C hemistry .

Fo r those who may not have had the necessary preparation in t hese pre
requisites this study i s b e co m i ngl
‘

, y introduce d by a b rief consideration Of

,

some of t he more important principle s of these t wo sciences T o present .

these principles in as c oncise and simple a m anner as possible is the obj e ct

of this chapter .

Ma tte r : Through t he vario us senses of sight touch and he aring the , ,

human intellect becomes aware of the e xistence of t hi ngs which c ollectively , ,

are c alle d mat ter Limi ted port ions of space that contain matter are
.

termed bodies and t he di fferent kinds of matter are in general spoken

, , ,

of as substances M atter is a fundamenta l t hi n g and c annot be accurately

.

defined I t is described by its properties which will be discusse d l ater

.
,
.

T h e Fu n d am e nt a lLaw
Matte r : Cert ain facts
a nd t h e S t a te s o f
‘

about matter however are plainly e vident I t occupies space and c an

, , .
,

be neither increased nor de crease d in amount T hese l ast two facts are .

commonl y known as the Law of the Cons ervation of Matter I t exi sts .

i nany one of three states ; solids w hi ch have definite masses sizes and , ,

shapes ; liquids whic h have definite masses and sizes bu t not form ; and gases
, ,

whic h possess definite m asses only A c ommon example i s w ater whi ch .

,

at ordinary temperatures exists i n all three s tates ; namely , i ce , water and

vapor Liquids a nd gases together are calle d flui ds on account of their
.

flo wing properties and in many instances they are subj e ct t o t he same l a ws

,
.

The y are distinguishe d from e ach other by the ir rel ative c ompressibility .

Liquids are bu t slightly c ompressible, while gases are highl y c ompressible .

T h e vo l
u m e o f a ga s va ri e s i nve r s e l
y a s t h e p re s s u re a p p l
ie d t o i t Fo r .

example if a certain mass of gas has a volume of 10 cu ft under a pressure of

, . .

100 l b s the same mass of gas wil l oc cupy but 5 cu ft at 200 lbs pressure
, . . . .

Mo le c ul
es: Furthermore while the c onception may seem difficul t t o ,

establish as a fact there are strong reasons for believing that the relati vel y
,

large bodies in which form matter makes itself e vi dent t o the hum an
,

senses are composed of minute particles calle d molecules This belief i s

, , .
4 P H Y S I CA L P ROP E R T I E S

Ex t e ns i o n
'

is that property by Virtue of which matter oc cupies space .

There are two systems of meas uring extension the English and the metri c , .

I n the English system the line ar uni t is the yard while the volumetri c
‘

, ,

units as established by cus tom are the gall on the bushel , an d t he cubic
, , ,

yard C orresponding units in the metric syste m are the meter = 1 0936 1
. .

yards =39 37 inches ; the k ilometer = 62137 mile ; the liter= 26417 gall on
. . .
:

quarts liquid or 908 quart dry ; and the cubi c mete r= 1 308 cubic
, , .
, .

yards .

Mas s refers t o the amount of matter is me asure d in grams which . It ,

is the mass of one cubi c centimeter of pure water at the temperature of its
°
greatest density 4 centi grade C ommercially t he uni t i s the k il o gram
,
.
, ,

equal t o 1000 grams From a scientific standpoint there i sno exact English
.

e qui valent bec ause w ei ght involves the force of gravity which may vary
, , ,

whilst mass is const ant However the pound has been standardi z e d so
.
,

that one kilo gram =_ pounds .

De n si t y is the wei ght or mass of a unit volume of matter . It is usually

expressed in grams per cubic centimeter .

is the num ber of times a body is heavier than a n

t

S pe c ifi c G ravi ty
equal volume of some substance used as a standard Fo r liquids and solids .

this standard i s water ; for gases it is air or hydrogen In the metric system .

density and S pe cific gravity are numerically the s ame since the wei ght of ,

one cubic centimeter of water is one gram .

Po ro s i t y : lmatter
Al
is porous T he mole cules it is thought a r e .
, ,

separated e ven in the densest materials by spaces l ar ger than the mole
, ,

cules themse lves .

Im
pe ne t r a bili ty : T w o bodies of matter c annot occupy the same S pace
at the same time and t o this property of matter the term impenetrability
,

is applied .

S pe c i a l P ro p e
r tie s : T he chief special properties of matter s ome of ,

whi ch are of supreme importance in the manufacture of steel are as follows ,

C o h e sio n and A d h e sio n : A c cording

t o the l aw of gravitation e very ,

particle of matter in the physic al universe attracts every other parti cle
with a force whose direction i s t hat of a line j oining the two particles and .

whose ma gnitude varies dire ctl y as the produc t of the two masses and ,

inversely as the s quare of the distance between them A pplie d t o molecules .

,

this attraction i s kn own as cohesion and adhesion ; the former i s the

attraction of molecules of the s ame kind for e ach other , the l atter the ,

attraction of unlike molecules The clinging of a drop of water to the end

.

of a glass rod exemplifies both of these forces .

El is the power of matter t o assume its ori ginal shap e after

as t i c i t y
‘

havin g been distorte d The property of cohesion causes all bodies t o resist
.

change in form , but only solids ha ve e l asti c i t y of form When a soli d body .
 P H Y S I CA L P R OP E R T I E S 5

is deformed the resistance it offers is calle d the s tre ss ; the deformation

,

whi ch produces this stress is c alle d the s t ra i n H o o ke s l aw states that

’
.
,

up to the elasti c limit the strain is proporti onal t o the stress I n practice
,
.
,

the stress is me asured in terms of a force or forces applie d e xt e rnally

to the body bein g tested There are four methods of calling forth the
.

—
el asticity of bodies namel y , by pressure b y stretching by bending and , ,

by twisting Stretching an d bending are the methods most commonly

.

employe d in testing the el astici t y of steel .

Pl
as t ic i t y
i s t he Opposite of el asticity . A pl asti c body once distorte d
will not re gain its ori ginal shape .

Du c t i l
i t y i s sometimes define d as the property by virtue of which
matter m ay be dra wn i nto fine wires A S the term i s e mpl oye d in the .

testing of steel ductility is the distortion or strain a body undergoes in

,

bein g rupture d .

Mal l e a bi li t y : S ome kinds of matter metals in particular can be , ,

hammere d or r olle d into thin sheets This property i s c al l e d malle ability . .

Ha r d ne s s is the ability t o withstand abrasion or resist penetra tion , .

C rys t alli z atio n : S ome substances in changing from a liqui d t o a soli d

form separate not as a continuous c ompac t mass bu t a s bodies having a
,

definite shape and color c alle d crystals That crystals may form it i s
,
.
,

necessary t hat the mole cules be free t o arrange themselves in a definite

order This c onditi on is secure d when a su b stance i s in solution or in a
.

molten state I n steel manufact ure this property is of great importance

. .

Diff u sio n is most characteristi c of l iquids and gases I t is the property .

that c auses two fluids in c ontact t o intermingle Liquids di ffuse S lowly .

,

but gases muc h more rapidly .

'

Eff u s i o n i s the term applied t o that property of gase s whic h c auses

them t o p ass t hr o ugh p o r o us solids T he rates of e ff usion of di fferent gases
’

is inversely proportione d t o the s quare roots of their relative weights .

A b s o r p t io n : Many porous bo dies l ike coke c harcoal pl atinum , , ,

sponge e tc are c apable of absorbing l arge quantities of gases Thus

, .
, .
,

one c ubi c c entimeter of charc oal i s c apable of absorbing from thirty to

thirty fi ve t imes i ts own volume of c arbon dioxide G ases are c ondensed
-
.

on the surface of al l solids and porous bodies o ffer a l arge surface for c on
,

densati on .

S EC T I O N I I I .

E NER G Y , HE AT A N D TE M P E RAT U RE , A N D T H E ET HE R .

Ene g y : Physics and C hemistry however have to do with more than

r , ,

matter The senses also reve al the presence of a second factor in na t ure
.
,

calle d ener gy Like matter ener gy is a fundamental tha t c annot be

.
,

satisfactorily defined I t is no t a thing I t is that which gives a body

. .

the abi lity t o move against a resistance ; that is the ability to do wor k , .
6 EN E RG Y A N D H EA T

T hus ,a body may possess energy and still neither move nor do any work .

Like matter ener gy is c onserved I t may be change d from one form to

, .

another or be transferre d from one point t o another but the total energy ,

of the Universe remains constant Thi s fact is kno wn as the Law Of C o n .

servation of Energy .

Ki nd s o f Ene r g y : There are two kinds of energy ; namely potential ,

or store d up ener gy sometime s c alle d ener gy of position and kineti c energy

, , ,

or the energy possesse d by a body by vir t ue of its motion T hus a we i ght .

,

on the to p of a building possesses potential energy with respect t o the

ground by virtue of its positi on ; if it i s perm itted to fall its energy then ,

becomes kinetic Energy is measure d in terms of the work which it is

.

c apable of doing .

He at Te m p e ra t u re : One form of energy is heat H ea t must

a nd .

not be c onfuse d with temperature The l atter measures one of the e ffects .

o f the former The di fference may be illustrate d thus — Le t it be supposed

.

tha t two portions of nat ural gas e ach of a cubi c foot are burned c ompletely
, , ,

s o tha t the he at liberate d is entirely absorbed by t wo bodies of water

initiall y at the same temperature the vol um es of w hi ch are a quart and ,

a gallon respe ctively I t is evident from c ommon experience that the

,
.

temperatur e Of the smaller portion of water wi ll be raise d t he hi gher though ,

the quantity of heat impart e d t o e ach is precisely the same .

Effe c t s t : H eat produces marke d e ffe cts on matter Al

o f He a l matter .

expands by the applic ation of he at alone though there are many apparent ,

exceptions The vo l . u m e o f a gas vari e s d i r ec t ly a s t h e a b s o l

u te t e m p e r

a t u re other c onditi ons remaining Constant C hange of s t ate may be

, .

cause d by hea t Thus gl ass or iron dense s olids a t ordinary temperatures

.
, , ,

readily assume the fluid state on being he ated above their fusion point .

A ccording t o the k inetic theory of heat t he m ole cules of m atter always ,

have a certain amount of independen t motion and t he e ffe c t of adding ,

hea t is t o increase the energy of this m otion the molecules being thereby ,

forced farther and farther apart This forcing apart of the m ole cules .

accounts for the change of state as we ll as the expansion of bodies on being

heate d .

Te m pe ra t u re is determined by me as uring the expansion it produces in

a volume of mercury enclosed in a small gla ss tube c alle d a thermometer ,
.

T he len gth of the tube is m arke d o ff into small divisions which c onstitutes ,

the sc ale Of the thermometer T here are four therm ometer sc ales in .

c ommon us e ; the Ce nti grade F ahrenheit Reaumur and A bsolute , The , .

difference among them cons ists Of t he num ber Of divisions between the
freez ng point and the boilin g point of water and the numbers applied to
i
these divisions .
,

T h e C e n t ig ra d e
is the therm ometer empl oye d in all s cientific work .

In it the free z ing point is marke d zero and the boi l

ing point T h e only
 E NE RG Y A ND H E A T 7

difference between this scale and the A bsolute is that , in the l

atte r ,
.
the
zero point is 273 bel ow the C enti grade zero
°
.

I n t h e Fa h re n h e i t
thermometer the space between the freezing and the ,

boil i ng points is divided int o 18 0 e qual parts an d zero is 32 of these parts ,

below the freezing point of water The boilin g point , t herefore i s .

,

I n t h e Re scale the
au m u r ,

freezing point is m arke d zero

and t he boiling point Fo r ,

hi gh t emperatures ins truments ,

c alle d pyrome ters are used .

These rel ations of t he

various s c ales are shown in t he Inte rve ning

accompanyin g diagram : From

this diagram the foll owing for
mulas are rea d ily developed
°f wate ’
T emp A =T e m p C + 273
. . .

Temp C==
Te m
.
p .
—
A 273 .

Temp . P= T e m p . % C+ 32 .

Temp C = T e m
.
p (F FI G 1 D i a gr am h o wi ng re l
s a ti o ns o f th e
t h e rm o m e te r s c a l
. .

vari o us es .

Me a s u re m e n t o f He a t: H e at i s measure d i n calories A c alorie (cal ) . .

is the he a t re quire d t o raise the temperature of one gram of w ater one

de gree centi grade In practice t he large cal orie (C al) is empl oyed I t
l
. . .

is the amoun t o f he at required t o r ai se one kil o gr am of water t hrough

one de gree centi grade The c orresponding unit in the English system is
.

the B t u (B ritish thermal

. . . whic h is t he he at require d t o raise
the temperature of one pound of water one de gree F ahrenheit These units .

may be c onverte d from one t o the other by use of the foll owing factors :
1 C alorie B . t u or
. .

1B . t . u .
= . 252 C a l
.

T he r : A third factor composing the U ni verse is the Ether

Et h e .

Little i s known abou t it excep t that it fi l lsa llspace permeates al l matter ,

and transmits light he at and e l e ctri c waves I ts properties are very

, , .

di fficul t t o analyze be cause th e sens es a re no t dire ctl y a ffe cted by it I ts

, .

presence was first suspe cte d through the study of t he transmission of l i ght .

By c omparatively simple experiments i t was shown as e arly as 1802 that ,

li ght is transmitted by a wave motion and since li ght is transmitte d through ,

a vacuum s omethi ng other than matter must act as t he medium The

, .

same conclusion i s arrive d at by a study of he at radiation The de velop .

~

meri t of wireless tele graphy was base d on this supposition and its suc cess ,

is further e vidence of the existence of the E ther .

8 CH A N GE S I N M A T TE R

S EC T I O N I V .

C HA N G E S IN MATTE R .

P h y s ic ala nd C h e icalCh a nge

M atter is c onstantly undergoing
m s:

changes A close Observer soon discerns that these chan ges are of t wo
.

—
kinds namel y one in w hi ch t he nature and c omposition o f t he matter
,

undergoing the change remains t he same calle d a p h ys ic al c h a n ge , and

‘

another in w hich the nature and c omposition are a ffected c alle d a c h e m ica l ,

c h a n ge
. The bending of a stick the freezing of water the fusion of s teel , ,

are examples of the former while the burning of c oa l i s a c ommon example

,

of the se cond In many physical changes an d in al l chemi cal changes heat

.

—
is involved being either absorbe d o r l iberated C hemical changes that
, .

liberate heat furnish a source of ener gy c h e m i c ale ne rgy .

T h e Ma ke =u p o f Ma t e ri alBo d ie s : I n c onsidering t he make up of -

the various bodies of matter i t is necessary t o distinguish b e twe e n m e re ,

mixtures and more cl osely c o m b iné d s ubstances A m e c h a nicalm ix t u re .

i s a mixture of two or more substances w hic h is no t homo gene ous and the ,

c omponents o f wh i ch can be s eparate d by mechanic al me ans

'

Such mix .

tures are made up of molecule s of di fferent kinds A c h e m ical c o m po u nd .

is homo geneous thro ughout its mass an d its components c anno t be separa t ,

e d by mechanical means t hat is its mole cules are all of the same kind The
, , .

components of any given c hemic al c ompound are always in t he s ame pro

portions for that c ompound This fact distinguishes c ompo unds from .

al oy s and s o l
l u t i o ns w hi ch though they are practic ally homo gene ous and
,

sometimes are practically impossible of separation by me chani cal means ,

are never c onstant in composition An a l loy is a solid solution of one .

meta l in another .

Ki n d s o f C h e m icalC o m po u n d s : A close study Of a great n umber

of chemic a l c ompounds will S how tha t all substances fall into four classes ;
namely acids bases s alts and non electrolyt es
, , ,
-
.

Ac i d s are characterize d by the fac t t hat t hey all have a sour taste
when in w ater s olution and change the c olor of certain c hemicals c alled ,

indic ators One of t he most common of these indic ators is l itmus of

. ,

whi c h t here are t wo col ors a bl ue and a red A cids c hange t he c olor Of
,
.

blue l i tum us t o red V ine gar is chiefly a dilute solution of aceti c acid
. .

Base s have the power of neutralizing acids and may be looke d upon ,

as their opposites Examples are quick lime lye etc Bases change the
.
, ,
.

c olor of re d or neutra l l itmus t o blue .

A S al t is the prod uct forme d when an acid is neutralize d by a base ,

C ommon t able s alt , made b y neutralizing hydrochlori c acid with sodium

carbonate i s an example As a rul e acids bases and s alts are electrolytes
, .
, , ,

that is t heir w ater s oluti ons will c onduct the electri c current
,
.

No n El e c t rol y te s : There are s ome compounds that do not resemble

either acids or bases no r c an t hey be classed as salts They are char
,
.

a cte ri z e d by the fac t that their water s olutions will not c onduct the electric

c ur rent s o are t erme d non ele ctrol ytes Benzene methane and distilled
,
- .
,

water are examples .

 CHA NGE S I N MA T TER 9

Che i ca lEl
e m e nts :
m Notwithstanding the fact that chemic al c om
pounds are homogeneous and c annot be separated by mechani ca l means .

they are readily divide d into simpler substances by c hemic al processes ,

These simpler substances are c alle d elem e nts and e ac h an d e very c hemical ,
“
compo und is compose d of two or more chemic al elements While the .

number of chemical c ompounds is almos t unlimite d , t her e are c ompara

ti ve l few elements I 1 8 the disc overy of 8 4 elements had been
'

y n 9 1 .
,

reported The total num b e r l i e s between 92 and 97 Of these twelve

’

f
. .
,
’
compose ab out 99 per c ent of the e arth s crust I t has been estimated . .

that the s olid crust o f the earth is mad e up approximately as follows

‘
Oxygen C al cium . H ydrogen
S ilicon Titanium
Aluminum P otassium C hl orine Z
‘

I ron . M a gnesium C arbon

T OT A L
Cl
a ss ifi ca tio n i calEle m e nts : f Chem
A study of the elements
o

reveals the fact that there are two gre at cl asse s ; namely those that c ombine ,

with oxygen and hydr ogen t o form bases and those that combine with oxygen ,

and hydro gen or hydrogen al one t o form acids The former are sometimes
, , .

calle d m e t al
s and the latter n o n m e ta l s or m e t a l l
oi d s The l ine of z
, .

division is not a S harp one S ome elements form both acids and b ases .
,

bu t the tendency is more pronounce d in t he one d irection than in the other .

Furthermore like pl ants or animals these two divisions m ay be s ub divided

, ,
-

into families or groups the members of whic h possess simil ar properties

,
.

These divisions and gro ups are shown in a subj oi ned t able .

S ym b ol
s: Fo
c onvenience and brevity e ach element is represented
r ,

by a symbol These symbols are composed of the first letter c apitalized

.
, ,

of the English or Latin names of the eleme nts c ombined where necessary , ,

as a distinguishing mark with some suc ceeding letter Thus ,

= carbon .
, ,

Ca=cal ci um C d= cadmium F=fl uo ri ne , Fe = fe rrum (iron ), e tc

,
-
,
.

Fu nd a m e n t al Law s o f C h e m i c alC h a n ge s : Now w h e r e t h e e l e m e n ts ,

c o m b i ne t o fo r m a c o m p o u n d t h e y a lw a y s d o s o i n d e fi ni te p ro p or t io ns
b y w eig h t Thus fi fty si x parts by we i ght o f iron wil l c ombine with
.
,
-
.

sixteen parts by wei ght of oxygen or fourteen parts by weight of nitrogen ,

with sixteen parts by wei ght of oxygen This fact is known as t he Law o f .

De fi ni t e Pr o p o r t io ns , and the definite wei ghts are c alle d combining weights .

Fu rther investi gation al ong this line show s that some pairs of e lements form
i

more than o ne compound and t hat the c ombinin g weights of the elements
in these di fferent compounds are simple multiples of e ach other C oncisely .

state d the l aw i s this : W h e ne ve r tw o e l e m e n t s u ni t e t o fo r m m o re t h a n

‘

o ne c o m p o u nd i f w e c o n s i d e r a fi xe d w e i gh t o f t h e o ne , t h e w e i gh ts o f
,

t h e o t h e r w h i c h c o m b i ne w i t h i t a re i n te gra l m u l t i p l e s o f o ne
a no t h e r This fac t is known as the La w o f M u l
. ti p l
e Pr o p o r t io n s or ,

Dalton s sec ond l aw

’
The following c ompounds forme d by the two
.
10 A T OM S

elements nitrogen and o xygen are well known examples

PA R T S B Y W E I G H T PA R T S BY WE I G H T
C OM P OU N D
O F N I TR O G E N OF OX Y G E N
Nitrous Oxide 28 16
Nitri c Oxi de 28 32
Nitrogen Trioxi d e 28 48
Ni t rogen Per oxide 28 64
Nitrogen Pento xi de 28 80
S EC T I O N V .

HE ORIE S
T H E AT OM I C A N D E LE CT RON T .

Ato m s : Upon the facts j us t state d i n the preceding section the ,

English c hemis t Dalton founde d a very important hypothesis now known ,

as the atomi c t he ory I n order t o explain the l aws stated above reasoning
.
,

le d t o t he foll owi ng a ssumptions

l st : The molec ules of matter are themselves made up of small particles .

2d : These particle s possess the p ower of attracting other particles or

otherwise attachin g t hemselves t o them .

3d : These particles do not subdivide in taking part in chemical changes .

These particles are c alled atoms Al lthe atoms of the same element
.

have the s ame mass or wei ght the s ame form a nd t he same c ombining
, ,

power while atoms of di fferent elements di ffer i n one or more of these

,

respects .

Ato m W
i c e i g h t s : T h e atom is s o small that it is us eless t o hope that
its mass or wei ght will e ver be determine d absolutely H owever , t he .

weight of one atom of anelement must be proportiona l t o the combining

wei ght of that element S i nce the c ombining mass or weight of hydro gen
.

is the le ast of al l the other elements it is assumed that its atom i s t he

,

lightest Therefore , the atomic weight of hydrogen was made One by

.

Dalton and the atomic weight of the other elements multiples of it H owever .
,

since hydrogen forms with other elements comparatively few compounds

that can be used for atomic weight determinations and oxygen more than
any other element , it was decided later to mak e the latter element the
standar d A ccordingly , the atomic weight of oxygen is made 16 and the
.
,

atomic weights of other elements are compared with it as a stand ard thus ,

making hydrogen This system of comparative weights is k nown as

'

the international table of atomic weights .

V al e nce : C oncerning the attractive power of the atoms of the various

elements it may be pointed out that the l aw of multiple proportions indicates
,

tha t the atom of an elemen t may c ombine with one or more atoms of another
element in formi n g c ompounds with it H ere again hydrogen 1 8 used as
.
, ,

a standard for since its combining wei ght i s t he leas t of all the other
,

e le m e nts it i s assume d tha t the holding power of its atoms mus t also
,

be the least Therefore t h e val

. e nc y o f a n a t o m
,
i s p r o pe rly d efi ne d
a s t h e n u m b e r o f h y d r o ge n a t o m s i t i s ca p a b l
e o f c o m b i ni ng w i t h
~

o r re p l ac i n g The valencies of t he atoms of t he elements are by no

.

m eans fixed quantities b ut v ar y l—,

n some c ases from one t o seven
‘
.
12 ELE M E N T S

e I—T h e
Ta b l Ch e m i c a l El
e m e n ts —Co n t i n u e d .

1920
Atom ic
E We i ght
Val
Nam e
E
D
(
e nce

C hl
o ri ne

S ul
p ur h . S I I I V VI
~ ~

Se
Te

C ar bo n .

N i tr o ge n N i tro ge n N I l
o V

P ho spho r us P III-V
*
A rs e ni c . . As I I I -V
Sb I I I -V
*
B i sm u t h Bi I I I -V
*
c ad i um V III-V

—2 1 8

—Z 5 Z

V e ry Ra re El
em e t
n s .

Atomic
S ymbol Weight Name
A Neon .

Cs Nit o u -
.

Ce Osmium
Cb P raseody m i u m
Dy P olonium
Er R adium .

Eu Rubidium .

Gd S amarium
Ge T antalum .

He Terbi um 0 0 0 0 0 0 0

Ho Thorium
In Thulium O O O O O O

Ir U ranium
Kr X enon 0 0 0 O

La Ytterbium
Lu Yttrium
Neodymium Nd Zirconium
 RE A C TI ON S 13

El
e c t r o ns : all the elements had resisted all efforts to
Until 1900
brea k them up into simpler s ubstances and atoms were c onsidere d to be ,

the smallest divisions of matter With the discovery of radium an d other .

radio active substances however a new fiel d for investi gation w as opened
-
, , ,

and subsequent dis coveries indicate that the atom is divis ible These very .

small particles are c alle d electrons I t is thought tha t ele ctrons in s ome .
,

intimate rel ation t o the Ether are the fundamental particles of which all ,

matter i s compose d .

S EC T I O N V I .

C HE MI CAL FOR MULA A N D R A CT I ONS E .

Ch e m ica lFo r m u l
as o f Co m p o u nd s :
The method of representing the
elements by symbols to gether with the system of atomic wei ghts a ffords
, ,

a convenient and c oncise m e th o d o f representing c hemic al c o mpounds o r

'

t o be more explicit t he molecules of chemi c al c ompo unds Thus by

, .
,

analys is water is found t o be c omposed o f hydro gen and oxygen in the

,

proportion of ei ght parts of oxygen to one par t of hydro gen by wei ght .

These facts are completely expresse d by the formul a H zO which indicates ,

a mole cule of a compo und composed of two atoms of hydrogen and one
atom of oxygen or since the atomi c weigh t of hydrogen i s 1 and of
, ,

oxygen 16 2 parts of hydrogen t o 16 parts of oxygen (1 t o

, , Likewise ,

the formul a Fe 2 0 3 represents a compound the molecule of which is made ,

up of parts of iron t o 48 parts of oxygen .

Mole c u l e s o f El e m e nt s : In studying c hemical c hanges in whi ch

elements are s e t free i t is foun d t hat they are muc h more active at the
,

i nstant of t heir liberation t han afterwards and are t herefore s aid t o b e , , ,

i n the na sc e nt s t a t e at that instant This fact le ads t o the bel ief th a t .

the instant an element is set free fro m its compounds i t exists in the atomic
condition but if the re is nothing e lse present with whic h the a t oms c an
,

c ombine they c ombi ne with each o ther t o form mole cules of t he element
, .

This ide a c anno t be proven in the case of solids but its corre ctness i s e asily ,

shown in the case of gases From many facts , A vogadro w as able t o show
.

t h at e q u a l vo lu m e s o f al lg a se s u n d e r t h e s a m e c o n d i tio ns o f t e m pe r =
,

a t u re a n d p re s s u re c o n t ai n t h e s a m e n u m b e r o f m o l
, e c u le s H ence .
,

the molecular weight in grams of al l gases give a c onstan t Volume of

liters c alled the gram mole cul ar volume Now the w e ight of
,
-
l iters .
,

of oxygen=3 2 gms of hydrogen 2 gms of nitro gen 28 gms Dividing

.
, ,
.
, , .

these wei ghts by the respective atomic wei ghts of the e lements the quotient ,

is 2 i n e ach c ase Hence the molecules of these elements contain two atoms
.
,

each and the c orrec t formulas for these elements are 0 2 Hz an d N2

, , ,

respectively .

Ch e m i calEq u a t i o ns This system of symbols and wei g hts also

simplifies the representation of chemical changes S uppose it is desire d to .

represent the chemical change that takes place when a c ommon substance ,

like coal for instance burns G o al , is la r ge l

y m a d e up of c arb o n; th e element
.

whi ch c ombines with i t is oxygen in t he air ; an invisible gas 0 0 2 i s , ,

14 REA CTI ON S

formed and di ffuses into the air T his change spoken of as a rea ction .
, ,

is represente d in the form of an e quation ; thus G + O= COz , .

Ba l ac t io n s : S ince matter is conserved there must be as

a nc i ng Re ,

many atoms on one side of the equati on as on the other This is shown by .

placing a 2 before 0 on t he left side of the equation thus , C +20 = C0 2 , .

This process is c al led bal ancing T hus reactions tell no t onl y t he names
.
,

of the reacting substances and of the products formed but also give the ,

proportions by weight and in the c ase of gases volume relations as well

, , .

Ra d ical
s: In
the molecules of many chemical compounds certain
.
,

gro ups of atoms appear t o be more closely bound together than others in
the s ame molecule I n these gr o ups t he atoms c omposing them appear t o
.

bear a fixe d rel ation t o e ach other which remains unchanged during a ,

chemic al reaction Thus in many w et reactions in w hich H2 8 0 4 is

.
, ,

empl oye d as a reagent the sulphur and oxygen do no t separate but

,

remain c l osely c ombine d as illustrated in the reaction that t akes pl ace

,

between thi s acid and barium chloride :

H2 ( —
S OQ i Ba-
Cl
z= B a H Cl

S uch groups of atoms are c alle d radicals .

Io ns a nd ec t rol
El ys i s : In ele ctrolytes
these radicals are re adily
i dentifie d as ions From a study of the e ffe ct of dissolve d ele ctrolytes o n
.

the boiling an d freez ing points of the w ater in which they are di ssolved ,

and on t heir osmoti c pressures e vi dence i s obtaine d t o show that e ach of

,

the dissol ve d molecules breaks up or dissociates into two parts .

The following simple e xp e ri

ment may be empl oyed to throw
additional li ght upon t his sub
j e c t I nto
. the U—tube of Fi g 2 .

is pl aced a solution of sodi um

sulphate and some ne utral
litmus i nt o which is immersed
,

two small pl atinum rods t o act

as ele ctrodes for an e le ctric
current , as shown in t he fi gure .

Upon c l osing the circuit bubbles ,

of hydrogen are given o ff a t the

catho de and bubbles of oxy gen
at the anode while t he solution ,

about the c athode be c omes deep

blue in c olor showing i t i s basic
, ,

and t ha t about t he anode b e

c omes re d s howing it t o be
Fm 2 S h o wi n d e c o m p o s i ti o n o f w a t e r ,

h y d ro xid e and sul

. .

p hur i c aci d These facts are expl ained

‘

fo rm a ti o n o f s o um
s ulp h at e b y e l e ct r o l
.

ac i d fr o m s o d ium y sis
by assuming that the molecules
.
 REA C T I ON S 15

of dissolved Na s
l 4, dissociate into parts , calle d ions .

dissociation is indicated thus : Na z So g

z N a + Na + S O4 . T he sodium

ions Na c arryi ng
, ,
a positive charge of electricity , are propelle d by

the current toward the c athode whi le the ne gatively charged ,

su l
p hi o ns ,

SO“ go to the anode

. . H ere they give up their charges and bec ome

chemically active dec omposing the water thus

,

2N a + 2H 2 0 = 2Na OH + H 2 2S0 4 + 2H2 0 = 2H 2 S O4 + 0 2

T his experiment is but one example of e l e ctrolysis Any inorganic acid .

,

base o r s al t may be substitute d for the s odi um sulphate ; and any conductor
of electricity , such as iron , may be use d instead of pl atinum I t is t o be .

noted however t ha t if iron had been use d in this experiment the anode
, , ,

woul d have been c orr oded away by the aci d radic al ; thus Fe + S O4 = ,

Fe S O4 Ele ctrolysis has been advanced t o expl ain the c orrosion of iron
. .

Dry a nd We t Ch e m i s t r y : C hemic al
changes t ake pl ace under constant
c onditions Substances that will reac t in one way under one se t of c on
.
~

diti o ns will no t re act , or re act in an entirely differen t way under another ,

set of c onditions S ome substances re ac t simply by c ontact as quic k l ime

.
,

and water M any re actions will take place only in a water solution while
.
,

m any other substances being insoluble in water mus t be he ate d almost

, ,

t o their point of fusion before they re act A study of re actions between .

“ ”
subst ance s in s olution is c alle d wet chemistry while the study of re actions
”
brough t abou t by he a t i s terme d dry chemistry H o wever under the .
,

same conditions the s ame substanc e s will always produce t he s ame results
,
.

This fact is k nown as the l aw of c on stancy of nature .

Ac i d s , Bas e s y
a nd S al
ists
t r y : M ost
o f Dr
substances dealChem
t
with in wet c hemistry l ose water when he ated T his statement is par .

arl
ti cul y true of inorganic acids b ases an d salts Thus in the c ase of
,
.
,

acids and bases he a t breaks up these c ompounds int o water and oxides
, ,

calle d a n h y d ri d e s A cids give ac i d a n h y d ri d e s and bases b a si c

.
, ,

a nh yd ri d e s These anhydrides c onstitute the acids and base s of dry

.

chemistry They have t he s ame power of neutraliz ation t hat their

.

corresponding wet compounds possess and form neutral c ompou nds t o which ,

the t erm s l a g is applie d inste ad of s al t Many salts in crystalli z ing from .

,

aqueous solutions unite with or better , t ake up a definite amou nt of water

, , ,

which does not go t o form a new c ompound bu t t o form crystals and is , ,

calle d , therefore w a t e r o f c r y s ta l
,
liz a tio n T hi s water is hel d very l o osely .

by t he mole cule and is re adily given up by it I n some crystals li ke those .

,

of washin g soda for example , t his t endency is so pronounce d that they give
,

up t heir w ater of crystallization t o t he air if its humidit y is l ow S uch ,

.

subst ances are sai d t o be e ff l o r e s ce n t On the other hand many dry .

,

s ubst ances absorb m oisture from the air and are therefore s ai d t o be , ,
16 REA C T I ON S

h y gr o sc o p i c . A few substances will absorb enough water from a very

moist air t o become wet and actually go into solution in the water they
absorb These substances are said t o be d e l
. i q u e s ce n t The followi ng .

reactions will serve t o illustrate these facts in s o far as they involve chemic al
changes
H2 8 i 0 3 + he a t= H 2 0 + S l
02
Metasilicic A cid Water S ilic a or silicic anhydride ,

Mg H 2 0 + M g0 -

M agnesium hydroxide —
Ma gnesia a basi c anhydride

Na g S O4
G lauber S alt S odium S ulphate
(Crystalli z ed ) (Dr y P owder )
I n this connection a study of the f o l
lo w ing table will also prove helpful .

Ta b l
e 2 . Ac i d s , Ba se s a nd An h yd ri d e s Wi t h S a l
t h e ir ts
Re s u l
ti n g fr o m Ne u t r al
i z a tio n .

Sal
t With
Nam f Co m p o und
U
e o
l
niva e nt Base Dival
e nt Base T rival
e nt Base

N3 2 0 SOJ OI
'
’
Cfi O SOJ OI
‘ ’

(F8 2 0 3 ) (80 3 )3
N3 2 8 0 4 0 8 80 4 o rFe 2 (8 0 4 )3
NaQ O-N2 0 5 o r CaO-Ng Og o r F8 2 0 3 (N2 0 5 )3
°

NaN0 3 Ca (N0 3 )3 o rFe (N0 3 )3

3 N3 2 0 P20 5 0 r
°
(0 3 0 )3 P20 5
'
F8 2 0 3 P2 0 5
'

Na3 P0 4 o r Can(P0 4 )3 o rFe PO4

2N3 2 0 Sl 0 20 r‘
(C210 ) Fe 2 0 3 12 (810 2 )3
’

Na4 si O4 OI CQ QSIO;
'
o rF9 4 (Sio 4 )3

Ki n d s o f Re a c tio n s : A s already indicated al l reactions may be place d ,

under one of two he ads ; namely those that liberate he at cal led , ,
.

exotherm i c and those that absorb heat c alle d endothermic A more

, , .

detaile d cl assification such as the foll owing is sometimes empl oyed :

, ,

1 .
—
Direct combination (synthesis ) 2H + O= H2 0 or 2H2 + 0 2 = 2H2 0 .

”
F
—
Dire ct dec omposit i on (analysis ) 2H gO_
9
S S impl e
repl acement or substitution
P —
Double repl a cement or metathesis B a C12 + H2 S0 4 = B a SO4 + 2 H C I .

" f 3 F e + 4O= Fe 3 O4 .

Oxidation =
5

i F e C 12 + C 1 F e C l
g .

Fe + 4H 2 0
Reductio
l
.

6
C 13 + H= Fe Clz + H Cl
.

Fe .

The tw o processes of oxidation and reduction are of grea t importance

in m etallurgy They have a triple meaning Primarily oxidation m eans
. .
,

the takin g on of oxygen by an elemen t or c ompound , and reduction me ans

the giving up of oxygen I n the case of elements that form more t hanone
.
 REA C T I ON S

c ompound if the num ber of atoms of one that c ombines with a fixe d numbe r
,

of the other be increased the process is oxidation ; if decrease d reduction

, , .

In metallur gy an element in the metallic state is said t o be re duced The .

two processes are inseparable ; w hen one t hin g is reduced another is ,

oxi dized I n metallur gical operations these two processes are of paramount
.

importance for all the substances reduce d c onstitute the metallic product
,

and all i n oxidize d form make up the sl ag .

Som e La w s C o n t r o l
li n g Ch e
i c a l Re ac t i o ns : I n writing reactions m

c onsiderable knowledge of a specific character is e ssential Thus suppose .

,

i t is require d t o write the reaction that represents t he action of iron brought

in c ontact with w ater First i t w ill be necessary t o kn o w under w hat
.
,

conditions the substances are brought together fo r at ordinary temperatures ,

no reaction will take pl ace At a high t emperature a reactio n takes place .

, ,

an d i t is necessary t o know that ferroso ferri c oxide and hydrogen are -

produced an d the formulas of al l these substance s This knowledge c an

, .

then be indicate d thus : Balancing the reaction ,

whi ch is done by inspe ct i on and ar i t hmetic i s the next step Finally ,

.
,

the react i on is reversible for if inste ad of steam over hot i ron hydrogen
, ,

be passe d over hot iron oxide iron and water are t he products The reaction , .

is therefore , c orre ctly written thus : Fe 3 0 4 + 4H 2 2 : 3 Fe + 4H 2 0 , or 3 Fe +

,

4H20 z Fe 3 0 4 + 4H 2 Many reversible re actions under conditions which

.
,

do no t permi t the products t o escap e from the fiel d of action d o no t pro ,

ce e d t o completion bu t reach a balance d c ondition after a time and seem

,

to stop though as a m atter of fac t they are progressing in one direction as

,

rapidl y as in th e other hence are describe d as bein g in dynami c e quil ibrium

,
.

I n practic al chemical wor k it is usuall y desirable t o have reactions go t o

an end As an aid in writing reacti o ns the following l aws may be fo und of
.

value

T here action of two or more substances will go to an end that is , ,

complete provided , ,

One of the products is volatile at the temperature of the reaction .

One of the products is insoluble in the solve nt in which the reaction

takes pl ace .

3 . One of the products is a non electrolyte that is does not ionize in -

, ,

the solvent .

B . T he
speed of a chemical action in agiven dire ction may be increase d
by e ffe cting a greater concentration of one of the r eacting substances .

This is a S i mple non mathematical statement of the l aw of mass action

,
-
.

C . Chemi cal r e actions always tend

t o procee d in the dire ction that
will liberate the most heat and without the addition o f heat from an external
,

source those substances that have the greatest heats of form ation will
tend to form .
 8 CH E M I CA L N OM E NCLA T URE

S EC T I O N V " .

C HE M I CA L N OME NCLA T U RE .

G e ne ra lP ri nc i p l
e: A
brief description of the nomencl ature of
chemical c ompounds will be found of great a ssistance to those not familiar
with the subj ect The names of t he elements first discovered and there
.
, ,

fore unfortunatel y , the more c om m on ones are not based on an

, y principle ; ,

bu t of t he m ore re cently disc overe d elements the metals have received

names ending in u m o r i u m , and the metalloids in n or ne I n the naming , .

o f compounds however the o l d names have been discarde d and new ones
, ,

substituted The system empl oye d in assi gning these ne w names is this :
.

T h e na m e o f a c o m po u n d s h o u l d s h ow th e e l e m e nts o f w h i c h i t i s
c o m po se d , a n d a s fa r as po s si b l
e t h ei r r e l
a tive p ro p o r tio n s .

Te rm i no lo gy o f Bi n a r y C o m p o u n d s : The simplest compounds are

those c ompose d of only t wo elements The names of all such c ompounds .

are m ade up of the name of the basic element if one is present succeeded , ,

by the name of the aci d element whi ch ends in i d e : e xam p l e s ; fe rr o us (iron )

,

s ulphide F e S ; s odium chl oride Na Cl

, ; c alcium oxide C aO , , .

I n such c ases as iron and sulphur where the s ame two elements combine
t o form m ore than one c ompound the c ompounds when t w o in num b er are , , ,

distinguishe d by changin g t he e nding of the metalli c part of the name from

o u s t o ic ; t hus ferrous sulphide Fe S ; ferric sulphide F 6 8 2 ; s ta nnous
, , ,

chloride 8 11 0 12 ; stanni c chl oride SnCl

, 4 Often the prefixes m o no d i t ri
, .
,

t e t ra p e n t p e r are used e spe ci ally if the name will not permit the ending
,

o u s and i c , or if m ore t han two compounds are formed by the s am e t wo

elements C arbon dioxide C Og ; ni tr o us oxide or nitrogen monoxide N2 0 ;

.
, , ,

nitric oxide or nitrogen dioxide N2 0 2 ; (N O); nitrogen trioxide N2 0 3 ; , ,

nitro gen tetroxide or nitrogen peroxide N 2 0 4 ; nitrogen pentoxide N2 0 5 , ,

are examples .

Te r m i n o l
ogy o f Te r n a ry C o m p o u n d s : The names of c ompounds
that cont ain three elements provide d they are not derive d from acids , ,

may end in i d e also in w hich case all three of the e lements appear in t he
, ,

name as sodium aluminu m fluoride (Na g Al

,
F e ) bismuth oxychloride , , ,

(Bi OCl ) A few ternary c ompounds have names ending in te (from te r ,

.

three ) as potassium chl

, o rp lati na te (Kt Cl e) , .

Te r m i n o l
ogy o f Ac i d s : A cids are c omposed of the acid forming -

elements in combination with hydrogen or with hydrogen and oxygen .

The name of a given acid is derive d from the name of the acid formin g
element T he best known acid of an element has the e nding i c Example
. .
,

chlori c acid H Cl Og Then the acid the mole cule of which contains one
,
.

less atom of oxygen has the ending o u s Example chloro u s acid H Ol Oz .

, ,
.

I f the element also forms an acid containing one more atom of oxygen in
its molecule than the i c acid it is designated by the prefix p e r Example,
. .
20 CH E M ICA L CA L CULA TI ON S

cul
Cal a ti o n o f Pe rce n ta ge Co
o n o f a Co m p o u n d fro m i ts
m po s i ti

Fo l
rm u a : Problem : Find the percentage c omposition of a c ompound ,

t he formul a of which is CuSO4 .

S ol
u ti o n
Cu S 0 4

M ole cular x

Pe rc e ntage C o m p o sition= 39 8 3 % C o p p e r
.
, S ulphur , Oxyge n Ans
. .

c ul
Ca l a ti o n o f Fo rm u a l fr o m the A na l
ys i s o f a C o m p o u nd
Problem : analysis a pure c ompound is found t o be c ompose d of cal cium
By
sulphur and oxygen What is its simplest formula ?

S ol
u tio n

in a A tomic
P arts A tomic Number of
E lement Hundre d Wei ghts R atios A toms
Ca . 735 1 Ca
S . 73 5+ 1 S
O 16 4 0
‘

F ormul a of c ompound is C a SO4 . Ans .

c ul
Ca l a tio n o f Re l
We i gh t s fro m t h e C h e m i c a l Eq u a ti o n
a tive

Problem : F ive per cent of a certain limestone is non—

. volatile impurities
and 95% i s pure c alcium c arbonate What wi ll be the weight of lime .

obtaine d from c al cining 2000 lbs of this stone ? .

Sol
u tio n
Weight of impurities =5% of 2000 100 lbs : .

c al cium c arbonate 1900 lbs .

Re action on c al cining C a C0 3 .
=C a O+ C 0 2
C ombining or atomic w ts .

Relative or molec ular w ts 44

100 lbs C a C 0 3 gives
. 56 lbs C a O .

a a a
1 . 56
1900 1064
1064 lbs . C a O—
—
llOOlbs . non—
volatile impurities = 1164 lbs of lime . .

P R OB L E MS IN VOLVI N G VOLU ME O NL Y .

Cal
c ul o f Re l
'
a t io n a ti ve V ol u m e s o f G ase s : From A vo gadro s
hypothesis it is know n tha t mole cul ar weights of al
,
lgases give the same
volume under standar d c onditions of 0 C and 760 mm barometric pres sure °
. .

Problems involving volumes of gases only are therefore very simple to , ,

solve , because the relative volumes are identical with the coe ffi cients of
.
 CH E M I CA L CA LC ULA T I ON S 21

the mole cules ,

as will be evident from an inspection of the following

H 2 + Cl
g =2H Cl

1 vol hydrogen + 1 vol chlorine gives 2 volumes hydrochlori c acid gas

. .

CH4 + 20 2 =C0 2 + 2H 2 0
1 vol methane + 2 vol oxy gen gives 1 vol carbon dioxide + 2 vol water
. . . .

vapor
N2 0 2 + Oz=2N0 2
1 vol nitric oxide + 1 vol oxy gen gives 2 volumes nitrogen peroxide
. . .

P R OB LE M S IN VOLV I N G B OT H W E I G HT AND VOLU M E .

Me t h o d : This method necessitates finding th e rel ative

I n d i re c t
weights of the gases involve d fro m whic h the volumes may be c al cul ated ,

from the s pe cific gravity or the wei ght of a unit volume

,
.

l e m : Ho w many cubi c fee t of carbon dioxide measure d under

Pr o b
standard c onditions w oul d be given o ff by 2000 lbs pure c alcium carbonate .

during the process of c alcination?

Sol
u ti o n
R eaction C a C Og CaO 002

40 + 16 12+ 2x16
+
100 56 . 44

100 lbs C a C0 3 give

. 44 lbs . C0 2
a a a a
2000 88 0 002
Wt . 1 cu ft 0 0 2
. .
: 23 —
1 5 lbs .

7125 A ns .

Dir e c t Me t h o d :
The fact tha t molecular weights of gases give
constant volumes at s t andard c ondi tions affords a simple direc t method
for c alcul atin g volumes from the e quation If the weights are expressed .

in grams e ach gram mole cul e of the gases i nvolve d represents

- — 1iters ;
,

if in kilograms e ac h kilogram molecule stands for

,
— cubic m eters ; -

and if in avoirdupois ounces e ach ounce molecule give s a vol ume of 22 3 2+

,
-

cubic feet By this met hod the problem above woul d be s ol ve d as fol lows :
.

2000 lbs =3 2000 ozs

. .

cu ft . .

C a 0 0 3 = C aO 002
40 12H 3X16 4O+ 16
+ 2a 3 2 cu ft . .

100 56
100 ozs C a C0 3 gives
. cu ft . .

1 1223 2
3 2000 7142 -
cu ft .
22 DE S CRI P T I ON OF E LE M E N T S

S EC T I O N I X .

A DE S C R I PT I ON OF E LE ME NT S COMMONL Y MET

WI T H IN T H E MA N UF A CT U R E OF S T EE L .

Oxyge n .

Oc c u r re nce el T his
ement is most widely distributed in nature ;
:

of the solid crust of the e arth of water and of ai r ,

is oxygen In air it exists in a fre e state I n a combine d state it exists

. .
,

in limestone sand marble cl ay quartz iron ore and many o the r s ub stanc e s
, , , , , , .

P re p a r a tio n : It
is prepare d by merely he ating certain of its
compounds some of whic h are mercuri c oxide potassium chlorate and
, ,

manganese dioxide ; by the de composition of wa ter by ele ctrolysis ; and fro m

the air by purifying processes .

Pr o p e r t i e s : Oxygen is a colorless , odorless , t asteless gas , he avier

than air (sp .and sli ghtl y soluble in water At a l ow temper .

—
ature and a high pressure it i s converte d into a l iqui d which boils a t l81 C
°
.

The phenomenon of ordinary burning o r combustion is due t o the

combination of oxygen with other substances I t unites with many elements .

to form a cl ass of c ompounds the oxi des I t is necessary to life Anima l s ,

. .

die in an atmosphere of less than 16 % oxygen .

Co m p o u n d s : importan t oxides are : carbon dioxide (30 2

S ome , ,

c arbon monox i de C O c al cium oxide C a O ma gnesium oxide M gO ferric

, , , , , ,

oxi de Fe g Og and ferroso ferric ox i de F6 3 0 4

, ,
The last two are important
-
, .

as ores of iron .

Hy d ro ge n .

Occ u rre nce : H ydrogen does not oc cur in nature in a free state , but
c ombine d with oxygen it forms water of whic h it c onstitutes In ,

a combine d state it occurs also in the bodies of pl ants and animals henc e , ,

in the volatile matter of c oal in petroleum and in natural gas of whic h , ,

it c onstitute s almost Water is always one of the products of

combustion when a f uel containing hydro gen is burned .

P re p a ra t io n :
can be prepare d by dec omposi ng water with sodium
It ,

potassium hot iron hot coke or the ele ctric current ; by treating
, , ,

certain metals with certain acids ; and by tre ating aluminum with sodium
or potassium hydroxide .

P ro p e r t i e s: H ydrogen is a c olorless , tasteless

odorless gas almost , ,

insoluble in water I t c an be converte d into a liquid that boils

. a t— 252 C
°
.

I t is the li ghtest substanc e known being about as he avy as air and ,

as he avy as o xygen I ts spe cific gravi ty air standard is 0696 I t

.
, ,
. .

is combustible and explosive I t combines with oxygen in the proportion .

of t o form water I ts gre at tendency to c ombine with oxygen makes

.

it an intense reducing agent .

 DE S CRI P TI ON OF E LE M E N T S 23

S ul p h u r .

Occ u r r e Thi s element oc curs free in the neighborhood of

nce :
vol canoes and in underground deposits from which it may be prepare d by ,

purifying processes I n c ombine d state it is found as F6 8 2 Fe C uSz Z nS

.
, , ,

,
ua b l
and Pb S the last three b e i ng v a l e ores of c opper z inc lead respectivel y , , , .

I t als o o c curs as the sulphates C a S O4 Ba S O4 and Pb S O4 and in animal , ,

and ve getable matter C ompounds of sulphur occur in iron ores in .

,

limestone and in coal

, ; and these are reduce d in the bl ast furnace when ,

a varying part of the sulphur c ombines with the i ron in whic h form it is ,

very undesirable if present in l arge amounts on account of its inj urious

, ,

e ffe cts on steel and cas t i ron .

P r o pe r t ie S ul
phur is a brittle , yell ow crystalline solid which melts
s:

at forming a straw c olore d l iquid I t i s a l

lo tr Op i c , i e , c an exist . . .

in di fferent physic al forms These forms are prismatic rhombic and .

,

amorphous When heate d t o a sufficiently hi gh temperature i t c ombines

.
,

with oxygen t o form sulphur dioxide S0 2 with iron t o fo rm fe rr o us sulphide , , ,

Fe S and with most of the metals forming s ul

, phides The sulphur in iron , .

or steel i s in the forms of Fe S and MnS distribute d almos t uniformly ,

throughout the metal while in the molten state Up o n s o l i d ifyi ng however .

, ,

o win g t o the di fference in density and fusion temperature between t hese

compounds and the metal they may under norma l c onditions se gre gat e , , ,

to some e xtent causing some parts of the s olidifie d mass t o sho w a higher
,

c ontent of t his impurity than the average or of t he whole in the molten

state With hydrogen i t forms a gas hydrogen sulphide H g S —very
,

.
, , ,

important in C hemistry .

Us e s : S ulphur is use d in the manufacture of matches and black gun

powder also for disi nfe cting
,
purposes and for vulc anizing rubber I ts .

chief use however is in the

, ,
manufacture of sulphuri c acid ; and the
amoun t of this a cid consumed by a nation is a measure of its scientific
advancement .

Co m p o u n d s : Besides
c ompounds alre ady mentioned sulphur forms ,

severa l acids one of which sulphuri c acid H g O 8 0 3 (H 2 S0 4 ) is a most

, , ,
'

important c ompound I t is obtaine d by oxidi z ing sulphur dioxide 8 0 2

.
, ,

which is given off as a gas from the roasting of Fc S z Z nS C uS and from , , ,

the burning of sulphur .

Ca r b o n .

Occ u rre nce T his

element oc curs free in nature in crystalline forms
:

as diamonds and grap hi te and in the amorphous form as c oal I t is the .

chief c onstit uent of the bodies of pl ants and animals of all nat ural fuels , ,

and of nearl y al l prepare d fuels I t oc c urs in c ombine d state in limestone .

,

magnesite marble an d other c arbonate rocks

, .

Pro p e r t ie s : C arbon i s allotropic ; diamond and grap hi te have bee n

mentioned The c ommon a m o rp ho r o us forms are c oal l ampbl ack charc oal ,
.
, ,

coke bone bl ack and gas c arbon I ts density varies with its form
, . .
24 DES CRI P TI ON OF E LEM E N T S

C o m p o u nd s forms many compounds with

a nd Us e s: C arbon
hydrogen called hydrocarbons as methane OH 4 , ethylene C z H i benzene
, , ,

C cH e acetylene O2H 2 each of which is but the first member of a series

'

, ,

of related compounds With oxygen it forms carbon dioxide , C0 2 which .

is a product of combustion and of respiration 0 0 2 is also given o ff when .

carbonates such as limestone are heated The reaction is Ca C0 3 =C a0

,

.
, , ,

+C0 2 Carbon monoxide is formed in combustion when the supply of

.

oxygen is insufficient for the formation of C0 2 Thus in the blast furnace .

, ,

a fixed amount of air is blown against an excess of hot carbon which act ,

results in this reaction : Owing to its tendency to combine

with oxygen forming C0 2 C0 is a good reducing agent So , the C0 forme d
, ,
.

before the tuyeres of the blas t furnace reacts with the iron oxide thus

= 3 0 0 2 + 2 Fe 3 CO + F 6 2 0 3 .

C arb on alone acts as a reducing agent i n the metallurgy of iron .

3 C + Fe 20 3 = 2 F e + 3 CO .

I ron forms a carbide with carbon the formula of which is F 6 3 0 In , .

pig iron it is also found uncombined in the form of tiny flakes o f graphite ,

hence the te rm graphi tic carbon Carbon has a marked e ffect upon iron . .

T he varying properties of steel and the many uses to which it can be applied
are due largely to the infl uence of this element Carbon in steel then u p .
, ,

to a certain limit is not to be consider e d as an impurity but as an essential

,

factor .

S il
ic o n .

Oc c u r r e Next to oxygen silicon is the most abundant element

nc e : ,
‘

in nature I t is the mos t important constituent o f the mineral part of the

.

earth .S e a sand quartz j asper opa l and infusorial earths are almost
, , ,

pure forms of S i0 2 A s silicates it occurs in clay mica talc h o rnb l

. e nd , , , ,

and feldspar On account of its wide distribution it forms th e c h ief impurity

.

of iron ore as well as of ne a rl ya l,

lnatural mineral deposits .

Co m p o u nd s : A s al ready indicated silica , SiOz is one of th e chief ,

compounds of silicon I t also forms several acids chief of which is silic i c

.
,

acid 2H 2 0 S i0 2 (H 4 S i0 4 ) which loses water when heated and forms S i0 2

,
'
. .

H 4 S i0 4 = S i0 2 + 2H 2 0 .

T hus in whatever form silicon may o ccur in an ore it is looked upon

, ,

as Si0 2 This substance is the great acid of dry chemistry and at high
.

temperatures wil l neutrali z e any base with which it comes in contact I n .

the blast furnace some of the silica (S iO2 ) contained in the charge i s reduced
to silicon The amount so reduced varies with the working conditions of the
.

the furnace , mainly the temperature Once reduced the silicon alloys .
,

lbut traces of
,

with the iron and becomes a part of the metallic bath Al .

this silicon is re o xidized and removed i n the various processes of ma king

-

steel However a little is beneficial to steel so it is sometimes add ed in

.
, ,

smal l amounts in the form of an iron alloy .

 DE S CRI P T I ON OF ELE M E N T S ‘

25

Ni t r o ge n .

This e l
'

Oc c u r re i nc e P ro pe
e m e nt o c c urs in niter beds as
a nd rt e s :

saltpeter KN 0 3 and C hili saltpeter N a NOg also in organic compounds

'

, , , ,

and in c oal I t is an odorless tasteless c ol orless ga s that c onstitutes

.
, , ,

about 78 % of the atmosphere .

With hydrogen it forms ammoni a NH 3 ; with oxygen a

Co m p o u n d s : ,

series of oxi des N2 0 NO N2 0 3 N2 0 5 and N 0 2 ; and with hydrogen and

’

, , , ,

oxy gen an important acid H 2 0 N2 0 5 (H N0 3 ) I t i s a very iner t element

, ,
°
.

a nd has very slight e ff e cts in the manufacture of steel Nevertheless i ts .

,

presence in the air in s o l arge amounts makes it an important facto r in

bl ast furnace practice .

Ph o sp h o rus .

al w ays combined with other e lements

9

Occ u r re nce : P hosphorus , ,

oc curs widely distribute d in limite d amounts particul arl y in s oils I t is ,

.
,

therefore found in al
,
liron ores I t oc curs in deposits as phosphorite and .

apatite , and is an important c onstituent of bone .

Pro pe r t i e s a nd Co m p o u n d s : While phosphorus bel ongs in the same

group o f elements as nitrogen it does not muc h resemble it from a physic al ,

standpoint I t i s allotropi c and exists in two forms as a pale yello w solid

.

that melts re adily a t t he l ow t emperature of C , and as a re d form

quite di fferent i n propert ies While it is a much more active e lement i t .
,

cl osel y resembles nitro gen c hemically I t forms compounds with hydro gen .

and o xygen , s uch as PH3 and P20 5 and an acid H 2 0 P2 0 5 (H P Og ) c alle d , ,

.
,

metaphosphori c acid I t generally is found in nature as salts of.

orthophosphori c 3 H2 0 P 2 0 5 (H 3 P 0 4 ) and pyrophosphori c , 2H 2 0 P2 0 5

,
.
,
.

(H4 P20 7 ) acids , With iron it forms a phosphi de F e 3 P I t is c ompletel y

.
, .

reduce d in t he bl ast furnace hence all the phosphorus occurring in the raw ,
[

materi al s i s found in the pi g iron I n steel it is a very undesirable impurity .

,

but fort unately i t is o xidize d re adily when i t c an be neutralized with ,

lime and e asily remove d as part of a sl ag .

Ma gne s i u m C al
ci um a nd .

While these two elements belon g t o di fferent groups they are ver y , ,

si m il a r so far as the manufacture of iron an d steel are c oncerned Wit h .

few exceptions one may be substitute d for t he other without great

,

i nco rWe nie nce Their oxides are the more i m p o ftant bases of dry chemistry
. .

Occ u rre nce a n d Ch i e

f Co m p o u nd s : Both elements oc c ur as insolubl e
carbonates ; limestone marble chal k and marl are forms of c al cium c ar
, ,

b onate C aO C 0 2 (C a COg ) Magnesite i s magnesium c arbonate M gC Os

,
. .
, .

When he ated both these c ompounds decompose int o the oxides and carbo n
,

dioxide thu s
,

Cfi COg =C fi O+ C Og
=
M g0 0 3 M gO+ 0 0 2 .

C aO represents quick lime and M gO m agnesia , , .

26 DE S CRI P T ] ON OF E LE M E N T S

These elements also occur together as a double salt of c arbonic acid ,

cal cium magnesium c arbonate C aM g c ommonly c alled dol omi te , ,

which gives c alcium ma gnesium oxide C a O M gO when c alcined - .

CaM g (C0 3 )2 =C aO-M g0 + 2 C 0 2 .

Use s o f Li m e a n d Ma g ne s i a : Lime C a O M agnesia M gO and the , , , ,

doubl e oxide C a O M gO are all very refractory

,
'
But on acc ount of its
,
.

tendency t o sl ake in air C a O is not us ed as such P racti c ally M gO is

,
.
,

the best basic refractory known and c al cine d dol omite is the best avail able ,

substitu t e .

The oxides are reduce d with difficulty and on ac co unt of their c he apness ,

c onstitute the principal basi c fluxes A s MgO is t he le ading basic .

refractory C aO is the leading basic flux I t c ombines with both silic a and
,
.

phosphori c acid t o form readily fusible sl ags , which have a l ower density
t han iron and c onsequently l ie upon the surface of the metalli c bath .

Al
u m i nu m .

Occ u r re nc e a nd Pro p e r t ie s :
This element in c ombine d form is very
widely distributed oc curring as one of the c onstituents of fel dspar grani te
, , ,

mic a cryolite and all cl ays I t is reduce d from the oxide A 12 0 3 by an

, ,
.
~

, ,

electrolytic pr o cess in which state i t i s applie d t o many uses I t has a

,
.

strong afli ni ty for oxygen violently reducing iron o xi de , and on thi s account
,

it is added to steel as a de oxi dizing agent .

Co m p o u nd s : In
its c ompounds al uminum displays decide dly basic
properties forming salts with all the c ommon acids except c arbonic acid
, .

I t forms neither a carbonate nor a sulphide A luminum hydroxi de .

,

Al (OH )3 however acts like both an aci d an d a base When t his c ompo und
, , .

is he ated i t l o ses water and forms alumina A12 0 3

, I t is found in varying , .

amounts in all the raw materials t ha t e nter int o t he metallur gy of iron .

In the bl ast furnace it is never reduced I ts presence , however has a .

,

marked influence on the sl ag affectin g its flui di ty and fusi on t emperat ure
, ,

important c ons iderations in bl ast furnace practic e In its purer states .

alumina is a good refractory but its scarcity prohibits its extensive use ,

as such .

C h ro m i um .

Occ u r re nce
This element is somewhat rare I n small deposits it is
: .

found as chromite Cr20 3 Fe O This substance is the best neutral re fr a c

,
°

tory kno wn I n its p urer states it melts at about 2175 C

.
°
.

P ro p e t ie s a n d Us e s : Chromi um is both acid and basic in character

r
'

It is very importan t in the manufacture of all oy or spe cial steels I ts ,

.

c hi ef e ffec t is one of hardening hence it is employe d t o increase the hardness

,

of proj ectiles armor pl ate automobile steel and tool steels

, , , .
28 REFRA C T ORI E S

C HA PT ER I I .

R EF R A C T OR I E S .

S EC T I O N I .

NA T URE OF R EF R A CT ORIE S .

I m p o r t a nceThe problem of obtaining refractor i es suitable for each

:

particul ar operation is one of supreme importance in the met all urgic al arts ,

espe cially i n the manufacture of steel The y form the chief materials of .

whi ch al l furnaces and retaining vessels are made as well as flue s and ,

stacks through whi ch ho t gase s are c onducted This e quipment is .

expensive and any failure in the refractories results in a great l oss of

,

time e quipment and product and to o often in loss of life as well

, , , ,
.

Re q u i re t o f Re fr a c t o ri e s : A refractory may be defined as any

m e n s
‘

substance whi ch is infusible at the highest temperature it may be required

to withstand in service In any particular application however this definition
.
,

i s incomplete because the fact that a substance is infusible does not alone
,

determine its value as a refractory An almost infusible brick for example

.
,

may be so fragile as to be worthl ess since brick s are generally required to

,

support a load in addition t o resisting the effects of great heat A perfect .

refractory would meet the follo wing requirements at any temperature : (1)
it woul d no t fuse or soften ; it would not crumble or crack ; its contrae
tio n and expansion would be the minimum ; it would not conduct heat ;
it woul d be impermeable to gases and liquids ; it would resist mech
a ni cal abrasion ; it would no t react chemically with substances in contact
with it Needless to say an absolutely perfect refractory has never been
.
,

discovere d H owever there are a number of substances which closely

.
,

approach the first six requirements a t temperatures commonly employed ,

in metallurgical work and whether o r no t they will meet the seventh

,

depends upon their chemical composition and t he nature of the substances

with which they are in contact .

Cl
as s e s o f Re fr ac t o r i e s : R efractory substances in common with matte r ,

i n general are of three cl asses

, namely acid basi c and neutral R ec al ling
, ,
.

the chemical action of acids and b ase s t o w ar d e ach other it is at once ,

apparen t that a refractory of an aci d character is useless in c ontact with

a basi c sl a g and vi ce versa I n sele ctin g a refractory for a specific purpose
, .
,

the first question t o be de cide d is what cl ass of refractory will be r e quired .

Other factors a ff e ctin g its l ife and usefulness are the amount of impuritie s
it contains and the unif o rmity of its composition ; and in the e ase of brick , ,
‘
 A CI D RE FRA C T ORI E S 29

t o these will be added strength toughness p orosity or other special, , ,

qualities In the manufacture of prepare d refractories these factors are al l

.

under c ontrol d ependin g upon t he selection o f ma teri al s an d the metho d

,

of manufacture .

S EC T I O N I I

A CI D R E F RA CT ORIE S
Ch e m i c a lC o m p o s i t io n : A cid
refractories owe their acid character
onl y to two kinds namely those composed mainly of
silica , SiOz , and are of , ,

silica and those composed of aluminum silicate , or clay I n the pure state
’

°
silica fuses at a very high temperatur e , about 18 3 0 C, a temperature much
above that obtained in ordinary furnaces , but when heated in contact with
basic substances it forms silicat es , so me of which are easily fused H ence .
,

in refractories co m pose d of si lica the presence of impurities , alum ina as well

as t he stronger bases , must be guarded against As a refractory silica is used .
,

in the natural forms of sand and cut stone and in the prepared f orm o f
brick Sand (90 %to
. SiOz ) is used to mak e u p t he bottoms of acid
open hearth furnaces and of some typ es of heating furnaces G anister .
,

a very superior material for li ning converters , is a highl y silicious rock I t .

has a silica content of about

Sil
i c a Br i c ksare prepared from quart z ite rock found in P ennsylvania ,

Wisconsin and A labama The roc k is first crushed fine , then intim ately
.

mixed with a binding materia l which acts as a cement to hold the particles of
s ili ca together and to give the bric k the necessary strength Fo r this purpose .

either clay or l ime , usually in the form of milk of l ime is used the former , ,
“
to pr o duce quartzite brick and the l att er ,
,
silica or gani ster bri ck The .

mixt ure , in a moist c o ndition is ne xt compressed and moulded into the shape
,

desired for the bricks , which are allowed to dry slowly and then are burned at
hi gh te m pe rature s ab o ut 1500 C in large kilns Fr om seven t o te n days
,
°
.
,
.

are required to complete the burning Silica brick expands slightly when .

heated .

Cl
ay is a natural o c curring e arthy m aterial whi c h has t he property of
plasticity when wet but be c omes hard when burned The ordinary varieties .

are more or less impur e silic ates of alum inum forme d by the dec omposition , ,

or we athering of fel dspathi c rock and c ontain hi gh percenta ges (10% t o

, ,

of c ombine d w ater They m ay b e residual or sedimentary Fire cl ays

. .

are of t wo varieties known as plasti c and fli nt cl ays ; the l atter i s very

,

hard , even when ground , but very refractory The m ost refractory clays .

are associated with the coal measures of Pennsylvania .

T h e i m p u ri t ie s in c a lys are alkalies due t o

nde c ompose d felds par ;
,
u

s and ; gravel ; iron oxide silic ate or s ulphi de ; c alci um an d ma gnesium

,

s ilic ates o f c arbonates ; tita nia ; and organi c matter Of these impurities , .
30 BA S I C RE F RA C T ORI E S

the basic oxi des are the most harmful as they l ower t he fusion po in t ,

decidedly This is due t o the fac t t hat aluminum s ilic ate c ombines wi t h
.

bases forming double sili cates

,
.

p ro c e ss o f m a ki ng fi re c l
T he a y b r i c k is similar to that for silic a

brick The clay in a finely crushed c on di tion is moistened with a definite

.
, ,

amount of water and thoroughly mixed Whe n flint cla y is being used; .

some plasti c clay is used as a binder Upon being d ried cl ay be gins t o.

,

shrink and c ontinues t o do s o during the burning when the combine d water ,

is dr i ven o ff and the brick becomes hard Thus a brick 9 inches in .

, ,

t o 9% inches w hen
'

lengt h a fter b e ing burned m ay me asure from ,

mo ulded depending on the mixture use d

,
C al cined or burnt cl ay is .
,

employe d in the mixtures t o c ontro l t he shrinkage Once burned t he bric k .

,

ceases t o shrin k and permanently l oses t he property of plasticity w hich ,

latter fact woul d indicate that th e pl asticity is due t o c ombine d water .

The refractory properties of a bric k depend upon the nature and amount
of impurities and the rati o of silic a t o alum ina Besides its use as brick .
,

cl ay is i mport ant as a refractory mort ar t o be use d in l aying bricks in

furnaces and l adles and as plaster where s eamless linings are require d
. .

S EC T I O N I I I .

BA S I C R E F RA CT ORI E S .

Magne s i a with a melting po int of

, is for practic al p urposes 2165 C
°
, ,

the most satisfactory basic refract ory I t is prepare d by c al cinin g the .

m i ne r a lmagnesite a natural c arbonate of magnesium Lar ge deposits are

, .

s omewhat rar e I n this country very pure depo sits had long been k no w n
.

to exist in the states of California an d Washingt on , but up to the outbreak

of the World War the entire supply was obtai ned from A ustria and H ungary .

Now, however , the deman d is supp l ied al

mos t wholly from the State of
Washington Fo r this reason it is an e xpensive material , which fact accounts
.

for its no t bein g use d e xcept where a basi c subst ance of t he hi ghest
refractoriness is require d I t makes an i de al bri c k for the c onstructi on o f
.

basi c furnaces an d is use d for the inner c ourses of bottoms and w alls t o
,

s li ghtly above the slag line I n a coarsely cru shed form , described as pea
.

size i t is very desirable material for maki ng up bottoms in basic furnaces,

,

as mixed with a smal l percentage of basic cinder it is re a dil

,
y fritted , formin g ,

a solid mass that resists chemical and mechanical action of the charge and the
buoyant force of the bath .

Li m
even more refractory than magnesia resistin g the intens e heat
e is ,

of the oxyhydrogen flame bu t on a ccount of its sl a kin g prope rt ie s it is of

,

little practical value as a refractory Mixed with magnesia i t give s s atis .

factory results .
 NE U T RA L REF RA CT ORI E S 3 11

Do l
o m i tefortunately furnishes such a mi xture and occurs in t his
, ,

c ountry in abundant quantities Upon c al cinin g the mineral , a mixture of

‘

lime and magnesia in the best proportions is obtaine d It c annot be fritte d .

on a bottom as w ell as magnesite and the lime c ont ent fastens U pon it a ,

tendency t o slake I n the steel industry it is u se d chiefly for maki ng up

.

the banks of basic open hearth furnaces .

Ba u xi te is a natural form of the sesquioxide of aluminum mixe d with ,

var ying amounts of e arthy matter and the c orresponding oxide of iron .

I t usually c ontains one per cent or more of t itania , T 10 2 I t is bu t feebly

. .

basic and , when free from sil i ca, is highly refractory In pure form alumin a
_
.

melts at 2O10 C , bu t the fusion t emperature o f the natura l bauxite will

°
.

seldom excee d I S2O O Recent trials indi cate t hat it m ay prove to be an ex

°
.

ce ll
e nt lining material but its scarcity precludes its general use
, .

S EG T I O N I V .

NE UT R AL REF RACTO R IE S .

is a neu t ra l m a t eri al , a subst ance t ha t will

T h e Id e a l Fu r n ace Li ni n g
permit of chan ging from aci d t o b as ic , or basic t o aci d proc e sses on the s ame ,

lining Two suc h substances are w el l known bu t unfor tunately t he c on

.
,

diti o ns of na tural deposits wil l no t permi t of t heir use e x cep t in restricted

quantities These are graphite and chromit e
.
,
.

G ra p h i t e This substance is a natural product t hough it can be

: ,

prepare d arti fi c al ly in small quantities I t oc curs mixe d with c alc areous or .

silicious r oc ks in C eyl on S iberia , Aus t ria Engl and Brazil and New York
, , , .

I t re quires expensive purific ation I t i s infusible e ven at t he temperat ure of

.

the electri c ar e but b urns rapi dl

’

, y a t t ha t tempera ture forming C O or 0 0 2 , .

At the t em perature of t he open hearth i t w o ul d be very sl owl y c onsumed .

I t i s use d in ma k ing spe cial brick cru cibles etc C l ay m ay be used as a

, , .

binding m aterial .

Ch r o m i te most nearly approaches the i deal refractory Experience .

proves it t o give e qually satisfactor y results in e ither an acid or a basic

process I ts fusion point , about 2ISO O , is far above the hi ghest wor kin g
.
°
.

temp era t ur e o f t he open hear t h or bl as t furnace I t i s difficult t o se t or .

sinter I n a finel y groun d c ondition and m i xe d w ith the proper proportion

.

of sl a g als o fi ne l
-

y ground , i t i s use d re gul arly i n t he open hearth t o daub

ports and j ambs and pa t c h w alls ne ar t he sl ag l ine In t he form of brick it .

is used as di viding c ourses t o separa t e aci d from basi c bric ks and in the ,

bottoms of soaking pits be c ause it is impervious t o pit cinder The binding

,
.

material for chromite brick i s l ime or cl ay and l ime , .

te c t i o n fo r Re frac t o ri e s : The fusion temperature of the m ate rials

Pr o
discussed is amply hi gh t o withs t and the t emperatures of c arbon he ate d
32 RE F RA C T ORI E S

furnaces if resistance to heat were the only requirement But t he

,
.

refractory m ust possess strength resistance t o abrasion and c orrosi on e tc

, , .
,

a nd as these properties decre ase rapidly with incre as e of t emperat ure it ,

is desirabl e in some c ases necessary to protec t them as muc h as possible

, ,

from the heat This end is acc omplishe d by backin g the bric k w or k with
.

holl ow metal forms through which w ater is kept c onstantl y flowing These .

forms are made of c ast iron steel c opper or bronze , depending upon t he ir
, , ,

use and position in the furnace an d may be in t he s hape of c oiled pipes

, ,

h oll ow boxes or spraye d j ackets

,
As t his c ourse progresses t hese de vi c e s
.
,

will be fre quently met with and their value demonstrated .

Fo purposes of c omparison typic al analyses of the various refractories

r

W ill be found in the foll owing table :

Tab l
e 3 . Ch e m ic a lAna l
y se s o f Re frac t o ri e s.

NAME PERCENT OF

Lo w G rade

High G rade
 TE S T I NG RE F RA C T ORI E S 33

S EC T I O N V .

TE S TI N G RE F RA CTORIE S .

T rialTe s t s a nd La b o ra t o ry Te s t s : The best t es t for a refractory is

a tria l test in whic h the materi al i s pl ace d in actual service under the most
trying c onditions i t will be e xpe cte d t o stan d up under As such tests c an .

seldom be m ade on m aterial for new wor k and as there m ay be considerable

vari ation in ra w materials and i n methods of manufacture l aboratory tests ,

are ne cessary Suc h tests are not always c onclusive owing t o t he difficulty
.
,

of obtainin g l aboratory c onditio ns iden t ic al t o t hose in actual practice .

The y are however very useful for t he purpose of c omparisons and if the
, , , ,

c onditionsof t he t ests are sufficiently severe the m ore serious defe cts will ,

be revealed These t ests are chemic al and physic al From t he chemical

. .

analysis the c omposition of the material is determ ine d and its quality is
j udge d As the method of manufacture and the c are with whic h i t i s c arried
.

ou t a ffe c t t he propert ies of t he refractory t he chemic al test shoul d be , ,

and u sually is supplemented by physic al tests Chief among these t ests

, .

are the f usi on or softening point crushin g strengt h expansion and c on , ,

traction sl ag ging porosity density resistance t o c ompression impact

, , , , , ,

abra si o n and spallin g tests Eac h of t hese tests m ay be made in a c ompara

.

ti ve l
y simple ma nner , bu t c are and j udgmen t are re quired t o see t hat the
conditions of t he tes ts c o nform cl osely w ith t hose t o which t he bric k are
to be s ubj e c te d in a c t ual servi ce On t his ac count some of the tests
.

usually empl oye d wil l no t be applicable t o the iron and stee l industry ,

while others m ust be modified to c onform t o its c onditions The t ests .

1
here described are those parti cul arly s uite d to this industry .

T h e fu s io n t e m pe ra t ure , i n ordinary practice , is usuall y dete rm ine d

by mea ns of S e ger c ones These are smal l triangul ar pyramids , 6 cm

. .

high , with a base of 2 cm They are composed of aluminum silicates Cone

. .

number 28 contains ten p arts silica t o on e p ar t alum ina and corresponds

"
to a temperat ure of 16 3 0 C The fusio n t emperatures of succeeding cones
.

up to number 40 which correspo nds to a temperature of 1920 C are increased

,
°
,

by decreasin g the propo rtion of silica to alumina Fo r lower temperatures .

varyin g amounts of al k ali or lime are a d de d By this means the melting point .

is s o c ontrolle d that a ser i es of c ones may be prepare d wi th melting points

,
°
between the limits of 500 and 1900 °
Upon being gradual ly heate d to a
sufficiently hi gh t emperature , t hese cones wil l soften an d slowly ben d until
their t ops touch the floor , which point is tak en as their fusion poin t I n .

mak ing a test a pyramid of the material to be test ed , having the same sh ape
,

and dimensions as the standards , is place d in a furnace with two or more

stand ards having meltin g points estimated t o be near t hat o f the material
to be tested A s the temperature of the furnace is raised , the standar d cone
.

that melts at the same t ime as the test wi l l register the temperatur e of the fur
lS e e P r a c ti c al M e th o d s fo r T e s ting R e fr a c to F i re B ri ck b y C E N e s b i tt a nd
I /l “ 3 3 e t y fo r T e st i ng M a t e ri a l Vo l
. .

P r o ce e d i ng s o f th e A m e ri c a n S o
ii i ng 1512
s . .

;
34 TES TI NG REFRA C T ORI E S

nace and the fusion point of the test The softeni ng temperature is considered
.

to be that at which the specimen bends sags or pu ffs out of shape I nstead
,
.

of the standard cone , the more accurate pyrometer is coming into use for
making this test .

d
”

Re si s t a nce t o C o m p re s s i o n : The ability of bric k t o withstan

press ure at a high temperature is a very import an t propert y This test .

is made on a modified form of Brinell b all testing machine The b all is .

made of steel and is 2% inches in diameter I n making this test the brick .
,

is uniformly and sl owl y heat ed from atmosph e ric t emperature t o 1350 and
°

hel d in the furnace at t his t emperature for th re e ‘ h o urs or l onger when it ,

is remove d and pl aced fla t under the b all of the machine an d a pressure ,

of 850 lbs is immediately applied which is gradually and u ni formly incre ased
.
,
,

at such a rate that a maximum load of 1600 lbs is attaine d at t he end of .

five minutes T he depth of the depression made by the b al

.
lis t a ken as t he
me asurement of the resist ance of the brick t o compression .

Exp a n sio n a nd C o n t rac t io n :

brick must be prepare d for this t est
A
’

by grinding the ends so that they will be parallel t o e ach other and a t ri ght
angles t o the sides I ts length is then me asured by means of a specially
.

constructe d microme t er The brick is next heate d t o the t emperature at

.

which it is to be used remove d from t he furnace and immediately measure d

,
.

T he expansion or c ontraction is e xpresse d in inches per l ine al foot .

Sl
aggi ng T e s t : this test the imperme ability of the bric k to molten
By
sl ag is determined The brick is prepared by dr illing two c irc ul ar c avities
.
,

2% inches in diameter e ach at the in tersection of the diagonal s of the

'

rectangles formed by bisecting transversel y the unbranded face o f the

brick t o such a depth that the are a of the gre atest cross se ction is
,

inches The brick is then heate d as in the compression t est When the
. .

temperat ure has reache d 3 5 gra i ns of a standard bl ast furnace s ag is l

placed in one cavity and 35 grams of a standard heatin g furnace sl a g in the
other Both slags are pulverize d t o pass a 40 mesh sieve The temperature
. .

of 1350 is maintained for two hours after t he slag is added at the e nd of

°
,

which time the brick is remove d from t he furnace and when col d sawed , ,

lengthwise s o as t o bise ct both c avities thus exposing the p art of t he brick

,

subj e ct to slag penetrati on The are a penetrated by the slag is measured

.

with a pl animeter and expressed in square inches .

The density is determine d from the wei gh t of t he bri ck i n

De ns i t y :
air and its dimensions This method gives the apparen t spe cific gravity
. .
.

This test is great ly influence d by the method of manufacture bein g a ffe c t e d ,

by both the amount of water use d in pugging and the pressure in moul ding . .

~
’

While in manufacturing practice the amount of water added is determ ined

by the plasticity of t he clay , investigations have shown that the moi sture
content should be about 8 % and the pressure about 1500 lbs per square inch .

to secure the greatest density .

36 I RON ORE S

C H A PT ER I I I .

I R ON OR E S .

S EC T I O N I .

OR ES A N D T H E I RO N B EA RI N G M I N E R ALS .

Mi ne ral
s a n d O re s : Any homogeneous inorgani c substance that
occurs naturally in the solid state is c alle d a mineral A mineral therefore .
, ,

may be either an element or a c ompound While a few elements like .

,

gol d and pl atinum oc cur for the most part native and others l ike silver
, , , ,

copper merc ury sulphur and c arbon m ay be found both native and c om
, , ,

b i ne d most minerals of whic h some 800 varieties have been discovered

, ,

and named such as quartz feldspar hematite hornblende c al cite mica

, , , , , , ,

etc or their spe cies represen t definite chemical compounds Owing t o the
.
, , .

many forces that are constantl y a t work in nature and the wide distribution
of some of the minerals i t is sel dom a deposit c onsisting of but a single
,

mineral is encountered I t is of such natural deposits t hat the ores are

.

cons tituted I n general then an ore is define d as a mineral or a mixture

.
, ,

of minerals from whi ch one or more elements may be extracte d with p rofit .

T h e I r o n Be a ri n g Mi ne l While there is a vast number of mineral

ra s :

spe cies tha t c ontain iron there are only a few that are of any importance
,

comm ercially , bec ause in most cases e ither the iron c ontent is to o l ow
, ,

to j ustify the ext raction of the metal or the mineral itself does not oc cur in
sufficient abundance to make it avail able for use as an ore G roupe d .

ac cording t o their chemic al composition the iron bearing minerals of c hief ,

importance are divi ded into four classes ; namely the iron oxides iron , ,

carbonates iron sil i cates and iron s ulphides Of these only the first
, , .
,

cl ass may be considered as a factor in the manufacture of steel in the United

States These oxides go to form a l arge number of minerals which have
.
,

been groupe d and named as shown in the follo wing table

Tab le 4 C h i e f I ro n
. Be a ri n g Mi ne ra l
s .

Chemical Name M ineralogical Name .

1. F erroso ferric Oxide

-
M agnetite
2. A nhydro us Ferric Oxide He matite
.

3. H ydrous F erric Oxides Limonite and others

.

4. F errous Carbonate Siderite

.

5. I ron S ilicates Chloropal and others

.

6. I ron S ulphides Pyrite and other s

 M I NE RA L S

Ma g ne ti t e G r o u p : T he only important mineral of this group is

magnetite chemical formul a Fe 3 0 4 composed of iron
,
and oxygen, , ,

The mineral is found in A rkansas Pennsylvania New J ersey and , , ,

New Y ork It vari es in color fro m gray to black has a spec ifi c gravity
.
,

of abo ut and is m agnetic s T his last nam e d pro pe rty is taken advantage '

of in locati ng ore bodi cs b elow the surface of the ground and in mechanically
p urifying ores of this group by magnetic concentration I t is often found
‘

closely associated wi th igneous rocks when it is apt to contain appreciable ,

amounts of chromium or titanium oxides which cannot be removed from it

by magnetic concentration T h e remaining magnetic ores of
. the U nited
States are for the most part of a low grade and re quire dressin
, ,
g but ,

the ma gnetite ores of S weden represent the purest ores in the world and
are of a grade approaching that of the pure mineral .

He t i te G r o u p : The typic al mineral of this group is hematite

m a ,

whi ch cont ains the e quivalent of 70% metallic iron base d on t he chemical ,
’
f ormul a Fe 2 0 3 I t furnishes the base of the w orld s most important ores
. .

Being associate d wit h ro cks of various geol ogi cal peri ods these ores o c cur ,

widel y distrib ute d and in a variety of fo rms whi ch di ffer gre atly in their
, ,

iron content M any of these varieties are kno wn from their outstanding
.
,

characteristi c as re d hematite spe cular hematite o o liti c hematite fossil

, , , ,

ore etc
, .

o ni te o r Br o w n O re G r o u p : The inine r a l
Li m s of this gr oup are all

hydrous ferri c o xi des and may be represente d as a group by the general

, , ,

formul a m Fe g Og n H g O There are five of t hese minerals and they have

.
,

been name d in the order of their pro gressive incre ase in water c ontent
, ,

tur gite 2Fe 2 0 3 H g O; goethite Fe 2 0 3 H g O; limonite 2 Fe 2 0 3 3 H 2 0 ;

, , ,

xanthosi der i te Fe 2 0 3 2 H 2 0 ; and l

i nni te Fe 2 0 3 3 H2 0
i , O n a the oretical , .

basis the iron conten t of this series will vary from 52 3 1% t o 66 . .

These minerals are widel y distribute d t hroughout the Unite d States I n .

southern V ir gini a the y make up the gre ater part of the avail able ores al l ,

of which are l ow in iron content and hi gh in silica

o n a t e G ro u p : The representative member o f t his group is
T he C ar b
the m i neral known as siderite or iron c arbonate Fe COg whi ch cont ains
, , ,

of iron Ow ing t o t he fact that c arbonic aci d is dibasic a part of

.
,

the iron require d t o neutralize i t may be repl ace d by other metals thus ,

giving rise t o a series of minerals such as iron cal cium carbonate iron ,
-
,

magnesium c arbonate et c S ome of the names commonly applied t o these

,
.

ores are spathic iron ore ki dney ore , blackband ore etc The ore deposits
, ,
.

in whi ch this group appears are of little commercial importance in the

Unite d S tates I n Engl and they make up the ores of the Clevel and district
. .

Usually c arbonat e ore s are c al cine d before they are char ge d int o the bl ast
,

furnace .

T he o gi ca lMa ke u p o f I ro n O re s : A s was indi cate d at the

Mi ne ra l s

be ginning an ore deposit at be st represents bu t a mi xt ure of di fferent

,
 I RON ORE S

minerals only a part of which will contain the element or elements sought
, .

Al liron ores then may be looked upon as bein g made up of these two
, ,

par ts : One part i s c ompose d of the iron bearin g minerals , whi c h represent
definite compounds of iron ; t he other part includes al l t he other substances
mixe d with t hese c ompounds , and i s known as the gangue of the ore .

Evi dently , t he ri chness of t he ore , by whi ch term i s mean t t he proportion

by weight o fi ron t o all other ele m ents in the ore , depends on t he c omposition
of t he iron bearin g mineral s i t contains and upon the amount of g angue
associate d with t hem I n workin g up the ores , t heir physi cal condition
.

mus t also be t aken int o cons ideration I n this respe ct , they are subj ect .

to the wides t varia t ion , rangin g from s of t cl ay like or e arthy matter t o -

har d c ompac t masses Bo t h ext remes ten d t o give t rouble i n t he bl as t

.

furnace Thus the soft fine ore s are so ap t to choke up a furnace not
.
, ,

desi gne d t o use them , t ha t t hey w ere onc e c onsidere d practicall y w orthless .

The suc cessful smelting of t hese ore s represents one of the gre a t a c hieve
ments of Amer i can furnacemen One obj e ctio n t o very fi ne ores an d one
.
,

tha t has no t ye t been overcome , is t ha t t hey give ris e t o l arge amounts

of flue dust , which interferes seriously wi t h the e c onomic a l utiliz ation of
the furnace gases On t he o t her hand the very har d an d dense ores which
.
, ,

enter the furnace in the form of c omparatively l arge lumps are di ffi cult ,

to reduce and require an excessive amoun t of f uel .

S EC T I O N I I .

VALUATI ON OF ORE S .

Fac t o rs Va l
in the u a t i o n o f O re s : Omitting rel ative property
valuations prices of competitive ores c osts of transportation and other
, , ,

considerations of a purely business nature t he c hief factors that determine ,

the val ue of an ore are its richness its chemic al c omposition and its ac cess
,

ib i l
i ty.
The ri chness of t he ore wi ll of co urse b e made the basis for t he
, ,

valuation ; Fo r this purpose a unit system is employed a uni t of iron ,

correspondin g t o one per cent But the prices of ores do no t rise and fall
.

parallel with t he number of uni ts of i ron they c ontain because the gan gue ,

to be disposed of mus t also be considered Fo r example suppose two .

,

hematite ores c ontaining 63 % and 42% i ron are being consi dered I n the .

first 90% of t he ore is pure mineral l eaving only 10% as gan gue t o be
, ,

dispose d of but the sec ond represents only 60% p ure minera l with 40 % of
,

its wei ght as gangue t o be fl uxe d and transported Next t o richness c omes .

the consideration o f t he chemical c omposition of t he ore as a whol e for ,

certai n impurities w hen present in only rel ativel y small amounts may
,

lthe
,

make a rich ore w orthless Without taking the time t o c onsider al

.

possibilitie s i n t hi s c onne ction the more c ommon impurities in ore m a y be

,

cl assed as follows :
 I MP URI T I E S 39

1 T h o se i m p u ri t i e s t h a t a re ne ve r r e d uce d i n t h e b l
. as t fu r n ace

and s o do not a ffect the c omposition of the iron are alumina , Al g Og ; l ime ,

CaO; m agnesia MgO ; and the alkalies soda (Nag O) and p o tassi a , (Kg O)
, , , , .

Al lthese sub st an ces it will be observed are stron g bases , w ith the e xception
, ,

of alumina w hi ch may be either an aci d or a base Therefore t he presence .

,

of these s ubstances in the ore may no t be obj e ctionable , for the l ime and
the magnesia in p articul ar are valuable as fl uxes Alumina also up t o
, , .
, ,

about may pl ay a usefu l part in re gulating t he bl as t furnace The .

alkalies for t he mos t part are driven o ff with t he flue d us t , and with
modern appliances t hey may be re covere d when presen t in sufficient ,

amount t o j ustify the install ation of the ne cessary apparatus s o t hat they ,

may form a valuable b y— product .

2 .T h o s e i m p u ri t i e s t h a t m ay b e p ar t i all
y re d uce d in the furnace
and give elements that enter the pi g iron are s ilica , or t he silicates ,

sulphates and manganese c ompounds Of these the s ilica , whi ch t erm

.
,

includes both t he fre e silic a an d t he s ilic ates c onstitutes a l arge ,

part of t he gangue of mos t ores and as i t re quire s an e qua l wei ght

'

of l ime or magnesia t o flux i t i t mus t b e c onsidere d in fixin g t he value of

,

an ore Owin g t o the fac t t hat the amount reduce d i n the bl as t furnace
.

is subj e c t to c ontrol t o a c onsiderable extent and tha t t he element is re adily

remove d d urin g t he proces s o f p urif yin g the pi g iron , i t i s no t c onsi dered
of muc h i mport ance from t he s t andpoin t of its e ffe c t on the ste e l p r o d uce d
‘

from the i ron This attitude t owar d s ilic a is j us t the opposi te o f t hat
.

displ aye d t oward t he sulphur c ompounds Al l these c ompounds are reduced

.

in t he furnace t o sul phi des , i n whi ch form t he sulphur e nters e ither the
met a l as fe rrous or mangane se s ulphides or the sla g as c al cium sulp hi de .

Now , t her e i s a l imi t t o t he quantity of sulphur a given s l a g c an absorb ,

j

the hi ghes t fi gures gi ve n bein g l ess t h an and , naturally e nough the ,

nearer t his l imi t i s appro ac hed t he more d ifficul t i t be comes to keep the
,

sulphur ou t of t he me t a l S ince e ve n co mpara t ively smal l amounts of

.

this elemen t exer t an e vi l influence in s t eel , and i t can b e removed .

from t he meta l onl y p artially an d wi t h much difli cul ty, t he importance

of t his e lement in fixi n g the value of an ore i s e viden t As t o the .

manganese c ompounds , t he amount of this elemen t t ha t enters t he iron

vari e s with t he manganese c ontent of t he ore an d t ake s pl ace t o the
extent of ne arly 75% of t he manganese char ge d The per cent of this
. .

elemen t is , t herefore c ons i dere d in its relati on t o the iron c ontent

, An .

ore i s available fo r t he manufacture of t he ordinary grades of pi g iron

when the manganese conten t does no t excee d 2% of the iron c ontent ;
between 2% an d c al cul ate d on t he same basis i t is ne cessary to ,

mi x the ore with others c on t ainin g little of t his e lement ; but if t he manga
nese c onten t is 15 % t o 20 % of the iron c ontent , t hen t he ore bec omes

avail able for the manufacture of S pie gel .

40 I RON O RE S

3 . i m p u ri t i e s al
T he w ay s re d uce d in the furnace are all the com
pounds o f phosphorus which element enters the pi g iron only While
,
.

this elemen t is e asily removed from t he metal by basic processes none at ,

all is eliminated by the acid processes with the resul t th at aci d steels ,

contain a higher percentage of this element than the average of the charge
from which the steel is produced This element therefore is the basis .
, ,

for the separation of all ores into the two great cl asses known as Be s se m e r ,

and b a s i c This division like that for manganese is made on t he basis

.
, ,

of the rel ation of the phosphorus c ontent t o iron c ontent o f the ore S ince .

it is desirable to prod uce Bessemer stee l t ha t will c ontain no t more than

. 100% of its weigh t as phosphorus a true Bessemer o re woul d be one ,

whose phosphorus content plus the phosphor us c ontent of t he c oke and .

limestone required to smelt and flux i t w oul d produce a pi g iron with a

phosphorus content not exceeding Allowing 10% for c onversion
l oss such a p i g i ron woul d give a stee l c ontaining less than 100 % of its
,
.

wei ght of phosphorus C ommercially however since c ommercial t oler

.
, ,

ance s usuall y permit t he phosphor us in the stee l t o rise as high as

no allowance is made for conversion and a c ommerci al Bessemer ore is ,

one whose phosphorus c onten t plus some arbitrary fi gure usually about ,

t o allow for the phosphor us acquire d from the flux and fuel is ,

l ess t han one one thousandth of its iron content Thus the per cent of
-
.
, .

phosphorus in an c re containing 60 units of iron m ust be 045 or l ess to

'

.
, ,

be cl assed as a Bessemer ore for of and 060

,
.
,

Another method for determining the grade of an ore is expl aine d b y the _

foll owing example :

Question: To what cl ass does an ore c ontaining 60 % iron and 045% .

phosphorus belong?

S olution

cent phosphorus in the pi g iron acquired from the ore

.
, .

. 020=E stimated per cent phos in pi g iron acquire d from coke

. .
,

and stone .

A ns . . 095==
per cent phosphorus in the pig iron
. T herefore the ore is .

of Bessemer grade .

W a te r or moisture is another factor to be c onsidere d in the valuation

of ores , bec ause i t adds t o the wei ght of ore t o be handle d and transported .

The importance of this matter in fixing the value of an ore is seen a t once
when it is pointe d o ut t hat many of the soft ores of the Lake Superi or re gion
carry as much as 12% of t heir wei ght as hygroscopi c water an d a few as ,

much as or more than

, This moisture c ontent for any parti cular ore
,

is muc h more ne arly c onstant under varying weather c onditio ns than might
be expected ; but in the case of di fferent ores there is a wide variation ,
ranging from 40% in some of the hard re d hematites t o
. in a fe w
 I M PURI TI E S 41 .

of the soft red ores These point s are well illustrate d by the table bel ow
.
,

the examples in which have be en selected be cause they show about the
same iron content when dry .

T A BLE 5
. A na l
ys e s o l
f Ore s Ilu s t ra t i ng Dry a nd We t Bas i s .

OR E STAT E

A .
(M arq u e tt e R ang e ) .

B . (M i s s a b e R ange ) .

C .
(M i s s a b e R ang e ) .

The m ar ketin g of t he ores and al l the metallurgi cal c al cul ations

‘

invol ving them are based on t he analyses of samples drie d a t 100 C I t °

.

will be observed that dryi ng at this temperature may not drive o ff water of
crystalliz ation and tha t in the c ase of t he brown hematites a much hi gher
temperature than t he dryin g t emperature is require d t o drive o ff al l t he
c ombined water .

i b il
Acce i t y ; It is e vi den t that the e conomic importance of an
ss

ore deposit depe nds to a gre a t extent upon its size and its l oc ati on both ,

geolo gi c and ge ographi c Thus an ore t ha t is very de sirable from the

‘

.
,

standpoint of chemic al c omposition and physical c on di tion m ay be s o ,

located as t o be pra ctically i nac cessible ; or granting i t c an be made ac cess

ible the amount of ore in t he deposit may no t j ustify the e xpense of opening
,

it up On t he other h and a poor ore may be s o convenientl y l ocate d that

.
,

it may b e c oncentrate d at a profit A thorough discussion of this t opic .

cannot b e undertaken i n t he brief space allotte d t o t hi s chapter Suffice .

it t o s ay that the wor king of any ore body under modern c onditions presents
,

difficult en gineerin g problems both in minin g an d in t ransportation .

Perhaps the best way to impart some understandi n g of t he se problems

is through a brief description of the ore mining Operations of t he S teel
C orporation itself , With the exception of the Tennessee C oal I ron
.
,

Railro ad C ompany whi c h obtains its ore from the Birmingham District
,

in A labama all the c onstituent companies of the C orporation de pend

,

upon the La k e S uperior district for the i r ore supply .

42 I RON ORE S

S EC T I O N I I I .

T H E B I R MI N G HAM DI S T RI CT .

Lo ca tio n and includes

G e ne ra lG e o l
o gy : The Birmingham District
the are a from w hi ch the furnaces a t Birmingham , E nsley and Bessemer ,

secure t heir iron ores and is c c extensive with Birm ingham V alley This ,
-
.

V alley e xt ends from t he City of Birmingham in both a northeas t and south

west direction fo r a t ota l length of about 75 miles an d a wi dth of about
six miles The ore whi ch is a variety of re d hematite o ccurs in the Clinton
.
, ,

formation whi ch consists of shale , s andstone iron ore , an d a little fe rru

, ,
1
gi no us l imestone G eolo gical researches c onducted by
. t he g overnment
indi c ate t hat t he ore was forme d a t t he same t ime as t he roc ks wi t h which
it i s associated The valley l ies within t he are a ori ginally c overed by
.

this formation w hi ch t herefore , oc curs on both sides and dips away from
, ,

it on e ach But i t is onl y in Re d Mountain tha t t he ore be d has been found

.

of s ufficient thickness an d purity t o j ustify its bein g w or ked on a l arge

scale and nearly all of the mos t productive mines are l oc ated in a section
, ,

about 62 miles l on g, of t hi s moun t ain between Narrow G ap and Spar ks G ap .

Me t h o d o f Mi ni ng :
t he re d ore mines in t he Birmingham lof
Al
district were started as open cuts al ong the outcrop and the product of ,

these surface mines ha vin g been leached w ere a t firs t soft ore A t a , , .

fe w points these simple minin g operations are stil l c arrie d on but o w ing , ,

to the dip of the ore beds al l mines from which any l a rge quantity of ore ,

has been ta ken are no w c ompletely underground and are operate d by me ans
of slopes or inclines At these gre ater depths the ore is very hard and .

compac t On acc ount of the fact tha t the so uthern portion of the ridge
.

is overlai d by more recent forma t ions t he ore gradually bec omes more ,

and more deeply b urie d on passin g southward and all the deepe st slopes ,

are in t he strip of mountains south west of Birmingham The deepest -

.

slope a t t his sout hern extremity of the distric t ex t ends downwar d on beds
whose average dip is about The co exi stance of t he ore with -

limestone and the proximity of coal beds suitable fo r making c o k e give

this distric t an advantage over other districts of the c ountry The ore .

contains phosphorus t o the extent of abou t whic h i s much higher

than other basic ores of t he c ountry By employin g the duple x or the .
,

triple x processes in refining the p i g iron a sl ag with a high phosphorus ,

content is produce d that is avail able as fertilizer for agricultural use .

S EC T I O N I V .

T H E LA KE S UP E RI OR DI S T R I CT .

I m p o r ta nc e , Lo ca t i o n a nd G e ne ralG e o l
o gy : During recent ye ars
the Lake Superior d istrict
has provi de d approxima t ely four fi ft hs of t he -

entire iron ore outpu t of t he Unite d States and there is nothing t o indicate ,

bu t that the re gion will for many years t o c ome continue t o be the nat i on s , ,
’

S e c B ul
1 le ti n U
S G e o lS urve y N o 3 1 5 1 90 7 T h e Cl i nto n o r R e d Or e s o f
U
.

th e B i rm i ng a m D is tri ct A l h ar d a l
.

l S Geo l
. . . .
, .

h a am a b y E F B urc b B ul e ti n
‘

so
I nve s t i g a ti o ns r e l
. . .
, , , . .

S urv e y N o 3 4 0 a t i ng t o I r o n and M a ng ane se , b y E F B ur c h ard

A 0 S p e nce r W C P a l
. . . .
,

. . en , . . h .
I RON ORE S

S UPERIOR RE GI ON ,

S H OW IN G

IR ON RA NG E S
t t t t t t t
46 I RON ORE RA N GE S

to a point a li ttl
e south of west of its center it is locate d partly in M ichigan ,

and partly in Wisconsin The a re a i ncl ud e s the towns of Hurley I ronwood

. ,

and Bessemer The ori ginal iron formation whi ch dips sharpl y toward
. ,

the north rests on quartzite and is cut by i gne ous dikes that extend at
, ,

almost right angles t o the original quartzite The dike and the impervi ous .

strata th us combine t o form troughs in which ore bodies have been forme d ,

by concentration T h e ores which a re mostly soft and red represent

.
,
,

partially dehydrated hematites with subordinate amounts of hard blue ,

,

hematite The range was opened in 1884 and in 1916 there had been
. ,

produced from it more than long tons of ore The ye arl y ship .

ments for 1916 were .

tons .

T he V e r m i l
io n R a n ge was Opene d the same year as the G ogebic
range I t lies in northeastern Minnesota and includes the t owns of T ower
. , ,

S oudan and El, y The whole district is one of

.
c omple x fol ding s o the ore ,

d eposits occur in narrow belts which are enclosed on the bottom and sides ,

by ori ginal greenstones of Ar chean age and on t op by the ori ginal iron
formation As the pitch or slope i s very steep the outcrops are very small
. ,
.

T h e ores are all hard and are composed of re d and blue hematite This .

range had contributed a little more t han long t ons of ore by 1916 .

The shipments for that year were This range and the three
previously mentioned are known as the Ol d ranges t o distinguish them
‘

from the more recently discovere d Missabe and Cuyuna ranges .

T he Mi s s a b e Ra nge is one t o excite the interest of every one interested

in the manufacture of iron or steel because from it c omes the greater p art ,

of the ore use d for the production of pi g iron today I t was opene d in .

1892 and up to 1916 about long tons Of ore had been take n from
its mines The shipments for t he year were
. tons I t lies in .

Minnesota northwest Of Lake Superior and extends in an e ast and west

, ,

direction approximately 100 miles The principal t owns are Biwabik .

,

Eveleth V ir ginia C hisholm H ibbing Nashwauk and C oleraine

, ,
The, , ,
.

iron formation is the Biwabik in the Upper Huronian I t lies along the .

southern slope of a ridge that is known as the G iants or M issabe R ange , , ,

and has a gentle slope toward the south The surface is covere d with .

glacial drift and rock exposures are not common Thi s surface , originally
,
.

c overe d with forest gave few si gns t o indicate the presence Of ore bodies
,
.

The sl ope of the iron formation is gentle so most Of the ore deposits are ,

flat lyi ng and have a l arge hori z ontal are a c ompare d wi th the deposits on
-

the other ranges The impervious basement under the ore deposits i s
.

forme d by l ayers of sl ate or paint rock interbedded with the iron formation , .

T he ores are mostly soft and hydrate d hematites and limonite They vary .

in texture from very fine dus t t o fairly c oarse hard and granular ore , .

Toward the western end of the distri ct l ayers Of sand are often interbedded ,

with the ore formin g the so calle d sandy ores which require c o n
“
,
”
ce n -
,

tr a ti o n to form ore of commercial grade The deposits are all c o mpara .

ti ve ly shallow .
 I RON ORE M I NI N G 47

T h e C u y u na Ra n ge
whi ch is the last range of any importance to be
,

disc overed was opene d in 1911 I t is l oc ated in C row Wing C ounty M inne
, .
,

sota , abou t 100 mi les w est of Duluth The principal towns in t he district .

are Dee rwood , C rosby and Brainerd The range has no marke d t opo
,
.

graphi c feat ures t he surface being l evel and c overe d with a he avy mantl e
,

of sand S ince t here are no surface indic ations t o assist in the expl orati on
.

for ore the presence of lines of magneti c variation must be depende d upo n
,

almos t entirely By drilling these lines have been found to be asso ciated
.
,

with belts Of iron bearing formations which trend in a northeasterly and

-

southwesterly dire ction T he formation is interfoliated with sl ate and

.

schi st , and is usually steeply tilte d At some loc alities i gneous i ntrusive .

roc ks occur The ore deposits are usual ly lenticul ar in form I n certain
. .

restricte d areas of the range particularly in the northern part mangani , ,

ferous iron ores have been found The deposits of these ores occur in .

irre gular pockets or lenses and contain as high 45% manganese S ome
, .

Of these bodies of ore are being worke d for their manganese conte nt onl y .

In 1916 the ye arly production had re ached t ons and t he t otal ,

production tons
,
.

S EC T I O N V .

1
MI NI N G T HE LA KE OR E S .

P r o s p e c t i ng a nd Ex p l
the Lake Super i or ores Occur in
o ra t io n : S ince .

pockets or distinct bo dies and vary much as t o character and l oc ation ,

the actual mining of the ores i s precede d by muc h wor k of an exploratory

character This wor k includes p r o s p e c t i n g and e x p l
. o ra tio n .

Pr o s p e c t i n g
is the term generall y applie d t o the quest for surface '

indic ations Of ore or the c onditions whic h woul d warran t t he expe ctation
,

of finding ore in the vicinity I t includes such quest operations as ge olo gical
.

examination dip needle w ork shallow t est pitting and t renching The
, ,
-
,
.

ore bodies of the Mi ssabe R ange are non—

I
magnetic and dip needle prospe ct ,

ing is therefore valueless On t he C uyuna R ange , however , ma gnetic

.

attraction as e videnced b y the dip needle has been ext ensively employe d
as a guide t o t he location of ore deposits ; in other l ocalities i t has also
found limite d applic ation .

lEx p l
Dr i l o ra t i o n : After
t he presence of an ore deposi t is known or
suspected resort is generall y had t o expl oration by means Of diamond o r
,

churn drills On t he Ol . d ranges ge olo gic al c onditions generall y ma k e t his

manner of ascertai ning t he exac t l imits of an ore deposi t i mprac t icable ;
s o if t wo or three adj acen t dril l holes develop c ons iderable depths of ore
, ,

the sin king of a shaf t for und er ground expl oration d evel opmen t an d m ining ,

is generally c onsidere d w arranted On t he Missabe R an ge , however t he .

,

flat l yin g an d c omparati vel y s hallow c haracteristics of t he ore formation

-

warr ant much more extensive dril l e xpl orations On t hi s range t hen an .
, ,

ore body is almos t invariably foll owe d ou t with the drills and its limit s ,

1 F o r fur th e r d e t ai l
s c o nce rni ng t h e m i ni ng o f th e Lak e Or e s se e M i nn S c h o o lo f
I r o n M i ni n g i n M i nne so t a b y C h ar l
.

M i ne s E xp e ri m e nt S ta ti o n B ul le ti n N o 1 es
E V o n B arne ve l d U ni ve r si t y o f M i nne s o t a M i nne a p o l
.
, ,

.
, i s M i nn , , .
 I RON ORES

F m. 4 . Ope n Pi t M i ning
I RON ORES 49

FI G 4
. . Op en Pi t M ini ng
50 I RON ORE M I NI N G

are determined to the point where the complete plan of development c an

be worked out in advance of actual mini ng operations .

Me th o d s o f Mi n i ng : Both Open pit and underground methods of

mining are empl oyed in the mines of the Lake Superior District On the .

Ol d ranges where the ore bodies Often extend t o gre at depths and usually
,

lie at angles s o steeply inclined t o the horiz ontal tha t t he surface exposures ,

or outcrops are smal l underground minin g methods are employe d a l

, ,
m Ost

without exception On the Missabe R ange the ore bodies are as a rul e
. , ,

fi atl i
y gn with relatively large are as of outcrop and Open pit mining is , ,

therefore general Of course there are many deposits on this range that
,
.
, ,

On account of limited operating are a excessive depth of over burden or for ,

-
,

other reasons _must be mined by u nderground methods and there are

, ,
I
,

therefore a large num ber of underground mines also But by far the
,
.

greater part of the tonnage produce d from the Missabe R ange c omes from
open pits .

O pe n Pi t Mi n i n g : Before de ciding whether an ore body shoul d b e

mined by undergro und methods or as an open pit a detaile d Operating ,

analysis 1 s made of the proposition t o determine by whic h method the o re

can be mine d mos t e conomic ally Estimates are made d e te rm lnlng t he .

“ ”
yardage of overburden or stripping that must be remove d t o uncove r the
, ,

ore body the tonnage of ore which c an t hen be mined by ste am sh o ve land
, ,
“ ” “ ”
the additional tonnage which c an be scrammed or milled in t he pit
after the limits of ste am sh o ve lOperation have been re ache d Then the .

cost of the entire operation includin g interest charges on the necessar ily
,
-

large investment in stripping removal i s calcul ate d and reduce d t o a final ,

cost per ton of ore recoverable I f this fi gure is l ess than the probable c ost .

per ton of undergroun d mining and if the other operatin g conditions are ,

satisfactory open i pit Operati o n is Of course deemed advisab l e

, The , , .

laying o ut of an open pit mine involves the followin g engineerin g problems :

first outlining the area of ore which it will pay t o strip i e c onsidering the
, , . .
,

two factors Of depth of ore and t hi ckness Of overburden ; second pl a nnm g t he ,

disposal of stripping which it will be ne ce ssar y t o re m ove t o uncover the ore

body for this m aterial must often be haule d c onsiderable distances from the
,

pits to dump grounds ; third loc atin g the t rac k systems o utside the pit , ;

for the transportation Of stripping and the hauling of ore ; four t h desi gning ,

the system o f railroad tracks within t he pit that will make available the
'

maximum q uantity of ore accessible by ste am sh o ve l whic h desi gning ,

generally involves a series of switchbacks on limitin g operative grades and

curvature ; fifth providing for d r aini ngs of the pit ; and sixth pl anning
, ,

in advance for the mining of the ore tha t c annot be m ine d by st e am

shovel The general t erm o p e n p i t m i ni n g covers three reco gnized
.

l
methods of mining i e s te am sh o ve lmilli ng and scram ming S t e am
, . .
, .

s h ove lm i ni n g of c ourse nee ds no descriptio n it is simply t he l oading

, ; ,

of ore directly i nto railroad cars by s te a m sho ve l .

52 I RON ORE M I NI N G

Mi l
li n g is a term applied to a thoroughly well worked out system o f
open pit mining extensively prosecuted in the early days and still applie d
,

under suitable conditions . I t consists of the following operations : first ,

the removal of the overburden from the ore body t o be mine d t his being
,

done by ste am sh o ve l
; second ,
the sinking of a hoisting shaf t or incline to
the bottom of the ore and the developmen t Of a system of undergro und
 I RON ORE M I NI NG 53

tr am m i ng drifts tributary t o the shaft and u n derneath t he ore to be

m ine d ; thi rd the putting up of a number of raises (vertical Openings )
,
“ ”
ext ending from the under ground dr i ft s t hrough t he ore ; fourth milling ,

or shoveling the ore into the raises t hr o ugh whi c h it is drawn into tram
.
,

cars operating in haulage drifts that lead t o the shaft or incline where it is ,

hoiste d t o the s urface The milling system of mining c an well b e applied to

.

small ore bo dies which can be successfull y stripped bu t where the resultant ,

open pi t areas are too small to permi t of ste am sh o ve lOperation ; also as a ,

sequel t o ste am sh o ve lmining in larger pits where c onsiderable depths of

ore remain after the limits of s te am sh o ve lwork have been reached .

S cra m is a t e rm applied c oll oquial

m i ng ly on the Missabe R ange to
'

the Operation Of recovering shall ow pockets and hummoc ks Of ore le ft

unmine d in and around the open pits f ollowin g the period of ste am sh Ove l
mining I t is a genera l t erm i nclusive of hand wor k , scraper work mining
.
,

with dragline excavators e tc and is appli c abl e generally t o the operation

,
.

“ ”
of cle aning up a pi t af t er i t s period of real production has passed .

f O pe n Pi t Mi n i n g : I t i s very apparen t tha t Open pi t

Ad va n t a g e s o

mi ni ng , w hen feasible , o ffers d e ci de d advantages as compare d with under

groun d m ethods Prob ably the m os t e vi den t Of t hese is t he possibi lity of
.

bi g production ; in 1916 the Hull Rus t Mine al one shippe d tons of

ore —more than 10% Of the t otal mine d in the Uni te d State s during that
,

year w hich according t o t he U S G eolo gi c al Survey amounted t o

, , . .
,

t ons Where the overburden i s li ght in c omparison with the

;

depth of ore and stripping charges are not heavy open pit mining produces
, ,

l ow c os t ore I t accomplishes a gre at saving in l abor ; the ou tput per man

.

per day from t he open pi t mine is many t imes that from the a verage
under ground mine Asi de from th e skilled operators of the s te am s h o ve l
.
j
s

and l ocomotives c ommon l abor onl y is required in Open pi t mining while

, ,

in under ground work the miner is a rather high class wor kman and he ,

receives a rel atively hi gh w age Owing to this l at t er c ondition strikes .

,

have never b e en abl e t o interfere seriously so far with t he output of , ,

Missabe R ange open pit mines .

U nd e r gro u n d Mi n i n g— S l
i c i n g : The system of undergro und mining
most generally in use in t he mines of the Missabe R ange and i n the soft ore
"

-
,

mines of the Ol d ranges , as well i s known as to p =s li ci ng a n d c avi n g

, The .

devel opment of a mine und e r thi s method is as follows : First a sh aft is sunk
’
,

to the bottom of the ore body or t o such depth in the ore as has been ,
“ ”
determine d a s d esirable S econd , after c uttin g a station
.
p u m p r o o m ,

and poc ke t a t t he bottom of t he shaft a mai n haul age drift or system , ,

of haul age drifts i s driven out underne ath the ore body Third raises are
,
.
,

put up from the haulage drifts a t intervals of about 50 fee t along the drifts
through the ore body t o the t o p of the ore F ourth cross cuts are driven .
,

from the tops of the raises t o the limits of the ore body or t he property
lines the cross cuts being p aralle l and the s ame distance ap art as the
,
54 I RON ORE M I NI N G

raises Fifth be ginning at the ends of the cross cuts farthest from the
.
,
“ ”
raises the ore is sliced out between cross cuts tramme d to the raises
, , ,

dumpe d into the l atter drawn o ff thru chutes int o cars Operating on t he
,

main haulage level hauled t o the shaft dumped into the shaft poc ket and
, ,

hoiste d t o the surface where i t is either l oade d direc t into railroad ore
,

FI G 7. U nd r und
e rg o Ore M i ni ng—Square Se t T im b e r .
 GRA DI N G 55

cars or (if in the Winter time ) s toc kpile d for l ater shipment
,
A slice .

consists of a room O pened up between crosscuts , and may be one t wo or ,

more sets wide d epen d ing o n t he t endency of t he overburden t o crush the

temporary timber supports When t he ore has been removed from the room
‘

or slice the supporting timbers are blasted out and the overburden allowed
,

to cave and fill it Before bl astin g the timbers however , boards are laid
.
,

over the floor of t he room to preven t adm i xt ur e o f the c ave d mat erial
with the ore below While slicin g and c avin g operat ions are proceeding
.

on the top le vel t he cross cuts t o develop the ne xt leve l imme di a tel y below
,

are be in g driven and as s oon a s c o nsiderable are a s Of c ave have been

,

develope d on t he firs t l e vel s licin g under t hes e a re as i s start e d o n t he ,

second l e vel Thus t he entire ore body i s mined , s lice b y slice , and level
.
,

by le vel Levels are generall y a bout e leve n fee t apart , fl oor to fl oor
. .

H aul age of ore on main levels from chutes t o shaft m ay be by han d , m ul e or

ele ctri c motor depending on t he size of t he mine On t he sub-le vel s t he
, .

ore is hand tramme d i n small dump c ars , or for shor t hauls in wheelbarrows
-
, ,

from the slices t o t he raises .

Ad va n t a ge s o f th e S l
Mi ni ng : The t op slicing and
ic i ng S y s te m o f - -
'

cavin g system has many advantages I t gives a hi gh percentage of o re .

e xtrac t ion I f desire d t he ore from differen t w orkin g pl ace s can be

.
,

separate d and two or more grades c an be produce d from the same mine
, .

Devel opment and mini n g operations are simple and safe and can be carrie d ,

ou t al ong well defined plans wor ked out in advance While the cons umption .

of mining timber is hi gh cheap inferior grades are used , and under ordinary
,

conditions t his item of cos t is no t excessive I n common with most other .

systems of mining i t possesses the disadvantage of a l imi te d number of

,

working pl aces ; c onsiderable handling of t he ore is als o ne cessary .

T he d e pth f t s on the Missabe R ange rarely ex ceeds 3 50

o f m i ne sh a

feet The average is probabl y between 250 and 300 fee t On t he Ol

. d ranges .
,

where the roc k formations have been folded and tilted m i ni n g Operations ,

extend much deeper Here mine shafts 500 to 1500 fee t d eep are common
.
,

while in some c ases mining Operations are still in ore a t d e pths we l l in

excess Of feet .

G ra d i ng t h e Ore the e arly days of iron ore mining no gradin g

s: In ,

of the ore from analysis such as prevails t oday , was made , and the ore ,

was known by t he name of t he mine t ha t produce d i t Then t he number .

,

of mines was small and t he ore from any one mine was fairly uniform
,
.

As t he production incre ase d however and the fiel d of available ore w as

’

, ,

broadene d t o include deposits pre viously re gar d e d as unprofit able i t ,

became ne cessary in order t o simpl ify shipping t o grade ore s acc ording
, ,

to t heir composi t ion and further t o mi x ores di ffering in c omposition to

, , ,

produce certain grades F inally i t became quite common for one mine .
,

to ship severa l di fferen t grades and for t he ore from severa l mines t o ,

be grouped under one name These conditio ns brought about a necessity .

56 I RON ORE S

for knowin g the exact c omposition of the various ores and whether or not , ,

in the c ase of mixed ore each cargo was Of the grade guaranteed This
,
.

grading is done by sampling the ore in the cars as fast as they are loaded
at the mine in lots not exceeding ten and ma kin g a rapid but ac c urate
, ,

analysis for the determining elements From this analysis the class o r .

grade of the ore is fixed , and its allotment into a cert ain group can be made .

Thi s is the work of the grader who from the analysis of the c ars as s ub
, ,

m i tte d t o him makes a theoretical shipment in whic h the c ontents in

,

silic a iron phosphorus and possibly manganese the determining fac tors
, , ,

in the value of an ore for its particular purpose must fall within certain
.
,

predetermined limits .

T r a ns p o r ti ng t h e O re s : The Lake ores no w supply all the furnaces

in Western New York Western Pennsylvani a Ohio I llinois and I ndi ana
, , , , ,

as well as those in the ore producing states of Michi gan Wisc onsin and , ,

Minnesota I n order to reach these markets the ores must be transport ed

.
,

for distances v arying from 3 00 t o more than 1000 miles depending upon ,

the locations of both the mine and the furnaces The c ost of transport i ng .

this ore by rail alone wo uld be a serious handicap t o some furnaces b ut ,

fortunately the chain of G re at Lakes affords a cheap mode of transportation

for the greater part Of the l ong as well as the short distances Nearl y all .

the ore mined in the range s the n goes first by rail to a harbor on Lake
,
‘

Michigan or Lake Superior where it is l oaded on ore c arrying b oats t hat

,

carry it either down Lake Michi gan to C hicago or G ary or t hrough Lake
Huron and Lake Erie t o ports further so uth Fo r m os t of the ore e ven .
,

these lower lake ports are not ultimate destinations and another haul by ,

rail is required to place it at the furnaces Now t o return t o the gr ading .

,

of the ore what was there referred t o as a theoretic al shipment mi gh t

,

better have been called a theoretical c argo or boat l oad When t he c ars .

containing this theoretical c argo which may wei gh from 3000 t o ,

tons depending upon the size of t he boat reach the doc k at the shipping
, ,

port they are unloaded in to the dock pockets one on t op Of the other ,
, ,

three to si x c ars to a pocket in such order as to m i x t he ore as muc h as

,

possible The ore is then allowed to flow from these poc ke t s into t he
.

hatc hes of the steamer thus again mixing the ore Then the boat
, , .

proceeds to her destination where the ore is unl oade d by e lectric al

, ,

or otherwise operated grabs which process of unloading still further

, ,

tends to mi x t he ore and make i t uniform Al lthis mixing of t he ore .

is not t o be thought of as merely incidental to the operations but ,

as a necessary course of procedure for uni formity in the ore is a very ,

important requirement in the successful operation o f the bl ast furnac e s I f .

the ore is unl oaded at the wor ks loc ated on the lakes it is sample d for ,

analysis during the unloading by an el aborate system a nd is dumped

upon its appropriate stoc k pile ; if for inl and works such as P itts b urgh , ,

it is pl aced in c ars and ultimately re aches the wor ks where e ac h c ar is ,

sampled accordi ng to printed instructions c ommon t o all the works Of

,
 I RON ORE S 57

the Stee l C orporation T h e cars are then unl oaded upon a stock pil e from
.

whic h the ore c an be use d as needed or dire ctl y into the furnace bins
, ,

if the ore is needed for immedi ate use .

Mi ni ng a nd G rad i n g i n W i nte r : In winter the procedure as outlined

above has t o be change d somewhat During a part Of November and all
.
,

of the winter months Of December January February and March , t he ore

, ,

c anno t be t ransporte d over the l akes bec ause of t he ice On this account .
,

Oper ations in the open pit mines Of the M issabe D istrict are suspende d in

winter ; bu t in all the under ground works both of the ol d ranges and th e
,

Miss abe mi ning is continuous throughou t the ye ar and the ore mine d
'

, ,

durin g t he non shipping season must be stock piled As this ore is removed
-
.

it is c arefully sample d and average s amples are analyze d daily These

, .

analyses supplemen te d by t hose m ade in t he wor k Of expl oration that is

,

const antly carrie d on in advance Of the mining make i t possibl e t o c al culate

,

the average c omposition of each sto c k pile at the be ginning Of the shipping
se ason in the spring This stock therefore may be c ombined if ne cessary
.
, , , ,

with the ore d ire c t from the mines to m ake up c argoes of definite and known
c omp os ition
.
58 F UE L S

C HA PT ER I V .

FU E L S .

S EC T I O N I .

S OME P RE- RE Q UI S I T E S TO T HE ST U DY OF F UE LS .

I nt r o d u c t o r y :
There are five basic materi als up on which the
metallurgical arts depend ; namel y ore fuel flux air an d water Of , , , , .

t h ese one is as important as the other for all met allur gi ca l industry woul d ,

c ease with t he failure of any one A t one time all t hese w ere t hought t o
.

be inexhaustible , but recently i t has been generally rec o gnize d that the
s upply Of t he hi gher grades of o r e are limited an d tha t t he more suitable ,

fuels at the present rate of c onsumption must be exhaus t e d in a c ompara

, ,

t i ve l
y short tim e
’
Representin g the only source of energy under m an s
.

’
a b s olute c ontrol , fuels are the foundation upon w hi c h a nation s progress

a nd prosperity depends The subj ec t is also a very l ar ge one

. Hence in .
,

this chapter it is desirable t o discuss briefly a few fundamenta l tb p i c s of

general i nterest and more in detail a few m a tte r s e spe ci al
, ly important in
,

the iron and steel industry .

S e nsi b l
e a n d S p e c ific He a t : Provided no change of st ate is involve d ,

the e ffect produce d by imparting heat t o a body is a rise in temperature

of the b o d y and if the body is made to give up he at its temperature falls
, ,
.

This he at which is easily detected is often spoken of as s e ns i b l

, ,
e h eat .

T h e quantity of he at required to r aise the temperature of a body 1 C is °

.

c alle d its t h e r m a l ca p ac i t y The amount Of he at required to raise the

.

te m perature of e qual m asses of di fferent substances 1 O varies gre atly °

.
,

and the thermal capacity of one gram Of any substance , in other words ,

the number of c al ories require d to raise the temper ature of one gr am 1 C °

.
,

i s c alle d its s p e c i fi c h e a t Specific heats are de t ermine d by the method

.

of mixtures which is bas e d on the l aw of h e a t e xc h a n ge Thi s l a w states

‘

, .

that when bodies at di fferent t emperatures are br o ught into c ontact ,

exchange of heat takes place until a uniform temperatur e for all is reached ,
'

and that t he he a t l ost by the hotter bodies equals in quantity t hat gained
by the colder ones The spe cific heats Of a few c ommon metals follow :
.

I ron= 109 cal C opp er = 092 c al Zinc = 093 cal M ercury = 033 c al
. . . . . . . .
60 F UE L S

Fu l
.
e o
s a nd C m b u s t io n : An y chemic al re a ction by whi c h light and
heat are evolve d is calle d c ombustion In the ordinary c ases of c ombusti on . ,

one of t he re actin g substances is t he oxygen of t he air Therefore fuels .

,

a re sometimes define d as substances which will b urn in air an d liberate

heat with sufficient rapidity t o be applie d to practical purposes The chief .

e lements c onstitutin g fuels are c arbon and hy d rogen though in certain ,

processes silicon , phosphorus sulphur manganese and t he metals may , ,

.

serve as fuel In metallurgy the fuel is often re quire d t o act as a re d ucing

.

agent in which cases t he t otal heat produce d will be derive d from two
,

sources namely by c ombustion with oxygen of the air and by c ombination

, ,

with oxygen of the ore .

Fu e l
s
,
i calEne r gy : Fuels represent potential energy
a nd Ch e m ,

which is given o ff as he a t by chemical action Therefore the relations .

,

of the weights of fuel weights o f air , and the amounts of he at e volve d are
,

fixe d quantities The foll owing re action furnishes a simple illustration

.

that is , 12 gm C +
. 3 2 gm O2 =—
44 gm C Og +97200 c al . . .
(He at of form ation of C0 2 )
o r lgm C + 2 66 6 gm 0 2 (11 51 gm
. . . . . air )=3 . 666 gm . COg l 8 100 c al (Cal
- -
o rifi c .

power Of c arbon ) .

The hea t l iberate i s referre d t o in two ways The chemist bases his .

calcul ations on the total heat evolved t o form a mole cul ar weight in grams
of a given substance , in t his c ase , 44 gms C0 2 , w hich is c alle d the h e a t .

o f fo r m a t io n for that c ompound But t he me t allur gis t and engineer .

empl oy t he heat evolve d fr om a uni t w eigh t of fuel , in t hi s c ase one gr am ,

of carb on , and refer t o i t as t he cal o ri fic p o w e r of th e fuel I t s houl d be .

O bs e rve d tha t these t erms t ake in t o c onsideration onl y t he t ot a l a mo unt

O f he a t e volved ir respe ctive of t he t ime or spee d of t he re action the

, ,

duration of which m ay vary t hrou gh wi de limits This p oin t is important .

i n the attainment of high t emperatures and is c onne cte d with t he se cond

import ant factor affecting the combustion of fuels namely , the t emperature ,

t o whi ch t he products of combustion m ay be raise d by t he he a t e vol ved .

T his is referre d to as the c al orifi c i n te n si t y of the fuels Both the c al orific .

p ower and the intensity enter into t he valuation of fuels .

Me as u re m e n t o f C al
o r i fi c P ow e r: As has already been noted , the two
practic al he at units are the l ar ge c alorie and the B t u Metallurgists . . .

express t he c al orific p ower in l ar ge c al ories pe r k il o gram whic h 1 s numer ,

i cal
ly the s ame as smal l cal ories per gram empl oye d by chemists while ,

engineers use B t u per pound Of fuel as the basis of their c al c ulations

. . . .

The units are re adil y c onverte d from one t o the other ; the rel ation with
respect to the quantity Of heat they conta in is expresse d thus :
B t 11 per l b : C alper kil o = 1
'
. . . . .

H ence , to reduce C a lper kil o t o B t . per pound it is only ne cessary

. . . 11 .
,

The factor for changing B t . u per lb t o C alper

‘

to multiply by . . . .

kil o is 5555 . .
 CA LORI F I C P OWE R 61

T he Ca l
o r i fi c P ow e r of some common elements in simple oxidation
1
re actions is as foll ows :
Ta b l e 6 Cal o r ifi c P ow e r o f S o m e El
. e m e n ts .

Re acti on C al
. o r i fi c P ower in C al ories pe r Kil o .

2H2 + 0 2=2H 2 0 Liq uid 3 4500

2H 2 + 0 2 = 2H 20 V apor 290 30
C + 0 2 = C0 2 8 100
20 4—
02 1
-
20 0 2430
Si + 0 2 = Si 0 2 7000
4Al + 3 0 2
= 2A120 3 7270
4P + 50 2 =2P2 0 5 58 95
8+ 2196
3 F e + 2Oz=Fe 3 0 4 16 12
N2 + 0 2= 2NO -
1541

C al at i ng C al
c ul o ri fi c P ow e the he ats of form ation of the
r: G iven
reacting subst ances and of t he products of c ombustion i t is possible to ,

c al cul ate the c al orific power of some fu e ls from their analyses The c al orific .

power of a well m ade c oke c an be estimate d approximatel y from t he fixe d

c arbon if the moisture an
,
d vol atile matter are l ow .

By analysis F ixe d C arbon=8 7 0%

,
.

o r i fi c P ower of C arbon =8 100 C alper Kilo

C al .

. 87

7047 C alper ki l
o = c al
o r ifi c
. . power of c o ke
This c al cul ation for gases be comes m ore c omplicated be cause the
c alorifi c p owe r is usu ally e xpresse d i rl
,

C alorie s per cubic me t er or B t 11 . . .

pe r cu ft Th is fact requires a c onversion from wei ght t o vo l ume , since

/

. .

the cal orifi c powers in the table are base d on weigh t This c onversion .
,

however is a simple m atter since a gram mole cular wei gh t Of any gas has
, ,

a volume of liters under standar d c onditi ons To find t he he a t e vol ved .

from a gas in c al orie s per liter i t is only necessary t o d i vi d e t he he at of

, c

f orm ation by In t he c ase Of a blas t furnace gas compose d of C H 4 ,

CO H2
,
002 , N2 the c al orifi c power may be
, ,

found as foll ows : The re actions that may occur in c omplete c ombustion
are
R eaction (1) C H 4 + 20 2 =2H 20 + C 0 2
H e ats of fo rmation , 21700 cal + 0 = 2x 58 060 c al + 97200
. . c al .

Reaction (2) 2C O+ 0 2=2 C 0 2

H e ats Of formation ,
2x29160 cal + 0 = 2x97200 cal
. .

Reaction (3 )2H2 + 0 2=2H 20

He ats of formation 2x58 060 , c al .

1 Se e M e ta l
lur gi c alC a l
cul
a t i o ns by J o s e h W R i ch a rd s O ne V o l
um e E d i ti o n
bl lB o o k
H il
. ,

pu i sh e d by M c G r aw -
Co m p a ny , e w Yo rk .
62 F UE L S

F rom reaction ()
1 the total heat avail able from OH 4

F rom (2) available heat from CO

— 3 o 48 4 ca10 ries per liter
s - .

From (3 ) available heat from H 2 :

1163 10
2605 + c alories
. per liter .

2x22 32 .

T otal heat of gas available is ,

for OH4 . 2% ,
Of 8585 =
CO 25% o f

H2 3 % of 2605=

cal ories per liter at 0 C and 760 m m

°
. . .

= —B t 11 per cu ft
p r e ssure (857 33 x . . . . . .

P r ac tic alTe lcalculate d results however are usually hi ghe r

s ts : Al , ,

than can be Obtained in actual practice Furthermore with c omplex fuels .

, ,

like coals the c omposition of which can only be guesse d at it is impossibl e

, ,

to make acc urate calcul ations from the analysis be caus e no acc ount is ,

taken of the heat requi red t o decompose the fuel and gasify the products .

Many fuel chemists however have evolve d formulas by whi ch they a re

, ,
"

able t o determine very cl osely from the analysis the c al orific value of a
coal as Obtained by l aboratory experiment Nevertheless experimental .
,

methods are relie d upon almost wholly t o determine the he ating powe r
of fuels These tests may be practic al in which large quantities of the
.
,

fuel are c onsume d under c onditions approximating cl osely t hose of the

process for which the fuel is to be used ; or they may be l aborat ory tests ,

in which small q uantities of fue l are burned and the he a t evolved is ,

meas ured Practical tests may be made in specially constructe d apparatus

.

or under boilers in actual service These specially constructed apparatus .

are in the form of large heaters through w hi ch w ate r circul ates and in w hich
the fuel may be c ompletely c onsum e d From the amount of fuel consume d .
,

the wei ght of water heated the rise in temperature Of the water the , ,

difference in temperature between the i n— goin g air and the products of

combustion the cal orific power may be acc uratel y determined
, .

La b o ra t o r y Te s t s : Fo r
determi ning t he maximum am ount of heat a ,

given fuel is c apable of generating l aboratory tests are more exact than ,

practic al tests Such tests are c arrie d out in specially desi gned apparatus
.

called cal orimeters There are several makes of these instruments but
.
,
64

system Of pipes through which the out going gases must pass The - . i n—
going
air be ing at the s ame time drawn in through the space ar ound the pipe s
,
,

is heated in proportion as the waste gas is c oole d .

ro
Py m e t e r s : The measurement of high temperatures re quires speci al

i nstruments c alled pyrometers many of which are made self re cording s o as to

,

measure c ontinuously the temperature of a furnace through l ong peri ods of

time There are many types of these instruments and only the principles
. ,

upon which some of the more important types are base d will be briefly
described .

S peci fic He a t ,
W a te r , Py r o m e t e r : Thi s is an ol d t ype of instrument
o r ,

and one that is still ext ensively used The Operation of the instrument i s
.

c arrie d out as follows : A weighe d amount of me t al of known specific heat

is place d in a furnace and when i t has attained t he temperature of the
,

furnace it is withdrawn and quickly droppe d into an insul

,
ate d vessel c on ,

t aining a definite amount Of water and provided with a t hermometer fo r

r eading the temperature of the water The rise in temperature of the
.

wa t er is proportional t o the wei ght of t he ball its spe cific heat and the , ,

temperature of the furnace The first t wo factors being known the

.
,

temperature Of the furnace can be re adily c alcul at e d .

El ents of thi s type depend on

e c t ri c Re s i s t a nc e Pyro m e t e r s : I nstrum
the fac t t hat the electrical resist ance of me t als
increases with rise in their
temperat ures In prac t ice the metal will be pl at inum in t he form of wire
. ,

w hich wil l be inserte d in one arm of a whe a t stone bri dge for measurin g
resistance A battery and a galvanometer for dete cting diffe re nce in
.

potential , both being attache d t o the bri dge c ompletes the apparatus I n,
.

Ope ratin g the instrument the slide on the bridge is adj uste d s o that the
,

resistance of the two arms of the b ridge are t he same and the galvanomete r
“ ”
reading is zero The bulb of pl atinum wi re is now inserte d in the furnace
.
,

when , ‘ the r e sistance of the pl atinum wire bein g increase d by t he rise i n

temperature , i t is necessary t o inser t resis t ance in t he o ther arm of the
bridge t o keep t he g alvanome t er readin g a t zero The amoun t of t he .

resistance inserte d measures the increase in resistance of the wire whi c h ,

c an be interprete d in degrees of temperature .

T he rm o =El
e c t ric
te rs : These instruments are both c on
Pyro m e

ve nie nt and accurate being very simple in c onstru ction They depend
, .

upon the fac t tha t if t wo metals are in c ontac t a t a given point any change ,

in temperature at that poin t c auses an electric current the intensity of ,

whic h is proportional t o t he change in temperature t o flow around a circuit ,

c onnectin g t heir free ends This curren t c an be measure d by ins erting a

.

m il e vo l
l t m eter in t he circuit I n practice the metals empl oye d fo r high
.

te m pe ratures are platinum in c onjunction with an all oy of pl atinum and 10 %

 P YROM E T E RS 65

rhodium or iridium in the form Of wires , whi ch are insulated from each other
by means of hollow tubes Of refractory materi als Fo r lo w temperatures the .

base r meta ls m ay b e used such as iron and nicke lc o pp e r alloys

,
~
.

Vo l
tm e te r
Pt . 10% Iri dium

FI G . 8 . D i agr am o f Wiri ng fo r T h e rm o -E e lctri c P y ro m e te r.

Rad ia t i o n P y ro t e rs are base d on the l a w of heat radi ati on whic h

m e

is briefly stated thus : The ener gy e mit te d by a hi ghl y heate d blac k body
is proportiona l t o t he fourt h power Of its absolute t empera t ure S uch .

instruments c onsis t o f a m i l e vo l
l tm e te r and a t elescope w hi ch co ntains a
‘

c onc ave mirror reflector an d a delic ate t herm o ele ctri c c ouple By p ointing .

the t elesc ope from a c er t ain di st ance toward a hi ghly heate d surface a
, , ,

portion o f t he radian t hea t i s m ade t o fall upon the mirror whi ch c on ,

ce ntr a te s t he rays upon the c o uple c ausing it to generate a curr ent that
,

c an be me asured by the m i l le vo lt meter .

O p t ic a lPyr o m te r s depend upon the rel ation of the int e ns ity of li ght
e

emitted by an inc andescent body and its temperature I n them the .

intens ity of the li ght from the hot body is c ompare d with that of an inc an
descent l amp The simples t for m c onsists Of a telescope c ontainin g t he
.

lamp and a battery to s upply th e curren t I n makin g a d e t ermination .

,

the telesc ope is pointe d a t t he h e ate d body and the current i s adj usted ,

so that the int ens ity of light fro m t he fil amen t of t he l amp m atches that
from the body From the adj ustmen t ne cessary the t emperature of the
.

b ody is determine d I n improve d forms of this instrument a ci rcul ar pl ate

.
,

of c ol ore d glass is inserte d in t he t elesc ope between the lamp and the eye
in such a manner t ha t the light fro m t he l amp fal ls on one half of this pl ate -

and ligh t from t he body falls on t he other The t wo l i ghts are m atched .

by varyin g t he intensity of the li gh t from the body w ith a diaphragm A .

se c on d improvemen t is made by provi ding a special r otatin g prism by means

Of whic h t he l ights from both t he body and the l amp are varie d in intensity .

The amount and direction of rotat ion necessary to match the lights measure s
the tempe rature .

lmodern
Al pyrome t ers are c onstruc t e d with gr aduat e d scales to re ad
in de grees s o tha t no c alcul ations for c onvertin g the various relations into
,

temperatures are require d .

66 F UE L S

S EC T I O N I I

CLA S S IFI CA TI ON OF FU ELS .

Of the many ways Of classifying fuels that shown bel ow in T able 7

,

is a very logic al and simple one and most c onvenient for the purposes of
this c h ap te r I t requi res no explanation
. .

Ta b l Cl l
’

e 7 . as s i fi c a t i o n o f Fue s
.

Natural
Li gnite
S olid

Briquettes .

Prepared Pulverize d C oal . C harcoal .

C arbonized F uel Beehive .

By—
product .

—
Natural P etroleum .

Liquid
P repared

Natural—Natural G a s .

Producer G a s .

G aseous Bl ast Furnace G as

Pr e p ared
.

Coke Oven G a s .

C oal G as .

I ron .

M anganese .

Bessemer C onverter Carbon .

S il ic on .

P hosphorus .

S ul phur Works fR oasting .

\Sm e l
ting
68 F UELS

Ope ni ng

FIG . 9 . One T y p e o f T a r B u rne r .

Pe t ro l
e um The only natural l iquid fuel and a m aterial of the highes t
: ,

commercial impor t ance is petroleum a product Obtaine d from reservoirs

, ,

deep in the e arth I ts heating power i s much great er t han t ha t of c oal

. ,

( The c al orific power of crude petroleum = 21000 B t u per pound C o al . . .

,
:

9000 t o 15000 B t u per pound )an d i t is obtaine d in immens e q uantiti e s

. . . .

On di stilling i t yields a hi gh percent age o f very valuabl e Oils

, On t his .

acc ount i t is use d as a metallur gi ca l fue l only w here c oa l i s s c arce and

high ln price In us ing the Oi l
. S pecial burne rs are required , as i t must be

vapori z ed or atomized and properly mixed with ai r to i nsure c omplete

c ombustion .

Co m p o s i t io n o f Pe t ro l
is a very c omple x mixture
e um : Petroleum
of organic compoun ds I n small amounts i t c ontains c ompo un ds Of oxy gen
.
,

sulphur and nitrogen but principally it i s compose d of c ompounds of c ar

, ,

bon and hydrogen I ts c ontent of the former element varies from 84 t o

.

and of t he l atter from 11 t o depending upon the l ocality from

,

which it is obtained .

Hy d ro c a r b o ns— G e ne r a l
iz e d , Em p i ri cala n d S t r u c t u ra lFo r m l
u as :
T hese c ompounds Of c arbon and hydrogen found i n petrole um a r e c al led
hydroc arbons They are numbere d b y the h undred and a study Of t hei r
.
,

c omposition has shown t ha t they fal l into a number of homol ogous se rie s
which may be represented by generalized formul as as sho wn in T ab l e 8 .

I n representing these c ompounds the empiric al , or simplest , formul as a re ,

often found i n adequate be ca use it freq uently h appens that two different
,

compounds will have the s ame empirical formul a and t ha t in many c om ,

po unds the valence of carbon i s apparently no t a w hole number T o .

overc ome this defect the structur al formul a w hi c h aims t o show how the
, ,

mole cules are built up was inven t ed In these formul as the valence o f
, .

s c alle d valence bond s 1 s a ssume d t O

’
carbon , w hich is represente d b y , ,

be four in all c ases and it is al so assume d that the atoms Of c arbon have
,

the power of uniting with e ach other to form nuclei t o which othe r
elements may attac h themselves T hese formulas are also illustrated in .
o

the following table :

 PE T ROL E UM 69

Nam e s Appl
ie d Nam e s o f Fi rst
T o Se ri e s Co m po und o f Se rie s

M e th ane
M e t h an e P a r a ffi n l
C nH zn + 2
ffigfifis
. .
s
o r C h ain S e ri e s .
a

H H
C nH zn E th y l
e ne . C= C
nn
A c e ty l
e n e S e ri A c e ty l
e ne (3 s H—Os

—
.

Fi rs t m em be r unk

=
\ /
B e nz e ne , H O 0
A r o m ati c o r
C nH Z n- G
Cl o se d R i ng S e r i e s . H O 0 —H H— t d

No t m a ny m em be rs d i s c o ve re d .

No t m any m em be rs di s c o ve re d .

No t m a ny di s co ve r e d .

H ydroc arbons of the series C nH 2 n+ 2 make up the greater porti on o f

the paraffine base of petroleums , as is indic ate d in Table 9 M embe rs of
’
.

the series Ca n are als o c onstituents of many pe t roleums , while only a

few of t he hi gher members of t he series C nH a n— a a a
n H zn
,
—4 , have

been found in oils Wes t of Pennsylvani a The aromati c series , CnHan c, — .

o c cur i n small amoun t s in ne arl

y all petroleums Oc currence of members of .

the other series is somewhat rare in pe tro l e um s , and are in smal l amounts

when found a t all .

Fu e lOi la nd Ot h e t ro l
e um :
r P ro d u c t s
The incre asing demand o f Pe
for gasol ine and other pe troleum products makes i t very undesirabl e that
crude pe troleum a s o b taine d from the Wells be use d fo r fuel Besides gaso
i

.
,

line in a fuel oil is dangerous o n accoun t of t he increase d dan ger Ofe xpl o s i o ns
'

its presence entails Fuel Oil , t hen

. is a very indefinite term tha t is applie d,

to any produc t of petroleum us e d fo r t he pro duction Of hea t or power .

There are no fixe d specific ations for it and consumers order i t t o suit their ,

requirements The usual grades have a cal

. orifi c value of abo ut 135000 B t . .

11 per gallon
. . The products from m an y of the oil refineries west of the
Mississippi River are gasoline naph t ha kerosene an d fuel oil while Eastern
, , ,

refineries us ually c arry the fractionati on of the Oi l much farther,their output

be ing such products as gas oline benzine , naphtha kerosene light machine , , ,

oil , automobile oils cylinder oils paraffi nwax and tar pitch or c oke
, , , ,
.
70 F UELS

S EC T I O N I V .

GAS E OU S
UE LS F .

Ad a v n t a g e s o f G aseo u s F u e ls : The many advantages p ossesse d b y

aseo us fuels make them i deal for m any purposes Owing to their gase ous .

g
sta te the y require no labor in handling and their free dom from f ore ign
,
,

matter eliminates ash and danger Of c ontamination As the t emper ature .

is e asily controlled and the flame c an be directe d wherever desire d t he

,
,

working conditions of a furnace may be kept very u niform The k indl ing .

°
temperature of gases is betwee n 6 SO C and 7DO C and the spee d of c om
°
,

b us ti o n is practically instantaneous at that point which fact makes, it e asy

t o attain very hi gh t emperatures .

Ta b le 9 T h e Pa r a ffi n Se ri e s o f Hy d r o c a r b o ns t h e Me m b e rs Of ,

l l
.

w h i ch a r e fo u n d i n Na t u r a G a s a n d P e tr o e u m o f t h e

We s t e r n Pe n nsyl va n i a Di s t ric t .

EMP I R I CAL MELTI N G *

NA ME FOR M ULA POI NT

De g C . .

Methane

— 195
Butane
—135

c
Dec ane
'

A Dodec ane
T ridec ane
Tetradecane
Pentadecane 10

Octadec ane

Octo c o s ane .

N o no co s ane .

Hentri ac ontane
D otriac ont ane
T e tr atri a c o nt ane 71—
72 0 .

P ent atri acontane

S e e A m e ri c a n P e tro l e um I nd us tr y b y R ay m o nd F B aco n and Wi ni am A am o r, H
K ub l i s h e d b y M c G r a W- i l lB o o k C o m p any N e w o rk A l
. .

H Y
s o Or g a ni c C e m i s tr y b h
o l
le m a n , F o urt h E ngl i s e d b y o n Wi l
i s E d i ti o n , p u l 5
.
,

F.
H h b h e y J h
S o ns I nc , N 3 . .
72 F UELS

obtained from the distillation which the c oal undergoes at first

. In c ase
steam is used with the air the producer gives a gas whi ch may
c omposition about as foll ows :
Carbonic A cid C0 2 5 t o 9%
C arbon M onoxide
. . C O —18 to 27%
Methane OH4 2 t o 4%
—
,

Hydrogen H2 10 t o 18 %
Nitrogen —
N2 48 t o 55%
 T H E GAS P RODUCE R 73

Fac t o r s Afi e c t i ng t h e o f t h e P r o d uce r : The gre atest

Effi ci e nc y
e ffi ciency of the gas producer is attaine d when al l the oxygen of the inj e cted
air is c ause d t o c ombine with c arbon t o form onl y c arbon monoxide provided ,

the excess he at thus generate d i s als o made avail able In practi ce t hese .

r e sul ts ar e never ac complished entirely , but effort s t o attain t hem have

reve ale d the fac t t ha t t hey c an be mos t ne arly approac he d by c arefully :

re gul ating t he temperature by maintainin g pe rfe c t unifo rmity o f t he

,

workin g c onditions and by i nj ecting st e am w ith the air Al

,
lthese o bj e cts .

are accomplished in fairl y e fficien t d e gre e in t he H ughes mechan i c ally

poke d producer a brief description of which follows :
.

T h e H u gh e s P r o d uce r as a n Ex a m p l
e o f l
Me c h a n i caly P o ke d P ro
d uce r:This producer a vertic al se ction of whi ch is illustrated in the
,

ac c omp anying sketch i s a cylindri c a l s tee l shell ,

, thick line d with ,

9 inches of first quality fire brick and close d a t t he ends with water seale d ,

t ops and bottoms When re ady for use i t sets wi t h its base resting on fi ve
.

wheels w hi ch are mounte d O n a frame c arrie d on a concrete foundation .

By means of gears c onnecte d t o a drivin g mechanism , i t is rotate d over

these w heels , the spee d of rotation when in use being 1/ 10 r p m The . . .

top plate is a stee l c asting rivete d t o t he ch ar gi ng fl o o r under which the k

,

producer itse lf revolves I t contains t he ope nings for the gas outlet , the
.

hoppers t he po ker and t he observation holes , There are t wo hoppers

, ,

through w hic h c oa l is fe d t o t he producer , one on e ach side of t he outlet ,

but they are a t di fferen t di st ances from the center of the producer t o
help p rovi de e ven d i stribution o f t he co al A b e l lvalve closes the .

base of t he hopper , an d w hen t hi s bel l is droppe d t o dump the

“

coal into the producer , t he hopper (may be close d by sliding a circul ar

pl ate ove r its top There are several holes three inches in diameter at
.

various points in t he t op se a l for observing t he condition of the

fire and for poki n g ou t clinkers ; t hese h Ol
, e s are close d w ith water :

seale d c aps The poker is a round holl o w stee l c astin g w ith a forged
.

steel tip I t is si x fee t i n l ength and tap ers from e i gh t inches in diameter
'

at the top to five inches a t the t ip The poker and its trunni ons are water .

c oole d the water bein g admitte d t hrough t he trunnions t hen p assing

, ,

through the poker t o the top pl ate which is c overe d with t he water to a
depth of five inches From t he t op pl ate t he water fl ows t o the top seal or
.
,

trough around the top plate t hen through a drain pipe t o t he w a t er seal
, ,

in the ash p an The top of the poker i s e nclose d in a gas t i gh t m o unting

.
,

and is s o mounte d that the poker is swung bac k and forth t hr ough an arc
°
of abou t 3 5 by me ans of e c centri c c onnections from the pro ducer rotating
me chanism A full stroke of the poker c arries its tip from t he center to
.

the side w al l of the producer , and is time d t o oc cupy minutes t hus . ,

allowing strokes in one revolution of the producer The result of the .

rotating motion of the prod ucer and the bac kward and forward action of
the poker is t o produce a series of se m i e l li p s e s , s o that the poker c overs v

in a period of minutes o r 22 strokes practic ally the entire are a of the

, ,
74 F UE LS

shell The bottom of the vessel serves as an ash pan which must also
. ,

be wate r sealed To form this seal the bottom i s made in the form of a
.

circul ar t rough , which is att ache d t o the main shell of t he vessel s o t hat
its outer rim or l ip extends severa l inches beyond this circumference of
, ,

the s hell Into t his trough the se alin g shel l of t he producer proj e cts t o
.

within five inches of t he bottom S ince t hi s c ons truction le aves the central
.

portion of the bottom wi t hi n the produce r somewhat c one shape d t he ,

ashes are deflected toward thi s fi ve inch Opening at the b ottom of the t rough -
,

where t hey may be remove d t hrough the water which flows from the t op
and fills the t rough t o prevent the escape of gases The ste am bl ower is .

inserte d through the center of the bottom and extends some twenty i nches into
the producer where it is c appe d by a conic al hood t o prevent it from b e c o m
,

ing choke d with the ashes The mixture of ste am an d air is admitted j ust
.

beneath this hood through three rows of smal l openings t o provide for
equal distribution of the blast The rati o of steam and air i s controll e d
.

by the Openings at the bottom of the blower , but the quantity of the mixture
admitte d t o the producer is re gulate d by the ste am pressure which m ay ,

be change d a t will by the operat or fr Om the chargi ng floor .

Co nd i t io n s a nd Re ac t io n s :
of the principle and An understanding
the operation of the producer is m uch clarifie d by a study of the re actions .

and conditions prevailing in it while it is in use A study of the c onditions .

show that there are three z ones or b elts of action i n t he producer known ,

as the distillation o r t op z one the re action or mi ddle z one and the , , , ,

-

combustion , or bottom , z one Then below t hese z ones i s t he inacti ve or

.
, ,

ash z one Thus , upon being charge d i nt o t he producer the raw c oal is
‘

.
, ,

first subj e cte d t o a distill ation very much as in the process Of c oking I n .

this top z one the volatile products are driven o ff and the c o al is c onverted ,
-

into a ki nd of c oke w hic h wil l have then re ache d the re action z one S ome
, .

of this coke , passin g t hrough the re action z one unchanged re aches the ,

re gion j us t o ver an d around t he hood of the bl ower H ere it meets t he .

incomin g air , and havin g been he ate d t o above t he kindling temperature ,

combustion t akes place , whereby all the remaining c arbon is c onsume d

according t o this simple re acti on The c arbon dioxide
,

gas thus generated to gether w ith the unde compose d steam and other gases
, ,

rises a t once into t he re action z one Here the coke having been he ate d .
,

to a high temperatur e from t he he at liberate d by the above re action acts ,

as a re ducing agen t toward b oth c arbon dioxi de and water thus 0 0

2 + C+ , ,

he at = 2 C O and I t will be note d t ha t both

t hese reactions absorb heat but that onl y the se cond 1 s un der c ontrol and
, ,

h ence , available for lowering the temperature in the producer The .

reduc tion of all the C 0 2 forme d in the combustion z o ne has never been
brought about s o that a small quantity i s always present in producer gas
, .

T he relative amounts of C O H 2 and C 0

2 in the final gas depe nds t o a
,

great extent upon the manipulation of the pr o d ucer A s to th e other c om .

76 F UE L S

the volatile matter into its c onstituents These are often referre d t o as .

the Americ an and the Europe an methods , the latter being als o c alle d the
l
p r o gre s s ive d i st i la tio n m e t h o d The determination of the percentages of
.

the vario us element s present in the fuel constitutes an u l t i m a t e a n al

ysi s .

T he fol lowing analysis of a coal by e ach of these three methods wil l ill us
trate all t h e points mentioned and help to sho w th e importance of t he
,
-

chemic al analysis .

Ta b l
e II . A nal
ys is of a i d Fu e l
Sol ,
Co a l
, b y th e T h re e Diffe re n t
Me t h o d s .

[ Ash
° ke
l C arbon
A sh T ar
Fixed C arbon . Free N H3 . 285
V ol atile M atter . .

M oist
Oxygen
V olatil
e S ulphur . 3 13
Crude
G as .

Total 100 003 z

. .

0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0

Ultimate Analysis

Woo d : This very interesting substance is c ompose d mainl y o f

cell ulose C GH I OOS a c ompound formed in the tree or pl ant from water
, ,

taken up from the s oil and carbon dioxide from the air The c hange i s .

wro ught mainly in the leaves of plants t hrough the agency of sunl ight
.

Wood then represents potential energy t he ori ginal source of whic h i s

, ,
,

the heat from t he sun and it in turn i s the source of all the natur a l s ol id
, , ,

fuels I t was t he firs t fuel use d by man and for centuries was t he principal
.

one I n metallurgy it has been suppl ante d by c oal tho ugh for some purpose s
.

it i s still used mainly in the form of charc oal obtained by the destructive
,

distill ation of wood The c al orific p ower of dry w ood is about half that
.

of good c o al
.

.
 P EA T , WOOD ,
COA L 77

Pe at is of little value as a metallurgic al fuel I t finds extensive us e .

in E urope as a domestic fuel and the better grades may be successfull y

,

employed in gas producers I ts chief interest lies in t he fact t ha t i t is the

.

firs t step in the formation of c oal P eat results from the de c omposition
.

of wood substance out of c ontact with air I t is formed in swamps and .

marshes from w a t er pl ants of all k inds such as al gae mosses sedges rushes , , , ,

reeds s hrubs l i ke wi llows and even trees A spe ci e s of moss c alle d

, , , .

sph a gnum is especi all y important in the formation of pe a t I t grows on .

the surface of still and shall o w wate rs with onl y a smal l porti on in air ,

and as it grows t he submerge d portion extends fart her an d farther beneat h

the surface until the bottom is reached Startin g growt h near the shore
-
. .

of shallo w l akes i t gradually extends into a l ake until t he w hole b asin

,
‘

is fille d w ith soft c arbonaceous matter and a bo g results This growth is , .

followe d by l arger gr o w ths unti l

the former l ake is packe d with c arbonaceous
,

matter The acc umul ation bein g submerge d t he c arbon c ompo unds of the
.
,
'

pl ants are sl owly de composed by which p r o ce ss th e c arbon i s isolated ,

,

though a part escapes with hydrogen and oxygen as marsh gas and c arbon
dioxide The re action is represented thus
.

GCGH I OQ S I
I
70 0 2 3 o n4 + 14 H g O 0 2 6 11 2 0 0 2

Cellul ose or C arbon M arsh Wa ter Pe at S ubstance

’

Wood Substance Dioxide G as

In c e rtain geolo gical periods particul arly the c arboniferous th e, ,

c onditions being more favorable for pl an t growth of this kind t he processe s ,

describe d proceede d more rapidly than a t presen t wit h the resul t t hat ,

marshes of gre a t de pth and are a wer e fille d with ve getable growt hs Thes e .

c arbonaceous deposits were subse quently submerge d t hrou g h vertical

movements of t he e arth s crus t , in w hic h position t hey b e c ame c o ve re d b y
’
‘

’
de posits of sedimentary roc ks Later movements of t he e arth s crust
.

raise d many of these deposits up out of the se a In t he me an t ime the peat .

.

had been change d into c oal .

Li g n i te a nd Br o w n C o al
, ge ol ogic ally
and c hemic all y o ccupy position s ,

intermediate be tween pe at and coal T h e y we re forme d be tween the .

Quaternary and Jurassic periods and are widely dist ribute d They h ave
'

low c alorific power and some k inds c ontain as muc h as i l

,
5% of w ate r .

They are sharpl y distinguishabl e from pe at bu t grade into coal s o gradual l y ,

that no one h as attempte d to distin guish be tween the ol dest li gnite and
‘

the youngest c oal The rel ation between ve getable and mineral f uels are
.

more clearl y shown by the ac companyi ng table (12) and diagram (Fi g .
 T ab l
e 12 . A p p roxi m t
a e A n a ly s e s of t h e Di f fe re n t S ol
i d F u el s .

V o lM .

Fi xe d C .

A sh
M o is ture o r

W ate r . . 20 2 5— 6—20 10 —
15
C P (C als
— —
. . .

pe r K il
o ) . 4 60 0 —50 0 0 2 00 0 5 000 3 0 0 0 - 6 00 0 7 00 0 —90 0 0 9 0 0 0 9 50 0

FI G . 11 . G r ap hi c R e p r e s e ntati o n o f T r an sfo r m a ti o l
n o f F ue s .
80 F UE LS

Co al
: This mineral on account of its availability adaptability and
, , ,

high c alorific power has bec ome the chief source of energy at the c ommand
,

of man Use d both in its natural state and in p repare d forms it c onstitutes
. ,

the chief metallurgi cal f u el and t he hi gh state of development of certain

processes like that of the bl as t furnace for example have been p ossible
, , ,

onl y through the peculiar properties of this remarkable subst ance I ts .

origin and history is as remarkable as its properties , and tho ug h these

subj ects belon g t o geolo gy , t hey are of interest t o t he metallur gis t bec ause
t hey emphasize the nee d of conserving the fuel While i t has been deposited .

in immense amounts the suppl y 18 exhaustible an d practic all y fixe d since

, ,

the rate of c onsumption is many times t he rate a t w hi ch i t is bein g formed .

In this connection a study of Fi g 12 will be fo und interesting . .

Bi t u m i no u s C o al
: lcoal
Al in the natural state m a y be looke d upon
as being composed of c oal substance , ash , and hydroscopic water .

Bit uminous c oals , on a ccount of t heir peculiar properties , are t he chief

source of metall urgic al fuels The coal substance of these c oals is d e co m
.

posed by distillation into c arbon and a mixt ure of vol atile c ompounds .

During this process some kinds fuse into a pasty mass leavin g a t t he end , ,

when all v o l atile matter has been expelle d a stron g bu t porous mass c alled ,

c o ke
. I t is no t known w ha t the c okin g properties of coa l
'
s d epend upon .

Coals very much alike in physica l appearanc e and chemica l c omposition

may show w idel y di ffering coking qualities , while others di fferin g in both
these respects produce c okes of e qua l q uality Durin g the c o kin g process .
,

some c oals exp and while others c ontrac t This poin t is an impor t an t one .

in b y—product practice be cause expansi on wedges t he c oke in the o ven

, ,

making it difficult to remove an d c ausing damage t o the oven walls , .

'
A s h i n C o al
: The ash in coals is also an important factor in the ir
.

valuation Aside from decreasing the c alorific powe r it affe cts the coal in
.
,

other ways In steam coals the c omposition of the ash may be such that
.

it fuse s at a l ow temperature t hereby formin g l arge clink ers ; or i t m ay be

,

p ractically infusible resulting in no clinker with the resul t t ha t a suitable

, ,

be d of coals c annot be kept on the grate due t o the fineness of t he ash ,

.

To cite a concrete example a certain c o al i n the P ittsburgh Distri ct pro

,

d uce d ash of approximatel y t he following composi t ion S10 2 A 12 0 3 .

, ,

Fe z Og C aO,
, M gO, P2 0 5 S uch an ash is moder ,

atel yfusible , and s o is most desirable I n the ash i s found the phosphorus .
,

whi ch determines whether c o k e made from a certain co al shall be us e d for

makin g Bessemer or basi c iron The sulphur is also import ant . In the .

coal i t is present mostly as F6 8 2 which on bein g c o ked , is de composed , , .

into Fe S or Fe 7 ss and S and on burni ng i t is c ompletely change d the

' '

, ,
'

iron being oxidi z ed to F8 2 0 3 o r Fe g 0 4 and t he sul

phur t o 8 0 2 Often a
, .

seam of good q ual ity coal i s divided or cut horiz ontally by deposits of sl aty
material known as bone coal binder horse back etc a l , lof which m ust be, ,
.

mined with the coal Where these conditions exist it i s ne cessary to c l

. ean ,
 P UL VE RI Z E D COAL 81

the coal by picking j i gging or was hi ng As a rule the purest coal is in

, ,
.

the middle of the seam Phosphorus in partic ular occurs mainly at the
.

top The top and bottom will always contain the hi ghest percentage s of
.

ash and sulphur .

S EC T I O N V I .

P REPA R ED S OLI D F UELS .

Po w d e re d Co a l
: I t h as
long been known that t he combustion of finely
pulveri zed co al presents feature s similar to those encountered in burning
gases When m i x e d w ith air and i gnited , i t e xp lodes ; and when it is blown
.

into a heated chamber with su fficient quan t ity of air , complete and rapid
combustion appro ximat ing tha t o f t he fue l g ases ensues These facts l ed .

to the i dea of us in g p ul verize d coa l as a substitute for gaseo us fuels Though .

firs t at temp t ed abou t 100 years a go , no progr ess was m ad e i n its use until
recen tl y , o wing t o t he d i ffi culties o f securin g the pro per conditions and also ,

t o the abundance o f o ther d esirable fue ls Although stil l in t he experimenta l

.

stage, i t is now use d very successfully and gives promise of re placing gaseous
fue ls fo r metallurgical and many o ther uses
~
.

Re q u i re mThe use of powdere d c oal ne c essitate s meeting the

e n ts :
following requirements :

1 . With the apparatus now in use only hi gh volatile c oals (vol atile
,

matter over may be used .

2 . The coal must be very finely pul verized Approximatel y 70% .

,

should pas s a 300 mesh si eve 8 0% a 200 mesh and 95% a 100, ,

mesh .

3 . The dust must be inj e cte d into the furnace in such a m anner that
each particle enters the combus tion chamber surrounde d with
air .

Ifthe coal is to be us e d in re generative furnaces spe cial che cker ,

work that will permi t of e asy cle aning is required A high .

perce ntage of ash i s drawn ou t with the gases which quickly ,

clogs ordinary chec kers .

Caref ul re gul ation of dr aft t o give a l ow vel ocity of the air and gase s
is ne cessary t o secure c omplete comb usti on since the dust burns ,

more sl owly than gases This pre caution also prevents rapid
.

clogging of checkers when the fuel is use d in re generative furnaces .

The pul verizing of coal makes it necessary to dry i t thoroughly , and

necessitates the install at ion of spe cial appliance s for handling the dus t ,

whi ch c an b e done only thro ugh pipes and ti ghtly cl ose d b ins Two general .
82 F UE LS

methods of handling are available namely the worm screw and the , ,

pneumatic The t hird requirement c alls for spe cial burners so c onstructe d
.
,

as to pe rmit of the re gul ation of the amounts of both air and dust and the
adjustment of the direction of the flame The eq uipment will consist then .
, ,

o f a dryer a pulverizer separator conveyors bi ns b urners and air c om

, , , , , ,

pressors with the necessary motors or engines A dde d to t hese , in many

,
.

c ases will be the special re generators previousl y mentioned

,
.

A d va nta ge s r e d C o al
o : I t is adaptable for use wherever l arge
f Pow d e
'

am o unts o f fuel are consumed and many claims as t o its advantages are
,

made As compared with producer gas to fire ope n he arth furnac es for
.
,

e x ample it is said to be as effici e nt and c onveni en t as the gas and t o give

,

amore re gular supply of heat I t is cheaper t o prepare than producer gas

.
,

incre ases the production o f steel 10% or more and re duces the l oss by ,
—
oxi dation all Without contamination of t he s t eel from impurities in the
.

ash if proper conditions prevai l

, .

T h e S h a ro n Pl
The appliances for prepari ng and b urning the c oal
a nt :

vary in form and method ; A brief de scription of the ins tall ation at t he
S haron Wor ks of the C arne gie S teel C ompany w hi ch is eq uippe d t o s upply
—
,

three 40 ton basic Open hearth furnaces may serve as an e xam pl e of one of the ,

methods empl oyed in its use This pl ant was the first of the C arne gie
.

C ompany s to use t his fuel in t he open hearth

’
The install ation is t hat .

of the R aymond Bros of Chicago who empl oy an impac t pulverizer w ith

.
,

an air separating system

-
.

De sc ri p tio n o f P ul
ve ri z i ng Pl
a nt :
The b ui l ding in whic h the pulver
izing is done is separated from the open hearth building by about 75 yar ds .

Outside th i s building is a small trestle storage bin t o which the c oal

,
,

crushe d t o pass a one inch ring is delivere d from the c ars From t his bin
, .

t he coal is d elivered by a motor d riven belt conveyor t o the elevate d end

o f a revolvin g cylindric al dryer about 3 0 ft l ong and 5 ft in di a meter
, . .
,

incline d a t an angle of about By revolvin g this dryer , t he c oal is

caused to pass slowly toward the l owe r end and in s o doing it i s stirred ,

and scattere d in the cylinder so as t o be thoro ughly dried by a forced

,

circulation of an atmosphere of hot gases from a small bric k furnace l ocated

at the elevate d end of the furnace These gases are conducte d from the .

furnace to the lo wer end of the dryer by a stationary flue about 18 inches ,

in diameter and concentric with the external cylinder Upon reaching the .

lower en d of the dryer the coal is discharge d into a hopper b in fr o m which

,

it is elevate d vertic ally a distance of abo ut 20 ft by means of bel t buckets

— ,
.
,

to a 25 ton storage bin From this bin it is fed by gravity t o t he pul verizer
.

t hrough the opening of which it is mechani cally fe d a t a ra te adjuste d to

the speed of the pulverizer w hich has a capacity Of 5 tons per hour
, .

Through a pi pe about 16 inches in diameter , le adin g from the top of the

,

pul ver i zer the finest dust i s pneumatic ally elevated t o a c one shape d cyc l one
'

,
84 F UE LS

some ten feet away T his box about twelve by fourteen inches in c ro ss
'

.
,

section is in the form of an elbow One end is bolte d to the bottom op e ning
, .

o f the bin while the other is close d with a steel plate

,
.The pipe le ading
to the burner is inserte d in an opening on the top of the ho ri z ontal p ortion

ll
HW 5
se
'

l
A d d ns 19 0 3

of the With all c onnections between burner and feeder bo x ti gh t the

box
.

. ,

operat on of the b urner is very simple By means of a val ve , not shown

i
.

in the drawing compresse d air delivere d under a pressure of about ei ghty

,

pounds may be admitte d through the nozzle when the suc tion draws the
,
 COKE 85

c oal dust from the feeder bo x and blows it through the delivery pipe into
the furnace I t will be observe d t ha t t he desi gn of t his bur ner is based
.

upon the principle that t he quantity of fuel dust i nj ected int o the furnace
is controlle d by the q uantity of air passin g t hrough t he inj e ctor The
'
.

thre ade d hOle in the top of the cross provide s a means O f att aching the
'

burner to its supports .

C o ke . C oke
is the residue that remains after certain bituminous c oals
have been subj ecte d to destructive distill ation Owing to its peculiar struc .

ture and physical or me chanic al properties it has be come the chi ef metal
, , ,

lur gi c a l
fue l Al lcoke possesses a cellular structure but there is a wide
.
,

variation in t he de gree of porosity for different c okes Li ke wise t he hardness .

,

brittleness and strength of c oke is subj ec t t o wi de variations C oke for .

bl as t furnace c onsumpti on sh o ul
’

d b e of a porous c haracter t o admi t of re ady

combustion an d it mus t a t al l time s be sufficientl y strong t o resis t pressure
,

due to t he he avy burden without crushing I n c hemic a l c omposition t he .

,

di fferent c okes s ho w a s imilar w ide variation , t hough for metallur gical

pur poses t he fixe d c arbon , which is t he only c onstituent soug ht will c on ,

s ti tute 85 to 90% of t he c oke The other c onstituents r oughl y stated as

.
,

ash sulphur an d phosphorus a re impurities

, The per cent of phosphorus
, . .

in the c oke d etermines w hether the c oke is suitabl e for maki ng Bessemer
or basic iron Fo r t he former gra de , modern practice re quires t ha t the
.

phosphorus c onten t of t he c oke must not excee d The sulphur c ontent

ranges from 60% t o . t hough it is e viden t t ha t both the sulphur and
a sh shoul d be kept as low as possible .

Me t h o d s o f Ma n u fac t u ri ng C o ke : There are two methods for t he

manufacture of c oke known as the bee hive and the b y produc t or retort
,
-
, ,

process In t he beeh ive process air i s admitte d t o t he c o king chamber

.
,

for the purpose o f b urnin g therein al l of t he vol atile products of the c oal
t o generate he a t for further distillation I ncidentally s ome of the fixed .
,

c arbon o f t he c o a l i s als o c onsum e d I n the other method t he c o k ing .

,

c hambers are air t i g h t an d the ne cessary he a t fo r distillation i s supplied

, ;
from e xte rnalc om bustion of t he vol atile pro d uc ts o f t he c oal ; and with
modern o vens properl y o perate d onl y abou t half of t he gas e ous m atter
, ,

from the c o al i s use d in c arrying on t he c okin g process While the beehive .

process w as unti l re cent ly t he le ading me t ho d for t he manufacture of c oke

, , ,

i t i s fas t bein g repl ace d by t he b y— produc t process The processes of m anu .

facture have very l it t l e e ffe c t on t he quality of t he cb ke but if t here is any ,

di fference , t he l at t e r process has t he advantage There is howe ver a .

, ,

di fference in appearance d ue m ainl y t o t he difference in t he cokin g t emper

,
~

ature of t he t wo processes t ha t of t he b y produc t bein g much l ower t han

,
-

the bee hive In general , beehive c o ke is silvery gray in appearance while

.
,

b y produc t co ke i s of a much d arker c ol or

-
A s examples of t hese two .

methods of coking the following brief descriptions of pl ants are t o be t aken

,

as typic al of the best modern practice for e ach process .

86 F UE LS

S EC T I O N V I I

T HE B EE H I VE P ROCE S S FO R T H E MA N UF A CT U RE OF COKE .

T h e Co nti ne n talNo
,
. 1 Pl
a nt o f th e H . Fr i c k Co ke C o m p a n y
C .

may be cited as an example of beehive c oke practice I t i s l oc ate d near

.

Uniontown Pa in the s outheastern part of the famous C onnellsville coke

,
.
,

re gion I t c onsists of a coal mine and a co king p l

.
ant of 400 beehive ovens .

T he Mi ne : Since the coal bed here lies about 330 feet below the
surface the coal is mined through a shaft Although some gas is given
,
.

o ff as the c al is mined i t is prevente d from c olle ctin g and thus be coming

p ,

dangerous by a very efficient system of ventil ation which permits the ,

installation of electric al appliance s for li ghtin g and t he use of both pic k

and machine methods of mi ning The c o a l s e am i n this mine varie s from .

seven t o nine feet in thi ckness , bu t in minin g t he c oal abou t four inches ,

at the bottom and from four to e igh t i nches at the top be in g hi gh in ash , ,

sulphur and phosphorus i s allowe d to remain in order to improve the quality

,

of the coke I ncidentally this t op dis c ar d al

. so helps t o suppor t t he g ob ,
,

an e asily disl odged an d tre acherous sl ate like formation lyin g between t he -

coal and the hard overlyin g rock deposi t and formi ng the roof o f t he mine .

The average outpu t of t he mine is twelve hundr e d ne t t ons per d ay Fo r .

transporting this co al t hrough the mine underground a c ombination system ,

of electric and rope haul age is e mpl oye d from certain points w hile horse s ,

ar e use d to distribute e mpty c ars t o and a ssemble l oade d c ars from t he

various working pl aces From t hese assemblin g point s the l
. o a d e d c ars

are move d by ele ctri c l dco m o ti ve s in trains o f t hirty c ar s e ach to a sub

station where they are attached t o the rope haul
, age w hic h p ul ls t hem t o
the foot of the shaft Here t hey are hoisted , one a t a t ime t o t he tipple
.
,

and automatically dumped into bins From t hese bins t he c o alis l oaded .

by chutes into ele ctri c l arries which c onvey it to t he ovens some hundre d
yards away Each larry hol ds s uffi cient coal t o charge one oven an d it
.
,

will be note d that run o f mine coa l is used for c oking no crushing nor
- -
,

preparation of any kind being necessary .

C o n s t r uc t io n a nd A r r a n ge m e nt o
t o the e ssential f t h e Ove ns : As
featur es of construction the name beehive i s literally descriptive of t he
,

form of the beehive o ven The dome like chamber , buil t o n a suitabl e
.
-

foundation is c onstructe d of highly refractory brick , has a fl a t but

,

“ ”
slightly sl opi g bottom an Opening in the t op , t he trunnel he ad through
n , ,

which the c oa l is charged and t he products of distill ation and c ombustion

escape and an arche d opening at the bottom c alle d the door t hrough
,
, ,

which air i s admitted for c ombustion and t he c oke i s watere d and drawn .

In generalthe dimensions of di fferen t ovens vary a gre a t d e al

, The ovens .

at this plant are e ach 12 fee t 3 inches in di ameter and 8 feet hi gh fro m the
bottom t o the top of the dome , inside d imensions Of this hei ght the side .
,

wall bu i lt of fire bri ck rises vertically a d istance of 27 inches and is capped

, , ,
88 F UE LS

order to se c ure uniformity in the coking of the coal this pile m ust be ,

levelle d so that the coal wi l l lie in a be d of uniform depth over the entire
bottom of the oven This result is attained by me ans of an ele ctri c al ly
.

operate d leveling machine whi ch is move d from oven t o oven on the

,

same tracks tha t the charging l arry uses The essential part of t hi s .

machine c onsists of a vertica l rod and slee ve on the lower end or he ad , , ,

of which is mounted two collapsible le veling arms By me ans of suitable .

gear co nne ctio ns w it h an e lectri c motor , this apparatus with the head ,
“ ”
close d may b e me chani call y l owere d through t he tr unnel he ad upon t he
,

ape x of t he pile of co al , w hen t he ro d an d sleeve are made to revolve and

the levelin g arms are a t t he s ame t ime sl owly e xtende d These motions , .

combine d w ith the continue d lowering of t he he a d , distribute t he c o al t o a

uniform depth in a very fe w minutes I n wor ks no t e quippe d w ith t hi s
.

machine , the levelin g is acc o mplished by me ans of a l ar ge l ong handled -

scrape r , operated , by a l aborer through the door of the oven whi ch i s

, ,

purposely bricked up to about onl y two-thirds of its hei ght a t the t ime of
char ging .

T h e C o ki n g Pro ce ss be gins very soon after the leve lling is complete d ,

as the ovens retain enough heat in the bric k of the walls and the l oam b ac king
to start the distillat ion of the vol atile matter of the c oal A s more and m ore .

he at is c on ducte d thr ough the w all s from t he ho t l oam backing , t he t em

pe ratur e o f t he interio r o f t he oven s oon re aches t he kindlin g poin t for the se
volatile gases which in t he presence of the air admitte d t o t he oven , i gnite
, ,

with a slight explosion a t first , then c ontinue t o burn qui etl y in t he crown '

of the oven or , as smal l c andle like fl ames a t t he s urfac e of t he c oking

,
-
‘

mass thus supplyin g hea t to continue the process T he c oking pro ceeds
,
.

from the top of the c oal downward , s o t ha t t he cokin g time depends mainl y
upon t he depth of the c oal The volume of volatil e m atte r t hus rapidly
.

approaches a maximum which is maintaine d for a period , t hen declines t o

,

practically nothin g , hence the burnin g of this vol atile m atter mus t be
re gulat e d by gradually closing up the opening a t t he t op of t he door fo r the
admission of air This re gul ation is very ne cess ary t o maintain the
.

temperature at a maximum an d c onserve coke as an exces s of air a t the

, ,

beginning of the coking period tends to cool the oven and l ater c o n ,

sumes the carbon of the coke The yiel d is also reduce d by improper
.

leveling If the coal is not of uniform depth to be gin with the thin portions
.
,

coke thro ugh before the t hick , and some of the coke in the thin se ctions
is consumed While t he coking of the thick po rtions is bein g completed .

On the other hand if the process be stoppe d when the thin are as have
,

c oked through , there will be a loss due to green butts on the t hi c k are as .

I t will be re calle d t ha t t he c oal assumes a semifuse d or pasty , st ate duri ng ,

the coking process The resul t t o be expe cte d from such behavi or is that
.

the coke woul d be fo un d in a continuous mass or cake a t t he e nd of the , ,

process ; b ut , due t o expansions and c ontractions of the mass in c oking and

on cooling the cake is r am i fi e d by a great number of irre gul ar vertic al
,
 REEH I VE COKE 89

fissures thus giving it a l ong columnar structure in whic h the very irre gu l
,
ar ,

columns extend from the top t o the bottom of the cake This struct ure .

affords a second me ans by whi ch bee h ive c oke c an be distinguished from

b y product
-
.

Fm . 15 . Id e alS e ction f B e e h ive C o k e Ove n S h o wi ng

o Wateri ng M ach i ne
i n U se and S tructure o f C o k e .

W a te ri ng a nd Draw i n g t h e Co ke : As soon as the volatile matter

has ce ase d t o b e e volved as indic ate d by a subsidence of t he smoke at
,
“
the trunne l he ad an d a decide d shortening of t he c andle fl ames on the
”

surface of t he c oke , the c oke shoul d be drawn I n good practice the charge .
,

wil l be s o re gul ate d tha t t his point i s reached ne ar the cokin g t ime assi gned ,

and the ovens w il l be drawn on a schedule If any circumstances del ay

.

the drawi ng the doors of the ovens are sealed t igh t with cl ay an d the draft
, ,
“ ”
at t he trunnel head i s reduced H owever , i t is very imp ortan t that the
.
’

ovens b e drawn on schedule , as a del ay results in burnin g s ome c oke and

in c oolin g t he oven , s o tha t i t wil l no t c oke t he next charge in the period
assi gne d A t the en d of t he c okin g time , t hen , the brick work cl osing the
.

door is t orn out and the c oke is watere d out A t C ontinent al t his watering
, .

is acc omplishe d b y a self propelle d S praying device It c onsists of a t ube .

or pipe a fe w inches s horter t han the diameter of the oven , p ivote d at the
center t o a fee d pipe and perforate d by two rows o f holes on opposite sides ,

startin g from the center The holes are arr anged to thro w j ets of water
.

horiz ontally whic h c auses the pipe to revolve Where this d evice is not
, .
90 F UE LS

provided the ovens are watere d by spraying with a pipe on the end o f a
,

hose in the hands of a l aborer who directs a stream of wa ter through the
,

door of the oven Fo r drawi ng the coke a C ovingto n c oke draw ing machine
. ,

is employed at t his pl ant I t is provided with a l on g arm fitted with a

.

head flat on the bottom , but inclined on the t op , and a pair of hi nge d e ars
,
,

or drawing lugs Upon being pushed by motor into the oven the he ad
. ,

moves in advance of the drawing lugs whi ch lie flat and raises the c oke
, ,

from the bottom of the oven Upon the return the l ugs engage this l oosened
. ,

coke and force i t through the door in advance of the head Here the c oke .

falls upon a belt conveyor running parallel t o the ovens and is c arrie d to ,

the loading c onveyor , whi ch is incline d an d ext ends at ri ght angles t o the
row of ovens At t he t op of t he loadin g conveyor the c oke falls upon a
‘

stationary screen , to separate t he breeze t hen slides down a chute into ,

a railroad c ar an d i s re ady for shipment I t is impossible t o remove al l

,
.

the c oke with the mac h ine , and what remai ns mus t be drawn by hand so ,

while the mac hi ne moves forw ar d to t he ne xt oven , a l aborer cle ans out
the oven with a lon g handled s craper , drawin g t he c oke out upon the c on
ve y o r of the machine which is more than lon g enough t o span the distance
,

between the door s o f two adj acent ovens In strai ght hand drawing , the .

coke is drawn out into t he yard and forke d into barrows which are use d ,

to wheel t he coke int o r ailroa d c ars .

Lo ngi t u di nalOve ns : In order t o adap t better the beehive oven t o

the use of mechanical devices and e ffec t a savin g i n l abor , there appe ar e d
in 1906 a modi fied form of the ol d Bel gian o ven known as t he Mitchell ,

oven The essential features of this type of oven are a long narro w chamber
.
,

rectangular in sh ape , with a fl at tile bottom an arche d roof sloping towards ,

“ ”
the ends a trunnel he ad in the center of the roof and two doors one at
, , ,

each end which exten d over t he entire width and hei gh t of the oven ends
,
.

These ovens are built side by side in bl oc ks or b atteries and are charged , ,

controlled and w atere d l ike beehive ovens The coke is pushe d out of the .

oven by a mechanical pusher upon a l oadin g c onveyor which is m ade to

screen the c oke and drop it directly into railroad c ars .

S EC T I O N V I I I .

T H E B Y- P R O D UCT P R OCE S S F ORKE MA N U F A CT U RI N G CO .

G e ne ra lFe a t u re s o f t h e Pr o ce ss : The b y product process being a -

,

true dis ti llation process involves t he use of retort ovens While there
, .

are many modifications t hese ovens may be sai d t o consist essentially of

,

three main parts namely the c oking chambers the heat in g chambers and
, , , ,

the regenerative chambers —all c on structed of bric k The retorts are .

rectangul ar in shape varying in general from 30 t o 42 fee t in length from

, ,

6 to 10 fee t in height and from 17 to 22 inches in width and are built in

, ,

batteries of from 40 to 90 ovens in which the c oking chambers al ternate

, ,

wi t h the heatin g chambers The coal is charged through openings in the

.

top of the oven and the coke is pushed out one end by mea ns of a power
,

driven pusher acting through the other end A l lwatering is done outside .
92 F UE LS
 B Y- P ROD UC T COKE 93

of two units the firs t of which was completed in the Spring o i 1918 E ach
'

.
,

unit co nsists of 768 ovens The ovens are c onstructe d i n groups or

.
,

batteries , of 64 ovens e ach an d in e ach unit they a re arrange d in two ,

parallel rows of si x batteries e ach A s eac h oven has a c apacity of .

ne t t ons of c oal more than 25000 tons of c oal per day are require d to
,

supply these two units when c oking on a 19 hour schedule From .

-
.

this c oal there are produced in the ne i gt rh o o d of ne t t ons of fur

nace coke ; 500 net tons of domestic c oke ; net tons of breeze and
dust which is use d to generate ste am for the plant ;
, ‘
cubic fee t
of gas (average thermal value 565 B t 57 per cent of wh i ch i s sur . . .

plus no t neede d for heating the c oke ovens at the pl ant and therefore
avail able as fuel gas for the mills ; gallons of tar ; po unds
of ammoni um sulphate ; gallons of motor benz ol or gallons ,

C P benz ol gall ons C P toluol and gal lons re fi ne d s o l

v e nt
‘

. .
, . .

naphthas ; and pounds of crude naphthal e ne The coal for the works .

is obtained from the mines of the H C Frick C oke C ompany in t he lower . .

C onnellsville Field and is known commercial y as Klondike c oal

, These l .

mines are locate d near the M onongahel a R iver , and t he c oal is t ransported
fro m the mines to the c oke works b y water for which purpose more than 180 ,

barges of tons capacity e ach and ten steamers are employed .

Co n s t r uc t io n f t h e Ove ns :
The ovens of this plant are kno wn as
o

the Koppers 500 cubic feet b y— product oven Al lparts of the se o ve ns are .

constructed almost entirely of t he best grade of sil ic a brick To g ive the .

coking chamber a volume of 500 cubic feet e ach oven inside has a length ,

of 37 feet from face to face of t he doors a height of 9 feet 10 inches from floor ,

to roof and a width tha t tapers from 17 inches at the pusher end t o 1934
,
“ ”
inches at the discharge end Four tru nnel heads in the top provide .

’
means for a d m ittin g the charge while a separate ope n ing at one end provides ,

a n o utlet for vo la ti l The Oven is of thé ve rti cal

/

flue typ e wi th
‘

e m atte r .

individual re generative chambers The heating chamber i s compose d of .

a t otal of thirty vertical fl ue s which rise from the bottom of the chamber , ,

where they are provided with openings t o t he re generative c hambers and

t o the gas mains t o a large horizontal cross over flue o n a l
, al
e ve l i ttl
e below -

the top of the c okin g chamber A d ivi d ing w al lnear the middle of t he oven .

separates t his chamber excep t the cross over flue into t wo p arts with
,
-
,

s ixteen vertic al fl ue s on t he narrower end of t he oven and fourteen on t he

wider end E ach end approximatel y each half of the oven may t hus be heated
.
, ,

alte rnately and in practic e the reversals are made automatic ally every half
, ,

hour for e ach battery of s i xty four ovens by means of a re ve r s ing motor c on
-
,

trolled by an electrical c loc k attachment Two large undergroun d fl ue s .

,

one on e ach s ide extendin g along in front of and parallel t o t he battery and
,

co nnected to the checker chambers by means of c ast iron goose necks furnish ,

means for the escap e of t he products of combustion These flue s le ad to .

a stack which is located at one end of the battery and is 200 fee t high in
,

order to furnish the draft necessary t o draw the gas e s thr o ugh their tortuous
co urse A n ide a of the magnitude of the structure may be gaine d from the
.
94 F UE LS

fact that a single battery of these ovens contains the e quivalent of about
nine inch brick
.
96

for c ombustion is admitted to the checker chamber th ro ugh a capped

'

openin g on the goose ne c k leading to the stack flue From the top of the .

regenerators it is delivere d through i ndividual openings into e ach of the

fourteen or sixteen vertical flue s on the side of t he oven w here the combustion
is t o occur Likewise , the gas for comb ustion , wh ich i s conducted from the
.

gas main into a fire brick gas duct located below the vertic al flue s , is admitted
through individual fire bric k nozzles t o each of the vertica l fl ue s abou t ,

10 inches belo w the air openings Thus the gas and air meet in the fl ue s
.
, ,

combustion o ccurs and the hot waste gases are c arrie d over t o the opposite
,

side of the battery by the horizontal flues , t hen down the verti cal fl ue s ,

through the checker work out through the goose ne c k and int o t he large
,

flue that leads t o the stack I n order t o secure uniform heating of the
.

oven a t all times individual re gul ation of t he draft in e ach vertical fl ue

,

is provide d by means of a bric k tha t m ay be pushe d ou t o ver t he t op of

the flue t o reduce t he size of the opening I n the top of th e o v e n an opening
.
'
,

which is closed by a plu g excep t a s o c casion demands it t o be opened pro ,

vides access t o t he slidin g bric k and also t o t he gas nozzle i n c a se it is

desired t o change the am ount of gas admitted The total amount of air .

adm itted t o each oven is controlled by an adj ustable valve at an opening

in the goose neck .

Dr yi n g a n d He a ti n g Ne w Ove ns : G reat c are is requi red in preparing

new ovens for their first charge This preparation is carried out in two
.

stages , namely, a drying and a heating period , in both of which t he t em

p e ra ture of the ovens m ust be raise d very s l owly an d uniforml y , in order
to avoid uneven expansion and c onsequen t c rackin g of th e bri c k w ork .

Both operati ons are c arried out by buil din g fi res in the c o kin g chambers ,

which are temporaril y provided at each end and ne ar the tops wi th a num b e r
of small holes less than two i nche s i n diameter tha t o p e n i nto the c ombustion
, ,

chambers and thus furnish a passage fo r the products of c ombustion through

the flue s a nd checkers t o the stack The dryin g operation i s e ffected with
» .

woo d fires an d o ccupies a period of two weeks or l onger d uring which time ,

the temperature of the ovens i s raise d t o 250 F Coal fires are t hen
°
.

substituted for the wood a nd the heating period is be gun About four
,
.

weeks are required for this heating durin g which t ime the temperature
,

of the ovens is raise d a t the rate of about 25 F e ach day °

The ovens
. .

are then heate d rapi dl

°
y up to the coking t emperature of 1700 F or more .

When available gas may be substituted for the wood and coal for heating
,

the ove ns .

Ope r a tio n o f t h e Ove n s : Upon reaching the docks at the coke plant ,

of which there are two to a uni t the coal is unloaded from the barges by
,

means of grab buckets (5 ton )w hich d rop it into the hopper s of crushers
1 —
.

T hese hoppers are provided with 2/ z inch c ataract scree ns s o that only that ,

portion of the coal tha t is t o o c oarse for coking passes t o the crushers .

Here this c oarse c oa l is crushed t o l ump s 2% inches or smaller in size and , , ,

falls together with that from the cataract s creen upon a conveyo r belt
, ,

and is carried to the eight bunkers each of which is l ocated above and
,
 B Y- P ROD UCT COKE 97

between two batteries of ovens These bunkers have a capacity of

. .

tons each so that four bunkers contain when filled enough coal t o supply
, , ,

one unit for 24 hours From the bunkers .

the c oal is charged into the ovens by

means of larry cars that travel length
wise o f the batteries and on top of the
ovens . Each larry holds a single oven
charge of tons and is s o constructed
,

that the coal is measure d both by vol

u e
m and by weight F rom the l arry
.
,

which has the form of four large funnels ,

the charge is dropped into the oven

“ ”
through the fo ur trunnel heads the ,

doors of the oven having been previously

set in place and l ute d w ith a mixture of
loam or c lay an d coke dust A re cipro .

cating levelling bar carri ed on the pus hi ng

,

machine is then inserted t hrough a small

,

openin g at the top of t he door o n the

narrower end of t he oven and t he peaks ,

of coa l are levelled t o a uniform depth

of 9 feet , thus fill ing the oven t o wi thin 10
inches of the top . lOpenings
Finally , a l
to the oven are closed and sealed the ,
'

valve or damper t o t he gas collecting

main is Opened an d t he coking process
, ,

which lasts for a perio d of 19 hours or

les s begins The heat for cokin g being
,
.

supplied from the heating chamber by

conduction through the w alls of the oven ,

c okin g proceeds from both sides of the

oven toward the middle with t he result ,

tha t a marked plane of cle avage is

produced vertically down the center of
the whole charge This fact gives to
.

the coke a short block like s tructure

,
-

that distingui shes it from beehive c oke ,

which as previously note d , has a l ong

, -

FI G 19 I d ealS e ct i on o f th e
'

columnar struct ure At the end of the

B y—
.
. .

p ro d uc t C o ke Ove n S h o w i ng coking period the doors of the ove n are

S tru cture o f C o k e
move d t o one side by mechani cal devices
.

for the purpose and the c oke is pushe d out of the oven from the narrower end
,

by means of a ram mounte d upon the p usher previousl y mentioned The .

coke falls into a side dump hopper car is c arried therein t o a q ue nchi ng or
-
, ,

watering house of whi ch there i s one at each end of a row of batteries

, ,

is there watered by an overhead spray until wel l blackened but still ho t ,

98 F UE LS

enough to dry itself and is then discharge d into an inclined dock or bin
,
.

Here it is allowed t o become dry and t o c ool s omewhat after which perio d ,

it is permitted to fall upon a lar ge belt conveyor and 1 s c arried up an inclin e

to the s creening hous e The coke t hen falls upon an incline s creen k nown
. ,

as the adjustable G rizzley bar screen The bars us ually being adjusted to .

give a V2 inch opening at the top and a inch opening a t the bottom t h e ,

furnace coke I S separated from the breez e and dus t and drops into a railroad
car pl aced ready to receive it The material that passes this s creen may
.

be further divided by rotary s creens int o dust and domestic c o ke whi ch i s ,

'

also loaded directly into cars A t this pl ant all the dust is used unde r
.

boilers t o generate steam for use at the plant The volatile produ cts from .

the c oal pass out of the oven and ar e c onducte d through pipe s to the by
product plants of which there are two one for e ach unit
, , .

S EC T I O N I X .

T H E B Y -P ROD UCT PLA NT .

T he Vo l e Ma t te r o f C o a l
at i l is a very comple x mixture I t may be .

roughl y divided into three classes of substances based on their state a t ,

ordinary temperatures ; namely t he fixed gases o r those substances that , ,

are gases a t ordinary temperatures the l i qui ds and the solids The fixed , ,
.

gases are hydrogen H 2 ; methane OH4 als o k nown as marsh gas ; ethane
, , ,, ,

Cz H e ; propane C gH g ; butane C 4 H 1 0 ; ethylene 0 2 H 4 ; small am ounts of

, , ,

propylene Og H e ; butylene C4 H 8 ; acetylene C 2H 2 ; c arbon dioxide C 0 2 ;

, , , ,

carbon monoxide C O; hydro gen s ulphide s ; ni trogen N 2 ; oxygen 0 2 ;

, , , ,

and ammonia N H 3 The vapors that are l iquid at ordinary temp e r ature s
, .

are benzene C GH e ; toluene C e H g CH g ; xylene 0 3 11 4 (GE 3 )2 ; c arbon d i sul

, , , ,

p h i d e 0 8 2 ; and aqueous vapors Among the vapors that are sol id at ordi nary
.

temperatures are naphthalene C 1 0 H 8 ; phenol also known as c arboli c a cid

, , , ,

C e H sOH ; anthracene 0 1 4 H 1 0 ; and many others all of which together wit h

, , ,

heavy pitch like substances soo t c arbon and small amounts of many of the
-
, ,

more volatile liquid compounds cited above enter into and m ake up the tar , .

Mai ns a nd Coo l Allthese substances pass out of the oven s

'

G as e rs :

through up takes at their narrower e nds and into the U—

-
shaped gas c ollectin g
main that extends above and parallel t o a battery The gases and vapors .

'

enter this collectin g main a t a temperature o f abo ut 400 C and under °

,

a uniform suction of abo ut 078 inch (2 mm ) of water whi ch is kept

. .
,

constant by means of a Northwestern gage governor and valve From .

the collecting main the gas is c onducte d by two pipes to a large main ,

known as the suction main whi ch serves as a c omm on main for one half o f
,

a row of si x batteries This s uction main le ads to the primary c oolers I n

.
‘

passing through these mains the temperature of the gases drops t o about
,

75 C at the inlet t o the primary coolers

°
, This reduction in temperatur e .

causes much of the heavy t ar vapors t o c ondense in the mains and it i s ,

found necess ary to maintain a heavy stream of new flushing tar (compose d ’
100 F UELS

perforated pl ate The impact causes the very fine particles of tar t o c ollect
.

on the impact pl ate and the tar thus accumul ating runs o ff the pl ate and
, , ,

out of the apparatus through a se aled overfl ow at the bottom I n these .

apparatus it is necessary t o maintain a c onst ant di fferenti al pressure o f

about 8 inches of water and since the holes in the perforate d pl ate tend
,

to become closed by the more viscous of the tarry substances thus c aus ing ,

an increase of the pressure special means must be empl oye d t o overcome ,

this tendency At this pl ant the desire d result is accomplished by l ower

.

ing the tar level in the bottom of the apparatus thus exposing more hole s ,

as those in use become clogged The tar leve l is c ontrolled by means of .

a pressure gauge and automati c re gul ator attache d t o t he gate valve

through which the tar passes in flowing out of t he apparatus The tar .

extrac ted by this machine amounts t o about 5% of the total tar ori ginally
c arried by the gas .

o n i a : T h e temperature of the gas now about 3 8 C

°
Re c ove ry o f Am m ,
.
,

having been raise d about 6 C by c ompression in the exhausters is brought °

.
,

to about 66 C by being forced through prehe aters w hi ch are cylindrical

°
.
,

steel tanks c ontaining ste am c oils This preheatin g is necessary t o .

prevent the accumul ation of water in the saturators and to accelerate the
reaction between the ammonia and the dilute sulphuri c acid t hat oc cur s
, ,

in them These saturators of which there are ten t o a unit are l arge
.
, ,

lead lined steel pots c ontaining a 5% solution of sulphuri c acid through ,

which the gas is forced in tiny bubbles T h is gas i t is t o be noted .

, ,

contains all the ammoni a rec overe d from the co al for that which ,

was liberate d in the ammoni a liquor stills previ ously describ e d has , ,

been introduce d int o the gas mains j ust after the l atter le aves the
preheaters I n this way all the ammoni a given o fl by the c oal in c oking
‘

is brought i nt o direct contact with the dilute acid with whic h i t i m m e di ,

atel y re acts t o form ammonium sulphate (NH 4 )2 8 0 4 This sal t dissolves , .

in the water with which t he acid was diluted but when the baths bec ome , ,

saturated i t is precipitate d and settles to the bottom where it is forced

, ,

through syphon ej ectors by means of compressed air t o elevate d draining

tables als o le ad l ine d From the draining tables t he s al t i s periodic ally
, .
,

remove d pl ace d in centrifugal dryers and whiz z ed for fifte en minutes

, , ,

whic h process removes nearl y all the water the s alt retaining about ,

of its own wei ght of moisture The mother l iquor derive d from the .

drying operations as well as the wash water use d to free the crystals of the
,

slightly aci d mother l iquor flows back into the s atur ators while the salt , ,

is scraped o ff the copper screen pl ates o f the centrifuga l mac hi nes with
wooden paddles and delivere d t hr ough a c hute t o a belt c onveyor which ,

carries i t t o a final dryer where the moisture c ontent by me ans of ho t , ,

gases may be reduce d t o 25% or less The final drying prevents caking
, . .
,

so that the salt will remain in a fi nely divide d state for indefinite peri ods .

From the final dryer the s alt fall s into a pit from which it is removed wit h ,

grab buc kets to a stora ge pile to be shipp e d l ater as required , .

 101

De b e l th e
bubbling through the liquid in the
nz o a t i n g G as : In
saturator the gas tends to carry a little of the acid al on g with it Hence
,
.
,

from the s aturator the gas passes into an acid separator I ts temperatur e .

her e is about 54 C which i s muc h to o hi gh for the c omplete separation

°
.

of the benzene and its homologues Therefore t he gas is put through final .
,

coolers where its temperat ure is l owered t o 30 C These c oolers are t all
.
°
.

steel towers about 100 feet in height I n them the gas is brought into
, .
.

direct c ontact with col d water which i s introduce d at the top whil e the
’

, ,

gas enters at the bottom and leaves at the top From these c oolers the .

gas is forced through three benz ol or oil scrubbers in series Like the , , .

c oolers these scrubbers are l arge steel towers in whic h the principle of
, ,

c ounter currents is empl oye d throughout They are filled with a k ind of .

checker work of wooden slats A product from the refining of petroleum (or of .
,

tar )known as straw oil or wash oil with a distilling temperature ran ging from
, ,

270 to 370 C is S praye d into the t op of the washers where it trickles do wn

°
.
, ,

over the wooden c he cker work and is thus brought into intimate c ontact
with the ascending current of gases The oil absorbs the benzene toluene .
, ,

xylene naphtha and naphthalene bec omin g s aturated t o the ext ent of
, ,

ab out and removin g 92% or more of the total amount of these products
in the gas The entire removal of the naphthalene at this point is of great
.

importance be cause if any remains in the gas it crystalli z es out and d o gs

, , ,

the gas l ines From the scrubbers the oil c arrying the benzene toluene ,
.
, ,

etc is pumped t o the benz ol plant , whic h serves both units of the pl ant
.
, ,

while the gas , no w free d from all except its fixe d gases is di vided half , ,

being sent t o the fuel lines t o he at up t he ovens and half t o the booster
station where it is c ompresse d by ste am turbo blowers and delivere d t o
,
-

the mill s as surplus gas The l oss in heating power of the gas from a given .

quantity of coal due t o the remov al of t he b y products amount s to about

,
-
,

S EC T I O N x .

T HE B E N Z OL PLA NT .

Li g h t Oi l
: At the benz ol pl
ant the wash oil , c arrying in solution the
benzene naphthalene and their homolo gues i s first delivere d t o the wash
, , ,

oil or separating still s I n order to c onserve as much heat as possible

, , .
,

th e i nflo wi ng wash oil is made t o serve as a c ondensing liquid for the

'

'

vapors from t he still After leaving t he c ondensers or he at exchangers

.
, ,

t he oil passes t o preheaters or superheaters in which its t emperature is , ,

raise d t o about 145 O and much of the benz ol is vaporized The oil then
°
. .

asses t o t he stills w here it c o mes into direc t c ontact with steam which
‘

p ,

dr ives o ff t he hi gher boiling oil s and naphthalene Since the wash oil has .

a muc h hi gher boilin g point than t he hydrocarbons i t is desire d to rec over ,

onl y a small portion of it escapes from the stills The vapors from the .

sti l ls , _p ass ing into the c ondensers or he at exchangers are c oole d and c on , ,
“ ”
dense t o form a liquid known as li ght oil which flows fro m the bottom , ,

of the c ondensers into storage tanks The wash oil , whic h is no t vapor .

i z e d flows from the bottom of the stills and i s conducted t o heat e xch ang
, .
ers and then to water c oolers where its temperature is l owered to 3 0 C
°
.

From these c oolers it is pum ped back to the oil scrubbers and c an be used ,

repeatedly H owever there is a daily loss of approximately

.
,

C o m po si tio n o f t h e Lig h t Oil: The light oil is pumped from the

storage tan k t o the crude still T he c omposition of a li ght oil is approx
.

im a te ly as foll ows :
Li ght Runnings (benz ol and carbon bisulphide ) .

Pure Ben z ol .

P ure Toluol .

No 1 Refined Solvent Naphtha

.

No 2 Crude H eavy S olvent Naphtha

.

Crude Naphthalene 40% by wei ght . .

Wash Oil .

C o ns t r u c t i o n Pr i nc i p l
The crude still c onsists
a nd es o l:
f th e S t i l
of three sections The l owest section is a horiz ontal cylinder provi ded
.

with steam c oils and has a c apacity of ,

gall ons ; the s econd p art ,
c alled the fractionating column , is a vertic al column mounte d upon th is
cyli nder and co m p o se d of thirty one bel l sections for s crubbing the vapo rs
.
-

as they pass upward ; the thir d part mounte d o n top o f the c olumn and ,

called the dephlegmator , is a short horiz ontal cylind e r , t hat contains a

number of water coole d pipes and acts as a partial con d enser The separa .

tion of light oil into its c omponent oils is e ffected by takin g advantage of their
di fferent boilin g points As the temperature of t he li ght oil i s r aised and ap
.

p ro ac he s the boiling poin t of t he firs t runnings t hi s l i qui d i s vaporize d and ,

passes up through the c olumns ; a portion of t he other o il s w ith hi gher b oiling

points is also vaporized bu t is c ondensed befor e re achin g the top of the c ol
,

um n . There are thus two movements in the fractionatin g column and de

phl e gm ato r , the vapors g oing upward and the c ondense d oil s flowing d o wn

ward into t he still The vapors are thus forced t o p ass through the return
.

oils whi ch aid in c ondensing t he vaporized oils of hi gher boilin g points and
permit only the lighter vaporized oils t o r e ach the top of the d e ph l ‘
e gm at o r ,

where they are c ondense d an d flo w from the still t hr ough a manifol d into
the storage tanks As the temperatur e o f the stil l is further r aised the
.
,

benzol toluol e t c i s successively vaporize d an d c ondensed , and flows from

, ,
.
,

the still H owever it is impossibl e t o separate absolutely t he b e nz o lfrom

.
, ,
‘

the toluol since before the benz o l i s completely driven over , some t oluol will
, ,

be carried al ong w ith it I t is likewise impossible t o separate absolutely one

.

from another the o ther c onstituent oils Hence i t is onl y aime d t o separate .
,

roughl y the light oil into what are termed fractions These fracti ons d e si g .
,

nate d in the order in which they are made are as foll ows : Li gh t Runnings , ,

Crude 90% Benz 0 1 Crude 90% Toluol C rude Ligh t S olvent Naphtha C rude
, , ,

Heavy S olvent Naphtha and S till R esidue Each fraction is stored in a .

separate tank .

Ope t io n o f t h e C r u d e
ra S ti l
l: The details of the operati on of the
crude still are as follows : gall ons of light o i lare charged The .
104 F UE LS

G als . Product .

790 R R .
—
(Rerun ) Benzol G re ater portion .

Benzol part Toluol ,

.

R esidue 4496 Principally Toluol .

Frac t ion 2 being pure benzol is no t further tre at ed and is re ady for the
, , ,

market The reru n (R R ) benz ol fraction 1 an d 3 an d t he residue are

. . .
, ,

stored in separate tanks When a suffi cient quanti t y of a R R fracti on

. . .

has accumul ated the pure still c an be charged with it and a C P

,
.

( chemic ally pure ) product obtained as is sho w n by the follo w ing data ,

Still Charge G als .

R R Benz ol . . .

Time G als P roduct

—
. .

16 % hrs . 2 550 R R B enz ol c ontaining C arbon Bisulphide

. . .

39 10900 C P Benz ol . . .

10 —
1750 R R Benz ol G re ater portion Benz ol part
. .
,

Toluol .

650 R R Toluol —P art Benz ol greater portion

. .
,

Toluol .

5 13 00 C P Toluol . . .

Residue 1050 Toluol and S olvent Naphtha

Fraction 2 and 5 being C P are re ady for the marke t the other
.

fractions are store d and when a suf

, ,
.

, fi cient amount i s collecte d are distilled ,

l i ke the R R Benzol charge j us t describe d I t i s not essential that the

. . .

pure still be charge d with a straight R R or 90% product as a mixture . .

,

of the two is often distill e d as foll ows

—
Still Charge 6800 G als 90% Washed Toluol . .

10 150 R R Toluol . . .

G als . Produc t .

16 10 R R Benz ol —gre ater portion Benz ol part

. .
,

Toluol .

5130 R R Toluol —gre ater portion T oluol part

. .
,

Benz ol .

6950 C P T oluol . . .

400 R . R .
—
Toluol gre ater portion Toluol part ,

Naphtha .

28 60 Resid ue —Toluol and Naphtha .

It
is thus apparent that the li ght oi l w il l e ventually be completely
worked up into its pure product There is one exception however in that
.
, ,

the light runnings containing t he c arbon bisulphide c annot be separated by

fractional distill ation The crude c arbon bisulphide benz ol is the fi rSt
.

1600 gallons that come over lin the crude still This is pl ace d in a .

separate tank , int o which the forerunnings or c arbon bisulphide benz ol , ,

from the pure still is also collected When gall ons of this product .
,

containing approximately 3 % c arbon bisulphide is c olle cted it is pl aced , ,

 BENZ OL , T OL UOL, NA P H T HA 105

in the 90 % crude still The first 4000 g allons condensed is benz ol

.

containing 10% carbon bisulphide the remaining port ion 1 s 90 % benz ol , ,

which is transferred t o the crude 90% benzol tank Onl y a restricte d .

market has s o far been found for the 10% carbon bisulphide benz ol .

S EC T I O N X l .

S OME P R OP E R T I E S A N D U S E S OF T H E R AW
BY- P R OD U CT S F R OM T H E COK E W OR K S .

C h a r ac te
i i o f Be nz o lTo l
r s t cs uola n d Na p h t h a : ,While t he names
benzol toluol xylol and naphtha ar e those commonly applie d in commerce
, , ,

chemical names used t o desi gnate correspondi ng pure compounds are

benzene toluene xylene c umene e tc Naphtha is a mixture of several
, , , , .

compounds including xylene cumene and others so it has no chemical

, , ,

name A S previously indicated these compo unds are members of the

.
,

aromatic or benzene series of hydrocarbons represented by the general

, ,

formul a CnH 2n_ 6 The empirica l formul as for benzene C e H e and toluene
.
, , ,

C7 H 8 , represent indivi dua l compounds but these formulas for xyl ene , ,

C n o an d cumene , On g , r e present series of 1so m e ri c compounds , which

, ,

though they are members of t he same series and may have the same form ula ,

differ widel y in properties Thus the formul a C sH m m ay represent

.
,

\
orthoxylene H—C C—
CH 3 ; met axylene H C -
C—
H;

H — CG —
H
l
l GH
A -
C S

/
paraxylene , H C - —
C H ; or ethylben z ene , H—
C —
C H .

H t (L
I.

an.
The chief physical properties of the first and more important members
of the series are given in the following table w hich will also give some ,

i d ea of the method of naming the c ompounds

 106 F UELS

T ab l
e 13 . S om e Me m b e r s o f t h e Be nz e ne S e ri e s a nd
T h ei r P h y s i c a lP ro p e r t ie s .

FORM LAS U Spe cific

NAME
Ratio nal

Ce Hc . . (36 11 6 Be nz e ne Cl
e ar Li q ui d +54

0 7 11 8 . 0 6H5 . CH3

0 3 11 1 0 0 6 11 4 . (C H 8 )2

—28

C e H s (0 2 H 5 )
. E t y le n z e ne
h b .

0 9 11 1 2 C e H s (C H 3 )3
.

0 6 H 5o O3 H 7
P r o p yl
b e nz e ne .

0 1 0 11 1 4 0 6H2 P r e h i t e ne o r
T e tr a

M e th y l
i so
p ro p y l
b e nz e ne
and s o o n t o 0 2 5 H 44.
 P URE BE NZ 0 L 109

fuel than with gasoline Wh en properly handled , motor benzol gives from
.

20% to 3 0% greater mileage tha n does gasol in e At the present time motor .

benzol is m ade under the followi ng specifications :

Co lor Water white -
.

Distillation Start 78 to 82 C ° °
.

Dry not higher than

°
135 C .

No 9, or better .

S ul phur content not to exceed

T he wash test is made by agitating equal quantities usual ly 20 c c ,

.
,

of the oil and pure sulphuric acid in a glass tube and comparing the color
wi th that of numbered standards the first of whi ch No 1, is perfectly clear
'

, , . .

P ro pe r t i e s Use s o f P u re Be nz o lo r Be nz e ne : The chief physic al

a nd ,

properties of this ve ry interestin g substance have already been given .

C oncerning its chemical properties and us es it may be said that it is one ,

of the most interesting and us eful c ompounds known t o t he chemical

’

profession This fac t is more fully appreciated when i t is known t ha t it

.

is the base from w hich such drugs as phenol hyd ro q uino n antipyrin and , ,

acetanilid ; such dye stuffs as resorcinol benzidine aniline and indi go ; and
, , ,

such e xplosiv es as nitrobenzol and picric acid are prepared The relations .

of benzene to these c ompounds is best sho wn briefly by means of some

such diagram as that on the O pposite pa ge .

To illustrate the reactions by means of which some of the more

important c ompounds are derive d from benzene the following tables have ,

been prepared :

T ab l
e 15 . Re ac t i o n s S h o w i n g Ho w A ni l
i ne a nd Be nz i d i ne A re
De rive d fr o m Be n z e n e .

C 6 H 6 + HN0 3 (H 2 S O4 )= C 6 H 5 N0 2 + H2 0 (H 2 8 0 4 )
Nit r o Be nz e ne .

o H -
N
—
l2K2 Sn0 3
-

Ni t ro Be nz e n e . Az o b e nz e ne .

:
C 6 H 5 N0 2 + 6H C 1+ 3 Fe SFe C 12 + 211 2 0
Ni t r o Be n z e ne . A n il i n e .

C aH s N OGH4 NH 2 ,

Az o b e nz e ne . Be nz i d i ne .

Substantive C otton D yes .

 110 F UE LS

T ab l
e 16 . Re ac tio n s S h ow i n g Ho w Ph e n o l
, Pi c r i c Ac i d a nd

Re s o rc i n olM ay Be De r ive d fr o m Be nz e ne .

C e H c -l —
H z S O4 =H 2 0 .
H
0 6 H5
> S OS
Be n z e ne S u l
p h o n i c Aci d .

K
> S Og + KOH = > S0 3 H2 0
Ce H 5
Po t a s s i u m Be n z e n e S u l
p h o n a te .

K
S Og + 2KOH = K2 S Os + C e H 5 OK+ H 20
CG H 5
(He ate d to fusio n) P o t as s i u m P h e na t e :

2 C 6 H 5 OK+ H 2 S O4
=2C 6 H 5 OH + K2 S 0 4 '

P h e no l .

H
C e H 5 OH + H 2 S O4 = H 2 0+ > S Os
0 H 0 6 H4
‘

Ph e no l Pa r a Be n z e ne S u l h o ni c A ci d
.
p .

H
> S Os + 2KOH =K2 8 0 3 + H 2 O+ Ce H4 (OH )2
OH C G H 4
Me ta d i h yd ro xy b e nze ne l
o rRe s o rci no l
(Re s o rci ne )
Bas e o f m an y col
o rs .

O
NO
2C 6 H 5 OH + 6 H N0 3 = 2C 5 H 2 <
H
Ph e no l
.
Pic r i c Ac id .
112 F UE LS
 NAP H T H A L ENE 1 13

Us e s o f Na p h t h al
e ne : C1 0 H 8 does not belong t o the benzene series ,

—
C nH zn G but is the first member of a series represented by the general
,
“

—
formul a CnH zn 12 ,
by the structural formul a H H
C C

H C
-
C C—
H

H C
-
C C H
-

C C

H H

It is used as an antiseptic and insecticide and is familiar to every one ,

l
l
’

in the fo rm o f m oth b a s . But its real importance lies in the fact that

it is the base from which many dyest uffs are prepared chief of which , is

indigo . T he steps by which this important dye is derived from naphthalene

are about as follows : (1)Naphth al

e ne C1 0 H 8 i s heate d with fuming sulphuri c , ,

acid and mercury which acts as a catalyti c agent whereupon there

, ,
is

formed phthalic acid Cg H4 (COOH )2 (2)which on being he ate d

, , , ,
.
p asse s into

phthalic anhydride , (3 ) from which phthalimide ,

C6 H4 <
88 > NH , is obtained with the aid of ammonia and heat

By oxi dizing phthalimide with bleaching powder anthranilic acid , ,

C 6 H 4 NH 2 C OOH
~ .
is formed , (5) which is changed by treatment with

m o l
no ch o a ce ti c acid to phenyl glycine o rtho c arboxylic acid C 6 H 4 -OOOH
- - -
,

N H C H z C OOH (6 ) By fusing this compound with c austic soda indoxyl

- -
, , ,

C gi f4 NH CO-C H 2 , .
is formed and is readily o xi di zed by the oxygen of the

air to indi gotin ,

C 6 H4 N H C O
. »
or indigo blue-
. T he

following table will serve to S how the many other dyestu ff s that may be

obtained from naphthalene

1 14 F UE L S

T ab l
e 18 . S h ow i n g S om e Pro d u c t s De r ive d fr o m Na p h t h al
e ne .

N A PH T H A L E N E
CI OH S

Naphthionic A cid Phthalic A cid N i tr o naph th a l

e ne 00 and BNaphthols

888E
I
f
8 C 1 0 H 7 N0 2 C lo H 7 OH
0 1 o He Ce H4
1“

Dye I ndi go Dye E xpl osives D ye S tuffs such a s

S t uffs S tuffs Biebrich s carlet ,

M a r t i u S and
N ap h t h o lyellow .

C ongo R e d

la
qj
S
C cH4 N2 0 1 0 H 5
l
UH N 0
6 4 2 10 H5
fiq
Na

T ar : obtained from gas works as well as from

As product c oke by
-

pl ants t ar 1 s a bl ack visc o us oily l iquid with a specific gravity that varies
, , , ,

from to tha t from coke works havin g a gravity of ab out

I t also varies a great de al in other respe c ts e spe cially i n c omposition ,
.

I t is a very c omple x substance ; t he number of its c ompo unds have

been estimate d at about 300 only some of which have been isol ated in the
,

l aboratory and but a very few in the c ommercial working up o f t he l i quid .

I n the crude state i t may b e use d as a fue l and for road dressing but by , ,

refining it is made to yiel d a great number of products of grea t e conom ic

,

and hygienic importance The refining of tar forms an industry b y i tself

.
,

which requires volumes t o describe in all its detail s Su ffice it t o s ay .

,

that the refining of tar is essentially a process o f fractiona l distillati on ,

in which it is first separate d roughl y into severa l parts whi ch m ay

‘ ,

then be further rectifie d into purer substances as shown in the fol l owing
diagram which is also made to indicate the uses t o which the produc ts
,

are applied .
1 16 A M M ON I UM S UL P H A T E

Am m o nia as concentrated ammonia liquor (NH4 OH and H z O ) i s

,
,

use d in making anhydrous ammonia gas (N H g ) for refrigeration purp oses

and the aqua ammonia of commerce use d for cleani n g I t is also use d in ,
.

the manufacture of baking soda and a l arge number of ammonium salts ,

such as ammonium chloride and ammonium nitrate The last name d salt .

is ext ensively used in the manufacture of explosives By passing ammonia .

and air over heate d platinum black , t he former is oxidize d t o ni tri c acid ,

and l arge quantities of ammonium nitrate are now pro duce d by this method .

Ammonia is used extensively in dye works and a considerabl e amount is ,

consum ed by chemists in analytical l aboratories .

Am o ni u m S u l
m p h a te (NH4 )2 SO4 is a white crystalline sal t very
, , ,

soluble in w ater and easily de compose d by hea t , be ginnin g at into

N H4 H SO4 and NH3 and at a re d heat into N H3 S0 2 and H 2 0
, ,
Unlike , .

most ammonium s al ts i t cannot be sublimed As obtained from the c oke

,
.

works it is slightly discolored by s mal l amounts of various impurities

,

which it is impossible t o exclude entirely I t is use d for a number of .

purposes including the preparation of ammonium persulphate and ni trate

, ,

but its great field of usefulness is exhibited as a commercial agricul tural

fertilizer William H C hilds of the Barrett C o who has made a careful
. . .

study of the use of the salt for this pu rpose speaks thus of it :

Us e o f Am p h a t e a s a Fe r t i l
o ni u m S u l m iz e r S ulphate of ammonia
i s extensively used in ready mixe d fertilizers , w hich is the form generally
p urchased by the American farmer These usuall y contain aci d phosphate .

and potash together with sulphate of ammonia , t ankage cotton see d meal
, ,
-
,

etc Sulphate of ammonia is dry in its nature and makes an exce l lent
. .
,

mixture as far aS m e ch ani c a lcondition goes w ith t he added advantage

\
,

that it does not react with the other fertilizer chemic als t o c ause l o ss of
nitrogen or reversion of the acid phosphate both of which points are cl aimed ,

against nitrate of soda The nitrogen in sulphate of ammoni a i s qui c k to

.

act , is not easily leached out of the soil , an d i t c ontinues its action o ver a
considerabl e period so that the growing pl an t i s c arried alon g t o maturity
,

without setback I ts only disadvantage is the t endency t o exhaust the

.

lime in t he soil Whil e this poin t is apt t o be urge d by A gri cult ural Exp e ri
.

ment S tation men it is really of minor importance bec a use t he actual

,

amount of sulphate of ammonia in the usua l ferti lizer appli cation is small ,

and its nitrogen is relatively so much more benefi cial t o t he growth of the
c rop . The l imin g of t he soil which of c ourse overcom e s al l obj ections
, , , ,

is urgently re commende d by al l Experiment S tation advisers and in l arge ,

are as of t he Eastern S tate s is practically the foundation of profit abl e

agriculture On t he other hand in some soils as in t hose of S out hern
.
, ,

C alifornia and par ts of T exas which t end t o excess of alkali the a c t ion
, ,

of sulphate of ammonia is pe culiarly beneficial I n some soils sulph ur i s .

l acking s o that the sulphur in sulphate of ammonia actually acts as a

,
”
plant food .
 FL UX E S 1 17

C HA PT ER V .

F L U X ES A N D S L A G S .

S EC T I O N I

FL U XE S .

Sm el t i ng a n d t h e Fu nc t io ns o f a Fl
ux : Any me tallurgical operation
in which the metal sought is separated i n a state of fusion from t he , ,

impurities with which it may be chemically combine d or physically mixed

is calle d s m e l t i ng Since bot h these conditions with regard t o impurities
. ,

are usually present smelting involves two processes ; namely the reduction
, ,

of the metal from its compounds and its separation from the me chanical
mixture M any of these impurities m ay be of a highly refractory nature
.
,

and if the y were t o remain unfuse d they w oul d cho k e up t he furnace retard
, ,

the separation of the metal and interfere in various other ways with the
sme lting To render such substances more e asily fusible is t he p r i m a ry
.

f u nc t io n o f a fl ux A gain some elements being reduced almost simul

.
, ,

tane o usl y with the metal combine chemically with i t while other elements
, ,

and some radicals chemically combined with the metal in the raw m ate r i a l
, s ,

refuse to be separate d from it except t here be present s ome substance for

,

whi ch they have a greater chemical affini ty To furnish a substance with l .

l
whi ch these elements and rad icals may combine 1n preference to the metal
is t h e s e c o nd fu nc t io n o f t h e fl ux .

T he Se l
e ct io n o f t h e Pr o p e r Fl
ux fo
is then chiefly r a G ive n P r o ce ss , ,

a chemica l problem and requires a k nowledge of the chemic al composition

of all the material s entering into the process With this knowledge in .

hand the sele ction will be governe d by well known physical and chemical
,
~

laws chief of which is t he action of acids and bases toward each other
,

and the fusibil ity of the various compounds thus forme d I n general if . .
,

the matter to be fl uxe d is basi c such as lime magnesia and other compounds
, ,

of bas e form ing elements the flu x mus t b e aci d while if the impurities be
, ,

acid such as silic a and phosphoric acid a basic flux will be required I n
, , .

most ores the impurities will bel ong t o both cl asses with one or the other
cl ass usually the acids predominating I n a few iron ores t he two classes
, , .
~

of impurities are s o well bal ance d as t o render the ores self fluxi ng or by -
,

proper mixing they can be made so I norder to control fusibility a neutr a l

.
,

flux 1s sometimes required The cos t of t he fl ux 1S also t o be considered

.
,

hence the natural deposits of greatest purity that are easy of access and i n
1 18 FL UXE S

close proximity t o the works are made use of A brief discussion of th e .

fluxes of greatest importance in the iron and steel industry foll ows :

Ac i d Fl uxe s : S ilica
is the only substance that may be classe d as a
strictly acid flux Fo r this purpose i t is avail able as sand gravel and
. ,

quartz in large quantities and m a sufficientl y p ure state I n blast furnace .

practice it is
,
customary t o employ acid open hearth or Bessemer sl ags or
ores of hi gh silica content when it i s desire d t o increase the acids 1n the
furna ce as i n this w ay th e metallic contents of these substances are recovered
, , ,
.

Al
u m i na : Unlike
silica which is a strong acid under all c onditions
, ,

alumina may perform either the function of an acid or a base depending ,

upon the conditions imposed Thus with S ili ca it forms alum i num silicate
.
, , ,

and with a strong base such as s odium sodium aluminate A marked

, ,
.

peculiarity is its t endency to form in conj unction with other bases double , ,

salts with polybasi c a cids As a rule , double s ilicates are more e asily
.

fused than those cont aining a s1ngl e base Alumina i s sel dom use d inte n .
«

ti o na l
ly as a flux but it is present
,
in nearly all raw m aterial he nce una v o id ,

able .

Basi c Fl The chief natural fluxes of this class are l imestone and
u xe s :

dolomite I n addition , iron and manganese o xides act as such in certain

.

processes where t heir performing this f unction i s uncontroll able , as i s the -

case in the acid open hearth Referrin g t o limestone and dol omite as blast
.

furnace materials there is a di fference of opinion among furnacemen as to

,

their rel ative value as fluxes S ome hol d that limestone is t he b etter .
,

while others maintain that dolomite gives as good if not better results , ,

their opinions usually being infl uenced by their training and by the extent
of the ir experience with thes e materials The presence of m agnesium in .

l imestone in small amounts has little e ffe ct but as the c ont en t i ncreases , ,

it may lower the fusion point of the resul tant sl ag by the form ation of
double salts A high percentage (over
. of magnesia in bl as t furnace
sl ag renders i t undesirable for cement but for c oncrete ballas t e tc it is , , ,
.
,

desirable as i t makes the slag harder A side from this obj e ction not
, .
,

one of much weight the factor that governs the choice betwe en l imestone
, (

and dol omite is the cost per ton of available base .

Ava i l
ab l
e Ba se : By
available base is me ant the amoun t of basic
substance that remains in the raw flux after the acids of its own
content are satisfied Referring t o the analysis of l ime stones on a
.

'

succee ding page i t is a t once notice d t ha t t he total is no t

, The
substance that 1s missing is carbon di oxide which cons titute s 44 0 % of pure ,
.

calcium carbonate and being evo l ve d as a gas is seldom dete rm in

, , ed m ,

making an analysis Using the Bessemer stone as an example and

.

remembering that the iron and phosphorus are c ompletely reduced in the
120 S LAGS

'

iron for basic open hearths An analysis typical of e a ch o f these grades is

.

shown in the foll owing table

e 20 Re p re se n t a t ive A na l
Ta b l .
ys e s o f t h e T h re e Diffe re n t G ra d e s
o f Li m
e s to n e .

Open H earth Bessemer Pi g Basic Pi g

S ilica 80
I ron 10 30 . 60
033 %
0

P hosphorus 005% 006 %

M oisture 10 60 60
A lumina 16 86 70
Lime
M agnesia 47 68

Ne u t ra lFl
uxe s : the purpose of ma king slags more fusible without
Fo r

changing their acidity or basicity neutra l substances having very l ow

-
,

fusion points may be used This practice is common in b asic open hearths
.
.

Fluorspar is the substance generally used t hough c al cium chl oride c an be ,

substituted .

S ECT I O N I I .

S LA G S .

Sl
ag is the name applied to the fuse d product formed by the action
of the flux upon the gangue of an ore and fue l or upon the oxidized impurities ,

in a metal AS previously indicated it results from the neutraliz ation of

.
,

bases and acids hence corresponds t o the salts of wet chemistr y The
,
.

Word cinder is used interchangeable with S l ag bu t c inder is also applie d ,

t o refuse in a solid form .

Fu nc t io n s o f S l ag s : On account of their fusibility , chemical activity ,

di ssolving power , and l ow density , sl ags furnish the means by which the
impurities are separated from t he metal and removed from the furnace .

I ncidentally they perform other important func t ions

, Lying upon the .

molten metal they serve as a bl anket to protec t i t from the i nj urious action
,

of hot gases and being poor c onduc t ors th e y prevent over heating of the
, ,

metal and at the same time conserve its heat by preventin g radiat ion .

S ince they possess the power of dissolving oxides they mar k a sharp l ine ,

between reduced and unreduced material , and on thi s acc oun t serve t o k eep
the metal clean .

Impo rta nce o f S la gs : I n the metallurgy of iron the importance of ,

slags cannot be over emphasized In the blast furnace they furnish the .

only positive means of removing sulphur and as their fusion temperature , ,

varies w ith their composition they are one of the me a ns by which he arth ,

temperature is re gul ated On t his a ccount the sla g control s t o the gre atest
.
,

extent the qual ity of the iron produce d In the open he arth p articularly .
,

in th e b a si c process the sl ag is the only me ans by w hich the impuritie s

’

,
 S LA GS 121

in pig iron excepting c arbon are remove d To the metallur gist a know
, ,
.

ledge o f the properties of slags is essenti al H e understands their .

ch e mic al behavior , knows their formation temperatures fusibility and ,

fluidity and how t o control these factors

,
.

T he i ca lC o m po s i tio n o f S l
Che m a gs is within the c ontrol of the

metallurgist and by varying it S lags of almost any set of properties desired

, ,

may be pro duced S lags are mainly c omposed of two or more silicates in
.

which o t her substances are dissolved or suspended In the blast furna ce the .
,

S l a g wi l l c onsis t principally of calcium silicate with a par t of which the ,

magnesium charged i nto t he furnace will be found as a double salt The .

same may also be the c ase with t he small quanti t ies of iron manganese , ,

and t races of alkali found in these sl ags The sulphur remove d wil l be in the
.

form of C a S which dissolve s in this mixt ure A s t o the state o f alumina

, .
,

whi ch usually makes up 12% or more of the sl a g, t her e i s room for d oubt .

By som e i t is considered as a base ; by others an acid As noted under t he, .

headin g of fluxes i t ha s t he properties of both an acid and a base H ence

, .
,

being governe d by the Law of Mass A ction it acts as a stabilizer t o main

'

tain a kind of e quilibrium between acids and bases In a hi ghly silicious .

slag i t may side with lime t o form a double silicate while in a s t rongly ,

basi c s l ag it t akes t he place of S ilic a in neutralizing lime and magnesia .

S ince i t has very w ea k properties in either dire ction it seems re as onable ,

t o suppose t ha t , in a c as e wher e l ime and silic a are in stable proportions ,

all or a part of t he alumina m ay play a neutral part and dissolve in

the sl ag I n ordinary blas t furnace practice , however , the sum of the
.
-

silica and alumina (Si 0 2 + A120 3 ) i s c onsidere d as the acid of t he sl ag ,

while lime plus magnesia (CaO+M gO)is ta ken t o represent the base .

Re l
a t io n o f Acid s a s t F u r n ace S l
t o Ba s e s i n B l a gs : By chemic al
analysis of bl ast furnace sl ags it is found that usually S i Oz + A 120 3 = = , ,

about 48 % of the sl ag the ratio of Si Oz t o A12 0 3 being about 2 1 After

, .

de ducting from the l im e e nough t o s atisfy the sulphur, t he sum of the

remaining l ime toget her with t he magnesi a (Ca O+M gO)will also be about
This relation of acid t o base will generally vary t hrough a range of
.

about an y incre ase in one being followe d by a corresponding decrease

in the other The remaining 4% t o 5% is made up of Ca S and small am ounts

.

of ferrous and manganous o xides A s previ ously indicated t he ratio of

.
,

lime t o magnesia may vary somewha t without noti ceably a ffe cting the
properties of the sl ag The following r e sults of an analysis represent a
.

sl ag production by a furnace making basi c iron .

Ta b l
e S h o w i n g Re l
a t io n o f Ac i d s to Bas e s a s t F u r n ac e S l
i n Bl a gs .

A cids Bas e s
S10 2 Ca O Fe O
A 120 3 M gO MnO
S
122 S LA GS

Ra tio o f Ac i d s to Base s i n O pe n He a r t h S l
basic open hearth
a gs : Final
slags contain a much higher percentage of bases than blast furnace slags
and a much lower percentage of acids The lime and magnesi a will always .

be more than twice t he S ilica alumina and phosphorus S ome open hearth
,
.

furnacemen hold that the best results are obtained when the percentage
Q
of lime plus magnesia in the final slag is three times that of the silica The .

strong basic character of basi c sl ags is necessary for the removal of phos
p h o rus and the small and variable amo u nts of sulphur possible by the
process If the percentage of lime is too high t he sl ag will be viscous
.
,

and retard the working of the heat The foll owing analysis i s the average
.

tapping sl ags from thirteen basic furnaces .

Ta b l
e 22 . Re l
a t i o n o f Ac i d s Bas e s i n Bas i c S l
ag s .

A cids , per cent . Bases , per cent .

Si 0 2
1112 0 3
P2 0 5
S 04
S0 3 23

to Base i n Ac i d Fu r n ace s : Both in the acid open hearth and

Ac id
in the acid Bessemer processes the slags will c onsist practically of the , ,

oxides of iron and manganese silicates I n both c ases the silic a S i 0 2 is

.
, ,

usually about that in t he aci d Open hearth is sel dom higher t han
52% or lower than while acid c onverter slag will sometimes Ic o ntai n
as hi gh as The remainder of about 50% will consist of Fe O and
MnO together with s mall amounts of lime and magnesia and traces of
,

phosphorus and sulphur Acid open hearth sl ags are s elf re gulating as to
.

the amount of Fe O and Mn0 These o xides in such sl ags are always
.
, ,

present in such q uantities that t heir combined percen tage is equal to about
4 6 % Of the slag .

e c t ric S t e e lF u r nace
El Sl
ags :
c omposition of these slags is T he
affe cte d by the kind of steel made and the metho d of refinement use d .

H owever , the final sl ag of an ele ctri c s teel that is the slag formed near , ,

the en d of the reduci ng period shoul d be very basic very l o w in iron and
, ,

manganese conten t and S how a goodly percentage of c al cium c arbide T he .

following analysis may be considere d as representing a good average fi ni s h

ing slag for this process :
S ilic a , I ron , Magnesia ,
M anganese ,

Sulphur , C al cium C arbide , A lumina ,

d b y S il
'

Ac i d s Fo rm
"

e i c o n : A study of
sl ags is facilitate d by a study “

of the acids of silicon T he re a re a number

of these acids which chemists
‘

conside r as being derive d from orthosilicic acid H 4 Si 0 4 or (H 2 0 )2 S iOz , , , ,

124 S LA GS

combined according to this relatio n A s a result of thi s co m b i nati o n the

.
,

excess acids of fuel and ore are found and the available base of the flux
, .

T hese quantitie s being combine d in accordanc e with the slag ratio will
, ,

then with the exception of variations in fuel c onsumption fix the rel ations
, ,

of the t hree materials .

T ab l
e 24 . Me t h o d o f Cl
a s s i fyi n g S l
a gs .

S esqui oxide Oxygen Oxygen

Base in B ase in A cid Name
(A 120 3 )4 (S10 2 )3 2 1 Subsilicate
(A 120 3 )2 (S 10 2 )3 1 1 M onosilicate
(A 120 3 )4 2 3 S esquisilicate
( 2 3) (
A 1 0 - Si 0
2)3 1 2 Bisilicate
(A 120 3 )2 .
1 3 T risilicate

Use s o f Sl
ag s :
While to the me t allurgist sl ags represent refuse no
longer useful to his art they may be applie d t o many purp oses R ailroad
, .

ballast road building roof covering concrete work P ortland cement

, , , , ,

ins ulating mat erials fertilizers brick and san d for mortar are some of
, , ,

the avenues open for the e c o gpm i c disposal of slags .

 P I G I RON 125

C HAPT E R vi .

T HE MA NU FA C T UR E OF PI G I RON .

S ECT I O N I .

S OM E I NTE R E S TI N G HI S T OR ICAL F ACT S .

Ea rl
y Hi s to ry f Ir o n :
While the sol e purpose of this chapter is to
o
1

describe the manufacture of pig iron as carried on at the present t ime one ,

or two of the many interesting topics presented by t he historica l aspe cts

of the subj ec t wi ll b e found pert inent A word as t o the ori gin of the use .

of iron wil l s erve t o emphasiz e the process of evolution through whi ch t his
wonde rfulindustry has passed in attaini n g its present state of a dvanced
devel opment When iron was first used no one knows for tha t da t e belongs
.
, ,

to prehistoric times Ar chaeolo gical research c an onl . y establish that it

has been in use by man t hr ough a period of abou t four thousand years .

Evidence as t o the e xtent of its use d uring the firs t three thous and years
of this perio d is l acking but it is very probable that the metal w as used
,

muc h more extensively than the few specimens uncovere d woul d indicate .

The corrosive properties of iron make it t o the archaeolo gist , a perishabl e ,

substance tha t leaves no trail If the use of iron on this c ontinen t were .

to cease suddenl y today no e vidence of its present extensive appl ication ,

woul d be expe cted a t housand years hence Therefore onl y oc casional ly .

,

is some implement or ornament found among ancient ruins There is .

doubtfule vidence of its use by the E gyptians in building the p yramids -

,

abou t 4000 B C As t o its use by the ancient H ebrews by the As syrians

. .
,

abou t 1400 B C , and more recently by the G reeks there can be no doub t
. .
, , ,
.

The G ree ks were foll owed by the R omans who be came somewhat profi cient
in its metallurgy These people thr ough their numerous and extensive
.
,

conquests the success of which they no doubt owe d to the use of metal s
,

in making their instruments of war spread the art of e xtracting and ,

fashionin g it throughout E urope S ome knowledge of the metal however .

, ,

precede d them for C aesar cross ing the English C hannel found it i n use
, , ,

amon g the native Britons Durin g the R oman o ccupation the industry .
,

grew t o one of importance in Engl and A t tha t time it w as obtaine d b y .

heatin g a mixture of ore and charcoal probably i n a flat bottom fu rnac e ,

or forge , u ntil there had collected a sm all body of pasty metal which was then
d rawn and work ed by hammering to make wrought iron Such briefly , wa s .
,

the process until 1350 when the iron makers of Central Europe succeeded in
,

producing iron that would mel t in the furnace and permit of casting T his .

result they accomplished in a new type of furnace built of masonry , which ,

enclosed a shaft or vertical opening in the form of two truncated cones placed
1 S e e M e tal
l i s h e d b y C h ar l
urgy o f I ro n b y T h o m a s T urne r p u b l e s G ri ffi n a nd C o , .

Lt d . , Lo nd o n .
126 P I G I RON

e n
d —in a crude way the lines of the modern blast furnace
to e nd, ,
lower . T he
frustum came to be known as the bo shes, the bo ttom , as the hearth In th is .

furnace , ore, flu x an d charcoal were charged in at the top of the furnace while ,

air under very lo w pressure, was blown in at the bottom This method was
,
.
,

introduced into Englan d about the year 1500 where, in 16 19 coke was first used , ,

to be foll owed 200 years or more later by the introduction of ho t bl ast

, , .

I n A me rica the first iron w o r kl

s was establishe d in V ir ginia on the J ames

River in 16 19 an d about 100 years lat e r (1710 1715)the first furnac e using
,
-

blas t was buil t Thence t he industry spread for the most part, westward
.
, .

Ol
d Am e rican Fu r nace s :
The furnace s of a period as re c ent as one
h undred years ago were what woul d now b e c alle d ve ry c rude affairs .

P orti ons of s ome of them are s till standing and one is within a two hour ,

ride o f Pittsburgh They were usually in the form of a truncated pyramid

.
,

twenty to t hi rty feet hi gh , and c onstructe d of stone wor k which encl o se d

a circul ar s h af t , s ome four fe et in diameter at the t op and abou t ei ght feet
at th e bosh The he arth w as either round or square in cross sec tion
. .

T h e capacity range d fro m one to six tons a day By the year 1880 this output .
,

had been gradually increased t o nearly 100 t ons pe r day with a daily ,

coke consumption of nearly 3 00 tons With all the basi c principles in use .

for s o l on g a time i t is remar k able that s o little pro gress was made
, .

Abou t 188 0, for reasons whi ch woul d be t o o lengthy t o explain here very
, ,

rapi d advancement was made , s o that now t here are furnaces whose daily
outpu t of pi g iron exceeds 600 t ons wi th a fue l consumption of less than
2000 pounds of co k e per ton of iron produced Attention has be en c alled .

to these facts here because i t is well t o remember in beginning the s tudy

,

of the modern blast furnace t ha t t he present metho d for the extra ction
,

of iron from its ores represent s a p yrochemic a l proces s j us t a t taining its

highest state of development .

T h e Im p o
t o f I ro n :
r a nce T hi s t opic needs no comm en t here Pi g .

iron besides bein g use d dire c t ly in t he form of cas t ings is t he int ermediat e
, ,

from which all ferrous products are derived I ts importance is emphasized .

by the reports of the yearly productions .

S EG T I O N I I .

UTI ON OF PI G I RON
COMP OS I TI ON AN D CON S TI T .

C o ns t i t u t io n o f Pi g I ro n : In the s olid form pig iron represents a ,

very complex mixture made up of uncombined elements chemical c ompounds ,

and all oys The amounts and relations of t hese constituents may vary
.

with c onditions s o t hat the c omplexity of the mixt ure does not depend
,

wholl y upon the num ber of elements present nor upon t heir amounts I nitial .

temperature and rate of c ool ing are two of the mos t imp ortant factors
a ffecting the properties of pi g iron T hese matters are of gre at importance
.

when the iron is t o be use d for castings and t o understand them full y requires
,

a very extended study of the subj ect This chapter has t o do mainly with
.

pi g iron as an intermediate product in the making of steel s o it will be ,

most profitable to discuss only the subj ect of its c omposition very briefly .
125 PI G I RON

note d Since i t tends to throw the carbon out of s olution silicon is

. ,

used to re gul ate the depth of chill in chilled cast i ngs A content of one .

e r cent S ilicon in or dinary low sulph ur iron renders i t d ifficult t o obt ain
p .

a chill Below thi s percenta ge the chill

.
ing properties of the iron are rou ghly ,
1
s tated in ,
inverse ratio to the amount of silicon present S ilicon also .

prevents blow holes , and tends to decrease the shrinkage i n white irons .

Ma ng a ne se alloys with iron in all proportions An alloy containing

.

10 to 25% manganese is calle d S pie gel . A lloys cont aining 40 t o 8 0% man

g anese are call e d ferro-manganese U p to one percen t m anganese

. tends to
s trength e n pi g iron I t decreases the bad e ffects of sulphur wit h which it
.
,

c ombines repl acing iron ,

I ts presence opposes that of sulphur s o that with
.
, ,

uniform raw materials furnace c onditions that give a high percentage of

,

m anganese tend to decreas e the percentage of s ul phur Hence in r e ason

"

.
,

able amounts o f about one per c ent it is desirable especi ally for basi c open , ,

hearth use where it als o aids in the elimination of sulphur I n Bessemer

,
.

p ractice 1ron w i th a manganese content of about 50 % is desirable The ele . .

ment i s o xi d 1z e d and unites with silic a t o form a S lag that fuses a t a com
,

p a r a ti ve ly low temperature and is very fluid s o that iron co nt a i ning a h i gh ,

e r percentage than t hat i nd i c ated by the l atter fi gure gives rise t o a condi
“ ”
tio n i n blowi n g known as a sloppy heat As t o whether manganese has .

a good or a bad effe c t on cast iro n there is much di f f erence of Opinion

, ,

some considering it almost as a cure for all troubl es an d others

condemnin g it as a source of m uch trouble espe cial l y i n chille d c astings , .

While it te nds to hold carbon in solution , chill produce d by increasin g the

man ganese c ontent a lone is s of t and tends t o S p a l l
l I n moderate amounts .

i t is sai d to prevent cracking of the surface and also spalling to s ome

e xt ent especially in chilled rolls Nearly 75% of the total amount of
,
.

manganese charge d into a blast furnace is obtaine d with the metal .

S ul
p h ur in pi g i ron is generally supposed to be inj urious t hough ,

recentl y the statement that the inferior qualities exhibite d by hi gh sulphur

iron is due entirely to its presence has been questioned Nevertheless as .
,

sulphur in steel is c onsidered undesirable and as the blast furnace a ffords the
only positive means of reducing it pi g iron containing less than 05% i s , .

desirabl e for makin g steel by all the fusion processes Sulphur with iron .

forms iron sulphide which is soluble in the metal and has a melting point
,

that is lower than the other constituents of the iron A c cording to s ome .

h
aut o ri ti e s
l this sulphide in iron used for c astings has a three fol d influence
, .

First it tends t o hol d the carbon in combined condition hence can be

, ,

us ed to increase the depth of chill in chille d castings ; second its l ow ,

melting point c auses it t o segregate as the iron solidifies thereby causing ,

the condition in castings known as bleeding ; third it increases the shrinkage ,

of the iron to a marked degree thus increasing the difficulty of making ,

ac curate castings and increasing the tendency to crac ks which are a result
1 Se e T h e P ri n c i p l
e s O r a ti o
n a n d P ro d u ct s o f th e B a s t F urn a c e l by J E
pf
l Hl
. .

l
, ,

J o hns o n J r P ub h s h e d b y
, . c G ra w - i B o o k C o m p an y I n c , N e w o rk . Y .
 GRA DES OF 129

Of the high shrinkage The chill i m parted by s ul phur is a very hard one
.
,

but is very brittle and somewha t unreliable .

Ph o s p h o r u s is the only element entering the blas t furnace over which

the skill of the furn ceman has absolutely no control I ts compounds are
a .

c ompletely reduced s o that al l the phosphorus in the raw materi als is foun d
,

in the metal Therefore its content must be re gulate d by proper selection

.
,

of raw materials Hi gh phosphorus c auses a s ligh t brittleness in pig iron

.
,

a nd has a marked effe ct upon the total c arbon Ferro phosphorus c ontaining .
-

abou t 15% pho sphoru s is carbonless Lesser amounts permit a pro

. .

p o rt i o na te i ncrease of c arbon s o that the total carbon in an iron c ontaining ,

. 2% phosphorus may be as high as In this respect its action is not

selective S ince the ratio of c ombine d t o graphiti c c arbon is not a ff e cted
,
.

P hosphorus is known t o form a compound Fe 3 P with iron but i t i s able , , ,

apparently t o combine with it in several proportions Ferro phosphorus .

-

c ontainin g as much as 25% phosphorus is now manufactured? I n iron for

casting pho sphorus exercises a b e ne fi ci e nt e ffe c t I t tends t o eli minate
, .

b low holes decreases S hrinkage and increases the fluidity

, Above 5% , . .

i t be gins to weaken iron s o the amoun t used wi ll be governed by t he use ,

t o which the casting i s t o be applied .

,

G ra d i ng Pi g Ir o n : is graded by chemi c a l anal ysis T here Pi g I ron

'

are s evera l systems employed many of which are somewha t el abo rate ,
.

The f oll owi n g t able , which includes other impor t ant blast furnace products
a s wel l as ordinary pi g iron S hows one of th e simple s t m e thods of classi ,

fi c at i o n

T ab l
e 25 . T he l
Me t a li c Pro d uc t s o f t h e Bl
a s t F u r n ac e .

RANGE I N PERCENT . OF

G RADE

No . 1 F o un d r y .

No . 2 F o un d ry .

No . 3 F o un d ry .

M al
le a bl
e C as ti ng .

F o rg e
A c i d B e sse m er .

B as i c B e s s e m er .

Lo w P h o s . A ci d I r o n
B as i c to
S p i e ge l
F e rr o - M ang ane s e , .

Fe rr o -
S i l ic o n
S il
i co - S p i e ge l
130 B LA S T F U RNA CE

S EC T I O N I I I .

A B RI EF O UT LI NE OF T H E P R OC ES S A ND E Q UI P M E N T F OR

T HE M A N UF A CT U RE OF PI G I RON .

T r e nd o f Mo d e rn I m p rove m e nt s : With the prece d ing brief summary

of the history importanc e and composition of pi g iron in mind the process
, , ,

by which it is manufactured furnishes a theme of great int eres t Apropos .

of this idea however it is to be observe d that a description of the modern

, ,

methods of manufacture is rendere d diffi cult both by the complexity of the

details of the process and by its recent rapid devel opment A S already .

pointe d out the fundamental principles ha ve remained uncha nged since

,

the foun d ing of the process be cause exp erience has demonstrated t hat t his
,

pro cess is the most practical A l limprovements t hen , have been made
.
,
"

with the aim of increasing the production and a t th e same t ime decreasing
the cost These obj ects have be e n attained t o a degre e almost approaching
.

perfe ction by the use of materials of greatest purity selected through ,

chemical control by increasing the size of furnaces by economies in fuel

, ,

consumption and by improve d methods of handlin g t he materials The

,
.

result is t ha t the sm al lp la nts of 100 years ago have been succeeded b y

‘

comple x and gig anti c a ffairs As the greatest changes have been brought
.

about since 1880 a comparatively re cent date the bl ast furnace plant is
, ,

just approaching the uniformity of perfection Furthermore S ince the .

,

improvements have been contributed by a grea t number of men it is not ,

t o be wondered a t tha t an inspection of the industry will reveal not only

di fferent stages of d evelopment but also many different me t hods of attaining
the s ame end The aims and fundamental principles being the _
.
same ,

howev e r the numerous plants whil e di ffering greatl y in detail will present
, , ,

certain simil arities in their gross features whi ch may profitabl y be reviewe d
before proceeding with the detaile d description .

Es s e n t i a l
s o f t h e P ro ce s s : the present pro cess for the Essentially ,
extraction of iron from its ores consists in charging a mixture of ore fuel , ,

and flux in proper proportions through a specially constructe d opening in

the top of a tal l cylindri cally shaped furnace c alled a blast furnace while ,

heated air is simultaneously blown in near the bottom thro ugh o p e nings '

called tuyeres the nitrogen of the air together with the products of com
,

b us ti o n and reduction passing upward and escaping through Openings a t

the top These parts of the process being almost continuous ones are
.
, ,

accompanied by the periodic removal of a part of the impurities in t h e

form of slag at an opening between the tuyeres and the bottom and by a
’

like removal of metal through a l arger opening at the bottom I n order .

to carry out these operations on the l arge s cale previously mentioned i t ,

is evident that extensive equipment is required .

Es s e n ti a lEq u i p m
e n t : The central feature in this equipment is th e
furnace which is provided with apparatus for hoisting the materials to the
,

top a nd with l adles for containing s l

. a g and molten m etal to whi ch i s some 5 ,
-
 32 B LA S T F URNA CE

rock materials on which it is to stand If these be sand o r clay i t may . , ,

be necessary to drive piling for a depth of many feet and upon this be gin ,

the foundation On the other hand if solid and firm ro c k un derl ies t he
.
,

location for t he furnace an excavation t o this roc k is al l tha t is required

,
.

A proper bed having been foun d or otherwi se provided the foundation i s ,

starte d and built up several fee t with c oncrete whi ch e xte nds some distanc e ,
°

outward beyond the floor of the furnace The remainder of the foundation .

is then made up of common brick of good quality and strength except the ,

space directly beneath the hearth and walls of the furnace where fi re b r i c ks ,

are used .

T h e He a r t h C r uc i b l
e is
the portion of the furnace which serves
o r

as a receptacle for the molten metal and sl ag I t is constructe d of fire .

brick of the best qual ity ; its wal l is usually S ixty inches or more in thi c k
ness ; and it may be protected i n p l a ce s wi th water c ooled plates if the fur ,

nace is of recent c onstruction At t he b b tto m t he walls of th e he arth are

.

usually stepped out into the interior of t he hearth for four or five c ourse s
of brick This c onstruction gives the bottom surface a sl igh t basin shape
.
,

and tends to hol d the b o tto m b ri ck in place The hearth varies in diameter .

an d depth with the size and capacity of the furnace I n the larger ones it is .
,

about e ightee n feet in diameter an d e leven feet deep Externally it i s .

,

reinforced by a heavy metal j acke t made of s teel plates that are riveted
together , or of iron castings in se gments that are j ointe d and bolte d to gether .

J ackets ar e always c ooled those o f c as t iron by interna l circul ating

,

s ystems and those of steel by external sprays

, The upper diameter of thi s .
-

j acket is smaller than the diameter at t he base s o that the j acket_will ,

better h o l d t he walls of the hearth in pl ace by offering resistance in o p p o g

\

s i ti o n to the buoyant forces of the bath and sl ag .

T he Bo t to m
of the crucible is built of fire brick sometimes in the ,

form of l arge blocks which are l ai d o n end with c losely fitting j oints in
,

order t o prevent intrusion of metal Bottoms vary in thickness from about

.

six feet in the smaller furnaces to about twelve fee t in the large ones The .

bricks are almost entirel y replaced in time by metal which c olle cting in , ,

a solid mass often wei ghing many tons is know n as the s a l a m a n d e r

, ,
.

T a p p i ng Ho l e : Situated at some convenient point in the circumferenc e

of the hearth and j ust above the top course of stepped in bric k is the t a p pi n g -

ho le or i r o n n o t c h If the bricks are not stepped i n the opening wil l be

.
-
,

at the bottom I t may be a square opening in the brick about 8x8 inches o r
.

an oblong or rectangular one 6x8 inche s on the inside The outside d i m e n .

sions may be somewhat larger t o permi t of easily ins erting the t appin g
tools . Proper provision is made for the protection of the hearth j ac ket
a t this point During the tapping of iron the metal stru ctures directl y
.
,

above the tapping hole are prote cte d with a s p l as h e r .

 CONS T R UC T I ON

FI G . r c lS e cti o n
V e ti a o f a m o d e rn B l
as t F ur na ce .
 134 BLA S T F URNACE

Ci nd e r No tc h e s :
There is usually but one cinder notch T his .

opening may be placed at any convenient point in the circumference of the

hearth at a sufficient height above the tapping hole to permit the c olle ction
of the desired amount of iron between tappings I n the larger furnaces it .

is abou t si x fee t from the floor of the hearth and four to five feet above the
tappin g hol e, bein g generall y placed 45 or 90 from this opening Unlike
° °
.

the tapp ing hole , this Opening is water cooled t o protec t the bric k from the
fluxing action of the slag H ence the opening in the bric k wor k is l arger
.
, ,

being abo ut one foot in diameter inside and increasing t o about two feet on the
outsid e I n this circular cone shape d hole in the bric k the c ooling devices
.
-

are place d These are castings usually made of copper and consist of a c i n
.
, ,

d e r c oole r , an i nte r m e d i a t e , or m o n ke y , c oo l
e r an d a m o nke y T h e cinder , .

cooler is in the form of a hollo w frustum of a cone I t is abou t t wo inches .

thick and , between its w alls , proper provision is m ade for the circul ation
,
.

of water I t is made t o fit t he hole in the bric k wor k and is t ampe d se curely

.

in place with fire clay The opening in t his cooler is then reduce d by
.

inserting into its i nner e nd the close fi tting intermediate c ooler w hich is -
,

constructe d like the cinder c ooler but smaller and shorter F inally the , .
,

still smaller monkey through which water circ ul ates also , i s i nserted
, ,

reducin g the opening to about two inches A short iron rod , c alle d a b o tt .
,

tapere d to fit the monkey and attached t o a long steel ro d which serves

as a handle i s used t o close t he opening The sizes of the t hree coolers
,
.

are regul ate d s o that the large diameters of the monkey and intermediate
cooler fit the smaller diameters of t he intermediate and cinder coolers ,

respe ctively Thus the monkey when in position is wholly within t he

.
, , ,

furnace I n e ach of these c astings an d wit h in t heir topmos t quadrant

.
,
‘

when m pos i tion for service are provide d two t hreade d holes into which
,

the pipes for ingress and e gress of the c oolin g wate r may be inserted -
.

T u ye r e s : T h e tuyeres from ten to sixteen in number, are distributed

,

symmetrically about the uppe r circumference of the hearth j ust bel o w t he

boshes Their function is to provide passages for the blast
. They also .

d etermine t he height t o which the sl a g in t he furnace may rise I n t he .

large furnaces this hei ght is about three fee t Fitted into the openin g in the
,
.

brick flush with t he wall , both internally and externally , i s t he t u y e re

,

c oo l
e r I t is similar t o the cinder c ooler , and se t tight with fire cl ay
. T he .

tuyere itse lf , of copper , presents an interna l diameter o f fro m four t o seven

inches , while its external diameter is such as t o permit i t t o fit snugly into the
smaller end or nose of the c ooler and proj e ct several inches into the furnac e
’

, , .

Like the cooler the t uyere is water cooled and is t apped at two places in
,

the top quadrant for the insertion of water pipes through which a copious .

stream of water must be kept flowing to avoid burning it .

T u ye re C o nne c ti o ns : With one end fitting closely against the tuyere ,

is a horizontal cast iron pipe , abo ut five feet lo ng , called the b l o w p i pe .

“ ”
sometimes t he belly pipe Through it the hot blast is delivere d to the
13 6 BL A S T F URN A CE

“
I nserted in the walls of the boshes thro ugh c ast iron boxes placed in
, ,

the brick spaces between pairs of bosh bands wil l b e fo und c ooling pl ates , ,

c alle d the b o s h p l
a te s in horizontal rows abou t t wo feet apart measuring
, ,

vertically The plates in each row w ill be about four or five inches apart
. ,

and the plates in the di ff erent rows will be staggered vertic ally breaking ,

j oints l ike brick work This construction adds to the coolin g e fficiency of
.

the plates There are several different makes of bosh plates but the more
. ,

common ones will be somewhat wedge shaped with a fla t bottom and oval -
,

top and about four inches thick at the point of their greatest altitude T hey
,
.

are hollow and have inserted in them usually at opposite corners two , ,

pipes through which water flows c ontinuously These plates are ne cessary .

t o help protect the brick work for , being j ust above the tuyeres in the
,

zone of f usion the bricks here receive the highest he at of the furnace
,
.

Formerly t he plates extended almost through the wall in ne w w ork ,

usually t o within one co urse of brick but it was found that this course of ,

brick is s o o n c ut away after the furnace i s bl own in , s o no w the pl ates

extend entirely through the wall from the first .

Ma n t l
e : At the upper limits of the bosh is found the m a n tl e con ,

forming t o t he shape of the furnace at that point an d totall y encircling it .

T h e mantle is made up of heavy steel pl ates an d angles upo n whi c h rests ,

the wei ght of the stack It i s supported by a series of cas t iron pill ars
.

or fabricated steel structures which rest o n f oundations supporte d by the

,

main furnace foundation This construction allows the entire bosh and
.

hearth to be remove d without disturbing the rest Of the furnace .

S h af t, o r S t ac k , a nd I n=Wal
The shaft comprises all th a t part
Is :
of the furnace which is locate d above the boshes The wall of t his shaft is .

u sually m an imaginary way , divided into three almost e qual parts c alled
, ,

the upper middle and lower inwalls Up t o this point t he c onstruction

,
.
,

for all furnaces i s fairly uniform as t o general features But as t o the .

inwalls t hree t ypes are employed , namely , the t hic k , t he interm e di ate ,

a nd t h e thin wall The construction necessarily di ffers for these different

.

types Therefore e ach type is best described separately

.
, .

T h ic k lTy pe
Wal The inwalls of t his t yp e are about five feet thick ,
:

and are inclose d in a heavy rivete d stee l she ll about one half inch thick -
.

T he S hell is usually made oversiz e to provide a small space between it and

the bri c k work , in which S pace is t amped lightly a packing of loam and
granulated slag t o allow for t he expansion and contract ion of the inwalls
, .

T hi ck walled furnaces are seldom water c oole d above the bosh and their ,

walls furnish the sole support for the top .

T h e Fu r n a c e Li ne s a nd Bo s h A n gl
of furnaces of the t hi c k w all
e s

type di ffer somewhat . In modern blast furnac e const ruction the lines of
 CONS T RUC TI ON 137

the furnace by which is m e a nt the lines forme d by the inner edges of a

,

vertic al se ction through the center with their encl osed angles are c on , ,

s i d e re d of gre at importance I n the old furnaces the lines of the inwalls

.
,

were straight and the boshes somewhat flat with corresponding sharp
,

a ngles .But with t he fine ores from the Lake S uperior district experience ,

has taught that much b etter practice is obtained with more nearl y vertical
'

l ines So in the latest type of furnace the lower inwal l will rise verti
.
,

c ally for several feet the b o she s wi l lbe steep and the upper inwall will
'

, ,

drop vertical ly for a distance of abou t ten fee t from the stoc k line Bosh
,
.

angles that is t he angles at t he t op of t he bosh which its wall forms

, , ,

with a horizont al from the center of t he furnace are now being increase d '
,

from abou t 75 t o These ste e pe r b o sh e s are proving to be an

°

import ant improvement .

Inte rm e d i ate , o r Se m lTy p e : In the intermediate type ,

i =T h i n , W a l
the walls are about three fee t thi ck , and to protec t the bric k a s much as po ssible ,
cooling plates similar t o bosh pl at es are inserted in t he lower inwall They
, , .

m a y ext end for a distance of from t wenty t o forty feet above the bosh .

The top in thi s type is sometimes s upporte d by columns of fabricated steel ,

but in the maj ority of c ases it is supporte d by t he walls as in t he thic k

walle d typ e The inwalls are surrounde d by a steel j acket as in the thicker
.

type the onl y d iff e re nce being in the necessary open ings for the coolers
,
.

T h i n Wa l l
e d Typ e : In this type the inwal ls are from nine to eighteen
inches thick , the top is always supported by str uctur al work and the shell must ,

be coole d throu ghou t its entire length T his cool in g may be done in three .

ways One method consists in spraying the j ac k et with water, conducted

.

“ ”
through sui tably arranged pi pes and enclosed by a light splash j ack et which
conforms t o the S i ze and shape of t he s t ac k I n t he se con d method t he
"
.

shell is encircle d by a series of deep and narrow horizontal troughs through

which water is kept flowing from the top t o the bottom of the furnace ,

overflowing from each tro ugh to the next succeeding lower one E ach of .

thre e or four of these t roughs drain separately t o a commo n point where

the temperature of the w ater can be noted I n the t hird t ype the entire .
,

oute r surface of the stac k is k ept cover e d with water by means of a spiral
trough which sli ghtl y separate d from it encircles the stac k from top t o
, ,

bottom This tro ugh is kept full of water by a series of fee d lines that enter
.

it at various points in the S piral .

Fu r nace Li n i n gs : The brick wor k which forms the he arth bosh and -
,

inwalls of a furnace are referre d to as its linings A l lthe bri ck use d in .

the cons t ruc t ion of t hese par t s are made of fi re cl ay and are of t hree k inds , ,

known as h e a rt h a nd b o s h b ri c k, i nw allb ric k and to p b ric k e ach of

l

which is made of such materials and in such a way as to render i t best adapted
to the conditions i t is to be subj ected to in service The hearth and b osh .

brick are require d t o resi s t a very high temperature and the action of flux
138 BLA ST F URNA CE

and slag ; inwall brick must be able to withstand abrasion at a moderately

high temperature ; and top brick , always at a comparatively l ow temper
ature must resist the impact and abrasive forces of the charges as they
,

are dropped into the furnace These different qualities in the different
.

bricks are obtained by varying the method of manufacture especiall y with

respe ct to composition de gree of grinding and t e m perature of burning
,
.

'

As t o the former factor three classes of material s or clays are avail able
, , , .

These are flint clay plastic clay and cal c ined cl ays M ixtures empl oye d
,
.

by different manufacturers are by no me ans uniform but the foll owing ,

may be taken as fairly representative of good practice .

Ta b l
e 26 . S h owi n g Da t a Re la t ive t o Fi re Br i c k fo r Us e i n
Bl a s t Fu r na c e s .

PROPORTI ON OF

Kind o f Brick
Fl
int Cl
ay

o f Burni ng

H e arth and
B o s h B ri c k 50 t o 6 5 % 20 t o 3 5 % 14 to 16 % Co a rs e 13 5 0 C
°

lB ri ck
I nw a l 3 0 to 4 0 % 20 to 3 0 % M e d i um

T o p B ri c k .
o to 3 0 % 3 0 t o 50 % 4 0 to 50 % 1 4 50
°
C

Al
lthe m aterials ,
irrespective of the k in d of bric k S houl d h e and are
'

of t he best quality obtainable and the bric k are c arefully inspe cted before
,

being put in place in the furnace The three k inds of brick are distinctl y
'
.

marke d by the manufacturer so that the danger of wrongly placing a brick

, ,

a top bric k in the hearth for example may be avoided , G reat care is , .

exercise d with respec t t o brick because t he life of the furnace depend s in

,

a large me asure upon t he lining and the i t em of cos t for bric k is not a small
,

one In t he construction of one of t he large modern furnaces close t o the

.
,

equivalent of nine inch bric k are required and t he average con ,

sumption of bric k is a little more than two brick fOr e ach and every ton of
pi g iron produced Fire bricks are always laid in a thin slurry c omposed
.

of fire clay and water The slurry is applied by pouring it on the to p of

.

each course with a dipper and is followed immediately b y the next course of
,

bri cks which are hammered into place to squeeze out all the fire cl ay except
,

that require d to compensate the inequalities of the brick .

140 BLA S T F URNA CE

S to c k Di s t ri b u to r : One
of the allege d improvements in the bel l
and hopper device is that of the stock distributor There are several type s
'

- .

of these distributors employed a description of which would not be pr o fi t ,

able here H owever th e o b j e ct aimed at by such devices may be expl ained

'

.
,

th us z I t i s apparent that in a mechanically fi l

— led furnace when the r aw
, ,

materials are d ropped into t he receiving bell the larger l umps of ore and ,

stone will have a tendency to roll and thus collect either aro und the e dges
or to one side or the other The same things will also h appen upon dropping
.

the charge into the furnace This tendency res ults in more o r les s Open .

and continuous channels being formed thro ugh the material s and extending
from the top t owards the bottom of t he stac k These channels o ffer l e Ss .

resistance t o the passage of the blast t han the remainder of the materials ,

o r the fuels with t he result that a d isp ro p o rti na te quantity of gas passes
,

through them This condition c alled channelling results in higher t em

.
, ,

p e ratur e s throughout these passages with the consequent cutting away of ,

the walls where these channel s c o me in c onta c t w ith them I t is t o over .

c ome this d efect that the vari o us d evices formerly mentione d have been
desi gned .

H oi s ti n g A p p l
i a nce s : T h e ol d time method of c harging by hand
having been entirely supersede d by automati c me chanical c harging , there
are now in use two t ypes o f th e se devi ce s , n amely , th e skip h oist and the
\

bucket hoi st I n both c ases there i s an i ncline , a fabri cate d steel struct ure ,
.

extending from the t op of t he furnac e t o or b e l

'

o w th e b ottom Of the stock

house ; and over t he t racks of this incline the m aterials charge d into the
furnace mus t pass In the ski p hoist the conveying vessel i s a smal
. l open ,

ende d steel c ar c alle d a skip t hat automatically dumps the material s upon
, ,

the l it t le bell and hopper S kip hoists are generally provide d with double
- -
.

tracks s o t ha t while a loaded skip is passin g up the incline an empty one

,

is descending I n the bucke t hois t the s olid m aterials are raise d in a

.

bucket s uspende d from a t ruck or c arriage t hat drops the charge into the
, ,

space above the l arge bel l direct When i n p osition for dropping th e charge .
,

the bucket being itself provided with a small be ll at the bottom t akes the
, ,

pl ace of the little bell and hopper Durin g the t ime t he bucket is filling .

at the stock hou s e the opening left in the top is close d with a
,

special gas seal .

T o p O p e n i n gs : Thesmalles t openi n g ln the t op of a furnace is the

t ry =h o le I n opera t ing a
. furnace i t i s ne cessary t o be abl e t o determi n e
the position of the sto c k line This 1 s done by means of the s t o c k i nd i ca to r
.
,

which i s a ro d of steel passing throu gh and fitting the try hole loosely so -

that one end rests upon the s to ck while the other i s attache d t o a small ,

steel cable that le ads t o the sto ck house or the cast house be low Some .

stoc k indicators are automati c and self re cording F o r the e scape of the -
.

gases from two t o four l arge openings called o ffta ke s are provided T he y
, , , .
 CONS T R UC T I ON 14 1

pierce the furnace top j ust beneath the l arge bell From these op enings .
,

abou t four feet in diameter lead fi re bric k line d pipes which conver ge into
,
-

one large pipe c a l

le d th e d ow nc o m e r or d o w n t a ke I nto openings either in . ,

the o fftake pipe s or in spe cial openings in the top are inserte d the e x p l o s io n ,

d o o rs
. These doors l o cate d usually in the ends of upright pipes arranged
,

so as t o prevent ej e ction of material from the furnace are really valves ,

which are adjusted e ither by wei ghts o r by a me chanical means t o open

, ,

at a certain pressure They are desi gne d t o relieve pressure and s o prevent
.

po ssible inj ury t o the top by slips in the furnace T h e b l e e d e r is a t all .

ve rti cal pipe usually inserte d on t he higher surface of the o ffta k e pipe
,

lea din g t o t he downcomer , t o allow s urplus gas t o e scape I t is closed .

with a valve on the top which opens automatically and may also be , ,

opened from the ground Bleeders are usually lined w ith one c ourse of
.

fire brick .

G e ne ra l Co ns i d e ra tio n fo
previous ly r To p C o ns t r uc t i o n : AS
pointed out there are many types of top and the description above is
, ,

intende d t o give a genera l ide a of t he essentia l parts and t heir uses only .

The chief endeavor in t op c onstruction is t o perfec t the distribution of the

stoc k en terin g t he furnac e s tack and either e li m ina te o r c ompensate for ,

as many i rre gul aritie s as possible H owever , in a ttaining t his end sim .
,

pl i ci ty mus t be c onsi de re d as any gre a t amo unt of mech ani sm o n the top
,

of a furnace i s obj ectionabl e I t is important t o preven t large material

.

fro m being t hrown o ut of t he furnace in case of slips an d as little dust as ,

possibl e s houl d be c arrie d ou t by t he gases Hence in the most re cent

(
.
,

c onstruction , t he o fftakes e nter vertica l u p t a ke s , cl ose d at the t op by

explosion d oors an d are taken Off the furnace as high above th e s toc k line
,

as possible , p referabl y at four points e qually space d on the cir cumference .

The downcomer c onnec tions are t aken o ff part way up on these up takes -
.

I n lo c atin g t he up t ake s in furnaces of mos t recent c onstruction c are is ,

taken t o s e e t hat t hey d o no t enter the furnac e dire ctly o ver t he t apping
hole , c inder no t ch or the entrance of t he blas t main t o t he bustle pipe
, ,

because t hese being the mos t active points in the furn ace this
,
-

arrangement wil l tend to give a more even d istribution o f the gases ,

through the stoc k .

Ru n ne rs : Though not given much prominence in blast furnac e d is

e ussions the runners through which the slag and metal are c arried away
, ,

from t he furna c e , c onstitute an e sse nti a lpart of the furnace proper These
‘

are meta l c astings in t he form o f d eep t roughs w hich are made in se ctions
l ai d en d t o en d and burie d s o t hat t heir t op e dges are flush with the floor
of the cas t house The tro ugh l e ading from t he c inder notch w ill of c ourse
.
, ,

be elevated I t forms an uni nterrupte d passage for the sl ag from the c inder
.

notc h t o the slag ladle or granul at in g p it The meta l runner i s more c om .

plic ated Beginnin g as a very d eep trough a t t he t appin g hole i t i s inter

.
,

r up te d at the end of about 10 feet by the skimmer a device for separating ,

142 B LA S T F URNA CE

the metal from the s l ag that c omes ne ar the end of a c ast T h e re are .

two branches here one for c arrying away the slag and another for draining
,

the metal from t his par t of the skimmer trough after the c ast From the .

skimme r the m ain t ro ugh is drained by branches leading t o c astin g beds

on the floor of the cast house or what i s more c ommon now t o hot metal
,
, ,

ladles on a trac k far enough below the floor of the cas t house to permit
the metal to flow into them from above Before casting t he se troughs .
,

ar e given a he avy coating of a l oam or cl ay wash which acts as an insulator , ,

prote cts the trough from the hot metal and facilitates the subse quent
cleaning up Without t his wash the hot metal would either chill in the
.

trough or melt it away .

S EC T I O N V .

BLA S T F U R NA CE A CCE S S OR I ES .

T h e S t ove of which there are nearly always f our to a furnace are

s, ,

first in importance under the heading of ac cessories being an absolute ,

necessity in modern bl ast furnace operations This importance is due to .

th e ir function o f heating the blast The first stoves use d were constructe d
.

of iron pipes enclose d in a bric k structure through which the bl ast passe d
to the furnace t he gases from the furnace being burne d as they circulated
,

outside and around these pipes t he recuperative principle Then it w as , .

foun d that the regenerative principle is much more e fficient so that now ,

stoves are built entirely of brick Essentially they are brick walle d cyl . in
ders enclosin g a combustion chamber and a system of re genera tiv e fl ue s
,
.

Externally , t he brick w all of a stove is rei nforce d and supported by a steel

shell of riveted pl ates The top of the stove is dome shaped G enerally
.
-
.
,

the stoves are as high and almost as wide as t he furnace itself They .

vary in size wi th the S i z e of t he furnace Fo r t he largest furnaces .

they are approximately 100 feet in height and 22 feet in diameter I nter '
.

nally the combustion chamber will e xte nd fr o m th e bottom t o t he t op of the

,

stove and may be locate d at the center in which case they are called
, ,

c e n t e r c o m b u s t io n s t ove s , or at the circumference as in s i d e c o m b u s ti o n ,

s t ove s The re generative fi nes are fille d with bric k che cker work the
.
,

checkers being S O laid as t o form a system of vertical fl ue s from five to ,

nine inches s quare which extend from the rider walls on the bottom to the
,

top of the stove The arrangement of the fines also furnishes a means of
.

cl assifyin g stoves S toves in which the gases from the c ombustion chamber
.

pass through only one re generative flue , are called tw o =p as s stoves while ,

in th re e =p as s and fo u r=p as s =s to ve s they pass through two and three

re generative flue s respectively TWO pass and three pass types are the
, .
- -

most c o m mo n S ince t he combustible gases are burne d a t t he b ottom

‘
.

always of all stoves i t follows that in two pass stove s t he products of

,
-

combustion passing through the checkers must leave the stove at the
, ,
14 4 BLA S T F URNA CE
 S T OVES 145

t
S ov e Li n i n g s : S tove linings is a term that corresponds to furn a ce
lining and includes all the brick work encl ose d by the shell A s in the
,
.

case of the furnace an expansion space of ab ou t tw o inches is l eft between

,

the circul ar bri c k w all and t he shell Fo r these l inings a strong yet p orous
.

fi r e b r i ck i s re quired be cause such brick absorb the most heat and also
,

give i t up m ost re adily The brick need not be very refractory for the
,
,

temperature in the st ove is relatively l o w exc e pt i n the c ombustion chamber ,

here a brick fairly high refractory properties is re quire d T h e

W m
p o sse ss g
.

temperature of the hot bl ast is maintaine d at about 538 C (1000 F )

° °
. .

which m ark s the l owest temperature t o which the hottest part of the stove
.

F ro . 2l
a . C ro s s S e c ti o n o f Bl
a st F urna ce S to ve S e c ti o n C C o f F ig .
146 B LA S T F UR NA CE

c an drop With modern stoves from 25 to 30% of the gas produce d by

. ,

the blast furnace is require d to maintain the blast at t he c orrec t t emper

ature Of the remainder abo ut one fifth , (12 to 20% of the whole )is used by
.
”

the blowi ng engines so that a httle m ore th a n half of the t ot al g as produce d

,

by the furnace is avail

able as surplus for the generation of electri cal power .

Du s t Ca t c h e r a nd G a s Ma i ns : From the down c omer th e g as fro m -

the furnace passes dire ctly i nto t he dust c atcher I ts obj e c t a s implie d .
,

by its name is to clean the gas as much as possibl e of t he flue dust blown
,

over from the furnace with which dust the g as is heavily l aden If t hi s
,
.

dust is not removed in part at le ast it c akes upon the wal

,
ls of the combustion
,

chamber and small flues of the stoves and dropping down necessitates frequent , ,

cleaning Besides it acts as an i nsulator on the brick preventing the full

.
, ,

absorption of hea t S imilar conditions also prevail when t he dirty gas i s

.

burned under boilers The dus t catcher may be looke d upon as a great
.
,

enl argement of t he flue , or down comer I ts di ameter is o ften 20 feet or -

.

more It is bri c k l ined often has a dome shaped t op , and a bottom in

. ,
.

the shape of an inverte d cone The principles involved in its c onstruction

.

is that of greatly reduced velocity acc ompanied by sudden change in

direction By t hi s means the dust in the gas may be reduce d suffi ciently
.

to be us ed under boilers and in s toves w ith l arge fl ue s v e ry s a ti sfa cto ri l

'

y .

From t he dust c atcher t he gas passes t hrou gh a gas main t ha t di vides

—
into two branches one to supply t he stoves and one t o furni sh g as t o t he
boilers for generatin g steam , which disposal will no w apply t o t he ol der
and l ess pro gressive plants only I n up— to—
date plants , t he gas w ill be
.

subj ect t o additional and more e fficient t reatment after w hich i t may be ,

used in the two ways mentioned or i n i nternal e xpl osion e ngines This .

additional cleanin g of the gas i s a necessity where gas e ngines are used ,
and i t is also claimed that gas for the stoves is cleaned a t a profit since ,

i t eliminates t he necessity of frequent cleani ng of t he stove s and permits

smaller checker flue s thus i ncreasing the heatin g s urfac e of t he bric k
, .

The matter while past the experimenta l s t a ge , i s no t ye t fully develope d

,

a t all plants As representing a hi ghly d evelope d method of gas cleaning

.
,

the Duquesne w or ks will furni sh a good example .

Arra n ge m t o f Fu r nace s a n d C l
e n e a ni n g P l
a n t a t Du q u e s ne : At
this plant there are s i x furnaces situate d in a row for the full le n gth of which ,

ext ends a large gas main called the rough gas main The gas from all
, .

these furnaces may enter t his main after passing the dus t catchers Fr om .

this main gas may be le d t o any part of the pl an t t o be use d in the raw
,

state t hough it is primarily i ntended t o supply the c leanin g plant T he

, .

flow of the gas through the main is controlle d by w ater valves A water .

valve is a vertical cylinder with a cone-shaped bo ttom ; in its center is a

vertical diaphragm reaching down over half way t o t he base o f the valve .

Water can be admitted into the valve t o a level somewha t higher t h an the
lower edge of this diaphra gm With the water level belo w t he di aphragm
.

an outlet is provide d so that a current of gas may be all owe d to flow through ;
148 BLA S T F URNA CE

receives only such g as as is i ntended for us e in the gas engines .

Pri m y Divis i o n : The primary c leanin g of the gas is accompl ishe d

ar

by vertical water s crubbers and fans I t reduces t he dust c ontent of the .

gas t o 06 grain per cubic foot of gas under s tandard c onditions The
.
.

vertical water s crubbers are the m ost importan t par t of the e quipment in
respe ct t o the amoun t of d ust removed from the gas There are nine of .

them , and the gas connections for t hem a re le d t o their bases from t he
gas main through w ater and damper valves These s crubbers are vertical
- -
.

steel cylinders , unlined 77 fee t 6 inches high and 12 fee t in diameter and
, ,

are buil t of 96 inch s teel plates G as is admitte d a t t he base Water is

. .

admitted s o as t o fal l agains t t he gas and as t he currents fl ow in opposite , ,

dire ctions there is intimat e mixture between them The water is applie d t o
,
.

the gas in the form of a S pray and when falling in the interior of th e
scrubbers is l ike rain i n that it is in small drops and thus presents the
greates t possible surface to t he gas .

Me t h o d s o f Sc r u b b i n g t h e G as : Two m ethods of producing and

supplyin g t he w ater S pray have been used a t t hi s plant The older metho d .

employed a horizontal spray pipe lo cated in t he t op of t he tower and rotate d

by a smal l e lectri c motor Water w as S upplied t o i t from a pipe inserted
.

a t t he t op The fall in g water was prevented from s triking the s hel l by

.

a vane in the bottom of the S pray pipe Just belo w the S pray pipe w ere .

12 S cree ns s e t together s o as t o brea k up t he w ater s tream as it fell but ,

from tha t location the s pray fel l uninterru p te d t o t he base w here i t w as ,

draine d ou t t hrough a gas s eal I n t he improved form t wo s eries o f s even

.
,

p ipese ach are inserted one above the other The water is force d up through .

s creens place d a t six foot interval s and mus t t hen fal l back through t hem .

Motor driven cut o fl valves S hut o ff the water from e ach pipe in t urn m akin g
- -
,

an are a o f l o w resistance o ver the p i p e fro m which water has been cut o ff .

The gas rushe s to t his re gion ; then w ater i s turned o n a gain and the gas i s
deflecte d A S pira l motion results givin g a l arger e xposure of gas are a to
.
,

cleanin g w ate r t han w oul d ordinarily result T he S crubbers use abou t .

g allons of w ater per 24 hours T h e t emperatures of the gas .

entering t he S crubbers range from 300 t o 600 F an d t he pressure varie s

° °
.
,

from 8 to 16 i nches o f water The w ater enters the S crubbers at river

-
.

temperatur e an d at an ave rage of 57 4 F with a m axi mum of 8 4 F an d a .

°
.
°
.

°
minimum o f 3 3 F The dus t caught in t he settlin g b asi n w h i ch is buil t in
.
,

duplica t e and extends from one e nd o f t he plant t o the other averages ha lf

to t hree—
,

quarters of a s tandar d 50 t on hopper car a d ay The gas passes -

.

a t a vel o city of four fee t per s econd up through the stee l S hel l into a
pipe connecting with a 10 foot 6 i nch main The gas le aves a t a te mpera t ure .

vary in g from 96 F t o 3 7 F , or at an average of 68 F The dust in t he

°
.
°
.
°
.

gas is re duced from grains p er cubic foo t t o 22 grain at standard .

conditions ; t he moisture i n the gas entering the S crubbers is 3 4 gr ains per

cubic foot a nd on leaving is grains About 25 cubi c feet of gas is .

cleaned per gallon of water used .

 GA S CLEA NI N G P LA N T 149

T h e Fa ns : From
the s crubbers a l arge gas main 10 feet 6 inches in , ,
.

diame ter and about 40 fee t above the ground conveys the gas t o a number ,

of fans tha t complete t he primary cleanin g of the gas The conne ctio ns .

to these fans are provide d with water valves The fans are l ocated in a .

gas cleani ng b uilding o r fan house and are four l, n number E ach fan has
, .

a rate d c apacity of cubi c fe e t of gas per minute at 100 F The fans °

.

raise the pressure of t he gas t o about si x inches of water and thus give it
sufficient head t o pass t hrough the e ntire s ystem of s t oves boilers and ,

engines ; the furnace pressur e alone is no t sufficient t o Supply this head .

°
T h e gas le aves the f ans a t temperat ures varying from 93 F t o 35 F " or
°
.

an avera g e o f 69 F By introducing water a t se veral points in to the shell

°
.

o f each fan , the fans are made to serve as cle an ers , and the dust conte n t of the

gas is redu ce d from 22 grain per cubic feet to 06 grain per cubic feet
. . .

W a te r S e p ara to r z From t he fans , t he gas passes t hrough w ater

'

separators These are made of two concentri c steel cylinders w hich s tand
.

’
in a vertical position Th e ou te r c ylinder i s much l arger in diameter t han
. .

the in ner one and s ome w hat l onger , so t ha t the gas e nterin g a t t he top ,

of the out er cylinder an d on a tangent is given a downward S piral motion ,

and esc ape s at the bottom risin g t hrough t he inner pipe In t his way .
,

the greater p or t ion of the w ater o win g t o its greater inertia is deposited
, ,

h y the gas current

,
From t he water separator t he gas enters the clean
.

g a s main and is distribut e d to t he stoves and boilers and : also to the

se condary division .

T he S e c o nd a r y Divi s i o n :
This division furnishes gas for internal
combustion engines which require gas almost as free from du s t as the air
'

i tself It cons ists of four T he i se n

. s cleaners This cleaner is a combina .

tion fan and cl e aner Externally it has a form approximately l ike t hat of
.

a large stee l cylinde r and is mounte d horizontal l y T h is o ute r cyl

‘

inder is .

stationary and encloses a similarly shap e d but S m aller revol vin g cyl inder on
the S hell of whi ch is rivete d twenty four steel vanes Thes e vane s proj ect -
.

12 inches from t he shell of the 1nne r cylinder an d ext e n d l ongi t udinally m a

slight S piral t o the circ umference At t he receiving e nd the vanes proj ect
.

beyond the end of the cylinder t o form a drawin g fan for re ceiving the gas ,

while at the delivery end t hey terminate in blades attache d t o the same ,

cylinder that act as a booster fan for propellin g the gas t hrough the succeed
,

ing apparatus Water is a dmitte d a t l ow pressure through six pipes half

.

way up an d on the side of the outer shell This w ater i s dashe d to a spray .

by the revolving vanes and , being propell ed i n a direction opposite t o that

,

of the gas is t horoughly mixed with it thus wetting the l ast small particles
, ,

of dust whi ch must therefore , separa te with t he w ater This water is

, , .

let out of the apparatus through a w a ter sea l at t he bottom The gas .

flows through the shell and o ut into a water separator thence t o the ga s ,

main leading t o the gas en gines T he T he ise ns cleaners have a rated .

capacity of cubic feet of gas p er minute at standard c onditions The .

gas leaves the T he ise ns at an average temperature of 64 2 F o r a maximum

‘
°
.
,
150 BLAS T F URNA CE

°
of 91 F and a minimum of 3 5 F The water enters at an average of 575
° °
.
.

F The dus t in a cubi c fo o t of gas is reduced from 06 grain t o 009 grain

.
. . .

cubic feet of gas is cle ane d per gallon of water co nsumed .

S EC T I O N V I .

EQ UIP M E NT F OR H A N DLI N G RA W A N D FI NI S HE D MATE RIA LS .

T h e Boi l
e r Ho u se , Pow e r a n t , P u m p i n g S t a t i o n , Bl
Pl ow i ng Engi ne s,

e tcwhile constituting a very vital part of the blas t furnace e quipment

.

present fe a t ures of more interest t o engineers than t o metallur gist s and

1
are therefore best omitted from this discussion
,
.

Dry Bl as t : Abou t 60 % by we igh t of al l t he ma t e ri a l s ent erin g t he

bl ast furnac e is air AS air always cont ains moisture and since the d e co m
.

position of water is an endothermic re action the heat absorbed by the ,

amount of water thus entering the furnac e may be very great I t has .

been e stim ate d t hat durin g t he month of July for instance the averag e , ,

quantity of water per hour e ntering a furnac e i fsing cubic fee t of air
,

per minute is approximately 224 g allons That this quantity of w

,

ater .

may seriously a ffect th e operation of the furnace is now well re co gnized ,

and instal lations for d ryin g the air have been made at a fe w p l ants With .

ou t discussing in detai l the apparatus used the principle employe d is t hat ,

of refrigeration By c oolin g the air t o a low t emperature by drawing it

.

over a s ystem of pipes coole d with brine (a solution o f c ommon s alt Na C l g , , ,

or c alcium c hloride C aCl g , w hich has a less c orrosive action on the pipes )
, ,

wh i ch i n turn i s coole d with l

. i q ui fi e d ammonia t he moisture is condense d ,

and frozen on the pipes , leavin g t he air practic ally dry .

Co l
d a n d Ho t Bl
as t Mai ns : I t is stil l th e most c om mon prac tice t o
use undr ie d air which compresse d by t he blo wing engines is force d
, , ,

norm ally under the high pressur e o fab o ut 15 p o und s per square inch t hrough
the col d blas t main into the s toves from which i t issues highly heated ; and ,

passin g s uccessively through the ho t blas t main , the bustl e p ipe and t he
.

tuyeres , b egins i ts wor k in the furnace In t hi s c onne ctio n o ne or t wo .

apparently minor details of construc t ion re ferring t o temper ature re gu

lation an d pressure control should be note d Lea din g aroun d t he stove s .

from t he c ol d blas t ma i n i nt o t he ho t blas t main is a smal l pipe called

the b y==
p a ss I t provides a means of controlling the temperature of the hot
.

blast The S no r t V al
. ve als o located in t he c ol d blas t m ain is use d t o
, ,

reduce the pressure of t he b l as t a t t he end of a c as t while the t ap hol e is -

being stopped or t o release the pressure in case of a hanging furnace

, .

Ap pl
i a nce s fo r Ha n d l
i n g Ore s
was pointe d , C o ke a nd S t o ne : As
ou t in C hapter I I I , al l ore is shippe d o ver the Lakes from M a y unti l
De c ember C onsequentl y the o re require d t o operate the furnaces durin g
.

the months intervening between shippin g seasons m ust be stored until used ,

either at the doc ks or at th e works This storing of ore requires a s toc k .

d e t ai l
1Fo r s on c o nstr uc ti o n o f th e bl
as t furn a c e an d e q ui p m e nt se e Blas t
J E J o h ns o n J r p ub li s h e d b y M c G r a w Hi l l
,

F urn a ce C o ns tru cti o n i n A m e ri c a b y . . , . ,

-

B o o k C o m p a ny , N e w o rk Y .
152 BLA S T F URNA CE

under the bottom op enings of the bins .

—
T his car a small h opper car
'

is provided with a scale to weigh the ore and stone as it falls int o the hopper
of the c ar I n this way any mixture of ores o r stone desire d may be
.

accurately made up by weight for charging I n the bucket hoist the bucket .

itself is placed on descending upon the weighing c ar which is transported

, , ,

by trolley or dinkey from bin to bin for the di fferent ores required in making
up the charge Only the ore and stone are weighed the coke being charged
. ,

by volume .

Dis po s alEq u i p m e n t fo The old method of c asting the

r the I ro n : ‘

metal in beds of sand has for many re asons , been replace d by c asting
,

machines Of the two types of these machine s the e ndless chain carrying
.
,

a series of parallel moulds or troughs with over— lapping edges is the o ne

most commonly used I n the operation of this machine the molten metal
.
,

from the furnace is allowe d t o flow into l adles which are pulle d at once ,

into the casting house Here the metal is poure d slowly into a t rough
.
,

from which it flows onto two lines of moving moulds , w hich have been
previously prepared to prevent sticking of the iron by being e ither
, ,
“ ” “
l imed or smoked The chains may c arry the iron directly through
.

a tro ugh of water or dump the half c oole d pi gs upon a sec ond c onveyor t o
,

be so c oole d A number of modifications of this machine are in use

. .

Eq u i p m e nt fo a g D i s p o s al
Sl
The greater portion of the slag
r :

produced c annot be used except as was t e so most of it will be transported ,

while molten to a convenient spot and dumpe d When t he sl a g is t o be .

use d for certain p urposes as for ma king P ortl and cement , i t is best granu
,

lated This condition is produce d as the sl ag flo ws from the fur nace by

.

allowing it to fal l into a l arge concrete line d pit partly fil led wit h water ,

and known as the granulating pit By forcing a sm al lstream of water against .

and from behind the stream o f molten sl ag as it drops into the pit the stream ,

of slag is b roken up and the fineness of the S l a g i s increased M erely .

allowing the slag to fall into the water is a much less e ffective method .

S EC T I O N V I I .

OP E RA T I N G T HE F U RNA CE .

Bl
owi ng I n : Upon being complete d and provide d with as much of the
equipment des cribe d above as is ne cessary or desired the active c areer of ,

the furnace is be gun In blast furnace p arlance the proces s of starting a

.
,

furnace is called bl owing in I t is carrie d out in thre e steps ; these steps

.

are drying filling and lighting

, .

Dry i ng :Newly constructe d furnaces and stoves or new linings mus t , ,

be c arefully and thoroughly drie d before being put int o operation I n the .

case of a furnac e fully e quipped and ready t o operate the drying may be ,

accomplished by either wood fires built 1n the hearth or by gas T he heat

’

is applie d very gradually and the drying is c ontinued for about ten days
, .
 OP E RA TI ON OF T H E F URNA CE 153

Fil l
i ng : the furnace is s uffi ciently dried it is allowe d t o c ool
After ,

S li ghtly , and the n the importa nt process of filling is be gun While di fferent .

individuals will pursue slightly di fferent methods t he general scheme will be ,

rather uni formly c arrie d out Briefly stated i t consists of first placing wood
.
,

and c oke on the bottom t o a height somewhat above t he tuyeres about which ,

fine kindling shavings oily was t e o r any materia l e asily i gnite d i s p iled ;
, ,

then following the woo d with a l arge quantity of coke mixe d with enough ,

lime stone to flux its ash and gradually introducing ore with the proper
,

a mo unt of flux G oo d practice requires t hat this initial volume of c oke

.

s houl d be about half the cubic al contents of the furnace S ometimes to .

,

get an easily fusible sla g and a good volume of it , blas t furnace sl ag may
be introduced ahea d of the ore These are c alle d the bl owing i n burdens
.
-
,

and additions are made till the furnace h a s been fille d t the stock line
a ,

when it is ready for l i gh t i ng .

he wood in t he bottom of the

S tarting the burning of t
Li g h t i ng :
furnac e may be done in several ways If the space in front of t he tuyeres .

has been fille d with light k indling wood as i s customary o il is poured or , ,

s praye d in at the tuyeres until the wood is thoroughly soaked with it Then .

with all the gas burners and valves in the gas mains an d t he bells c l osed ,

the bleeder and explosion doors are opened a light blast is t urne d on and ,

the wood i gnite d by insertin g ho t bars t hrough the tuyeres Often instead .
,

of the ho t bars a wood fire is built in the stove nearest t he furnace and
, ,

the oil is i gnite d by blowing sparks over with the blast With a light .

blast on the w ood soon burns away and t he s t oc k be gins t o settle after
, , ,

which the blast pressure is gradually increased S ome furnacemen start .

o ff after the fires are wel l caught w ith a fairly high blast pressure for a
, ,

few minutes in order t o d rive the fl am e s well in toward the center of the
.

furnace and consum e the wood quickl

,

y , as it is t hought tha t a better initial

settlin g of the stock i s thus obtained A s soo nas the stoc k g ives si gns .

of settl ing the bl ast pressure i s reduced t o that normally use d for the
,

remainder of the blowing in period which i s at first abou t 34 t ha t used

-
,

when the furnace is in ful l blast Up to this point a great deal of g as and
.

smoke e scape from the furnace openings and grea t c ar e mus t be exercised , ,

for the gases contain a hi gh percentage of c arbon monoxide and are very ,

poisonous G re at care is also re q uired t o prevent expl osions , be cause

.

mixt ure s of furnac e gas and air in a wide range of proportions are expl osive .

S ince the interstices of the stoc k in t he furnace and all the gas mains are
fille d wit h air t o start with an explosive mixture may be formed any time
,

soon after t he lighting and if this mixture shoul d be i gnite d i t might

,

cause serious damage The difficulty is generally overcome by providing

.

outlets for the gas at the ends of the gas mains These ou t lets are kept .

open until all the air has been expelle d w hi ch c ondition is in d icate d by ,

the color and odor of the escaping gas Both men and fires are kept .

away from these openings until it is time to use the gas and the outlets
are cl osed .
154 BLA S T F URN A CE

He a t i ng t h e Bo tto m Another
feature connecte d with the lighting
:

of the furnace is h e a ti n g u p t h e b o tt o m , whi ch is warme d b y the dry

ing ou t fires t o only a S light degree as compared with the temperature
-

required to keep t he slag and iron that form in a molten state In order to .

have the bottom a t the proper te m p e r atrue whe n sl ag begi ns t o form two ,

methods are employed both of which involve leaving an opening at the

,

tapping hol e s o as t o draw the flame downward from the tuyeres Upon
the bottom In the first method a round tapered wood plug thre e o r four
. ,

inches in diameter at the smaller end i s placed in the tap hole and the ,
-

space about it is packed full and tight with clay With the rise in tem .

p e ra tur e due t o the burning of t he w ood an d c oke in the bottom the cl ay ,

sets and this plug is then removed which permits the flame from within t o
, ,

shoot forth thus heating up the runner outside as well as the bottom inside of
,

the furnace When S la g begins to flo w from the tap hole , the opening is
.
-

closed u ntil time for tappin g the first iron has arrived I n t he second .

metho d an iron pipe about four inches in diameter is placed in the fur
, , ,

nace before i t is filled so tha t one e nd protrudes from the tap-hole out
, ,

side o f the hearth while the other extends t o the center of the furnace
,
.

The space abou t t he pipe where it passes t hrough the wall of the hearth is
tamped with clay or ball stuff which is also built up about the part of the
,

pipe within the furnace for a foot or s o from t he hearth wall When the .

furnace is light e d t he gas flame is drawn to the c enter of the bottom t o

pour forth from the exterior end of the pipe This pipe nee d not be moved .

until a fairly large flow of slag is attained when it is drawn from the tap ,
‘

hole which is i mmediately cl osed as in t he c ase of the woo den plug

, , .

T h e h e a t i ng o f th e s t o ve s is another factor connecte d with the light

ing of the furnace The temperature of the hot blast when the furnace is in
.

°
full operation i s 500 to 550 C (930 t o 1020 and it is a gre at help if
.
° ’

the stoves can be heate d nearly to this poin t for t he lightin g p f the fu rnace ,

especially as t he furnace and filling are col d t o the bottom But t his stove .

temperature c an be obtained by t he use of gas only s o that in the c ase of ,

isolate d furnaces where gas is not available before starting up the furnace ,

the stoves must be heated as hot as possible for the lighting by means of
Wood an d coal fires .

T a pp i ng : At the end of t en or fifteen hours after the blast is on full ,

there will be a sufficient accumulation of S la g t o tap This is done by re .

moving the bott from the mo nkey , and pric k ing through the soli d sl ag cl os
ing the op ening if the cinder does not flow immediately The bleeder is
, .

close d after the first cinder is tapped as t he g as can now be used in the ,

stoves and boilers or gas engines I t requires from 3 0 to 40 hours before much
, .

iron ac cumulates When t he iron is ready t o t ap a hole is bore d by me ans

.
,

of a lon g auger or drill , ele ctrically or otherwise operated almost through ,

the clay plug of t he tapping hole Durin g the boring the dust is blown .
,

out of the hole by a j e t of compresse d air The S pl asher having beenput .

in place the opening is t hen complete d by driving a long pointed bar into
,

the furnace When this bar is removed the iron will usually flow out at
.
, ,
156 BLAS T F URNACE

Ta p pi ng S l
ag : In about two hours the slag will have risen near the ,

tuyeres and another flush will be necessary

,
I f the iron is tapped si x .

times a day , only two fl ushings of sl ag are ne cessary between tappings ,

bu t if the tappin g is on a five hour schedule three flushi ngs will be

required .

C h a n gi ng S tove
s : The temperature of a furnace at the hearth is a
matter of great importance as this is one of the two main factors which ,

control the quality of the iron produce d One of the means of re gulating .

this temperature is b ychanging the S l ag c omposition as has been suggested ,

.

Another way by which quicker results may be obtaine d is by control of

the hot bl ast temperature This may be raise d or lowere d by use of the .

b y pass and c an be kept high by proper manipul ation of the stoves

-
,
As .

a p art of the routine of blast furnace work the tending of stove s i s of i m ,

portance They must be kept clean and be changed regularly and at not t oo
.

long intervals Usually but one stove at a time is employed for heating the
.

blast and the stoves are changed once each hour Thus each stove is heating
,
.
,

for three hours In changing stoves the ho t stove must be put on the fur nace
.

before the cold one is taken o ff To put a stove on hot blast , the g as burner .

is racked back from the gas port and the b l o w o ff and chi m m e y valves ar e ,

closed Then in qui ck succession the cold blast valve and the hot blast valve
.

are opened when the blast is free to pass through the stove which it does
, ,

in the direction opposi t e t o t ha t by which t he stove was heated The .

col d stove is no v taken o ff, t he proce dure bein g the reverse of the above .

The c old air valve is closed and t hen quic kl y t he hot blas t valve To , ,
.

relieve the pressure in t he stove t he blow o ff valve i s slowly opened which ,

-
,

permits the chimney valve t o b e opened The st ove is t hen re ady for the .

gas which is admitte d by rackin g the burner forward

, .

Ch a r g i ng t h e Fu r nace
The charging of the furnace is a part of the :

routine that mus t be done with grea t c are and c anno t be interrupted The .

furnace tends t o empty itself rapidly an d c onstan t vi gil ance i s ne cessary .

,

to keep the stac k full The proportions of t he materials used i s a pre

.

determine d quantity Therefore al l t he materials are c arefully weighed

.
,

before charging into the furnace The char gin g is usually done in r o u n d s . .

T h e basis of charging is the weight of fuel in e ach ro und The fuel remains .

a fixe d quantity and any variations in the charge are made with the ore
,

and flux Usually the coke in the round is measur e d by volume and
.

not weighed but of course the weight of the given volume in a

, , ,

round is known The weight of this coke unit varies at di fferent pl ants
.
,

because it is subj ect to no fixed rule the opinions of furnacemen ,

di ffer as what i t shoul d be and it is a ffe cte d by the size of the ,

furnace and other conditions The weights mos t often use d are .

and pounds Under presen t c onditions t he weight of ore

.

in the rounds will approximate twi ce and the li mestone half the weight
of the coke The manner of charging the materials is also subj e ct t o
.

much variation Often it will be found that all the c oke in a round
.
 I RRE GULA RI TI ES 157

will be charged followe d by the ore and limestone mixed together

, To .

charge in this manner e ach s kip or bucket of c oke is first dropped upon
,

the smal l bel l or place d over the gas seal which is lowere d t o allow the
coke to fall upon the bi g bell This operation is repeated until all the
.

or po unds of coke has been droppe d upon the bi g bell ,

which is then l owered , allowing the coke t o drop into t he furnace The .

ore and stone are then charged in t he s ame manner To illustrate the .

variation t o be expe cte d in the ma nner of charging the simple S cheme ,

outlined above may be c ompared with the following which was once found ,

in use at a certain plant .

1 skip of ore—mixture of ores A and B . . Weighe d . Sm l a l

lb e llo w e re d .

1 skip of stone and ore—mixture of stone and ore C . Weighed S m a l

. l
l
ow e r e d .

1 S kip of coke—not weighed . Sm a lb e l

l llo we re d .

1 — lb e l ll
skip of c oke s m a l o w e re d .

Bi g Be l lLowe re d .

—
1 skip of stone and ore mi xture of stone and ore C — sm allbe l llo we r e d . .

1 skip of ore—mixture of ores A B and C ll

lb e l
sm a l o w e re d .
,
. .
-
.

1 —
skip of co k e s m a l
lb e l
llo we re d .

1 skip of c oke —s m a l ll
lb e l o w e re d .

lLo w e
Bi g Be l re d .

So m e I r re gu l
a ri t i e s o f Fu r nace O p e ra t i o n :
The bl as t furnace even
in its highest development is by no means the even going e asily—
,

,
re gulated -
,

monster the c asual observer may tak e it to be A lthough furnace operati ons .

are under better c ontro l now than ever before the furnacemen stil l ref e rs ,

to his furnace in t he feminine g ender be cause he knows S h e is a fic kle , ,

maid c apable of actin g in most unexpected and astonishin g ways There .

fore a full discussion of t his subj e ct woul d lead t o possibilities and prob
,

abilities almost without end H owever the subj ect lends its e lf t o at least
.
,

o ne p o s i ti ve statement I t is t his : t here are fe w s ituations in life where

.

promptnes s and d e cision forethough t and g e od j udgment skill and e xp e ri

, ,

ence are more neede d than abou t a blast furna ce in times of trouble A .

few of these troubles are here enumerated .

Sl
i ps are due to a wedging of the stoc k in the upper part of the stac k .

They are thought t o be c aused by c arbon deposition which may in some , ,

cases be more in volume than tha t of the ore This deposition fills up
, .

the intersti ces of the sto c k s o tha t t he gas c an penetrate it only with
,

diffi culty When t his condi t ion o ccurs the s t oc k benea t h t he wed ged
.

portion settles from t hat above t he blas t pressure rises a nd the wedged
,

stock fi nally falls The sudden release of press ure on the gases produces
.
153 BLA S T F URNA CE

a result like that of an explosion S lips of great violence have been known
.

to tear o ff the top and do very serious d amage .

S ca ffo l
d i ng
oc curs near the top of the bosh This c ondition is often .

due t o irre gularities in the working of the furnace the following exp l anation ,

often being s uggested : I f the z one of fusion is S uddenly l owered the pasty ,

mass a t its top tends t o adhere t o the encircling wall w ith the result t hat ,

a n incrustation i s formed whi ch proj ects towa rd the c enter of the furnace .

T hi s mass offers obstruction both t o the gases and t o t he descent of t he

stock If this condition i s no t s oon remedied the blas t gases w ill c hannel
.
, ,

perhaps on one sid e in which c ase serious d amage t o the linin g would
,

res ult Dynamite is sometimes ne cessary to break a sca ffold This

. .

c ondition is often referred t o as h a n gi ng .

C h i m ne y i n g a nd Ho t S p o ts : C h i nm
is c ause d by the improper e y i ng
distribution of the charge with the coarser material s egregating t o th e
center of the furnace The hot g ases na turally s eek the l ines of leas t
.

resistance , and the principal reaction i s up t hrough this more open c enter ,

with a correspondin g S lower movement of t he finer and mor e c ompac t

material along the S ide walls Wi th t he c oarser materials se gre gatin g next
.

the side walls the mor e violent re a ctions are next the bric k w ork w ith a
, ,

c old c olumn in the centre and the c ondition i s sometime s c alled pillaring
, .

I f the latter condition be comes localize d the action of the s toc k and the ,

ho t gases soon cut away the wall s a dj acent to the are a a ffe cted if the ,

c ondition continues for any length of t ime E ventu ally , this m ay . ,

develop a hot spot S howin g on the shell

, By t he generous use of .

water S praye d agains t the hot s po t the furnace can sometimes be k ep t in

operation for a c onsiderable lengt h of time after a ho t S po t S ho ws I n .

e ither c ase the c ol der material from the inactive z one causes a col d hearth

and poor quality of iron .

Los s o f T u ye re s a n d
'

l
C h ile d He
r t h may be brough t about by burning
a

out the c oolers due t o failure of t he w ater and by filli ng durin g a S lip Ba d .

slips always t hrow a grea t deal of the molten s la g up into t he t uyeres ,

blowpipes and tuyere stoc k where i t immediately s olidifie s , necessitating

a sh ut d own The l arge am ount o f c omparativel y c ol d s toc k that d rops
.

into the hearth from a severe S lip may lower th e t emperature of the molten
iron and S lag below the fusion point thus producin g a c h i l lin t he hearth
, .

When the t uyeres are finally opened in case of a bad chill , and th e furnace
is on blast if necessary before the tap hole c an be opened t he iron can
, , ,

be tappe d through the cinder notch after the removal of the coolers .

Unce t i n ti e s a nd Va r i a b l
r a e s i n F u r n ace Co n t r o l
: Beside s the
irre gu l arities j ust mentioned which a ffect and oc cur i n t he furnac e itself ,

there are m any others which may arise from outside s ources becaus e t o ,

obtain uniform working of the furnace it is necess ary t ha t al l t he raw

160 BLA S T F URNA CE

may be require d to operate successfully But in dealing with unknown .

materials t heoretical bur dening based on chemical analysis must be resorted

,

to A full d iscussion o f t hese matters woul d make t his C hapter t oo

.

technical for t he purpose it is intended H owever as illustrating the pro .

,

hle m s tha t c onfronts the blast furnace operator the following will supply ,

concrete examples :

G iven : A fur nace with a certa i n capacity and raw materi als of the com
position shown in t he following table
Requi re d : 1. To produce 1 t on (2240 lbs ) pig iron with 2000 pounds .

c oke or le ss .

2 To produce me t a l cont aining S ilicon , l ess than

.

s ulphur , less t han manganese as hi gh as possible ; ,

carbon and phosphorus not S pe cified , .

To dete rm ine : 1 . I n what proportions the ores shall be mixed .

2 . Weight of ore mi xture in the charge .

3 . Weight of flux in the charge .

Tab l A na l Mate ri aIs Use d i n th e Bl

a s t F u r n ace
'

e ys i s o f Raw .

ORES

Dry Bam s

. 83
. 082 . 096 . 083
A 12 0 3

. 11 . 18 . 25
. 14 . 26 . 21

Un
S ul
p h uri c A nh y d ri d e . 06 d e te r
m i ne d
Al
k al
ie s N az O T r a ce T r ace T r ac e T ra ce T r ace T ra e c

T 10 2 . 0 19 T r ace T r ac e

W ate r (We t
, Ba s i s )

N B
'

* The preceding table is i ntended to give a complete list of the

. .

elements and radicals which ma k e up t he solid materials entering the

‘

furnace o r the c harge The gases i c , the bl ast , may be looked upon
, .
, . .

as a m 1xture of oxygen and inert gases composed mainly of nitrogen I n this .

mixture the oxygen content is by volume or by weight .

 B URDE N 16 1

Ou tl
i ne o f Me t h o d fo r S o l
vi n g a B u r d e ni n g P ro b l
a e m : I n a general
way the solution of the problem is arrive d at in the following manner
From the physical condition of the various ores and t he amount of e ach
on hand their rel ative cost or othe r consideratio ns t he furnaceman
, , ,

first de cides the approximate proportions in which i t is desirable t o use

the ores From these proportions he is able t o determine the average
.

composition of the ore mixture in e ach charge the size of which he has ,

also de ci ded upon From this average he is able t o cal cul ate the amount
.

of ore re quire d to produce o ne to n of pig iron and the wei ght of the impuri ,

ties therein Then since he must make one ton of iron with one ne t ton of
.
,

coke or less he is ab l
,
e t o arrive a t t he total impurities in the ore and c oke
,

require d t o produce one t on of iron These impurities he S eparates into .

,

acids and bases an d then co m Bine s t hem ac cor ding t o the sl a g ratio of
,

aci d to base which experience has taught is the best t o produce t he k ind
‘

of iron desired This pro cess gives t he excess acids which must be fl uxe d
.

with l imestone From the anal ysis of t he stone he determines the avail able
.

base from which the amount of limestone require d t o flux the excess acids
,

in ac cordance with the accepte d ratio c an be found The next thing t o .

consider is the slag v olume or the amo unt of slag t o be made per t on of ,

iron w hich experience has t au

,
ght must be within certain limits t o be con
sistent w ith good furnace practice If the volume of Sl a g is very low its .
,

ability t o remove sulphur from the iron may be seriously interfered with ,

while if it is very hi gh the fuel c onsumption will increase above t ha t desir

,

able because c oke must be consume d t o furnish the heat necessary t o form
,

an d fuse t he S lag If the sl ag volume falls outside t he limits which t he

.

fu rnaceman s j udgment from experience has se t for i t he must be gin al l

’
,

over again s t artin g with a di fferent mixture of ores or different limestone

, ,

or co k e Evid ently w ith new mat erials the solution of t he problem involves
.
,

a great de al of try work with diffe rent c ombinations of the mat e rials t hat
-

may be available .

T h e Bu r d e n S h e e t : During the operation of a furnace , the burden may

be changed from time to time to meet t he ever changin g conditions These .

changes are governed by observation an d by the analysis of the pi g iron and

sla g produced An accurate record is k ep t of all changes made , an d of the
.

Weights an d analyses of all materials charged , and for purposes o f record and
of compariso n between the theo retica l an d actu alconditions, t his data is al l
assembled a t certain t imes usually once e ach week , place d on a b urd e n sheet ,
'

and the theoretical amounts of the various in gredient s o f t he raw materials

and the products are calculated To illustrate the cal culations involved , the .

following burden sheet is appended The figures given are based on a single .

charge instead of o n amounts of materials use d for any g iven l en gth of time ,
otherwise they represent actua l conditions an d Show a typical cha rge for a
furnace ma k ing b asi c iron I n stu d ying t he shee t i t shoul d be kep t in mind
.

that on l y the weights of the ores cinder s cale scrap c o k e and stone t ogether , , , , ,

with their analyses and the theoretical a nalyses of the pi g iron are given to
,
162 BLA S T FURNA CE

é
v s
o
d6 o w AO
. .
.

o £ o
d
Z z7 Z 4 £ 5 fi M
< H oe v
l l 7 8 2 2 E F Q s- om

i
1 2S H
Q 3u o 0 5 5 8o O H c m
8 EO o
fi
O 0 o 5 B 5Q mm
 16 4 BLA S T F UR NA CE

is no t deposited with magnetite and C O reacting together but

C arbon ,

i t m ay be deposite d at temperatures bel ow 6GO C by th e action of

°

metal lic iron upon C O thus ; The C O2 formed in the

,

prece ding reactions and from the decomposition of limestone may act as
an oxidizing agent ab s orbing or giving o ff he at , as S hown in reactions
,

(5) (6 ) (7)
Fe O C O —23 40 cal )
9 (5) Fe C0 2 .

—97200 cal . 6 5700 cal . 29160 c al .

(6 ) 3 Fe O C 02 Fe 3 0 4 C O cal )
.

197100 cal . 97200 cal . 2708 00 cal . 29160 cal .

40 0 2 Fe 3 0 4 40 0 —13 60 cal )
(7) 3 Fe .

—388 8 00 cal . 2708000 a l . 1 166400 al .

T hese reactions will take place at temperatures ranging from about 350 C °
.

to 8 00 C and their extent wil l be governed by the relative amo unts of

°
.
,

C0 2 and C O in the furnace gas obeying in this respect the l aw of m ass , , ,

action To be reducing t he volume of C O in the gas mixture must equal

.

or exceed twice the volume of the C 0 2 .

Ca r b o n al one is also a reducing agent toward oxides of iron at

°
low temperatures (450 C to 700 but the reduction of ore by carbo n
°
.

alone absorbs much heat as shown by the foll owing reactions

2 F6 3 0 4 CO — 16040 cal )
(8 ) 3 F6 2 0 3 + C .

—586800 c al . 54 1600 c al . 29160 c al .

(9) Fe g0 4 C= 3 F e O
“
l
"
CO — 44540 cal ) .

—
270800 cal . 197100 cal . 29160 c al .

(10) Fc O C=F e CO — 3 65 40 c al )
—65700 cal
.

. 29160 cal .

U nder proper conditions the reduction of Fe 2 0 3 by solid c arbon may take

place in a dire ct way thus : ,

4,
—
F6 20 3 + 3 O = ° Fe
+ 3 C O 108 120 cal ) -
.

195600 cal + 87480 c al . .

—
At very high t emperatures say around 1500 C —carbon in large excess °
.

may reduce m anganese S ilicon and phosphorus oxides , the reactions being
,

represented thus
( )
11 M n 0
3 4+ C = 3 M nO + C O— H eat is absorbed .

= —
(12)M O+ C Mn+ CC H ea t is absorbed
n
—
.

( )
1 3 S i O g+ 2C = S i + 2 C C H eat i s absorbed . .

14 P
( ) 2 5+ 0 5 C = 2 P + 5C O —H eat is absorbed .

S ome oxygen als o e nters t he furnace as water vapor in the blast W here the ,

following endothermic reaction o ccurs :

The hydrogen formed may do wor k temporarily by reacting with iron
oxide an d reducin g i t thus z F
But t he water s o formed is again decompose d as shown by the presenc e
of hydrogen in blas t furnace gas Therefore the net energy result from .
,

water vapor is a loss .

In this connection it should be noticed that since carbon is the onl y ,

 CHE M I S TR Y 165

fuel employed the carbon oxygen reactions must be relie d upon to furnish
,
-

the heat required in the process and th a t o nl y a few of these a r e h e a t pro

'

d uci ng R eactions (1 )to (4)produce most of the heat absorbed by other modes
.

of reduction also that require d to dry the raw m a te ri a l

,
s t o decompose the ,

limestone t o flux the impurities t o melt the iron and sl ag and t o repl ac e
, , ,

the waste On this ac count they are among the most important reactions
.

occurring in the furnace .

Be h avi o ro f Ni t roge n i n t h e Fu r nac e : Nitrogen and the other inert

gases of the a i r totalling of t h e blast by volume pass through the
, ,

furnace for the most part unchange d chemic all y S ince they e qual in
, , .

weigh t abou t six tenths of all t he othe r material s entering the furnace
-
.
,

they play an important par t in he a t c onduction and make a s o urce of ,

unavoid able heat wa ste S ome nitrogen however may react with alkali .
, ,

carbonates and c arbon t o form s alts of hydro cyanic acid -

.

(16 )K 2 C0 3 + 4 C + N2=2K C N + 3 CO .

This reac tion expl ains t he small am ount of cyanogen , CN, always
present in bl ast furnace gases .

Ac t io n o f _Ph o s p h o enters the

rus i n th e F u r n a ce : P hosphorus
furnace with the charge in the form of phosphates At very high tem .

p e ra ture s an d in the presence of coke (c arbon ) t hese c ompounds are c om

pl e te l
y reduced as shown in reaction ,
Phosphorus reac t s with iron
to form F e 3 P thus : (17) 3 F e + P = F e 3 P
, .

This phosphide being solubl e in iron becomes a part of the metallic

, ,

bath in the blast furnace H ence the phosphorus in the pig iron can be .
,

controlled only through the sele ction of materials .

Di s po si t io n o f S ul
p h u r i n t he Fu rn ac e : Sulphur is carrie d into the .

furn ace mainly b y the coke thou g h small amounts are found i n b o th the
‘

ore and the limestone The gre ater portion c ontaine d in t he coke enters
.

in the form of F e S w hi ch when melted alloys with t he iron in t he furnace ;

,
~

, ,

a smaller portion in the form of sulphates as C a SO4 enters as an impurity

, , ,

in the ore l imestone and coke and is reduce d t o sulphide at a low re d heat
, ,

and in the presence of carbon A t a very high temperature and in the .

presence of a very basic S l ag or C a O and c arbon the following re action , , ,

may t ake pl ac 0 (18 ) Owing t o l ack of

f
proper c o nd i ti c hs in the bl ast furnace this reaction is never c omplete so ,
'

a small portion of the sulphur remains in combination with the iron T hi s .

iron sulphide being soluble in iron bec omes a part of the metal
, ,
.

Be h avio r f S il
S ilicon enters the furnace as S i Og , s ome o f
o ico n :
which may be combined with bases as silicates A t tempera tures of about .

1200 C , corresponding to the f usion z one in the blast furnace , the greater
°
.

portion of this silic a combines with lime C a O and other bases to form , ,

Silicates which have already been discusse d under the heading of slags
, .

H owever at a high temperature such as exists in the hearth of the furnace

, , ,

and in the presence of carbon silica is reduced and the res ultant silicon , ,
 166 BLA S T F URNA CE

combines with the iron .

419)
(19A )F e + Si =F e Si .

o f Cal
Ac t i o n c i u m a nd Ma gne s i u m : C al cium and M agnesium enter
the furnace mostly as carbona tes S mall portions may be in the form of .

silicat es in whi ch C a O and M gO are c ombine d wit h S i Oz and may unde rgo
, ,

no ch emic a l change in the furnace The carbonat e s however are d e co m .

, ,

po se d a t t emper atures above 800 C liberating C 0 2 °

.
,
.

( )
20 C a C 0 3
= C a O + C0 2 (21 )M gC0 3
= M gO +. C Oz .

At th e proper temperature for their formation the caustic lime and magnesia
in intima te contac t w ith S10 2 will both combine with it to form slags .

Ac tio n o f Al in the form of alumina A12 0 3 and

um i nu m : A luminum , , ,

alumina silicates is fo und in ore flux and fuel Neither alumina nor its
, , .

silicates are re duced under the conditions that prevail in a bl ast furnac e .

A12 0 3 a s already pointed out may exert a marked influence upon the
, ,

fluidity and fusibility of the S l ag .

Ac tio n o f Le s s A b u n d a nt
Titanium potassium sodium El
e m e nt s : , , ,

z inc arsenic cop per and chromium are elements a few of which are present
, , , ,

in very small amounts in the materials use d i n the P ittsburg h district .

T itanium enters the furnace as titania T i Oz c ombine d wit h s ome base , , .

T itania is similar to S ilica S i Oz except t hat i t is more difficult to re duce

, ,

at temperatures attainable in the bl ast furnace an d all bu t t races of it , ,

which is fo und in the iron passes out with the the sl ag Under t he c on
, .

d i ti o ns preva i ling in the furnace titanium exhibits a S l ight t endency t o ,

combine with c arbon and nitrogen to form titani um cyano nitride This -
.

substance is sometimes foun d in the salamander on the hearths of furna ces

being repaired Here , it occurs in the form of small c ubes that h a ve the
'

appearance of copper The alkalies soda an d pot ash are found in ne arly
.
, ,

all blas t furnace S lags and when they are present in the raw materials
,

to a c onsiderable extent they a re partly vol atilize d and driven over

,

out of the furnace with the flue gases from which they may be separated ,

with an installation of suitable apparat us Z inc is a very troublesome .

element when present in blast furnace material I ts compounds may .

b e reduced in the lower re g1o ns of t he stack ; bu t if so , the z inc is vol ,

a ti li z e d driven upward by the blast and oxidize d t o z inc oxide which

‘

, , ,

condenses on the walls of the c older part of the fi nes and in time closes
'

up the passages t o such an extent as t o seriously restrict the fl o w of the

gases . Zinc oxide also tends to c ombine with the al umina in the fire
brick lining of the furnace causing the bric k t o expand Wi th c onsequent
,

evil or even disastro us results A rseni c acts very much like phosphorus
, , . .
‘

Al lof its c ompo unds are reduced and the resultant elementary arseni c then ,

combines with iron t o form iron arsenide which dissol ves in the metal .

C opper compounds are re adily reduced yieldi ng metall i c copper wh ich , ,

alloys with the iron C hromium is separated from its o xi des only with
.

great difficulty in the blast furnace an exceedingl y high temperature and a ,

special S lag being required for the reduction of its oxides .

168 BLA S T F URNA CE

15 0 00 0 CU FT | 272 1L
. BS . .

G AS E 3

S T O NE

3l
67

6 6 6 5 LS

TAP P l
NG Ho n

F ro . 23 . T he M a k i ng o f a to n o f P i g I ro n
. A d i agram s h o w i ng th e ra w
ch ang e s t h at t ak e p l
a ce th e re i n .
 RE A C T I ONS 169

6 7 5 8 LBS .

Na
l 0 l l
0 1 0

R ELA nv e
-
W a xe s rs
-
o r R AW MA T ER l
A LS .

S O M E FER R O U S Ox no e 15 RE D UC E D T O ME TA LL IC IR O N
. .

30 m g CA R B O N DI O X I D E MAY 8 5 R s o uc e o BY IR O N
OR FE R RO U S Ox uo e .

C O M B i N cn WA T ER R E MA IN I N G l
s D EC O M P O S E D .

Li m ES T O N E l
s D E C O M Pp s e o .

TO T A L LI M E FR O H O R E A N D S T O N E LB S .

Re vue
-
n o r: o r IRO N OXI DES 15 C O M P L ET ED B Y CA R BON

FUS I O N Z O N E FO R A LL S U B S T A NC ES B UT C o ws
C O M B US T IO N Z O NE,
(OX Y G EN A ND V/A T ER OF T HE A IR

AND CA R B O N Mo No x lo E ) .

So S I L IC A l J x’ E D U C ED FO R M IN G IR O N S l
LlC l
DE
’

m e S .

m a te ri a s a ndl c
th e p ro d u ts o f th e b l t furn
as c
a e ; th e i r re l
ati ve we i g h t s and th e
170 BLA S T F URNA CE

of C0 and CC 2 are ap proximately 2 to 1 In the lower part of the stack .

,

the temperatur e is so high that CO2 cannot exi st in the presence of carbon ,

and any oxide reduced in this region results in the gasifi catio n of a proportion
ate amount of carbon This direct reduction of oxide by carbon is the most
.

inefficient mode of reduction because it absorbs much heat as shown by re

, ,
'

actions an d and robs the t uyeres of c arbon needed for c o m b us

tion Thi s mode of reduction , then is one the furnacem an strives to avoid so
. ,

far as possible .

Tr ac i ng t h e Ma t e ri al
s T h ro u g h t h e Fur nace : The ore l imestone
'

and coke upon being charged into the top of the furnace come in c ontact
’

, ,
°
with an ascending current of ho t gases (temperature about 275 T he
first change that takes place is the physical one of drying The hygrosco pic .
r

water being first drive n off and carried out of the furnace by these gases
, ,

is then foll owed by the water of crystalliz ation The stock with its inter .
,

sti ti a lspaces filled with an ascending atmosphere containing the re duc ing
gas C0 starts t o descen d towar d the bottom of the furnace and to re gi ons
,

of higher and higher temperatures A t di fferent level s , then chemica l .

,

reactions pec uliar to the te m p e ra ture s o f these l evel s will oc cur At first .

only the oxides of iron and carbon su ffer change and t he first reac tion to ,

occur is number in which c arbon deposition takes place a t a temperature

as low as 3 00 C A large part of the remaining iron oxide in the presence
°
.
,

of both C and C 0 is next red uced in successive levels and temperatures as

,

follows

3 Fe 2 0 3 +
{ 8 = Fe 3 0 4 , begins at C
°
450
0
.

C
°
Fe 0 , complete at 600 .

Fe O begins at 700
°
C .

about 800 C the free iron is subj ect to r e oxidation by C 0 2 as is

°
At .
-
,

also the compounds F e 0 and Fe g0 4 though to a less degree the chief action
A t 800 C or a l
,

being represente d by reactio n itt le above the d e co m .

, ,

position of limestone takes place thus : Ca C0 3 =Ca 0 + C0 2 This reaction

, .

is c omplete at 1000 C At 900 C carbon reduces 0 0 2 t o C0 thus :

°
.
°
.
, .

C + C0 2= 2C0 s o that C 0 2 does no t exist below the 60 foot level

, F rom .

this leve l the mixture is one of gangue quick lime c oke spongy iron and , , ,

varyin g amounts of unreduced ore all of whi ch descend t o the fusion z one
,
'

with very little change if the absorption o f c arbon by t he iron and the
,

action of c arbon on the unreduced ore be excepte d At this level which .

,

is located at t he t op of the bosh the lime combines with some of the gangue
,

and with a little u n

, reduced iron oxi de and manganese oxide forms a part of ,

the sl ag The slag ,such a s i s already formed and the i r On both now ln
.
, ,

the li q uid state trickle d own through the interstices of the coke to the
.
172 T H E BE S S E M E R P ROCE S S

C HA P T ER V I I .

T H E BESSEME R PROCE S S OF MA N UFA CTUR I N G S T E EL .

S ECT I O N I .

T HE CLA S S I FICAT I ON OF F E R R OU S P R OD U CT S .

I n t r o d uct o ry : I n be ginning
this chapter it is de sirable t o decide the
question as to what constitutes steel Owing to the many varieties of iron .

now classed as steel a concise and wholly s atisfactory definition is well

,

ni gh impossi ble Attempts have been made t o restri ct the usa ge of the
.

term but withou t success be c ause in defining any term t he name must
, , ,

be taken as it is used Therefore S inc e an ade quate definition of steel i s

.
,

lacking a brief resum é of the commercial products of iron may be profitable

,
.

I n be ginni n g this survey , it is to be born in min d t hat t he basis for the

prepara tion of t he various ferrous pro duc t s is pi g iron an d that this
subs t ance a dire c t produc t o f t he blast furnace represents the crudest
, ,

form of c ommercial iron Al lhi gher gra d es are t he products obtaine d by

.

differen t methods of refinemen t and the de gree t o which this refinement

is carried The ferrous products may therefore be place d under two
.
, ,

classes namely pi g iron and refined iron

, ,
.

Pi g I ro n a nd C as t I ro n : As
pointed out in the preceding chapter ,

pig iron may vary , or be varied , very much in chemi cal composition and
constitution This variati o n give s t he di fferen t grades of pi g iron and
.

determines the use t o whi ch the metal c an be applie d On c oolin g , t he .

crude forms first undergo a slight exp ansion which i s foll owe d by a sli ght ,

c ontraction This fac t makes it partic ularl y suitab l

. e for moul d c asting ,

in whi ch form i t is calle d C as t I r o n C ast iron o ffers a hi gh resistance .

to crus hi n g bu t al lforms of unrefined iron are l acking in tenacity

, ,

elast icity and malle ability .

l
Ma le ab l
e Cas t I r o n : I n the se cond class will be found a ser 1es of
products which may be cl assifie d according t o the initial method of r e fi ne
,

ment This refinement may be brought ab o ut i n two ways —namel y , one

.
,

in whi ch t he metal remains in the solid state throughout t he process and

another in which t he purification invol ves fusing the metal M alleable .

cas t iron is an example of t he first method P ro ducts of this cl a ss are .

obtaine d from crude pi g iron of a certain c omposi tion chemi cally, w hi ch ,

upon being cast into the desired form i s subsequently subj e cte d t o a c om ,

b ine d anneali ng and oxidizing process by which the malleability is

 WROUGH T I RON A N D S TEEL 173

develope d I n carrying out the process t he clea n casting is packe d in iron

.
,

oxide and subj e cte d to a temperature of about 700 C for three or more °
.

days when i t is allowe d to coo l in the furnace very sl owly By this treat
,
.

ment the greater portion of the c ombine d carbon i s c onverte d into gr aphite
that take s the form o fvery minute parti cles e venly distribute d throughout
the casting and s o does no t have the weakening e ffe ct that flakes of graphite
,

have S ome carbon say twenty per cen t Of that ori ginally present in the
.
,

iron i s oxidize d and eliminated from the metal I t i s s ai d t ha t a S li ght

,
.

re duction in the sulphur content also takes place .

Wro u g h t I ro n : At present there are two classes of iron products

rec o gnize d as being pro duce d by the method of purification by fu si on To .

these are given the names of wr o u g h t i ro n and s t e e l Wrought iron as .

,

indic ated in the study of the blast furnace may be produce d dire ctly from ,

the ore This method however has now been supersede d by the indire ct
.
, ,

process in which pi g iron is melte d in a reverberatory furnace calle d a

, ,

puddling f urnace the hearth of which is li ne d with iron oxi de This treat
,
.

men t results in the oxidation and consequent removal , from t he metal of ,

all bu t small amounts of carbon sili con manganese phosphorus and sulph ur , , ,
.

The purification brings about a rise i n the fusion temp erature of the iron
above t hat of the furnace ,an d a t this poin t t he met al is remove d from the
furnace in the form of pasty bal ls in w hi ch more or less s la g i s incorp orate d .

As much as possible of thi s sla g i s a t once remove d by hammering or

squeez ing a fte r whi ch the bloom thus produce d is rolle d into m uc k b ar
,
x
.

I n this form it may be converte d into steel as no t e d below or subj e cted ,

to furthe r t re atment t o produce m e rc h a nt b a r Wrought iron is soft .

,

tough and very malleable I t welds easily , an d is characterize d by a

.

fi br ous s tructure due t o t he presence of t he intermingle d slag and the

,

me chani cal tre atment it re ceive s V arious modific ati ons looking to .

improvemen t in t he process of producing wrought iron have been devised .

S te e l is the t erm app l ie d t o all refine d ferr ous pro ducts no t included
under the cl asses describe d above I t is d is t inguished from pi g iron by .

being malleable a t t emperatures below its melting point from malleable ,

iron by the fact th at i t is initi ally malleable withou t tre atment subse quent
.

to bein g c ast and from wrought iron by the circumstance of its manufacture
,
.

I n the c ase of wrought iron t he metal was in a fuse d state durin g a part
,

of the purifying process onl y whereas the purific ation of pi g iron t o produce
,

steel takes place a t a higher t emperature and t he metal remains in the

'

molten state throughout the period of pur ifi cation From a chemical .

anal ysis it is practic ally impossible to distinguish wr ought iron from s oft
ste el but the one being obtaine d in a state of c omplete q iou and free
”

, ,

from slag may exhi bit physica l p roperties very different from the other
, ,

whic h i s obtaine d in a semi fuse d state and retains small amounts of the
-

sl a g inc orporate d with it Between pi g iron an d steel however a marke d

.
, ,

di fference in chemical composition as wel l as in physical properties i s

174 BES S EM E R P ROCE S S

observed Allthree substances S how a wide variation in chemical com

.

position The following table may be studie d with profit

.
.

Tab l
e 28 . Ch e m i c alRe la t i o n s o f Pi g I r o n W r o , u gh t

Ir o n a nd Pl ai n S t e e l .

PER CENT OF
‘

P i g I ro n . 91 —94 . 50 . 0 18 . 030 . 25

Pl
ai n

S te e l
. . . 30 . 0 20 . 002 . 00 5

as c as t)

. 05 . 01 . 0 20 . 0 50 . 02

Thi s t able would indic ate that wr ought iron is not the pure st form of
commercial iron as is often asserted H owever in wrought iron part of
,
.
,

the manganese sulphur pho sphorus and S ili con shown in the table above
, ,

may be derive d from the incorporate d slag in which case the y woul d exert ,

little influence upon the metal itself .

Met h o d s o f Ma ki ng S te e l: F ormerly it was possible t o make a much

finer distinction between wrought iron and steel than that indicate d above .

Prior t o 1856, t here were but two kinds of finishe d steel ; the y were known
as s h e a r s t e e land c r uc i b l
e or c as t s t e e l Both were at that t ime manu
, , .

fa cture d from blister steel made by the cementation of wrought iron S hear .

ste el was made by piling and welding blister steel bars into fa ggots whi ch ,

were then forge d or rolled into strips or bands suitable for cutlery Crucible .

steel was produce d by melting blister steel and s crap in graphite crucibles ,

casting the fluid metal int o mo ulds and then forging these small ingots ,

into bars of the required size and S hape These products were distinguishe d .

from wrought iron by the fact that they coul d be hardene d and tempere d ,

and this property was therefore made the basis for a definition of steel
, , .

But the introduction of the Bessemer and open hearth processes with ,

their num erous grades of products many of whi ch can also be hardened ,

and tempered and all of whi ch are quite different from wrought iron ne ce s ,

s i t ate d a revision of thi s definition for steel be cause l acking a better , ,

name the term steel was applie d to the products from the new processes
,

also T hen still more re cently the advent of the ele ctri c furnace adde d
.
, ,

another variety to the ferrous metals F inally the cementation process .

,
 BE S S EM E R P ROCES S
'

176

oxidation of these elements are exothermic reactions from which the he at ,

requi red t o maintai n the metal in the liqui d state is derive d Since steel
“

produced in this w ay without recarburization c ontains deleterious oxides

, ,

which render it unfit for use it i s ne cessary to add deoxidi z ers t o the metal
, '

after blo wing This fact was not realized at first and the history Oi the
. ,

process serves to emphasize its importance .

Som e I nci d e n t s C o nne c t e d w i t h t h e Ea rly His t o ry o f t h e P r o c e s s

T h e history of this process als o furnishes an example of the way in whi ch
a method is developed and illustrates the fact that the perfecting Of a
,

process is s eldom accomplishe d by one mind alone but by many minds ,

thinking toward one goal The metho d was almos t concurrently but
'

.
,

independently originate d by two me n : one an Ameri can name d Wm Kelly

, ,
.

of E ddyville ; Ky the other an E nglishman the illustrious inventor H enry

.
, , ,

Bessemer A lthough Kelly did not appl y for patents unti l 1857 almost
. ,

two years after Bessemer s English patent was granted , his appli c ati on
’

was allowed on grounds of priority because he was able t o prove that h e ,

had worked out the i dea as early as 1847 I n the same year that he m a de .

application for patents Kelly erecte d a tilting converter for the C ambri a
,

Steel Works at Johnstown P a This vessel i s still preserved Lac kin g

, . .

financia l means however Kelly was unable to perfect this inventi on and
, , ,

after much liti gation with the Bessemer interests a settlement was made , ,

whereby Kelly dropped out of the game Bessemer on the other hand , .
,

in addition to conceiving the idea and putting it t o tri al c ontinued his ,

experiments in the face Of great diffi culties and many failures unti l he h ad
brought the process to a high degree of perfection At first Besse mer .

accidently employe d only Swedish iron which had a low phosphoru s and ,

a high manganese c ontent and wa s very successful in converting it Then

,
.
,

it having been adopted by many manufacturers the proce ss faile d when ,

applie d t o English irons which were high in the i r phosphorus and low in
their manganese content and prej udice and Opposition t o t he method
,

became so great among steel makers that in order t o save his pro cess , ,

Bessemer was oblige d to build a steel works himself H i s plant built at .

,

S he ffield be gan to operate in 1860

, .

Im po r ta nce o f Ma n ga ne s e : A t the S heffield works the process was used

at first to produce high carbon steels from Swedish pig iron onl y be cause low ,

carbon steels Obtained by subj e cting the metal t o a full blow were almost
, ,

invariably ho t S hort even when made from the excellent S we dish iron
, .

This defect was later Overcome by the addition of manganese in t he form

of spie geleisen the beneficial effe cts of which were first re c o gnize d by
,

R Mush e t as e arly as 18 56
. With the adoption of the use Of manganese
.
,

mild or soft steels produce d by the process c ame into s o gre a t de m and
that the former practice in blowing was abandoned in Engl and thou gh i t ,

is still employe d in Sweden The first Bessemer pl ant in this country was
.

erected in 1867 .
 H I S T OR Y 177

T h o m as a nd G i l
c h ris t : The removal Of phosphorus by the use Of a
‘

basi c lining and the addition Of lime to the bath was first conceive d by
Thomas who made k no wn the success of his scheme in 1878 In the devel op
, .

ment of this process Thomas was assiste d by his cousin , t he chemist

,

G ilchris t hence the name Thomas G il christ

,
-
.

Ot h e r Im p r ove t While the process was hi ghly developed al on g

m e n s:

mechanical lines by Bessemer himself it remaine d for Alexander Holley , , ,

an American Engineer , t o introduce many improvements i n t he e re ction o f

Bessemer plan t s The mos t impor t an t of t hese w as hi s invention of t he
.

detachable bottom which will be desc ri bed l a ter Another important

, .

in vention w a s t hat of t he ho t meta l mixer S ince i t furnishe d a re ady s upply

'
,

Of mol t en metal Of fairly u ni form composition t hus allowing t he pro cess

to be Operate d much more rapid l

,

y and e conomically This vessel also t o .

,

be des cribe d l at er was the invent ion of W R Jones of t he C arne gie

, . .

S teel C omp any s Edgar Tho mson Pl an t a t Braddock

’
.

Pl a more minu t e description o f t he

'

an o f S t ud y : Be fo re b e gi nni ng
process as it is c arried o n with these modern improvements i t i s wel l t o
-
,

note tha t the details of t he operation will vary much in di fferen t pl ants
as well as in differen t countries The des cription , therefore mus t be either .
,

very general in charac ter , o r be restricte d t o s ome one plan t w hi ch w ill

suffice as an example for all Fo r the present purpose it i s best t o follow
.
,

the latter co urse and the C arnegie Steel C ompany s plant a t t he Edgar
,
’

Thomson Wor k s is selecte d to serve as such an example G eneral fe atures .

of great importance may then be introduce d in conne ction with t he dis

cussi o n Of t he various topics At these works the product from e leven .
,

modern blas t furnaces i s available t o supply both the Open hearth pl ant
o f fourteen 90-ton f rnaces and the sse m e r pl ant Of four c onverters , the
u
maximum c apacity of which is twen y tons .

S EC T I O N I I I .

E Q UI P ME NT A N D A R R A N G E ME NT OF T H E E D G A R T H OM S ON P LA NT .

T h e C o nve t Ho u se : The four converters are arrange d in a ro w

r e r

along one side of the converter building whi ch is locate d i n one c orne r of ,

the works in close pro ximity t o the rail mills The c onverters be i ng Of .
,

t he concentric t ype til t in two dire ctions in one dire ction for charging
, ,

and in another for pouring On the charging side of the vessels the buildin g
.

is erecte d t hree story fashion The ground floor extends under t he

-
.

converters and Offers space for the removal Of bottoms slag etc The , , .

second floor designated as the char gin g floor is on a level with the
, ,

tru nnions From this floor all molten materials are charged into t he
.

vessels From the third floor c alle d the scrapping floor all c old mate rials
.
, ,

are charged S ervin g t he four converters on t he pourin g side are t wo

.
,

j ib cranes for handling the steel ladles into which the metal is poured after
178 T HE BES S E M ER P LA N T
18 0 BE S S EM E R P R OCESS

s h a ft forms the stack , a l s o about twenty four feet hi gh , fo r the esc ape -

o f gases The entire furnace rests vertic ally on a mantle which is

.

supported by a number of c olumns fixed up o n a firm foundation T his .

construction permits the use of the drop bottom which facilitates the ,

removal of worn out l inings the frequent repairi ng requ ired by t he l ower
-
,

lining and the rapid discharge of the stock i n c ase of emergency Fo r the
,
.

sa k e of e conomy the lini ng or w all i s made of di fferent materi als The

, , ,
.

upper w all for a dist a nce of about four fee t below t he chargin g d oors is
, ,

made of fire brick and i s nine inches thi c k Bel ow this bri c k w ork t he .
,

wall i s bui lt of fi re sto ne and i s gradually increase d i n thi c kne ss , forming a

kind of bosh above the hearth the walls of which are about eighteen inches ,

thick No attempt i s made t o c ool these w alls , s o i t i s customary t o

.

bac k up the fi re s to ne of the hearth wal l with fire brick i n order to s afe -

guar d t he steel shell T h e shell like t hat o f the blast furnace supports
.
, ,

and re enforces the masonry I t is mad e of st eel plates which are rivet e d
- .
,

t o gether .

The cupol
Ch a rgi ng t h e C u po l
a: a charge is compose d of coke spie gel ,

and pi g iro n in alternate l ayers of metal and coke

,
to the l as t of which ,

1 s added su fficient limestone to flu x t he ash When the orders c all for steel .

with a high content of silicon ferro silicon is als o added t o t he charge ,

-
.

T he rati o of coke t o metal varie s a little A t all t imes the amount of fuel .

will be as small as possible , both for the sake of e conomy and t o exclude
sulphur and phosphorus which are absorbed by the metal , as much as
,

po ssible Sulphur in the charge does not result in a rise in the sulphur
.
.

‘
content of the molten spiegel but in a waste of the m angane se , which reacts
,

with the ferrous sulphide to form manganous sulph ide and goes o ff wit h the ,

slag Ordinarily, the coke will be about 8 % and the stone about
. of
th e metallic charge .

T h e Bl
as t : Just
outs i de the converter house on the pulpit side , ,

is the blowing room H ere are l ocated three steam bl owing engine s of the
.

compound vertical type which cre ate the air blas t for t he convert e r s The
,
.

bl as t from t hese engines is delivered into a common main through which

'

it is conducted into the converter b uilding where i t i s distribute d through ,

a manifold to li ne s leadin g separately t o the four vessels The admission .

of air t o t he vessels and its pressure are nicely re gulated by a system of

valves under the c ontrol of t he b lower Thus the pressure on the m ain is .
,

maintained at abou t 25 pounds per square inch by means of a blow—

’

o fi valve ,

which is use d t o re gulat e t he pressure while the vessels are ch ar ging or

pouring I n case some of the converters are not being operated one or more
.
,

of the blowin g en gines is s topped By means of a second valve operated .

,

from the pulpi t by a s cre w c ontrol a pressure of 18 t o 20 pounds per ,

square inch i s maintaine d on the line leading t o e ach vessel

.
Under t his .

pressure the blast may be al m ost instantaneously admitted to or shut

off from the vessel by means of a third valve of the butter fl y typ e A -
.

fourth valve provides a means by which steam may be admitted to the

 E Q UI P M EN T 18 1

blast line as re quired T he limits of blast pressure to the converter are

.

about 10 and 25 pound s per square inch The lower pressure is just .

about sufficient t o keep the metal out of the tuyeres in a norm al charge ,

while if the higher pressure b e exceeded l arge amounts of metal are blown ,

out of the converter .

T he Mi xe rs : The supply of molten pig iron is obtaine d fr o m t wo

200-ton ho t meta l m iixe rs l ocated near the blast furnaces and some three
hundre d y ards from t he c onverter mill They are large vessels constructe d .

of stee l plat e s riveted together to form a shell which i s lined with silic a or a ,

good grade o f fire brick The vessel s at this plant represent the oldest type
. .

The y h a Ve a rectangul ar horizonta l se ction and dis charge the meta l by

tilting This typ e has a sli ghtl y arched roof and a bottom whi ch slope s
.

from the front or pouring end t owar d t he re ar The axis of rota t ion is .

locate d a t the bottom ne a r the center line of the vessel Molten iron .

from t he blast furnaces i s co nveyed t o the mixer in tipping ladle s from ,

whic h t he metal is poure d into t he m ixer t hrough an opening in its t op at

the re ar end In the opposite end another ope ning provided with a spout ,
.
,

permits t he drawing o ff o f ho t met a l as require d by me rel y tilting the

mixer t hus per mitting the meta l t o be weighed w ith a fair de gre e of exact
,

ness These mixe rs are not provide d with gas burners as i s customary
.
, ,

for very little he a t above that held by the metal i s ever require d to k eep
the contents molten .

o f t h e Mixe r : The ho t metal mixer i s almos t indis

I m p o r t a nce
pensable t o a modern Bessemer plant o r fo r tha t m atter , t o any s teel ,

making plant Primarily t he mixer serves as a s torage place fo r t he hot

.

metal from t he blas t furnace an d in p erforming this function bes t ows great
,

benefits Thus no t o nl
.
y is t he he at from the hot pi g iron c onserve d bu t t he
, , ,

metal delivere d t o t he vessel o r vessels i s of a mor e uniform c omposition

, ,

than coul d be otherwise obtained A gain , s ince the c apacity of the modern .

mixer permits it t o c ontain c asts from s everal furnaces , iron lo w i n s ome

elements m ay be mixe d with some t ha t is hi gh in the same ingre dients ;
and s o it i s po ssible t o extend the chemica l l imits o f the iro n re ce ivable .

Mixers have been c onstructe d of various shapes and si zes Their c apacities .

wil l range fr o m 150 t o 1200 t ons,but t he tendency in all modern c onstruction

i s toward t he l arger size Purification of t he metal is sai d t o t ake place
.

to a sligh t e xtent in the mixer , sulphur bein g the chief impurity removed .

The reduction in sulphur however is only notice able w hen the manganese
, ,

conten t o f t he iron is hi gh This removal is at al l times so small as t o be

.

of minor importance .

T h e S t ri p pe r: One of t he mos t efficient and ec onomical inventions

contribute d t o t he s t ee l business is t he stripper As its name indicates . ,

i t i s a device w he reby the mou l ds are pulle d or s t ripped , from the in gots ,

after the me t a l has cooled sufficient ly t o form a s olid shell on t heir o utside
surfaces Those at the E dgar Thomson Works are of a l ate type and are
.
18 2 BE S S E M E R P ROCE S S

electrically operated A s tri pp e r of this type is in the form of a strong

.
‘

over head crane from which is suspended a vertical arm provided in place
-
, , ,

of a hand with t wo j aws that fit over lugs cast on either s ide and near the
,

top of the moul d Operating between t he j aws i s a ram o r plunger , c apable

.
,

of exerting pressure on the top of the i ngo t w hi l

e it is b e i ng s tri pp e d suffi ci e nt , ,

to balance t he pull I n strippin g an ingot the j aws engage t he lugs and

.
,

exert a powerful pull upward while the ram having been inserte d through , ,

the top of the mould holds the ingot on the stool till the moul d i s l oosened
,
.

The mould i s then raised high enough t o clear the ingot and pl ace d upon
an empty c ar standing ready to receive it on a trac k next and parallel t o
, ,

that on which the stripped ingot stands Electri c strippers owin g t o the .
,

fact that t hey are travelling possess a decided advantage over the older ,

type of hydraulically operated machines which are stationary , .

T h e C a s t i ng Eq u i p m
e n t includes the teeming l adles ingot moulds , ,

stools and cars T h e t ee m i n g l

,
. ad le which acts as a cont ainer for the ,

finished steel while casting i s a large cup shaped vessel made of steel and ,
-

“ ”
lined with a fe w inches of ball stu ff A s slag is liable t o spoi l the ingots .

if allowed t o flo w into the moulds steel canno t be poured from a vessel ,

by tipping bu t must be teeme d from a small hole in the bottom F o r

,
.

openin g and closing this hole the vessel must be fitte d with a stopper ,

that c an be operated from the teeming platform This stopper consists of .

a steel rod protected with fi re —

,
clay sleeves t o the l ower end of whi ch ,

is fastene d a s to pp e rh e a d made of plumbago bonde d with cl ay that fits

, ,

neatly into a noz zle placed in the bottom of t he l adle The upper end Of .

this s topper i s fastened t o a goose neck that fits over a vertical s l iding
bar attache d to the outside of the l adle This bar i s provide d with a lever
‘

by which i t may be raised or lowered causing a like movemen t of the ,

“ ”
'

stopper To guard agains t a leaking, o r running

. stopper the noz zle ,

may be fille d with dry sand or loam which i s hel d in pl ace by a sliding ,

plate on the outside When the l adle i s re ady t o teem this s and is easily
.
,

punched out of the nozzle aft er removing the plate .

-
Mo u l
T h e I n go t
d s into which the finishe d metal is teeme d are made
of c ast iron and may be of almost any c onvenient form and size to suit
the respe ctive blooming mills At these Works the standard moul ds are .
,

about 6 fee t hi gh have a square section of 23 % inches at the bottom with

, ,

corners sli ghtly rounded and taper sufficiently t o allow the moul d t o be
,

strippe d re adily from the ingot The moulds are Open a t both ends and .
, ,

when ready for t eeming rest bi g end down on he avy cast iron pl ates c alle d
'

, , , ,

s too l
s The stools are mounted in twos on small cars or buggies w hi ch are s o
.
, ,

constructe d tha t their sides form aprons that protect both the trac k on which
the cars run and their own running gear from splattering by ho t metal during
the teeming of t he meta l from the steel l adle The care of the moul d s i s .

very important since defects here are very likely t o showup in the finishe d
,

material after rolling Their sides must be kept smooth and clean and
.
,

the teeming must be done s o as to avoid splattering their sides if possible ,

.
18 4 BE S S E M E R P ROCE S S

together The nose section is bolted to the body b ut the bottom is held in
. ,

place agains t the lower edge of the body by li nked k ey bolts The links of .

these k ey bolts fi t over lugs on t he body while the key bolts t hemselves ,

fi t be t ween lu gs on the bottom making it e a sy to k ey the two parts

,
\

firm l y t ogether When i t is necessary t o replace an ol d bo t tom with a

.

new one , the k eys c an be very q uickly knocked out or driven in with
sledges in the hands of the workmen The shell for the body i s itself
.
, ,

made up of three parts , known as the nose section the j ournal secti on and , ,

the shoul der section The j ourna l section is made up of a heavy band
.

to whi ch the two t runnions t hat support the vesse l are attache d Al l .

these parts are firmly bound t ogether by a grea t number of l on g key b olts
attache d to t he shoulder an d nose sections respec t ively The t runnions , .

rest on bearings in a frame wor k which i s supporte d by c ast iron c ol umns .

On the end of one of the trunnions both of w hich are hollow , is t he

,

connecti on made through a packed j oint , t o t he bl as t l ine From c appe d

,
.

openings on this same trunnion between t he bearin g and the vessel a ,

copper goose nec k l eads t o the bottom o f the vessel th us formin g a ,

c ontinuous passage fo r the blast from the main which 18 stationary , t o t he ,

wind box which must move with the bottom of t he Vessel To the other
, .

tr unnion i s attached a pinion whi ch meshes with a t oothe d rack that s lides
horizontally By me ans of a double acting hydrauli c cylin der the piston
.
,

of which is conne cted t o this rack the vessel may be rotate d through an
,

arc of the pi nion and rac k bein g ge ared s o tha t the vessel may be
completely inver t e d for d umpin g s la g o r relinin g t he vessel Allthis .

mechanism is careful l y covered t o protec t i t from sl ag dus t and other dirt , .

Li ni ng o f t h e Co nve r t e r : The linin g for the shell may be c o nip o se d

of any first class sili cious refrac t ory mat erial At mos t works a hi ghl y .

silicious sandstone known as fi re sto ne i s use d , whi le a mixt ure compose d

, , ,

of about five parts crushed ganister an d o ne par t bes t quality fire cl ay and
calle d ball stuff serves a s a kind of mor t ar The linin g varies in t hi ckness
, .

from ten t o sixteen inches for the di fferent parts of the vessel being ,

thickest on those parts subj ec t t o t he greates t wear When linin g a new .

vessel or reli ning an Ol d one the b o tto m i s detached the vesse l i s inverted
‘

, ,

and the lining i s begun in the nose T he method pursued in starting t he

.

lining will then depend largely upon t he materials a vailable an d the sh ape
of the vessel At the E dgar Thomson Works t he customary procedure is as
.
,

follows : A wooden fram e some five fee t s quare and with a hole i n th e center
,

o Lthe same shape an d si z e as t he mouth of t he vessel , i s l ai d on suitable

cross pie ces and then suspended from the vesse l s o as t o press firml y against
,

the nose and in such a position that the hole i s s uperimpose d upon t he
mouth In t his way a ledge upon which t o begin the wall i s formed Upon
. .

this ledge is pl aced a three inch layer of bal l stuff w hi ch i s followe d b y a , ,

course of l arge flat undresse d fi re sto ne se t in on e dge

, , Allthe inter
, .

s ti ce s are rammed f ull of wet ball stu ff s o that the stone s are se c urel y
,

keyed into pl ace and the side and top present a smooth surface : Upon this
 CONS T RUCT I ON OF T H E CON VE R TE R 85

nose wall , whi ch is about sixteen inches thick and t hirty inche s h i gh ,

the body wall is buil t I t consists of two co urses A thin c ourse of split
. .

bric k i s l aid next to the shell while wit hi n t hi s the inner course about
, , ,

twelve inches t hick is b uilt up of rough blocks of fi r e s to ne l aid in a

,

mortar of ball stuff The stones for the top course of this wall are cut
.

t o shape and keyed in so as to hol d the wal l in place when the vessel is
“

righted and also to form a smooth j oint or shoul der against whi ch the , ,

bottom is to fit The lining is now complete d by pl astering the interior of

.

the vessel with ball stuff after which i t is carefully and t horoughly
,

dr ied The coat of plaster aside from giving a smooth surface protects
.
, ,

t he stone and overcomes its tendency t o spall To prepare the vessel for .

use , the bottom is put on the vessel is inclined and then heate d t o a hi gh
, ,

temperature with natural gas fires in the vessel itself I n case of a .

shortage or absence of gas coke or woo d may be substitute d for the gas
,
.

With c areful patching this part of the li ning may las t for several weeks ,

o r even months of continuous runm ng

, .

T h e Bo tt o m of the conver ter warran t s special mention I t is t he part .

o f the vesse l subj ect to the gre atest wear and sel do m lasts longer than

twenty h e a ts k when it must be remove d for repairs and replace d by

another This change can be made with a delay of less than t wenty
.
.

minutes and is carrie d o ut in the following m anner : The bottom of the

,

wi nd box is remove d while the vessel is pouring then as s oon as the slag ,

i s dumped the converter is ri ghted and a small bu t strongly buil t truck

, ,

provide d with a hydraulic j ack or lift is run beneath it ,

The w ater , .

co nne ction havin g been made with the hydrauli c cylinder the pressure i s ,

applie d t o the j ack , whi ch raises a small table against the bottom I n some .

plants the j ac k is placed beneath the trac k, in whi ch c ase t he whole truc k
is raised The keys are next knoc ked ou t which leaves the bottom free
.
,

t o descend with the table or the truck The truck 1 8 then pulle d into the .

bo ttom hous e , wher e an overhead crane plcks up the bottom and carries
i t to o ne side By reversing this procedure , a ne w bo tt om is soon in
.

pl ace and the c onverter i s ready for chargin g

, .

Re l i ni n g t h e Bo t t o m The repairing of the ol d bottom i s i m me di atel y

be gun What remains of the ol d tuyeres and filling is q ui ckl
.
y co o l e d with

water and t ha t on the bottom is l oosened wi th s uitabl e tools when it may

, ,

be removed from the bottom by dumping it with the crane The removal .

of this materi a l makes it easier to inspect the co nstruction of the bottom .

The shell i s made of heavy steel plates rivete d together in the shape of
“

a shallow bow l with an Ope n bottom Closing this opening from within .

the bowl i s the false bott om a flat circular casting with openings through
, , ,

whi ch t he tuyeres may be inserted I t is a little lar g er in di ameter than

.

the Openin g whi ch i t clo ses thus m aking i t unnecessary t o fasten i t in any
,

way I t supports t he bottom stu ff i n whi c h the tuyere s are packed

. .

C overin g t hi s s ame ope ni n g fr om without i s the tuyere pl a te , a simil ar

castin g c ontainin g be velle d ope nings into which the tuyeres fit when in
place This plate is prevente d from making a ti ght j oint with the bottom
.
18 6 BES S E M E R P ROCE S S

by means of the splice plates tha t hold the riveted plates to gethe r Thus .
,

an Open space about one inch m depth 1s left between the tuyere plat e and
the false bottom The pl ate forms the top of the wind box t he two being
. ,

firmly bolted t o e ach other and t o the bo ttom with t he same bol t s The .

side of t hi s wind box is a large castin g oval in shape and about twe lve , ,

inches m depth The bottom of t he b o x i s a steel plate which i s firmly

.

keyed t o the cas t ing t o make an almost air tight j oint when the vessel is
blowing C o nnecting t he wind bo x wi th the interior Of the bowl are
. ,

nineteen t o twenty one circul ar bevelled holes thro ugh which the t uyeres
-
,

are inserted The t uyeres are cylindric al bricks flare d for a distance of
. ,

about si x inches from one end They are about thirty inches long , seven .

inches in diameter and e ach one c ontains about twelve holes one half inch
, ,
-

in diameter and extending longitudinally To place a tuyere the flare is .

,

covered with a mortar composed of fire clay and P ortland cement , and ,

the t uyere i s inserted upward through the opening in the b o ttom where ,

it is hel d in place with cl amps until the filling has been put in When all .

the tuyeres have been thus placed in position the top of e ach i s c overed ,

with a metal pl ate to keep dirt ou t of t he tubes some bottom stu ff ,

is place d on the bottom in the space around the tuyeres and on this ,

large tiles are set i n as reinforcement t o the tuyeres The space remaining .

abou t the tuyeres and bric k is then t amped ful l with more of the bottom
stuff whi ch is a moist mixture c ompose d of 28 parts crushe d ga nister , 12
,

parts blue fire clay 3 parts ground bri c k bats 3 parts ol d bottom s t u ff
, ,
’

and 4 parts coke dust The bottom is then pushe d into a dryin g oven
.
,

fired with coke oven gas and carefull y d rye d then finally bake d for several
, ,

hours The time require d to dry and bake a bottom properl y i s ab o ut

.
r

forty eigh t hours though bottoms will often be use d a t t he end of thirty
-
,

six hours Upon b eing required for use i t is withdrawn from the oven
.
, ,

and a heavy layer of a sti ff cl ay mixture is pl aced around the upper edge to
fOrm a t i ght j oint with the shoul der of the vessel when the bottom i s in
place The mortar is then sprinkle d heavil y with c oke dust after whi ch
.
,

the bottom is put into servi ce as previously describe d The func ti o n o f .

,

the coke dust is t o prevent the bottom from cementing itself t o the
shoulder j oint When in service the position of the bottom is such that
.

the lon g ax is of the oval wind bo x is parallel to the a xis of rotation of the
vessel The advantage of this shape is Obvious for i t is e asily see nthat
.
,

with the wind bo x in this position a greater volume of metal may be hel d in
the vessel whi le in the horizontal position without filling the tuyeres than
woul d be possible with a round box whi ch is the form used on e ccentri c ,

vessels The double bottom mentioned above is al so of great advantage

.
, ,
.

Since t he space between the upper and lower pl ates c onnects with the outsi de ,

it no t only gives w arning of a worn out tuyere but also prevents the wind ,

bo x from being filled with hot metal in case of a b reak out When a .
.

tuyere becomes defe ctive or badly and dangerously worn during a bl ow ,

it may be plugge d b y tur ni ng the vessel down removing the wind box lid
‘

, ,

and stopping its openings w ith clay .

188 BES S E M E R P ROCE S S

of the metal immediately be gins Th is oxidation takes pl ace in successive

.

stages , e ach of which provided the blo w is a normal one produces i ts

,
,

own peculiar e ffe c t in the metal and upon the kind of matter ej e cte d from i

the mouth o f t he vessel Their or der therefore may be followe d b y t he

. , ,

nake d eye or through c olore d glasses As the vessel i s ri ghte d a shower .

of sparks i s emitte d from its mouth Then a stream of dense bro wn fumes .

pours forth , t o be succee d ed shortly by a dull re d short pointe d fla me , ,

that protrudes from t he mouth of t he vessel This action o ccupies but .

five or s ix minutes when this flame is gradually replaced by a shor t luminous

,

one that pl ays abou t t he mouth This flame s oon be gins t o increase , b oth
.

in length an d l uminosity unti l it has reache d a maximum lengt h of t hirty

,

feet or more which it maintains steadily for abou t eight minutes During
,
.

this period kno wn as the b o i l

, , a dull roarin g c omin g from the vesse l may be

heard This noise is cause d by the violen t agitation of the bath by the
.

bl ast and the rapid generation of carbon monoxi de gas within it Just .

before the en d of the blow, t he flam e begins to drop , or die that is , it suddenl
“ ”
y ,

becomes less l uminous givin g an effec t similar to that to be expected if a

,

smoked glass or a cloud were placed between it an d the eye ; and if it is being
Observed through blue g lasses purple streak s are visible in it
,
I f the blow .

should b e continued this flame would disappear entirely but the metal is
, ,

always po ured before this poin t is r eached Thus the entire time required .
,

to convert fifteen to eighteen to ns of pig iron into steel is only about fifteen‘

minutes .

Co n t ro l
l The appearance of the fl ame j ust described
i ng t h e Blow :
serves as an inde x to the change going on in the Vessel and so 1s v e ry , .

important to the bl ower upon whom rests the responsibility for the pr oper
,

operation of the vessel He is also hel d ac countable for the q ua l

. i ty o f
the steel he produces He has an assistant who turns the vessel for charging
.

and pouring and operates the ladle crane but the control of the process , I

is in the hands of the blower himself H e must decide the best p r o p o r ti o ns Of

.

hot metal and scrap to use regul ate the temperature determine the time
, ,

for turning down and over see the re c arb uri z ing of the blown metal As
-
.

to the kind of re carburizer and the amount t o use per ton of steel he re ceives ,
’
instructions from his superintendent s office F actors that enter into the .

makin g up of t he charge have already been explaine d The importance of .

a high temperature was also allude d t o a s necessary to keep the bath molten .

I n this c onnection it remains to be pointed out tha t temperature is an

important factor in c ontrolling the blow and so exerts an influence on the ,

quality of the p r oduct A s it is impossible to re gula te the charge so as

.

to mee t all the variations in the conditions other means of re gul ating ,

the temperature must be resorte d to during the blow itself To raise the
”

temperature after a blow is in progress the vessel may be turned s o as ,

to expose a fe w tuyeres above the metal The c ombustion of the c a rbon .

monoxide gas over the bath generates heat which raises the temperature ,

of the vessel and consequently of the metal also This method wastes .

some metal as iron is excessively oxidized F erro silicon is also use d for
, .
 P URI F YI N G M E TA L 18 9

this purpose the oxidation of the silicon being the source of heat in this
,
'

case Ei ther method is expensive and should be avoided With rapid

. .

wor king and ( w i th i ron of proper grade col d heats are t he exception
, , ,

occurrin g mainly on new linings or in the first blow on a new bottom To .

lowe r the temp erature is a much e asier matter The vessel may be tilted .

and allo wed t o c ool by radiation or c ol d metal in the form of steel scrap ,

ma y b e a dd e d if the hea t i s not t o o far advanced A more convenient

r

,
.

method is that of introducing steam with the blast and as it is very c on ,

ve nie nt it is Often e mployed The water c omin g in contac t with the

,
.

highly heated metal is dec ompose d ac cording t o t he follo win g re action :

S team thus introduce d is no t very e fficient be cause
the oxidation due t o air is not retarde d and very little , if any hea t c an be ,

absorbed H owever less heat is generated in oxidiz ing iron with w ater than
.
,

with air besides steam is e asily c ontrolle d i s always at han d , an d c an be

, , ,

introduce d i n varyin g amo unts withou t del ay t o the blo w or t urning the
vessel The bl ower will then k eep close watch on the flame and introd uc e
.
, , ,

steam durin g the blo w as Often as re quire d t o hol d the temperature at the
proper level The spee d of the blow , and indirectly , the temperatur e may
.
, ,

be controlle d t o a l imite d extent also , by varyin g t he blast pressure I n, .

this c onne ction it should be state d t hat there are s o many variables c on
ne c te d with the operations tha t no uniform metho d c an be established .

Even with metal of uniform c omposition and other c onditions apparentl y

alike , tyvo c onse cutive heats made t o the s ame S pecification wil l seldom
re quire the same manipulation Thus the suc cess of the entire Operation .
,

depends upon the j udgment of t he bl ower .

T h e End o f th e Bl ow : Owing to the rapidity Of the reactions and other

peculiar conditions , the composition of the st eel cannot be well regul ated by
stopping the blow Wh ile i t is possible to blow a heat to approximately any
.

carbon conten t desired the method is not practiced in A merica because it

, ,

slows down the operation too much I t is much cheaper and surer , therefore .
,

to blow full , an d add both carbon and manganese with the recarburizer .

Th is _ is the practice at E dgar Thomson At these works if the blow .

,

is stopped at t he first indication of the drop of the flame it is said to ,

be t urne d down young ; if continued till the drop is prono un ced the blow is ,

full In either c ase the silicon will have been comple t ely eliminate d while
.
,

only small amounts of manganese and carbon wil l remai n The residual .

manganese m a y be as high as 06 or dependin g upon the extent of the

.

bl ow and the percentage in the pig iron If the bl ow is turne d down young .
,

.08 % to 10% car b on will remain while in a full bl ow this amount i s

.
,

decrease d t o 03 or The percentage of phosphorus and sulphur is

.

slightl y higher t han in t he original pi g iron owin g to a loss in Weigh t due ,

t o oxidation and elimination of the silicon c arbon manganese an d par t of , ,

the iron, and also t o the ej e ction of metallic iron from the vesse l The .

total l oss will amount t o something between 8 % and 10% of the charge ,

nearly half of which is oxide of iron and manganese which can be rec overe d
by using the sl ag in the blast furnace .
190 BES S EM E R P ROCE S S

S EC T I O N V I .

FI NI S H I N G E
OP R A T I ON S
—C ON VE R T I N G T HE P U R IF I E D M ET A L I N T O S TE L E .

Deoxi d a t i o n a nd Re c a r b u r iz a t io n must always immediately follow

the bl ow At E dgar Thomson this is done in the ladle as t he metal is being
.

poure d though at certain other pl ants some of the additions are m ade in
,

the vessel In general the obj ects sough t are : l

.
st , control of t he c arbon .

content ; 2d deoxidation of t he steel ; and 3 d introduction of elements

.
,
.
, ,

such as manganese to improve t he quality of t he steel The following

,
.

'

table shows the di fference in the analysis of steel before and after re car
b ur i z i ng and par t ly ill ustrates the many grades produce d
,
.

Ta b l
e 29 . S h ow i ng C h e mica lRe l
a t i o n o f P u r ifi e d Me t alto
Di ffe r e n t G ra d e s o f S t ee l .

No t
‘
. 25 t o . 30 . 40 to . 50 o ve r . 085 t . 1 00

Needless to say the di fferent grades of stee l require di fferen t methods

,

of r e c ar b uri z ing to meet the requirements which fact c alls for di ffe rent ,

re c arb ur i z e rs The various r e c arb uri z e r s and deoxidizers m ost commonly

.

empl oyed are ferro manganese spiegel anthracite coal ferro silicon , , ,
-
,

and pi g iron analyses of representative samples of whi ch are given in t he

,

subj oined table .

Tab l
e 30 . A na l
ys e s o f Re p r e s e n t a tive S a m p l
e s o f Deox id i z er s
an d Re ca r b u r iz e rs .

Pe r Ce nt . Pe r Ce nt .

Sil
ico n Ash

F e rr o M ang ane s e .

S p i e ge l.

F e rr O- Sili co n
P i g I ro n
A nt h r ac i te Co a l .

* Fi xe d car b o n o nl
y .
192 BES S E M E R P ROCE SS

spiegel and pouring it int o the l

l

adle with the metal from the vessel ,

and in the case of soft steels by poling the metal in the ladle .

Tee m i ng : The history of the hea t may no w be resumed S oon after .

the rec arb urizer has been added the pouring of the metal will have been
,

completed The conve rter is then inverted and the slag whi ch did not
. ,

flow ou t wi t h the metal is dumped upon a sm al lflat car beneath t he vessel ,

which is then ready for the next charge While this is going on the steel .
,

has be come qui eter in the ladle and has been raised to the prop e r level
by the steel crane which then transfers it t o the teemin g table in front
,

of the pourin g platform H ere the teeming hole in the bottom of t he l adle
.

is opened by removing t he small plate and di g gin g out the sand when ,

the metal may be allowed to flow at will by raisin g and lowering t he sto er
lever The metal is now teemed c onse cutively into four ingot mou d s
.
, , ,

which have been prepare d as previously described A s each moul d is filled .

“ ”
to the mark the next is moved un der the noz zle by means of the dog
, ,

hydraulically operated and provided for the p ur pose During the teeming .

of e a ch i ngo t of soft or medium soft steel small pie ces about four ounces in all, , ,

of al uminum may be added as the j udgment of the teemer directs to assist

, ,

in further deoxidi z ing the steel Thi s metal will always be added if the
.

steel is very wild which c ondition i s often found in sof t stee l m ade by
,

this process After all the steel has been teeme d into the moul ds the
.
,

little train is pushed alon g the trac k t o the end of the t eeming pl atform ,

where the ingots are allowed t o c ool If the ingots sho w a tendency to .

grow in t he moulds , the tops may be sprayed wi th water and heavy c aps ,

of cold iron will be placed on them This tre atment is intended t o chi ll t he top
.

and stop t he growing whi ch invariabl y increases the number and siz e of the
,

blow holes and pipe in the top of the ingot G rowing is peculiar to soft .

steels ; rail heats seldom exhibit thi s t endency When the ingots have .

cooled s uffi ciently t o form a t hi ck s tron g s hel l on the outside they are
, ,

taken t o the stripper where t he moul ds are a t once remove d This done
, .
,

they are ready for the soaking pits which are more properly treate d under
,

rolling mills .

S am p l
i n g t h e S te e lfo i ca lA na l
r Chem
y s e s : A sample for chemical
analysis is taken during the teeming of each heat This matter is of much .

importance , an d has receive d t he attention it d eserves The sample is .

obtained when half of the l adle of stee l has been teeme d by holding a l ar ge
steel S poon beneath the nozzle and allowing a small stream of the metal
to fl o w therein until the spoon is full This metal is then poured from the .

spoon into a specially constructed moul d where it is allowed to c ool or set ,

after w hich i t is stampe d w ith t he hea t number and is t hen taken t o the
,

chemic a l l aboratory for analysis E verything has been done t o insure

.

this sample is t rul y representative of the whole heat which is sel dom true ,

of samples taken in other ways .

 CH E M I S T R Y OF 93

S EC T I O N V I I .

C HE MI S T R Y OF T H E P R OC ESS .

T h e O rd e i na tio n o f t h e El e m e n t s : As previously indicated

r o f Eli m ,

the heat required for the process is generate d by the oxidation of the i ron
and the metalloids silicon m anganese and c arbon An examination of
, , ,
.

the blow Will S ho w that during the first period the oxygen of the bl ast
, ,

attacks first the iron , then both directly and indire ctly as will be explained
, ,

shortly , the silicon and manganese producing exothermic reactions which ,

rapidly increase the temperature Of the bath The converter gase s during .

this perio d are mainly nitrogen with some c arbon dioxide and traces
of Oxygen and hydrogen These re actions produce no flame since all the
.
,

products of the oxidation are solids but with the rise in te m perature
’

, ,

c arbon be gins t o be oxidi z e d t o c arbon monoxide w hic h will burn at the ,

mouth of the vessel to c a rb o n dioxide and produce a flame o utside the

‘

vessel S o , the heat generate d by c ombustion of the CO t o C 0 2 is waste d

. .

“ ”
T h e rapi d gener ation of C O in the metal produce s the boil and the ,

incre asing spee ds a t w hich the formation of this gas takes place c auses
the flame t o gro w t o a maximum siz e and finally subside with the e l im i
nation o f the c arbon The esc aping gases during this perio d consist mainly
.

of nitro gen and c arbon monoxide with smal l percentages of c arbon dioxide
-

and traces of hydrogen Thus a t no t ime durin g the blow excep t for a
'

.
, ,

short perio d at the be gi nning does any but t races of t he oxygen of t he air
,

escape from the bath uncombined though the l ayer of metal i s but s ome ,

twenty inches thick and the volume of the blast is more than 6000 cubic feet
,

per minute This fac t is not surprising if i t i s remem b ere d t hat the t emper
.
,

ature of the b ath from t he first i s much above the k indling temperature '

for any element int he bath and tha t the bl ast is delivere d by the t uyeres
/ ,

almos t in t he form of a spray Under these c onditions the combination .

,

of these e lements with oxygen must be almost instantaneous resulting in ,

al l the o xygen being consumed a t the mouth of the t uyere Concerning .

”
the browni sh fumes eje cte d by t he converter espe cially a t the be ginning ,

of a bl o w, var ious suppositions have been advance d to acc ount for them .

I t has been suggeste d that they may be vol atile compounds of iron and
'

manganes e with carbon which upon coming in contact with t he air at the
, ,

mouth of the vessel are immediately oxidized the metallic oxides producing
, ,

the brown c olor Analysis of deposi t s made by t his fume have been made
.
,

and they are found t o be compose d roughly of one par t ferrous oxide two parts ,

silica and three parts manganese oxi de M anganese is vol atile at a c o m p a ra .

ti ve l
y lo w temperature which fact may ac count fo r a part of t he fume
, ,

but with respect to iron and silic on or silica t he mos t plausible e xpl anation ,

is that they are carrie d ou t mechanic ally in a fine l y divided state by the
blast .

T h e Law s
’

a nd Co nd i t io ns G ove r ni ng t h e Re ac t io ns i n t h e Co m

ve r te r : A review of the laws of chemical action and of the conditions of

194 BE S S E M E R P ROCE S S

the blow will render an explanation of the changes that take place to brin g
about the resul ts enumerate d above very easily understood I f reference .

be made t o t he l aws c ontrollin g chemical action in C hapter I , i t w ill be .

found that under norma l c onditions of bl owing metal o nl

, y tw o are applic able ,

to the matte r under c onsideration On e of these the l aw of mass a ction

.
, ,

states , in e ffe ct , that the rate or speed of a chemical re action may be

’

increased by increasing the active masses or amounts of the reacting , ,

substances ; and the other law says that when chemical reactions t ake
place without the aid of heat supplied from an external s ource , those sub
stances which have the greatest heats of formation tha t is those that
“

, ,

give o ff t he most energy will tend to form As t o the conditions these

,
.
,

can be very briefly and simply stated They are that at the be ginning of .
,

the blo w the bath represents a s olution of approximately 4 parts c arbon ,

parts silicon 1 part manganese 1 part phosphorus and 05 parts sulphur

, , . .

parts iron at a temperature that is s e ve r a l

'

in d e gre e s s a y above ,

the fusion point of the mixtur e ; bu t this temperature is rapidly raised

during the first part of the bl ow The p h OS ph o r us and sulphur are not
.

a ffe cted s o they need not be cons idered , but the elimination Of the other
,

impurities presents an interesting study .

Reac tio n s o f t h e Fi rs t Pe rio d : C hemical

knowledge does not tolerate
the idea that these impurities are oxi dized by the action of oxygen directly ,

bu t indicates that the reactions o ccurring a t the be ginnin g of the bl ow are

governe d by t he l aw o f mass action A ccording t o this l aw, iron , by far
.

'

the most ab undant element present is fi rst o xi d i z e d almos t t o the entire

,

exclusion Of t he other three element s . This reaction which libera tes a ,

large amount of heat is represente d t hus

,

()
1 2 F e 0 =
+ 2 2 Fe O cal ) .

2 (65700 c al ) .

With the oxidation of the iron to F e O this oxide be i ng soluble in the metal ,
, ,

is di stributed throughout the bath and the oxi dation of the sil i con and
,

manganese take place in the order of the heats Of formation of their oxides ,
as shown in the followin g reactions
(2)2 Fe O + S i= S i Oz + 2Fe cal )
—
.

H eats of formation 2 (65700 c al ) (196000 c al )

. .

()
3 F e O+ Mn= MnO+ Fe cal )
—65700 cal
.

Heats of formation .
+ 90900 c al .

With the oxidation of silicon and manganese a slag is immediately formed ,

by the combination of silica with the excess Fe O and the MnO ac cording
to the followi n g
(4) Fe O S iOz Fe O S i 0 2 .

H eats of formation : — 65700 cal — 196000 cal + 271000 c al

. . .

(5) MnO S io 2 MnO S i 0 2 .

H eats of fo rm a ti o n z— 90900 c al —196000 c al + 292300 c al

. . .
196 BES S EM E R P ROCE S S

at a very high temperature it might be possible to eliminat e the carbon

,

before the silicon and manganese could be o xidized and the testimony of ,

the older and more experienced operators of converters is t o the e ffe ct that
just such a result as this has ofte n oc curred when the conditions noted
were present Furthermore in the elimination of the carbon t h e l
.
,
aw ,

of mass action here becomes prominent again for with the elimina t ion of ,

the silicon and manganese the active mass of the ferr ous oxide rapidly .

increases until a se cond equilibrium is established this time with carbon ,

.

The reaction is also probably influe nced by the volatility of the c arbon
monoxide one O ,
f the products of the reaction C omparativel y l ittle heat .

is available in the bath during this period The net heat generate d is the .

di fference between the he at of formation of Fe O (65700 cal ) and that .

absorbed in reaction (10) (36540 cal ) or 29160 c al which is the heat of, .

formation for CO The carbon re action occurs c oncur rently with the
.

phenomenon commonly spoken of as the boil There is during this period .

, ,

very little if any iron oxidize d above that required to eliminate the c arbon
, , ,

so e ach volume or molecule of oxygen in the blast will pro duce two v o lumes
or m olecules of CO The converter gases therefore S how a high c ontent
.
, ,

of CO very little C0 2 and a marke d decrease in N 2 The pho sphorus

,
.

and sulphur suffer no oxidation from the action of Fe O until all but traces
of carbon is eliminate d and then o nly in the presence and under the
,

influence of a strong base such as lime I f the l oss in weight in the bath
,
.

be taken as then steel made from iron c ontaining 045% sulphur and .

.08 9% phosphorus woul d S ho w approximately 050% sulphur and 100% . .

phosphorus imme diately after the bl ow T hese percentages are a ffecte d .

but slightly by the re carburi z er .

Ch eis t ry o f Re ca r b u r iz i ng a nd Deoxi d i z i ng : The importance o f

m

this part of the operation is more fully appre ciate d when it is recalle d that
the Bessemer process was made a c ommercial success onl y through d e o xi
d i z i ng with manganese This element then plays a very vital part the
.
, , ,

e ffect in the product most e vident being the prevention of that combination
Of ho t and col d shortness commonly spoken of as rottenness It is due t o .

the presence in the metal of iron oxide Fe O which is dissolve d by molten , ,

iron This oxide is re duce d by metallic manganese thus : (a ) Fe O+Mn=

.
,

MnO+ Fe A s MnO is not s oluble in iron to any appre ciable extent react ion
.
,

(a )will result in riddi ng the steel of al l but traces of metallic oxide C arbon .

may ac t as a deo xi dizer according to some authorities as shown by

, ,

reac tion (b ) .

(b )
However , t he evolution of CO gas that produces t he violent boiling of the
metal ln the ladle which boiling often continues als o i n the ingot moul d after
,

the metal has been teemed is probably caused by CO and other g ases passing
,

out of solution in the metal as the l atter cools Small amounts of these gases .

reta ined by the steel produce the blow holes previously alluded to I t is .
 CH EM I S T R Y OF T H E P ROCES S 197

to be noted also that manganese Offsets the evil e ffects of sulphur as will
, ,

be explaine d in a l ater chapter The silicon as well as t he carbon and

.

'
manganese in the ferro or S pie gel and pi g iron w il l also serve as a d e o xi d i z
i ng agent Besides S ilicon by attacking C O prevents the fo rmation of
.
, , ,

blow holes Fo r the greatest e ffe ctiveness a c onsiderable excess of silicon

.

and manganese over that requi red by t heir respe ctive reactions should
be used This i s o ne of the reasons why the manganese in stee l will range
.

from 30 to
. A dditional losses of the manganese in the re carb urizer
are likely to o ccur by reacting with the silicate of iron oxide thus ,

(0 ) Fe O S 0 2 +
1
°

M n= Mn l
O S Oz Fe
-- ’

l .

A study of Bessemer sl ags shows t hat a sli ght decrease of iron oxi de without
a corresponding incre ase of MnO takes pl ace on r e c arb ur i z i ng This cir .

c um s t a nce is usually expl ained by assuming tha t one o f t he foll owin g

reactions takes pl ace :
( )
d
‘

F e O + C = Fe + C O or
()
6 2F .
6 0 8 10 2+ C O= F6 0

As was pointed ou t under the head of teeming other deoxidiz ing agents ,

may be adde d to the ingot as the metal is being teemed The one most .

commonly employed is aluminum T h i s e l e m e nt is one of the most powerful

‘

deoxid izers known Upon being heated to a sufficiently high t emperature

.

it wil l react violentl y with all the metallic o xides and also many others , .

(f ) 3
V arious alloys are beginning t o be use d for t hi s p urpose also One of , .

the best is known as A M S

“ ”
metal ; it is an alloy of aluminum man
. . .
,

ganese and silicon and i s said to b e | very efficient for this purpose
, .
198 T H E OP E N H EA R T H P ROCE S S

C HAPT ER V I I I .

T H E B AS I C OP E N H E A R T H P R OCESS .

S EC T I O N I .

S OM E G E N E RAL F E A T U R E S OF T H E S IE M N S E P R OCE S S .

Ea r l
y His to ry
o f t h e P ro c e s s : The ever increasing demand for steel ,

which even the phenomenal suc cess of Bessemer was not able to meet
entirely , soon led many other inventors int o the same field But the only .

process which was destined t o become a rival of the Besseme rwas developed
through the invention of t he regene rative princi ple by that prolific inventor ,

Will iam S iemens In this conne ction it may be of interest t o note that
.

S iemens first developed and employed this principle in the construction of

steam engines but w hile several o f these engines w ere built and put into
,

use they were finally abandoned because of the severe wear on the heating
,

chambers cause d by the high t emperature attainable But it was shown .

that a great saving Of fuel an d Very high temperatures c oul d be Obtained

by the use of the principle and a t the suggestion of his brother Frederick
, , ,

S iemens t hen turned his attention t o the appl ication of the principle for
producing high t emperatures in furnaces The first experimental furnace .

was built in 1858 when it was developed that with l arge furnaces espec i ally
, , ,

many diffi culties were t o be overcome if the full efficiency whic h the use ,

of the principle promised was t o be obtained After two years or more .

of experimentation S iemens fell upon the plan of gasifying the fuel prior
,

to burnin g i t in t he furnace when he fo und t hat most of his diffi culties

,

had been overcome The first furnace burning gase ous fuel patented in
.
,

186 1 was used for making glass

, H ere the great advantage s of the furnace
.
,

in e conomy and re gul arity of working were fully proven and it was not ,
‘

l ong until i t was adopte d in other industries also S ome of these e arly , .

uses of the furnace were for z inc distillation for puddling for reheating , ,

iron and steel and for meltin g crucib l

, e steel S iemens t hen turned his .

attention to the manufacture of steel in his furnace and though many trials , ,

were made at many different w orks he met with only indi fferent success
,
.

Finally like Bessemer he found i t ne cessary t o erect a steel w orks of his

, ,

own in which the suc cess of t he pro cess c oul d be demonstrated These .

works were l ocate d at Birmingham England and were at firs t e mployed , ,

in a remelting process by which steel of t he best qual ity was obtained

from such scrap as ol d iron rails plates etc I n the meantime S iemens
, , .
,

w as busy developing an idea of decarboni z ing pi g iron for making st e el by

me ans Of iron ore and by the ye ar 1868 he had proved that this process
,

could be suc cessfully empl oyed S iemens next turned his attention to
.
200 OP E N HE A R T H P ROCES S

Bessemer process 2 F o r th e same reasons a gre ater variety of raw

. .
,

materials c an be use d and a greater variety of products c an be produced

by this than by the Bessemer process 3 A very import ant advantage . .

is due t o the incre ase d output Of finishe d steel from the same amount of
pi g iron , which means that fewer blast furnaces are required to produce
a given tonnage of steel 4 Finally with the devel opment of t he basic
. .
,

process the gre atest advantage of the S iemens over the Bessemer was
,

reveale d through the elimination of phosphorus Comparing the basic .

open hearth with the Thomas G ilchris t process it is to be noted that -

,

due to the di fferent temperature conditions phosphorus is eliminate d in ,

the former before the carbon whereas it is not o xidized in the l atter process
,

until after the carbon in what is known as the after bl ow H ence while
,
-
.
’

the basic Bessemer process re quires a pi g iron with a phosphorus content

of or more in order to maintain the t emperature hi gh enough for
the aft er blow, the basic open hearth permits the use of iron of any phos
-

p ho r us conten t I n the Unite d S tates this fact is of the greatest importance

.
,

since for reasons already expl ained it m akes available immense ore de posit s
, ,

which c ould not otherwise be utilize d Fo r this reason the basic open .

hearth process has become the leading method in this country .

Me c h a n ic a lCh a n ge s a n d Im p r ove m e nt s i n S ie m e n s Pr o ce s s : A s
would be expected many variations of the process both me chanical and
, ,

metallurgical have been worke d out S ince S iemens first put his method
,

into operation Along me chanical lines various improvements in the

.

desi gn the size and the arrangement of the parts of the furnace have been
,

made Originally the furnace had a capacity of onl y four or five tons
.
, ,

but now the si z e ranges from 40 to 100 tons c apacity and in new pl ant s ,

the capacity will seldom be less than 75 tons But t he greatest departure .

’
from S iemens original pl an was made by the invention of the tilting or
rolling furnace These furnaces are of two types and are known as the
.
,

C ampbell and the Wellman furnaces respectively I n each case the

, .

furnace is built of brick which are hel d firmly in p lace by a strong frame
,

work o f steel and is mo unte d upon rollers or rockers thus permitting it

, ,

to be tilted either forward or backward In the Wellman t ype the hearth .

and ports are built solid so that both move to gether and as tilting the
,
'

furnace breaks the connections with the re generator flue s the furnace c an ,

be fire d onl y when in an upri ght position This faul t is overcome in C amp .

’
bell s invention in which the hearth only is movable and t he center of
, ,

rotation is c oincident with the center line of the ports By t he use of .

water coole d c astings fairly tight j oints are made between t he hearth and
,

the fl ue s so tha t t he furnace m ay be tilted in either di rection forward or

, ,

backward without turning o ff the gas and air

, .

Me tallu r gi ca l I m p rove m e n ts : The hearth of S iemens furnace was ’

of acid brick construction and the bottom was made up of sand—essentially

,

as in the ac i d p r o c e s s of today Later on in order to permit the charging

.
,
 I M P ROV E M E N TS 20 1

of limestone for the removal of phosphorus the hearth was c o nstr ucted ,

with a lining of m agnesite brick which were c overe d with a layerof burned ,

dolomi te or magnesite t o replace the sand of the acid furnace These .

furnaces were therefore desi gnate d as b as i c furnaces T h e p i g a n d s c ra p

, , .

p ro c e ss was originated by the M artin Brothers By substituting scrap .

for the ore in S iemens pi g a n d o re p ro c e s s they found it was possible s o

’

to dilute the charge with steel s crap tha t little oxi dation was ne cessary .

Since th e time of the M artins these processes have undergone various ,

modific ations chief of which are those known as t he Talbot the C ampbell
, , ,

the Bertrand T hiel and the Monell processes By using a basic lined
'

-
, .

tilting furnace in which a large bath of the purifie d molten metal is always
retained Talbot suc ceeded in hastening the oxidation of t he silic on manga
, ,

nese phosphorus and c arbon t o such an extent that the operation is made
,

more ne arly continuous and the time between heats or tappings is gre atly
,

reduced Campbell s tilting furnace permits h i m t o appl y the pi g and ore

.
’
- -

process to molten metal bec ause by tilting the furnace forward th e fr o thing
, , ,

of the bath produce d by t he vi olent reactions is prevente d from throwing

, ,

the slag through t he doors as woul d be the case in a stationary furnace .

By a combination process he also a ims t o make acid steel from basic pig
,

iron I n a basic line d furnace he eliminates the silicon manganese phos

.
, ,

p h o ru s and a little of t he carbon then pours this semi —

puri fi e d metal into ,

an acid furnace where the remainder of the c arbon is worke d down as in

,

the re gular acid process The Bertrand Thiel process is applie d to pi g

.
-

iron wi t h a very high phosphorus content and makes use of the two period ,
-

scheme of purific ation also I n the first perio d the furnace is tappe d in
, .
,

order t o separate the metal from the S l ag w hic h contains such a high ,

percentage of phosphori c acid P2 0 5 that it is valuable as a fertilizer , ,

.

The metal is then p oure d either bac k; into the same furnace or into another
basic furnace for the final purification I n developing his process M onell .
.

had the same obj e cts in mind as Talbot namely the rapi d conversion of , ,

basi c iron into steel ; but he wishe d t o avoi d the reservoir of molten metal ,

and make his process ad aptable t o t he station ary furnace He aecom .

pl i s h e d his obj e ct by first char ging limestone and ore into a basi c furnace ,

heating these until the batch became pasty then adding molten pi g iron , ,

when the silicon manganese and phosphorus were rapidly oxidized and with
, , ,

the lime forme d a sl a g that as the carbon be gan t o be oxidize d foamed

, , ,

up and ran from the furnace through slag notches provide d for the purpose .

T he P ro ce ss fo r M ost of the pi g iron

th e Pi tt s b u rg h Di s t ri c t :
available in the P ittsburgh distric t c ontains a fairly high percentage of
phosphorus and the mills produce considerable scrap Hence the furnaces
, .
,

are practic ally all basic— the C arne gie S teel C ompany no longer operates
a nyaci d open hearth furn a ce s— and a c ombination of the pig and—ore pi g and -
,
-

scrap and Monell processes is employed I t has been briefly described as

, .

follows : Limestone i s char ged on a basi c bottom ore is charge d on top ,

of th e stone and scrap on top of this ; if molt e n pi g iron cannot be obtained

,
20 2 OPE N H E A R T H P ROCE S S

in sufficient quantity to complete the charge some col d pi g is charge d ,

with the scrap ; and the entire mass is heated in the furnace for about two
hours or until the scrap is whi te ho t and slightly fused Molten pi g iron
,
.

is then added when a lively reaction occurs i n whi ch almos t al

,
lof the ,

silicon manganese phospho rus and part of the c arbon are oxidized the
, , ,

first three forming compounds tha t slag with t he iron oxi de an d j oin the ,

iron and lime silicates that are already melted About 8 0% of t his sla g .

is drawn o ff by t he en d Of two or three hours more The ore acts on the .

carbon for three or four hours longer during which time and continuing , ,

afterwards the li me stone is being decompose d by the heat and its 0 0 2

, ,

is bubbling up through the bath and exposing part of the metal to the flame ,

thus oxidi z ing it and completing the purification starte d by the ore reaction .

What 1 s kno wn as the lime action or boil l asts t wo or t hre e hours l onger ; , ,

and t he n if the charge was calcul ate d c orre c tly , th e c arbon c ontent will
,

be somewhat greater t han t hat a t whi ch t he meta l is t o be t apped .

Ordinarily of course th e c arbon i s too l ow or t o o hi gh in which c ases

, , ,

more pi g or more ore must be adde d I n about another hour t he c arbon

,
.

content will have been reduce d to the proper amount for tapping which is ,

usually about

S ECT I O N I I .

EQ UI PME N T F OR A M ODE R N BA S I C OPE N H E A RT H PLA NT .

T heMo d e r n Pl an t : Beside s the furnace s t hemselves the modern ,

open hearth pl ant requires considerabl e ad d itiona l e quipment Thus there .

,

must be provided l adles for containin g mol t en metal ; moul d s for ingots ;
crane s and chargin g machines for handling m aterials ; boxe s for the solid
materials ; dinkeys or ele ctric engines for hauling t he materials ; a stripper
-

fO r removing t he moulds from the ingo t s ; a great number of small articles ,

’
like shovels wheel barrows rabbles e tc ; and finally appara t us for pre
, , ,
.
, ,

pa ring or controlling the fuel supply In addition the more modern pl ants .

will b e provided with a mixer a cal cining pl ant and also spie gel cupolas
, ,
-
,

if liquid re c a rb uri z e rs are use d A brief description of the more essential

.

items enumerated above is given herewith .

C a l c i ni ng Pl
ant :most of the plants there are cupolas for roasti ng
At
dolomite These furnaces are cylindrical in form and e ach one is s o pl aced
.
,

that one base forms t he bottom the other the open top of the furnace , .

I n the usual construction the cupol a is made up of an outer shell of boiler

plate one hal
, f inch thick and a double r e fr a cto ry l
-
, i ni ng made of t wo courses
of brick the inner one being of first quality and the outer one next t o the
, .

she ll of se cond quality fire brick On the floor of the furnace there is a .
,

cone s hape d c astin g which deflects the burnt dolomite in its descent , ,

toward the circ um ference where it may pass out through openings provided
,

for the purpose in t he base of the cupol a Fo r fuel coke is employed an d .

, ,

it must be burne d by an air blast This blast is supplied at a pressure .

204 OP E N H E A R T H P ROCE S S

different plants and a consideration of averages for long periods of time vary ,

ing from si x months to a year, in d icate that the fuel consum ption per gross
ton of steel produced to be considered good practice sh ould be about as foll
, , ows :
n atural gas cubic feet ; coke oven gas cubic
,
f e e t w i th 1 6 gallons of tar ;
,
,

t ar alone 45 gallons ; producer ga s equivalent to 6 00 pounds of coal ; and po wered

,

coal , 500 po unds .

Ho t Me t alMixe r : The a dvantages of the hot meta l mixer have

already been discussed in connection with t he Bessemer process ; and
altho ugh the conditions in the open hearth plant , whe re large quantiti es
of metal are neede d at irregular and uncertain intervals of t ime are exactly ,

the reverse of those in a Bessemer plant which requires small quantities

,

of metal at short and comparatively re gul ar intervals these advantages ,

are as applicable to the one case as t o the other I n order tha t these .

advantages may be realize d t o the fulles t , Open heart h mixers shoul d have
a large capacity One large mixer of 1000 or 1200 t ons c apacity is to be
.

preferre d to two of 500 tons capacity .

S piege l Cu pol as : In pl ants manufacturing large quantities of med ium

high carbon high manganese steels suc h as is used for railroad rails for
, , ,

example the use o f spie gel for re c arb uri z ing m ay be advantageous in which
, ,

case cupol as for melting t he spie gel mixture s are an important adjunct
to t h e open hearth plant I n construction and Operation these c upolas
.
,

are similar t o those already describe d for the Bessemer plant Fo r coll e ct .

ing and weighing the di fferent ingredients of t he charge a l arry car e quipped ,

with a multiple beam scale is mos t convenient In charging the metallic

.
,

parts of the burden consistin g usually of spie gel and pig iron are
, ,

charge d int o the cupol a together , while t he c oke with which is m ixed ,

enough l imestone t o flu x its ash i s charged separately The proportion

,
.

of coke re quire d in e ach round w il l vary somewhat bu t in good practice it ,

wil l seldom excee d seven per cent of the weight of the metallic part of the
.

charge To se cure greater uniformity and provide an ever ready supply of

.
-

molten recarburizer the cupolas attached to the mos t modern plants are
,

provide d with a small mixer By means of bric k and cl ay l ined runners the
.

metal from the tap hole of e ach cupol a is conducte d direc t l y into this mixer ,

from which definite amounts may b e t aken as desire d Fo r weighing the .

r e c arb ur i z ing metal a trac k scale

, on which the transfer l adle may res t
,

durin g t he pouring is place d on the trac k directly in front of the mixer

, .

The manganese conten t of the molten re carburi zer is varied t o suit t he

requirements of the di fferent grades of steel by varying t he amoun t of
pig iron with whi ch the standard S piegel i s dilute d V arying the proportion
.

of pi g iron t o spie gel also changes the c arbon c ontent of the m ixture sli ghtly .

With a given weight Of standard sp ie gel the more pi g iron char ged the l ower
,

the c arbon c ontent of the mixture will be , as can rea di ly be s een by

comparing t he analyses of these materials .

T h e S te e l La d l
e s: The l adle for receiving the s tee l is m ade o f bo iler .

plate and is lined with t wo courses of bric k e ach inches t hi ck The fir st .

layer, next to the shell , is usuall y o f fire bric k , whi le the second l ayer is of
 P LA N T E Q UI P M E N T 05

white river brick Both courses are laid on end in a motar o f fire clay , to
.

which a little loam is sometimes added The capacity o f the vessel is depen
.

dent o n the amount of steel t o be handled in each heat , which in turn is fixed
by the capacity of the open hearth The opening at the bottom of the ladle
.

is provided with a fire cl ay noz z le about two inches in di ameter whl ch may ,

be closed by a stopper The stopper is made of [clay bonded graphite and

.

i s mounted on a rod , protected by fir e cl ay S leeve brick that reaches t o the ,

top of the ladle ; t here it is connected t o a sliding bar on the outside that can
be raised or lowere d by a l ever near the base Both the stopper and the .

no z z le must be replaced after each heat Great care is necessar y both in .

placing the nozzle and in setting the stopper in the nozzle , for a bad fi t
resul ts in a runni n g stopper , which may cause a great waste of metal To .

l
prevent the stee from chillin g abou t the stopper , powdered coal is Often
thrown into the depression ar ound the noz z le j ust before ta p p irig a heat .

T h e S tri p p e r :
The action of this machine has already been described
in connec tion with the Bessemer process The ingots must all be sufficiently
.

c oole d before strippin g s o th at there will be no danger of breakin g the

'

solidified wal l of metal After being stripped the ingots are then ready t o be
.
,

sent t o the soaking pits previous t o the rolling T o strip an ingot it is only .
,

necessary in the maj ority of cases t o place the j aws of the stripping machine
, ,

under the lugs on the moul d and appl y the liftin g force when th e m o ul d ,
‘

will slip from the ingot and c an then be raised t o a sufficient height t o
transfer I t is onl y at times usually due to a defective moul d or t o
.
,

metal being splashed over t he top e dges from a running stopper tha t the ,

moulds are not slipped o ff easily and then the plunger is rested on top of
,

the ingo t as the moul d i s drawn upward When this treatment fails t o .

loosen an ingot , it is sent t o the m o ul d yard where more time is available

for extractin g it and where it m ay be subj ected t o various t reatments
ac cording to the means at hand and the c ause of its sticking .

Mo u l d s : After the ingots of each heat are stripped the empty mo ulds
are store d in the moul d yar d until they are s ufficiently cool t o be drawn back
to the open hearth for another char ge and during the wait they are washed
,

inside with cl ay s lurry t he water of which is quickly evaporate d by the

,

hea t of the moul d le avi n g i t c overe d with a thin coatin g of t he cl ay An y

,
.

damage d moulds t hat c an no t be use d are charged as c ol d iron as t hey are ,

c as t from a good grade of Bessemer pi g iron Many types and sizes of .

moul ds are used He avy moul ds chill the surface of the stee l qui ckly
.
,

and h ast e n t he s olidification which always proceeds from the wall of the
,

moul d t owar d the middl e of t he ingot S ince steel c ontracts on sol idifying
.
,

there i s a c avity l ef t dire ctly unde r th e t op surface of t he ingot as the ,

metal in this lo cation is the l as t t o Solidify This cavity c alle d the p i p e .

, ,

is re sponsibl e for t he produc t ion of a gre at deal of s crap in rolling the steel .

T here are numerous methods t o re duce the siz e of t he pipe and t o k e e p it

as near the top as possible but i t cannot be e ntirely el iminated T he
,
.

principle of most of the devices is t o k eep the top of the ingot molten l onger
 OPE N H EA RTH P ROCE S S

than the bottom so t ha t the molten steel on top will fle w into the cavity
,

as fast as it forms and thus lessen the extent of the pipe T h e G athman type .

of moul d depends upon uneven thic kness of mould wall to e ffect the same
result By having the moul
. d thi n at the top and thic k at the bottom ,

the thin top has a less chi l ling e ffe ct on the molten steel at the top ,

which , ther e fore is the last to s olidify A similar method consists in

,
.

lining a removable top of t he moul d with bric k or clay thus preventing ,

rapid conduction and radiation S ome try t o keep the steel at the top o f the
.

ingot fluid by a coke a charcoal or a gas fire Many oth er more complicated
,
.

devi ces have been invented also but their use involves much a dditional
, ,

expense Besides piping is regarded by many as a necessary e vila nd the

.
, ,
‘

safest way to avoid it is to allow a proper discard from the top of the ingot ,

whi ch discard is cut off at the blooming mill shears A rm or plate ingots .

are sometimes cast in spe cially constru c ted hard sand moulds I ngots .

for this material are always bottom cast two ladles being poure d at the ,

same time w hi ch are followed frequently by a third pouring dire c tly into
, ,

the m ould T here are standard s inkhe a d s for all armor plate ingots
. .

T h e C h ar gi ng M ac h i ne : Of all the labor savin g d evice s e mploye d

about the open hearth plant none have brought a greater s avin g o f money
,

and time than the charging machine I ndeed it may be looke d upon as the .
,

most essential p art of the e quipment for if the char ging were done by hand , ,

the time thus lost especially in the case of the large furnaces woul d be
, ,

so great t hat this feature woul d appear as a serious drawbac k t o the p rocess .

T here are several typ es of these machines bu t the ones most generally ,

empl oye d are of the low ground type They consist of tw o main parts . .

First there is the bottom truck made up of a very stron g steel fr am e iw o r k

,

and mounted on flanged wheels which travel on a very wide gage tra ck
laid in front of the furnace Next there is the charging c arriage whi ch
.
, ,

moves over a track laid on the frame of the truck at right angles to the
, ,

dire ction of motion of the truc k itself On this carriage is mounted a .

kind of lever the long arm of which ext ends toward the furnace and is
'

kno wn as t he charging bar T h e charging bar is hollow t o provide space

.

and bearings for the l ocking bar ab out which it can be made t o revolve, ,

and is shaped on the end t o fit int o the so cket of the charging box T he .

charging bar is thus capable of giving ei ght d i ffe re nt primary motions ,

o r any number of resultants of these motions I n operating the machine .

,

th e charging boxes rest on buggies running on a narrow gage tr ac k between

the machi ne and the furnace First the truc k of the machine is moved.
,

s o that the charging bar is dire ctly opposite the charging box to be emptied ,

then the carriage is move d forward to bring into position the end of the
char ging bar which is then dropped into the socket on the end of the
,

charging box and locke d ln position by advancing the locking bar until its
front end proj e cts into a hole provided for t he purpose in the socket o f the \

box Now, the machine is made to serve for a shifting engine and by
'

.
, ,

moving the truck the whole train of charging boxe s may be move d al ong
,

in front of the furnace so that the box e ngaged is brought directly Opposite
,
OP EN HEA RT H P ROCES S
 TH E OP E N HE A R T H F URNA CE 209

twenty feet for the char ging machines The space above this floor and
,
.

the furnaces is spanne d by two or more ele ctric overhead cranes T h e .

remaining floor space of the building l yin g along t he t apping side of the
furna ce is calle d the pouring floor and is also spanned by e lectric cranes
, .

T hese two floors may be on the same level as in some of the older plants ; ,

but all the new plants are of the t wo =l e ve ltype that is the pouring floor , ,

lies some twelve t o eighteen feet belo w the leve l of the charging floor .

T h e pouring platforms , si x to eight feet wide and about eight feet high ,

are locate d alon g the outer e dge of the pouring floor The mixer and .

cupolas are often l o cate d at one end of the open hearth buil ding as this ,

arrangement permits the transfer of the hot metal t o be made with the
cranes H oweve r, in large plants this arrangement woul d be inconvenient
.
,

as it would inte rfere with the w o rk o f the cranes s o the hot metal is c arried
’

to the different furnaces on a trac k lai d on the charging floor With this .

arrange m en t the mixer m ay be lo cate d at any convenient point When .

producer gas is use d for fuel the producer plant is built back of the open
,

hearth plant , paralle l t o the chargin g floor The c al cining pl ant stock .
,

yard and moul d yard are locate d a t points as convenient t o the Open
,

hearth hous e as possible The stripper shoul d be place d s o that t he steel

.

is always advancing toward the soaking pits of the blooming mill though ,

this matter is but a question of c onvenience .

S EC T I O N I I I .

C H I EF F EA T URE S E N HE A RT H CONS T RU CT I ON
OF BA S I C OP .

Par t s o f t h e O p e n He a r t h Fu r nace a nd T h e i r A r r a nge m e n t : An

open hearth furnace consists of the fur nace proper containing the covered ,

laboratory hearth or bath in which the charge is pl ace d ; ports for a dmitting
, ,

the gas and air over the charge ; re generative chambers containing che cker ,

brick for storing up b e a t from the products of combustion and imparting

'

it t o the col d gas and ai r ; flue s and uptake s c o nne ctin g the checker chambers
,

with the furnace proper ; sla g poc kets , w hich are lo cate d at the base of the
uptakes ; flues leading from t he air and gas suppl y (if producer g as is used )
,

to the checker chambers with c onnections t o the stack ; val ve s for re gulating
,

the direction of flow of gas , air and waste gases ; and the stac k itself The .

furnace proper is locate d on the level of t he chargin g flo or and rests on

a concrete foundation The sl ag pockets checker chambers , fl ue s and
.
,

valve s are all locate d in a cel lar o n a l evel about fifteen fe e t bel ow the
,

char gin g floor in houses of t he one level t ype or on th e firs t floor level in ,

the t wo level type The che cker chambers are not lo cated under the furnace
.

proper but under t he chargin g fl oor in front of it and the stack is pl aced ,

a short distanc e beyon d nearer t he gas producers The base of the st ack .

flue sets on a leve l with t he bottom of t he c he c k er chambers but the ,

stac k proper be gins at t he char gin g floor l evel .

T he Fu r nac e P ro p e
The furnace itself , is a re ct an gular brick
r: ,

structure supported on the sides and ends by vertic al steel buck stays i n
,
-

the form of channel s or sl abs four to five and o ne half inche s thi ck and
,
210 OP E N H EA R T H P ROCES S

eleven inches wi de , an d bound t o ge t her a t t heir t ops , both l ongitudinall y

and crosswise by stays and tie rods The most recent l y constructed
,
.

furnaces have a capacity rated at 100 t ons S uch a furnace is .

approximately eigh t y feet in length and t wenty feet in width ou tside d im e n ,

sions over all Ten sets of buck stays on the fron t and rear sides and
.
-
,

four or six sets on the ends are require d to furnish t he requisite s uppo rt
agai nst e xpansion of the bric k wor k The buck stays are hel d in pl ace b y
.
-
.

12-inch channels place d at their tops These channels extend e ntirel y

.

around the furnace those along t he sides being securely tied with bolts
,

and cl amps to those crossing the ends of the furnace The front and .

rear buck stays are united by t ie rods which are two an d one hal
- -
f inch -

stee l r ounds ; the ends of these extend through the bu ck stays and a re -

threaded to receive nuts to hol d them in place so that they c an be tightened

and l oosened according to t he expans ion and c ont raction of t he furnace .

The foundation under t he furnace proper is buil t of con cret e and is of ,

such dep t h and shape as t o bear t he superimpose d load with reasonable

safe t y I t is usually i n t he form of two large piers with an arched
. ,

openin g separating them T he furnace proper comprises the hearth the

.
,

side walls and the roof

,
.

T h e He a r t h is constructe d as follows : On top of t he concrete fo un

dation is placed a l ayer of three feet or more of second quality fire brick ,

and upon these is laid a two foo t l aye r o f firs t quali t y fire bric k in which
a number of 15 inch I beams are placed to act as a bo t tom anchorag e for
-

the vertical buc k— stays which surround the furnace ; a nine inch l aye r of
magnesite bric k is then laid on top of the fi re b ri ck and upon these bricks , ,

a bottom is made up approxim ately ten and one half inches thic k w ith a
-

mixture of burned magnesite and groun d basic slag

, which is ,

sintere d into pl ace Dolomite may be substitute d for the m agnesite but
.
,

in this case the bottom must b e much thicker t han when m agnesit e is
us ed When com plete t he hearth has the form of a shallow dis h w hose
.
,

sides extend up to the level of the charging doors In order t o obtain this
'

shape the succeeding courses of ma gnesite bric k are stepp e d back until ,

the normal thic kness of side wall about thirteen and one half i nches is
,
-
,

reache d The exact hearth di mensions inside between fifteen a nd si xteen

.
, ,

feet in width and about forty feet in length are dependent upon the desire d
,

maximum c apacity Of the furnace and incidental fe atures The d epth is .

such that the bath of molten metal Will be from twenty t o t wenty four -

inches deep The bac k wall of the he arth is pierce d at its exact center for
the t a p p i n g h o l
e , whi ch is about eigh t inches in diameter and is provide d
on the outside with a re m o v ab l e cast iron lip for receiving the end of the s te e l

s p o u t , the function of which is t o conduct the molten steel from the furnace

to the steel l adle at the time of t apping The sl ag ho l e is place d about

.

fifteen feet from t he tap hole an d near the upper edge of the hearth I t is .

surrounde d with magnesite bric k and is provide d with an iron casting at

its base for the attachment of t he cinder spout .

T he Wal
ls ar
e be gun on the top co urse of m agnesi te brick that sur
212 OP E N HEA RTH P ROCESS

A r r a nge m e n t o f Up -a n d zDo w n -Ta ke s fo r Na tu r a lG as , C o ke Ove n

G as , Po w d e re d Co ala nd T ar : The construction O f the p and down
u - —
takes in a natura l gas fire d furnace is much simpler as it is onl y ne cessary ,

to have one up take for the air at e ach end of the furnace This up tak e
- .
-

in modern furnaces is circular with a diame t er of about six and one hal f ,

feet and is t herefore called t he w e l

,
l The air as it rises i s defle cte d .
, ,

downward toward the bath by the port which is arche d fro m front t o ,

bac k but is straight l ongitudinally with a do wnwar d slope t oward the

, ,

hearth This roof is usually about nine inches thic k , excep t near the
.

ne ck where it j oins the roof of the furnace Here i t increases t o twe lve .

inches on ac count of this point bein g subj ecte d t o t he gre ates t we ar .

The bridge wall previously described which crosses t he por t adj acent ,

to t he up take c auses the incoming air t o rol l down past the opening fr o m
-
,

the gas pipes one of which enters at e ach side of the port Thus there are in
,
.
,

all four pipes t o a furnace These gas pipes have a diame t er of four inc h es . .

The main supply pipe usually passe s over an entire ro w of furnaces .

A branch line provided with a meter , a valve and a three way cock le ad s
, , ,

to each furnace where it again branches into the four inc h pipe s which
,

enter the ports Fo r tar and powdere d c oa l t he s ame c onstruction as for

.

natural gas has been employed because s o far these substances have been , , ,

use d only as a substitute for t he latter fuel when t he supply be came l ow .

Both these substitutes are introduced into the furnace by inserting the
no z zles of the burners through small Openings in t he brick wor k cl osing
the ends of the furnace one burner at e ach end of the furnace be ing re quired
,
.

Sl
ag P o c ket s : The slag pockets are chambers at the botto m _ of the
up and down take flue s
- -
The ir functions are to serve as fl ue s t o conduc t
-
.

the gases t o and from the checkers and t o c atc h any solid matter c arried
over with the products of combustion thereby preventing most of thi s ,

slag material from reachin g the chec k ers and clo gging them up T he .

pockets are desi gned large enough s o t ha t only in extreme c ases do they
have to be cleaned out more than once every run I n the 100 ton produce r .
-

gas fire d furnace they are about three feet six i nches wide and ei ght fee t
, ,

high The two a t e ach end o f the furnace are separate d by a t hree foo t
.

silica brick wall The outside walls are two feet seven and one half inche s
.

thick for the air and three fee t for the gas side ; the former have an inside
,
‘

lining of silica brick se t a gains t first quality fi re brick while the l atter is
,
-
,

made of silic a brick only The floor and roof are c o vered inside with .

silic a bric k the latter being arche d o n a radius of half the width of the
,

pockets One end of each pocke t merges into a short fan like flue , called
.
,
-

a n e c k , which leads t o the t op of its re g e nerator chamber .

Re g e ne ra t o r s fo The re generators of whi ch ther e

, r Pr o d u ce r G as : ,

are two pairs t o a furnace are built out in front of the furnace and under ,

the chargin g floor about half below and half above the c astin g floor
,

level They are separated from the furnace by a distance of abou t

.

four feet E ach pair is made up of one checker chambe r for gas and o ne for
.
CON S TR UCT I ON OF F URNA CE 213
 T H E OP E N H E A RT H P ROCE S S

F I G 26
. . Lo ngi tudi nalV e rti calS e c tio n o f 100 - T o n O p e n H e art h F urn ace .

MA G /115 6 74 a re a/ V 5 S / L/ c . 4 ALT F/ M E

W WM
IIIIIIIIIIIIH W
216 OP E N H EA R T H P ROCESS

air arranged so that the outer wall of the gas chamber is nearly i n l
'

,
ine
wi th the end of the furnace The gas chamber is alwayssmaller than the air
.

chamber be cause the l arger volume of air is necessary to burn t he gas and
,

assist in the oxidation of the bath T he total space actually oc cupied .

by the che ckers in all four chambers is from 120 t o 150 cubic feet per ton of
furnace capacity Fo r a 100 ton furnace the volume of the che ckers in
.
-

the air chamber is between 3 500 and 3600 cubic feet while the corresponding
volume in the gas chamber is between 2500 and 2600 cubic feet .

The gas chambers on such a furnace measured inside are abou t , ,

thirty one feet long eight feet wide and sixtee n and one half feet hi gh from
-
,

the bottom t o the base of the roof which is arched t o rise twenty three ,
-

to twenty fi ve inches higher

-
The air chambers are of the same length
.

and height but are about eleven and one half feet wide and the arch
, ,

in the roof rises abo ut thirty four inches The walls of both gas and air
-
.

chambers are built usually with nine or thir teen and one h alf inc hes of
'

common brick on the outside and thirteen and one half inches of first
quality fire brick on the inside and are rei nforced on the two S ides and
,

the fre e ends by channel b uck stays and tie rod s At some pl ants the .

two chambers in a pair are built en blo c with a single dividing wall
between them I n this plan of construction the dividing wall is ab out three
.

feet thick and is b uilt entirely of first qual ity fire brick The flo ors of the .

chambers are starte d usually with a h ine i nch la ye r of concrete which i s fol ,

lowe d with a heavy coat of tar as a water proofing On the tar is laid .

anothe r nine inch layer of concrete then four and one half inche s of c ommon
,

bric k and four and one half inches of first qual ity fire brick On thi si fl o o r .
,

are laid nine inch fire brick withe walls which divi de the gas and air ,

chambers longitudinally into three and four fl ue s respe ctivel y t o a hei ght , ,

of about four feet These walls are spanne d by fire brick til e size
.
, ,

” ”
3 x 12 x3 1 and on these tile the che cker work of best quality fire brick
, , ,

size , is be gun and c ontinue d t o within about three and

one h alf feet of the top of the gas chamber or t o within about four feet
'

of the t op in the air chambers The arche d roofs of the re generators .

are of fire bric k and thirteen and one h alf inches thic k The checker .

work is separate d from the fines leading to the sl ag pockets by a solid

wall which rises t o their t op T his wall aids much in preventing sl ag
.

and d us t from being carried into the che ckers But in S pite Of all .

pre cautions , s ome dirt is c arrie d over into the chambers whi ch causes ,

them t o be come choked eventually when the furnace must be cl ose d down ,

until the che ckers are cle aned or replaced .

Re ge ne r a t o r s fo r Na t u ra la nd C o ke Ove
some pl ants n G as e s: At
where natural gas or coke oven gas is used as for example at H omestead ,

and C lairton where natural gas was ori ginally the only fuel employe d the ,

gas chamber in addition t o the re gular air chamber is utilized to preheat

, ,

the air The original idea was to c onstruct the re generative chambers so
.

that in c ase gas producers were b uilt the change in fuels woul d not ne ce s s i ,
 CONS T R UCT I ON OF F URNA CE 217

tate a rebuilding of the furnace ; bu t now , the chambers for natural ga s

,

are al l being cons t ructed in this manner because it was found th at when ,

two air checkers a t e ach end of the furnace are empl oyed better results ,

are obtained than when only one is use d Where one large che cker is .

operate d , the air and stac k g ases ins tead of fl owing t o all parts of the
,

chamber , t end to take a d i re ct co urse through the center thus markedly

'

de creasing the efficiency of the chamber .

Re ge ne ra t o rs fo r P ow d e re d Co al : The use of p owdere d coal for fuel

introduces a serio us difficulty in the operation of the regenerators because
of the l arge percentage of ash t hat is carried over into the chambers by
the d raugh t This fume soon clogs t he ordinary che ckers t o such an extent
.

that they are no l onger efficient Two di fferent types of re generators

.
,

namel y t he arche d and columnar t ypes desi gned with the idea t hat t hey
, ,

woul d permit the ash t o be cleane d out Of the chamber without tearing
out the bric k wor k have been tried ; bu t as t he as h fuses upon the bric ks
, ,

these s chemes are impracticable and have consequently been abandoned

in favor of t he ol d style of construction But instead of the usual checker .

" "
brick a l arge t ile , measurin g abou t 24 x9 x has been subs t i t ut ed which ,

gives l ar ger Openings for t he passage of t he g ases This c onstructio n .

appears t o be much more satisfactory than either of the others that have
been mentioned .

Flu e s a n d V al ve s : While the openings into the sl ag pockets are at

the top of the checker work the Openings for t he in gress an d e gress of
,

gases at the opposite e nd of the che c k er chamber a re a t t he bo tt om Here .

the small flue s forme d by the withe walls open into a large one which leads
to the stac k flue in t he case of the air c hambers o r in the c ase of the gas , ,

ch am b e rs ,t o a three way w ater s e al e d val

-
ve o ne o f t he bes t t ype s of whi c
,
h is
represente d by tha A h l e n valve Ano t her branch of t his valve leads t o
.

the st ac k and the t hird t o the g as main The se valves together with the .
,

damper s and mushroom valves in t he flue s from t he air chambers supply ,

the me a ns by w hich the reversals of t he flame a re made I n the modern .

furnaces , t hese valves and dampers are conne c t ed so t ha t the reversal of

the air and gas currents ta k e pl ace simultaneous ly Al lthe valves and .

dampers are c ontrolle d from t he char gin g floor S ince natura l gas and .
,

also c oke oven g as canno t be preheate d withou t de composin g t hem the

, ,

valve system in furnaces using these fuels , as well a s those using powdere d
coal , is much simpler t han for t hose using producer gas .

T h e S t ac k : The stac k for e ach furna ce must be of such size and height
as to supply sufficien t draugh t t o t he furnace I t is lined with first quality .

fire bric k and usual ly has an inside diameter of 5 feet and a height of from
,

140 to 160 fee t above t he char ging fl oor The shell is made of % inch boiler
.

pla te. I t usually res t s on a concre t e foundat ion on t he same level as the ,

floor of the che cker chambe rs an d at this l evel it has Openings for flues
,

from the ga s and air chambers as previously described Fo r controlli ng the

,
.

draf t a dam per is placed in the main flue at its entrance to the stack With new .

or clean check ers this d amper partl y closes the main flue , but as the checker
becomes clogged it is raise d from time to time as required
,
.
218 OP E N H EA R T H P ROCE S S

S EC T I O N I V .

OP E RA T I O N OF A B A S I C OP E N HE A RT —
H PU RIF YI N G T HE ME T A L .

F u r nace A t te nd a n ts the work on e ach

a nd T h ei r Du t i e s: Fo r ‘

furnace three men a first helper a sec ond helper and a cinder pit m an are
, , ,
- -
‘ ,

needed and besides these there is a foreman calle d a melter foreman in

, , , ,

charge of a num b e r of furnaces Ordinarily the first helper has charge of the
.
,

furnace except at the tapping of a heat H e i nforms the chargin g machine .

operator of the amount of ore the charge will require and how and where
to place the various parts of the charge ; he re gulates the he ating of the
furnace ; runs Off the S lag ; dire cts any repairs ne cessary during the Operation ;
an d has charge of w o r ki ng t h e h e a t that is making the necessary additions , ,

o f ore pi g spar etc t o prepare the steel for tapping

, , ,
. But when the heat .

is r eady t o tap the melter foreman takes charge

,
The first helper subj e ct .
,

t o the supervision of the melter actuall y taps the he at and after doing , , ,

so he dire cts the repair of the bottom and helps make up the banks and
,

clean up the steel spout T he se cond helper is next in charge ; he k eeps

.

a supply of dolomite fee d ore fluo rsp ar ferro manganese and ferro phos
, , ,
- -

p h o rus on hand and pl ace sthe solid re carb ur i z i ng additions on the pl atform

convenien t to the l adle H e helps t o work the heat digs the plug out of
.
,

th e tapping hole w hen the heat is ready t o tap keeps the tapping hole ,

open and clean while the furnace is being rabble d and assists in making ,

up t he banks of the furnace preparatory t o re chargin g He also attends .

to t he plugging of the tapping hole relines the steel S pout after e ach heat ,

and c l eans up around the furnace The cinder pit man attends t o the .
- -

cleaning of the pits from which the sl ag and metal must be remove d after
,

each heat I n addition he assists in making bottom at his own furnace

.
,

and all the others under his melting foreman The melter or forem an .
, ,

usual ly has charge of a group of si x or seven furnaces H e t a k es charge of .

any furnace in his group when any serious difficulty arises and he always ,

has charge of the tapping of t he heat He re ceives an order for the kind of .

steel desired from the steel distributor s o w hen the tapping time of a heat ,

is near he orders the recarburizer and moulds necessary and ta kes charge
, ,

of the furnace w hen the carbon i s but a few points above the tapping point .

H e decides w hen the hea t is ready gives t he order t o tap and dire cts the , ,

addition of the re carb uri z e rs He gives the order for lifting the l adle when
.

the steel is out of the furnace superintends the teeming of the steel and , ,

inspects the bottom of the furnace after the heat is out .

P re par a t io n o f t h e Fu r n ace fo r I ts Fi rs t C h a rge : S tarting a new

furnace is an operation that requires a great de al of c are in order t o avoid
inj uring the bri ck w or k and to prevent expl osions especial ly w hen producer ,

gas is use d for fuel The complete preparation of the furnace may be said
.

to take pl ace in four stages known as d r yi n g h eati n g m a ki n g b o tto m

, , ,

and w as h i ng The drying is be gun very S lowly with wood or gas fires
.
,

and requires about twenty four hours , during which t ime all the con -

ne cti o ns to the stack on both ends of the furnace are left open The .
220 OP E N HEA R T H P ROCESS

I n pl ace
of ore briquettes made from blast furnace flue dust or he atin g
, , ,

furnace cinder may be substituted The char g e with the exception of the .
,

molten iron is brought to the furnace in the char gin g boxes previously
,

mentioned and charged by machi ne H o t metal is brought either from

,
.
,

the mixer or from the blast furnace dire ct in ladle s and is then po ured ,

into the furnace through a runner that is introduce d a t one of the d oors
for the purpose Other additions in small quantities are thr own in b y
.

hand through the doors At one pl ant , furnaces with removabl e t ops are
.

provided in order t o make it possible to charge very large piece s of s cra p

,

which woul d not pass through ordinary doors At all plants advantage is .

taken during repairs t o old furnaces to charge such large scrap through
the top before the roof is put on As to the grade of the material s in the .

charge it is preferable to have an iron low in sulphur and silicon because

,

the former element is only partly removed in the furnace if at a l

land the lat , ,

ter upon being oxi dized to silica rapidly cuts away the banks A manganese
, ,
.

content between 1% and 2% is also desi rable as i t assists s omewhat in the ,

removal of the sulphur As t here is almost a complete e li m ination o f

.

phosphorus in the process the quantity of this elem e nt i n the charge is

,

not of great importance up t o one per cent As previously indicated .

,

the pi g iron in order to save t ime an d c onserve hea t , i s char ge d in the

,

molten state whenever possible .

T he Ord e r Mate ri al s : As to t he order of

o f Ch ar gi ng t h e Raw
char ging the limestone is always charge d first for t hes e re asons : If it
,

were charged on top of t he scrap for e x ample i t would act as an ine ul at o r , ,

and thus prolong the meltin g perio d ; it w oul d all go t o make up a p art
of the first slag whi ch w oul d be t oo t hic k and viscous t o wor k well ; it
,

woul d be drawn o ff with this slag in t he run o ffs thus leaving very l ittle ,

lime in the furnace t o hol d t he phosphorus i n the latter s t ages of the re fi ne

ment ; and finally t he benefits to be derived from t he lim e boil t o be
, , ,

describe d later would be los t Upon the limestone will be charged the
,
.
,

ore or briquettes which if any is needed will vary in amo unt according
, , , ,

to the nature of t he rest of the charge and the heatin g c apacity of the
furnace In order to hasten oxidation ore may also be added from time
.
,

to time during the lat er stages of the process The scrap is next char ged .
,

and if cold pig iron is used , i t is charged w it h t he scrap The gas , which is .

usually bu t partly turned o n d ur in g the charging is then t urned on full , and

the fir st or melting stage begins I f ho t me t a l is to be charged it is not add e d
.
,

until the melting perio d is wel ladvanced .

Me l
t i ng Dow n t h e C h a r ge : Heat is impar t e d t o the charge partly
through radiation from t he incan descen t part icles in the flame The fuel .

should therefore burn wi t h a full long flame reaching almost from e nd t o

, ,

end of the furnace But t he flame shoul d never extend through the ports
.

and down takes as i t would t hen rapidly fuse t he bri c k of those

-
,

fines and waste the fuel Fo r the same reason the fl ame should .
,

be directed downward from the port and not be allowed to impinge on the
 P URI F I CA T I ON PE ROI DS 221

roof The light scrap and pig iron if any is adde d to the solid charge
. , ,

be gin to melt first During the melting much of these materials is oxidi zed
.
,

s o that there is formed both molten metal and oxides which trickle down ,

o ver the scrap t g t he bottom A slight amount of molten sla g and metal
.

i s thus present on t he bottom of the furnace before the ho t metal

, , ,

1 e
. . molten pi g iron , is charged R eversals of the flame shoul d o c cur
,
.

every fifteen t o twenty m inutes during this period and care must be t aken ,

not t o overheat the ro of for t oo high a temperature will c ause the bricks
,

i n a new roof to spall and those in an ol d one t o fuse

,
S ilica bric k frequentl y .

s w e a t that is fuse slightly but t hi s c ondition does no harm and indicates

, , ,

a favorable temperature in the furnace C are must be taken w ith the r oof .

and che ckers in a new furnace espe cially and the temperature mus t be
, ,

kept rel atively lo w for the first ten heats or more after whi ch time the ,

gas may be gradually increased until the full workin g t emperatu re is

attained .

T h e A d d i ti o n Me tal :
o f t h e Ho t
T he molten metal c an usuall y be
adde d in about two hours after the charging of the soli d materials i s be gun .

The exact time for a d din g t hi s metal is g ove rne d by t he t emper at ure of
the sol i d charge Evi d entl y t his t emperature shoul d b e above or a t l east
.
,

a s hi g h as that of t he meltin g poin t for pi g iron

,
Thi s statement does not .

im ply t hat the scrap whi ch has a much higher melting point t han p i g
,

iron shoul d be comple t ely melte d Indee d a d el ay in t he addition of the

,
.
,

molten metal until the scrap is al l melte d may be v e r y und e s i r ab l

'

e for ,

not onl y w oul d the s crap be excessivel y oxidize d bu t t he hi gh t empe rature ,

combine d wi th the excess oxides presen t w oul d resul t in a to o Violent

‘

reaction and much foaming of the bath an d l oss of metal due to the rapid
,

g eneration and evo l ution of carbon monoxide woul d result .

T h e P u ri fi c a t i o n P e r i o d s :
The purification of the hot metal after ,

it i s introduce d into the furnace is brought about through the oxidiz ing
,

influence o f the iron oxi des an d t he fluxing properties of the limestone .

Whil e bo t h oxidizing an d fluxi ng reactions are actually t a k in g place in the

furnace a t t he s ame time the action of the iron oxi des must be c onsidere d
,

as pre ce di n g t hat of t he limest one , fo r the aci d impurities m ust first be

oxi dized before they c an be neutralize d or fl uxe d by t he bas es I t is , , .

e vident tha t t he fluxin g action may immediately succee d the oxidation ,

but t he c onditions se t up by the manner of char ging t he l imestone t ends

t o retard its c al cination and thus to separate t he t wo actions Now the .
,

c arbon monoxi de generate d by the action of the iron oxides upon the c arbon

of the pi g i ron is a t fi rs t evolve d in a manner q uite di fferen t from that

of the s am e gas forme d l ater o n in t he pro cess or of the c arbon dioxide
‘

from the c al cination of the l imes t one , and t hi s di fference is indi c ate d by
the way in whi ch the bath is agitate d Hence t he fur na ce m e n have fallen .
,

into the habit of speaking of the purification as taking pl ace in stages ,

known as the o re b oi lt h e l i m e b o i land the wo r ki n g p e rio d

, T h e third
, .
222 OP E N H EA R T H P ROCE S S

is the sta ge t ha t fo l lows the complete cal cination of the limestone I n .

order tha t the reader may understand what is implie d by these terms ,
the changes that occur during the purification of the metal are discussed '

under these three headings .

T h e O re Boi l
: P roper chemic al testing wi ll S how that the purification
of the molten iron be gins immediately after it is charge d int o the furnace ,

and with the exception of carbon the oxi dati on of which is no t c ompleted
, ,

til l the heat is ready t o tap progresses very rapidly S o in about t wo

,
.
,
:

hours practically all of the silic on and the greate r part of the manganese
will have been oxidized and the former then in t he form of silic a will
, , ,

have been neutralize d some with lime but the gre ater portion with the
, ,

oxi des of iron and manganese and will have bec ome sl ag S ome of the ,
.

s ulphur , also w ill have been oxidized particul arly if the s ulphur c ontent
, ,

of the ho t meta l was high but as t he oxides of this element are vol atile
,

and th e high temperature tends t o de compose the sulphites and sulphates ,

onl y a p art of the oxidize d s ulphur is retained by t he sl ag and the remainder ,

is carrie d o ff with the products of combustion A Very small portionof .

this element finds its way into t he sl ag as sulphides probably as manganese ,

sulphide With the silicon and manganese , t he phosphorus i s als o rapidly

.

attac ked by t he iron oxi de which no t only oxidizes it but neutralizes the
, ,

resulting oxides of this element These iron phosphates which are e asily .
,

reduced likewise pass into the sl ag where t he iron oxide is repl ace d with
, ,

lime thus forming the c al cium phosphates which are Very stable
, ,

compounds During al l this time the carbon i s als o being slowl y o xi d i z e d l

.

This action which at first takes pl ace near the surface of the metal results
, ,

in t he evolution o f carbon monoxide in the form o f t iny b ubbles w hich ,

be come entangle d in the viscous slag and cause it t o foam C onsequently , .

the slag thus permeated with little ga s cells o c cupies much more than its
,
‘

natura l space in t he furna ce C arbon dioxide is als o evolved by the lime

.

stone which begins t o be cal cine d more and more rapidly a s the temperature
,

at the bottom rises ; but as the gas resulting from the de composition of
the limestone escapes in rel atively l arge bubbles it causes Very little of
'
,

the foaming .

T h e Ru n o ff: When the slag level h as been raised to a height a little

above t ha t Of the bottom of the ope ni ngs for the doors and is t hreatening
to brea k t hrough the dolomite dykes b uilt up j us t inside these openings ,

the dol omite with which the slag hole is dammed is cleaned out of t his
opening and the excess sl ag is allowe d t o flow t hrough the cinder spout
,

into t he c inder pit or into a sla g po t placed bel ow t o receive it This .

tappin g of slag is known as the r u n =o ff The bases in this first slag .

are compose d chiefly of iron and manganese oxides t he lime and magnesia ,

be ing relatively l ow I t is no t unusual for these slags t o c o nta in i ro n

.
'

as oxide e quivalent to 30% metallic iron a nd as they constitute about ,

40% of the tot al slag forme d in the pro cess they represent t he s ource of ,

greatest l oss of metal for the entire process Practic ally all of t he iron .

contained in the run Off is in the ferrous condition

-
.
224 OP E N H E A R T H P ROCE S S

T he first m e th o d i s somewhat like the Bessemer that is the c arbon conten t , ,

of all heats i s reduce d to a common point about when the steel will ,

be tappe d and the per cent of carbon will be raise d t o tha t desire d by
.

the a ddition of re carb uri z e rs I n t he se cond method the carbon is c aught

.

on the way down that is the carbon content is re duce d t o a point sli ghtly
, ,

under that require d t o allow for t he c arbon c ont ained in v arious additions
, ,

and the bath of steel is t hen t apped Medium and l ow c arbon steels are .

usually worke d by the first method while high c arbon steels may be worke d
,

by either .

T e s ti n g fo r C a r b o n : So toward the end of the lime boil or earlier if ,

it appe ar s that the carbon content of the bath is dropping rapidly, the first
helper will begi n taking tests in order t o follow the progress of the heat These .

tests he takes by s e curing a small test S poon full of the metal which h e -
,

pours into a small rectangular mould A s soon as the metal has solidified .

in the mould , it is remove d by j arring t he moul d while in an inverte d

position ; the test piece is nicked in the cent er rapidly coole d with water and , ,

then while still warm enough t o dry itself , i t is broken with a heavy
,

sledge hammer From the fracture thus expose d the carbon c ontent
.
, ,

which determines how the heat is to be treate d c an be very acc urately ,

estimated In order tha t the t emperature of t he bath may be raise d to a

.

point suffi ciently high for t apping by the t ime t he c arbon is reduce d t o the
point aime d at it is desirable t ha t the carbon c onten t of t he bath at t he end
,

of the lime boil shoul d be forty t o fifty hundredths of a per cent (40 to 50 .

points )higher than that desired at tapping .

Co nt r o lo f Ca r b o n a nd
T e m p e ra tu re : I f, as occasionally happens ,

the carbon is nearly al lremoved while the bath is yet too cold to tap and pour
successfully , i t is difficult on ac coun t of its i nactivity t o brin g the he at
, ,

up t o the proper tapping temperature without danger of burning or over ,

oxi dizin g the steel and unduly increasing the wear on the roof of the furnace .

A heat wor kin g under such conditions is k nown as a s t i c ke r To prevent .

this over-oxidizing , p i ggi ng u p is resorte d t o , t hat is, t he carbon content

is h e ld , or kep t constant, by addin g pig iron , whi ch also aids in raising the
temperature by producin g a little boi l in t he bath Usuall y , however there .
,

wil l be fifty to eighty points of carbon to be removed from t he bath after the
lime boil Therefore , as soon as the first helper sees that t he lime is abou t
.

all up he will first take a test then see t hat al l l umps of unfused matter
, , ,

or n i gge r h e a d s , are melted and that the slag is suffi ciently fluid To .

bring abou t the rapid melting of the unfused bodies and increase the fluidity of
the slag , fluo rsp ar sufficient for the purpose wil l be added Then to hasten the .

elimination of the carbon , it may be necessary to o re d ow n that is additions , ,

of ore or heating furnace cinder will be made from time to time as required to
reduce the carbon content A fter each addition of oxide has had time to act a
.
,

test is ta ken During the last half hour , in some c ases the last hour the heat
.
,

i s in the furn ace no ore wi ll be added

, S ome f0 1 emen erro neously believe th at
.

the elimination of c arbon at this point m ay be hastene d b y stirring the bath

 WORKI N G T H E HE A T 225

with a long steel bar a process known as s h a k i n g d ow n while others

, ,

will merely allow the metal t o lie in the hearth un disturbe d In the case .

of low c arbon heats the flame will now be reverse d in the furnace about
every ten minutes in order t o raise the temperature and as soon as the ,

tests S how that the c arbon is within three o n four points of the desired
content the melter , or foreman is notified H e t akes additional tests for
, ,
.

the carbon c ontent and also for temperature orders the r e c arb uri z e r s , ,

inspects the f urnace l adle etc and completes the arrangements for tapping
, ,
.
,

the heat .

Te m p e r a t u re o f t h e Ba t h : F o r j udging the temperature

J u d gi n g t h e
o f the bath two very simple t ests are employe d by the furnacemen One
, .

of these tests c onsists Of quickly i nserting the end of a long steel bar or ro d
i nto t he bath of metal and slowl y moving it from side t o S ide until the
part immerse d in the metal melts o ff Then the b ar is withdrawn and .
,

from the appearance of the hot end the condition of the bath with respect
t o temperature may be j udged Thus if the bath is to o c old t hi s end of
.
, ,

the ro d will be pointed ; if too hot it will show ni cks on the sides near the
,

end ; but if the temperature is ri ght the end of the ro d wil l have melted o ff
,

s o as to leave a clean square end The secon d metho d depends upon the
, .

quite e vident fact tha t t he higher the temperature of a flui d t he longer

i t wil l remain fl ui d in contact with c ol d surroun d ings I t is c arrie d out .

simply by q uickly w i th d rawni g a test spoonful of the molten steel from -

the bath and a t once pouring it rather slowly bu t at a fixe d rate of, ,

flow ou t of the spoon The operator j udges t he temperature o f the stee l

, . .

by the way it flows and by the extent and thickness of the skull i t le aves
in the spoon By long practice with these methods th e wor kmen b ec ome
.

v ery expert in making these relative determinations of temperature .

Ta p pi n g : The furnace shoul d be manipulate d so that a t apping tem

p e ra tur e is reache d before the c arbon c onten t has been reduce d t o the
tappin g po int , as other w ise s ome difficult y w ill be experienced with high
c arbon steels in holdin g t he bath , if the c ar bon is to be c aught on t he way

d own , while with low carbon steels , it will be d ifficult to reach a tapping tem
p e rature or the metal will be over o xidized , with the result that it will tend
-

to be both ho t short and cold short unless deoxi dizers such as spiegel ferro ,

manganese or pig iron are added Prolonging the life of the heat at this point
, ,
.

i n order to reduce the sulphur content is v ery bad practice for the double
reason that the removal Of the sulphur is uncert ain and the cur e is worse than
the disease The proper temperature for tapping low carbo n heats is 16 00
.
°

C , or a l
. ittle higher , while for heats in which the carbon is caught on the
way down the tapping temperature may be abou t 100 C l ower To a c
,
°
.
,
.

c omplish the tappin g the second helper digs out from the rear the mud plug and
,

most of the dolomite with which the tapping hole is closed , after which the hole
is ope ned by driving outwar d the dolomite remaining in i t by inserting a
tapping rod through the wi cket of the ce nter d o o r i n the front of the furnace
’

T h e steel then flows through the hole o ut of the furnace and down the
226 OP E N H EA R T H P R OCE SS

spout into the ladle S ince the tapping hole is on a level with the bottom
.

of the hearth the greater part of the stee l is out of the fu

,
rnace before any
slag appears and this fact permits of recarburization in the l adle It is no t
,
.

a dvisable for the r e c a rb uri z i ng materials to be allowed to c ome into

contac t with the slag since some of the phosphori c acid in the slag m ay
,

be reduced and the phosphorus re enter the steel The tapping spout and -
.

ladle are s o placed as to direct the stream of mol t en metal a little t o o ne

side of the center of the ladle as the swirling motion t e nds to mix and make
,

more homogeneous the contents of the ladle .

S EC T I O N V .

F I NI S H I N G T HE HEA T—MA KI N G S TE E L F R OM T H E P U R F IE D M T A L I E .

Me t h o d s o f Fi nis h i ng t h e S te e l
: The process of finishing the stee l
cons ists in making such additions as are required t o produce the kind and
grade of steel desired and with few exceptions t hese additions are made
,

immediately before and after tapping the heat The methods of makin g .

the necessary additions t o produce the various kinds and grades of steel
di ffer somewhat no t only for the different grades but in different works
,

maki ng the same grades Fo r exam ple the ferro manganese an d sp iegel
.
,

are preferably added to the steel in the lad le and in the molten state bu t no t ,

al lplants are at present equipped to melt these materials and ferro manganese ,

is still generally added in the solid form Fo r the plain steel s the methods o f .

making additions for c arbo n and manganese may be brie fly stated in the
following tabulated form .

H i g h Ca rb o n S te e l
s (C 6 0% to l3 o % ) . . .

Me t h o d 1 C arbon is caught on the way down ; ferro manganese

.
-

is added and c oal if neede d in the s teel ladle

, , , .

Me t h o d l l The steel is t apped wi t h t he carbon at

. molte n
spie gel mixture is added in the steel ladle .

Me t h od 111 The carbon in the bath is elim i nated to

. sufficient .

molten pig iron is added in the furnace at the time of tapping to raise the carbo n
content almost to the point desired Then ferro manganese may be added to .
-

the ladle to make up the deficit in the carbo n and supply the manganes e ,

d eficit left by the pig iron .

Me d i u m Ca rb o n S te e l s (C 3 0 % to . . .

Me t h o d 1 The steel is t apped with a carbon content of

. molte n
spiegel mixture is adde d in the steel l adle .

Me t h o d l l The carbo n in the bath is elimi nated to 10% ; molten pig

. .

i ron I S added in the furnace and ferro manganese in the ladle as in I I I for high
-

c ar bo n steels .

Lo w Ca rb o n S te e l
s (C l
.e ss t h a n .

Me t h o d 1dead s oft steels the carbon c ontent is re duce d as l

. Fo r o w

as possible without danger o f over oxi dizin g the s teel , an d ferro—

manganes e
-

is adde d in the steel ladle .

228 OP E N H E A R T H P ROCE S S

Effi cie ncy

Pe rce ntage o f E1e m e nt Whe n Adde d in
Mate rialAdde d

Furnace

. 0 0 unl
e ss Ni . s c r a p us e d N e ve r
. OO cw .

. 00 Cu .

. 0 40
A ny d e sir e d

. 1 0 to . 20
F e rr o M ang ane s e . 10 t o . 20
. 1 0 to . 20
. 1 0 t o A ny d e s ir e d
Fe rr o P h o s p h o rus . . 0 10
F e rr o S ili co n
Fe rr o V ana d i um . . 00 unl
e ss V . s crap us e d

the following table will be foun d a nanalysis typical of e ach of these

In
s ubstances .

Ta bl e 32 . yse s o f Ma t e ri a l
Re p r e s e n ta tive A n a l s Us e d i n Fi n i s h i ng S te e l .

Fe rro Mangane se
P ho spho rus
Sil
ico n, El
e ctric

Bl
as t Fce

Stick Sul
p ur h

G iven the weight and compo sition of the metal in

the bath the desired ,

composition of the finished steel and the composition and efficienci es of the
,

substances to be added the calculation of the amounts of the various addition s

,

is a simple problem in arith e m e ti c .

Tee m i ng : As s oon as the stre am from the furnace no longer c ontains

any steel the spout or runner is removed and the steel l adle is lifted by
, , , ,

the crane and c arrie d t o the pouring pl atform where the steel i s teeme d ,

into the ingot moul d s ready to receive it Teeming is not to be co nfuse d with .

po uring Whi le t he l atter l ogically refers to t he way the m et alis let ou t of

.

the l adle usage has made pouring synonymous with casting w hi ch refers t o the
, ,

manner of introducing the metal into the ingot mould Thus if the metal .
,
 T EE M I NG A ND S AM P L I N G 229

is introduced into the mould t hrough its to p , the resulting ingot is said to have
been top poured or to p cast ; bu t if through its bottom by means of runners ,

the ingot is sai d to have been bottom poured or bottom cas t Teeming and .

top pouring are accomp l ished in the following manner : The l adle is placed with
its noz zle over the center and about a foot from the top of the first mould in the
moul d train when the stopper is raise d and the steel flows through the
,

noz zle into the moul d below I n teeming the heats care must be.
,

taken that neither the stream of metal nor any part thereof be allowed
to strike the sides of the moulds for t hese splashes of metal will adhere ,

to the mould whi ch quickly chills them and being coate d on their surfaces
, , ,

with a film of oxi de they may cause i ngot defe cts which l ater appear as
,

slivers in the rolle d steel As the fi r st moul d is filled the stream i s stopped
.
, ,

and by means of a hydraulic pusher the train is move d forwar d so as to

bring the next moul d under the noz zle of the ladle At some pl ants the .

teeming is done from an overhead crane which moves the l adle from mould ,

to mould After the ladle has been emptied of s teel , the sl ag remaining
.

in it is dumpe d into cinder cars and ultimately conveyed t o t he cinder yard .

I n the meantime the mould train is hauled t o the stripper

, On soft steel .

and spe cial heats unless there is a hi gh percentage of manganese or s ilicon

,

present aluminum is thrown into the moulds about two ounces t o e ach ton
, , ,

in order t o further deoxidize and quiet the steel A luminum is espe cially .

e ffe ctive i n overcomin g wil dne ss because of its strong tendency t o c ombine
with o xy gen Of t his small amount adde d practicall y none remains in the
.

met al s o tha t this aluminum exerts no influence as an alloy in the steel

, .

S am p l
i n g : The samplin g of t he hea t for chemical analysis is aecom
pl
i sh e d when t he he at is half teeme d by sl ackening the stream from the
ladle whilst a spoon of s uitable size is hel d under the noz zle and filled with
, ,

the molten metal which is immediatel y poure d into a test moul d spe cially
,

designed for the purpose The test moul d may be of either one of two
.

types which careful and extensive experiments have shown to give test
,

pieces most uniform in composition and most free from bl ow holes One .

of these types is a split moul d t hat gives a test piece having a se ction 1%
inches square and a l en gth of nearly 5 i nche s wi th a flare d opening about 2 ,

inches deep to facilitate pouring The other type is a small cup shaped .

moul d that gives a t est pie ce 3 % inches in diameter at the t op and 2%

inches at the bottom with a depth of 2% inches Upon being taken from .

the moul d the te st -piece is immediate ly stampe d with its heat number
, ,

and is then delivere d to the chemical laboratory for analysis Experiments .

have shown tha t a sample taken in this w ay m o st nearly represents the '

average c omposition of the heat .

S EC T I O N vi .

KE E P I N G T HE F U R NACE I N R E PAI R .

Pre p a ra t io n o f t h e Fu r nace fothe runner r th e Ne x t Ch ar ge : After

is lifte d and thus detache d from the furnace the cinder and any steel that ,

remains in the furnace flo w ou t of the tapping hole into the cinder pit .
230 OP E N H E A R T H P ROCE S S

T he econd helper must keep the tapping hole open until e verything that
s
-

can be remove d from the furnace has flowed out Fluorspar is us ually .

thrown in on the slag left t o be sure tha t i t fl ows out and does not build
up on the bottom of the furnace Often holes will be found in the bottom .
, ,

due to the intr usion of steel bel ow the surface w hi ch boiling there brings , , ,

up part of the basic material forming the bottom S la g and steel are found .

in these holes after tapping and must be rabble d out s o that the bottom ,

can be properl y repaired After all the s teel and slag are remove d from
.

these holes they are filled up with dolomite The gas is left on t o keep
,
.

the slag and steel fluid during this pro cess ; but is shut o ff as s oon as the
repairs t o the bottom have been complete d Procee ding t o the next step .
,

the se cond helper and cinder pit man remove the steel that has chille d in
-

the tapping hole rake out and fre e the hole of iron and cl ose it up with
,

dolomite A plug of clay is used t o seal up the outs i de of the hole and hol d
.

the dolomite in pl ace The banks which have been cut by the sl ag from
.
,

the heat j ust out are repaire d by throwing burne d dol omite o n them (3000
,

to 4000 lbs is use d after each heat i n a 100-ton furnace ); and the furnace
.

is then ready for charging again .

Fu r naceTro u b l
e s: I n the operation of a furnace troubles of a very ,

serious nature may occur at any time unless the furnace is watched closely , ,

and caref ull y handle d These troubles present s o many possibilities and
.

are s o varied that space w ill permit of little more than an enumeration
of some of the more serious ones here Thus the tap hole may brea k out .
,
-

prematurely if it is no t properly t ampe d and capped or it may become ,

hopelessly clogge d if it is not properly cleane d after e ach he at S ome times .

,

sections of the bottom become detache d and rise due t o the buoyant force ,

of the metal and w hen this o ccurs t he hea t must be tappe d at once and
, ,

no more heats may be charged until the damaged bottom i s repaire d The .

p orts require constant attention to prevent them from buil ding up or melting
d own and thus changing the angle of the flame w h ich woul d then tend to
,

o ver—
,

heat some part of the furnace and woul d be rendere d less e ffe ctive
in he ating the bath Leaks may oc cur i n the wall s of the up—
. and down -

takes which result in the gas being burnt in part before it reaches the
,

hearth The walls and roof often wear out long before t he rest of the
.

furnace needs repairing Roofs usually las t for about 3 00 heats The roof
. .

can be repaired in a few hours and a c ave-in of t he ro of is of a serious

,

nature onl y when it fa l l s in near the end of a hea t T h e mos t disastrous .

mishap tha t c an occur t o a furnace is a break out Bre akouts m ay be ,

-
.

cause d by several things A hole near a ban k may not have been noticed
.

or may have been insufficiently repaired , in which case the steel works
down into it and gradual ly makes it deeper until , finally , the meta l finds ,

its way through the wall and out of the furnace S ometimes owing t o a .
,

thin S po t on t he banks or t o slag having reached above t hem and worked

down into them the slag gradually cuts its way out through the walls in
‘

, ,

which case it i s usuall y followed by steel as the hol e soon be comes l ow ,

enough to reach the bath S uch mishaps are also kno w n as break outs
.
-
23 2 OP E N H EA R TH P ROCES S

Besides these materials some ganister may be empl oye d at some of the
,

works while all plants will us e large quantities of l oam and of fire cl ay for
,

lining furance S pouts and ladles for making up stoppers and for other , ,

repair work of minor importance .

S E CT I O N V " .

C HE MI S T R Y OF T HE B AS I C P R OCES S .

So m e o f t h e P ri nc i p l
e s a nd Co nd i tio ns I nvo l
ve d : H aving foll owed
the procedure of making steel by this process the re ader should be interested ,

in a dis cussion of a subj ect which t o the me t allurgist a t le ast represents

, , ,

the most interestin g and profitable part of the s tudy namely , the chemistry ,

of the pro cess I n be ginning this study i t s hould be re called that the
.

pur ification of pi g iron which is the first of t he two main steps in making
,

steel includes the elimination from the met al of the four elements s ili con
, , ,

mang anese phosphorus and c arbon and t ha t the principle by whi ch this
, ,

elimination is e ffected is that of oxidation In basi c open hearth processes .

,

the elimination of sulphur may also take pl ace t o a gre ater or less e xt ent ,

dependin g upon the amount present but is never t o be considere d seri ously ,

as a principal obj e ctive I t now remains t o be pointed out t ha t this

.

oxidation when bro ught about indire ctly that is through the interaction
, , ,

of these elements with oxygen be aring compounds as is the case i n this ,

process involves two other principles as well These are the principles
,
.

of redu ction and neutralization for it is manifestly impossible under these

,
’
conditions that one substance can be oxidize d without another s being
reduce d and it develops as will be shown later that this interaction is
, , ,

made possible through the immediate neutralization of the oxi diz ed sub
stances Whil e t hese principles and the reactions by which the purifi c ation
.

is brou ght abou t are when c onsidered separately very simple and can be
, ,

easily understood they are somewhat difficult to follow in t he actual

,

working of t he furnace be cause they are here o ccurring simultane ous ly

,

and therefore tend to mask each other in the e ffe cts they produce F o r
, , .

this reason it is best t o consider the subj e ct first from the standpoint of , ,

the chemical properties of the elements affe cte d and of the o xygen com
p oun d s of these elements under the c onditions of the basi c open hearth
pro cess .

r tie s o f I ro n a nd I ts Ox i d e s : One of the most marke d of the

P ro p e
chemical properties of metallic iron is its tendency t o c ombine with o xygen .

Even at ordinary temperatures this tendency is very marked as is seen ,

from the ease and quickness with which it combines with o xygen and water
to form the familiar compounds known commonly as iron rust These .
 CHE M I S T R Y OF T H E P ROCE SS 233

compounds are but the hydrate d sesqui oxide or per oxide of iron contain -
,
-
,

ing var ying amounts of combine d water as represente d by the formula ,

Fe 20 3 xH 20
°
This t endency of iron and o xygen becomes s tronger as t he
.

°
temperature rises so tha t a t a temperature ranging from 800 t o
,
or
hi gher , the combination be comes very rapid , and a compo und quite different
from those composing rust i s formed I t is commonl y known as S c a l . e ,

and is represente d by the formul a Fe g0 4 or Fe O F e zOg These facts help ,

'
.

to explain why iron is sel dom found in nature uncombined an d the t wo ,

compounds repre sente d by the formulas given above t ogether with the
, ,

carbonate o f iron , constitute t he val uable par t of all the ores of iron The .

ore use d i n al lo ur furnaces is t he re d hematite which for the purpose of ,

this discussion , m ay b e considere d as bein g c omposed of t he s es qui -oxide ,

P e z0 3 an d g angue
,
Besides free oxygen certain compo un ds may , at high
.
,

temperature , s erve as s our ces o f supply of o xygen to i ron Am on g t hese .

are c arbon d io xi de and w ater v apor , which consti t ut e t he chief pro ducts

of c ombustion in any c ase of burnin g a fue l in t he presence of an excess of

o xygen , such as normally exists in an Open hearth furnace The heating .

of free iron t o t hese high temperat ures in contac t with either fre e oxygen
or s t eam al ways results in the formation of Fe 3 O4 ac cording t o the following ,

reactions : But at a t em
pe ratur e o f 1000 C or more with i r o n i n contac t wi th c arbon dio xide , another
°
.
,

and les s c ommon o xide , Fe O i s forme d thus Fe Fe rfo us

—
,

oxide Fe O, and ferroso ferri c o xide Fe g0 4 may be forme d in t he furnace

, , ,

in other w ays , also , o ne of w hich is by the pro gressive reduction of Fe g 0 3 .

If Fe 20 3 be heate d t o a hi gh temperature it loses o xygen an d i s c onverted

into Fe 3 0 4 Th is chan g e t akes place at t emperatures betwee n 1100 and
.
°

1200 C , some 500 degrees belo w the maxi mum t emperatures o f the open
°
.

If Fe O b e formed under conditions even o nl

1

hearth . y slightly oxi dizing ,

it passes in to Fe 3 0 4 Another difference in the properties of t hese o xides

.
,

which is of great i mportance in considering the chemi stry of t he open hearth ,

is seen in t heir power t o neutrali ze aci ds Thus while both Fe zOs an d Fe O ex
.
,

b ibit very marke d basi c properties an d c ombine rapi dl y with aci d oxides ,

Fe g 0 4 canno t be induce d t o form correspon d ing salts a t the temperatures that

,

prevail in the open hearth Pure scale Fe 3 0 4 fuses at about 1450 C , a te m p e r

.
,
°
,
.

ature eas ily attainable in the open hearth an d i t di s solves readily in either ,

iron or calcium sili cates Ferrous oxide Fe O is soluble in bo th t he molten

.
, ,

iron an d t he slag , and thou gh t he amount that remains dissolved in the metal
when so li d is small , bein g seldom present t o an ext ent greater than 3 15% .

the equi valent of 0 7% o xygen , its effects are very harmfulas i t produces
.
,

both re d an d cold shortness in t he met al With metallic ma nganese it gives .

the followin g reaction : M nO is not soluble i n the

molten metal , which fact assists in accounting for the efficiency of manganese
as a deo xi di z ing agent .

T h e I m p o rt a nc e o f Fe rro u s O xi d e , Fe O i n t h e Pa r t Pla ye d b y th e ,

Ox i d e s o f I ro n i n t h e Pr o c e ss : From what has b e e n said co nce rni ng the

properties of t he t hree oxi des o f iron, it is e vi dent that ferro us o xi de Fe O , .
 234 OP E N H E A R T H P R OC E SS

is the principal perhaps the only , direct o xid izing agent in the open hearth
,

pro cess Although iron sesquioxide, Fe zOg , may be charged into the
.

furnace much of t hi s oxide is transformed by the heat into ferro so ferric

,
-

oxi de, Fe 3 0 4 , before i t has an oppo rtunity t o become active Besides .

,

since the impurities are held in solution by the metal , either the o xidizing
agent must dissolve in the metal a condition that is not true for either Fe g 0 4
,

or P6 20 3 or the o xidation of the impur ities mus t o ccur at the surface of contact
, _

between metal an d sla g Th at conditions in the open heart h d uring t he melt

.

ing period tend to form an abundant suppl y of ferrous oxide can be shown by
an analysis of the fir st slag formed as is illustrated by the followin g analyses
,

of samples of this slag taken j ust before the introduction of the hot metal .

Ta b l
e 33 . A na l
ys is o f Fi rs t S l
a g Fo r m e d in

O pe n He a r t h H e a ts

Sl
a g fr o m F ce .
,

Sl
a g fro m F co
. 37

Concerningth e neutra lizing powers of these oxi des Fe O must also act ,

as the initial base as wi ll be shown later , but in the slag Fe 2 0 3 is al

, so
“

capable of acting as a base I t is impo rtant to emphasi z e these facts here

.

because of their influence on the chemical acti on of the other e lements

eliminate d during the purification peri od for their action depends on the ,

conditions which it is therefore e ssenti al t o d efine Brie t he chief of

, ,
y ,

these c onditions is that a t t he time of introducing the ho t metal t h e re is

.

-
,

present in the furnace a sl a g that i s very rich in ferrous oxide .

o f S il
i c o n a nd I ts Ox id e S i l
P ro p e r t ie s ica : S ilicon forms but one ,

compound with oxygen under the conditions prevailing in the open hearth ,

and this compound is sili ca S i Oz The tendency of silicon t o combine , .

with oxygen is even stronger than that of iron due t o the greater heat of ,

formation of its oxi de s o that it is capabl e of re ducing any of the oxides

,

of the l atter and upon t his fact depends the elimination of t hi s element
,

from the molten me t al As t o whi ch of t he oxi d es of iron is the active

.
.

agent in the oxi dation of silicon t here c an be lit t l e doubt but that ferrous
,

oxide Fe O is the principal one tha t suffers dire ct re duction by the silicon ,
.
, ,

for as already indi cate d the sili con either as an alloy or a compound of
, , ,
236 OP E N HEA RTH P ROCE S S

being alloyed wi t h i ro n m ust be oxidize d lar gely t hrough the agency of ferrous
,

oxide But as silicon is c apable of reducing manganese oxi de there appe ars
. ,

little chance of oxidizing the latter until the former e lement has been l argely
e liminate d from the bath H owever there is much evidence to show that
.
,

at least a part of the manganese finds its way int o the sl ag l ong before all
the silicon has been oxidized This fact is expl ained by the assumption
.

that manganese is capable of replacing iron in the silicate s of iron , thus :

Fe O S i Oz + Fe o r (F e O)2 (S i Oz )3 + 2M n= (
.M nO)2 S i o 2)
3
°
'

+ 2 Fe With this idea in mind it is e asy to conceive the simul

. ,

t ane o us elimination of both these elements in whi ch e l imi nation the ferrous ,

oxide plays the part of oxidizing agent onl y and manganese fulfills the , ,

offi ce of the base for the neutralization of the silica S uch a change .
,

involving the simultaneous oxidation of silicon and manganese is represented ,

by the following reaction : 3 When this

silicate of manganese reaches the slag i t is subj e c t t o the same changes as ,

are the corresponding iron oxide silicates the manganese oxi de being ,

eventuall y set free by lime and ma gnesia This free oxide of man g anese .
,

being insoluble in t he metal remains in the slag as such as long as the

,

latter i s rich in iron o xides ; but if the slag shoul d be deplete d of its oxi des ,

then manganous oxide is liable t o reduction in which event t he resulting ,

metalli c manganese returns t o the bath Another property of manganes e .

,

t hough it is of little importance in ordinary open hearth operations m ay ,

be mentioned I t refers t o the ability of mang anese t o replace iron i n

.

combination with sulphur Thus all the sulphur contained in the pi g iron
.
,

o r steel s crap going into the furnace may be considere d as being c ombine d

with t his element and in the form of manganese sulphide This substanc e .

i s sli ghtly sol uble in the slag as well as in the metal and t hi s fact accounts ,

for the presence of small amounts of sulphide found in open hearth slags On .

the surface of the slag in co ntact with an o xi d i z i ng fl am e manganese sulphide

, ,

is subj e ct t o oxi d ation acc or ding t o this reaction : 2 MnS +30 2=2 MnO+
2 80 2 The sulphur dioxide S Oz thus forme d is a gas and may esc ape from
.
, ,

the furnace with the pr o ducts of combustion H owever , i t is e vident t hat .

the quantity of sulphur remove d in t hi s w ay must be very small .

S ul
p h ur a nd Its Ox i d e s : Owing to the pe culiar properties of sulphur
and its oxides they are subj e ct t o a number of conflicting influences under
, ,

the conditions of the open hearth process that ren der the rem o val of this ,

element very uncertain As an element sulphur combines dire ctly with

.
,
,

iron to form iron sulphide and is easily oxidized t o form oxi des S0 2 and ,

8 0 3 both of which are gaseous acid anhydrides and w hen neutralized

, , , ,

form sulp hi tes and sulphates respectively At temperatures far bel ow the
, .

lowest workin g temperature of the o pen hearth the sulphites and sul phates ,

of the heavier metals like iron for exampl e de compose t o form either the
.

, , ,

s ulphide or the oxide of the metal and sulphur dioxide At temperat ures .

relati vely lo w for furnace operations like that of the puddling furnace both , ,

manganese and iron sulp hides are readil y oxidize d by the hi gher oxides of
 CH E M I S T R Y o r T H E »
PROCES S 237

these element s such as Fe 20 3 forming oxi des of t he me t a l s and 8 0 2 which

, ,

escapes as a gas from t he furnace At the higher temperatures of the open

, ,
.

heart h there are a num b e r of factors tha t operate a g ainst t he elimination

of the sulphur in this way amon g which may be mentioned an increased
,

tendency of iron t o combine with sulphur an increase in the reducing power ,

of the molten iron t he fact that CO gas is c apabl e o f re du cin g $0 2 and the
, ,

probability tha t t here is l ittle Fe 20 3 available to d o the wor k Fe 3 O4 .

may r eplace Fe 20 3 in the oxidation bu t i t is very improb able t ha t Fe O ,

is capable o f producing the s ame resul t Unl ike the s ulphates of the heavy .

metals the sulphates of the alkaline e arths , s uch as c al cium sulphate are
, ,

not de c omp osed by hea t alone , at l eas t no t by any te mpe rature attainable
in the open heart h Therefore , onc e t he sulphur is oxidize d and t hus c om
.

b ine d with lime t here is some chance of it s being hel d by the sl ag

, Ho w .

ever , iron is capable of de composing the sulphate of l ime , t hus , C a SO4 +

4 Fe =Fe S + C aO+ 3 Fe O in whi ch c ase the iron s ul phide diss olves in the
,

iron As evidence tha t such a reaction may t ake place , s evera l ins tances
.

may be cite d in whi ch steel has been ruine d , fo r t he o rder i t w as intended ,

through ch ar gi n g o l
d boiler tubes , containin g much boiler scale with the ,

scrap The presence of oxides in t he s la g tend t o hol d this re action in

.

check so t hat it t akes pl ace t o an appre ciable de gree only when the sl ag
,

is burdened with an e xcessive amount of t his sulphate , and e ven then it

c an occur only at the surfaces of contac t between metal and sl ag .

Sul
p h u r Fro m l A nother
source from which sulphur may be
th e Fu e :

imparted to the metal is the fuel That fue l carrying compo unds of sulphur
.

may be respo nsible fo r a portion o f the sulphur content o f st eel is a well k nown
f ac t , but through what reactio ns the transfer is brough t abou t d oes not appear
to have been satis factorily e xplained Now, it has been established by J . .

B Ferguso n , writing in the Journal of the A merican Chemica l Society , Novem

.

“
ber , 1918, that CO andSOz reac t between 1000 C and 1200 C to form C0 2
° °
. .

and sulphur vapor an d traces of carbon o xysul fid e in mi xtures rich in CO

”
.

In the early st ages of an open hearth heat j ust after the addition of the molten ,

pi g of the char ge , these conditions as to temperature an d presence of C O gas

prevail at the surface of the charge and any sul phur vapor that may be formed
,

as above wi ll readily be taken up by the e xposed molten or so li d meta l of the

charge, forming iron sul fide If there is t ak en into accoun t the action o f man
.

ganese toward sulphur, there are , t hen , two agencies that act feebly to eli minate
sulphur from the metal and two that are active , a l so feebly, in returning
,

it o r of introduc in g i t T he stabil ity of the c al cium sulphate however

, .
, ,

ac t s as a guard a gainst t he introduction of t he element except under some ,

s uch unusual condition as that noted above .

Ph o s p h o r us a nd I ts Oxi d e
This element is very e asily oxidizeds: ,

when in t he free state by o xygen alone , and forms several oxides of which
, ,

only one , phosphorus pentoxi de P 20 5 nee d be c onsi d ered here because it

, , ,

is the only o ne forme d under the c onditions prevailin g in t he open hearth .

Like sulphur p hosphorus oc curs in the metal as a definite compound iron

, ,
238 OP E NHEA R T H P R OCE SS

phosphide Fe 3 P and like silica the oxide P 2 0 5 is an acid which must

, , , , , ,

be neutralized as soon as it is formed T he reaction by which i t i s remo ved .

fro m the metal is t herefore probably most nearly corre ctly represented
, ,

by the foll owing e xpression : 2 Fe 3 P + 8 Fe O= (Fe O)3 -P20 5 + l lFe S ilica

,

has the powe r of repl acing P 20 5 in the ferrous phosphate thus exposing the ,

latter oxide to reduction so that phosphorus i s never permanently remove d

,

from the metal until the silicon h a s been practically all eliminate d This .

power of silic a also accounts in part for the fact that phosphorus is not
eliminate d by any of the acid pro cesses for maki ng steel for the proportion ,

of this c ompound in the sl ag e ffe ctually prevents the fo rm a ti o n o f the ‘

phosphate I n t he basic pro cess the abundance of bases present in the

.

slag is more than suffi cient to s atisfy the silic a s o tha t the ferrous phosph ate ,

is not only permitte d to form but on re achin g t he sla g it is converted ,

into a much more stable cal cium phosphat e probably the t ri cal cium ,
-

phosphate ,
Even this salt is relatively spe a kin g , e asily ,

reduced Phosphorus therefore is hel d by the sl ag only s o l ong as the

.
, ,

latter is maintained strongly basic and at least moderately oxidi z ing .

Ca r b o n a nd I ts Ox i d e s : Owing t o the pe culiar chemical and physical

properties of carbon and its oxides the elimina tion of this e lement gives ,

rise t o phenomena di stinctively di fferent from those of the elements just

reviewed I n that review it was pointed out t hat the oxidation of those
.

elements gives compoun ds which are liqui ds under the condi tions of the
open hearth that is they are sl ag forming elements But the oxidation
, , .

of the carbon which is represented by the reactions C + Fe O=CO—

, li F e and

Fe 3 C + Fe O=CO+ 4 Fe gives rise t o the gas carbon monoxide and owi ng

, , ,

to the conditions under which it ta kes place , produces the phenomenon

known as the ore boil Thus since the carbon either as a compound or
.
, ,

as an element is dissolve d in the metal and the iron oxides , in t he slag

, , ,

the re gion of greatest activity at the be ginning of the oxidation i s l o cate d

, ,

near the surface of contact between the t wo liquids The generation of .

the carbon monoxide here gives rise t o i nnumerable tiny bubbles of the
gas whi ch immediately rise into the slag ; but owing to the smal l s ize of
,

the former and the viscosity of t he latter their i m mediate e scape is ,

hindered s o that they find their w ay to t he surfac e very sl owl y They

, .

thus collect in the slag increasi ng its volume and impartin g to i t t he appear
,

ance of foam I n t he c ourse of time t he hi ghl y oxidizing condition of the

.
,

bath has disappeared wi th t he consequent lowering of the carbon c ontent ,

and both oxide and c arbon are so reduce d in amount that the oxi dation
no longer takes pl ace rapidly and near the surface of the metal ; s o the slag
loses the foamy appearance I ndee d as the silicon manganese phosphorus .
, , ,

and part of t he carbon have been oxi dized the bath of metal is becoming ,

deplete d of its reducing agents , s o t ha t more and more ferrous oxide pene ~

trates or is dissolve d by the metal , w hich fact together with the d e c o m ,

position o i the limestone gives rise t o the formation of l arge bodies or

, , ,

bubbles of carbon mon o xide deep down in or near the bottom of the l ayer
,
240 OP E N H EA R T H P ROCE S S

mentione d that woul d appear to cause c arbon which i s capable under , ,

proper conditions of reducing the compounds of al l these e le ments t o be

, ,

the last element oxidized i n the open he arth The explanation for this .

difference in the chemical properties of c arbon is c onne cte d with the fact
that its reducing power increases as the temperat ure rises A gain chemical .
,

action when it occurs independently o f external influenc e s always take s

, ,

place in the dire ction that will liberate the most energy as was pointe d ,

out in C hapters I and V I I The oxidation of silicon manganese and .

, ,

phosphorus and the neutralization of the resultin g oxides are exothermic

reactions whereas the carbon reaction is endothermic The e limination
,
.

of the four impurities thus takes place in ac cordance with the amounts of
heat evolved or absorbe d A s an example of these l aws , le t the elimination
.

of silic on and carbon be compare d These reactions with t he heat or .

,

energy , values involved are as indicate d in the following expressions :

,

(1) Si + 2 Fe O : S i 0 2 + 2Fe (+ 64600 cal ) .

—2 (65700)
(2) C + Fe =
O C O+ e
F — 36540 cal ) .

—65700 + 29160= —36540

Reaction (1) shows that in t he oxidation of one gram of silicon appro xi

mately 2307 cals . of he at are e volved while in the ,

oxidation of one gram carbon as shown by re action (2) cal of heat are
,
.

absorbe d If now the re duction of silic a and c arbon monoxide by c arbon

.
,

and silicon respectively be compared as in reaction (3 ) and

, ,
i t wi ll
be seen that whereas carbon absorbs he a t in re ducing silic a , s i l
,
i co n r e ducing
C O , liberates hea t ()
3 S i Oz + C = 2 C O+
. S i (—l3764 0 cal ) ()
4 2 C O + S i = .

196000 + 2x29160 “ — 2x29160

S i 0 2 + C (+ 13 7640 cal ) I t I S evident , then , that the oxidation of the carbon
.

+ 196000
cannot be comple t e until the silicon has been eliminate d At hi gh t em .

pe r ature s such as may prevail in parts of the blast furnace or in the ele ctric
,

furnace for example the heat absorbed in reaction (3 ) is supplie d from

, ,

ext ernal sources which ad di tion of energy c auses t he carbon t o act as a

, .

reducing agent toward the silic a What has been said with respe ct t o .

silicon also holds t rue in the c ase of manganese and phosphorus In the .

b asic open hearth t he temperature rises gradually , so that carbon has no

opportuni ty to act as a re ducing agent toward oxi des of these elements .

Fac t o rs Opp o si ng t h i s Ord e r

What has been o f El
i m i na t i o n :
written above shoul d not b e taken t o mean tha t e ach element is completely
and successively eliminated in the order mentioned for there are other ,

laws such as t he l aw of mass action for example that operate to brin g

, , ,

about the elimination of these elements simultaneously The oxi dation of .

the carbon for example evidently be gins shortly after the hot metal has
, ,
 CHE rl
/I
I S T R Y OF T H E P ROCE S S 41

bee n adde d t o the charge and certainly before the manganese and phos
,

ph o rus have been entirel y dispose d of What is implie d i s that the e l

im i .

nation o i e ach element in the order name d i s suc cessivel y in the as cendency
until eventuall y onl y the c arbon i n part remains t o be oxi dized When
, , .

thi s element has been practically all remove d the bath of metalno longer ,

contains reducing agents and i s s ubj e c t t o o ver oxidation by absorption of -

ferrous oxi de Fe O up t o the point of s aturation in e quilibrium wi th the

, ,

slag Thi s fac t explains why it i s undesira ble t o make ore additions to
.

the sl a g j ust previ ous t o t ap ping and also w

. hy the heat , unless deo xidizing
,

agents are added t o the b ath should not be held in the furnace for more than a
,

few minutes after the carbon content has been lowered to which figure
is withi n about 0 3% of the minimum carbon content for this process
. .

Re s u m e : lthat
Al
should now b e required in order that the chemistry
of thi s process may b e fixed cle arly in mind , i s a rapid review of the subj ect
matter inclu d e d unde r the heading of Operation of the Furnac e which will ,

now appe ar in a new light To be gin this review picture a furnac e in the
.
,

course of operation which has re ceive d its charge of solid materials for ,

say a Monel l he at The firs t e ffe c t o n this charge will be an increase of

, .

temperature The limestone o re and the lining of the furnac e all being
.
,

basi c in character wil l remain inactive a t firs t , and continue s o until they
,

will have absorbe d s ufficien t hea t t o raise t heir t emperature t o the point
where de composi t ion be gins Fo r limestone t hi s te mperature i s about
.

850 C while t he o re w ill not give up its o xy ge n unti l

'

°
.
, its t emperature i s
near t he fusion poin t , about 1400 C , u nless i t c ome s in c on t act with reducing
°
.

agents Th e absorption o f hea t by t he ore and stone is hi ndered by t he

.

scrap charge d upon them This material being a goo d c onductor of hea t
.
,

and expose d t o the flame absorbs he a t very rapidly an d as soon as the

, ,

temperature rises above the thermo critical range oxidation of t he iron -

,

be gins t his givin g rise t o the formation of scale

, The melting point of .

this s c ale i s s o ne ar t ha t o f t he me t al , t ha t i t may remain on the surfac e

until t he meta l i t se lf be gins t o mel t I t i s understood of c ourse t ha t the
.
, ,

impurities containe d in t he s crap wil l su ffer oxidation with the iron These .

fluids will t rickle down over the c ol der ma t erial bene ath and will e ventually
reac h t he ore on t he bottom of t he furnace Here t ogether with additional .
,

oxide derive d from th e ore and some silic a , l ime et c c olle c t e d from various ,
.
,

so urces , t his molten s cale w ill go t o mak e up the firs t sla g This slag poor .
,

in sili ca , bu t excee dingly rich in iron oxi de s , e spe ciall y ferrous oxide and ,

containi n g some lime also is wel l c onstitu t ed for t he wor k it has t o d o ;

,

and with t he ad di tion of t he ho t me t al t he purification may be gin a t once ,

.

Thus the silicon , manganese and phosphorus wil l have been practi cally
,

eliminate d fro m t he metal within t wo hours after t he molten metal is

char ge d The extent an d character of the p urification of t he metal at
.

the time of the run o ff with the resulting change in the composition of
the sl ag are indic ate d in the following table of analyses .
24 2 T H E OP E N HEA R T H P ROCES S

Tab l
e 34 . A na l
yse s o f Ho t Me t alan d S l a g Be fo r e C h a r gi ng a nd at

Ti m e o f Fi rs t Ru n =o ff .

Y
ANAL SI S OF METAL . PARTI AL ANAL SIS OF SLAGY .

Pe r c e nt . o f Pe r c e nt . o f

C Mn

1 Pig Iro n Be fo re

1 At T im e o f Run Off . . 2 39. . 05

. 02

. 02

. 01

Bri q ue tte s Ins te ad o f

Ore Use d . 01

From this point t he reader shou ld b e able t o c ont inue t h i s re V 1e w

through the oxidation of the carbon unaide d and in doing so he will have , ,

fixe d in mind t he chemistry of the pro cess much more firmly than if he
bu t read the inadequately expresse d thoughts of another A s a f urt her aid .
,

what is s aid in Chapter V concerning fina l Open he arth sl ags should be

referre d to .
244 ELE C T RI C P ROCE S S

mass of matter A similar unit on the centimeter gram sec ond system is
.
- -

the kilogram which is the force exerte d by gravity on a mass of one kilo gram
,
.

That which imparts to a body the ability to do work is energy Bot h are .
,

therefore measured by the same unit

,
I n the foot pound se cond .
- -

system this unit is the foot pound or the work done by a for ce of one
-
,

pound acting through a distance of one foot I n the centimeter gram second — .
-

system a large unit is calle d the k ilogram meter , whi le a sm al luni t one dyne -
,

e e q ua l
acting thro ugh a distance of one ce ntim e te r i s calle d the e rg The j o u l , .
,

to e r gs i s a m ore practical unit

,
Thus if a weigh t of 10 lbs is .
,
.

lifted against gravity t o a distance of 5 ft 50 foot pounds of work has been .

,
-

done o n that body and 50 foot pounds of energy was expended and the
,
-
,

same amount of energy is store d up in the b ody raised in t he form of

potential energy which imparts t o this body the ability to do work I n
,
.

practice the body lifte d would be said t o have its potential raised or a ,

difference in potential has been effe cte d between this position of the body
and (the same body in )its former position .

Powe r : will be noti ced that work is independent of time The

It .

time rate of doin g w or k is called power I n t he foot pound se cond system .

- -

the unit is the horse power , (h w hich e quals foot pounds in one
.
-

minute or 550 foot pounds in o ne se con d I t is base d on experiments in which

- .

it was found that the w or k an average draft horse can perform continually
without over exertion is e quivalent t o lifting a we i ght of 150 pounds verti cally
-

while travelling at t he rate of miles per hour I n t he centimeter gram .

-

second system the uni t is the wa t t w hich is that power tha t will do one .

j oule of wor k in one se cond The large unit e quals 1000 watts a nd is
.
‘

calle d k ilowatt This unit is employe d in ele ctrical work 1 k ilowatt

. .
:

h p or 1 h
. .
,
watts . k ilowatts S ince ener gy is conserved .
,

power can be supplie d onl y by creating a di fference in potential .

Tr a ns m i ss io n o f Ene rgy : I n the me chanical worl d it is often desir

-

able for e conomical reasons t o create this potential di fference at s ome

, ,

central point known as the power station from which the power may be
, ,

distribute d by proper means t o various other points and applie d as re qui red .

Fo r the t ransmission of energy there are four agencies namely gases such , , ,

as ste am ; fluids such as water ; e le ctricity ; and t he Ether I n certain

, .

respe cts t he characteristics exhibited by any one of these agencies in use

is similar to e ach of the others I n the first c ase the di fference in potential
.

is maintained by making use of the potential or chemi c al ener gy of fuels , ,

to generate steam which may be conducte d through pipes t o impart motion

,

to engines and do work upon matter , or t o gi ve up its energy as heat .

S imil arly water may be made t o transmit energy by c ausing it t o flow

,

through pipes from high levels t o lower ones S omewhat anal ogous t o the .

flow of the water is the passage of the electri c current along a wire
, .

I n each case means must be taken t o maintain the flo w by keeping up a ‘

di fference in potential I n the case of water a p ump coul d be inserte d in

.
,

a circuit for returning the water to the higher level as rapidly as i t flows
 ELE CT RI CA L UNI T S 24 5

downward . I n practice a pump wo ul d be impracticable but the sun ,

accomplishes the same thing by vaporiz ing w ater s o that it rises into the
atmosphere t o fall a gain as rain , and thus c omplete the circ uit In ele ctric .

circu its thi s di ffere nce in potentia l is maintained by means of the ele ctric
battery the static machine or the dynamo the l ast of whi ch will be briefly
, , ,

described later The close simil arity between these two cases w ill be
.

readily observe d by a study of the foll owin g table of anal o gues in which ,

the w ater is assumed t o be flowing thro ugh a horizontal pipe at the point
of examination :
Ta b l
e 35 . i c—El
Hy d r a u l e c t ri c A n a l
og u e s .

F u nc t io n s o f t h e C u r re n t s
El
e c t ro m a gn e ti c
Un i t s
Hy d ra u l
ic El
e c t ri c

Pressure
P ressur e per sq .

in . or Head in
feet V olt . .

P ound C oulomb . .

Am per age P ounds per se cond C o ul

o m b s p e r sec .

or A mperes .

Friction R esistance t o con Loss in H ead ,

No Oh m .

Work E lectric al Energ y F oot pounds J oule

-
.

R at e of Work Wattage H orse power or Watt or -

One importan t point of di fference between the transmission of water

and ele ctri c current is evident ; namely that w hereas w ater passe s through
,

a hollo w tube e l e ctr ifi c a ti o ns pass alon g solid bodies

, usuall y wires I t , .

is also c ommon knowledge tha t e l e ctr ifi c a ti o ns w ill pass along some sub

stances very e asily an d only w ith diffic ulty , or no t a t al l , alon g others .

No substance is s o good a conductor as no t t o o ffer some resistance t o the

transfer Substances t ha t o ffer little resistance are c alle d c ondu ctors ;
.

those in which t he resistan ce i s great , non conductors or ins ulators I n -

.

the followi ng t able the substances named are arranged in the orde r of
,

their conduc tivities

Ta b l e 36 . Re l
a t ive C o n d u c t ivi t y o f V a rio u s S u b s t a nce s.

C o n d uc t o r s water
S alt S ilk Sealing wax
’

Metals Linen I ndia r ub b cr Rubber

G raphite Cotton P orcelain
"

Vul canite
Acids Dry wood Ai r I ns u l
a to rs

Paper G lass
246 ELE CTRI C P ROCE S S

El o t ive Fo rc e (E M
e c t ro m While a definition of the various
. . .

ele ctrical units at this t ime woul d be out of plac e o ccasion should be made ,

to explain ele ctrical pressures Just as hydraulic pressure mi ght be called .

water moving force so pressure produced electrically is called e l

'
-
,
e c tro m o

tive force (e m A s indicate d above the unit of measurement for

. .
,

ele ctromotive force is the volt which is also the unit for measuring di fference ,

in potential I n practice ele ctromotive force and di fference in potential

.
'

are di fferent things E le ctromotive force refers t o the total electrical

.

pressure existing in a circuit where as di fference in potenti al is merely the

’

di fference in electric al pressure b etween two p oints on the circuit .

S EC T I O N 11 .

T HE D EVE LOP ME NT OF E LE CT ROMOTI VE F OR C E S— OR

“ ’ ’1
G E NE R AT I ON OF C U R R E N T .

Me t h o d s fo r S e tt i ng u p El
e c t ri c C u r r e n t s : As alre ady indicate d the
di fference in potential between two points which is ne cessary to produce an ,

electric current may be created by di fferent methods of which t he most

, ,

common and useful are the following : 1 By friction as in the e le ctro .

,

ph o rus or electrostatic machine

,
2 By chemical action such as that . .
,

which takes place in the electric battery or voltaic cell 3 By e le ctro , . .

magnetic induction as i h the dynamo In all these c ase s e ne rgy must be

,
.
,

expende d t o produce the di fference in potential and t he points of di fferent ,

potential must be connecte d by a conductor Ele ctrostatic m achines while .

,

they produce a high electromotive force generate only a small quantity of ,

electricity in a given time Current produced in this way has therefore .

, ,
‘

a very limited use I n the voltaic cell these conditions of curre nt are
.

reversed the amperage being high and the voltage low The dynamo c an
, .

be made to give current high in both voltage and amperage I t is there .

,

fore the most useful of all electrical machines and is the source from
, ,

which the current require d by the electri c steel furnace i s obtained This .

being the case a discussion of the principles involved in the worki ng Of this
’

machine shoul d be both interestin g and instructive To an Observer not .

familiar with the subj e cts of magnetism and elec tricity the dyn amo appears ,

as a machine for changing motion into electrical energy and in a w ay , , ,

this idea is c orrect But the generation of the current is n o t due t o motion
.

al o ne Other phe nomena known as magne tism and induction are involve d
.
, , ,

and to unde rstand th e generat ion of the current these mus t be studie d first .

Ma gne t is m : The attractive force of magnets upon iron is well known “

Upon investigation it is found that every magnet possesses two pole s;
,

desi gnated as North and S outh N and S or and from which lines , . .
,

of force issue and that these lines of force protrude into the space surround
,

ing the magnet and ext end from p Ol e t o pole In studying the action of one "
3
.

ma gnet upon another the following laws are Ob served : 1 Like magnetic
, .

1F o r a ful
le r f th e g e ne r ati o n t ra ns m i s si o n an d ul
s tu d y o ti l
i z a ti o n o f t h e el
e c
t r1 c c urr e nt s e e t h e s t a nd a rd t e xt o o k s o n P y s i c s , al P r a c ti ca lE l
,

b h b
0

so e c tri ci t
T e rre lC ro ft a nd A p p l ie d E l e c t ri ci t y fo r P r a c ti c a l M e n b y A rt ur Ro w h J an
P u b h s h e d b y M cG ra w - i l lB o o k C o m p any , I nc , N e w o r k
.

H . Y .
248 ELE CT RI C P ROCE S S

substances but by the use of a permeable substance l ike very soft steel
, ,

or iron they may be deflected from their course and concentrate d in the
,

mass of iron as shown in A Of F i g 29 . .

P1G . 29 . M agne ti c P e rm ea b ili ty a nd I nd ucti o n .

A . The so ft i r o n w a s e r e nc l
ho se s a s p ace t hr o u g h w hi c h t h e re a r e no i lnes o f fo r ce .

B C ut i n t w o t h e w a s
. , he r b e c o m e s a m ag ne t b y i nd uc t i o n .

Ma gne t i c Fi e l
d s a nd Ele c t r i c C u r re n t s : These ma gne t i c l ines of
force are closely associate d with the ele ctri c current for it is e asily sho wn ,

that e very current bearing conductor is surrounde d by a magneti c field ,

the line s of force in which form c ircle s concentri c with the conductor .

T hese lines of force have a definite dire ction as in the case of ordinary
magnets and this dire ction bears a fixe d relation t o the dire ction of the
,

current as shown in A of Fi g 3 0 This fac t is made use of in producing

, . .

the ele ctromagnet by coiling the conductor properly insul ated about a
, , ,

core of soft iron as shown in C of Fi g 3 0 Such a coil is known as a helix

, . .

or solenoid and has poles similar t o magnets The various rel ations
, .

between flow of cur rent lines of force and p oles of t he heli x are shown
, ,

in the figure The wide application Of these facts cannot be discusse d here
.
,

except in s o far as they have t o do with the development of an ele ctromotive

force or as this is more commonly referre d t o the generation of the ele ctric
, , ,

current I n conne ction with the generation of current s t hi s question might

.
,
'

arise : I f a current produces a magneti c fiel d abou t a c onductor will the ,

production of a magneti c fiel d about a conductor result in a current ? This

question is now to be answered by a brief study of ele ctromagneti c induction .
 ELE C T ROM A ONE T I S M 24 9

El
e c tro m ag ne ti c I nd u c tio n :
The e asiest way of bringing about such
a c ondition as noted in the pre ceding para graph is described in the following
e xperiment : I f a coil of many turns of fine copper wire is conne cted to a
delicate galvanometer and one e nd Of a bar magnet is thrust into it the ,

galvanometer needle will be deflected showing that a current is set up in

,

F ro . 30 . M agne ti c F i e l
ds A bo utC urr e nt B e ari ng C o nd u c to rs .

A . Li ne s o f fo rc e a b o u t a wi re carry ing a di re c t curr e nt

Li ne s o f fo rc e i n t h e cur re nt b e ari ng h e l
.

B. ix
T he El T he l l
.

C . e c t ro -m a gne t .i ne s o f fo rce p as s i nto th e so ft s te e

b ar w h i c h b e co m e s a m a gne t b y i nd u c t i o n
, .

the coil As long as the magnet remains stationary no current will pass ,
.

Upon suddenly withdrawing the magnet however a current will again pass , , ,

but the dire ction of this second curren t is Opposite to that of the first If .

these operations be repeate d with t he other pole of the magnet similar ,

cur rents wil l be induced but in directions Opposite to those obtaine d w hen
,

the first pole is used I nstead of moving the magnet the c oil can be m oved
.
,

with a l ike result and in place of the magnet a solenoid can be substituted
,
.

I n the l ast c as e it may not be necessary to move either the solenoid or the
250 ELE C T RI C P ROCE S S

coil as current can be set up in the coil by breaking the circuit or other
,

wise interrupting the c urre nt i n the solenoi d From these facts it woul d seem .

that the sole cause of the c urrent is the change in magnetic flux Further .

study of the s e phenomena reveals the fact that the curren t induced is a ffect
e d by the spee d with which the magnet may b e inserte d and withdrawn and ,

the number of wires in the coil In the case of the solenoid a third factor .

is introduced as the current carried by the solenoid itself a ffe cts the
,

induce d current Furthermore no cu rrent i s set up in t he coi l unless the

.
,

motion is such that its wire s c u t the line s of force produced by the exciting
el ements : no current is generated if the conductor moves a l o n g the l ines
of force Al lthese facts are summe d up in the following l aws
.

o f Elec t r o m a gne ti c I n d u c tio n : 1 Any change in the number

Laws .

of lines of forc e passing thro ugh a close d conducting circuit induces a current
in that circuit (2) The dire ction of the induce d current i s always such
.

that its magneti c field opposes the motion which produces it (Lenz s l aw ) ’
.

(3 ) The ele ctromotive forc e of the induced current i s directl y proportional

to the rate at which the number of lines of force are increased or de crease d ,

or the rate at which the lines of force are cut

,
.

T h e Dy n a m
o : C oming now to the practical appl ication of these
principles it is found that of the many ele ctrical appliances depending
, ,

upon them the dynamo and the transformer are of chief interest in a study
,

of the ele ctri c furnace The dynamo is designed t o convert me chanical

.

energy into e lectrical energy The steam engine for example doe s work .
, ,

on a dynamo , and the dynamo produces an ele ctri c current This current .

contains all the energy that was re ceive d from the engine except a small
percentage which was lost in heat and friction There are three e ssential .

parts of a dynamo : 1st , t he fiel d magnets ; 2d t he armature ; 3 d t he

. .
, .
,

colle cting brushes The magnets are use d t o create a stron g magnetic
.

field between the two poles that is a fiel d in which there are many lines
, ,

of force .

Magne t

Brushe s

F ro . D i agra m I l
31 . lus tra ti ng E ss e nti a lP a r ts a nd P ri nc i p l e o f t h e D y na m o .

a . D i re cti o n i n w hi ch l o o p r e vo lve s b and ’

. b
D i re c ti o n o f c urr e nt t h ro ug h l
. o o p .

0 . D i re c ti o n o f li ne s Offo rce d a nd d ' D i re c ti o n Of c urre nt i n e xte rn a l

. .
p ar t o f t h e ci rc u i t .
 2 E LE CT RI C P ROCES S

one second is the frequency T h e frequency is one half the number of .

-

alternations in one sec ond I n modern forms of alternato rs the fre quency
.

is seldom more than 60 nor less than 25 cycles per secon d T o produce .

60 cycles in a second with a

machine like that shown in Fi g 3 1 .
,

the armature woul d have to make

3 600 rotations in one minute To .

avoid such high speed a number ,

of pole pie ces are arranged in a

circle around the armature making ,

what is called a multipolar ma L l .

chine These poles are wound s o

.

5 H L
1
. " “

that north and south seeking poles -

alternate in position A cycle is .

then produce d in the circuit by the

passage of any two adj acent poles .

I f there are ten poles , there are k

w:
fi ve cycles durin g one rotation of
the armature A current Of 25 .

cycles per second wo ul d mean 50

alternations per second or 3000 per
minute ; on a two pole machine it
woul d require 1500 r p m ; on a . . .

10 pole 3 00 r p m
, The latter . . .

is about as low a speed as a machine

can be operate d upon economically .

T hese are some of the reasons

why it is not practical t o Operate
T o“
alternators on cycles over 60 nor
under 25
I

4: 09
G ra p h i c Re p rese n tat i o n o f
I; l08
-'

Al
«

ter na ti ng C u r re n t : The surges

of the current are approximately ,

harmonic hence the electromotive

,

force may be represented by the

S ine curve as shown in Fi g 3 2
, . .

This fi gure shows one complete

wave or cycle as taking place in ,

second of time and going from zero ,

through a positive maximum and

b ack to zero where it continues t o
,

a ne gative maximum to return Q

again to zero thus c ompleting a cycle T h e di ff erent stages of vibration

, .

represented in the graph are spoken of as phases Thus b and b are in .

'

the same phase but b and h are in opposite phases etc

,
’
, .
 KI NDS OF CURRE N TS 253

Di re c t C u r re n t s :
While all dynamos produce alternating current in the
a rmature this c urrent may be changed to a direc t one by means of a com
,

mutator properly connected to the armature H o w this is done can be .

understood by a study Of the ac companying fi gure .

L e g e nd
a . a . A rm r Lo o p s
a tu e

B rus h e s
c c C o m m u ta t o r
, .

m D i r e cti o n o f R o ta ti o n
C urr e nt
M a gne t i c
Li n e s o f Fo rc e

Fm . 33 . D i agram I l
lustr a ti ng h o w C urre nt i s R e ctifi e d b y m e a ns o f a Co m m u ta t o r

Fo r ns t o b e g i
re a s o ve n l
a te r d i re c t curr e nts are no t use d i n fu rn a c e s fo r re fi ni ng
l
,

i r o n a nd s t e e .

Po l
y p h a s e C u r re n t s order to incre ase the e fficiency and output
: In
of alternators , re course is had to polyphase current These currents .

are the result of attempts t o put t o economic use the interpol ar space or ,

surface of armature c ore which is only partly fille d in by conductors in

, .

single phase machine s I n any given machine of this k ind whi ch inv o l
'

. ve s ,

certain given me chanical and ma gnetic losses approximately only half of this ,

space is utili z ed This waste of space and co nse q ue nt i ne ffi ci e ncy c an be

.

remove d by uti l i z i ng t h e space devot e d t o the c ore of the c oil for the winding
’

of other c oils and thus form a second armature of an e qual number of coils
,

overlapping the former and utilizing the s ame magnetic field I n this .

second armature the phase of the current would be a quarter period 90 ,

de grees ahead or behind that of the first and s o woul d require four wires to
, ,

c arry the current s t o and from the generator The output of the m achine .
,

however , has been doubled Further attemp t s t o increase outp ut have .

resulte d in ele ctrical engineers goin g even further and c onstructing triple
armatures in which the phase of the currents generate d di ffer by e qual
,

intervals of of a period or 60 de grees But this scheme then le ads to

, .

c onsiderable el aboration if the circuits b e totally independent with six

,

c onductors and very little advantage c oul d be shown t o exist over the
,

two phase with four lines H owever in c ases where it is possible t o arrange
-
.
,

that the demand in the di fferent circuits be approximately e qual and evenly
distributed the three phase system c an be worke d out t o great advantage
,

by usin g only three conductors By referring t o t he accompanying diagrams .

(Fi gs 3 4 and 3 5)i t will be seen that a t any moment whatever the sum of
.
, ,

the ele ctromotive forces in the thr e e circuits is zero I n other words the .
,

e lectromotive force on one line is al ways e qual t o that on the other two ,
254 ELE CT RI C P ROCES S

and opposite in kind Thus at any instant one of the three wires is to be
.
,

looked upon as the return wire for the other two .

F ro 3 4 D i a gra m s I l lus tra ti ng The M e th o d s o f G e ne ra t i ng t h e T h re e Ki nd s o f

Al
. .

te r na ti ng C urre nt .

T he T wo Sche Wir i ng fo r T h r e e Ph as e C u r r e n t : The coils

m e s o f
of the three phase current alternator as well as those of the app aratus
,

that is to consum e the power may be conne cte d in two di fferen t ways
,

with e ach other as shown in the fo llo w i ng d i a gr am s In these dia grams

r
.

the three phase generator is cons idere d as a compound machine made up

of three separate machine s I n such a machine the separate units may
.
,
256 ELE C T RI C P ROCE S S

the relations being as shown in the pre ceding diagrams The Duquesne .

furnace for example operates on 104 volts with star conne ctions and 180
, ,

volts with the delta This care in expl ainin g three phase current has b e en
.

taken because it is the most common k ind of c urrent and is used in the
,

H eroult furnace the details of which will be explaine d l ater

,
.

S EC T I O N I V .

T R A N S MI S S I ON OF T HE C U R RE N T .

Oh m
’
With this brief e xplanation of the generation of the
s Law :
current i t will be well to turn ne xt t o the problem c onne cte d with its trans
,

mission Here also , it is ne c essary t o be gin with the simples t essentials

.
,
.

T he most fundamental idea in t hi s c onne ction c an be briefly state d in the

form Of a law known as Oh m s l
,
aw This l aw states t hat the strength ’
.
-

of current passing along a conductor varies directly as the ele ctromotive

force or drop in potential and inversely as the resistance This l aw is
, ,
.

generally put in the form of a formul a thus ,

Electromotive F orce
Resistance

I n place these letters the units which are used in measuring the quantities
Of

they represent may be substituted thus ,

V
Amperes
0

By the use of this formul a any one of the three quantities may be found ,

provide d the other two are given I t may be applied to an entire circui t .

or to a part of a circuit .

Re si s t a nc e o f C o n d uc to r s : now to r e s 1s tance of c onductors R eferring ,

it wil l be re calle d that as previously stated all conductors offer resist ance
, ,

to the passage of the current This resistance c an be cal cul ate d by applying
.

the following law which has been develope d by many experiments I t i s

,
.

stated as fo l l —
o w s z The resistance to the flo w of an ele ctric current al ong

a given conductor at a g1ve n temperature varies directly as the length

and inversely as the area of its section and is different for di fferen t ,

K1
substances A s a formula the law is expressed thus : R = a where R= -

Ti
.
,

resistance 1=len gth d =s q uare of the diameter w hich is directly pro

, ,
2
,
1

portioned t o th e are a or t he are a its e lf and K spe cifi c resistanc e of the

, ,
z

substanc e I n the foot pound secon d system 1=length in feet and d =

.
- -
, ,

diameter in m i l s , or thousandths of an inch A c i rc u l ar m il is the are a .

of a circle one m i lin diameter S o if the diameter of a wire is expresse d .

 TRA NS M I S S I ON OF C URRE N T 257

in mils d =the are a in circular mils The c i rc u l

,
2
a r m ilis not to be con .

fuse d with the s q u are m i lwhich is the are a of a square having sides
inch long The area of a circle in square mils the diameter of which is
.
,
2
7r d
e xpressed in mils In th 1s co nne c t1 o n the fo l
lo w 1ng formulas may be

found of assistance
sq in
il
s = ci r il
. .

1 . sq . m . m s X 0 7854 . 2
. cir mils
.

. 00000078 54

In wire a length of one foot and a diameter of one mil constitutes a m i l

,

foo t The specific resistanc e of any substance is the resistance of one mil
.

foot I n the following t able are the spe cific resistances of a few substance s
.
,

In the metric system 1= meters

°
d etermine d for thi s system at 6 0 F , .
, ,

d =sq m il le m e te rs and of course K has a numerical value di f

2
. ferent from , , ,

that by the foo t pound second system as shown in the table - -

, ,
.

Ta b l
e S p e cific Re s i s t a nce o f Va r io u s S u b s t a nc e s .

0 C
° °
60 F . .

F oot- P ound S e cond -

C entimeter-G ram—
Se cond
(F P S )S ystem
. . .
(C G S )S ystem
. . .

S ilver 0 17
018
03 to . 05
O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O

0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0

0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0

S tee l
M olten S teel
Nickel .

Lead .

G erman S ilver
M ercury

The Ohm the unit of resistance may no w be define d ; I t has been

, ,

e stablishe d by l aw to b e the resistance offere d by a mercury colum n

m l ong of 1 sq mm cross se ction and at the temperature of 0 C
. . . .
,
°
.

Ori ginally the l ength of the me rcury column was one me ter
, .

o f Te m pe ra t u re o n C o nd uc to rs : I n conne ction with t he e ff e ct

Effe c t
of temp erature upon c onductors it should be note d that the re are two ,

classes of substances known as conductors Of the first class and conductors ,

of the se cond class I n conductors of the first class which include s all .
,

the me tals the resistance increases with a rise in temperature he nc e their

, ,

c onductivities de crease This is shown inthe case Of ste el which at 15 C .

,
°
.
 58 E LE C T RI C P ROCE S S

has a spe cific resistance of onl y 10 t o 12 whe reas at 1700 the spe cific . .
,
°

resistance of the mol ten metal is about I n the case of carbon and
conductors of the second class these relations are reversed so that they , ,

become better and better conductors as their tempe ratures rise As all .

the refra ctory materials t hat go into the construction of furnaces be lon g
to this class this ma tt er must be carefully considered in building ele ctri c
,

fur naces .

l
Re si s t a nc e i n S e r ie s a nd Pa rale l I n the preceding paragraph , onl y .

singl e s ubstances were conside red in the circuit In the actual distribution .

and use of power it is generally necessary to di vi de circui t s in which

“

, ,
'

d ivisions di ffere nt materials or machine s will also ma k e up a part of the

circuit This division and conne ctions can be made in two ways namely
.
, ,

series and parallel as shown in the following d iagram illu st rating two
,

methods of light wiring .

A . Se rie s

B . l
Paralel

F ro . 36 . D i a gra m I l
lus trati ng D i ffe r e nt M e t h o d s o f W i ri ng .

I n Fi g 3 6 A ,
. the resistance of the line is r and of each of the lamps it
’
is r , then the whole resistance R is the sum of these four or , , ,

+r or

Resistance
of c onductors c onne cted in parallel is not found so simply .

I t is de ducted from the law of c onductivities whi ch sta te s that the co nd ucti v ,

ity of a combination of c onductors is e qual to the sum of the conductivities

of the conductors singly Now , it is self evident that the conductivity is
.

1 .

represented by The res i stance m the parallel connect 1 ons above would
R
then be foun d by solvi ng the foll owing

1 1
L l
+ + + ”
R r r r
’

This matte r is of importance in dealing with ele ctri c furnaces as shown ,

260 ELE CT RI C P ROCE SS

’
can be c al cul ate d by means of J oule s law who found from many experiments ,

that the heat develop e d by a current flowi ng through a conductor is directly

pr oportional to the time to the resistance and t o the square of t he cur rent
, , .

Mathematic al ly stated this law is s K I RT where H = he at I ; curre nt

2
, , , ,

R=re s i stance T = =t im e and K=a constant which J oule found to be 24

, , , . .

S ince from Ohm s law I ’

or E= I R H= 24 I ET c ol ories when I is
R
Z .
, , ,

measure d in am pre s E in volts and T in seconds The he at thus develope d

, ,
.

is of much importance in the transmission of current for if the current b e ,

sufficiently large thi s heat may raise the temperat ure enough to burn o f f
the ins ulation or even t o melt the wire This hea tin g c an be overcome
,
.

in two ways I n the first method the diameter of the c onductors coul d
.
,

be incr ease d which wo ul d decrease the r e si stance a nd increase the c arryin g

,

capacity That this method has its limits is evident due t o the i m mense
.
,

weigh t of wire required in some c ases where l arge curren t (amperage ) i s

required as is the case with ele ctric furnaces The s e cond method i s
, .

applicable to alternating current only and illustrates both the adaptability

of the electri c current in general and one advantage of alternatin g current
in parti cular From Joule s l aw it is evident that a current Of l arge voltage
.
’

may be carrie d on a given wire provided the density i e amperage p e r , . .

,

circular mil or square millimeter be kept low Since p o w e r=am pe re s X .

volts or for alternatin g current P o w e r=am pe re s X vo l

, ts X p o we r factor ,

this can be done without reduction in power But since the furnace r e quire s .

a current of lo w voltage and hi gh amperage s uch a current c oul d no t b e

use d unless means be taken t o change this high voltage—
,

low— am perage -

current into one of l ow voltage and high amperage H o w thi s is done c an .

be learne d from the following description of the transformer .

T h e S t a tio n a r y
Tr a ns for m e r : I n this instrument the desire d trans
formation i s effe cted by electro magneti c induction alre ady dis c ussed Of-
.

co urse then only those currents which are starte d and stopped or increase d
, ,

and d ecreased in rapid succession or those in which the direction of the ,

current is change d many times in a second can be transformed Suc h ,

.

current is furnished by the alternator In structure the transformer c on .

sist s of two c oils of wire side by side with a core compose d of many sheets
of soft iron or a special sili con steel packed together The coils must no t
, , .

have any metallic connection with any part of the instrument The firs t .

coil that through which t he main c urrent flows is c alle d the primary
, ,
.

T h e se cond coil or that in which the current is ind uced is called t h e

, ,

secondary .

Ki nd s o f S ta t io na ry T ra ns fo r m e rs : Transformers a re of two ki nds

step up and step d own The step up transform er increases the voltage and
- -
.
-
.

de creases the amperage The step— down produc e s the opposite effect
. .

The c hange depends on the relative number of turns of wi re in the primary

and secondary coils If for example t here are 100 t u
. rns in the primary
, ,

and 1000 turns in the secondary the voltage will be increas e d 10 times ,
 U TI L I Z A T I ON OF T HE C URRE N T . I

and the amperage decreased 10 times This is then a step up transformer .

-
.

A step do wn transformer woul d reverse these conditions throughout

-
If . .

there are the s ame number of turns in both c oils the current will not be ,

change d except as it m ay be a ffe cted by the transformer efficiency which ,

shoul d be about
I n re gard to the power of the transforme d current it will be seen that ,

since whenever the transformer increases or decreases the voltage it

, ,

decreases or increase s the amperage the number of watts will be a c onstant ,

quantity Suppose there is a current of 100 vol ts and 10 amperes flowing

.

through t he primary The power is then 1000 watts If the transformer

. .

raises the press ure t o 500 volts , the strength of the current wil l fall t o 2
amperes but the power of the current is still 1000 watts A good trans
, .

former gives Out nearly all the energy t hat is pu t into it A small .

percentage varying from 2% to 5% of the voltage is converted into he at

, ,
.

Usually this heat is prevented from c ollecting by immersing the coils

in cylindrical tanks of oil s o constructe d as t o form a circul ating system
through pipes e xtending externally from the t op t o the bottom of the
cylinder These pipes act like a hot water radiator and serve t o keep the
.

whole bath and its c ontent s c ool The oil also serves as an insul ator . .

F o r stee l furnaces three phase 25 cycle current is steppe d down from 6600
volts t o 104 on the star connection or 18 0 on the delta the l atter of which ,

is seldom use d on molten ch ar ges .

S EC T I O N V .

UT ILI Z ATI ON OF T HE CU R RE NT
THE I N ELE CT R I C F U R NACE S 1 .

Effe c t s P ro d uc e d b y El e c t ri c Cu r r e n t : The heating and magnetic

e ffe cts of ele ctric current s have alre ady been touch e d upon in connection
with generators c onductors and transformers I n order t o understand
,
.

how the electri c cur rent is utilize d in el e ctric furnaces it is ne cessary t o

study these and other effe cts from a sli ghtly di fferent standpoint ; namely ,

their e ffe c t upon t he me tall ic charge in t he furnace itself I n this c on .

ne cti o n i t may be t rul y sai d t ha t there i s but one other e ffe ct produced

by t he e lectri c current and this e ffe c t is tha t of bringing about chemi cal
,

action To t he question as t o wha t chemical action is cause d by the current

.

in the bath of steel t he corre c t ans wer is : There is none As this answer
,
.

is not in accord with chemi cal e ffe cts produce d by currents in other
m etallurgical ope rations an explanation may be necessary ,
.

C h e m i ca lAc t io n P ro d u c e d b y t h e El e c t ri c C u r re n t : As pointed
out in Chapter I ele ctrolysis is brought about when electric currents are
,

passe d through l iquids under certain condi t ions some well known examples ,

be ing the dissociation of w ater and the ele ctrolytic separation of aluminum .

I n these instances however it will be Observe d that these che m ic al changes

, ,

oc cur onl y when dire ct c urrent flows through the ele ctrolytes If alter .

1 F o r a ful ld i sc uss i o n o f e l
e c tri c furna c e s S e e T h e El e ct ri c Furnac e b Al fre d
S t ans fi e ld P ubl i s h e d b y M c G ra w H i l lB o o k I nc N e w Y o rk E l e ct rl
.

- c u r n a ce s
b y O H V o m B aur p u b l i s h e d b y J o h n Wi l
.
, ,

i n I r o n a nd S te e l
,

I n d us tr ey S o ns
urna ce s fo r M aki n I ro n a nd S te elb y D orse y A
,

N e w Yo rk an d E l
.
.
,

e c tri c
,
Ly o n .

a nd R o b e rt M Ke e ne y Bure au o f M i ne s B e ti n 6 7
. .
26 2 ELECT RI C P ROCE S S

nating current is used then the direction of the current is cons tantly
,

changing and no action such as note d above c an take place Furthermore

, , , .
,

such action woul d be harmful in carrying out the ele ctro therma l process - -

for steel While it might be possible with dire ct current t o purify the
.

metal by removing the impurities as sulphides silicides , and phosphides , ,

there woul d be no way of controlling the process s o as t o prevent the

reduction of lime alumina and other oxi des the elements from w hich
, ,

woul d then find their way i nto the metallic bath This re duction w ould .

resul t in a more impure product than the raw material Desi gners of .

e lectric furnaces for the iron industry will then use alternatin g current , ,

e xclusivel y and strive in every way t o prevent any ele ctrolyt ic action
that might result in ele ctrolysis .

El
e c t rica lUni tso f Me a s u r e m e n t s : The subj ect of e le ctrolysis o ffers
an Opportunity t o define another of the primary units used in ele ctrical
measurements The ohm has already been define d in stud ying resistance
. .

I t now remains t o explain how the value of the ampere is fixed If a current .

be made by means of suitable ele ctrodes t o pass through a solution of

, ,

silver nitrate , metallic silver will be d eposite d upon the cathode or positive ,

pole , and t he amoun t of silver thus deposite d in a given tM e will be pro

po rtional t o t he strength of t he c urrent This fac t has been made the .

basis for fixin g t he value of t he ampere The le ga l definition reads as .

—
follows The a m pe r e is tha t curren t which when passe d through a 15%
neutral s oluti on of s ilver nitrate will deposit 00 1118 grams o f silver in one .

second T h e vo l
. t is then le gally define d as the e m f which wi l l_c a use . . .

a current of one ampere t o flo w through a resistance of one ohm In fi xing .

the value of these units it was arrange d s o that the power possesse d by a
,

current of one ampere under a pressure of one vol t is jus t e qual t o one watt .

H ence t he power of the current in watts e quals t he product of t he amperage

and voltage or , The w a tt =h o u r i s the e ner gy expende d in one
hour when t he c urrent is one ampere an d t he voltage or pressure one volt , ,
.

H ence , 60 w atts use d for one min or one w att used for 60 min will give one
. .

watt hour A ki l o =w a tt =h o u r= 1000 watt hours

. .

T he Magne t i c I nfl u e nce f th e
can be of but slight
o C u rre n t
importance t o the metallur gist To t he desi gner of induction furnaces they
.

are of double importance On account of a certain motor e ffe c t which

.

they produce in the molten metal these forces cause w ha t is known as t he

,

loften brea k t he circuit In arc furnaces this motor

pinch e ffe c t whi ch w i l .

effe ct is present in the immediate vicinity of the ele ctrodes causing a slight
motion of t he bath .

He a t i n g t h e Ba t h : It
is to be understood then that the only use to , ,

which t he current is applie d in t he manufacture of stee l is for the generation

of heat I t may be wel l , t herefore , t o c onsider briefly the he atin g p os
.

si b i l
'

i ti e s o f t he curren t in c onne c t ion with its practi ca l appl i cation t o this

purpose A little thought shows that these possibilities are only three in
.

number and may be called heating by direct resistance he ating by indire ct

, ,
264 ELE C T R I C P ROCE S S

metal under treatment , contained in the annular c avity A forming the , ,

crucible . Now , when energy , i n the form of alternatin g c urrent i s supplied

to the primary c oil D it creates a varying magneti c flux in the l aminated
, ,

iron c ore which in turn induces a c urrent in the c l osed s e condary circuit
,

consisting of metal in crucible A The current density in the secondary .

bears a fixed ratio t o the num ber of turns i n t he primary c oil D s o that ,

it is possible by a suitable variation in impresse d voltage t o subj ect the

metal t o an extremely heavy current d ensity , t he hea t being thus produced
in accordance with Joule 8 l a w s imul
’
taneousl y t hroughou t t he entire mass
of the metallic bath Because of the l imited c ontact are a between slag and
.

metal t hi s type of furnace does not readily lend itself t o refining pro cesses
, ,

if the form shown in the fi gure be adhered t o However this form was .
,

later changed so as to give a central hearth of considerable size Those .

who have desi gned furnaces wi th t he obj ect of improving the Kj e l li n type
are Frick Hi o rth , H arden G reene , and others On account of the low
, , .

specific resistance of iron it i s difficul t t o reach high temperatures in these

,

furnaces They are therefore no t well adapted for desulphurizing Oper

.
, ,

a ti o ns in whi ch sulphur i s rem o ved as s ulphide .

I n d ire c t Re s i s ta nc e He
a t i n g o ffers a second possibil ity I nstead of .

dependin gupon the resistance of the bath al one t o furnish the heat re quir e d ,

some other conductor havi ng a hi gh resistance mi ght be b uilt into the

furnace in such a way that the heat generated i n i t woul d be ab so r b e d b y l

the material to be heated This i s the principle employe d in many .

laboratory furnaces and in large furnaces for manufacturing c arborundum .

But in applying the method t o the manufacture of stee l several i nsurm o unt
able d iffi cul
ti e s are presented 1 The resister c an no t be c omposed of
. .

carbon and in contact with the metal on account of the absorption of this ,

element by iron 2 If a suitable resister of another material could be

. .

found , i t coul d not be placed in the bath because i t woul d then be in ,

parallel with the metal The only way t hese difficulties c an be overcome
.

is by the use of cru cibles t o c ontain t he molten metal The i m p r a cti c .

ability of this method is at once e vi dent and furnace s of this type ,

:

desi gned for manufacturing steel have met with no suc cess .

A rc He t i n g : The us e of the electric a r e whi ch has been me ntioned

a ,

as the t hi rd possibility for producing he at i s the s implest and the most ,

practical of all and has found the wides t application in the steel industry .

S ome information as t o t he natur e of e le ctri c arc s should therefore be , ,

interesting I n be ginning a distinction i s t o b e made between ele ctric

.
,

s parks and e le ctri c arcs While th e air i s practically a non conductor it

.
-
,

is possible t o create such a hi gh di fference in potential between two given

points as t o cause a current t o j ump t he gap an d establish e qui l ibrium .

Such c onditions occur in ele ctri ca l s torms and li ghtning is an example of ,

ele ctri c S parks I n arc s the current also passes through the air but it
.
,

will be ob served that a much smaller voltage is re quire d t o form an arc

 M E T H ODS OF H EA T I N G 26 5

than i s needed t o cause sparks The most c ommon example of the arc is .

the arc l amp H ere the arc is made between two carbon electrodes but
'

. ,

in order t o s trike a n a r e i t i s ne cessary t o bring the ele ctrodes into contact ,

after which a ga p may be gradually produce d and the a r e still maintained .

I f the gap becomes too w ide however , the arc will break hence me ans of
, ,

re gulating the d istance between the ele ctrodes must be provided .

Evidently the air i s not the c onductor i n arcs as in sparks Allthese .

phenomena are explaine d by assuming that s ome of the e le ctrode material

is vapori z e d by the heat of the ar c and that these vapors serve as a c on ,

ductor of the current S ome ide a of the inte nsity of the heat of this a r e
. ,

which gives the hi ghest temperatures ye t attained is t o be had from the ,

fact that carbon vapori z es at ab out 3 500 C °

.

Me t h o d s o f A p p l
yi n g t h e A rc i n A rc F u r n ac e s : Furnaces of this
type then depend almost wholly upon this hi gh t emperature of the ele ctric
, ,

arc for the heat require d by iron and steel baths The following diagrams .

wil l illustrate the three possible methods of applyi ng the arc and heating
the bath .

A
FI G 39 D i a gr a m s l
Ilus tra ti ng th e T hr e e W ay s o f Em pl
o y i ng th e El
e c t ri c A r c i n
lF ur nace s
. .

S te e .

of t hese t hre e cases the b at h i s dire ctly beneath the ar e or arcs

I n each
and re cei ves its heat mainly by radiation Al lt hr e e possibilities are .

practi cal and have been successfull y applie d S o these same fi gures also .

illustrate the principles of the three furnaces of the arc t ype .

T h e S tas s a n o Fu r n a c e
is represente d in principle by Fi g BQA The . .

distinguishing feature of this furnace i s that the curren t does not p ass
through the metal or slag the heating bein g ac complishe d entirely by
,

radiation At first S tassano bui lt his furnaces s o tha t t hey c oul d be rocked
.
,

or rotate d in order t o agitate t he bath but as this feature di d no t prove ,

to be of any adv antage , i t has no w been abandone d H is furnaces are .

now of the tilting type I n practi ce t hree phase curren t i s generally used
.
,

and the thr e e ele ctrodes enter the furnace at an angle t hrough the walls .

This plan has the e ffe ct of placing a limi t t o t he size of t he furnace and ,

so few of these furnaces with a c apacity gre ater than t wo t ons have been
built From an ele ctri cal standpoint the furnace possesses the important
.
,

advantage of uniform power consumption thus avoiding harmful fl uxua ti o ns ,

i n current .
‘
26 6 EL E C T RI C P ROCE S S

G iro d Fu r n a c e s : T h e furnace scheme shown in F i g 3 9B has been .

developed by several inventors I t was first successfully introduced by .

G irod for the p urpose of manufacturing ferro alloys A s shown in the -

.

figure the electrodes are inserte d in both the top and the bottom of the
furnace thereby connecting ele ctrodes sl ag and molten metal in series
, ,
.

Heat is thus produced in three ways theoretically at least By me ans,

.

of an a re at the top , the greater portion of the heat is generated Afte r .

forming the a r e the current i n its do wnward courses must pass through
, , ,

the l ayer of slag which through the heat of the ar e above be comes a c on
, ,

ductor of the s econd class after which the current is conducte d by the
,

molten metal t o the electrodes at the bottom I n furnaces using a single .

phase c urrent these bottom electrodes are four or si x in number and are
,

equally space d about the periphery of the hearth I n the three phase .
-

furnaces there are four upp e r e lectrodes two of whi ch must be in parallel , ,

and sixteen bottom e lectrodes I n all c ases the bottom electrodes are made
.

of steel and are water c ooled Other desi gners of this type of furnace are .

Keller G r Onw al
,
l, N a t h us i us S tobie and S o d e rb ur g
,
.

o f t h e He ro u l
T h e P ri nc i ple t Fu r nac e is diagrammatically re p re
sented in Fi g 3 9C The practicability of this principle is shown by the
. .

fact that t he Heroul t electri c s tee l furnace heads the list of such furnaces
in use for the manufacture of s teel This popularity of the Heroult furnace .

is due t o the fac t tha t t he application of this principle gives a furnace of

the greatest e fficiency combined with simplicity of construction and adapt
ability t o many differen t uses Details of t he construction of this furnace
.

will be given l ater At present it is desired t o e xplain only the method

.

of heatin g Al lthe electrodes , as indicated by the fi gure are sus pended

.
,

from supports over the roof , through which they proj e ct t o wit hi n an inch
of the surface of t he slag As the e lectrodes are s o far separate d from e ach
.

other as t o prevent arcs between them , severa l resistances are introduced

in series Fo r example let the c urren t be c onsidere d as passin g from A
.
,

to B Then as the current j umps the gap at the foo t o f A it forms an arc
.
,

and passes into the slag which also has a high resistance The metal
, .
,

having a much l ower resistance then acts as a c onductor for the cur rent ,

to the re gion directly beneath the foot of electrode B where the c urrent ,

must again pass through the layer of slag and form a sec ond a re as i t j umps
the gap between sla g and electrodes It is e vi den t t hat practi cally all .

the heat is formed by the arcs above the slag w h ic h ac t s a s a s h ie l d to ,

t h e m e t aland protects i t both from the carbon vapors thrown o ff from

the foo t of t he ele ctrode and from the e xceedingl y hi gh temperature at
this poin t Portions of this hea t is ne xt imparted t o t he metal t hrough
.

the slag w here it may be distribute d t o all parts of the bath by c onduction
,

and convection The distribution of t he heat i s thou ght t o be ai ded by

.

a slight motor e ffect produced by the current upon the metalli c bath .

Furnaces of this type using single phase and three phase current are i n use .

T h e only change necessary to be made for three phase current i s the inserti on -
26 8 E LE CT RI C P ROCES S

has been melte d down the furnace will be tilte d sl i ghtl y and the s l ag whi ch
,

has formed will be c arefully rake d o ff This addition of flux and removal .

of sla g will be re p e ate d a s often as m ay be ne cessary A c le ansing flux .

of lime alone will then be added and rake d off During this peri od the .

temperature shoul d be kept low because p h OS p h o r us is not re adi l y oxi dize d

,

at hi gh temperatures i n the presence of c arb o n The bath will then be .

covere d with a flux consisting of about 5 parts lime 1 part sand or other ,

form of sili ca 1 part fluo rsp ar and

,
p art of c arbon in some c onve nient
,

form such as c o ke c o k e c arbon old electrode et c The furnace wi ll then

, , , ,
.

be ti ghtly closed and the temperature raise d I n the c ase o f induction

'

.
,

furnaces it will be found necessary after abou t two hours t o i ntro duce
small porti ons of ferro silicon sili co—
,

aluminum or sili co spie gel These

, ,
-
.

alloys act energetic ally as de oxi dizers and form a flui d sl ag whi ch rises
to the surface I n the H eroult furnace c arbon i s the only deo xidizer used
.
.

A fter the steel shall have been thoroughl y de oxi dize d , any c arburizing
material or alloys will be adde d t o bring the steel t o t he desire d c om
position When all such material will have been melte d and sufficient
. ,

time w ill have elapse d t o permit them t o mix with the bath , t he molten
steel wi ll be poured as a finished ingot pro duct This process divi des .

itself into three distinct periods namely an oxi dizing perio d a re ducin g , , ,

perio d and a finishing period a c ombinati on of c onditions impossible of

, ,

attainment in any other process T h e action brought about during e ach .

of these perio ds and the re asons for using the re agents employe d m ay now
,

be discussed .

T h e Oxi d i z i n g Pe rio d i s evident that the action of the oxidizing

: It
flux must result in the removal of silicon manganese and phosphorus in a ,

manner similar t o that of the basi c pro cess The important distinction .

between open hearths and ele ctri c furnaces shoul d be note d here I t i s .

this : A l lthe oxygen introduce d into the e lectri c furnac e must be in the
solid form as observe d above and the amount c an be e asil y c ontrolled
, ,

where as the air admitte d t o open hearths furnishes an unlimite d amo unt
of oxygen that c annot be c ontrolled Therefore since these three element s .
,

are e asil y oxidize d at l ow temperatures before the c arbon the re action ,

may be stoppe d an d t he bath hel d at almost any c arbon c ontent desire d .

Wit h respe ct t o phosphorus it has been suggeste d that this element m ay

,
.

be remove d as phosphi de by me ans of some metal as c al ci um While thi s ,

.

s ch e m e i s theoretic ally possible i t i s still impractic able , for it i s a d i ffi c lt

,
p
thing t o find a metal that woul d not all oy with iron in preferenc e t o com
bining with phosphorus o r whose phosphides w oul d not s o all oy Q uite
, .

frequently traces of phosphorus are found in the re ducing slags b ut this

, ,

metho d of e liminating phosphorus though often attempted has not b een , ,

made succ essful beyond the removal of very small amounts and at gr e at
expense H ence the onl y sure way of removin g t hi s e lement i s t o oxi dize
.
,

it to phosphori c acid neutralize with lime and rake o ff t he resulting sl ag

, ,
.

I n refining purer materials than pi g iron where the remova l of sili con ,
 ME TA LL URGY 269

and manganese would not be re quire d the oxi dizing slag is calle d the ,

d e p h o sp h o ri z i ng sla g C onsiderable sulphur is remove d durin g t hi s period

.

in the e le ctri c furnace espe cially where an ore hi gh in manganese is use d

, ,

where as in the basic furnace i t s removal is a very uncertain quantity, .

T h e Re d uc i ng Pe
rio d : This is the period in which the ele ctri c furnace
e xhibits its gre at superiority over other modes of refining iron During .

the period the bath is almost c ompletel y deoxi dize d by means of c arbon
,

alone and the removal of sulphur is positive and can be made almost c om
,

pl e te .I ts entire removal seems t o be impra ctic abl e , as a c ontent of less

than 0 10% is obtaine d onl y after prol onge d and expensive tre atment
. .

The flux ad d ed is t he refore c alle d either the desulphurizing or de oxidizing

, ,

flux .

Oxyge n : Oxygen oc curs in stee l principally as Fe O, as has been stated

in previo us chapters i n which its harmful e ffe c t s w ere also dwelt upon
,
.

I ts removal may be represente d by the followin g e q ua t ion in whi ch M

may represent a gre at number of suitable elements :

The de oxidati on may be bro ught about in the induction furnace only
by me ans o f the spe ci al de oxi dizers previousl y note d where as in the H eroult ,

furnac e c arbon alone may be employe d The use of carbon al one has been .

obj e cte d t o be c ause it was ar gue d that t he use of this e lement woul d give
the oxi de CO w hi ch i s a gas and the formation of this gas i n t he metal
, , ,

is obj e cti onable That steel at hi gh temperature either c ombine s with o r

.
'

dissolves t hi s gas is fairly well establishe d for by experiment i t h as been ,

shown that a gi ven s teel has a hi gher meltin g point i n an atm osphere such .

as nitro gen than it has i n an atmospher e of c arbon monoxi de There i s .

also good re ason t o belie ve that this gas i s again liberate d at c ert ain te m
p e r ature s on cooling If this be true then deoxi dizing with c arbon may
.
,

gi ve Opport unity for formation of blow holes and other defe cts in the ingots .

S ome metal then whose oxide i s a soli d that wi ll easily c ome t o t he surfac e
, ,

as slag is to be preferre d for this purpose This metal must not be vol atil e .

a t hi gh temperatures and must dissolve or all oy with the iron The metal s .

that best meet these re quirements are the ferro — all oys of manganese sili con , ,

vanadium titanium and metalli c aluminum Fo r many re asons manganese

, , .
,

silicon and aluminum have prove d t he most s atisfactory de oxi dizers H o w .

the c arbon acting through one or more of these e lements may be use d
, ,

to ac complish the deoxi dation without inj ury t o the steel is well i llustrate d
by the practice at Duquesne t o be des cribe d later , .

Re ova lo f S u l
m p h u r : A c cording t o the statements of authorities
upon the subj e ct sulphur m ay be removed in five ways : (1) As c alcium
,

s ulp hi de , forme d by t he action of lime and c arbon on ferrous sulphide at

the hi gh temperature of the arc furnace ; (2) A s c al cium sulphide from
the reaction of lime ferrous sulp hi de and c al cium c arbide at the hi gher
, ,
270 E LEC T RI C P ROCE S S

temperatures of the arc furnaces ; (3 ) A s cal cium sulphide through the

reac tion of lime ferrous sulphide and silicon at the lower sl ag temperatures
, ,

of the induction furnace ; (4) As calcium sulp hi de t hrough t he re action of

calcium fluoride fe r rous sulphide and sili con ; (5) As iron sulphide from
, ,

the action of ferrous oxide on c alcium sulphide The re actions ill ustrating .

the removal Of sulphur in ele ctric furnaces are as follows :

(1) Occurs in arc furnaces only .

()
2 3 F e S + 2 C a O + C a C 2 =3 F e + 3 C a S + 2 CO . in arc furnaces only .

—U sed with induction furnaces

(3 ) .

(4) M ay oc cur in either induc

tion or a re furnace s .

(5) F e S + C a O z
C a S + Fe O . M ay occur in arc furnaces .

An inspection of these reactions shows that certain requirements must

be met before the e limination of sulphur can be brought about Thus .
,

in al l c ases a hi ghl y basi c sl ag is essential and in no case can desulphur ,

i z ati o n be e ffe cte d before deoxidation of the metal and sl a g has been a cco m
p l i sh e d . The importance of the presence of elementary carbon or silicon
is evident an d both these elements tend t o react with iron or m a ggane se
”

oxides rather t han with sulphides and lime Furthermore reaction (5) . .

is reversible acting from ri gh t t o left in t he presence of very sli gh t oxidizing

,

influences Be cause of t he rel ation in concentration maintaine d between

.

oxides in t he metal and oxides in t he slag both deoxi dation and ,

desulphurization of t he metal may be brough t about by additions

of carbon t o t he slag if the temperature is sufficiently hi gh I n
, .

arc furnaces this method is employe d almost exclusive ly ; bu t induction

furnaces , owing t o t heir lower t emperatures re quire tha t d e sul ph uri ,

z ati o n be e ffe cte d by t he use of sili con as shown in reacti on (3 ) and

both of whi ch take place a t much lower temperatures than (1) and
I n the ar c furnac e complete deoxidati on of meta l and s la g is
re c ognize d by the presence of c al cium c arbi de in the sl ag .

T h e Fi nis h i n g Pe r i o d
With the dephosphoriz ation and subsequent
:

deoxidation of the bath t he c ontents of the furnace may b e brough t t o a

,

neutral or sli ghtly re ducing state w he n the final additions may be made
,
’

for finishing the steel t o spe cifications I n order t o save time it is a c ommon
.

practice t o make some ad di tions before the desulphurizing period c om

m e nce s espe cially if t he additions are t o be made in lar ge quantities
, ,

whi ch woul d chill the bath if add e d all at one time As the conditions .

are reducing or neutral loss of all oying elements is reduce d t o a minimum

, ,

and the composition of the steel can be c ontrolle d with pre cision The .
272 ELE C T RI C P ROCE S S
 '
CONS T R UC T I ON OF F URNA CE 273
74 E LE C T RI C P ROCE S S

H e ro u l e c tri c F urna ce —V e rti c al

t El S e cti o n T hr o ugh T o we r and F u rn ac e .
E LE CT RI C P ROCE S S
 CONS T R UC T I ON OF F URNA CE 277

inches t hi ck while the side wall is thir teen and one half inches in thickness
, .

Upo n the bottom brick i s then sintere d a l ayer about thirteen inches thick , ,

of de ad burne d magnesite which i s banke d on the sides to a safe distance

,

a bove the slag line .

T h e Roo f is slightly dome shape d twelve inches in thi ckness and made of
-
, ,

silic a bri ck set in on end The first course next the channelle d band is
.

made up of l arge skew bac k bri ck Thus the roof is made self supporting
-
.
,
-
.

A s a roof l asts for forty t o seventy he ats onl y t wo extras are hel d in ,

reserve , ready t o be place d in case a roof fail s unexpe cte dly I n the roof .
,

three openings are made for t he e lectrodes E ach Opening c orresponds t o .

one Verte x of a e quilateral triangl e e ach si de of whic h i s abo ut six feet l ong
, ,

a nd the center of which is the center of the roof When in pl ace the r oof .
,

s ets s o that one Vertex points t oward the vertic al gui de s for the
ele ctrodes which are on t he side of the furnace next the transformers
, .

While i n use the top i s bolte d t o four brackets on the shell t o prevent
,

the top from slipping when the furnace is tilted .

Co n t r o l
li ng t h e El
e c t ro d e s :
Through the three openings note d a b ove , ,

the e le ctrodes extend int o the furnace for a distanc e of about four feet .

In order t o make the ele ctrodes adjustable the y are attache d t o horiz ontal ,

arms tha t proj ect ou t over t h e furnace from he avy vertical rods arranged
t o move up an d down within verti cal guides At the top of these rods and .

properly insul ated from them the c ables tha t c arry the current from the
,

transformer house t o the furnace are bolte d and welde d t o bus bars which
lea d t o the e lectrode hol ders Thus the same motion is impar te d t o both
.
,

the electro de holders and the bus bars Each of these rods i s supported .

and move d by means of a c able attached t o its base and l e ading ove r a
small drum geare d t o a sm all ele ctri c motor These motors ac t through .

automati c re gul ators whic h serve t o keep the end of the ele ctrode at the
.
,

proper arcin g dist ance from the bath By reversing a switch o n the switch .

board these motors may be operate d independently of the re gulator

, .

Furthermore , the l ifting de vi ce is provide d with a hand wheel s o as t o be ,

operated like a common Windlass whereby the ele ctrodes may be re gulate d
,

by hand .

T h e El e c t ro d e Ho l
de
r s are made in two parts both of which are in ,

the form of a two pronge d fork The upper part is of copper and makes
.

the c onne ction between the e le ctrodes and the bus bars whi ch are se curely ,

bolte d t o it The e le ctrodes are hel d between the two prongs and since
.
,

the distan ce between these prongs is about twenty four inches contact -
,

bl ocks must be used for e lectrodes less than twenty four inches in diam -

eter A right and left screw bolt conne cts the e nds of the t wo prongs
.
- -
,

which enables the holder t o be opene d and close d at will and permits the
‘

electrode t o be securely clampe d in place By this arrangement electrodes .

,

of any size up to twenty-four inches diameter may be use d The l ower .

part is made of steel and acts as a support for the upper part These two .

parts carefully insul

, ate d from e ach other are hel d together by means of ,
278 ELE C T R I C P R OCE S S
28 0 ELE CT RI C P ROCE S S

the furnace No additions of any kind are made in the pouring l adle or at
.

the time of tapping as is the c ommon practice in makin g open hearth

,

steel A goo d example is furnished in the c ase of c arb o n

.
When it i s .

necessary t o raise the per cent of this element as is the c ase on orders
.
,

calling for a higher per cent than that of the open hearth he at the amount
.
,

require d above that supplie d by other additions i s added in the form of ,

anthraci t e coal , t o t he s teel in the transfer ladle in the furnace or a p art , ,

in both A dditions o f o ther elements are , as a rule adde d after d e o xi d a

. , p

tion of t he metal i s well advance d o r c ompleted This ability t o finish .

the heat in the furnace i s a de cide d advantage in favor of t he ele ctric

process as a more homogeneous product is thus Obtained
,
.

C h argi n g : Omitting
the me chanical and ele ctric al features the ,

—
operation of the furnace in general is c arrie d out a s follows : A ppro xi
, ,

mately twenty t on s of a s uitable open hearth he at i s t eeme d fro m t he

steel l adle into the charging ladle for the e le ctri c furnace T his charge is
,
.

then conveye d by a dinkey over a narrow gauge track t o the furnace

, , ,

i ntOwhich it is poure d through a port able spout During the pouring a .

,

test for chemical analysis i s taken and upon the results of this analysis is
,

base d the approximate amount of carbon and manganese t o be adde d An .

increase of three to five points in the manganese content of the steel usually
occurs d uring the deoxidizin g period, an d must be allowe d for If a medium .

or high carbon heat is being made from a low carbon open hearth heat requiring ,

the addition of a large amount of carbon the gre ater portion of this ,

element is added in the form of anthraci t e c oal , w hich is thrown i nto the
furnace as the he at is being charged This proced ure is ne cessary to .

insure that the coal will be absorbed by the steel .

Deoxi d iz i n g : soon as the charging has been c ompleted the e le c

As ,

trodes are adjusted and the current is turne d on S ince the charge usually
, .

free z es over on top espe cially in the case of l o w carbon steels nothing
, ,

further is done until this s olidifie d l ayer is c ompletely melte d As s oon .

as the bath is in a state of complete fusion the first s l ag mixture c onsisting

, ,

approximately of four parts lime and one part fluo rsp a r or o ne par t c lean
sand for low c arbon heats i s added ; for hi gh carbon he ats , t he mixture
,

may contain abo ut one-third part coke dust S oon after this addition the .
,

second sample for chemical analysis i s taken t o determine the per cent of .

carbon and manganese in the bath and while thes e determinations are,

being made further additions of the fi rst slag mixt ure t akes pl ace S amples .

of the s l ag t aken a t t his time are usually brown in c ol or and c ontain vary
ing amounts of manganese oxide which fac t shows t hat the iron o xi d e i n the
,

steel is being reduced by the manganese present A de cided bro wn c olor .

can be taken t o indicate that the deoxi dation of the steel i s well a dvanced .

A second slag mixture c omposed of suitable proportions of lime fl uo r S par , ,

sand and coke dust is now added S oon after the addition of this mixture
.

the slag be comes less v i tri o us shows a tendency t o sl ake and be gins t o
, ,
 D UQ UE S NE P RA C T I CE 28 1

fade in color If the he ating be continue d l ong enough with proper addi
.
,

tions of the c arbonaceous flux s amples of the sl ag w ill slake when cold and
,

become gray , o r e ven whi te in c ol or Such behavior of t he s lag indicate s

,
.

that the d e oxidation of the bath of metal and sl a g has been completed .

T his c ondition i s also determine d by me ans of the w at e r t es t If a t t his .

time a smal l s ample of the s la g while hot be immersed in a l ittle water ,

the odor of hydr o gen sulphi de can usually be dete cte d and if deoxidation , ,

is complete the smell of acetylene gas can also be dete cted

,
.

Fi ni s h i ng t h e He a ts : During the d e o xi d a ti on of the bath the results

of the s e cond chemical analysis have been reported and if the per cents , .

of carbon and manganese are s atisfactory any alloys that may be required ,

by the order are adde d as soon as the s lag c ondition wi l l permit I f the .

carbon c ontent shoul d be too low , it is raise d t o t he re quire d point by the

addition of a proper w ei ght of cold very low phosphorus pi g iron The , .

bath is chille d s omewhat by the addi ti on of t he alloys e spe cially if they ,

are adde d in l arge a m ounts an d abou t three —

quarters of an hour i s r e quired
,

to heat t he bath up t o t he t apping temperature Besides i n order t o give .

,

the alloys t ime t o mi x with the steel , no addition s are made fo r t hirty
.

minutes before tapping e xcept in the case of 50% ferro silicon w hi ch is ,

added te n t o fifteen minutes before tapping t o avoid losses of the

element .

T a p p i ng a n d Te e m i n g : When enough time has elapse d t o melt all the

alloys or other additions slaking and water tests are made o n t he s lag and
, ,

if these indicate a satisfactory condi tion of the sl ag , the heat i s t apped In .

tappin g the heats c are is taken t o prevent sla g from runnin g into the steel
,

ladl e with t he metal The spe cial skimmer wi th w hich the tappin g hole i s
.

provide d for t his purpose has already been mentione d The stee l i s t eemed .

very carefully , bein g usually bo x poured In t hi s metho d o f t eeming t he .

stream o f molten metal from t he l adle fl ows int o t he mi ddle o f a bo x made

in three c ompartments From the middle compartment t he stee l overflows
.

into the two e nd ones whi ch are provi de d wi th noz zles Thi s arrangement
, .

permits these nozzles to be c arefull y centered over two ingot moul ds befor e
the pourin g i s be gun Spe cial c are i s t aken in preparing the ingot moul ds
.
,

so as t o prevent ingo t d efects d ue t o ba d moul ds The stee l i s al l owed .

to stand t wo hours in the mo ulds so as t o insure that solidi fication is ,

complete before i t i s strippe d .

S c r a p He Besides
the refining of molten open hearth steel , which
a ts :

has just been desc ribed the furna ce is o c casionally used to make steel
,

from s crap When using s crap t wo methods may be followed Thus

.
,
.
,

the charge may c onsist of cold s crap or be made up of scrap and molten
steel When s crap alone is use d it must be small and the c oarser mater ial
.
, ,

is charge d fi rs t with the finest on the top E ven then the power fluc tuati o ns .

are great and some di fficulty is experienced in melting the scrap These
,
.
28 2 E LE CT RI C P ROCES S

di fficulties are over come for the m o st p a r t by starting the furnace on a

- ‘

short charge of molten steel and then adding the s crap t o this charge .

This l atter method is the one empl oye d most often at this plant After .

the melting period the procedure is then the same as that already described
for molten charges A n e xamination of the following t ables will give a more
.

concrete i dea of the me t hod of handling the different kinds of steel ma d e

in the electri c furnace .

Ta b l
e 38 . S h o w i n g Hi s t o r y o f a He a t of Lo w C a r b o n Pl
a i n S te e l

Ma d e i n t h e El
e c tr i c F u r nac e .

—
Analysis of molten charge steel as finishe d at open hearth : C .

Order : 0 . P . under 8 . und er

Si . under

Tim e A d d itio n s
C harge , 46700 lbs . T est .

P ower on .

1s t sl a g mixture . Lime , 500 lbs .

, fluor spar , 150 lbs .

48 5 lbs pi g iron added

. .

Mg second slag mixt ure Lime 750 Lb s , , , fluo r spar 125 l

bs, .
, c oke
dust , 100 lbs ; sand 100 lbs , .

S ample for chemic a l analysis .

104 lbs ferro manganese adde d cold

. . (Laboratory report shows

C hemica l a nalysis ,
50 lbs Ferro man ganese added cold
. .

3 00 lbs pi g iron added col d

. .

M second slag mixture

; .

—
M third sl ag mixture Lime 100 lbs ; fl
uor spar 30 lbs coke dust
, .
, .
; ,

75 lbs .

M third s lag mixture .

M t hi r d slag mixt ure .

M third slag mixture .

20 lbs c oke dust

. .

30 lbs coke dust

. .

50 lbs ferro manganese adde d c old

. .

H eat tappe d .

Final analysis : C .
~
28 4 E L E C T RI C P ROCE S S

Ta b l
e 40 . A Lo w C a r b o n Al
loy He a t .

M olten C harge as finished at Open H earth , Mn = .

Order : P .
= und e r S .
= under
Si .
=under
-

Ti m e A d d i tio ns

C harge , 508 00 l bs Test P

'

.
, .

P ower on .

F irst slag mixture . Lime , 500 lbs ; . fl uo r spar , 150 lbs .

;
M second slag mixture Lime 750 lbs .
, .
; fluo r spar 125 lbs , .
’

dust 100 lbs ; sand , 100 lbs

, .

door C f fr o nt

l
C hemical An alysis
.
,

side door ,
200 lbs ferro manganese ;
.

446 lbs ferro chrome ;

.

730 lbs ni ckel ;

.

—
M third slag mixture Lime ,
50 lbs .
; c oke dust , 75 l bs .

third slag mixture .

30 l
b
,
s ferro manganese and
. 60 lbs . 50 % ferro silicon .

H eat tapped .

F inal Analysis ,
 D U QUE S NE P RA CTI CE 285

Ta b l
e 41 . l
A Hi gh C ar b o n A lo y He a t .

M olten charge—S teel as finished at open hearth

Order : F =under
. S .
=under
Si .
: und e r V .
. - =over

Ti m e Ad d i t i o ns

150 lbs anthr acite coal adde d in tr an sfer ladle

. .

C harge , 54500 l bs . Test ,

P ower on .

—
Mfirst slag mixture Lime , 13 00 lbs fluo r spar 160 lbs ; sand ,
.
,
125 lbs .

[ door Front
l
,
C hemi cal analysis
side door ,

M sl ag m ixtur é
se cond slag mixture . Lime ,
150 lbs ; c oke dust
.
, 150 lbs .

1180 lbs ferro chrome

.
,

to R emainder of se cond sl ag mixture adde d at intervals of ten

m inutes .

3 53 lbs ferro vanadium V =3 5%

. . .

60 lbs , 50% ferro sili co n

. .

H e at tappe d .

F inal anal ysis ,

28 6 E LE CT RI C P ROCE S S

S EC T I O N I X .

T HE C HE MI S T R Y OF T H E P R OC ES S .

De o x i d a t i o t racin g o f the chemi cal changes that

n o f t h e Ba t h : T he
take place in the process empl oye d a t t hi s pl ant furnishes an interesting
study S ince t he charge i s finishe d open hearth steel cont ainin g t he usual
.

amoun t of manganese i t i s t o be expe cte d that t his e lemen t w oul d play

,

a most importan t part in the deo xi dation of t he steel The fact , p l ainly .

shown by the pre ceding records t ha t t he manganese i s usu all y se veral

,

points l ower in th e char gin g tes t t han i n t he open he arth s tee l i s pr o of of

its deoxidizin g a cti on , which woul d be expe cte d t o c ontinue i n t he furnace .

The removal o f o xygen t hen i s represente d by th e fol lowi n g reaction

, ,

The Mno bein g l ess s oluble in t he molte n m etal

,

than Fe O rises t o t he surface and be comes a par t of t he sl

i

,
ag This a cti on .

is identi c a l wi th that in the l adl e i n finis hi n g Open he arth s t eel bu t t he ,

resul t i s not the same i n the two processes for two reasons : First for w ant ,

of time the de oxi dation i s not c ompleted in the l adle where as in t he ele ctri c
, ,

furnace i t i s c omplete S econd t he MnO i n t he ele ctri c furnace c omes

.
,

under t he re ducin g acti on of the c arbon contained i n the sl a g mixture and

is reduced t hus : , The c arbon mono xi de C O being a , ,
-

gas be c omes a part of t he atmosphere of t he furnace and t he manga ne s e

, ,
.

returns t o the bath as i s indi cate d by t he fa ct that the per cent manganese
, .

in the steel usually rises after the additi on of the carbonaceous flux .

De s u l
p h u r i z i n g t h e Me t a l
: With the elimination of oxides from the
slag the l ime , under t he influence of t he extremely hi gh temperature of
,

the ar e whi ch prevails under and i n the immedi ate vi cinity of the electr odes ,

be gins t o be reduce d by t he c arbon of the c oke dust , wi th t he c onse quent

formation of cal cium c arbi de , t hus : I t i s a t this
point t ha t desulphuriz ation t akes place Since manganese sulphide like .
,

the o xide , is l ess soluble in i ro n than ferrous sulphi de , i t is probable that

this elemen t also ai ds in thi s process Whether man ganese sulphi de or .

ferrous sulp hi de plays t he most important role in the sulphur re actions is

difficult t o de cide but tha t the removal of the sulphur from t he bath t akes
,

pl ace through the formation of cal cium sulphi de whi ch i s i ns oluble in molten ,

iron c a nnot be doubted These reacti ons are t wo in number and may be
, .

written thus

C a O+ C = + C a S + CO

+ 2 C a O + C a C2 =
i
f3 Fe
+ 3 C a S + 2 CO
X
3 M D
 28 8 ELE CT RI C P ROCE S S

Ta b l
e 43 . Pa r t i alA n al
ys is o f Fi na lEl
e c tr i c Fu r n a c e

He a t No .
’
s A Z No . 3 A Z No . 4
S ilica
I ron 72
T otal Lime
M agnesia
M anganese . . 62 60
S ulphur . 85 80
C alcium carbide . 32 19
A lumina .

Di ffic u l While the ele ctri c furnac e a ffords means of

t S p e c i fi c a t io ns :
ma k ing steel to very di ffi cult spe cifications and with a greater de gree of
accuracy than is possible in other pr oc esses ye t i t has its limitations , .

The c ase of sulphur furnishes an example From w ha t has j us t been s aid .

,
’

the importance of c arbon in the e limination of both oxygen an d s ulphur i s

evident I n lo w c arbon steel s t he l owering of the sulphur content t o any
.

considerable de gree be comes a di fficul t problem be cause if t he flux be m ade , ,

highl y c arbonaceous a ne cessary c onditi on , t here i s danger t ha t the s teel

,

will absorb carbon from the s lag and thus r aise the c arbon c onten t of the ,

stee l above the requirements I n the hi gh c arbon s tee s , t he absorpti on of

.

carbon by the s tee l c an be all owe d for and presents no di fficulty , s o a more
hi ghly c arbonaceous flux may be use d t han with l o w c arbons , and a greater
removal of s ulphur results As previ ously indicated t he e limin ation of
.
,

sulphur may be brought about by the use of silicon as shown in the following ,

reactions :
2 Fe S Fe
+ 2 CaO+ S + 2 C a S + 8 10 2
2 M nS Mn
2 Fe s Fe
+ 2 C aF 2 + + 2 C a S + S i F4
2 MnS Mn
But while it is cl aimed that little more than the the oreti cal amount of
sili con is requi re d in actual practi ce a resi due of s ili c on i n the steel is
,

unavoidable Hence this metho d co ul

‘

. d no t be employe d t o produce s ili con

,

free steel S imil ar t o the method of desulphuri zin g w ith c arb on these
.
,

reactions will take pl ace only afte r the bath has been c ompletely de oxi dized .

F o r l o w c arbon steels then the limit for sulphur shoul d be

, , w hile for
high c arbons this limit coul d be re duce d t o To guarantee l ower
limits than these woul d me an increase d c ost i n production out of proportion
to t he benefits t o be derived , except in the case of ste e l tha t is t o be used
f or certain spe cia l purposes S ince the phosphorus is removed in t he basic
.

open he arth t he s ame range in per cent of this element as i s cust omary
, .

to all o w in open hearth stee l shoul d be allowe d in ele ctri c s teel As t o .

all oying elements the variation in the c omposition of the all oys used
,

makes it desirable t o se c ure as wi de a range as possible in the spe cifications

for such elements .
 '

P ROP E R TI E S OF ELE C T R I C S TE E L 28 9

S EC T I O N X .

P R OP E RT I E S A ND US ES OF E LE CT R I C S T E EL .

Pro pe t ie s o f El
r e c t ri c S te e l
: We can deal wi th this topi c in a no
more fitting way than t o quote from impartial investi gators The foll owing .

is taken from a paper by Messrs Lyon and Keeney of the Bure au of M ines : .

“
F o r many years all hi gh grade steels were manufacture d by the cru c ibl e
process but since the advent of the ele ctric furnac e there has been a gr adual
,

adoption of t ha t furn a ce for refinin g steel Fo r t he c omple te refinin g o f .

the hi ghest gr ades of stee l t he use of the ele ctri c furnace i s now thor oughly
establishe d Any products that c an be made by t he crucible pro c es s can
.

be made by the e lectri c f urnace and in most c ases with c heaper r aw ,

materi als and at a low c ost I n the ele ctri c furnace c omple x all oy steels
.

can be made wi th pre cision The hi gh temperatures att ainable facilitate

.

the reactions and all oys nee d not be use d s o lar gel y for t he purpose of
,

removin g g as V ery l o w c arbon steels c an be k ept fl ui d at the hi gh t em

.

pe ratur e s S tee l s free from impurities and o f grea t value for ele ctric a l
.

apparatus c an be made With t he ele ctri c furnace l ar ge c astings c an b e

;

made from one furnace where as in the crucible process stee l from s everal
,

crucibles must be use d Fo r smal l castings whi c h re quire a very hi gh

.
,

grade me t al free from s lags and oxi des ele ctri call y refine d stee l i s especially
,

adapted The el e ctri c furnace gives a meta l of l o w o r hi gh c arbon c onte nt

.

as desire d hot enough t o pour into t hin mol ds and steel fr ee from sl ags
, ,
“

”
and gases .

There is now a tendenc y among customers of rail and structural stee l

to re quire a higher grade steel at an incre ase d pri ce rather t han steel of
acid Bessemer or even of b a src open h e arth grade at a lower pri c e With .

the hi gh c ost of power that now prevails throughout t he stee l c en t ers of

the Unite d S tates the ele ctri c furnace c an no t compete profitabl y with e ither
the aci d Bessemer or t he basi c open he arth process in m anufacturin g steel of
like grade from pi g iron I t is in combination with either of these processes
.

that t he electri c furnace seems des t ine d t o be prominent in steel m anu

”
facture .

E xperiments c on duc t e d by t he Unite d S tates S teel C orporation during

the past four ye ars show t hat as c ompare d with t he aci d Bessemer and ,

basi c open hearth processes the ele ctri c process has the following a d van
,

tages : A more comple te removal of oxygen ; the absence of o xi des c aus e d

by the additi on of sili con m anganese et c the production of steel ingots
, ,
-

of 8 tons wei ght and smaller that are practi cally free from se gre gation ;
reduction of the sulphur content t o per c en t; i f desire d ; reduction ,

of the phosphorus c onten t t o 005 per cen t as in t he basic Open he arth

. .

”
process , b ut wi t h comp l e t e removal of o xygen .
290 ELE C T RI C P ROCES S

A bout tons of standard e le c tri c rails from electri c furnace stee l

‘

have been in servi ce in the Unite d S tate s for the past two years (prior t o
These rails have been subj e cte d t o al l s orts of weather and t o
—
temperatures as l ow as 52 F I t seems t hat rails made by the basi c
°
.

ele ctri c process can be made softer than by either t he aci d Bessemer or
basi c open hearth processes and yet sho w hi ghl y satisfactory wearing
’
qualities .

N 0 steel rails made by the basi c electri c process in servi ce in this

country have been broken Ele ctri c furnace steel of a given tens ile strength
.

has a sli ghtl y greater elongati on t han basi c open he arth steel and is some
what denser than basi c open hearth or acid Bessemer st ee l 3 ’
.

The results of some comparative tests made a t South C hic ago of ,

ele ctri c furna ce steel for plates and basic open hearth steel for plates were
as follows :

Ta b l
e 44 . C o m p a ri s o n o f Me c h a ni c alPro p e r t i e s o f El
e c t ric a nd
Op e n He a r th P l a te S t e e l .

ELECT R IC OP EN H EA RT H

The results show a per cent incre ase in ultimate strength and .

de crease in elongation for ele ctri c steel a s c ompare d with open he arth ,
”
plate steel of approximately the same chemic al c omposition .

Il
li n oi s S t e e l
C o m p a ny ’
s Te s ts o n Ra i l
s : T h e I llinois S tee l C ompany
have conducte d a serie s of experiments from whi ch it was shown that ele ctri c
stee l is c onsiderably m ore ductile at l ow temperatures than e ither the open
hearth or the Besseme r steel I n t hese tests about 900 pie ces of e l
. e ctric ,

open hearth and Bessemer rails were teste d at temperatures rangin g from
—
,
°
70 F t o
.
°
50 F and the results indi c ate d t hat while all these steel s
.
,

showe d a marke d de cre ase in resistance t o sho c k as the temperature w a s .

l owered the ele ctri c stee l was relatively more ductile than either of the
,

other two T he following table is a summary of the results obtaine d with

.
292 S UMM A R Y

3 The electri c process is the only one in whi ch impurities are not
.

added to the steel by the operati on .

4 The e lectro t hermal process a ffords the only positive means o f

.
-

desulphuriz ing and deoxidizin g steel simultaneously and in the same

operation .

5 I t permits the addition of all alloying elements while the steel 1 8

.

in the furnace .

6 I t provi des a way for remelting alloy steel s crap and producing a
.

product of hi gh quality without loss .

7 . S teel produce d by this process e xhibits some unusual wearing

qualities .

8 . In quality , steel made by this process equals that of the best grade s
of crucible steel .

9 Much l arger quantities of metal may be treate d in one operation

.

than is possible by the crucible process .

10 g ives a product t hat is uniform in quality for any given heat

. It .

11 Steels refi ne d in the electri c furnace are freest from se gre gation
. .

12 S teels made in the electri c furnace are free from sl ag and other
.

inclusions .

13 Electric steel is comparatively more ductile at low temperatures

.

than Bessemer or open hearth .

14 C onsiderin g th e various methods from an e conomical po int of

.

view t he duplexing process in which the ele ctri c furnace i s use d in c on

,

j unction with the basi c open hearth c ombine s the gre atest capacity and
i ciency with hi ghest q uality of product
e ff .
 D UP LE X P ROCES S 293

C H A P T ER X .

T H E DU P LE X A N D T R I P LE X P R OC E SSE S :

S EC T I O N I .

G E NE RAL F E A T U R E S OF T H E D UP LE X P R OC ES S .

W h a t t h e Du p l
e x P r o c e s s Is The term duplex process may be applied
to a c ombination of any t wo pro cesse s for manufacturin g steel but it is ,

customary among the s tee l men of t hi s c ountry a t le ast t o restri ct the , ,

term t o mean only a c ombinati on of the aci d Bessemer an d t he basi c open “

hearth process , i n whi ch the l atter pl ays t he part of a finishin g process .

Briefl y des cribe d , the method as usually c arrie d out , c onsists fi r st o f

, , ,

bl owin g molten basi c iron in the converte r until the silicon , manganese and
a par t of t he c arbon have been oxi di ze d an d then transferrin g t hi s s emi
fi ni sh e d metal t o a basi c open hearth furnace where through the agencies , ,

of iron oxi de and l ime , t he phosphorus and the remainder of t he c arbon

t o be remove d are oxi dized The steel is then finishe d , re carb uri z e d and
.

deoxi dized ac cordin g t o t he usua l ope n he arth practice T hi s c ombination

, .

of pro cesses may be made in other ways also One pl ant for example , .
, ,

in order t o produce a very lo w phosphorus Bessemer stee l for a certain

order first oxi dize d the silicon manganese , and phosphorus in the open
, ,

hearth , and then by mixing this v e ry hi gh c arbon steel w ith Bessemer

,

iron in suitabl e proportions succeede d i n bl o wi n g ou t t he carbon in the

,

converter , t hus reversing the customary proce dure But as state d in the .

be ginni ng the duple x process refers to the combination in which t he finis hi ng

,

operation i s conducte d in and from a basi c open hearth furnace .

Ad va n t a ge s a nd Di s ad va n t a ge s f th e
the northern
o P ro ce ss : In
distri c t of t he United S tates the chief advanta ges of the process , when
there i s a pressin g demand for steel is t hat of the increase d tonnage w hi ch
,

it produces in a given time Thus while t he product i s si mil ar in quality

.
,

and of t he s ame grades as basi c steel , the time of the open hearth operation
is shortene d by about half ; fo r, whereas one open hearth furna ce will turn
out an a verage of about fifteen heats in a wee k of strai ght running by the
ordinar y w ay the s ame furnace operate d as a duplexin g unit will pro duce
,

about forty heats in t he same period This shortening of the t ime of a

.

heat saves fue l and tends to prol ong the life of the furnace as does also the , , ,
“

elimination of the sili con in the c onverter The process does not require .

the us e of s crap , whi ch fact may also be an advantage t o some makers .

Offsetting these advantages however , are the double convers i on c os t and

,

the de cre ase i n yiel d d ue t o the increase d oxidation both of whi ch may be
, ,

very serious drawbacks to the e conomical producti on of ste e l I n dul l .

294 D UP LE X P ROCE S S

t imes especially the extra costs of maintaining two separate units may
, ,

more than counter balance the gain from the increase d output .

Me t h o d s f Du p l
ex i ng :
While the det ails of the pro cess vary widely
o

in the di fferent plants t here are two general methods of c arrying ou t the
,

duplexing process : Thus the purification ln the c onverter may be c arried

,

o ut t o t he poin t where the metal i s full y blown and represents a hi gh phos

p ho r us s te e l
'

whi c h may then be mixe d with pi g iron in t he open hearth

'

thus t aking th e place of steel s crap I n this metho d either a st ati onary .

or a tilting furnace c an be utilized But the more c ommon method is the .

o ne,
alre ady mentioned in w hi ch the c arbon is only p artially eliminated
,

i n the c onverter , and the purific ation t hen c omplete d by the c ontinuous
p rocess w hi ch i s most conveniently c arrie d out i n a Talbot tilting furnace
,
.

A brief d escription of these furnaces will simplify the des cription of the
process t o be given s hortly .

T he Tal b o t F u r n ace : T h e obj e ct aime d at in the desi gn of these

furnaces i s t o permi t the removal of any quantity of s lag or metal or the
a ddition of molten met al oxi di z ing agents and flu x at any time during the
,

working of the char ge They are therefore ne cessarily of t he tilting type

.
, , ,

an d are buil t upon racers an d ro ll ers whi ch rest U pon the foundation in a
manner similar , in a genera l way , to that of the large mi xers of recent con
struction They are rectangul ar in shape , and of about the same proportions
.

as an o rdinary open hearth furnace as to length and width but they have a much ,

greater depth w hi ch i ncrease s their capacity for c ontainin g molten metal

,
.

The frame w or k must be of much stronger c onstruction t han t hat for t he

ordinary open he arth in order t o avoi d twistin g stresses an d vibrati ons
whic h w oul d be very harmful t o the bri c k work Onl y that se cti on of t he
l
.

furnace c omprising t he hearth , s ide walls and roof i s made tilting ; a l the -

ports and flues are stationary , and t o gether with the che cker work of the , ,

same construction as for the stationary furnaces I n the best t ypes of c on .

struction these furnaces are so placed and the racers and rollers so formed that
,

the center of rotation of the furnace coincides with the center line of the ports ,

s o that all its parts always remain in the s ame relation no matter in what
dire ction or t o what degree the movable portion of the furnace may be
tilte d By means of water c oole d metal j oints the clearance between the
.
,

movabl e and stationar y p arts of the p orts i s k ept very small s o t ha t the ,

heating of the furnace may c ontinue e ven during t he tapping of a heat .

On the pour ing side these furnaces usually have but one opening a t ap ping
, , .

hol e l ocate d above the sl ag line and provide d with a lip or spout for dire cting
the stream of molten metal int o the stee l l adle As in the case of t he .

stationary furnace doors for introducing the material s into t he furnace

,

are l oc ate d in the front side But unlike the stationary types the s l ag .
,

notches are also pl aced in front , usually one on e ach side o f t he m id dle
door and of course , at a l ower l evel S ince Talbot s method i s but a
, , .
’

modification of the basic open he arth process the furnaces are as a matte r , ,

of c ourse provided with basic linings

, .
296 D UP L E X P ROCE SS

ki cker or a ladle of high carbon steel T his metal is blown do w n t o

,
.

from to carbon and when charge d into the open hearth produce s
,

a vi gorous reaction or boil The metal and sl ag are thoroughl y mixed

, .

together by this boil and during this reaction the phosphorus is l ar gely
,

remove d from the metal bath and passes into the slag When the action .

“ ” “ ”
has subsided another soft ladle and a kicker are charged
,
Then .
,

if the bath is found to be low in c arbon another kicker l adle is added to it , ,

“ ”
but if hi gh in c arbon another soft ladle is charge d I n this way a bath .

of metal of about 200 tons is produced The charge is then worked do wn .

like an o rd inaty basic open hearth heat until ready for tapping w hich is ,

u sually at about a m . .

T a p pi n g a n d Re c a r b u riz i ng t h e Fi r s t He a t : When the bath i s ready

for tapping the tap hole is opene d and plugged with wet sacking The
, .

furnace is then tilte d for pouring Before the sacking i s burnt through .
,

t he slag i s up al ong the bac k wall s o that clean metal free from sl ag comes
from the furnace Only enough slag is drawn o ff at the end to c over the
.

steel in the l adle properly Some of the steel made in the Talbot furnaces
.

is super refined by the electric process, but by far the greater portion is made
into the ordinary commercial grades which is re carb o ni z e d and deoxidized
in the ladle as for similar grades made in stationary furnaces .

Pre p a r i ng t h e Fu r nace fo the first he at

r t h e S e c o n d He a t : A fter
is tapped t here is a bath of about 100 tons of metal with a carbon content
,

of about 15% still in the furnace c overe d with the tapping sl ag Two
.
, .

boxes of lime and two boxes of s cale are c harged and two boxe s of burnt ,

dol omite are used along the sl ag line around the doors et c , as fo und , ,
.

“ ”
necessary Then two soft l adles of blown metal are char ged and two
.
,
“ ”
more b oxes of lime which is followe d by a kicker
, During the re a ction .
,

the furnace i s tilte d slightly forward and sl a g i s all owe d t o flow from the
fron t of the furnace through the slag spouts which are under the do ors ,

dire ctly on each side of the center door The sl ag falls into sl ag c ars st and .

ing on the t racks b e low Practi cally all the sl a g taken from the furnace
.

is removed in this way for as mentioned before when tapping a he a t only

, , ,

enough is taken to cover the metal in the l adl e pr o perly When the reaction .

is over another box o f lime is gene rally ch arge d and the bath i s wor k ed
, ,

do wn ln the usual way V ery often another box of lime i s spread over
.
,

the sl ag shortly before t apping s o that fi ve t o six boxes of lime are used
,

per he at but as a rule only two boxes of sc ale are use d here After the heat
, .

is tapped t his proce dure i s repeated enough slag being taken from the
, ,

front of the furnace a t the time of the reaction t o maintain a const an t and
proper volume of slag ln the furnace The average time for tapping one .

heat t o tapping the next I S about three hours .

 T RI P L EX P ROCE S S

Cl
o si n g Dow n t h e F u r nace fo We e k End : A bout mi dni ght on r the
S atur day the furnace is drained The bath is wor k e d down , s o t hat after
.

the heat i s t appe d there are no t more than forty t o s ixty t ons in the
furnace The n this residue of metal i s t appe d and made int o s oft steel
.
,

for which there i s a constant demand by making the proper additions of ,

ferro manganese and recarburi z er

- .

T he S l
ag : the high temper ature at which its removal is e ffected
At ,

phosphorus i s e asi ly reduced s o in order t o oxidize flux and hol d the phos
, ,

p h o rus in the open hearth sl ag i t is necessary that the l atter be very basic
,

and highly oxidi z ing as an analysis shows The average c omposition of

, .

the sl ag is about as fol lows : S ili ca Si Oz ferrous oxide Fe O , , , ,

ferri c oxi de Fe z 0 3 ,
manganese Mn ,
phosphorus P , , , ,

alumina 1112 0 3 ,
lime C a O
,
magnesia , M gO
,
T he
, ,

high percentage of iron oxides which are e quivalent t o approximately

,

metallic iron gives the impression that the pro cess is wasteful of iron whi ch
, ,

is true but due to another c a use While the percentage of iron oxi de i s
, .

high it does not excee d that of the run o ff slags of the open he arth process
, ,

and the total volume of sl ag i s much less than in the strai ght open he arth
pro cess s o that the loss of iron here i s perhaps less t han in the l atter proces s
, .

The chief l oss i s at the converters , an d there c an be no doub t bu t that

the double conversion loss exceeds the single l oss in the strai gh t open hearth
process This matter assumes its chief importance as it rel ates t o the
.

conservation of the iron ore supply .

S ECT IO N 1 11 .

COMB I N A T I ON P R OCE S S ES I N T HE S O UT H .

T he Du p l
ex P ro ce s s i n t h e S o u t h :
t he s outhern distri ct the In
‘

condition s of steel manufacturing are very di fferent from those i n the

North and many additional reasons for the use of the duple x pro ce s s there
,

are t o be found Firs t , in the S outh there is no pi g iron that is suitable

.

for the Bes semer pro ces s manufacture d t here where as in the N orth , , ,

Bessemer iron i s relatively abund ant S e cond t here i s no l ow phosphorus .

,

iron or sp ie gel c ommercially avail able for re ca rb uri z i ng i n the southern

distri ct as t here is in the North and this lac k m akes i t ne cessary in ,

manufacturing hi gh carbon s teels i n the S outh t o c at ch the c arbon o n the

way down Thir d the phosphorus conten t of the basi c iron in the s outh
.
,

ern district whi ch averages about

, i s very hi gh as compare d with
the phosphorus content of basi c iron in t he North the average for which ,

is about I n the manufacture of high c arbon s teel from hi gh phos

p h o rus pi g iron the duplex process o ffers excepti onal advantages for c at ch
ing the carbon hi gh thus reducin g t he amoun t of coal or c oke dust
,
-

require d t o a minimum a n d avoiding rephosphoriz ation fro m the hi gh

phosphorus slag Another advantage of the pro cess when iron with a
.
,
298 T RI P LEX P ROCE S S

high phosphorus content is used is that it permits the m aking of a slag

,

whi ch contains a hi gh percent age of phosphori c acid and i s therefore suit

able for use in the manufacture of fertili z ers T hi s sl ag is a valuable b y .

product from one of the southern plants .

T he S o ut he rn T ri p l
operating the duple x proces s
e xi ng P ro c e s s : In
in the S outh it has been found that owing t o the hi gh phosphori c acid
, ,

c ontent of the slag it is difficult to prevent the reducti on of some of the

,

phosphorus after re carb uri z i ng This rephosphoriz ation of the s t eel oc curs
.

mainly in the ladle particularly in the portion of the metal in dire ct contact
,

with the mass of floating slag and i s most notic eable i n the last two o r
,

three ingots from each ladle of steel teemed I n order t o overc ome thi s .

defe ct and at the same time increase the production of basi c sl ag for phos
phate fertili z er one pl ant has develope d a triplex process in whi ch two
,

basi c open hearth units are re quired t o finish the metal after bl owing in
the converter . Brie fly the process is as follows : After bl owing the metal
, ,

is transferre d from the converters t o primary basi c tiltin g furnaces where

it i s treate d with lime and the other necessary oxides for d e p h o sph o r i z ing
it H ere the phosphorus content in the metal is re duce d t o about
.

when i t is poured into ladles and transferre d b y speciall y constructe d heavy , ,

ext ra wide—
-
gage trucks t o a finishing unit compose d of an e qual number of
similar furnaces I n these furnaces the phosphorus c ontent of the metal
.

is brough t below when the steel is finishe d in the l adle by th e addi tion
of the necessary recarburi z er and deoxidizers and any all oys re quire d by ,

the spe cification I t 1s said that this process does not reduce the c apa c ity
.

of the pl ant and materially improves the uniformity and q ua l 1 ty o f t he

steel produced .
3 00 TES TI N G OE S TEE L

obtain the re quisite amount of steel it is often necessary to use for the , ,

same purpose steels made in di fferent ways A nd again the need for
,
.

testing was felt in order t o secure uniformity in the materials This .

testing devel oped along two lines namely physical and chemi cal , , .

Re lative po r ta nc e o f P h ysi ca la n d C h e m i ca lTe s ti n g : I t is

Im
evident that t o the c onsumer of steel its mechanical properties are of first
, ,

importance be cause it is these properties that determine w hether or not

,

a particular steel is suitable for the purpose he intends it I n al l c ases .

,

then s uch as structural steels , in which the materi al i s put in service as

,

receive d from the manufacturer , the custo m e r d o e s well t o order his s teel
to physical spe cifications only I n c ases where the steel is to be he at
.

treate d or is t o undergo other treatment in the hands of the c us tomer ,

then i t should be ordered to a chemic al specific ation only S inc e t he met hod .

of manufact ure influences the properties of the metal the k ind of steel , ,

whether Bessemer basic acid or electric should be and is usually , spe cified
, , , , , .

But for a grea t many reasons for a discussion of which time and space are
,

not available it is unfair to ask the manufacturer t o make steel t o order

,

in whi ch all three factors are specifie d S uffice it t o s ay , tha t i n the one .

case the customer shoul d be s atisfie d t o get the kin d of steel orde re d with
the re quired physical properties irrespective of the means chemi cal or , ,

otherwise whi ch the manufacturer m ay have found it necessary t o e mploy

,

in order t o supply metal with the properties c alle d for I n the other c ase . .
,

the purchaser is intereste d only in obtaining steel properly made and of

the proper k ind and composition bec ause with such steel the ori ginal ,

physi cal properties will be replace d by new ones due t o the subse quent
workin g or treatments From t he view point of the c onsumer t hen the
.
, ,

relative importance of the physical and t he chemi cal test depends up on the
conditions that surround e ach individual c ase But t o the manufacturer
'

.
,

chemi cal testing is of prime importance be c ause it o ffers a m e ans of c ontrol ,

whereby he is able t o produce the steel with a gre ater de gree of certainty .

F o r a description of the methods empl oye d in chemical testing the published

standard methods of the S teel C orporation are available .

Na t u re o f P h ys i c a lT e s t i ng :
should at all times be borne in mind It
that the results obtained by any method of physical testing are not absolute ,

but relative Obviously the onl y sure test is actual service , and it
.
,

is j ust as e vident t hat such tests are impracticable Therefore t he test .

,

must be c arried out with a small pie ce of material the structure and con ,

dition of which are likely t o be di fferent from that of the section t aken as ,

a whole from which it was cut A second obj e ctionable fe ature i s found
, .

in the difficulty of subj ecting this pie ce t o the s ame c on di tions that it
woul d be subj ecte d t o in actual service A ttempts have been made to .

analyze these conditions with the ide a of classifying the forces steel is
require d to overcome in servic e s o that in testing it mi gh t be subj e cted
,

to the same kinds of forces With respect to the e ffe ct they tend to produce ,
.
 P ULL I N G T E S T 30 1

for ces have bee n cl assifie d as (1) tens ional , or forces tendin g t o put the
material under tension , t hat is pull i t asunder ; (2)compressional , or for ce s
,

that tend to compress the piece in one or more directions ; (3 )t o rs i o nal ,o r

forces tending to twist the material ; an d (4)she arin g or for ce s that t end
,
,

to cut the material across its se ction Wit h respe ct to the manner in .

which the forces are applied , the followin g classification h as bean made ;
1. Static stresses which are the resul
, t of the gradual application of a
ste ady or constant l oad 2 F ati gue stresses , such as result from t he
. .

repeate d application of a lo ad o r l o ads 3 I mpact stresses , i n which the

. .

metal is subj e cted t o a su d den blo w 4 Dynami c stresses , w hich are . .

repeate d impact , or vibratory stresses .

From these are sele cte d t he cl ass of force or tress t he stee l is l ike ly s

t o be re quire d t o withstand in service , an d the tests will be arranged ac cord

i ngly. A dde d t o t hese are a number of miscell aneous tests , such as hardness
tests and tests t o determine relative resistance t o wear or penetration .

S EC T I O N I I .

T H E TE S TI N G OF S T R UCT U RA L A N D OT HE R S OFT ST EE LS .

l
T h e Pu li ng Te s t : A tes t tha t is most commonl y applie d to steel ,

an d one that i s always use d , and almost t o t he e xclusion of al l others , for

test ing structur a l s te els i s t ha t c omm onl y spoken of as the p ull in g t est
, .

As th e nam e implies , t he chief aim in this t es t is t he d eterminatio n of t he

tens ile strengt h o f t he s teel but inc idental t o the carryin g o ut o f t he t est
,

much additional informatio n as t o other mechani ca l propertie s o f t he

sam pl e of steel i s obtaine d The te chnical t erms employe d in t estin g to
.

indi cate t hese properties are tensil e stren gth el asti c limit , e l ongation , ,

reduction of area , an d modulus of el asticity The exa ct meanin g of t hese .

terms i s best e xpl ained in conne ction with a description of the metho d of
makin g t he t es t .

Pro c u ri ng t h e T e s t Pi e ce s : Except in one or two c ase s where it is

desirab le t o mo dify the usual proce du re , the test pie ce , or s ample , i s she ared
from scrap ends cu t from the m ateria l as i t c omes from the roll s This .

piece is about e ighteen inches in length and t wo inche s in w idth and , ,

e xcep t i n the c ase of she are d pl ates from w hich b oth l on g i tudina l and

transverse pieces are sometimes t aken its l on g axi s i s p aralle l t o t he ,

direction of r oll in g As a rul e t he te st piece i s tak en from a position not

.
,

to o close t o t he roll e d edge but in th e case of bars of smal l secti onal area t he
,

entire se cti on of the proper l en gth may be t aken The piece is then stampe d .

ne ar the en ds wi th the he at n umber and any other dat a necessary t o

identify it .
3 02 TE S TI N G OF S T EE L

Pre p a ra t io n f t h e T e s t Pi e c e :
working or she aring of t he test T he
‘

piece puts it in a state of strain and produces a great number of i ncipient

cracks on the edges s o that if it were p ulled in this condition it wo ul d
,

fail to o e asily and the results of the pulling woul d no t indicate the real value
,

of the properties determine d To eliminate these cracks the e dges of the

.
,

pie ce are mille d off as shown in the accompanying sketch and the milled ,

h
T ickne ss as l
Ro l
ed Scal
e : =1
F ig 45 D i a gra m S ho w i ng th e U
s u a lF o r m f th e T e st P i e ce
o U se d i n P ul l
i ng
S t ru tura lS te e l
. .

c s . Occa s i o n al
ly th e e d g e s l
a re m i le d p ar a l
lel fo r t h e ful
ll e ng th
o f th e s p e ci m e n .

edges are fi le d smooth Then if the piece is a heavy thic k one o r: is an

l
.
,

a loy steel such as nickel steel it is allowe d t o rest for a period the length
, , ,

of which w il ld e p e nd upon the conditions and the kind of steel This restin g .

is necessary t o allow t he steel t o relieve itself of the condition of strain

which t he working has set up in it This condition seriously a ffe cts the .

ductility of the steel as is shown by the fact that s ome test pie ces par
, ,

ti cularly of alloy steels sho w a marke d improvement in el ongati on after

,

resting but with li ttle if any change in the t ensile strength I n the c ase
, , , .

of soft steels of moderate thickness the resting period is not s o imp ortant , ,

as the working does not produce severe strains and suc h steels re c over ,

quickly from strains A fter the test piece has been machined and filed
.

and otherwise made ready for testing its dimensions are taken From a , .

poin t estimate d t o be the middle of the machine d portion of the pi e ce ,

two spaces of two i nches e ach are l aid off with a double p ointed punch , ,

longitudinally along the bar and in both directions from the center punch
mark thus making a distance of eight inches between the two punch mar ks
,

tha t are the farther from the center one This space fixes the length of bar .

that is later to be the basis for cal cul ating the percentage of elongation .
Finally with screw micrometers the width and thickness of the test piece
,

are taken and recorded A careful operator wil l me asure thes e di mensi ons
.

in three or fo ur places t o de termine to what extent t hey are uniform T h e .

test pie ce is then ready to be pulled .

304 T E S TI N G OF S TE E L

because the breaking l oad is generally less than the tensile strength .

The l atter therefore is usually referred t o as the u l

, ,
t i m a te s t re n g t h ,

m axi m u m s t re s s or m ax i m u m l
oad
,
.

p r e s e n t a t io n o f Te s t s : The pulling of a t est is admirabl y

G ra p h i c Re
illustrate d by means of a graph w hich i s also a great ai d in understanding
,

the rel ations of t he various t erms e mploye d in desi gnatin g the po ints
des cribed above T h e foll owin g gr aph , w hile no t absolutel y a c curate and
.

t o scal e in s ome of its parts , will serve t o il lustrate the s chem e for preparing
graphs and t o m ake clearer t he description of the pullin g of the test pie ce .

The diagr am re quires no explanation .

15000

7000 0

15000

0 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 21 22 23

El
ongatio n in te nths o f an inch

FI G . 46 . G ra p h R e p re se n l
l
nti g th e P u i ng o f a S ru tur a t c lS te e lT e s t P i e ce .

Re a so n s fo r t h e Po i n t s o f Y ie l
Max i m u m S t re s s : No very
d and

s a t1sfa c to ry reason for the o ccurrence of the yield point has ye t been
 P ULLI N G T ES T 3 05

advanced S ome thi n k that it is due to some rearrangement of the mo l

. e
cules A gain , grain structure may be t he cause S ince steel is made up
. .

of small grains or crystals , it appears reasonable t o suppose t hat the y have

a t t he time of t hei r formati o n assumed a form and an arrangement that is
mos t natural and t hat they will o ffer resistance t o any force tending t o
,

change t his form or arrangement This resistance is made up of t wo forces

.

of attraction, namely one t hat tends t o keep t he grains in contac t and

,

another t hat t ends t o preserve the arrangement of the molecules within

the grain At t he e lasti c l i m i t this resistance is j ust b alanced by t he
.

tension , bu t under any gre ater t ension deformation of the grains be gins , ,
“ ”
and t he structur e gives suddenly be coming at the s ame t ime longer and
,

smaller in cros s section Up t o the elastic limit the sligh t stretch may
.

b e d ue t o a partial rearrangement of the grai ns When the t ension is .

remove d the natural arrangement is restored with t he resul t that the ,

pie c e i mme di ately assumes its initial form and size When subj e cted t o .

tension under this limit the body remains in an el astic c ondition and the ,

deformation it undergoes is c alle d e l a s ti c d e fo r m a t io n A bove t he yield .

po in t t he grains are undergoin g deformation , t ha t is they are i n a way ,

destroyed , and t he piece of meta l reacts more l ike a plastic than an el astic
body Therefore t he body is sai d t o be undergoin g p l
. a s t i c d e fo r m a t io n .

This change in grain form is c ontinuo us and req uires an e ver incre asing ,
-

force , o r stress , t o make it s o The conditio n i s strictly analogous t o cold

.

workin g, which w ill be discusse d later C onsequently , t he piece bec omes .

stronger bu t a t t he s ame time i t is becomin g longer and c orrespondingly

,

s maller in c ross se ction Ultimately as the necking of the pie ce be c omes

.
,

pronounce d , t he loss in strength due t o the decrease d are a of t he se ction ,

plus t he ext erna l s tress appl ie d balances and then exceeds the maximum
,

stress t ha t t he c ol d w orkin g c an devel op From this point t hen the .

, ,

externa l force ne cessary t o bal ance the forces of attraction between t he

grains be comes l ess an d le ss as the are a continue s t o de crease rapidly .

Finally t h e maximum d e fo nn ati o n of the grains is re ached when , if t he

, ,

tension applie d e xt ernally exceeds th e forces of attraction t ending t o k eep

the g rai ns t o gethe r at the point of least cross sectional are a t he piece is ,

fracture d at that point .

Ex a m l
i na t i o n o f Te s t A f t e r P u li n g : After fracture the t wo parts of
the test pie ce are remove d from the machine , and t he fractured ends are
'

fitte d t ogether as neatly as possible for t he measurements t o follow The .

distance between t he e xtreme punch m arks is now measured The di fference .

between this distance an d t he original space o f e i ght inches gives th e el on

gati o n for t he pie ce , w hich i s properly re cor de d An examina t ion of t he .

piec e shows tha t w hile i t has been reduce d in se ction thr oughou t i t s length ,

the reduction i s mos t pronounced in t he re gion of t he fracture w here the ,

pie c e underwe nt t he characteristic deformation known as ne c ki ng before i t

broke I t i s here as ne ar t o the fracture d ends as possible that t he w idth
.
, .
,

and thickness are again me asured in order t o ascertain the reduction in

306 TE S T I N G OF S TE EL

area Finally the fractur es are designated as ang ul ar ; cup shaped half
.
,
-
,

cup and irre gular V ery little importance can be attache d t o the form
,
.

of the fracture but some inspectors believe that the cup shape d fracture
,

indicates more nearly perfect uniformity in the material than t he other

forms .

C al a t i n g t h e Re s u l
cul ts Te s t : The results obtained in the o f the
test are for the given piece only and in order that the results from different , ,

tests may be comparable t hey must be c alcul ate d t o a common basis ,

.

T ensil e strength an d elastic limit are always expressed in po unds per s quare
inch in the Unite d Stat es i n tons per square inch in England and k ilo grams , ,

per square m i l l
e m e te r in France and other c ountries usin g t he metric

system The elongation is expressed as t he percentage of increase on the

.

original length of the bar I n the Unite d S tates this length for structural .

and other low c arbon steels is usually e ight inches as formerl y stated but , ,

other lengths a s t en and twelve inches , ten centimeter , etc may be used
,
. .

F o r t hi s reason i t is always important that the original length of t he bar

be stated a s t he percentage of reductio n on t wo inches for example , w ould
, ,

be much great er than t hat base d on eight inches because of t he pronounced

local c ontrac t ion , or necking at the point of fracture This vari ation in , .

the len gth o f t est pieces is m a de because t he relation between t he length ,

and the thickness of the test affects the elongation H en ce in order t hat .
,

tests o f d ifi e re nt thicknesses may b e comparable t he ratio between the ,

thicknes s a nd l ength is k ept c onstant by varyin g t he l ength The ideal .

thic kness for a l ength of ei ght inches is about thre e-fourths inch Over or .

under t his t hi ckness the spe cification is usu ally m odified e ither by chang
,

ing the len gth or by ma kin g t he proper allowance from the e longation as
determine d The reduction of are a is expresse d in percenta ge c ontraction
.

of are a of t he cross se ction as compared with t he ori ginal area of t he cross

section An example will serve to clear up any doubtful points that may
.

not have been made clear in this explanation .

Ta b l
e 46 . Da t a o n th e Pu l
li n g Te s t Re p re s e n te d b y t h e G r a p h
o f Fi g 46 . .

Di m e ns io n s o f Pi e c e
Be fo re P u l
li ng A fte r Pul
li ng

0 0 0 0 0 0 0
0 0 0 0 0 0 0
0 0

o o o o o o o o o o o o o

0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0

Readings on pulling bar : Elastic l

i m i t= 44600 1b s ; U ltimate . strength :

74600 l
bs .
3 08 T E S T I N G OF S T EE L

opinions a s to the relative importance of the two factors I n a general .

way , i t may be stated that t he reduction of area i s re garded as

more reliable t han elongation because , as previously e xplaine d the quantity
, ,

denoting t he l atter is a ffe cted by the ratio of t he length of the t es t piece

to its cross sectional area I n many foreign c ountries this ratio is always
.

specified .

Te s t s : On certain classes of material bending tests are made

Be n d i n g ,

in addition t o the pulling test These t ests simple in character c onsist

.
, ,

mere ly in bending test pie ces similar to t hose use d for pull ing and similarly ,

prepared through certain spe cifie d arcs The bendin g is us ually o n c old
,
.

material but some orders c all for hot bending t ests also Such t e sts are
, , .

employe d t o make sure that the steel is no t col d short or hot short and ,

in a way , t o indicate the ductility of the metal .

S EC T I O N I I I .

T HE T ES TING OF T H E H I G HE R CA RB ON A N D H E AT TR E AT E D S T EE LS .

Ki nd s o f Te s t s A p p l
i e d to t h e Hi g h e r Ca r b o n a nd He a t=tre a te d
S teels : Fo r testing the class of material referred t o under this h e ading ,

a large number of di fferent t ests have been devise d These tests may be .

classifie d under the headings of tensile tests c ompressive t ests , t orsional ,

tests , impac t tests an d hardness tests Of these , t he t ensile , impac t , and

, .

hardness tests are the ones most frequently met with an d w ill , t herefore , ,

be des cribed later Of the others t he torsional tes t is perhaps th e most

.

important as it is l argely use d in the testin g of steel for automobiles

, .

I t consists in t wisting a small roun d specimen of steel hel d i n a suitable

machine unti l rupture o c curs I n it a test pie ce of standard s iz e i s used
.
,

an d values for this pie ce corresponding t o the e lastic limit and ultimate
strength bu t expresse d in inch pou nds are obtaine d very much as in the
,
-
,

tension t est ; t he amount of distortion , however is given in de grees The ,

.

compression t es t is carried ou t by means Of a machine similar in c On

struc t ion t o t he pulling machine The t est piece may be in t he form of
.

a small cylinder or a one inch cube The el astic limit under c ompression
.

is determined and the distortion is indicated by the decrease in length

, .

T heT e ns i l
e Te s t : The test for determining the tensile strength of
the higher c arbon and heat tre ate d steels is c arried out in a m anne r s imilar ‘

to tha t for the softer stee ls but since the material is s o much stronger and
,

the items made from such steels do not lend themselves t o the s ame method
of sampling the test piece is much smaller than that empl oyed in the c ase
,

of structural steels This spe cimen i s in the form of a small round , as

.
 HI GH TE NS I L E S T E E LS 309

shown in the accompanying figure and is Often obtaine d by boring with ,

a hollow drill about midway between the center and outside surface of
the se ction s ample d .

F ro 47 n U l e
D r awi ng S h o wi g s ua S iz and F o m o f T e s t P i e r
se d i n Pu i ng ig ce U l
l H h
T e nsi le S te e l T h e e nd s m ay b e o f any fo m d e sir e d b ut th e ce nt a l
. .

. s r m a hi ne d r c
r
p o ti o n m us t b e a s sh o w
n i n th e fi g e ur .

I m p ac t
Te s t : While se veral diffe rent types of machines for me asuring
the resistance of stee l t o imp act have been invented t he results obtained ,

with any of these machines so far have no t b een cons idere d very rel iable ,

as widely varying results m ay be obtaine d on t he s am e stee l t este d on

the same machine I n practice therefore t he ne ares t approach t o an
.
, ,

impact t es t is wha t is commonly and corre ctly c alle d the d ro p te s t I t .

is applie d t o full s ize pieces of rails t o axles and t o other se c t ions I t

, , .

c onsists in allowin g a spe cifie d weight to drop from a spe cifie d hei gh t a
spe cifie d number of times upon the sample whi ch is supporte d a t t wo p oints ,

on a heavy anvil or bloc k resting upon strong S prings Al lt hree of t hese .

factors may vary greatly with different classes Of ma t eria l and With the
different ideas of the engineers While it does not measure absolutely
.

any property of the metal and is to be c onsidered as comparative or

qualitative only it is nevertheless one of the most usefu l of practical tests
, , , ,

for it determines , in a crude way , the ductility and homogeneity of the metal
and its resistance to shock I n the case of axles and other round bodies
.
, ,

the de fle ction from a given wei ght may be kept constant for different sizes
by varyi ng the height for since the strength of such a se ction varies as
,

the cube of the diameter for equal deflections the hei ght varies as the
, ,

cube of the diameter of the spe cimen at its center .

Ha r d ne s s Te s t s :
The best known and the most wi dely us ed i nstru
ment s for measuring t he hardness of metals are the S hore scleroscope and
the Brinell ball testing machine The S hore instrument consists of a small
.

d iamond face d tup enclose d in a glass t ube whic h i s provi ded with a suction
-

bulb whereby the tup may be raise d to the t op of the tube and droppe d from
,

a definite and fixe d height To make a determina t ion , the instrumen t i s

.
 TES TI N G OF S TE E L
’

3 10

held in the vertica l position with the l ower end resting upon a smooth '

and highly polished spo t on the surface of the metal t o be tested when ,

the tup is allowed t o drop by c ompressing the bulb The hei ght of the .

'

rebound , w hi ch may b e re ad on a scale inscribed on t he tube i s taken as ,

a measurement of the hardness Notwithstandin g the fac t that the results

.

obtained by this instrument are sometimes very erratic e spe cially if the ,

surface of the di fferent spots teste d have not been properly and uniformly
polishe d i t is a valuable instrumen t for comparing the surfac e h ardness
,

of differen t parts of a body t ha t is t oo large t o be teste d in any other

way I t also possesses th e advantage t hat t he t ests may be made upon
.

the finished article without injury t o the article itself .

Br i nellHa r d ne s s : T h e Brinell hardness test measures the ability of

the met al t o resist penetration by a smal l ball when propelle d by a gradually
applie d force I t consists in pressing a hardene d steel bal l into th e surface
.

of the spe cimen under test by means of a fixe d loa d gradually applied .

T h e instrument consists e ssentially of a smal l hydrauli c press , whi ch is

operate d by a small hand pump and is provi de d w ith a pressur e gauge
for re ading the pressure and a speci al c ontrivanc e fo r automatically
,

holding the pressure when i t has re ache d a maximum of 3 000 kilo grams .

T h e piston of the press which acts vertically downward is provided

, ,

on its end with a hardened steel ball ten millimeters i n diameter by , ,

means of which an impression may be made o n t he s mooth surface of the

specimen which rests on a firm but an adjustable base The operation of
, .

the instrument is very simple The spe cimen t he surface of which has been
.
,

pla nls h e d with a file a Whetstone emery wheel or similar me ans is l aid on
, , ,

the base and is then brought in c ontact w ith t he bal l by turning a small
wheel for adjusting the base , or platform By Operating the hand pump .

until the maximum pressure is attained and maintaine d for about o ne

half minute , the steel ball is presse d into the surface ; then t he pressure
is relieved the base is lowered and the d iameter of the impression
, ,

made in the specimen is measured by me ans of a microscope fitted

with a millimeter sc ale , vernier and cross hair From this d iameter the
, .

spheric al are a of the impressi on m ay be cal cul ated which d ivide d i nto the , ,

maximum l oad of 3 000 kilograms give s the hardness number The formulas
, .

for making these calcul ations may be co m b i ne d i nto a singl

e formul a thus : ,

where P==3000 Kilograms pressur e r=5 mm radius of the ball D=d i ame te r
,
.
, ,

of the impression and H= th e hardness number I n pract i ce it is most

, .

convenien t t o have a table , s uch as that shown bel ow prepared from , ,

which the number may be obtaine d dire c t from the diameter of the
impression .
3 12 M ECHA NI CA L T REA T M E N T

C HA PT ER I I .

T HE M E CH A N I C A L T R E AT M E NT OF S T EE L .

S EC T I O N 1 .

ME T H OD S A N D E FF E CT S OF M E CH A NI CA LL Y WOR KI N G ST EE L .

Me t h o d s o f S h a p i ng S tee l
: After the separation of the metal from
its ores , whi ch in modern practice i s ac complishe d by means of either the
blas t furnace o r a form of ele ctri c furnace and its purification in the ,

Besse m er c onverter open hearth puddlin g furnace or ele ctri c furnace the
, , , ,

third step in th e metallurgy of iron is the re duction of t he l arge bodies

of metal thus produce d t o the various forms and sizes require d by the
many uses t o which i t is to be put I n general this shaping may be bro ught
.

about either by pourin g t he meta l while in a molten state int o moulds ,

which ac t i s c alle d casting or by mechanic ally workin g it Since by all

,
.

the methods of purification puddlin g excepted the metal is Obtaine d in

, ,

the fluid state c astin g w oul d appear t o be the simplest and c heapest
,

method of shaping ; but for formin g a rticles o f very small secti on i t is ,

evident tha t t his metho d is imprac t icable ; nor is it used unless una v o id ,

able to form the larger s e c tions in w hich the m e chanical propertie s of the
,

metal must be d e v o l o p e d t o the hi ghest de gree S ome shapes o n a ccount .

of their s ize or their intricate desi gn require c asting while others are cast ,

because they require no great strength in service and the c os t of production

only is t o be c onsidered A l ac k of s trength an d d uctility in c astings is
.

inherent , a nd i s due t o chemic a l an d physic al phenomena that ac company

the s olidification of the molten metal , s omethi n g about the nature of which
wil l be explained later in conn ection w ith t he c ooling Of ingots S uffice it .

to say no w t hat the weakness of c astings is due chiefly t o any or all of

three causes , namely , blo w holes , s e gregation , and crystalliz ation .

Be ne fi t s o f Me c h a nica l Wo r ki ng : On the other hand , mechanical

shapin g i mproves the q uality of the metal by forcing its particles into
more intimate c ontact , c losing up c avities and by refinin g its crystalline ,

structur e , and s o has importan t functions aside from t he mere re duction

to form an d size The change i n p roperties that may b e attribute d t o the
.

process of mechanic al working i s a marke d one , for the strength ductility ,

and hardness are all a ffe cte d Of t hese properties the s trength i s always
.

incre ased by the w orking t he hardness may or may no t be markedly

,
\

incre ased while t he ductility i e , e longation and reduction in are a m ay

, , . .
,

be either increase d or decrease d depending on the c onditions o f the ,

working The amoun t of change in e ach of t hese properties for a given

‘

s teel of a certain chemic al c ompositioni s a ffe cte d by the amount of work

done and by the temperature at which the working i s c arried on .

 H OT A N D COL D WORKI NG 3 13

Ho t a nd Co l
d Wo r ki ng :
the me chanic al treatment of the metal In ,

the first distinction t o b e m a de is tha t o f ho t and c ol d workin g The

,
'
.

study of metallo graphy has sho wn that t he t erm ho t w or kin g of s t ee l should

be applied t o th e w orking of i t a t te m pera t ures above its upper critical
range t he t emperature of w hich varies , i nversely with t he carbon content
, ,

from 700 t o 900 C , while al l w or k done at temperatures belo w this

° °
.

range shoul d be c alled col d wor ki n g I t wil l be sho wn in t he ne xt part of .

this boo k that a sharp change in s t ructure d ue t o working takes pl ace as

the critic al temperature of the stee l is passe d This change is due m ainly .

to the fac t t hat above this range iron exists in an allotropi c crystalline
form t he gamma form in which carbon d issolves t o form a homogeneous
, ,

mixture w hile below i t the meta l assumes t he alpha form and i s a crystal
,

li z e d aggre gate of ferrite and c ementite A metall o graphic examination .

of spe cimens shows that the re sul t of w orking this aggre gate structure is
one of permanen t distortion or strain an d one in which the properties of
, ,

the metal are d eeply a ffe cted as indicate d by the di fferen t physical ,

tests. The elastic limit t ens ile s t ren gth , and hardness are incre ased
, ,

while t he ductility i s reduced The extent of this change varies according

.

to the temperat ure and is mos t marke d w hen t he w orking is done

,

at or belo w atmospheri c temperatures C ol d w or k ing be comes less .

e ffe ctive as t he critica l t emperature is approached w hich is due t o the ,

increase in m ole cul ar energy and the resulting l oss of rigidity by t he s olid . .

I t shoul d be note d that below the critic al ran g e no refinement of t he g ranular

structur e c an be accomplishe d by workin g I n hot working the grain size .
,

is decreased a nd t he metal is subj e ct otherwise t o me chanical refinement

, ,

the extent of which d epends no t only on the amount of wor k done an d size
of the sectio n bu t o n t he t emperature above t he critical range a t which
the wor k i s finished H owever , if , after a w orking t he meta l be heated
.
,

abo ve this finishing temperature , as i s often t he c ase in t he actua l rolling

of steel the grain refinement of the previ ous working may be partly or entirely
,

destroyed d epending upon the temperature t o which the pie ce i s reheated

, .

Owing t o t he plasticity of the meta l at the higher temperatures , t he dis

to rti o n d ue t o w orking above the critical range does not produce a per
manent strain in the structure of the s olid After e ach distortion the .

structural c omponents t he crystals or grains are free t o return to the shape

, ,

and arrangement pe culiar t o their state of equilibrium Besides since the .

,

steel takes on a ne w struct ure and a new condition is born upon c ooling
t hrough the critical range any internal tension se t ,
up by the w orking
is relieve d by the re arrangeme nt t ha t t akes pl ace in passing through this
range This fact gives another re ason for the superior quality of hot
.

worked material over castings , which are subj ect t o immense internal
tension or stresses se t up by physica l phenomena tha t accompany t he
, ,

solidification and by the forces of contraction due t o the unequa l rates of

cooling between the exterior and interior of a c as ting S uch severe stresses .

do not occur in hot worked material Referring t o the more common pr a c .

314 ME CHA NI CA L T REA T M E N T

1 . C as t ste e l C ar b o n
. . 3 5 pe r c e n t M a gn i fi e d
.

d i am e te rs .

3 .Co l
d w o rke d h y p o - e ute ct o i d s te e l . C ar b o n
pe r ce nt M a gni fi e d 1 0 0 d i am e te rs
. .

F ro . 48 . S h o w i ng E ffe c ts o f W o rk i ng
3 16 M E T H ODS OF WORKI N G

tice Of working the steel on its initial he at that is workin g it before it

, , ,

has cooled much below the t emperature of solidification a fter ha ving

be en c as t subsequent to manufacture in the molten state careful study ,

has develope d the fact that i t matters little s o far as the effec t on t he ,

refinement wrought by the workin g is c oncerned whether the ingo t has ,

or has no t been allowed to become completely cold before being b rought

to _t he require d temperature for workin g Therefore while t he idea is .
,

contrary to the popul ar notion the primary obj e ct in the steel workers mind
,

shoul d be t he improvement in quality of the materia l he is working ,

while the shaping of the material may be l ooked upon as a se co dary

obj ect .
n

S EC T I O N I I .

S U MM A R Y OF T H E H I ST O R Y A N D P RI NC I PL S E OF WO R K I N G ST EE L.

T heT h ree Me t h o d s fo r Mec h a nica lly Wo r ki ng S t ee l

: With
reference t o the manner of applying pressure t o steel during mechani cal
working t here are three possible methods ; namely hammering pressing , ,

and rolling, all of which are extensively use d at the present time ; The
shapin g of s teel by either of the first t wo methods is calle d fo rgin g As .

an introducti on t o the study of the rolling of steel a brief re sum e of the ,

history , principles an d e ffects of e ach of t hese methods will not be out

,

of place an d may be found q uite interesting .

e r Fo rgi ng : H ammering was the first method e m pl

'

Ha m m o ye d b y
l

man in shaping the metals The firs t forgin g was done by hand ham mers
.

wiel de d by t he workmen The firs t power hammer , k nown by the name

.

of tilt hammer , w as buil t in England an d was a crude a ffair c o m ,

pared with the steam hammers no w used I t consiste d of a beam of w ood .

hinged at one en d and provide d with an iron hammer head at the other At .

an intermediate point , engaging c ams on a revolving shaft alternately

raise d t he free end and allowed it t o fall on a bottom d ie fixe d upon a suitabl e
foundation Thus the top die coul d be paralle l t o the bottom die in only
.

one position and the l arger the pie ce t o be forged the less power there
,

was available t o forge it The firs t steam hammer was built in France
.

in 1842 I t c onsiste d of a t wo piece frame c onstructe d s o as t o support

.
,

directly over a die or anvil a steam cylinder t o the piston rod of which
, ,

was attache d a t up or hammer head By admitting ste am into the cylinde r

, .

below t he piston , t he hammer was raised for a distance e qual t o the stroke
of the cylinder , and then allowed t o drop upon the anvil or bottom die .

T his hammer had t he advantage of always keeping the top and bottom
d ie s parallel bu t w as stil l l acking in one important particular
,
I ts power .

being derive d from the inertia Of the falling tup the hammer had the least ,

power when i t w as m os t neede d that is when pieces of l arge diameter or

, ,

of great thickness were being worked This fault in the single acting .

hammer was corre cte d by the invention of the doub l e acting hammer in ,
 EFFE C T S OF F ORGI N G 3 17

which steam is admitte d at the top of the piston and employe d on the
do wnwar d stroke as well as for lifting the tup The first double acting .

hammer w as built at M idvale Pa , in 1888 ,

. .

Pri nc i p l
es a nd Effe c t s o f Ha m m e ri ng : The principles of the hammer
are that of an instantaneous application of pressure applied t o a relatively
small area The strains set up in the metal are c ompressive and take
.

place in a vertical dire ction in the re gion below the are a subj e c t e d t o the
force of t he bl ow The crowding of t he met al into one re gion however
.
, ,

cause s a small portion of the blow t o be transmitte d in horizontal di re ctions .

The suddenness of the blo w t ends to l ocali z e the e ffe c t and confine the
refinement t o the exterior This fact results in a high de gree of refinement
.
,

provided the amount of reduction is gre a t or the se ction worke d is a thin

one and is one of the reasons why it is possible t o make some hammere d
,

material superior to rolled material The resis t ance of the metal to .

deformation under shock c ombine d with the i nte rm itta nt action of the
,

hammer makes shaping by hammer a slow process

,
.

an English invention dating from

T h e Fo rgi ng P re s s : The press is ,

the ye ar 1861 I t was introduce d into

. t his c ountry about the ye ar 18 87 .
.

I t consists e ssenti ally of a hydrauli c cylinder supporte d by one or two

pairs of steel colum ns which are anch o re d t o a single base c asting of great
weigh t and strength The ram of the cylinder points downward and carries
.

an upper forgin g bitt vertically opposite a similar lower an d stationary

bitt which rests on t he base c astin g t o which the col umns are attached By .

admitting water under pressure t o the cylinder a t its t op t he upper pallet

is forced down upon t he material t o b e forged , whic h rests upon the l ower
pallet The p re ssure i s applie d slow y and is gradually increased to a
.
/
l
maximum which may be maintained til l t he meta l yields : By means of
small auxiliary cylinders the ram i s lifte d after each application of pressure .

The pressure exerte d by the forging press is very great I n practice it .

is found that the lowest pressure that can be employe d t o be effe ctive at
a full forging heat is about tons per square inch but the pressures ,

employe d in actual work will often reach tons per s q uare inch .

T h e Effe c t f Pre s s i n g :
The press di ffers ve ry much from the hammer
o ,

both in action and the e ffects produced Unlike the instantaneous a pp l i .

cation o f the pressure as in the c ase of the hammer the action of the press ,

is so slow tha t a kneading of the metal t akes place and the strain inste ad , ,

of being co nfine d t o the surface penetrates deep into the material A n ,

.

illustration cite d by Messrs H arbor d and H all will serve t o demonstrate

1
the difference in the e ffect produced by the t wo methods of working .

“
I f tests are taken from the outer parts of a gun forging which has the
center trepanned ou t little difference is found in the strength of the
,

material whether the forgin g was done under the press or under the
,

hammer provided t he l atter was suffi ciently heavy for its work ; the
,

{ Se e T he M e ta l
lu rg o f S te e l Vo lI I P a ge 8 55 P ub l
i she d by J B
y .
. . . .

ad e l
hi l
.

Li p p i nc o tt C o m p a ny , P phia , Pa .
,
3 18 M E T H ODS OF WORKI N G

press showing if anything slightly better results

, ,
I f however the test .
, ,

pieces are t aken from the cores which have been cut ou t of the center of
the forgings the di fference in the results is s o very mar k ed as to have in
,

d uce d all t he best makers of heavy stee l forgings t o install presses i n

pl ace of or in addition to their large hammers
, ,
.

A d va n ta ge s o from its increase d beneficial e ffe ct

f th e Pre s s : A side
upon the material the press has many advantages over the hammer s ome
, ,

of whic h i t m ay be of interest t o cite The absence of shoc k in t he press

.

is a decide d advantage both in the construction of t he machine and in the

workin g of material The cost of working materia l under a press is l ess
.

than w ith the hammer because the output is gre ater , the press reducing
faster t han the hammer , fewer m e n and l ess sk i lle d l abor are required ,

and the fuel c onsumption per ton of output is l ess A much gre ater propor .

t ion of the t ota l wor k put into a press i s transmitte d t o t he meta l t han is
t he case with the ham mer Much of the energy Of the l atter i s dissipated
.

through being absorbed by t he sprin g i n th e a nvi l bloc k and by the e arth .

Fo r certain work , however , this impact give s t he hammer two advant ages
first , i t s erves t o remove s cale ; second , it e nable s t he hammer to s trike
forgings in molds w ith greater ease t han the press The difficulty of .

retaining water under the extremely high pressures require d by presses

gives the hammer an advantage but this advantage i s offset by its greater
,

l iability t o breakage .

Ro l
li ng : Of all the kn own methods of shapin g steel fr o m the cast
material , that of rolling , as introduce d by H enry C ort in 1783 , though
perhaps no t producing the bes t quality in certain c lasses of product , has
come t o be the most extensively empl oyed Though C or t is rightly credited
.

with being the father of modern rolling the use of this principle i n shaping
,

metals antedates his mill by many years Thus t here are re cords t o .
,

sho w t hat in the year 1553 a Frenchman employe d rolls t o produce s heets
of uniform thickness for the stamping of gol d and s ilver c oin I n Sweden .

rolls were employe d to produce certain steel sections prior t o the year 1751 ,

and even at that time the assertion was made t hat as much as twent y
times more bars c oul d be reduced in a given time than c oul d be shape d
under the tilt hammer of those days This fact couple d with the gre a t
.
,

effi ciency of the rolling method is responsible for t he universal adoption

,

of rolling as the favorite method of shaping The rapid growth in t he .

production due to the ever increasing demand for iron and steel made i t ,

imperative t ha t the most rapi d method of shaping be employed From .

the days of C ort to the present time the rolling mil l has kep t pace with
,

the growth in production and has passed through a surprisingly rapid

pro cess of development no t only i n siz e an d power bu t i n d esi gn a nd i n
,

the shapes of section s t urne d out This development t ogether w ith the
.
,

introduction of num erous appliances for handlin g t he materia l mechanical l y

during the rolling has multiplied the capacity of t he mills many times
,
.
320 114E T H ODS OF WORKI N G

longitudinal pull in the dire ction of B to D this pul l being at its maximum ,

at B and a t its minimum at A The compression however , is at its .

,

maximum at A and its minimum a t B The net result of this d ouble action .

i s to cause the metal t o flow forward s o that the piece reduce d in size , ,

is delivered at a higher velocity than the peripheral speed of the rolls ,

the evidence for whi ch i s found in the fact that the m ar k s on the pie ce
cause d by a depression or elevation on the rol ls is farther apar t than the
circumference of the rolls A slight
5
retardation
. of the forward speed of the
piece o n the entering side may take place but this point has not been ,

very well establishe d as a fact .

Ro l
li n g C o m p a r e d w i t h Ha m e r i ng a n d P r e s si n g : I t is a ver y
m

difficult m atte r t o institute a fair c omparison between the e ffects of rolling

'

with t hose of hammering or pressing Each method has a fiel d of i ts own .

with rather well define d boundaries Thus m any shapes are s o intri cate in .
,

design that rollin g them is o ut of t he questi on and s o they must be formed ,

under the hammer or t he press A crank s haft and a hammer he ad serve

.

as examples of these cl asses of s hape , w hich c an be produce d in no other

way , unless by casting w hen t hey w o ul d then be l acking i n t he strength
, .
,

ductility and s oundness imparte d b y w orking Tha t t he hamm er and the .

press are both under better c ontrol than rolls is evident an d bein g sl ower ,

and more expensive t o Operate than rolls , t hese t ools are use d on material the
cost of manufacture of which i s a s e condary m atter Hence extraordinary .
,

care and attention i s given t o al l phases of t he w orkin g of forged a rticles .

Rolls on the o t her h and are cherishe d for their speed a nd tonnage i s always ,

a factor in rolling There is however , a small are a in which the fiel d of

.
,

operation of all thre e instrumentalities overlap as in the shapin g of billets ,

or blooms from ingots I n w orkin g these billets the different e ffects

.

produced by t he three methods become visible as the pie ce i s shaped .

When an ingot is hammered the s hape imparted t o the se cti on is very

,

liable t o l ook like A in Fi g 50 I f t he blows are l igh t and delivere d at

. .

high velocity t he upper surface only wil l be elongated a s shown a t B in

,

the fi gure These facts s ho w that the impact i s almost entirely absorbed
.

by the surface of the metal and t o obtain the best effect from hammering
,

it is necessary t o continue the wor k until t he s ection has been re duce d to

one of relatively smal l size The deeper penetration of the w ork of the
.

press is s hown by the rounded c orners of the s e ction represente d by the

figure at C Any c avity a t t he center of the pie ce i s close d under the
.

action of the press whereas the tendency of the hammer woul d be t o enl arge
,

it The e ffe ct of rolling i s influence d very markedly by the temperature

. .

I n the first place the temperature i n order t o secure the greatest e ficiency
, f
from the rolls is likely t o be hi gher than t hat require d for e ither hammering
,

or pressing I n a piece uniformly heated , t he fl ow of the metal is s l ightly

.

faster at the two s urfaces than in the center in t he smaller se ctions , while
in larger sections the fl ow a t t he s urface m ay be very much greater The .

effe ct of the additional plasticity i mparted by e ven a sli ght rise in tem
 COM P A RI S ON OF M E TH ODS 3 2]

pa rature upon the flowing properties of the metal is pla i nly vi sible in the
results obtained in rolling ingots under the two conditions as illustrated
by the fi gures at D and E The fi s hta il i ng of the piece represente d at D
.

shows that the flow of the metal is faster a t the surface due t o the lac k

H ammering

He avy S tro ke s Light Stro ke s

P ressing

Ce nte r co o l
e r than surface Ce nte r ho tte r than surface
F ro . 50 . D i agra m Il
lustrati ng th e E ffe cts o f H am m e rin g , Pr e ssi ng and R o l li ng .

of plasticity a t t he c older c ent er The reverse of t hese conditions is shown

.

a t E w ith t he c orrespondin g di fference in e ffe c t I n t his c ase the e ffe ct .

of the working has penetrate d t o a much greater depth and extent than
in the previous c ase T he amo unt of draugh t and t he spe ed of rollin g are
.

also import ant factors in producing t hese e ffe c t s , a more t horough dis
c uss i o n of which will be taken up l ater .

Ro l
li n g a nd P re s s i ng I n g o t s :
The notion mos t prevalen t among a

stee l men however , is that t he t endency of rolling is t o produc e a more

,

superficial effe c t than e ither hammerin g o r pressing Tha t t his notion is

'

corre c t w ith respe ct t o pressin g i s indicate d by t he pre cautions t aken in

c astin g l arge ingots for armor pl ate tha t i s t o be rolled Fi gure 51 shows .

the di fference in shape Of ingots for t he press and for the rolls The conc ave .

and d i a m o hd shaped sides of t he ingo t for rollin g are forme d t o prevent

the l oss due to fi s hta i l
i ng as already e xplained Under the pre ss the two
, .

surf aces of a square side d ingo t a re s lightly rounded , but , in rolling a ,

square s ide d ingot would make a concave sided plate which in many c ases
progresses t o such an extent as t o cause actual overlapping I t is admitted .

by ne arly e very one however t ha t with very s lo w rolling and c arefully

, ,

re gulate d temperature that the quality of rolle d material m ay be made

the e qual of that reduce d under t he press .

Fo r Pre ssing Fo r Pre ssing Fo r Ro l

l
ing
F ro . 51 . S h ap e s o f I ng o t s fo r Pr e ssi ng and Ro l
li ng A rm or Pl
a te .
322 T H E ROLLI N G M I LL

C HA P T ER I II .

ESSE NT I A LS OF R OLL I N G M I LL C ON S T R UC T I ON A ND
OP E R A T I ON

S EC T I O N I .

T H E R OLLS —T HEI R P REP A RATI ON A N D A R R A N G E ME NT .

Pa r t s a nde n t o f th e S i m pl
Eq u i p m e s t Ty pe o f Ro l
li n g Mi l l : After
the rolls themselves , t wo in number in the simpler types of mill the next
,
'
,

most essential par t of the mill are the c h o c ks o r bearings w hich support
the ends of the rolls and permit them t o be t urne d withou t d isplacement .

The chocks in turn are kep t in place by means of t he h o u s i n g s , w hich

together w ith the adj usting s crews also furnish a means by whi ch t he
distance between t he rolls is re gulated These parts constitute a s t a nd
.

of rolls The housings are bolte d t o s h o e s w hich res t upon a firm foun
.

dation to which they are always securely bolte d Next in im

,
.

portance are t he parts w hich conne c t t he mill with t he drivin g shaft .

First , there are the S p i n d l e s t ha t t ransmi t t he power from t he p ini ons

to the rolls t o both of which they are co nne cted by means of l

, ,
o o s e i y fitting

c o u pl
i n g b oxe s The p i ni o ns , supporte d in hous ings similar t o t he roll
.

housings are gears , one of w hich is driven t hr ough a drivin g spindle in line
,

with one of t he rolls They serve t o impart opposite motions t o t he rolls

. .

The las t p ar t of e quipment essential t o the mill is the prime mover which ,

in modern mills may be a steam engine or an electric motor As to o t her e q uip .

ment , rehe atin g furnaces are fi rst in importance Large mill s mus t a lso be .

provide d w ith ro l lt a b l
e s for handling t he m aterial A discussio n of the .

drivin g apparatus is an engineerin g sub j e c t w hich l ies beyon d t he i ntended

Allthe
'

scope of this boo k an d wil l receive no further mention here .

remaining parts however should be studie d somewhat in detail

, ,
.

T he Ro l
ls a n d T h e i r Par t s : Of the essentia l parts of
t he rolling
mill the rolls furnish a subj ec t of great interest There are three parts t o .

a roll ; namely the b Od y w hi ch is t he par t on which t he rolling is done ;

, ,

the ne c ks , or t he parts w hich res t in the choc ks and furnish t he surface

upo n w hich the pressure i s applied for reducing the siz e of the piece ; and
the w o b b le rs , one at t he outer e nd of either neck or of both necks , w hich

are forme d by notching the prolongation of t he ne c k of the roll Over the .

wobblers t he c oupling box for driving t he roll is fitted I n t he c ase of .

plain rolls such as are use d for rollin g plates and in part for other flats
, , , ,

these are the only parts of the roll I n the c ase of rolls for other material
. ,

g o o ve s are cut into the surfaces of the rolls to form the se ction required
r .
3 24 T H E ROLL I N G M I LL

the sand from t he half fl as k with a sweep the outline of which is S imilar ,

to the contour o f the roll Tw o such half flasks are required for each roll
.
,

e ach one containin g o ne -half of the rol l d iv ided longitudinally After .

sweeping and smoothi n g , the half mol ds are c oate d inside with a plumbago
or other carbonaceous dressin g and c areful ly dr ie d Just before casting .
,

these t wo parts of t he mo ul d are firmly cl amped t o gether and are set in

a vertical position for pouring for whi ch purpose a casting pit is provi ded
,

for large rolls Thus o ne end of the rol l forms the bottom of the casting
.
, ,

the other end the top The top i s c appe d by a c ope to provide a deep sink
.

head , which is cu t fro m t he rol l aft er c astin g The gating t o t he mold .

en ters t he fl as k a t t he bo tt om ne c k Of t he rol l and on a t angent s o that ,

a swirlin g action is imparte d t o t he molten me t a l as i t rises in t he mold .

I n this way all dirt and other foreign matter i s force d t o the center which ,

condition insures the out er portion of t he roll will be composed of cl e an

metal .

T he Ma te ri als Us e d i n S a n d C a s t Ro l
ls are charcoal iron and roll

scrap T he mixture s are melte d in coal fired reverberatory furnaces

. .

The bat h , seale d Off from out side air , i s separate d from t he grat e by a
bri dge w al l , o ver which a non-o xidizing flame sweeps and furnishes the heat
for mel t ing I n the melting a little c arbon silicon and manganese are
.
, ,

remove d from t he me t al an d by the time the charge is melted a hi ghly

,

si l
i c o us sl a g has formed which protects the metal from any further action
,

that migh t be produced by the flame As soon as the metal is melted .

,

fracture t e s t s are t aken by means Of whi ch the metallurgis t in charge

,
’

is able , from lon g experience t o determine when the b ath is of t he right

,

composition to produce the ki nd of roll desired The molten metal is .

tappe d from th e furnace into a small tilting l a dle which i s c arrie d by ,

overhead crane to t he molds and the metal is poure d int o the gate over the
,

lip of t he l a dl e The pouring is very rapi d and must be continuous as the

.
,

slightes t inte rruption w ould ruin the casting After t he metal has .

solidifie d and coole d sufficiently the mol d is removed and the roll is , ,

cleaned of the adhering sand when it is ready to be machined to the si z e

,

and shape required .

l
Ch il l
e d Ro ls: of the chil l
R olls
e d type are m ade up of three l ayers
of metal , e ach of which represents a type of the same original metal The .

interior of t hese roll s i s composed of grey iron , w hich i s e nclose d by a

cylinder of mottle d iron and out side of this a similar l ayer of w hite iron
, ,

l Thi s c omposite struc ture is procure d by t akin g advantage

c alle d the c h i l .

of the peculiar properties exhibited by pi g iron on cooling from the molten

state In thi s state iron holds in solution all the c arbon which i t co ntains
.

at a given t empera ture I n coolin g some of this c arbon separates in the

.

form of crystals of grap hi te , w hich is distribute d throughout the mass ;

the remainder is spoken of as combined carbon the e ffe ct of which is t o ,

i ncrease the hardness of the metal The separation of the graphite depends .

m ainly upon the rate of cooling so that if the iron is cooled very suddenly
,
 CH I LL ROLLS 325

all the carbon may be retaine d in solution as combined carbon which

'
,
,

rende rs a c hi lle d iron that is dense white intensely hard and c apable of , , ,

receiving a very high polish I n making these rolls o nl y the body of the
.

roll is given a chill This chilling of only a part of the rol l is effect e d by
.

making that par t Of the mol d c orresponding to the necks and wob b lers of
sand whi le tha t par t destine d t o form t he body is made up of a heavy
,

cas t iron ring usually built up in sections whi ch are c are ful
, l
y t urne d at
-

the j oints and bore d out true inside After giving the inside of the mold .

a coa ting of t he carbonaceous wash they are warmed to remove moist ure , ,

T he l
in e i n th e c ut m a rks th e l
i m i t o f cle ar c hi l
l Wh e n. d e p th o f li s
chil
d e s i gnate d , i t i s as sum e d to m e an c l e ar c h i l
l .

FI G . 53 . M e th o d o f M e as uri ng D e p th o f C lo n
hi l Ro l
ls .

then assembled and the casting is made as for sand rolls The rapid
, .

cool in g c aus e d by the absorp t ion of the heat by the c old casting in c ont act
,

with the m olten meta l , c auses t he chil l on t he outer surface of the rol l ,
the depth and hardness of w hich is controlle d by varyin g t he c omposition
of the molten iron Chille d rolls once they are formed c anno t be softened
.
, ,

or hardene d by hea t treatment , as such t reatment woul d destroy the chill

A pat ente d chil l is no w in use I t is made in t he form of a rin g c om
"

posed o f se gments of soli d meta l on t he inside an d a w ater c ooled ring

on t he outside This c onstruc t ion has the e ffect of c ausin g the mold t o
.

becom e smaller as i t i s warme d by t he hea t from the molten me t al , t hus

.

subj ecting the roll to a high pressure , which is s aid t o give a more even
chill and a denser and tOughe r mate rial than the c ommon chill T he chill .
3 26 T HE ROL LI N G M I LL

is measured by the le ast depth of clear c hill as shown in the accompanying

photo graph while the analysis of each of the three re gions here depi cted
,
‘

is given in the following table ‘

Tab l e 48 y s i s o f Di ffe re n t Pa r t s o f a C h i l
A na l .
le d Ro l
l .

T OT A L C O M B HL G RA PH.

CA R B . CA R B . CA R B . S UL

t i e s i n Ma ki ng C h i l
Di ffi c u l le d Ro l
l
The gre atest of skil l and
s:

experience are re quired in the making of chille d rolls The pro cess of .

chillin g c auses t he di fferen t parts of the roll to coo l at di fferent rates and
sets up stresses in t he casting which make it l iabl e to crac k and break .

The range of t emperature a t which the metal may be poured is very narrow ,

while a very sligh t change in the chemical c omposition of t he meta l w ill :

sometimes produce a marke d e ffe ct upon t he chill changing bo t h t he d epth ,

a nd the hardn ess The size of t he roll also a ffects t he nature and ext ent
.

of the chill Besides t he roll in use i s sub j e ct t o grea t pressure , uneve n

.
, .

stre Ss e s, uneve n h e ating over heating and sudden cooling , al

,
lof which ,

t end to c ause the chill t o crac k and S pall This t endency t o spall is over .

come by the manufacturer t o some e xtent bu t c areful handlin g of the roll ,

i nuse is essential also Large rolls are especially di ffi cult t o c as t p rpp e rl

'

.
y .

The l arges t chille d roll s are m ade for rollin g plat es an d a ver y t ough
.
,

chill is required The chills for one of t he larges t of t hese rolls weighs
.

'

pounds and the roll itself re quire s 8 0 000 pounds of me t a l t o cast ,

it w hile the total length of the m o l d i s twenty thr e e fee t A l arge

,
-
.

percentage of these rolls are los t in casting due t o th e crac kin g o f t he roll ,

at pl aces w here the di fferent sections of t he c hil l are j oine d Smal l chilled .

rolls are use d in guide rod hoop and bar mills , and for a vari e ty o fpurposes
, , ,

but chille d rolls for shapes are very difficult t o mak e owin g t o t he fact that
the c oll ars i n such rolls are liable t o bind in the chil l and crac k o ff Al l .

these factors tend t o make chilled rolls very e xpensive , bu t a much greater
tonnage i s obtaine d from them than from any other kind , and t heir use is
imper at ive where a very fine fini sh is re qui re d t o be impar te d t o t he product .

S te e l as t in sand in much t he sam e w ay as sand ro l l

Ro l
ls are c s In .

this case , however ganister s and mixe d with a little fi re c lay to act as a
,

bon d i s use d be cause t he higher temperature of molten stee l will heat

,

any bu t the mos t refractory s ands t o t heir fusion point S tee l rolls a re .

stronger an d m or e ductile than s and rol ls The deflection of a stee l roll .

under a given l oa d i s only a bou t half as much as t ha t of a common s and

roll Besides , t hey may be annealed when they be come almost unbreak
.
,

able They c anno t be pe rmanentl y hardened be cause any hardenin g by

.
,

heatin g and quenching i s remove d by contact with the ho t metal the heat ,
.

from which produces the same e ffe ct as a drawback On account of their .

328 TH E ROLL I N G M I LL

Me t h o d s o f PrO l
c e d u re i n De s i gni n g Ro ls: G iven a new se ction to
evolve the roll desi gner proceeds in some such manner as f
,
o l
lo w —
s z F rom

a drawing of the section if he has decide d it is one that c an be rolled suc cess
,

fully he will have a templet made of the exact dimensions of the se ction
, ,

and from this temple t another for the finishing pass in which an allowance
o f about 015 inch per inch of dimension of the finished piece is m ade for
.

c ontraction of t he metal in cooling from the finishing temperature to

atmospheri c temperature He must t hen decide on t he proper size of rolls

.

to use which determines t he mill that is t o roll the se ction

,
This de cision .

made he has given the appro ximate size of the bille t or b loom from w hich
,

t o be gin the number of sets of rolls and the number of passes in which
, ,

the wor k must be done H aving given now t he firs t and las t passes with
.
, ,

their dimensions and t he t o t al number of passes he m ay be gin the design

, ,

of the li nte r m e d i ate passes This he does by drawings which are be gun .

“ ” “ ”
by se tt ing o ff a cons t ruc t ion line or pitch line as i t i s sometimes
called This line l ocates the center of gravity or t he cent er of fi gure of
.
, ,

the various passes and is usually place d midway between the axis of rotation
of the two rolls .

Di ffi c u l l
ti e s i n De s i gn i n g Ro ls: H aving drawn the pitch line , the
roll designer then proceeds t o m ark off t he passes from bille t t o finishing
pass and in doing s o he has a multitude of t hings that must be kept i n
,

mind some of which are : l T he method of shaping is one of squeezing

,
.
,

spreading and bending 2 The total amount of reduction is b e s t d is

, . .

tributed am on g the various passes as evenly as possible exceptin g the ,

finishing which is reserved t o t rue up the shape

, 3 Al lsides o f the . .

pie c e sho uld be thoroughly worked 4 The piece shoul d no t e nter two . .

successive passes in the same position as otherwise the meta l will be ,

sque e ze d out between the roll and form what is known as a fin 5 S ince . .

they weaken the roll very much deep cuts into a roll should be avoided , .

6. The passes shoul d be s o shape d as t o e liminate side thrust on the rolls .

7. A pie c e w il l not enter a pass in the rolls if all its dimensions are larger
than the pass 8 The thin parts of a se ction cool faster t han the heavier
. .

parts and must therefore be forme d in the last passes 9 Se ctions that
, , , . .

require deep grooves in the roll s are d ifficult t o roll successfully on ac count
of the di fference in the periphera l spee d of the bottom and the top of the
groove The part of t he rol l having the greatest diameter elongates the
.

pie ce more rapidly than the part having the smallest diameter and tends
to cause the pi e ce t o twist and cur l on leaving the rolls This difficulty .

can be overcome by using rolls of slightly different d iameters by r aisin g ,

or lowering t he center of m ass of the piece from the pitch l ine or by re d uc

ing the am 0 1m t of reduction on the part t hat elongates the more rapidly .

10 .The draught on the various parts of a section must be properly

proportioned as otherwise the pie ce w ill contain w aves or be distorted in
,

other ways 1 1 He must also keep in mind that all kinds of steel do not
. .

work al ike and what can be done with open hearth steel for instance
, , ,
 T URN I N G A N D DRES S I N G ROLLS 29

would be impossible with Bessemer and vice versa With these diffi culties .

to contend with even highly experience d roll designers may fail on the
,

first trial at a new se ction I n that case an entirely new set of rolls may
.

be required which adds much t o the expense of rolling the section Besides
,
.

q uestions , such as those above that affe ct t he shaping of t he material

, ,

t he rol l desi gner i s als o e xpe cte d to consider time and c ost S o , he will .

e nde avor t o avoid rol l changes or other Operations t ha t wil l del ay t he work
‘

o r ad d t o t he cos t o f t he rolling operation Thus , i t wil l be found t hat in

.

m os t mills one se t of ro ughing r olls wil l be use d t o produce a gre at number

of di fferent se ctions This has the e ffect of giving the desi gner a fewer
.

num ber of passes with which he forms the shape and adds much t o the“

difficulty of his task .

l
T u r n i ng t h e Ro ls: H aving designe d all the passes for the rolling o f
a given se ction a set of templets one or more for e ach pass is made These
, , , .

templets are t o be use d in t urning the roll , for which p urpose a spe c ial set
of tools may be re quire d I n the rol l shop , the rolls are firs t centered
. .

V arious methods m ay be use d for findin g t he center When this point has .

been loc ate d a l ead hole may be made with a ratchet drill and then widened
, ,

out to t he p rOp e r angle with a reamer t o a depth of a bou t inch The r oll .

is then placed in the ne ckin g lathe , w hen , supporte d by t he c en t er holes ,

the nec ks may be turned to exac t size or they may be machined t o near ,

the exac t size and finished by grindin g and polishing Since t he center .

holes are liable to wear down irre gularly if use d t hroughou t t he pro cess
of turning the body o f the rol l i s t urned in another lathe in which
,

the roll is supporte d by choc ks : t ha t fi t the ne c ks Here the roll .

is turne d down t o size , and the p asses o ut in t o fi t t he t emple t supplied

by the rol l d esigner When one roll i s complete d , i t is pl ace d in ch o cks
.

higher up in the ho using and t he s e cond roll is pl ace d below it , where it

,

m ay be turne d with the finishe d roll as a guide , s o t ha t t he two parts of the

passes may be m ade t o fi t exactly With ordinary t ools chille d rolls are
.
,

seldom t urned w ith a surface spee d of more t han fifty si x inches per minute -
,

b ut with t ools m ade of high spee d t ool steel this spee d may be increased
to seventy t wo inches per minute Speeds twice as gre at as these may be
- .

employe d for turning the other kinds of roll .

Dre s si ng t h e Ro l
ls: Af t er a set of rolls has been in service a variable
length of time the passes become worn t o such an extent that they no longer
,

produce the se ction t o the re quire d dimensio ns and they mus t t hen be ,

replace d by another s e t I n mos t c ases these w orn out rolls may be t urned
.

again , or dresse d down, s o as t o give the corre c t size once more or i f the ,

section i s o f such shape t hat this refitting is impossible , t he passes may be

enlarge d t o produce a se ction simil ar in shape to t he firs t One bu t of greater
weight This wearing of the rolls is one re ason why rolling t o lerance is
.

require d on al l materials .
3 30 TH E ROLL I N G M I LL

Type s o f Mi l ls: Before procee ding farther it may be wel l t o e xplain

that there are two main t ypes of mill referred to as T w o =h igh and T h re e =
,

h i gh mills . As t he names indicate the cl a ssifi cati On is base d on t he manner

of arran ging the rolls in the housings a two hig h stand consistin g of two ,
-

rolls one above the other and a three high having thre e ro l
, ,
ls thus arranged
-
.

I n all three high mills , e ach rol l revolves co nti nuo usl
-
y in one dire ction only ,

whereas in t wo high mills t he di rection of t he rollin g may be in one dire ction

-

only or in opposite dire ctions at di fferent intervals in whic h case they

, ,

are c alle d r e ve rs i ng mills .

In the ol d days before the invention of the thr ee hi gh mill or the -

reversing engine if it was desire d to pass the bar more than once through
,

the s ame stand of rolls the catcher ret urned the piece t o the roller b y
,

placing i t on t he t op of t he upper roll which c arrie d it in the direction ,

o pposite t o tha t in whi ch i t moved at the bottom of t he roll Mills in .

which this practice prevailed were called p u l l

=ove r or d ra g=o ve r mills and
a re t o be looked upon as the fore r u nner of the reversing mill I n the first
-
.

mill of the reversing type a ratchet gear furnishe d the means for reversing
the mill Pull over mills are still in use , and are the mills mos t often
.
-

employe d for rollin g sheets Another kind of two high mill is the c o n t i n u o u s
.
-

mill , which consists of severa l stands of rolls arrange d in t andem and '

prope ll e d with a single en gine G u i d e , l oo p and the s o calle d C ro s s

.

c o u n t ry mills are made up of severa l t wo high stands and one or more -

three high stands G uide mills are smal l hand mills cons isting of se veral
-
.

stands of rolls in a t rain They t a ke t heir name from their having metal
.

guides t o suppor t t he piece as it enters the various passes I n many guide .

mills i t is t he practice of the c atchers , in order to save time t o start the ,

piece through e ach of the passes before i t is through the preceding one ,

thus forming a l oop After t he institution of this practice it w as found

.

that the loop coul d be made by means of a tube or trough c alled a ,

re p e a t e r , and thus di spense with the c atchers S uch a contrivance is a .

part of many modern bar an d strip mills The cross co untry mill is m ade .

up of several stands Of rolls , arrange d in t rains or trains and tandem sets .

T he bar , propelle d mechani cally by means of l ive rolls t ransfers etc , ,

.
,

must reverse its c ourse t wo o r more times t o pass through the various sets
of rolls from t he furnace t o c ooli n g tables These mills represen t one of the .

l
lates t and mos t effi cien t t ypes Co m b i na t i o n m i l
.s are t hose in which the

roughin g or maj or par t Of t he reduction is done in c_ ontinuous rolls and the

shaping in a guide or l oop mill T h e U n ive rs al Mi l lis one which in addi
.
, ,

tion t o the horiz ont al rolls usually arranged two high bu t occasionally three
,
-

high is provide d with vertical rolls all set in one housing These mills origin
, , .

ally contained b ut t wo vertical rolls on one side only of the horizontal r o l ls b ut ,

in modern mills there are t wo sets of vertic al rolls one set on either side of the ,

horiz onta l ones The mil l is use d for rolli ng plate s and e ye bars t hat
.

re quire rolle d e dges Besides these t ypes t here are many spe cial mills
.
, ,

usually named from the inventors such as the G ray mill for rolling beams
,
 32 T H E ROLLI N G M I LL

d ifficult The simplest way is to place double groove chocks between the
.

top and middle and the middle and bottom rolls and t hen se t t hem in the ,

housings one above the other , s o that all the adj usting made ne cessary by the
wearing away of the lb ra sse s and the material of the rolls themselves may , ,

be mad e with the large se t s crews in the top of the housing But this .

arrangement c auses the bottom bearing to wear down rapidly and increases
the power require d t o drive the mill due t o the additional friction induced
,

on this bearing by the weight of the two upper rolls and their c hocks .

T his faul t may be ov e rcome in two ways : (1) By making t he bottom

roll fixe d and supporting this extra weight on the shoul ders of the chocks
themselves the distance between rolls may then be re gulate d with s hi ms or
, ,
“ ”
liners by adding or removin g the shims as the bearings we ar down
,
.

(2) A better way an d the one most often empl oye d in modern mill s is
, ,

to make the middle roll fixed , in which case the bottom rol l is raise d and
lowered by me ans of an adj usting wedge attached t o a s cre w in the
housing which permits i t to b e move d bac k and forth with a wrench from
the outside of the housing Other methods of adj ustin g this rol l are in
.

use also A method of suppor t in g e ach roll separately by means of hooked

.

screws and cross bars has also been develope d , t he d etails of which would
be unprofitable t o study here I n all m ills two high as well as three high
.
,
- -
,

the top chocks are held do wn by means of two strong screws which work in
threaded holes or nuts in the tops of the housings .

T h e F u nc t i o n
o f t h e C h o c k s is not only t o furnish be arings fo r the
rol ls vertically but to prevent t heir movement l aterally as well This .

l ateral displacement of the roll is prevente d by the inner e dge of t he b earing

which is formed t o fit against the sho ul der of the roll A djustments for .

wear in this direction are provided fo r by adj usting s crews which extend
through t he side of the housing and bear on the e nds of the chocks This .
‘

l ateral adj ustment is a matter of gre at import ance in rolling se ctions that
require groove d rolls the re ason for which is self evident
, .

T h e H o u s i n gs There are two housings for e ach stand of rolls they

: ,

may be made of e ither iron or steel the choice of materi als dependin g
,

upon t he size of the mill the strength required and t he preference of the
management They are c astings of an O o r U—
, ,

. form e ach enclosin g a S pace

-
, ,

calle d t he w i nd o w , w hi ch serves as a re ceptacle for the choc ks H ousings .

may b e e ither c l o s e d t o p p e d or o p e n t o p pe d ; in the former the base , ,

the t wo l e gs and the tOp are all cast in one pie ce while in the latter the
, ,

top may form a separate part whi ch can be remove d The base of t he .

housin g is c ast with a proj e ction on e ach side the two forming the feet ,

of the hous i ng I n the bottom of each foot is cut a groove which fits over
.

a girder c alle d a s h o e , running parallel to the rolls Suitably s haped

, .

bolts then serve t o clamp the foot of t he housing to t he shoe which is ,

firml y fastene d t o the foundation by means of l ong bolts This metho d .

permits the h o us i ng to be moved l aterally and much facil itates the plumb
, ,
 H OUS I N GS A N D P I N I ON S 3 33

ing and l ining up of the mill T he tops of the two housings in a set are
.

prevente d from spreading apart by means of suitable t i e rods or the t ops ,

of both housings may be c ast in one pie ce S imil arly tie ro d s will usually
.
,

b e placed a t the bottom Re cesses or other openings are c as t in t he

.

ins ide of e ach housing t o rece ive the supports for t he guards and guides ;
these s upports being us ually in t he form of square bars which extend from
housing t o housing i n front of the r olls The i mmense pressure applied to
.

the rolls between t he to p and bottom o f the housing acts as a stretching

force on t he Upri ghts of the housings and is an i m portant factor in deter
,

mining the reduction t hat c an be e ffe cte d in one p ass and also the exactness
with which the thickness of the piece i s controlled .

T h e A d j u s ti n g Eq u i p m
e n t for the roll s has alre ady been located and
partly describe d in the preceding paragraphs I n addition it shoul d be .

pointe d out t hat in l arge mills in which t he top rol l is adj uste d d uring the
,

rolling power must be supplie d t o operate the screws To provide for the
, .

transmission of the power , the t op par t of e ach screw which i s m ade s quare ,

or hexagonal for a distance s lightly gre ater than t he rise of the roll passes
through the c ore of a pinion These pinions m ay t hen be turne d directly or
.

indirectly with a horizontal hydraulic cylinder loc ated at a proper height ,

usually on t op of the housings of t he driving pinions ; or by me ans of a ,

worm shaft an d t he proper w orm gears t he s c r e w d o w n m ay be e ffe cted

‘

with a small e le ctric motor I n smal l mills w here the adjustment i s only
.

occasional , t he s crews Wil l b e operate d by hand by means of spanner

bars I n al l c ases the c ompression o f t hese s crews i s unavoidab le and
.
‘

combine d with the stretch of the housings produces the spring of the mill ,

which in some c ases is surprisingly gr eat .

T h e P i nio ns : An import ant part of t he mill is t he pinions T hey .

are broad face d s teel ge ars l oc ate d between t he prime m over and the rolls .

The ir functions are t o divide the power , which i s delivere d by t he engine

or motor through a s ingle s haft or driving S pindle usually spoken of as t he ,

l eading spindle , a mong the rolls and t o c ontrol t heir dire ction of rotation .

They run in bearings contained in a pair of housings simil ar t o those for the
rolls , and shoul d be c ompl etely and t i ghtly c overe d t o prote c t them from
dus t and dir t w hich wo ul d c ause t hem t o we ar ou t r apidly They need .

to be w ell lubric ated , an d t he presen t practice of giving them an oc c asional

dressing of pine t ar plumb ago and t al low o r other mixture of gre ase is
, , , ,

givin g w ay t o t he better pl an of having the housings c ast in one pie ce so

as t o form an oil bath at t he bottom in which t he bottom pinion i s partly
submerge d P inions are o f t hree k inds base d on t he arrangeme nt of t he
.
,

teet h In the oldes t form the teeth ran straigh t across t he face but
.
,

eventually i t w as foun d tha t a smoother r unnin g pinion results if t he face

be divide d into t wo p arts and the teeth of t he t wo halves staggered i e ,
. .
,

set in s o t ha t t he t eeth in one half are in line with t he space in the other .

This desi gn give s an e ffe ct like that which w oul d be obtained if the pitch
334 T HE ROLL I N G M I LL

were decre ased T his scheme was also found to e ffe ct a saving in power
. .

S till another improvement results from t he use of pinions wi t h helic al or

“ ”
herrin g bone teeth , whi ch also tend t o eliminate vibration in t he pinions ,

a s some parts of t he teeth are always in contac t , t hus ma king the trans

mission of the power continuous This pre sence of j ar when e ach t ooth
'

comes into action has an effect on the material as in cert ain class es of ,

material t he ol d form of pinion was found to produce marks on t he b ar by

the j arring of t he t eeth meshing bein g transmit t e d to the rolls I n al l .

mills except pl ate mills the dis t ance from center t o center o f t he pinions
,

determines the size of the mill .

T h e C o n ne c t io ns : E ach
roll except in the c ase of friction driven
,

rol ls is conne cte d t o its pinion by means of s p i nd l

,
es They are usuall y .

made of c ast stee l and are fitte d a t e ach end with wobblers l i k e those on
the rolls The c onne ctions be tween pinions and S pindles and rolls and
.

spindle s are made with c o u p l i ng b oxe s The couplin g bo x is a hollow

.

cylindrical casting t he space in which corresponds in se ction t o t hat of t he

,

wobbler , one end of the box fitting over t he wobbler on t he rol l an d the
other over that of the S pindle In order t o s afe guard t he m i ll , the c oupling
.
-

boxes are usually made the wea k es t part of t he mill I n s ome mills this .

wea k spo t is t he leadin g spindle which c onnects the pinions with the engine
,

or mo t or , instea d of one of the couplin g boxes S ince the S pindle must be .

pu t in plac e wi th the two c ouplin g boxes on it the l ength of the S pindle ,

mus t be a little more than twice the length of the box I n m i l ls ; t he t op .

,

roll o f w hi c h moves up an d down through a gre a t distance the upper ,

spindle i s t hrown out of l ine horiz ontally A s i t i s very difficul t t o .

°
operate with a spindle more than 15 out of level this angle must be kept ,

within t he allowable limit by incre asing the length of the spindle I n .

suc h c ases the ends of the wobblers are cut from a section of a Sphere to
give t hem the rounded form necessary t o permit them t o work at differen t
angles and the S pindle is suppor t e d by means o f saddles which rise and
,

fal l with the roll an d hol d the spindl e in pl ace .

G ui de s a nd G ua rd s : In
order to prevent c ollaring and to insure
that the piece enters and le aves its pass in the c orre c t position , guide s
are employe d These gui des vary in form and siz e t o fit the c onditions
'

. .

I n some c ases t hey are merely groove d fore plates ; in others they are blunt
-

e dge d plates set up in front of the collars , dividing the space in front of the
rolls into a series of pi geon holes ; in large mills rolling heavy se ctions ,

they may take t he form of grooved rollers ; in the smaller mills like the
guide mills they are t rumpet shape d castings t hat fit close up t o the roll
,

and have exit openings t o conf orm to the shape and size of the se ction
of the enterin g piece ; in other mills , like the continuous mill , t hey may
be so constr ucted as to twis t and t hus t urn the piece between t wo successive
passes G uides may be empl oyed on both sides of a pass in which c as e
.
,

they are desi gnated as entering guides and del ivery guides They are hel d .
 T H E ROLLI N G [WI LL

power employe d t o operate the shears is hydrauli c for the heavier mate ri als,
such as slabs and l arge blooms while ste am and ele ctric power are us ed ,

for al l other work .

-
S EC T I O N 1 11 .

S OM E G E NE RAL F EAT U R E S P E R T A I NI N G TO OP E R A TI ON OF T HE R OLLI N G MI LL .

lFo rce
Mi l
'

T he : Of e qual i m p o r tanc e wi th th e
of a mill '
e ui
q pm e nt ,

are the men w ho ope rat e i t and the organiz ation and system bac k of them .

Unde r the gene ral superintendent of the stee l pl ant there may be a number
of rolling mill superintendents e ach of who m wil l have charge of a group ,

of mill s turning out similar products A s his assistants the mill sup e ri n .
,

tendent sele cts foremen e ach of whom are responsible for the successful
,

operati on of one or two of the mills Below the foreman t he mill is divided .

into departments with a man at t he head of e ach , w ho is charged with

,

the performanc e of a certain par t of the w or k Thus t here i s the he ater .

,

who has the heating of the material t o loo k after ; the roller w ho s upe r in ,

tends the actual rolling process ; the engineer w ho tends t he engine o r an ,

ele ctri cian if motors are used for running t he mill ; and t he shearmen
, ,

whos e duty i s t o see that the produc t i s properly cut Bes ide s t hese other .
,

departments such a s t he machine and the e le ctri c shop the inspection and
, ,

shippin g departments pl ay important parts in the mill operation ; t hough

,

t hey do not com e under the di re c t authori t y of the mill superintendent .

When it i s remembere d t ha t t he failure of any one of t hese may close d own

the whole mill t he importance of system and of the personnel of the orga ni
,

z a ti o n i s more full y appre ciated .

f t h e Rol l
‘

Du tie s o er : So
far as the product of a given mill i s con
cerned it woul d appe ar that the roller and roll designer are the chief fi gures
,

Co —
.

operation between these two men is essential for in a measure their ,

interests are identical ; the roll desi gner d e cides how the wor k is to be
done and the rolle r sees tha t it is done properly The l atter will therefore
, .
, ,

c oncentrate his attention upon the product an d with caliper gauge or , , ,

templet will take frequen t me asurements t o make certain t he mate rial is

bein g rolle d t rue to t he dimensions S pecified He will ke e p a sh arp l ook out .
-

l
for und e rfi l l
s o ve r fi ls fins guide marks collar marks laps and any other
, , , , ,

rolling defe cts and make the ne cessary adjustments t o correct them
, .

Fi ns : It
is the intention t o discuss the defects of materials in con
lrollin g
ne ct i o n with the rolling of e ach particul ar class of product but in a l ,

whe re groove d roll s are used the o c currence of fins is so liable t o happen
,

that i t is well t o c onsider t hem here more espe cially since t here will b e ,

occ asion to use the t erm frequently Fins are forme d when t he s ection is .

too l arge for the pass it is entering or whenever in desi gnin g the pass , , ,

prope r allowance has not been made for the spread of the material thus ,
 OP ERA T I N G FE A T URES 3 37

caus ing the metal t o flow out between the fla t bodies of the rolls o n e ac h
side of the groove If this fin is thi n and wide i t wil l be folde d over without
.

welding and form a l a p w hen the pie ce after turning has bee n sent through , ,

the next pass Besides fins may be dangerous , fo r if the rolls are very
.
,

close together a ny spre a d ing of material betwee n them is likely to bre ak

'

them .

T h e Di ffe re nt Pa s s e s a n d S t a n d s
in mill s t ha t rol l finishe d shapes
are given class names Thus the firs t rolls the piece enters in t he m ill a re
.

us e d mainl y t o reduce the size of the bloom or bille t , and t he pie ce generall y
leaves t hem in the same shape i t entere d Th ese passes are c alle d the .

l
ro u gh i n g r o ls and the stand or stands is spo k en o f as t he r ou gher , o r

roughers I f the suc cee din g stand merely c arries t his re duc t ion furt her
.
,

it is c alle d the p o n y rougher The stands an d passes in w hich t he actual .

shapin g of t he piece is d one are c alle d the s t ra n d s , usually numbere d 1, 2 ,

etc The pass next t o t he l ast is c alle d the p l

. a n i s h e r , bu t since in r ol l

desi gning t his pass may be looke d upon as the firs t pass l eadin g bac k fro m
the finishe d se ction t o t he bl oom some desi gners c all this pass the l e ad e r
,
.

T he l as t pass is always c alled the fi n i s h i n g .

Fac t o r s A ffe c t i n g t h e Ro l
li n g O p e
t io n : I n the rolling of steel ra

there are fi ve factors t o be considere d namely the temperatur e of t he , ,

stee l durin g t he rollin g the chemica l c omposition of the me t a l , t he spee d

,

at which t he rolls are revolve d the draught in e ach pass an d t he d iamete r , ,

of t he rolls Furthermore t hese fa ctors shoul d be cons idere d from t he

.
,

three d i fferen t st andp oints of power , or e ner gy re quire d t o d efor m th e ,

steel ; their e ffe c t upon the rollin g pr o perties of the metal t ha t is , t he w ay ,

it will sprea d ben d and flow in the rolls ; an d t heir e ffe c t on t he quali t y o f
,

the finishe d produc t Al lthese matters have no t been fully investi gated
.
,

and our knowledge c oncerning them i s somewhat me ager but in order to ,

invite a t tention t o t hese subj e cts a brief summary of what is known about ,

these factors is appende d .

Effe c ts r a t u re : T h e infl
o f Te uence which the working of steel a t
m pe
di fferent temperatures m ay have upon the quality and properties of the
pro duc t has alrea d y been di scusse d under the c aption o f H o t an d Col d
Wor king , (Chap I I Se c t Rel ative t o t he power or ener gy re quire
.
, .

ments and the rollin g properties of the metal i t is t o be observe d that t he ,

higher t he t emperature is r aise d the more pl astic the steel be comes Thus .
,

while , a 10 pe r cent c arbon steel for example will give a tensil e strength
. .
, ,

of about 50000 pounds a t atmospheri c t emperatures at GOO O it will break ,

°

under a pull of 20000 to 25000 pounds per square inch at 700 C under a pull ,
°

of about 11000 pounds and at 8 OO O under a pull of about 6000 pounds

,
°
.

Between 8 00 C and 900 C a distinc t disco n tinuity in the t ensi le strength

° °

occurs with the resul t that at 900 C the tensile stre ngth w ill suddenly
,
°

incre ase to nearl y 9000 pounds From this point the strengt h de cre ase s .
33 8 T H E ROLLI N G JII I LL

with rising temperature , being about 6500 pounds at 1000 C about 4600 °
.
,

pounds a t 1100 C about 3000 a t 1200 C , an d approaching zero at 1460 C

°
.
,
°
.
°
.
,

the fusion point From these facts it woul d appear tha t the hi gher t he
.

temperature of the steel the e asier will it be deformed But t here are other .

features that tend t o keep both t he i niti a l and final working tempera tures
within certain well defined limits Since steel assumes a semi flui d s ta t e .
-

at temperatures somewha t bel ow its fusion point heatin g t o within ,

less than 200 C of this point exposes i t to the danger of overhe atin g or
°

s e c alle d
-
“
burni ng ”
F o r dea d soft steels the initial t emperature shoul d
.

no t excee d 1250 C, and fo r high c arbon steels to c arbon )

°
,

this temperature shoul d not excee d 1050 C I n order t o se cure t he gre atest
,
°
.

refinement of grain e ither t he initial t emperature or the S pee d of roll ing

,

shoul d be adj uste d s o tha t the finishin g temperature of the rolling will be
above b ut as near the critical range of the steel as possible
,
.

T h e Effe c t ica lC o m po si t io n need be c ons idere d here only

o f Ch e m
from the stan dpo i n t of energy re qui re d and rolling properties As t o the .

energy re quire d e xperiments have shown t hat sli ghtly more w ork is
,

require d t o r o ll a s t ee l con t ainin g c arbon than for s t eels c on t aining

only 10% c arbon Whether t hi s d i fference was due entirely t o the l ower
. .

t empera tur e a t whi ch the higher c arbon steel was rolle d or also partl y t o
the hi gher c onten t o f c arbon c oul d no t be determine d In t he hope t ha t .

i t w ould help t o sol ve t his q ues t ion an experiment w as performe d with ,

the obj e c t o f c omparing t he t ensile stren gth of hi gh c arbon an d lo w; c arbon

steel s at rolling t emperat ures Fo r t his purpose t hree s t eels havi n g a
'

c arbon c ontent of 10 percent , 22 per cent an d

«
. per cent bu t otherwise
. . .

of a pproximately t he s ame c omposition , w ere selecte d The res ults from .

pullin g t he fi rs t have already been given The mechani c a l properties of .

the other t wo were c ompare d a t 900 C only The average results obtained °
.

from pulling t en pieces o f e ach under similar conditions at the initial

temperature of 900 C are as follows : °

E longation R eduction
”
C arbon C ontent T ensile Strength in 8 of Area
. 22% lbs . 110% 94%
l
b s . 58 % 8 3%

T hese results woul d indicate that the higher c arbon steel i s somewhat less
plasti c at r olling tempera t ures t han the lower c arbon s t eel Therefore i t .
,

woul d require more ener gy fo r rolling and woul d no t S prea d or elongate ,

as readily as t he steel of l o We r carbon content As t o the e ff ec t of the .

other elements in plain steel phosphorus may produce e ffects — , s imil ar t o

those of c arbon sulphur t ends t o produce re d S hortness , while manganese

,

tends t o o ffset the e ff ects of sul phur and oxygen and improve the roll in g
properties Open he arth stee l , which is l o w in its phosphorus c ontent
.
,

tends t o spre ad more in the rolls than does Bessemer steel which is hi gher ,

in phosphorus The rolling properties are still more strongly affected by

.
340 TH E ROLLI N G M I LL

in the case of the c ontinuous mill the speed of all preceding st ands is deter
,

mined by the speed o f the finishing stand I n hand mills the spe ed is .
,

restricted to the highest velocity about six hundred feet per minute at
, ,

which the c atchers can grasp the piece wi th the tongs The magnitude of .

the draught is restricted by the limiting angle at which the rolls wi l “

l bite ’

the piece on entering This angle is found by experience t o be about

.
, ,

T h e Li m i ting Angl
e o f Ro l
li ng .

Above this angle t he result ant s o f t he forces o f co m pression have re ceded

so far from a parallel t o t he line j oining the centers of the rolls that they
exert a push on the piece , and the resultant of the forces of elon g ation i s so
nearly vertical that the horiz ontally inclined component due to fri ction
only is no t sufficien t to balance this bac kward push and dra g the m aterial
between the rolls In order to increase this limit a series of horizontal
.
,

and well rounde d grooves called r a gg i ng , are often cut in the surface of
,

the roll giving it the appearance of a half forme d c og wheel S ince these
, .

grooves leave ridges in the materi al they can be resorte d to only in bloo m
,

ing mills billet mills or roughing stands E ven th e n the gro oves must be
, , .

cut with considerable care in order to preve nt these ridges being folded
over into l aps i n succeeding passes and rolle d into the m aterialto appe ar ,

as seams in the finished product .

’

T h e Effe c t o f Di a m l
te r o f Ro le
s: From a study of Fi g 54 it will be .
,

seen that the l arger the roll diameters are the gre ater will be the draught
that may be taken without exceeding the limiting angle of r oll ing F o r the .

same draft however a l arge roll gives a gre ater roll surface are a in c ont act
, ,
 EFFE C T OF S I Z E OF ROLLS 34 1

with the metal than a small one and therefore re quires more pressure to
force it into the metal thus putting a greater tension on the hous ings and
.

requiring m o re ener gy t o drive it The l ar ge roll gives an a ffec t more l i k e

.

that of pressing than the small roll and with the draft and spee d properly
, , ,

re gul ated the e ffe cts of the rolling c an be made less superficia l wi th t he
,

l arge roll The l arge roll tends t o cause the meta l to sprea d more t han
.

the small roll Hence , the size of the rolls is a factor t o be consi dere d in
.

desi gning rolls for fl ats and other products in which the spre ad of the metal
-

may affe ct the dimensions of the finishe d article .

 ”
342 P RE P A RA T I ON OF S TEE L

C H A P T ER I V .

P RE PA R A T I ON OF T H E S T EE L F OR R OLL I N G .

S EC T I O N I .

I N G OT S A ND T HE I R D F CT SE E .

P re p a r a tio n o f I ngo t s : In order that the l arge bodies of metal

refine d at one time by the vari ous methods of steel making may be obtained
in a convenient shape for rolling it is ne cessary tha t t hese large bodies
,

be divi de d into smaller ones c alle d ingots o f a uniform shape and size
, ,
.

T hese conditions are obtaine d by pouring the metal while i t i s s till molten
‘

into moulds of the desire d dimensions where it may be allowe d t o s olidify

,

in par t or in whole before the mould is removed Before rolling be gins .

,

however t he ingot mus t have been allowe d t o s olidify t hroughout and the
, ,

whole mass should be of uniform temperature But in coolin g naturally .

,

these c onditions are not fulfilled bec ause t he outside of the ingot being
, ,

the par t from which the heat 18 remove d t he mos t rapidly , i s t he first t o
solidify With t his fac t in mind , i t i s e asily understood how , m any case
.

of natural c ooling the interior is the l ast t o drop t o any given t emperature
, .

I n fact , the moulds are s trippe d from many ingots w hi le t he cent ra l portion
is yet in the liquid state This fac t was e arly reco gnize d by s tee l w orkers
.
,

and s o i t was originally t he custom t o strip t he ingots as so on as possible

and place them in a t i ghtly covered hol e o r pi t in t he ground , where the
heat from the interior of t he ingot w as s lowly c onveye d t o t he outside by
c onduction and s uffi ce d no t o nly t o heat up the colder exterior part of the
,

i ngot bu t also t o suppl y heat t o t he pi t which w ith carefulm ani p ul

,
a to n , ,

was suffic ien t t o maintain a rollin g temperature This process was called .

s o a ki n g henc e the name s o a ki n I n order t o bring th e s oa king under

, g pit .

better control an d make i t adaptable t o varyin g conditions , me ans fo r

supplying additional he at was introduce d s o that the modern soaking pit ,

is in reality a k ind of heating furnace , a detail ed description of w hich will

be given l ater .

I n go t De fe c t s : A
prerequisite to faultlessly finishe d mate rial is
perfe ct ingots and by a perfe ct ingot i s meant one free from all c avities
,

or openings and made up o f material that is homogeneous throughout .

Unfortunately the natural laws that govern the s olidification of the liquid
,

metal operate against both these requirements and develop the well known ,

natural defe cts in ingots calle d piping blow holes se gre gation and crystal
, ,

li z ati o n A dde d t o these are o ther defects both incidental and accidental
.
, ,
3 44 P RE P A RA T I ON OF S TE E L

F I G 55 . S pl
i t I ng o ts S h o wi n g V ari o us F o rm s a nd D e gre e s o f Pipe .
I N GOT DE FE C T S 345

FI G 55
.
—C o u
nti n e d .
3 46 P REP A RA T I ON OF S T EEL

t
Me h do s o f R e d u c i n g Was t e d u e t o t h e P i p e : Obviously the only ,

way of avoiding this pipe is by discar ding the portion of the ingot affected .

Various schemes for reducing the waste due to this c ause have been and
are being tried and some of them are fairly successful among whi ch the
, ,

most promising seems to be the s e called h o t to p m o ul d As expl ained

-
.

in conne ction with the open hearth process in one form of t hese moulds ,

the ingo t is c as t with the smaller end down while the l arger end i s sur ,

mounte d with a short moul d which is line d with refractory and no n e o n -

cond ucting material s uch as clay This lining reduces the size of the top
,
.

section and keeps the top of the ingot in the molten state until the ingot
proper has solidified Thus the pipe is brought up into the c ope or sink
.
, ,

head which is of much smaller section than the ingot and the waste due to
, ,

the cropping is decreased accordi ngly This ingot is strippe d by first .

remo ving the insulated top section gripping the sin k head with tongs and ,

then lifting the ingot out of the mould I n a patente d form of t hi s mould .
,

known as the G athman mould a similar e ffect is produce d by de cre asing

,

the thickness of the mould at the top Since the he avy part of the mould .

causes a more rapid cooling t han t he thin portion t he meta l at the top is ,

the l ast to free ze .

ow Ho l
Bl e s: I n the
molten state iron or steel is c apable of dissolving , ,

large volumes of gases such as oxygen c arbon monoxide nitro gen and
, ,
-
,

hydrogen this solvent power increasin g with the temperature The iron
,
.

probably unites with all the oxygen imme diately i t is dissolve d hence it ,

is retaine d by the metal in the soli d s t ate if chemical me ans a re not

‘

employe d to remove it I n case of th e other gases howe ver no such stable

.
, ,

combination t akes place and t hey are largely thrown ou t of solution j ust
,

previous to the time when solidification of the meta l occurs As t he metal .

is i n a more or less plastic condition at this t ime t he l ast gas es t hus liber ,

ated m ay not be able t o escape from the body of the metal i n whi ch c a se ,

they c olle c t in bubbles as a gas will in ma kin g its way out of any fluid
,
.

Each bubble wi l l then form a small c avity in t he metal which is known as

a bl o w h ol
e These holes will vary in size from those visible through a
.

microsc ope t o large pockets the dimensions of which can be measure d in

,

i nches .The smallest ones are liable t o o ccur j ust below the skin of the
ingot where the rapidly cooling metal gave the tiny bubbles of e vol ved
gases t ime neither to escape nor t o collect in larger bodies Here the gases .
,

unable t o escape upward on ac count of the very vis cous nature of the
metal form tube like cavities that ext end at right angles t o the skin wall
,
-

of the ingot and toward the center I n the rolling of the steel the blow .
,

holes are close d up and welde d t ogether provide d their surfaces have not
been oxidiz ed in which case they will not weld and will produce defects
,

in the finished articles Blow holes near the center of the pie ce known
.
,

as deep se ate d holes are less liable to oxidation hence are the least harm
, ,

ful. But the smal l blow holes bene ath the skin of the ingot are l iable to
b e e xposed t o the air o r be filled w ith l iquid o xide of iron in which c ase
, ,
348 P REP A RA T I ON OF S T EE L

they produce s e a m s in the finished articles Blow holes are an ever .

present menace But corre ctives may be employe d suc cessfully and they
. ,

are sel dom a source of serious damage in ste el that has been properly
w orke d in the pro cess of manufacture and thoroughly deoxidized at the
time of re carb uri z ing I n this respect the use of aluminum in t he mol d at
.

time of c asting has been found t o be very e ffective Blow holes have the .

e ffe ct of reduc ing the size of the pipe and on this ac count are to be de ,

sire d if t hey are deep seated V arious attempts t o overcome both blow
.

holes and pipes me chanically by means of subj e cting the metal t o c ompre
ssion while in the molten state have been tried , but the e xpense of
operating these appliances more than outweighs the good derived ,

especially since the steel discarded on ac count of pipe is available for use
as scrap in the e pen hearth .

C rys t a lliz atio n

is the property possesse d by iron in common with ,

many other substances of forming crystals on solidifying

,
The size of .

the crystals depends on the c omposition of the stee l an d the rate of cool
ing ; in general , the s lower the cooling the larger the crystals will be I t .

is plain that the temperature a t c astin g an d the size and shape of the
ingot and mold c ontrol the rate of c ooling If the crystals are l arge t he force .
,

of cohesion among the crystals is decreased by the increase d are a of contact

and the larger size of their cleavage pl anes The e ffe c t of unduly l arge .

crystals is to make ingots liable t o tear in rolling This condition is .

sometimes calle d i n go ti s m The deformation and r e fi ne m e nt o f the

.
-

crystals in rolling prevents their e ffe ct showing up in finished pr e d i ct that

has b e é n properly worked .

S e gre ga t i o ii Steel
is a mixture of v a r1 o us c ompounds and elements ;
:

some of thes e are t o be l ooke d upon as impurities bec ause of their d e tr i

m enta l e ffe cts , bu t othe r s are ne c essary t o impar t t he properties m ost

desire d in the produc t While in the molte n state these solid ingredients
.
,

like the gases j ust me ntioned are held in s olution by the iron a p ower
, ,

whi ch i t doe s no t possess to th e s ame de gree at temperature s below its

free zing point S ome of t hese ingre dients free z e at a l ower t emper ature
.

than t he iron Furthermore the solution foll owing t he l aws of sel ective
.
, ,

freezing undergoes a series of changes and re combinations with t he f o rm a ti o ri

,

of various eute ctic s olutions w hich incre ase t he number of substances that
,

s olidify norm ally at much l ower temperature s than pure iron With Such .

an aggre gate it is e asy t o see ho w the pro cess of solidific ation results in
,

an isolation of the ingredients T h e se substances having t he highes t .

melting or freezing points of c ourse are the first to crystall ize This
, , ,

separation then has the e ffe c t of c oncentrating the solution of the sub
, ,

stance having the lower freezing points in t he mother l iquor This proc ess .

continues unti l t he mother liquor i s made up onl y of tha t subst ance t hat
has the l owest freezing point when it too will free z e forming i n the ingot
, , , ,

a solid m ass very different in c omposition from the metal that crystalli ze d
 I N GOT DE FE C T S 349

out at the be gi nning U nder such conditi o ns it is to be expe cte d that the
.
,

substances with the low melting points woul d be found in one S pot or l ocal ity
in the ingot and t hat this spot wo ul d be l ocate d near the top and center
‘

of the ingot that is at the bottom of the pipe where the metal w as the
, ,
,
,

last to free ze ; and to some extent this is what actually does o c cur so, ,

that t hi s ce ntr al
’

position of the ingot is spoken of as the l

i ne o f se g re ga t io n .

T hat the condition is not e ven more pronounced is due t o the closing in or ,

entrapping of the small pockets of the mother liquor during the freezing
,

and to the high viscosity of the fluid Like the pipe and the bl ow hole . ,

se gre gation cannot be overcome but by rapid cooling and the use of ,

aluminum t o quiet the metal it m ay be lessened somewhat In conclusion .

it should be remarke d that this is one of the fundamental re asons why

a range in chemical and physical specifications is imperative at least fro m ,

the manufacturer s point of view ’

.

C h e c ki ng s : I f the surface of a mold is very rough o r

a nd Sc a b ,

contains cavities s o th at resistance is o ffere d t o the natural contraction

,

of the steel transverse cracks in the skin of the ingo t may result
,
.

Howe ver in spite of all precautions that may be taken cracks in ingots
,

will oc cur and a study of this matter indic ates that this defec t is more
,

liable to oc cur in certain grades of steel than in others and particul arly ,

in those st e e ls in whi ch the c arbon c ontent is between 17% and These .

cracks become oxidize d and sub sequently produce a se amy product .

S cabby material is often cause d by improper pouring If care is not taken .

to prevent it , the metal may be splashe d against the side of the col d mold
during t he pouring These splashes tend t o stick t o the mold and
.
, ,

becoming oxidized on the surface will then appe ar as sc abs on the ingot
,

afte r it i s s tripped These defe cts very often S how up after rolling i n the
-
.

form of seams and slivers ; in pl ates they will form serious surface defects .

S uch defe cts are entirel y avoide d by bottom casting the ingots A cracked .

mold that must be forcibly drawn by the stripp er may produce simil ar
d efects .

V arious explanations are offere d to ac count for the

S lag I nc l u sio ns :
presence of sl ag particles hel d within steel S lag inclusions may be d ue .

to an improperly finished bath or i n case the furnace practice has been

good they m ay be c a use d by slag being stirred into the stee l
,

, and m e c h a ni
cally hel d by it while the h eat is being po ure d They may also be due .

to dir t i n the ladle or molds or they may be t he result of slag forming

,

reactions that oc cur during the deoxidation of the metal in the l adle or
molds The latter c ause w ould seem most conducive t o the formation
.

of the minute slag particles t hat o ccur s o frequentl y in nearly al l steels .

S lag particles if given t he opportunity , will rise to the top of the metal in
the ladle but for l ack of time small particles do no t al
, w a ys do s o Sl a g
‘

particles remaining in steel after it has been teemed have little opportunity
to rise because the chilling of the steel by the mold is s o rapid and they
, ,
3 50 P RE P A RA T I ON OF S TE EL

F I G 57
. . Sp l
i t I ng o ts
3 52 P RE P A RA T I ON OF S TE E L

are therefore entrapped Hence deoxidation in the mol d shoul d be

, ,
.
,

controlled by good j udgment and avoide d when possible Large sl ag .

inclusions are an original sourc e of blisters in finished products .

S i z e a n d S h a p e o f I n go t s : With re gard to the size of ingots a number

of factors operate to control both the size of the section and the length .

First of these is pour i ng cost I t is obvious that the c ost of t eeming a

.

50— ton heat into two ton ingots will be much gre ater than if the same heat
-

is cast into four ton ingots due to increase d n umber of molds required
-
,

the increase in scrap produced and the longer time c onsume d in stripping
,

and charging into the soaking pits etc The cost of rolling may be i n ,
.

creased also for a long ingot may be roll e d with the same number of p asses
, ,

as a short one of t he same section The product desired also is a factor .

, ,

in determining the s ize and the sh ape of the ingot I n pl ate mil ls for .
,

instance which operate independently of S l abbing mills the size of the

, ,

plate to be rolle d determines the size of the sl ab ingot The bl ooming .

and S labbing mills and their equipment , once installe d fix a limit t o the ,

size of the ingo t both as t o se c tion and length A s t o their shape ingots .
,

may be of any convenient form though for roll in g they are usually ,

square or re ctangular in section with rounded corners These forms are .

easiest on the steel as the flat sides o ffer the leas t resistance to c o ntr a cti on
,
x

on cooling and the ro unde d corners prevent rapid coolin g along the e dges ,

which woul d result in cracks from subsequent contraction on coolin g Fo r .

forging large rounds a round ingo t with a corrugated surface is used

, .

The corrugations permit exp ansion and cont raction of the ingot w
,

ithout
the danger of developing crac ks t ha t are liable t o oc cur in the surface and
interi or of ingots cast in a perfe ctly cylindrical mould The taper on i n .

ge ts is t o facilitate the stripping To express the size of a rectangular .

ingot the dimensions of its largest section are always given unless other ,

wise specified Thus a 23 % inch ingot means it is

.
, inches square
at the b utt ; an 18 % x inch ingot means it is rectangul ar in se ction and
18 % x 21% inches at the butt .

S EC T I O N I I .

UCTI ON OF T H E S OA KI N G PI T
THE CO N S T R .

G e n e r alFe a t u re s o f t h e S o aki n g Pi t : The s oaking pit of modern

construction is s o built that it c an be use d either as an old time pit o r as a
heati ng furnace Briefly soak i ng pits are deep chambers or underground
.
, ,

furna ces of s quare or re ctangular s e ctions heate d by the regenerative ,

princ iple and openin g a t the top A s to size t hey are built large enough .
,

t o contain four s ix or ei ght blooming mil l ingots per hole in an upright

, , ,

position The older furnaces contain four ingots per hole while the c apacity
.
,

of the mos t recent ones is eight ingots The increase in size is due mainly to .

the e conomy in fuel whi ch is obtaine d by the use of large pits While the .

details cf pit c onstruction may vary somewhat at different works yet the ,

form and principle of all are alike Therefore it is suflfic ie nt t o study b ut .

,

one which may serve as an example of all Fo r this purpose a six ingot
, .
,

furnace at Duquesne will be described somewhat in detail .

 THE S OA KI N G P I T

A r ra nge t o f the Pi t s : Fo r heating the ingots for the two

m e n

bl ooming mills at these works the 38— inch and 40—inch mills there are 11 , ,

rows of pits or t o be more exact 11 furnaces of 4 holes e ach The holes are
, , .

numbered 1 to 44 inclusive No 1 to No 20 and No 3 7 t o No 40 serve

, , . . . .

the 38 i nch mill ; the other 16 No 21 to No 36 inclus ive serve the 40 inch
-
, . .
, ,
-

mi ll I n case a furnace for the 40-inch mill is o ff for repairs No 5 furnace

'

. .
,

containing holes 17 18 19 and 20 may be substituted The first nine

"

, , , .

" "
furnaces are built t o c ontain si x 22 x 22 ingots per hole b ut numbers 10 ,

and 11 are c onstructe d to hol d eight ingots per pit This gives a pit cap .

aci ty for t he 40 inch mill of 96 ingots and for t he 38 inch mill 184 ingots
-
,
-
, .

The furnaces wi th the exception of No 1 are built in groups of two e ach .

,
.

From center t o cent e r o f each two adj acent furnaces the distance is thirty ,

three fee t .

t fo r Ha n d l
Eq u i p m i n g I n go ts : Spanni ng these soa king pit
e n

furnaces are ele ctric traveling cranes two of which are over furnaces No 10 , .

and No 11 and four are over No 1 t o No 9 i nclusive These cranes are

M organ 6—
. .
.
, , .

ton machines and are e quippe d with Westinghous e motors as ,

follows : 50 h p on t he bri d ge 50 h p on t he hoist 10 h p on the

. .
, . .
,
. .

trolley and 5 h p on t he t ongs The main hoist is Operate d by a gear

,
. . .

hoist and shafting rack The tongs are conne cte d up with a drum on a .

lifting arm giving a vertical movement of about nine an d one fo urth feet
,
-
.

The tongs are actuate d by means of a curve d groove in the main hoist so
that their distance apart may be varied The tongs are e quippe d with four .

inch bits giving a distance between the two bits , when i n the close d or
,

lowere d position of S ixt een inches and when i n the raise d or open position a
,

distance of nineteen and fi ve ei ghths inches Thus the largest ingot that c an -
.

be grippe d is one about e i ghteen inches at the top When larger ingots such .
,
” ”
as the 22 x 22 size are t o be handled it is necessary to remove one b it, .

Co ns t r uc tio n detail t he construction of a six ingot

f t h e Pi t s : In
’

o -

soaking pit furnace is as follows : Each furnace or pit contains four rect
angular holes eight feet l ong five fee t t hree i nches wi d e and ei gh t feet
, ,

seven i nches deep These holes are built side by side in t he furnace and
.
,

are separate d only by fi re b r i ck walls Each hole has tw o air re generators , .

one on each side so that in connection with e ach furnace t here are
,

eight re generators The holes are closed by fi re b ri ck c overs e ach c over

.
,

bein g supporte d on four wheels which roll on cas t steel rails lyin g on the
division wall between the pits and fastene d at t heir ends t o the I beams -

supporting the platform about the pits T he walls enclosing the che ckers .

and those supportin g t he pit proper rest on a concrete foundation twelve

inches thick These walls are buil t of fi re b ri ck face d on t he outside
.
,

with river brick The outside walls are about ei gh t een fee t high , and the
.

river brick wall dire ctly under the pit is about ei ght fee t hi gh The t op of .

this river bric k wall is prote cte d by cast iron c oping plates Placed .

vertically on these coping plates and extending up into the fi re b r i ck

bri dgewall are c ast iron end plates On the ce p ing pl ates rests also the .
 ROLL I N G OF S TEE L

C r o ss S e c ti o n D raw i ng o f a Ho l
F o ur - e S ix
- I n g o t S o aki ng
P i t F ur nac e
356 P RE P A RA T I ON OF S TEE L

sewer is two feet seven inches high and the arch is nine inches thic k There .

fore the re generator chambers for the t wo pits on each side ne arest the
, , ,

s tac k are three fee t four inches less in hei ght than the bac k chambers .

Be t ween the two re generators on the s ame air flue startin g at a hei ght of ,

about five fee t above the b ottom of the c hambers there is an eightee n inch ,

fi re b r i ck wall separating t he two adj acent chambers The two p airs of .

regenerators on the d iffe re nt a i r sewers ar e entirely separate d from e ach

other The bottoms of t he c hambers are separate d i nto four spaces (four
.

teen and one half inches wide ) by fi r e b ri ck withe w alls These w alls
-
.

extend bac k into the air sewer t o the air valve and provide for the e ven
di stribution of the air On these withe walls there is one c ourse of fi r e b ri ck
.

tile s on which the checkers rest The withe w alls are three fee t se ven
.

inches high in t he two pairs of regenerators farthest from the stac k and
two fee t four inches in the other two pairs , t hus makin g the hei ght of t he
first mentione d checkers nine feet six and one half inches I n the t wo p airs -
.

of chambers farthest from the stack the che ckers e xte nd up t o within ,
~

thi rty o ne inches of the bridgewall and in the other t wo pairs t o wi thin
~

eighteen inches The t op r ow of checker bricks are l ai d s o t hat t he openings

.

are in t he s ame dire ction t ha t the air mus t ta ke in enterin g t he pit The
”

roof of the re generator c hamb er is arche d being built of fi re b ri ck thirteen ,

and o ne half inches t hick but t he arch over t he bridgewall for a dist ance
-

of twenty—
, ,

seven inches is of silica brick nine inches t hi ck and l ai d in silica

,

slurry on t op of which is a thirteen and one — half inch fi re b ri ck arch .

Sili c a bri c k is use d in this construction bec ause i t is very refrac tory and
can wi thst and a heavy l e a d w hen hi ghly heated The whole furnace is .

securel y t ie d to ge ther by c as t iron c orner binders t ie rods and b ucks tays , ,

.

E ach of the four outside c orners of the furnace has a c orner binder fifteen
fee t ten and One half inches hi gh and the four c orners directl y under the
-
,

pits hav e binders e i gh t feet one inch high These binders have a t welve .

inc h flange two i n ches thick , provided with lugs for t he tie ro ds The
, .

binders are c onnec t e d by t wo inch tie rods Along t he t wo outside walls .

of the re generators there i s a structural steel buckstay the ends of which ,

are c on necte d across the furnace end by two inch tie rods
, , .

T h e Pi t C ove c onsist of four iron c astings which are bolted together

rs

and are hel d ri gid at t he center by a c as t iron separator I nclo sed in this .

frame is a fi re b r i ck arch As already stated t o these c astings are fastened

.
,

the wheels on which the c overs roll To e ach separator is fastened a steel
.

piston ro d c onne cte d t o t he piston head in a hydraulic cylinder These .

c ylinders furnish the me ans by w hich the covers are moved I

nsome .

pl ants the c ove rs are move d by lowering the t ongs into a spe cial box in
the separator c asting and then moving the crane in the dire ction desired .

T h e hydraul ic cylinders operate under a water pressure of 500 lbs per .

square inch They rest on c ast iron stands fastene d t o the floor beams
. ,

and the b e arings for the cylinders are place d about the center of the
cylinders thus making them free to rotate about this point This con
, .
 T H E S OA KI N G P I T , 357

struction is made necessary be cause ; as the furnace beco m es old the

, ,

dividing walls bet ween the pits sink and the rails bend Ther e fore , the .

conne ction of the piston rod and the separator has a c ons tantl y varying
elevation due t o the di fferent elevation of the rails and i t is necessar t o
y ,

have the cyl inders on a rocker so that they m ay foll ow thi s motion and
constantly adj ust themselves in line with t he piston The ext reme stroke
. .

of the c over piston is nine feet nine inches I n order t o ma ke t he c overs .

fit nicel y the tops of the pits are surrounde d by floor pl ates of c aSt iron .

Fu e l a nd V al
ve s , e tc : These pits were buil t t o use na tura gas
Ai r .
l
for fuel bu t t his fuel has been repla ce d by c oke oven gas When natural
,
-
.

gas was use d for heating the pits i t was admitte d through the ro of of t he
,

regenerator c hamber by means of two t hr ee fourth inch pipes twenty one - -

inches l ong These pipes were placed at such anangle (abou t four and one
.

half inches of sl ope per foot ) and distanc e from th e p i t tha t t he fl ame did
'

not pl ay dire ctly on the face of the ingot and a reducin g atmosp h ere c ould ,

be maintaine d inside the pit The pipes o r burners were t wenty o ne

.
, ,
-

inches apart and were fe d from a one and one fourth inch pipe whic h i nt urn -

was co nne cte d up t o a four inch gas manifol d supplying the gas t o t he four
ch ambers on a particular side Fo r coke oven gas it was though t i t w ould
.

be necess ary t o modify this s cheme of firin g somewha t i n order t o make .

the conditions suit the difference in the heatin g properties of t hese gases ,

but trial runs indicate t ha t satisfactory results are Obtaine d if the c o ke

oven gas is burne d in the same manner as the natural gas Fo r reversing .

the dire ction of t he air there are t wo thirty inch A hl e ns l

i d i ng valves , and -

for reversin g the dire ction of th e gas a th re e way valve E ach set o f valves
j
-
.

consists of t wo c ast iron be d plates t wo c as t iron slidin g plates t wo , , ,

hydraulic cylinders and t wo hoods The distance from center t o center

, .

of the hoo d s is five fee t three and one half inches The be d pl ates are -
.

bolte d to gether and the cylinders are bolte d t o them E ach of these bed .

pl ates has t hree openings co nnecte d t o fl ue s of which the two outside ones ,

lead to the re generators a nd the center one t o the stack These fl ue s are .

twenty two inches wi de the division walls bein g nine inches thic k and the
-

wal l between the two sets of valves t wenty two and one —
,

half inches thick - .

As t o the sliding pl ates they are also bolte d to gether and t h e two are then
conne cte d dire ctly to the piston of t he hydraulic cylinder The total .

length of the S liding plate is eleven fee t one inch E ach pl at e has S ix open .

ings two pairs of which are use d as air dampers while the other two form
, , ,

with the hood a part of t he flue t o t he stack The h oo d rests on t he sliding

, .

plate and both t he hood and the slidin g plate are wa t er c ooled The
,
.

hydraulic cyl inder has a stroke of two feet seven inche s and a plunger
diameter of six inches .

S t ac k-Fl
ues S t ac k :
The fl ue s leading from the valve t o the
a nd

stac k are three feet eleven inches hi gh and t wenty two inches wide I n -
.

these fl ue s are the stack d ampers These dampers are h and oper ate d by
.

means of a chain and a counter wei ght They slide in a guide frame m ade
-
.
358 P REP A RA T I ON OF S TEE L

in the form of a c asting set in the brick work The stacks are one hundred .

three fee t eight inches high and cons ist of a rivete d steel shel l and a l ining
,

of bric k wor k The plates of which the shell is made are one fourth inch
.
-

thic k a t t he bottom of the stac k and one e i gh th i nch at t he t op The -

.

outside diameters of the sh e l lat the t op and bottom are respe ctively four
‘

fee t si x inches and five feet t en inches The lining c onsists of a four and .
.

one half inch c ourse of fi re b ri ck

- .

T h e C o u rse o f t h e G ase s T h r o u g h t h e Pi t s : Of the two thirty inch -

air valves the one neares t t o the pits is for the t wo fron t pits and the other
,

for the two back pits Thus , fo r the two fron t pits , the air enters t he ins ide
.

valve through the t op sewer , g oes t hrough t he t wo fron t re generator

chambers , t he two front pits d own throu gh t he opposite checkers t hrough , ,

the top sewer through the inside reversin g valve then past t he r ight hand
, ,

stac k damper t o the stack F o r c ontrolling the sl idin g valve S O t ha t t he

.

two hoods w or k in unison a doubl e acting C ritchl o w valve is provided

,
-
.

E ach of the s lidin g plates is provide d with tw o ai r dampers s o t ha t i t is

impossible t o shut Off the air from the two adj acen t pits with the val ves
i n either position The gas on al l four pits is reverse d by one three way
.
-

valve bu t on e ach s ide o f t his valve t here are four other valves s o that
, ,

the gas c an be s hu t Off separately on any pi t To reverse the dire ction of .

the gas and air the gas is shut o ff then the air reversed a nd after it the gas
, , ,

is reversed .

The main di fference between the si x ingot and the

Ei gh t I ngo t Pi t s :
eigh t ingo t pits , aside from increased dimensions , l ies in t he fac t that the
air re generators are provi ded w ith a spec ial division wall This w all is .

built paralle l t o t he en d of t he pi t and extends t o t he top of the che c k ers ,

the obj e c t bein g t o retain any cinder runnin g over from t he pit in t he first
few che cker openings , t hus preventin g the choking of all but a fe w Of the
checker spaces and maintaini n g a higher e fficiency of t he re generators
, .

Also , t hese pits are provide d w ith two c inder holes inste ad of one as for
the si x ingo t holes The furnaces are space d f o rty— .one feet four inches from
center t o center a nd the holes are five fe e t three inches wide an d t en feet
,

seven inches l ong and are space d ei ght fee t t hree inches from c enter to
,

center The c overs on t hese pits c an be separate d abou t two t hi rds of the
.
-

distance from t he back On these c overs the piston i s c onnecte d t o the

.

end castin g of t he cover frame instead of t o t he separator , an d t here is a

separato r o n e ach portion of the c over When closed the s eparators fi t .
,

together and are fastene d thus with hooks With t his arrangeme nt it is
’

possible t o move the entire c over or by unhooking the back portion only , ,

may be moved .

Ma ki ng Up t h e Bo tt o m o f t h e Pi t : Bottom making is done by a

group Of men c alled t he bottom makers w ho are provided with shovels -
,
.

long handle d po k ers and cutters To clean ou t a pi t t he pit c over is pulled

-
.
,

back s l ightly and a shiel d is drawn up over the front of the p i t The cinder
, .

hole in the bottom of the pit is then opened with the poker and by me ans ,
 '

3 60 P REP A RA TI ON OF S TE E L

He a ti ng t h e I n go t s : what has been s aid i t is e asy t o surmise

From ,

that great inj ury c an be done in the he ating of the ingots This injury
'

consists of under heatin g over— heating uneven heating or worse than all
-
, , , ,

burning Of t hese under he ating and over heating are the least harmful
“

- -
.
,

to the steel ; t he former increase sthe power require d for rolling and decre ases
the ti m e permissible for the rolling ; the latter by incre asing the grain ,

si z e and lessenin g the force of cohesion makes the steel tender and liable ,

to crack Uneven he ating increases the difficulties of rolling very much

. .

A col d butt of an ingot for example may c ause a rol l t o be broken

,
Bufni ng ,
.

may range from extreme over he ating t o a temperature j ust below the -

melting point where the more fusible constituents melt and run out of the
,

ingot forming c avities that , on rolling result in defe cts that will be cause
, ,

for rej e ction of the material I n the case of thin skinne d ingots severe over
.
,

heatin g may have a like result by exposing the blow holes Besides these .

general precautions di fferent conditions and di ffe rent grades of steel require
,

different t reatment A s an example of the p Oint in question a summary

.
,

of the soaking practice as c arrie d out at Duquesne is given herewith .

We e k-End C h a r ge s : If hot steel is charge d S aturday e vening j ust

before the mill shuts down it will be all owe d t o soak until one or two ,
’
O clo c k S unday morning when gas wil l be admitte d for about an hour
, .

S oaking wi ll then be c ontinue d unt il the day turn c omes out at seven o cl ock ’

a m But if col d steel shoul d b e charge d before the w e ek end shut down
. .
- -
,

gas is admitte d for three or four hours t he flame bein g reversed at i rite rv als ,

o f fr o m one half t o one hour ; and the steel is then allowe d t o s oa k until
'

Sunday morning During the soaking the stack and air dampers are kept
, ,

cl osed .

S o a ki n g Ho t a nd Co l
d I ngo t s :
To bring hot steel to the re quired
rolling temperature re q u1re s approximately the s am e a m o unt of time as
the interval between the time the he at was tappe d and the time it was
charge d int o t he pits Ho t special steel of medium c arbon content must
.

be in t he pits about one and one half hours and spring stee l about one hour -
.

Thus the period from the time the he at is tappe d at t he open hearth until it
, ,

can be rolled , is about three hours for Duquesne special about t wo hours ,

for sprin g steel , and one and a half hours for ordinary steel To heat six .

cold soft steel in g ots in the 6— ingot pits requires about si x hours F o r .

about four hours after the p its are charged the gas and air may be admitte d ,

on e ach s ide altern ately for hal f hour periods The period of revers al .

shoul d then be cut t o fifteen minutes Towards the l as t as the temperature .

,

of the steel approaches the rolling temperature the perio d of reversal may ,

be cut t o five or ten minutes , for the more frequent the reversal the more
even wil l be the t emperature of t he pits C old steel is very rarely .

charge d in the ingot pits t he practice being followe d only after a ,

shut down w hen t he mills start operating at the same time as the open
-

hearth for at such a time there is no hot steel on hand The period
,
.

re quire d for heating col d steel in the eight ingot pits is about ei ght hours .
 S OA KI N G I N GOT S 36 1

S oft s te el is he ated t o a t emperature of about 1200 C (2200 F ) With °

.
°
.

both hi gh and l ow carbon steels shoul d only four or fi ve ingots be char ge d

,

in the smaller pits the perio d require d for heating woul d be greatly re duced
, .

T his is t rue e spe cially for the l ow c arbon s teel for with onl y four ingots ,

to a pit it is possible t o prepare the col d steel in four hours By charging .

onl y six ingots in t he lar ge pits the period may be reduce d t o about six ,

hour s Before a c ol d high c arbon heat

. c arbon or over ) is charged ,

the pits shoul d be coole d for about a half hour for if these ingots are he ate d ,

rapidly they are liable t o crack After the pits have been cooled the ingots
.
,

are charged and s ometimes the covers are left Open for a half hour s o
, ,

that the steel wil l be he ate d very s lowly The period between reversals .

sho ul d not be as long as for l ow c arbon c ol d steel and so at first the reversals ,

for steel of this grade are made at intervals of a half hour or less and during ,

the bal ance of the time the perio d between the reversals is about ten minutes .

The rolling temperature of S prin g stee l is about 1090 C (2000 F ) °

.
°
.

S o a ki n g Ho t S p r i ng S t e e l
: This grade of steel is charged in a ho t
pit The gas may be admi t t e d for a half hour the flue being reverse d every
.
,

five o r ten minutes ; the steel s houl d then be allo wed t o so a k for fifteen
minutes and then gas shoul d b e admitted for about fifteen minutes t o bring
,

up the temperature of the outside of the ingot This steel shoul d b e ready .

to roll in about an hour While t he steel i s soaking in addition t o shutting

.
,

o ff the gas it is best t o shu t o ff t he air supply also , for the e ffe ct of the
, ,

hot air on the ingot is t o oxidiz e o r even t o burn it If the steel is very .

hot when c harged it shoul d be allowe d t o soa k for a half hour before gas
,

is admitte d ; then gas and air s houl d be admitte d for about a half hour ,

with reversals every fi ve or ten minutes The steel shoul d then be s oaked .

for a half hour without air and then j ust before drawing the temperature
, , ,

of the outer part of the ingot shoul d be brought up by admission of gas

and air again .

S oa ki ng Lo w C a r b o n Ho t S t ee l
: Ho t
l ow c arbon steel ingots m ay
be heate d witho ut danger for a half hour the dire ction of the gas and air ,

being reverse d e very fifteen minutes The s teel shoul d then be all o we d to .

soak for fifteen minutes and before drawing the outside t emperature shoul d
,

be raised S ince there is not as much danger O f burning this steel as there
.

is with the hi gh c arbon grade s it i s no t always ne cessary t o close the air

,

dampers during the time the steel is soaking .

Me d i u m S t e e l
S o a ki n g s : The practice with respect t o medium steels ,

.3 0% t o 60 % carbon is to hea t the ingots t o about the same temperature

.
,

as for low carbon steel The steel if charge d hot shoul d be ready to roll
.
, ,

in one hour after charging .

S o aki n g S c re w S to c k : H igh sulphur steel is charged as quickl y as

possible after stripping The time require d to he at it is about one and a
.

half hours The steel is heate d to dripping that is until the s cale melts
.
, ,

and flows r e a dily from the s urface and is rolle d when in that c ondition ,
.

Owing to the h i gh sulphur content it is necessary t o maintain go od practice , ,

3 62 P REP A RA T I ON OF S T EE L

in rolling to heat i t very hot so that the steel will be ve ry p l

, ,
as ti c This .

condition is obtained only at a very hi gh temperature about 1240 : C ,

°
.

S ince these screw stoc k ingots are heat e d until they are drippi ng
°
(2240
a large amount of liquid cinder is always formed so that it is ne cessary ,

to add a little coke in the pits after every hea t of t his ki nd to absorb this
cinder .

S o a ki ng Al oy S te e l
l s: Nickel steel is heated t o about the same
temperature as S pring steel 1090 C Chrome vanadium is he ated to about
,
°
.

1250 C C opper steel is heate d accor di ng t o its carbon content in much

°
.

the same way as c arbon steels .

Draw i ng t h e I ngo ts : The craneman draws the ingots from the pits
according t o the o rders of the heater Usually a definite order is followed ; .
,

at Duquesne the re gular method is to draw the two front ingots from e ach
of two holes then the two middle ones from each of the two holes and then
, ,

the two back ones from e ach of the two holes The operation is t he nrepeated .

on the ne xt two holes H owever the operation may be varied ; the two
'

.
,

front ones in e ach of four holes may be drawn thus affo r di ng m o re time for ,

the middle ingots to heat while the others are being drawn To t ransfer .

the ingots from the pits to the blooming mill t ables thr ee pot c ars t wo of ,

whic h are extras are provided These cars are operated by 19 h p

, . . .

Westinghouse motors At the 3 8 inch mill they are c ontrolle d and dumped
.
-

from the manipul ator of the mill but on the 40—

.

inch mill t he man that

, ,

operates the pit covers controls t he movement of the c ar Whe n; the car .

recei ves an i ngot it is run t o the first t able roller , and there the car is tipped ,

when the ingot falls upon the t able .

He a t Bal a nce o f Pi t s : That t he soakin g of ingots is an e xpensive

process is evident from the e quipment require d The c ost Of the up— keep .
-

of this apparatus is high and the e ffi ciency is y ery low even on up—
, to d ate ,
-

furnaces as the followin g he at bal ances as determine d by experiment on

,

some Duquesne furnaces using natural gas will show :

Tab le 50 Da t a Re l
a t ive to th e Effi c ie ncy
. o f S o a ki n g Pi t Fu r nace s.

Sensibl e He at in S teel C harge d . B . t u . .

Heat of C ombustion of the G a s .

Heat C arrie d in by R e genera t e d Ai r

TOTA L .

H eat in Steel when Drawn

H eat in G ases Entering S tack
H e at G iven up t o Re generators
‘

Radiation and Unac counted for Losses

Heat A bsorbe d by S teel

9
 C HAP T ER V .

T H E R OLL I N G OF S T EEIr —BL OOM S A ND S LA BS .

S EC T I O N I .

I NT R OD U CT OR Y .

Ou tl
i ne o f the Pl
an o f S tudy : R olling
mills are somewhat like
houses Thus while they are alike as to gross features they di ffer gre atly
.
, ,

a s to details of construction Jus t as the archite ct will strive t o impart

.

individuality t o a building s o t he rolling mill engineer an d builder will

,
-

endeavor t o introduce new ide as l ooking t o greater improvements i n c on

struction ; and j us t as i t is desirable t o adapt a building t o its lo cation and
s urroundings s o is it found ne cessary t o alter t he details of mill c onstruction
,

to sui t t he conditions lo cal and otherwise The result of al l these influences

,
.

on mill c onstruction has been t o produce such a variation in mill s that

'

there are no two mills exactly alike Evidently , to describe all the details
.

of mi l ls and their Operations i s well nigh an endless task ; yet it is desirable

t hat t he reader be given an Opportunity t o be come s o well acq uainte d with
the ro llin g of e ach product that he will be more o r less familiar with the
more e ssential details of its production and thoroughly understand the
conditions under which it is produced The plan de cided upon as best .

to pursue is this : An attempt will be made t o describe the rolling of a s .

many products as possible and in d O ,

i ng so t he order followed will be
from the rolling of material from ingots , to semi fi ni she d products to -
,

finish e d products as indicated in the previous diagram I n this con

, .

ne c ti o n o ne m ill rolling t he material in question will be described as well ,

as the Operation in d etail ; after w hich the product itself will receive sp ecial
a ttention I n describing mills the details of one mill of each t ype or clas s
.
,

wil l be given As a sort of workin g outline of the plan , the following classi
.

fi ca ti o n of mills will give an ide a of the ground t o be covered and the

‘

order in which the sub j ects are t o be treated The general disc ussion .

pre ceding this part o f the study s houl d supply information to fill in any
,

gaps that may occur in the stud ie s to follow

‘

.
 BL OOM S A ND S LA BS 365

Ta b l
e 52 . Cl
as s i fi ca t i o n o f Mi l
ls
.

A . M il ls R olling M aterial from I ngots .

1 . S emi fi ni shing M ills

-

a Blooming (Co ggm g)Mills

. .

b S l abbing M ills ;
.

2 . F inishing
a . U niversal P late M ills .

B . M ills R olling M at erial from Blooms and Sl abs .

S emi—
"

1 . fi ni sh ing
a Billet M ills . .

b S heet Bar . .

c Skelp . .

2 . F inishing
a . Plate M ills
i S he ared
. .

ii Universal
. .

b . R ail M ills .

c . Structural S hape M ills .

d .
—
Wheel Mills S choen M ill .

e . Wheel and Circular S hape M ills .

C . Mills R oll ing M aterial from Billets .

1 Merch ant M ills

. .

a G uide M ills
.

b Ba r Mil l s . .

c H oop or S trip M ills , e t c

. .

Bl
oo m s, Sl
ab s a nd Bi l
le ts :
a preliminary step toward forming As
steel int o the various sections which its man y uses re quire the heavy ,

ingots exce pt in certain pl ate mills and some l arge shape mills are first
, ,

roughly re duced in mills espe cially designed for t he purpose , t o muc h li ghter
,

but stil l very simple sections as the round , the s quare and t he rectangle
, .

When t he ingo t has been reduce d t o the dimensions of a square between

one and one fourth inches and si x in ches it is cut into convenient lengths
-
,

c alle d b i l
le t s ; i f these pieces are six in ches square or larger t hey are known ,

as b l o o m s : and if reduce d t o rectangular forms bu t with widths which are

less than twice the thickness and w ithin the dimensions spe cifie d for the
s quare , the s ame names apply But if t he width far exceeds the t hickness
.

of the rectangul ar se ction then it is calle d a s l ab, I f the outpu t o f the mill .

i s mainl y blooms it is c alle d a bl oomin g mil l in t he Unite d S tates or a

,

c oggin g mill in Engl and ; if billets a bille t mill ; and if sl abs a Sl abbing mill
, , .

The blooming and S l abbing are the l argest and stronges t mill s use d t o roll
steel if the mills tha t roll he avy armor of whic h there are no l onger any
, ,

in thi s country be excepted ; The re asons for the e xi stence of t hese mi l

, ls
are e vident .
3 66 THE ROLLI N G OF S TEE L

S EC T I O N I I .

S OME G E NE RA L FEA T URE S P E RT AI NI N G T O B LO O MI N G MI LLS .

S iz e o Mi ll
f Bl T he size of blooming mills is popularly
oo m i ng
s:

s uppose d to be based on the diameter of the rolls , or on the distance from

center t o center of the rolls Both these quantities are c onstantly changing
.
,

due to the wearing of the rolls which affects their diameters and to the , ,

fact that they are adj ustable The si ze is therefore , b ased on the distance
.
,

from center to center of the pinions which corresponds t o the distance ,

from center to center of t he rolls and also to their diameters and i s always ,

constant The blooming mills in use at the presen t time will range i n size
.

from twenty eight to forty si x inches The older mills are the smaller
- -
.
,

because it was formerly the practice t o c ast the ingots much smaller than
at present , and l arge mills were not re quired The S iz e of ingots having been .

gradually increased for the reasons already pointe d out the siz e of t he ,

mills desi gne d to roll them were necessarily increased also This size seems .

now to have approache d a standard and most mills of recent c onstruction ,

have rolls in the neighborhood of forty inches in diameter .

T ype s o f Bl oo m e rs T h e i r Ad va n t a ge s a n d Di s a d va n t age s : Bloom

,

ing mills are of three general types namely , re ve rs i n g , c o n ti n u o u s both , ,

of which are tw e h igh , an d t h re e =h i gh Of these , t wo hi gh reversing and

a
.
-

three high m ills are t he mos t c ommon As an exampl e of the c onti nuous
-
.

blooming mill , the bille t mill a t G ary , I nd , is cite d I t consists of nine . .

stands o f rolls arrange d in t andem and separately driven by ele ctri c motors .

S ince its bl ooms are d elivere d d ire ctly to a co ntinuo us b i l le t mill , t he

reduction of the ingot t o billets i s ma d e in one continuous opera t ion The .

chief advantage in this arrangemen t is an extraor d inarily large output .

As t o reversing an d t hree hi gh bloomers e ach Of t h e se type s has its

-
,

advantages and disadvantages s ome of whi ch i t may be of interes t t o ,

enumerate here The main advantage of the reversing mill over the three
.

hi gh l ies in its greater flexibility Thus the t op roll bein g adj ustable .
, ,

vari o us sizes of bl ooms billets or sl abs c an be rolle d on o ne se t of rolls and

, ,

the d raugh t c an be re gul ate d t o suit steel at di fferen t temp eratures and of
differen t grades Even di fferent me t hods of re ducin g t he ingo t may be
empl o ye d with t he s ame rolls On l on g lengths t he t wo—
.

. hi gh mill is t o be
preferre d on ac coun t of the gre ater e ase with whi c h su ch materia l c an be
handle d while t he simplicity of t he rol l desi gn is als o a factor in favor of
,

these mills On the other hand a reversing mill is a much more e xp ensive
.
,

mill than a three high mill I n the first pl ace the t onnage is much l ower
-
. .

On two high forty inch mil l s the average output is about 2000 t ons per
-

twenty four hour d ay , t o produce whi ch about 2500 tons of in g ots ar e

-

required while a t hree hi gh mil l of t he same size wil l roll almos t t wice as
,
-

much steel A gain , t he power e quipment of the reversing mil l is costly

.

and the l oss of power is grea t Reliable tests S how tha t the total po we r
.
3 68 T H E ROLLI N G OF S TEE L

devel ope d by a reversing mill engine is di stribute d about as follo ws

27 used in overc oming idle friction of the engine parts
-
.

9% use d in overcom ing pinion and spindle friction .

13 % use d in overcoming roll j ou rnal friction .

21% use d in overcoming the acceleration of the parts in reversing .

30% use d in actually deforming the steel .

I n t hree high mill s where the rotation is in one dire ction only , there
-

is no acceleration loss besides by the use of a flywheel lighter engines

, , ,

than those used on the reversing mill may be use d t o do the same work .

Efficiency tests o n t hree hi gh mills show that about 8 5% of the total power
-

develope d by t he engine is use d in drivin g t he mill and the idle friction ,

of the mill parts is about thus leaving nearly 70% of the motive
power develope d available for deforming the steel .

Drive fo r l
i ng Mi l S ince the lengths dealt with on blooming
Re ve
s: rs

mills are rel ativel y s hort the speed of the rolling is slow but as the
, ,

material is he avy and t he pull is great though the draughts are only ,

moderately heavy great power is require d H ence most of the Older

,
.
,

reversing blooming mills are indirectly driven th at i s they are conne cte d ,
'

to the engine through large gears which enable the engine t o travel at a
hi gher speed than the mill The power is t hus multiplied by a number .

e qual t o the s peed ratio This spee d rati o will vary in the di fferent mills
.

from as high as three t o one t o as low as one t o one while many mills of , ,

which the thirty ei gh t inch bl oomer at H omeste ad and t he forty inch

-

"

mills at C lai rton and Duquesne are e xamples are di re c t driven A few , .

reversing mills installe d s ince 1914 are driven by reversing ele ctri c motors .

These mo t or i ns t allations are very complicate d They consis t of a main .

motor and a motor generator set , which prevents t he acceleration loss

-

pecul iar t o the steam driven reversin g mil l and rais e s the efficiency of the
mill considerably .

S EC T I O N I I I .

A N E X AMPLE OF RE V U Q U E S NE
E RS I N G MILLS -
T HE 40 MILL AT D .

T h e Engi ne for this mill which is driven dire ct is of t he twin tandem , ,

compound c ondensing type but i s operate d non condensin g I t w as made ,

-
.

"
by M ac kintosh H emphill
- -
Co ”
I ts si z e is 44 x 70 x 60 and its maxi .

mum horse power is rate d a t The maximum t orque at the cir cum
feren ce of a t hirty inc h roll is inch pounds The engine may run at -
.

any spee d up t o 140 r p m but the maximum spee d during rollin

. . .
, g is about
13 0 r p m . The e xhaus t s t e am is dis charged into a fee d water heater
. . .

T h e throttle i s c ontrolle d from the pulpit locate d about thirty feet in front
of the rolls and dire ctly over the roll tables .

Drivi n g C o nne c t io n s : A cast nickel steel crab of six pods is k eyed -

onto the crankshaft of the engine ; i t is four feet five inches in diameter .

Over it and hel d in plac e b y wooden stretcher bl o cks is fitte d the l arge
,

e nd of a c as t nickel steel compound c oupling box which at this end is , , ,

three feet two inches in diameter The driving spindle from this coupling .
 T WO- H I GH B L OOM I N G M I LL 9

is five feet e leven and one four th inches long and is supporte d by a c ast
-

stee l c oupling c arrier restin g at its four c orners on standard spiral car
sprin gs of 12500 pounds c apacity w hich stand ei ght and one fourth inches ,
-

hi gh when free s even and one fourth inches at 4700 pounds l oad and six
,
-
,

and nine sixteenth inches when fully c ompressed The S prings i n t urn rest
-
.

on cast steel seats bolte d t o S pe cial cast iron shoe s whi ch are a nchore d t o
the shoe s c arrying the pinions and housings The c arrie rs are line d w ith .

one inc h of babbitt metal The mill end coupling bo x i s two feet four and
.

one half inches in diameter and i s cast t o fit over the four pods of the engine
-

end wobbler of the bottom mill pinion .

Pi nio ns a nd Pi n io n H o u s i n g s :
The pinions are of the staggere d
strai ght t ooth typ e and a re made of nickel s teel approximately of a c om ,

position as s hown by the following analysis : C arbon manganese , ,

sulphur and nickel Their average , ,

life is tons of steel rolled The t op and bottom pinions are similar .

and henc e interchangeable E ach one is t en feet si x inches l on g over all

.

and four fee t ten inches be tween the ne cks w hich are twenty one inches in ,
-

diameter This diameter is further reduce d t o twent y and one half inches
.
-

at the wobblers The pitch diameter i s forty inches , a nd the number of

.

teet h i s fourteen The pinions run i n soli d c ast steel babbitte d bearings
.
,

the bottom o f whic h are bevele d t o fit on t he s ills of t he w indow of the ‘

cast iron pinion housings The pinion hous ings are bolted t o the mill shoes
.
,

’
are nine fee t six inches high and have wi ndows 2 wide by 7,

deep ; the windows are lined with one and one fourth inch forge d steel -
.

liners hel d in place by stud bolts thro ugh the housings A cast steel housing
-
.

c ap t o whi ch i s att ache d the hydrauli c c ylinder use d for l owering the top
,

rol l of the mill is fastened over t he housings by me ans of k ey bolts The

, .

bearings are e ach t wo feet si x inches w ide and twenty inches from
front t o bac k and may be adj uste d by set pins reaching th rough the housings .

The top bearings res t directly on t op of the bottom bearings unless plate ‘

liners are use d in between them t o get the proper pitch for the teeth The .

bearings are hel d down t igh t b y k eying the c ap on tight and using liners
between it and the top bearing if necessary .
I

S pi nd l
e s a nd Co u p l
i ng Boxe s : Over the mill —
end wobblers of the
pinions a re fi tte d c ast steel coupling b oxes uniting the wobblers with the -

S pindles The c oupling boxes of c ast steel are t wo feet si x inches in diam
.
, ,

eter and twenty two and one half inches wide and c as t t o fi t o ver the four
- -
,

pods of the S pindles The bottom and top S pindles are e ach ten feet l on g
.

an d twenty one inches in diameter where the y rest on their c arriers The
-
.

bottom spindle is provide d w ith w obblers t wenty and one half inches in -

diamete r and two fee t in l ength and is nineteen inches in diame t er a t the ,

center between the t wo carrier bearings On t he t op S pind l

e t he w obblers .

are nineteen inches in diameter thirteen and seven ei ghths inches l ong and ,
-

are curve d at t he ends t o permit the m ill end t o ride up or down with the
t op roll Twenty three inches at t he center of the top S pindle is turned
.
-
 70 T H E ROLLI N G OF S T EE L

smooth to a diamete r of twenty one inches to give a bearing for the spindle
-

carrier which is movable The bottom S pindle rests at two points n e ar

,
.

its ends on t wo stationary S pindle carriers bolte d t o the mill S hoes The .

carrier for the top , o r vibrating spindle c onsists of a cradle formed by two
,

c as t stee l arms hung at their engine ends from t wo supportin g ro ds pivote d

on spring supporte d bolts which pass through supporting brackets bolted t o

-

the pinion housings I n the center of the c arrier is a rest for the S pindle
.
,

and on its m il l end the c arrier is supporte d by the c arrier bearin g for the
top roll being fastene d to this bearing by a forged steel pin A coupling
,
.

b o x si m i l
a r t o those use d with the pinions fastens t he bottom spindle t o
‘
'

the bottom roll ; seven eighths of an inc h cle arance is al lowe d at e ach c on
-

ne c ti o n between spindle and pinion or roll res p ectively Fo r the t op , .

pinion a li ght c oupling bo x is use d in order that it may act as a safe ty for
,

the mill by breaking under excessive strain before any other part of the
mill is damaged This box is twenty two and one half inches in w idth
.
- -
,

twe nty fi ve a nd three fourths inches in outside diameter and two and one
- -
,

quarter inches in thi ckness at the thinnes t point The other boxes are .

four inches thick Al lcoupl ing boxes are hel d i n p l

. ace by iron or wooden
stretcher blocks fastene d in pl ace by steel or leather straps .

lHo u s i n gs :
Ro l The roll housing on the engi ne side of the mill is set
with its center line fourteen feet six and one quarter inches from the center
- -

line of the mill end pinion housing a cast iron separator and stee l bolt
-
,

holding these t wo housings in line This housing is cast steel but in other .

respe cts is the same as the outside housing w hich is made Of ca St iron , .

Both are b o l
'

te d t o the mill shoes and stand t welve feet three inches high
above them ; they are set with their center lines seven fee t eleven inches
apart and are hel d in line by two c ast iron separators and steel bolts one ,

at the front and one at the bac k Besides the mill rolls the ho usings als o .

suppor t four fee d roll ers t wo on e ach s ide of t he rolls si xteen inches in
, ,

diameter and five fee t t en and one eighth inches l ong The windows of the - .

housi ngs are thre e fee t five and one half inches wide , nine fee t de ep and -
,

begin t wo fee t t en i nches bel ow t he t op of the housing I n the top of e ach .

housing i s left a hole fo r the housing nut , w hich is made of brass Through .

these nuts the housing s crews for adj us ti n g t he t op roll are inserte d The .

nuts are l arger a t t he bottom t han a t t he top ; t hey are t wenty inches in
diameter a t bottom , s ixteen i nches at top and thirty fo ur inches high ,
-
.

They are s hru nk into the housings and over them are fastened small c aps , ,

twenty seven i nche s hi gh on which the s crew pinions rest The housing
-
, .

screws , t he bottom e nds Of which pres s dire ctl y do wn on the screw brasses
in the c as t i ron breaker bl ocks on the rider bearing boxe s of the t op roll ,

are made of 60 % c arbon open hearth steel , eight feet three inches long and ten
.

inche s in diameter ; t he t hreads have a pitch o f tw o inches They mus t .

allow a l if t of t wenty fi ve inches These s crews are provide d wit h o ctagon

-
.

heads Fitted about t he he ads are s tee l pinions which res t on t he t op Of

.

the s crew c aps The pinions have a pitch o f t wo and one q uarter inches
'

-
.
,

a pitch diameter of fifteen and ei ghty t w o hundredths inches a face of

“

- -
,
372 T HE ROLLI N G OF S T EE L

ro ds These rods are mounted in so c kets hung from counterwei ghte d arms
.

underneath t he mill the rods c oming up through the housings and b o ttom
,

bearings on e ach s ide of the necks of the bottom roll T he c arrie r be ari ngs .

are thr ee feet thre e inches wide t wenty three and three fourths inc hes f r o m
,
- -

fron t t o bac k and are si x inches thic k a t t he base The y ar e fl a t on t he .

bottom an d c oncave a t the t op w ith a t welve inc h ra di us an d b abbitt m etal

one an d one fourth i nches thick On the engine side o f the inner bearings
-
.

are two lugs for re ceiving the p in t o hol d up the S pindl e c arrier The rider .

bearin g of t he to p r ol l i s c ast stee l t wo fee t tw o an d one half inche s wide ; -

twenty o ne an d t hree fourths inc hes from front t o back and t wo and one
- -
,

fourth inche s thick wi th one inc h of babbit t metal I t i s c onc ave bel ow
,
.

at a radius of twelve inche s and bevele d on t op The bearin g box also of .

,

cas t steel i s of the Same d imensions as the bottom bearin g except that it
, ,

is se ve n inches thic k I t is bevele d underne ath t o receive t he t op be aring

.

and is fl a t o n t op On i t rests t he cast steel bre aker bl ock , into w hich

.

the housin g s crew fits The bre aker blo cks are protecte d by brasses
.
,

which are placed in s oc kets on the tops of the blocks .

Hy d r a u l
ic S h e a r s : I mme diately
beyond the forty i nch mill delivery
table be gins t he NO 1 shear t able , d elivering t o a hy drauli c bl oom S hears
,
. .

T his t able is thirty o ne fee t long and c onsis t s of fourte en c as t stee l rollers
-
, ,

tw elve inches in diameter and five fee t e leven and one quarter inches wide -
.

Thes e a re driven by a Westinghouse 30 h p 220 vol t series wound D C . . . .

motor c ontrolle d either at the bloom o r t he bil let shears At the ; e nd o f

, .
.

this table i s an emer gency shear I t i s a vertic al hydraulic she ar usin g water
.
,

at 500 po und pressure t o the squar e inch ; the pl unger i s f o rty two inches in -

diameter w ith a nineteen inch s troke The bottom s he ar knife is the

one actua t ed by t he plunger ; t he knives are t wenty seven inches w ide and -

fo ur inches t hic k As this i s an emergency shear , it is rarely use d

. .

S te am S h e a rs :
No 2 shear table i s imme diatel y beyond the hydraulic
.
-

shear s an d has thirty si x driven r ollers , an d o ne idler all simil ar to t hose

-
,

a t No 1 S h e ar table , e xcep t the l as t t w o which are c oll are d on one end

.
-
,
.

T h e roller s are driven b y a Westinghouse 50 h p 220 vol t serie s w ound D C . . . .

motor c ontrolle d a t the s te am shears Thi s t abl e delivers the bl ooms and .

sla b s t o the steam shears the center o f whi c h i s ninety two feet ten and one
,
-

hal f inch e s beyond the hydraulic shears A bloom stamping machine is .

locate d o n t his tabl e mid way between the two shears ; i t is of the idler wheel
typ e a nd i s hel d in pl ace hydraulically The steam shears are driven by a
—
.

M a cKint o sh H emphi l "

l 18 x 20 simple verti c al steam e ngine t he d riving ,

shaft of which is meshe d with the S hears by a hydraulic all y Operate d clutch .

Thes e s he ar s a re a lso vertical acting the t op knife bl ade being driven ,

down t o mee t the fixe d lower one The knive s ar e twenty seven and one .
-

half inches w ide and t hree inches t hick a nd th e t op one has a ten and three ,

fourths inc h stroke The steam shears are equippe d with a gauge and
.

ste pp e r for c utting a number Of pie ces t h e s ame length ; the stopper c an b e

Se t i d cut leng ths from t welve inch s t o o ne hundred thirty six inches, -
e
 T WO-H I GH B LOOM I N G M I LL 73

inclusive , in quarters of an inch ; the piece to be cut is run through the shears
onto the rear t able which is s ixteen fee t l ong and c onsists Of sixteen
,
.

hollo w c ast stee l rollers ten inches in diameter I t is driven through

,
.

univers a l j oints by a Westinghouse 19 h p 220 vol t series wound D C . . . .

motor and c an b e t ilted at its re ceiving end hydraulic ally t o move down
with t he shear knife Fo r pieces forty inches lon g or l ess i t is moved
.
,

nearer the s hears t o prevent the pie ce from falling into the pit for but t ends .

Beyond t his table i s t he lo ad i n g table for b looms and sl abs ; it is seventeen

fee t lon g and has sixteen hollow c ast stee l rollers e i ght inches in diameter .

I t is driven from a line shaft by the s ame t ype of motor as the S hears rear
table Halfway down this table o nits inner s ide is a ste am k icker wi th a
.

seven inc h by four fee t nine inch c yl inder , whic h sl ides t he bl oom down
a chute to the buggies on the trac k s bel o w A hydraulic stopper i s l o c ated
.

a t the end o f t his t able C rop ends or s crap c an be run o ver t he en d of t he

.

table t o c hargin g boxes belo w the end of it Si x feet six inches beyond .

the end of this tabl e be gins the re ceiving table of a fourteen inch c ontinuous
mill.

Ma n i p u l
ato r : Allreversing mills are provide d with manipulat o rs for
turnin g the ingot as desire d between the p asses for moving the piece from ,

groove t o groove an d fo r straightenin g it as it e nters the passes of the mill

when s uch strai ghtening i s necessary They are l ocate d under the roll
.

table and near t he rolls on the entering side of the mill They are of various
, .

forms The manipulator for t his mil l c ons ists of t wo parallel s ets of five
.

fingers e ach an d has b oth a vertic al and hori z onta l movement The frame
, .

is beneath the t able rolls and rests o na bottom frame w hich is supported
on four heads c onn e cted t o t he arni s of bell cranks These cranks are
, .

supporte d on a be d plate an d are c onne cted up by stretcher rods t o a

hydrauli c l ifting cylinder w hich has a stro k e of fourtee n and three f o urths
‘

-
,

inches This ratio of t he l engt h of the crank arms however i ncre ases this
.
, ,

lift t o eighteen i nches On this frame are fi ve rails t o form a t rack

.

for the wheels of t he upper frame whi ch i s move d horizontally by me ans

of a hydrauli c cylinder I n the l owest position the fingers are five inches
.
,

below the top level of the roll tables ; in the highest the y exte nd thirteen ,

inches above it .

De s i gn o f t h e Ro l
ls : lreversi ng
Al
bloomin g mill rolls are desi gne d
with sli ght coll ars between the passes in order t o c ontrol the spreadin g of
the material under t he he avy re duction a s otherwise t he material may
,

spread s o far a t t he s urface as t o c ause a protrusion , or fish tailing of the ,

meta l a t the edges , which be comin g folde d over w oul d cause l aps To
, ,
.

prevent t he c ollars from cutting into t he stee l and thus formin g l aps all
the passe s except t he fi nishin g are given a s light belly A fille t a t the b a se .

of the c ollars serves t o keep the c orners of the piece wel l rounded T he .

t a ggi ng on the rolls t o increase t he bite has already been referre d t o As .

to arrangement of t he passes di fferent pl ans may b e pursue d as may be

, ,

seen from a study of the ac companying drawings T he first two des i gns .
374 THE ROLL I N G OF S T EE L

—i
IQ a OI _ _
H

LI _
’ '
k M C
TH E ROLLI N G OF S TEE L
 BL OOM S 377 .

Pm . 62 . A no t he r De si gn fo r 4 0-inch T wo - H igh R e v e rsi ng B l

o o m i ng M i l
lR o l
ls .

zi r
’ —7 “t r

To p and b ottom rolls have same di m ensions

F ra . 63 . A 3 8 -I nch R eve rsing Bl

o o m ing lDe si gne d
M il to R o l
la Fi xe d Size o f Bl
o o ms

S EC T I O N I V .

E XA MP LE S OF T H REE—
HI G H B LOONII N G MI LLS .

Pl
an o f S t ud y : S ince a good ide a of the rel ative dimensions of the
di fferent parts of the blooming mill may be gaine d from the pre ceding
detaile d description of t he forty inch mill at Duquesne such details for , ,

the sake of brevity may no w be omitted and the description of th e for t y

, , .

inc h three hi gh mill at E dgar Thomson be made more ge neral with the ide a
”

of em phasizing the di fference in construction and operation between the

‘

two high and the three high blooming mills , only

- -
.
a . J
 “

378 TH E R OLLI NG OF S TEE L

T he Eng i ne a nd Co nne c t io ns :
compound c ond e ns ing A tandem
”
engine size 50 x 78 x,
furnishes the driving power fo r the mill The
"
.

engine is housed in an engine room separa t e fr om the mill I t is provided .

with a 75 ton flywheel twenty-fi ve fee t in diameter an d r uns a t a speed of

-
, ,

54 r p m . This flywheel supporte d be tween suitabl e b e ar m gs I S mounted

. .
, ,

upon the driving shaft , which is conne cted by means of a crab and c oupling ,

bo x to the driving spindle This S pindl e i s nine fee t ei gh t an d one half.

-

inches long including ten inches at e ac h end for the wobblers and t wenty
, ,

one an d three fourths inches in diameter I t is supporte d a t its center

-
.

by a stationary carrier be aring and , exte ndin g thro ugh the wall of the
.
,

separate engine room conne cts the driving shaft of the engine t o the middle
,

pinion of the mill .

T he Pi nio ns a nd S p i nd l
The pinions c ontaine d in t hree hi gh
e s: ,
-

housings similar t o the roll housings are si x fee t four inches l ong Over all
-
, ,

and when in pl ace , measure forty inches from center t o center o f any t wo
,

adj acent ones The l engths of the ne cks are twenty one 1nc he s and t hei r
.
-

diameters are twenty two inches These pinions are of t he herrin g bo ne

-
.
,

or helic al toothed t ype Unlike t he reversin g mill , w here t he use of a

.

"
vibratin g spindle makes it ne cessary t o set t he pinions at some distance
from t he mill the three high mill wil l be set with t he pinions as close as
,
-

possibl e t o the rolls ; the roll S pindles are consequently , much s horter , .

The S pindles for this mill are four fee t t en and t hree fourths inches l ong -

ove r all and twent y one and t hr ee fourths inches in diameter E ach
,
- -
.
~

S p i nd l
e i s supporte d a t i ts center b y me ans of a bearing mounte d o n a bar

tha t bridges the space between the inside rol l housin g and t he Opposite
’
pinion housing Spe cial l y desi gne d c oupling boxes c onne c t the spin dles
.

with the pinions and the rolls .

T h e Ro lHo us i ngs are of the Open t op type

l At the t Op the window .

of the housing is close d with a he avy c ap w hi ch is securely fa ste ne d t o , p

the c olumns of the housing b y means of he avy k ey bolts , t he slo t te d ends of

which extend up through and above the ends of t he c ap The s crew down .

passes downward through the center of the c ap and rests on the t op of the
upper be aring of the t op roll s o that the pressure may be a pplie d directly ,

over its center The ri gidity of the housings i s incre ase d by t he use of
‘

b race rods which extend from a height about the center of the t op roll ,
both fore and aft , t o an anchorage pro vide d by proj e c t ions on the s hoes .

The two housings are t ie d t ogether by means of separators and bolts on

fron t an d bac k attache d j ust below t he c aps of the housings , s o that they
are almos t on a level with t he upper side o f the t op r oll I n width the .

housings measure seven fee t eigh t inches from cente r t o ce nter of the shoes ,
a nd are approximately fourteen feet h igh frdm the l owest point in the base
“

to the top of the c ap .

T h e Ro l
ls a re all of the same len gth and d i a m e te r of ne ck
lengths
‘
. T he
of the bodies are seventy six inches while the di mensions of the ne c ks and
-
,
38 0 T H E ROLL I N G OF S TEEL

wobblers are the same as for the same parts of the pi nions A s to the dia m .

e te r s of the bodies , the three rolls are made di fferent the top rol l being ,

the smalles t and the bo t tom roll t he l argest and the middle roll of a n inter
me diate size These diameters are such that the distance between the
.

centers of new rolls on ne w b e ar i ngs is forty and fi fte e n sixtee nths inches
‘
-

for the bottom and middle rolls and thirty nine and e leven sixte enths inches - -

for the middle and t op rolls This arrangement , t he ne cessity for which
.

will be explaine d l ater has the effe c t of thro win g the rolls sli ghtl y out of
,

line with t he pinions which measure forty inches from cent ers t o centers .

This di fference is distribute d by centering the bottom rol l fi ve si xt eenths -

inch bel ow t he center of its pi ni on an d the top roll fi ve sixteenths inch -

above t he top pinion The center of the middle roll is then fi ve e ighths
.
-

'

inch above that of the middle pinion The rolls are des i gne d for seven .

passes a s shown on the ac companyin g s k etch The ingot , having been .

reduce d from 23 /8 x to x by four passes on a forty e i ght -

inch t wo stand t andem bloomer , e nters the firs t bottom pass of the forty
-

inch mill o n e dge and i s re duced ln t his and the si x suc ceeding passes t o a
x bloom Hence all the mills of the pl ant using blooms from
.
,

t his mill are adj uste d t o t ake this size of bl oom I t will be observed that .

the e dges of t he c oll ars are well rounded o ff t o prevent the formation of
fins that might c ause laps and t ha t t he pitch line for the bottom passes
,
.

lies well below t he clearance line o f t he rolls The bottom and middle .

rolls are made of steel w hile the top roll is a sand roll ; The gre ater strength
,

of the two lower rolls i s require d for the greater draught ta ken in the bottom
passes which are e dging passes
, .

Ta b l
Li f ti n g e s : The mill is provided with t wo l ifting tables e ach of ,

which is t wenty one feet seven and nine sixteenths inches long from center
- -

to center of the first and l ast rolls E ach t able has a Vertical motion only .
,

and is supporte d on four le gs or vertical shafts one a t e ach c orner w hich , ,

are c onnecte d t o lever arms mounte d on shafts with other arms for c ounter
wei ghts and lifting The torque of t he c ounter weight j ust about e quals
.

tha t produce d by the table The material is then raise d and l owere d by
.

a reversing e lectric al motor which is provide d with a magneti c brake for

,

automatically stopping the tables at the c orrect levels By means of a .

lon g le ver arm the t wo tables are c onn e cte d and are raise d and l owered
,

in unison The one on the approach side of the mill is provide d with
.

stationary vertical skid bars or transfer fingers between the table rolls
, , ,

which are s o a r r ange d that the act of lowering t he table edges and trans
f

fers the piece to the next b o ttom pass The bloom from the forty eight inch .
-

mill is e dged t o enter t he forty inch mill by means of single coll ar rolls .

S he ars of t he side cut t in g type ele ctric ally operated are provi de d fi fty
, ,

six feet from t he roll table for cutting the pie ce into blooms of the desire d
length after the require d disc ard has been sheare d o ff .
 T H REE -H I GH B L OOM I N G M I LL 38 1

R o l
l De s i gn fo r T h re e =Hi gh Bl
oo m e rs : T h e peculiarities previ o usl y ,

pointe d out , in the size the arrangement and the grooves of the rolls for
, ,

thi s mi ll are common t o three high bl oomers , and represent t he e ffort on

-

the part of the desi gners of the rolls t o overcome cert ain di ffi culties inherent
in t his type of mill First in order t o avoi d weakening t he rolls by i ncre as
.
,

ing their length un dul y , o nl y a small number of passes usually nine are , ,

available S e cond except at rai l mills whi ch are the only mills in exist
.
, ,

ence where any preliminary r e duction of t he ingots is made this limited ,

number of passes me ans that very he avy drafts must be t aken in order t o '

reduce the ingot t o the more c ommon bloom sizes Third in order t o get .
,

in the gre atest possible number of p asses on a set of rolls the passes must ,

be pl ac e d one above the other hence a groove in the middle roll must ,

serve for both an upper and l ower pass F ourth , the periphera l spee d at
‘

the base of the grooves in any two rolls forming a pass must be e qual or ,

nearly s o if the pie ce is t o roll without curling when c oming ou t of the

,

pass H oweve r the pass diameter of the top r oll for any p ass may be a
.
,

little l arger than the bottom for t hen the pie ce will be he l d down but
,
'

may be prevente d from curlin g down by th e guards on t he mill On forty .

inch mills t his di fference is about one fourth of an inch and is determine d -

by practice .

A n Ex a m p l
e o f Ro lwill
lDe s i gn
i n g Mi l
l fo r T h re e fl i g h Bl
a
oo m ,

p erhaps be the best answer t o the question as to how all t hese c onditions
are met A spe cific problem and a metho d of solving it are hereb y given :
.

G iven : I ngot 21 x 23 B loom 9 x 10 number passes 9, S ize of M ill

R e quired : To design rolls for the mill .

So l
u tio n z— Fi rs t : T h e d ra u gh t
i s fo u nd I n findin g o n e ac h p as s .

the draughts 1t is to be borne in mind t ha t the draughts on the bottom passes ,

being e dging passe s shoul d be he avier t han on the t op passes ; that it is well
,

'
to take the he aviest draughts on the first bottom passes while the steel
is ho t and the pie ce is short which wil l prevent grea t strains on the engine
,

as the momentum of the fly wheel wil l c arry across a short l ength ; that
the top passes are best made of e qual draughts ; and that little w ork é an
be done on the finishing pass The reduction in siz e of the ingo t to the
.

bloom c alls for twelve inches on one S ld e and thirteen inches on the other ,

or a total of twenty fi ve inches S ince the re ductions on the bottom passes

-
.

are t o be greater than those on the t op l et this t otal draught be a pp o r ,

ti o ne d t o give ten inches on t op passes and fifteen inches on botto m ones .

The draught on e ach t op pass wil l then be t wo and one half inches The -
.

draught on the bottom passes may be arbitrarily apportioned but t o ac cord ,

wit h the c auti ons state d above they are determine d by t rial and t o give, ,

the t otal re duction of fifteen inches t hey shoul d apparently be apportioned , ,

a s follows : No 1 pass , 3 z f ; No 3 pass

. No 5 pass , ’
No 7 pass .
, . .
,
38 2 T HE ROLL I N G OF S T E EL

3M ;
"
No 9 pass 1 T h e c omplete plan for working the ingot do wn to
.
,

size woul d then be as follows

”
S ize of the original ingot , 21 x 23

No . 1 P ass , bottom draught ,

size o fb l
o o m produced , 21 x 19%

No . 2 top 21 x 17
P iece edged .

No . 3 P ass , bottom draught ,

size of bl oom prod uced N M x , 17

No 4 . top ,
x 17
Piece edged .

No 5 Pass bottom draught size of bloom produce d 13 %

'

.
, , x

NO 6 .
a
top ,
a
2I Z
/I
;
a a a
14%
N
X

Piece edged .

”
No 7 P ass bo ttom draught
.
, , size of bl oom produced ,
1 11 2 x 11
"
NO 8 .
a
tOp ,
(4 a a a
9 X 11 0

Piece edged .

No . 9 P ass , bottom draught , 1 siz e of bloom produce d , 9 x 10

o s t s ui tab l
S e co n d : T he m l
e p i tc h e s fo r t h e r o ls a re d e t e r m i ne d .

By pitc h is meant the distance from center t o ce n ter of a pair o f r olls wi th

'

out c learance , o r the distance be t ween any t wo of t he pi t ch l ines These .

are base d on the s ize of t he mill ; t he average pitc h for the t op an d bo tt om

sets of passes are e qual t o its size and shoul d be such for re aso ns al re a d y
‘

, ,

noted tha t e ach rol l will be approxima t ely one fourth inch less in di ameter
,
-

than the one above i t The pitch is therefore determined by trial as .

, ,

foll ows : I n this c ase the p roper figures appear to be

from center t o center of top and middle roll .

43V8 bottom and middle roll .

(84
"
=the size of the mill ) .

From th e s e fi gure s the wor king diameter of the passes are found as
'

follows :
pitch of bottom and middle roll .

hei gh t ffirst pass (S o

e e size of bl oom for No 1
,
pass ) . .

2 pass d iame t er of firs t pass .

first pass radius of bottom ro ll or first pass working ,

=
d i am e te r 23 / z
1 ’

first pass radius of middle roll or first pass working ,

(size of No 2 .

(pitch of top and middle roll ) first pass rad ius of

the top roll ; or first pass wor k ing diame t er of t op
As this diameter is a little l arger than that for the m iddle roll ,

t he pitches assi gned above are assume d to be the proper ones .

38 4
,
T HE ROLLI N G OF S TE EL
, ,

T h i rd : T h e s i z e o f e ac h r o l
li s d e te r m i ne d A s a preliminary step .

to findin g t he size of t he rolls the diamet ers of the middle and bottom ,

roll s m ay be assume d t o be the same as their pitches forty three and one ,
-

ei ghth inches The pit c h siz e for the middle and t op roll i s forty and
.

seve n e i ghths inches and if from twice this pit ch t he diameter of the
-
,

middle roll is subtracted the pitch diameter of the t op rol l is the result
which in this c ase woul d be thirty fi ve and fi ve —
, ,

ei ghths inches I f now

-
.
, ,

the di ameter of the workin gpass in the mid dle roll i s subtracte d from this
diameter of the roll the result is t wi ce the depth of the groove
, .

43 V8
”
193 8
” - —
2 9% dept hof first groove in middle roll .

5 ” '

Simil arly , 38 /8 depth of groove for the top

roll The sum of the se t wo quantitie s is seventeen inches whi ch checks
.

with the size of sec ond pas s But m ore of the pie ce l ies i n t he middle
.

than in the t op roll s o i n order t o ge t the s ame height of c ollar , e ight and
,

one half inches in e ach roll it i s ne cessary t o incre ase the radius of the
-
,

top roll and de crease the r a d i us of the mi ddle by nineteen sixteenths inches -
,

making their respe ctive diameters forty one inches and forty and three -

fourths inches The diameter of the bottom rol l woul d then be forty fi ve
.
-

and one -half inches (2 x I n order t o get the proper clearance

between the rolls whi ch i s assumed t o be one inch these diameters are
, ,

further re duce d t o forty inches the diameter of top roll ; thirty-nine and,

three fo urths inches the diameter o f middle roll ; and forty—

-
, four a nd one
half inches , the diameter of bottom roll These diameters give a much
’

deeper groove in the bott om roll than in the middle which c an be over ,

come b y cutting down the collars on the bottom roll which has the e ffe ct ,

merel y of increasing the clearance S o t o balance up t he depths of these .

grooves a clearance of two inches i s allowe d between these rolls making

the final diameter of the bottom rol l forty—
,

two and one half inches The -

.

finding of the depth of the remaining grooves is a simpl e manner Th us .

.
,

for ex ample No 4 pass is

,
. x F rom the depth of the pass fourteen ,

and three fourths inches the clearance of one inch is subtracte d l e aving
-
, ,

thirteen and three — fourths inches T his depth is e quall y divide d between .

the t op and middle rolls making si x an d s even—

, eights inches in e ach I t .

foll ows that the groove in the middle roll for No 3 pass must be the same . .

As th e depth of this pass i s seventeen and one — fourth inches the groove in ,

the bottom roll must be e igh t and t hree eighths inches , -

The accompanyin g sketch shows a se t of rol ls desi gned

ac cording t o the expl anation given above To take care of variations due .

to wear in t he rolls and permit of their bein g dressed thus increasin g t heir ,

life the entire set is made a l

,
1ttle ove r siz e in diameter o f bo dy usually -
,

about three-fourth of an inch They are dis carde d when they have been
.

dressed down t o the same amount undersize .

 S LA BS 385

S EC T I O N V .

T HE R OLLI N G OF S LA B S .

T h e Ro l
li ng o f the S la b is the first step in the rolling of pl ates just ,

as the bl oom mar ks the first step in rolling the many shapes A ttention .

has already been c alle d t o t he rolling of s labs o n t he reversing bl ooming

mill Fo r rolling narrow slabs the bloomi ng mil l meets al l the re quire
.
,

ments but the width of the sl abs rolle d o n these mills i s limite d t o the
,

maximum spread of t he roll s on ac count of the necessity of e dgin g the p iece

near t he l as t passes I n A mer ica therefore , sl abs are rolle d for the most
.
,

part on t he universal mill principle in which t he width of the sl ab is partly

,

controlle d by me ans of vertic al rolls which work on the e dges of t he sl ab .

T h e sl abbing mills are not true universal mills however but double or , ,

duple x mills made up of one stand of rolls simil ar t o the bloomin g mills
, ,

but with plain instead of c ollare d rolls , and one stand of verti cal rolls near
to and in front of the horiz ontal rolls E ach mill i s driven independently .
,

and both are reversing By such an arrangement l arger ingots may be

.

rolle d than woul d be possible on the reversing bl ooming mill S ince the .

pie ce is not e dge d under the h oriz ontal r olls ingots varying in thic kness ,

and sl abs of grea t wi dth may be handle d The following sizes as t o thick .

ness and widths of ingots are rolle d by the thirty two inch mill to be -

” ” ” ”
described l ater , x 26 x 26 x 26 x 26 x 53
" ”
and 27 x 57 .The thicknes s of t he ingot i s limite d by t he maximum
heigh t t o whi ch the t op hori zonta l rol l may be l ift e d , while the wi dth is
controlle d by t he spre ad of the vertical rolls I n preparation for the rolling .
,

th e ingots are treate d in s oaking pits in the same manner as that already
describe d for the bl o oming mills .

T he T h i r ty=tw o Mi lla t Ho m e s t e a d a s a n Exa m p l

I nc h e of a ,

Sl l
a b b i ng Mi l: This mill is an ol d m i ll and w as originally desi gne d to
roll armor pl ate I t is t herefore s omewha t l arger and stronger than s ome
.
, ,

more re centl y c onstructe d slabbing mills H owever the main features and .
,

the principles of both the c onstruction and operation are the s ame on this
mill as t hose of other slabbi ng mills As note d above the mill consists of
—
.
,

two separatel y driven stands of roll s the horizontal and vertical stands ,

which are best describe d separately .

“
T he H o riz o n ta lMi l
l:The rolls on this stand are four in number ,

arrange d one above the other on the pl an of a four high mill Only the -
.

two intermediate rolls actually c ome in cont ac t with t he ingot however , ,

the t opmos t and bottomm ost rolls being used as reinforcing or sti ffening
roll s t o t he two intermediate ones Al lthese roll s are nine feet t wo inche s
.

long in the body bu t t he re e nforcing rolls are t hi rty two inches in diame t er
,
- -
,

whil e the intermediate ones are twenty si x inches in diame t er This -

.

arrangement permits a more rapid reduction of the ingot and with less
386 T HE ROLL I N G OF S TEE L

power than woul d be possibl e with onl y two rolls which would have to be ,

of l arge diameters to give the gre at strength require d The smaller roll .
,

exposing little surface t o the steel sin ks into the metal with less pressure
,

and is turne d with less power The four rolls are hel d in pl ace by a c ast
‘

'

steel housing The necks of the bottom r e enfor cing roll res t on bearings
.
-

fitte d into the bottom of the housing ; this rol l then supports t he l ower
intermediate roll the contact being made the entire length of their b odies
, .

L ateral displacement of this l ower intermediate roll is prevente d b y

babbitte d side bearing boxes at either end The two upper rolls are held .

in two steel frames one at e ach end e ac h of which i s fitte d with a brass
, ,

top bearing for the re enforcing roll and a bo x fitted with bottom and side
-

bearings for t he top intermediate roll As these frames move up and down .

with the adj ustment of the t op rolls guide bars bolte d t o the outer e dges ,

of the w indows are provide d t o hol d them in pl ace while liners inserted ,

between t he frames and the sides of the wi ndows prevent the wearing away
of the ho us 1ngs The ends of t wo plunge r rods rest against the bottom of
.

this frame while t he rods extend t o hydraulic cylinders which , l o c ated

beneath the mil l and acting under a pressure of 600 lbs per s q i n are . . .
,

use d for raising the top rolls The rolls are l owere d by m eans of s crews
.

similar t o those in the bl oomin g mill but in this c ase the power for the ,

screw do wn is obtaine d from a 6 0 h p motor mounte d on a pl a tform a . .

little above the t op of the hous ing The s crews rest on breaker bl ocks .

which serve as a safety t o prevent the breaking of the rolls The maximum .

lift of the mill is nearly forty inches Fo r indicating t h e distance be t ween

.

the rolls a gauge pole and dis c are provided The dis c is mounte d o n top .

of one of t he screws with the markin g pol e adj acent t o it The c ircum .

ference of the dis c is divide d int o 100 e qual parts while the pole is di vided ,

into space s of one inch e ach These divisions on pole and d is c are pl ai nl
. y
marke d and permi t t he openin g of the mill to b e read t o within 1 100 of -

an inch T h e Drive for the horiz ontal mill is c onne c t e d t o t he interme diate
.

rolls t he re enforc in g rolls being fri ction driven The motive power is
,
-
.

” ”
furnishe d by a 40 x 54 ho ri z ontal reversing engi ne which is indire ctly ,

connecte d to the leading or driving S pindle of the mill .

T h e Ve r t i balMi l
li s
lo cate d about ten feet in front of the hor i zontal
mill m e asuring from center t o center of the rolls Like the horiz ontal
,
.

mill the verti cal mill has four rolls two of which are re e nforcing ; bu t these
,
-

rolls are much smaller th an the horiz ont a ones bein g onl y ei ghteen inches l ,

in diameter and about forty four inches in len gth or a little longer t han the
-
,

lift of the horiz ontal mill The rolls are supporte d vertically in the housings
.

by means of be aring boxes at both the tops and bottoms These boxes are .

hel d in place by heavy rest bars whi ch extend across the mill a t t op and
bottom and from housing t o housing between the windows of which t hey ,

are se cu rely fastene d Fo r adjusting the spread of t he rolls inwardly two

‘

screws acting hori zontally through the sides of the housings instead of
,
388 THE ROLLI N G OF S TEE L

are k ept in cont ac t wi th the s teel a t a pressure only sufficient to prevent

te arin g of the e dges which results when no pressure is applie d o n the sides
of the slab With smal l ingots tearing of the steel i s also c ause d when the
.

ingots are no t hot enough for goo d rolling bu t still c apable of bein g passed
through the rolls In the c ase of l ar ge ingots tha t a re c old there i s little
.
,

danger of inj uring them be c ause there i s no t sufficient powe r t o roll them
, ,

as in the case of smaller ingots C orre ct lining of the rolls is ne cess ary t o
.

make goo d sl abs since if the rolls are crosse d or are hi gher on one end
,

than on the other the s l abs curl At the thirty two inc h mill the drivin g
.
-

end of the rolls is always k ept slightly hi gher than the oth er end t o allow
for the more r api d wearing of the bearings due to the extr a weigh t on
”
tha t side of the mill Above A the sl abs will curl in passing through
I .

the mil l The maximum draught i e , reduction in se ctional are a that

.
, . .
,

c an b e t aken by the horiz ontal roll s with t he steel at a go o d rolling

.

temperature is approximatel y t hirty s quare inches on the entering pass and

forty square inches on the return pass The di fference in reduction possible .

on the enterin g and return passes is due t o t he fact t hat o n t he return p ass , ,

the verti c al rolls ai d in pullin g the sl ab t hrough the mill while they c annot ,

e ffe ct any power by pushin g the slab when going in t he opposite dire ction :
Fo r the entering pass thirty divide d b y the ingot width gives the appro xi
mat e draught , or bite and forty divide d b y the ingot width t he return
, ,

pass bite The l ast pass t a k en i s entering and is a pass in which very little
.
,

pressure is use d in order t o strai ghten t he plate roll down the top e nds and , ,

remove the c onvex surface due t o the s pring from the rolls .

Re ova lo f S c a l
m e : During t he rolling of an ingot the s c ale must be
remove d from t he surface t o pre ven t the sl ab and resultin g plates from , ,

b e ing p i tted The pro cess empl oye d in removing t he s c al e depends upon the
.

kind of stee l being rolled Fo r remo vin g s cale on l ow c arbon steel s alt and
.

wat e r t he l atter being spraye d on the sl ab a t hi gh pressure and t he for m er

,

thrown on wit h s coops are very e ffe ctive I n c ase of high carbon steel the
,
.

scale stic ks more firml y t o the sl ab , and burlap s acks are use d as ne ces ,

sar y in addition t o s alt and water

,
When nicke l steel is rolled c oa l is
.
,

us e d in pl ace of salt and burl ap is al so t h rown under the rolls Brus h or

, .

o fte n e m p l
‘

reen twi gs are o ye d t o serve the same purpose as burlap The

g .

actions of all t hese substances are somewhat s imilar I n e ach c ase the .

substance is drawn under the r olls , whi ch t end t o bring i t rapidly into
’

close c ontac t with the hot metal The material t hus c aught by the r olls .

is ga ssifi e d by t he heat and , in an e ffort t o esc ape the gases ge t beneath

, ,

the s c ale and c arry it o ff wi th the m C oa l and burlap being less vol atile .
,

than sal t or w ater are carrie d a l i t tl e farther beneath the rolls and give
,

a more violent action Nicke l s cale is t he mos t difficult of all t o remove

.
,

and if t he first sc ale is melte d o ff in t he s oa k in g pits and a se c on d formed ,

i t is al m o st impossible to cle an i t o ff Al lnickel be aring sl abs are cle aned

.

first on one side the n turne d over by cranes and cle aned on the other side
,
.
 S LA B S 38 9

s a t t h e T h i r ty=tw o I nc h Mill : From the rolls the

S h e a ri n g S l a b
slabs pass by means of motor driven roll tables t o a hydraulic shear Two .

plungers are use d t o operate the k nife a small one on top for lifting the ,

blade an d a l arge one on t he bo t tom for pulling t he k nife down a gainst the
steel thus e ffe cting the cutting Two Wilson and S nyder pumps an a ccum u
, .
,

lator and ste am i nte nsifi e rs c omprise the operating e quipment The slabs .

are cut t o length by means of a scale of marks pl ace d on a steel sl ab in front

an d to one s ide of the shears G raduations on this marker indicate the
.

distance from the shear blade s o by running the sl ab out t o any certain
-
,

mark the le ngth of slab is indic ated by the graduation The roll table .

approachin g the shear blade i s also graduate d in i nche s o f distanc e from

-

the bl ade By fixing the e ye on any spot or mark on the slab at any distance
.

from t he knife as shown by position on s c al e and watching this mar k until

i t is m ove d beneath the knife the length of slab can be obtained ,
The .

si z e (total weight ) of the slab is determine d by the dimensions and gauge

of the plate into which it is to be rolled S ince the width of t he ingot .

limits the width of the sl ab , planning the s ize of the sl ab starts with the
sele ction of an ingot of the proper size Next , the thickness of t he slab .

must be determined and then the le ngth I t is e vident that very c areful
, .

work is necessary in making up the mill s che dule if the steel is t o be rolled ,

to bes t advantage A l lt his plannin g i s done in t he m ill office and the

.
,

shearman is generally given t he lengths into which the slabs are t o be cut ,

though o ccasionally he may be ordered t o cu t t o best advantage The first .

cut made on t he sl ab is t o r emove t he piped end After the d iscard is .

sheared o ff a fe w slabs are c ut, w hen t he pie ce is t urne d aroun d with a

,
'

manipulator the bottom crops t aken o ff, and the remainder cu t into slabs
,
.

From t he r o llm g sheets the shearman gets the length of slabs ordere d and
,

the amount of discard t hat is t o be t aken before slabs c an be cu t C uts are .

usually m ade up t o the center of t he slab before t urning it around By .

t urning the sl ab the shearman c an t el l ho w much s teel will remain after

taking o ff the bot t om crop and be tter de cide as t o how he shal l cu t t he
remainder Slabs are cut as ordere d if possible an d if a piece is l eft over
.
,
”
that is t oo large , or heavy , for any sl ab or d ered i t is marke d as an odd
cut Fo r example a 5000 po und slab is ordered and , after the first sl
,

.
,
abs ,

have been cut , the remaining piece is 7000 pounds or 2000 pounds over the ,

wei gh t desir ed Were this 7000 pounds t o be use d on a slab c alling for only
.

5000 pounds 2000 pounds woul d be scrappe d in t he pl ate mill

,
T his system .

is to o expensive s o the sl ab i s m arke d as an o dd cu t and place d on some

,

other order The limits as t o width and thickness of sl ab that may be

.

sheare d on t his she ar are fi fty four inches and twenty inches respe ctively
-
,
.

The percentage of disc ard varie s from about 15% on plain stee l t o 35% on
some spe cia l orders ; the l ar ger portion of t he discard is ta ken from t he top
of the ingo t on account of the se gre gation and piping bein g mostly c onfined
to this se ction Al ldiscarde d steel is pl ace d in open he arth char ging
.

buggies and shippe d to t he open hearth not e bein g taken of t he spe cia l
'

,
3 90 THE ROLLI N G OF S T EE L

all oy steel s crap which i s\ kept separate from the plain steel s crap A s the
, .

sl abs are o ut they are stampe d with a serial number be ginning with one
, ,

from the first of the ye ar A rec order t akes dow n the slabs made size
.
, ,

number cut et c and enters it on t he product side of the rolling order

, ,
.
,

sheet The wei ght of ing ot wei ght of sl abs made and wei ght of scrap is
.
, ,

noted and the information sent t o the produc t department From this
,
.

dat a t he practice of the m ll lis fi gured .

392 T H E ROLL I N G OF S T E E L

at t o 125 pounds steam pressure The engine is c apable of devel oping

120 .

4500 t o 5000 h p The ordinary spee d is about 62 r p m and the normal

. . . . .

load about 1200 h p the maximum b eing about 3 500 i h p per pass The
. .
,
. . . .

steam c onsumption is about 300 po unds per t on of steel rolled T h e exhaust .

from the l o w pressure cylinder is taken t o a central c ondensing pl ant

ne ar the engine house ; this plan t is of t he Weiss barometric t ype and
” ” ”
1S equippe d with t he followin g apparatus : One 20 x 42 x 24 air pump
” ” ”
and two Wilson Snyder 18 x 3 0 x 26 x 36
-
gall on duple x co m
pound— plunger w ater pumps The engine i s c ontrolle d in the engine h ouse
.

by a s ixteen inch throttle valve and may be S hu t down quickly in an

emergency by a sixte en inch quick closing val ve j ust above the throttle -
.

Dri ve
The cran k shaft is c onne cte d through a flexible coupling t o
:

the spindle shaft The c as t stee l c oupling fi ve feet si x inches in diameter

.
,

is keye d t ight t o the cran k shaf t of the engine with a bronze half t hrust
c oll ar over the half c oupling ; a 80% c arbon s teel we aring pl ate i s s crewed
.

t o t he outboard bearin g suppor t of the e ngine and separates the c oll ar from
“

it E ight t wo and three fourths inch bolts hol d a se cond half c oupl ing to
.
-

t he first one The former fits over a cas t steel hub keyed t o the engine
.

end of a cast steel S pindle shaft t wenty inches in diameter The engine ,
.

end of the spindle shaf t is S lightl y curved to promote fl e xib ll i ty The spindle .

shaft is seventeen fee t ei ght and one half inches l on g and t wenty inches in -

diameter and thre e fee t S even and one half inches from its end is the center
,
-

" ” “
line of a 20 x 48 ring oil bearing whic h supports the mill end of t he spindle,

shaft The o il bearing is hel d in a cast iron yo ke and base mounte d on a

.
,

cast iron hot pla t e The bearing is line d with babbitt and is provide d with
.

small oil grooves for lubricating A ti ght crab four feet i n diameter of .
, ,

cast steel i s k eye d t o the mill end of the S plnd l e S haft ; two and one half -

inch bolts hold a four foo t c ast steel loose crab t o t he ti ght crab A .

cas t steel c ompo und c oupling fits o ver t he mil l end of the l oose crab and
the adj acen t wobbler of t he le ading S pindle The c as t steel le adin g spindle .

is three fee t ten and one — half inches l ong and S 1xt e e n inches in diameter .

A plain c as t s t eel c oupl in g bo x j oins t he l e adin g S pindle to the middle of

the mill fittin g over the adj acent wobblers of each
, .

Pi n io ns T h e i r Ho u s i ngs : The pinion housings for the t wenty

a nd

eight inch mill ar e s teel c astings bol te d t o the mill shoes ; the housing
windows ar e seven fee t t hre e inches deep from the top t o the sill and twenty
S ix inches w ide ; o ne forged s t ee l l iner o ne inch thic k is used on each S ill ,

and e ach window is face d on e ach S ide with a one inch for ged steel liner ;

These are al l bolte d t o the housings Al lth e s e l

ine r s are forged steel of 40%
. .

to 50% c arbon The pinions are steel c astings of the helical tooth type
. . .

T hey measure t hirty S ix inches in length of face and have thirteen t eeth
-
,

with a pitch diameter of t wenty nin e inches Their diameter at the S hrouds
-
.

is twenty S even inches and the necks tap e r fr o m s eventeen and t hree
-
,

eighths to seventeen inches in d i ameter ; the wobblers are S ixt een inches in
 T H REE-H I GH B I LLE T M I LL 3 93

diameter The t o t al length of the p im o ns is nine fe et two inches Al

. ls ix .

pinion bearings are of the same pattern being made of cast steel with three ,

fourths inc h babbitt and four narrow brass pl ates set 90 apart The °
.

bottom bearings rest flat on the housing S ill liners no beveling being ,

required ; the be arings are twenty three inches wide t wenty e ight inches-
,
-

high and twenty three and one half inches through The c ap for the
,
- -
.

pinion housings is a solid s teel c asting fitting over both housings ; it has
slots at its four c orners for key bolts t o hol d do wn the pinions ti ghtly beneath
it Steel e ye bolts are set in the c aps s o that they c an be lifte d e asily
.
, .

The housings are hel d in line als o by stee l separa t or rods on e ach S ide ,

top and bottom The bottom and t op pinions are driven by the mi d dle
.

pinion and all three are c onne cte d t o their respective rolls by c ast s teel
c oupl ing boxes and c ast steel S pindles unsupported ,
.

Ho u s i ngs a nd lBe a ri ng s :
Ro l
The roll housings are cast steel close d ,

at the top with a c ast steel c ap ; the housings are bolted t o cast iron mill
S hoe s . The windows of the housings are nine fee t t wo inches deep and two
feet nine inches wi de Three feet one and one fourth inches above the S ill
.
-

is a le dge o n w hich rests the bearing for t he middle ro ll ; t his roll is

he l d stationary t he o thers being adjuste d t o it Bearings for this mill are
, .

as follo w s : Bot t om roll : two stee l c arrier bearings with babbi tt and
brasses Middle rol l : same , and two rider be arings with S imil ar babbi tt
.

and brasses Top roll : two forge d steel babbitte d s addles for c arrying
.

t he roll ; t wo c ast steel rider bearings with babb it t and brasses The .

‘
middle roll is hel d down on its ledg e by three and three quarter inch rods -
,

whic h are in t urn hel d down by tw o five inch set s crews of one and three
quarter inc h pi t ch through the c ap s ; the rods press on t he rider bearings
of the middle roll The s crews are adjus t e d by me ans of wrenches which
.

fit over nuts at the t op of the scre ws The carrier bearing of the bo ttom .

rol l rests on a seat which is fastene d t o a seven inc h s crew running up from -

b e low the housing through i t s center ; this screw t urns in a charcoal iron
nut S hrun k in t he mill housing and i s re gul ated by a gear and pinion c on
,

ne c ti o n from outside the housing The gear is move d by a vertical rod

.

with a S lotte d whe el in the t op ; a hand l eve r is use d t o turn this wheel ,

and thus the bottom roll is raise d or lowere d The top rol l is hel d up by .

two c ounterwei ghts through steelyar d rods in e ac h housing reac hin g up t o

t he t op roll s c arrier bearing ; t he roll is h el d down at e ach e nd by a S ingle
’

seven inc h screw of one inch pitch re aching t hrough the cap t o the breaker
-

bl o ck on the rider bearing The s c rew i s adj usted like a bolt with a S hort
.
,

wrench usually turne d by a crane .

Ro l
l this mill the top and bottom rolls are similar and inter
s: In
changeable while the middle rol l differs in that the barrel of the rol l has
,

larger diameters t han the bot t om roll in those passes in which it acts as
the t op roll and smaller diameters where it acts as the bottom rol l when
,

paired with the top rol l In passes Nos 1 3 5 and 7 the diameters are
. .
, ,
394 TH E ROLL I N G OF S TEE L

FIG . 66 . T h r e e -
l
Hig h B i le t o r R o ug h i n g
. 396 T H E ROLLI N G OF S TEE L

diameters o f the rollers at these grooves are 9 10 1 1 and 12 respe ct

i ve ly
. The r ollers are driven by a C rocker Wheeler 75 h p 220 volt -
. .
,

s eries w o und D C M o t or T here are si d e guards on the e dges of the table

’
. . .

and a t t he fron t end are S ide guards for pu tt in g the bloom from the thirty
eigh t i nc h mill int o the proper pass and for pro t ectin g t he other grooves .

The t abl e is thirty four feet ten inches from center line t o center line of
- - -

the e nd rollers and is ab o ut six fe e t wide inside C ouple d to the front of , .

the t abl e a t the las t groove is an e xt ension t able con sisting of four dead
roller s p ro t e cte d by side guards ; i t is fifteen fee t lon g and fourteen i nches
wide a nd i s use d as an e xtension for t he bar w hen ready for t he seventh
pas s o f t he mill Both front and rear t ables are raise d and lowered by
.

means o f fourteen and twenty one inch plungers operate d by a hydraulic -

cylinder ; the hydraulic apparatus is lo cate d under one end of t he front table
"
and i s c onne cte d t o e ach table by bell cranks from a main sh aft attached to -

t h e cross he ads -
The front t able is e quippe d w ith a stationary manipulator
.

for advancing the bars from pass t o pass ; i t c onsists of four sets of three
and o ne set of two c ast steel fingers bolted t o pedestals on the foundation
of the mi ll The fingers are set between rollers Nos 1 an d 2 4 and 5 7
.
-
.
, ,

and 8 9 and 10 and 11 and 12 in line wi t h the wide co llars ; they are flat
, , ,

cast steel pl ates mounte d vertically and with their t ops bent a t an angle
giving a 45 slope in the dire ction it is desired t o move t he pie ce The
°
.

fingers do no t reach above the level of the pass when t he table is elevated
and the bars run ou t on the c ollars of the rollers ; as the table sinks the bars ,

encounter the stationary fingers and S lide down into the next groove The '
.

rear t able as mentioned is o p e r ate d thr o ugh the s ame S haft as t he front
, ,

table but owin g t o the fac t that it must raise the bars from the lower
,

roll to the middle one and advance them one pas s it has t o travel through
'

an a r e i n rising t o bring its grooves in line with the next passes This is .

don e b y c ausin g t he t able to slide toward t he next pass as i t i s raised by

the us e o f pull over rods attached t o pedestals on t he proper S ide of the
-

bottom of the sc ale pit ; when lowered t he t able S lides bac k into p l ace ,

again The t abl e consists of twelve c ast steel rollers four t een inches in
.
,

di ameter an d si x fee t wide set three feet t wo inches apart making a t able
, , ,

thi rty S even fee t l ong ; t he rollers are driven by a motor S imilar t o the o ne
-

”
use d o n t h e fron t t able R ollers Nos 2 3 4 5 6 8 10 and 12 have 19 x
. .
, , , , , , ,
"
4 c oll ar s o n t heir ends for turning the pie ce which S houl d tumble o ff ,

them as it comes from t he seventh p ass I n addition there is a manipulator .

i n t h e firs t groove ; this consists of five forge d steel fingers two and one
fourt h inches wide mounte d on ro c ker arms attache d through a S haft to a ‘

pl unger in a cylinder pivote d t o a suppor t on the floor of the s cale pit The .

up w ar d m o ti o n of t he t able d raws the fingers w ith it and , when the plunger

j

stops rising i n the cyl inder c auses t hem t o t urn t he p iece and advance it
,

for the se cond pass This manipulator lies bel ow the tabl e when material
.

°
is del ivere d from the bottom roll and acts onl y t o turn bars 90 from the
first pass t o t he s econd The t able i s equipped with three heavy cast steel
.
 CON T I N UOUS BI LLE T M I LL 397

Side guards between t he four passes whi ch the material uses in the bottom
roll These reach bac k nine feet from the front to the t able ; there are also
.

light side guards at each end of the rollers reaching the l ength of the t able
- .

T hese tables make the o peration of the mill practi call y automatic , and
“

make it possible t o roll four pie ces at the same time .

S ECT I O N I I .

T H E CONTI N UOU S B I LLE T MILL .

G e ne ra lFe at u re s o Mi ll
f th e
: Co nt i n u o u s
The continuous mil l ,

often calle d a M organ mill after the inventor Chas H Morgan c onsists , . .
,

of a series of horizont al roll stands arranged one after the other s o that ,
'

the piece to be rolled enters the fi rst stand and travels in a strai gh t l ine
through the mill t o the last stand w here it issues as a finishe d bar thu s '
,

making but one pass t hrough e ach stand of rolls I n such a mil l where .
,

the piece is bein g rolle d in several di fferent stands at the same time i t ,

is necessary t ha t the s urface speed of the different sets of rolls be s o pro

portione d tha t e ach set will travel a t a S pe e d as much greater t han t he
p receding one as the lengthenin g o f the pie ce requires With ne w rolls .

and perfe ct adj ustment t o produce t he proper reduction t his rel ation of ,

S p e e d o f t he di fferent stands i s e asily provide d for by a system of drivin g

ge ars To c are for t he wearing down of t he rolls the bottom roll is m ade
.
,

adjustab l e and as a further precaution against little irre gul arities t hat
,

can t be overcome by adj ustments e ach se t of rolls is purposely se t t o

’ '

run a t a S lightly greater S pee d t han t ha t require d t o co nform t o t he spee d

of the precedin g set s o as t o put t he piece under tension a t all times Fo r
,
.

turning the piece between passes twisting guides are employed .

A d va n t age s a nd l
Di sad va n t age s o f C o nt i n u o u s Mi ls : H i gh out put -

and low l abor c osts are the two chief a dvantages of this type of mill I n
'

addition the mills roll the meta l down very rapidl y t hus giving less tim e
, ,

for oxidation and permitting more work ing in one heat and yet the speed ,

of the roll is l ow s o that comparativel y little power is required to run them

, .

Besides the S crap losses are l ow due t o the fac t t hat they c an roll from
, ,

bl ooms of any length which fac t makes it unnecessary t o cut the bl oom
,

after le aving the bloomer , except t o discar d for pipe or other flaws that .

occasionally o ccur F inally t he rolls are so S ho rt as t o be almost un

.
,

breakable and therefore very light rolls may be used for co mparatively
, , ,

heavy w or k with entire s afety AS t o the disadvantages the gre a t number

.
,

of rolls no t only makes the first c ost of the mill very high bu t adds i m - f

m e nse l
y t o the cost of rolls for di f
f erent sections F o r the same re ason .
,

much time is require d for roll changes Hence , t he mi ll is bes t adapted.

to roll large amounts of one sec t ion continuously I t is obvious tha t c om .

plic ated sections or those requiring great accuracy cannot be rolled on

3 98 TH E ROLL I N G OF S T EE L

such a mill These characteristics of the continuous mill howe ver make
.
, ,

it particularly well Suite d for rolling billets strips such as hoop and co t ton , ,

ties , and S kelp They are also empl oye d as roughing rolls for the various
.

combi nation mills .

Ex a m p l Mi l l
e o f C o n ti n u o u s Bi l
l As an example of the continuous
e t
:

bille t mill the fourteen inch number one mill a t Duquesne has been sele cted ,

because i t is fe d by the forty inch blooming mill previously described By , .

”
this combination the ingo t is rolled down t o a bloom approximatel y 6 x 4
in the forty inch mill from w hich it is deli vered on rol l t ables after the ,

proper discard at t he S he ars t o the continuous mill where without

.
, , ,

reheating t he bloom is reduce d t o billets ranging in S ize from three and

,

o he quarter inches t o one and three e ighth inches square

-
The mill c on -
.

sists of te n stands of rolls and is se t in line with the bloomer The distance
, .

from the blooming mill S hears t o t he firs t stand of roll s is ei ghty four feet -

eigh t inches .

DriveThi s mill is driven by gears from a line S l

: i aft from an A llis
C halmers horiz ontal ver tical compo un d condensing C orliss val ve
steam engine , S iz e 44 x 78 x 60 , with an i ndicate d horse power of 3 500
” ”
.

This engine is oppos ite the S hears and 1s se t s o its driving S haft extends i n
a direction paralle l t o the mill line The engin e is desi gne d t o run at a .

spee d of 75 r p m at a steam pressure of 130 lbs The maximum torque

. . .
_
.

the engine is desi gned t o give at the roll circumference is inch

po unds The exhaus t of t his engine is taken t o a central c ondensing plant
. .

The l ine S haft is c oupled to the crank S haft of the engine as follows : A -

cast steel hub 1 8 force d on and hel d by k eys t o the end of the crank S haft -
.

A phosphor bronz e t hrust c oll ar 1S bolte d l

-
n halves over this j oint The .

outer end of t he hub t hree fee t ten inches in diameter is bolte d t o a S hort
, ,

stee l hub havin g wobblers twenty inches in diameter on its other end A .
‘

'

ca st iron c oupling S ix feet t en inches long fits over t his wobbler and t hat
of a S imil ar bu t l onger hub at its outer end This hub is t wo fee t s even .

inches long of c as t steel and its l arge end , three feet ten inches in d ia meter
, ,

is bolte d t o a S hor t hub twenty one inches wide which is k eye d onto the
,
-
,

seventeen in ch end of the l ine S haft The line shaft of forge d steel is made .
,

in two pieces nine t o t hirteen inches diameter , and is seventy two feet S ix
,
-

and three fourths inches long At ten points on the line S haft be ginning
-
.
,

at the en gine end of the S haft are mitre gears respe ctively 3
’

3 MM , 5
” ' ”
' ’
5 7
’
5
'
and 7 11 apart ; t hese mesh w ith
’

mitre gears keye d on cross over S hafts tha t lead t o their respective roll
stands T hese ge ars are supporte d by bearing stands along the l ine s haft
. .

The crossover shafts drive the mill pinions , and give t o e ach s e t o f rolls ,

beginning after No 1 stand a higher spee d t han tha t of the one pre ceding
.
, ,

in order to t ake c are of the increase d length of the bar The mill ends of .

the crossover S hafts are c arrie d in bearings supported on pe destals ; the

ends of the crossover S hafts have c ast iron half c ouplings keyed to t hem ,

and these are bolted to other half c ouplings which are connected to the
 T H E ROLL I N G OF S T E E L

these is placed a specia l scre w bol t l ef t han d t hrea d for the outside housin g ,
-

and ri ght hand thread for the inside housin g These bolts have short
-
.

square ends on the outer ends but longer squares on the inner ends ; the
latter m ay be c ouple d to gether by a c as t iron c oupling Above the S crew .

bolts and resting on them and the s crew boxes are placed cast stee l wedges
fourteen inche s long and e ight inches wide , with nine half inch gro oves ,

babbitted The thre ads are of course the s ame as for t he s cre w boxes
.
, , .

On the wedges are re ste d the bottom bearings ; t hese are steel c astings .

On t he bottom they are provide d with a wedge w hich fits against the s crew
w e dge The bearings have one inc h of babbitt metal l ining and t wo bronze
.

bearing pie ces No t op bearing i s ne cessary for the bottom roll as there
.
,

i s no upward pressure on i t and it has no other pie ce to support as the ,

c arrier bearing for the t op rol l rests on t he ledge mentioned in the preceding
para graph The breaker bl ocks are caSt iron t he bottom ends of the set
.
,

screws resting dire ctly on them These s crews are s quare d o ff above the .

thre ads for adj ustmen t by wrenches , and are provide d with l oc k nuts .

A rra n ge t o f Ro llS t a n d s a nd G u i d e s : Owing t o the fact that

m e n

the spee d of tr avel of th e bar and hence the S pee d of the rolls is gre ater
in e ach suc cessive pass the housings are pl aced close r and closer t oge t her
,

as the bar i s re duce d t o avoid danger of buckling I n order from No 1 . .

’
stand the center lines of the rolls are at the following intervals : 10 0
,

Fo r the purpose o fb b tain

' ’ ’ ’ ’ ’ ’
9 7 6 6 5 5 5
ing work on al l sides of the bar and as the mos t c onvenient metho d of rolling ,

the bar is t wisted between every other pair of rolls and for this re ason ,

special guides have t o be used They are of c as t s t eel made up espe cially
.

for these stands s o tha t they will give the bar j ust the p rOp e r twis t or keep
,
.

it he ade d righ t t o enter the next pair of the rolls These guides are .

Se t usually in c ast steel guide boxes bol t e d t o res t bars that are fastened
in ledges i n t he ho usings ; where ne cessary saddle bars are use d t o hold ,

do wn the guides and guide boxe s A l lguides are we dge d t ightly in pl ace .

with either steel or woo den we dges The foll owing is the arrangement of .

the guide s on this mill : No 1 re ceiving guide is a c ombination straight

.

gui de and crop S hear bumper ; all the res t of t he re ceivi ng guides are straight ;
bu t the delivery guides are alternate d thus : No 1 stra i ght ; No 2 twisting ; .
, .
,

No 3 twi sting ; No 4 straight ; No 5 t wisting ; No 6 strai ght ; No 7

.
, .
, .
,
.
,
.
,

t wisting ; No 8 straight ; No 9 twisting ; No 10 straight Where the

.
, .
,
.
, .

stands are far apar t o r the se ction is l ight the bar is supporte d from bel ow ,

by narrow pl ate s re aching from one delivery guide t o t he next re ceiving

guide or e lse by light steel S ide guards .

T h e Ro l
lThe rolls for this mill are of the following dimensions
s:

Total len gt h four feet S ix inches ; lengt h of barrel S ixteen inches ; diameter
, ,

o f wobbler (3 pod ) nine inches ; diameter ne ck ten inches ; weight 1500 t o

-
, , ,

1600 pounds .
 CON TI N UOUS BI LLET M I LL 401

Ta b l
e 54 . Da t a Pe r t a i ni n g t o Ro l l
s fo r a 14 "
Co n t i n uo u s Bi l
le t Mi l
l .

ST A N D COMP OS IT I ON No G ROOV E S
. BOD Y DIA M ETE R BE FORE T U R NI N G

Top
13 %
II

13 %
II

14%
1
4
1!
14

13 %
II

Six inches is allowe d between the centers of the grooves when only two
grooves are cut bu t only thre e and three fourths inches is allowe d in the
,
-

case of four groove rol ls Following is a table of the S pee d of t he rolls of

-
‘
.

each successive stand and t he observe d delivery S pee d of the bar coming
out of it with the engine at norma l S pee d of 75 r p In . . .

Ta b l
e 55 . S pe e d Ra t io s o n Fo u r t e e n I nc h Co n t i n u o us Bi l
le t l
Mi l .

ST A N D SP EE D OF R OLLs DE LI VE R Y SPEE D OF BA R

R EVOLUTI ON S PE R MI NUTE FEET PE R MI N UTE

C r o p p i n g S h e a rs : Between
the re ceiving table to the mill and the
firs t stand of rolls are hydrauli c shears pressure 450 lbs per s quare inch ;
,
.

through these S hears al l bl ooms for the fourteen inch No 1 mil l pass They . .

” ”
are capable of cuttin g blooms up t o 7 x 11 in S ize bu t their usual wor k is ,

" ” blooms They are use d to cu t crops from t he fron t end of t he

on 6 x 4 .

bloom S O it will ente r NO 1 stand e asily When ne cessary t hey may be

. .

us e d for S he aring Off pipes and bad pie ces that have escape d discard at the
402 T H E ROLL I N G OF S T EE L

No 1 Stand

No 2 Sta nd

No . 4 su nd

No 5 8tand .

No 6 8 tand
.

FI G . 67 . Ro l
ls a nd P as se s fo r
,
 4 T H E ROLL I N G OF S TE E L

blooming mil l shears , and for severing the bloom in case of a cobble They .

are c apable of a ten inch swing from the base and at the end of their stroke ,

the y strike the combine d guide and bumper previousl y mentione d as the
No 1 guide They are thrown back into position automatic ally , when the
. .

bloom is cut , by a heavy coi l S pring The stroke of t he knife bl ade is ten
.

inches The S hears are vertic a l a ctin g w ith the top blade actuate d by the
.

cylinder No 10 stand delivers the finishe d billet dire ctly onto the r e ce i v
. .

ing t able for t he steam flying S hears ; t his table and its delivery t able are
driven t hrough beve l ge ars on a S ingle l ine S haft ; t he line shaft i s dr iven
by a j ac k S haft geare d t o a primary j ac k shaf t which is in turn ge are d to
the crossover s haft for No 10 stand As various numbers of stands are
. .

use d for t he various S izes of billets t he corresponding sizes of bars have

,

a di fferen t delivery S pee d and the shears re ceiving table must , t herefore ,

be driven proportionately , s o that t he bille t may be cut by t he flyin g shears

withou t bucklin g an d m ay be c arrie d away , when cut , fas t enou gh t o k eep
cle ar o f t he next bille t A c cordingly , various S izes of ge ar w heels are
.

provi d e d fo r t he j ac k S haf t t o t he t able The surface S pee d of t he roll .

tabl e may be S e t a t various r ates t o suit the delivery spee d of the billet
by changing the gears on the j ack shaft .

Fl
yi ng S h e a rs : The flyin g shears roll table c onsists of eight cast stee l -

—
rollers , two , S ixte e n i nche s in diameter , On t he re ceivin g S ide of the S hears
and six , ten inches in d iameter , on the delivery S ide The rollers are nqtche d .

with a V S hape d groove S O as t o hol d t he bar , a s i t comes t o t he S hears

-
,

with one of its diagonals in t he vertical as i t is i n this position when it ,

leave s the las t pass of t he rolls and must be sheare d in t he s ame position .

The flying S hears are place d wi th t he cent er line of their knives t wenty feet
beyond t he center l ine of No 10 stand The S hears are actuate d by a
. .

" "
30 x 20 ste am c ylinder The action of t he she ars is S peede d up or sl owed
.

down ac cordin g t o the delivery S pee d of t he billet Cutting under fifteen .

foo t l en gths is not attempte d fo r fe ar of no t gettin g the S he ars bac k t o

position in time t o prevent b uckl ing o f the ne xt billet The knives on the
'

S hears have a life of from t hree t o S ixty hours ; an d t hey have t o be changed

for e very size of billet They have a hal f inch clearance above the square
.

being cut The horiz ontal stroke of the shears is ten inches
. .

Ho t Be d s :
The flying S hears deliver upon a table 125 feet long from ,

whic h steam Operat e d rollers and pushers c o nvey the bars t o four hot beds
extending at ri ght angles t o the t ables Al lof these are controlle d from .

a pulpit in the yard The rollers a t t he foo t of No 1 be d are skewe d s o as

. .

to brin g the billets agains t the fi rst p ush er and make t hem lie parallel
'

with it ; all the other rollers are as usual set at right angles t o t he pieces
“
.
, ,

At four points on t he t able are hydraulicall y operate d stoppers for stoppin g

the bars a t t he ho t be d d esire d or allowin g them t o pass t o the horizontal
scrap bed beyond t he las t hot bed The hot beds are slope d up at a sli gh t
.

angle and are each thirty one feet wide by fi fty three feet six inche s
- -
’
 CON T I N UOUS B I LLE T M I LL

F m . 68 . 1 4 ” C o n ti n u o u s M il —
l 4 x 6 Bl
” ”oo m s l
l
t o 2 ” B i e ts .
406 TH E ROLLI N G OF S T EE L

long The y are built of rails , and the material is move d on e ach by a steam
.

” ”
pusher c onne cte d t o a c able driven through gears by t wo 8 x 10 ve rtical
,

twin S impl e 50 h p ste am engines C ol d p ushers are also cable c onne cted
. . .

by ge ars and driven by S imilar engines bu t of the horiz ontal t ype They , .

convey t he billets desire d t o t he en d o f t he be d and S lide t hem o ver rail

ends from the beds int o railroad cars j us t bel ow the ho t be d level A lli gator .

scrap S hears are provi de d at the end of t he S crap be d which i s hand operated , .

The accompanying prints are int ended t o S how t he forms of the

rolls their kinds shape of t he various passes and the di fferent stages in
, , ,

the reduction of t he bloom t o the billet .

S EC T I O N I I I .

ROLLI N G OF S HEET BA R S A N D S K E LP
Di ffi c u l
tie s a nd Me t h o d s o f Ro l
li ng S e m i Fi ni s h e d Fl
s
a ts : This
materia l may or may not be rolle d from t he ori gina l heat of the ingot At .

Duquesne S hee t b ar , as w el l as billets and splic e bars i s rolle d o n t he

, ,

twenty one inch mil l from t he ori ginal hea t of t he ingo t , whi ch , bein g first
-

reduce d t o a x bloom on t he thirty e i gh t inch mill , i s passed t o -

the twenty-e i gh t inch bille t mill and on t o t he t wen t y one inch mil l without -

reheatin g At Edgar Thomson , for example the

. x bloom from ,

the three hi gh bloomin g mill is re he ate d when t he rolling is complete d on

-
,

the N o 4 mill whic h c onsists of a S ingle t rain o f t hr e e s tands Of t h ree high

.
,
-

rolls or on one o f t he rail mills usually t he number o ne

, However the
, .
,

metho d empl oye d in re ducing the ma t eria l i s the s ame e xcept as t o details ,

of handling whi ch , o f c ourse mus t be change d t o sui t t he different mills

, , .

Bec ause t he twenty one inch mil l a t D uquesne represe n

-
ts a distinct type
of mill , this mil l is selecte d as an exampl e of a mill rollin g shee t bar The .

problem t o b e over come in rollin g t hese flats lies in t he diffi culty of con
trolling the width In rolling blo oms bill ets and smal l S l
. abs t he pie ce , ,

is hel d t o dimensions , no t onl y by t he S hape of the grooves bu t also by ,

l

edging the pie ce in certain of the p asse s But in rollin g S hee t bar the .
,

thinness of the piece wil l no t perm i t e d g in g , af t e r i t l eaves the rou ghers .

T he
To ng ue a nd G r oo ve Pass : Fo r t he purpose of controlling the
"

width an d a t the s ame t ime e ffe c t in g a he avy reduction in t he S e ctional

area a form of close d bo x pass c alled the tongue and groove pass , is used
, ,
.

In this form of pass a groove c orresponding in width t o the width of the

,

piece desired is cut in one of t he rolls which encloses one S ide and the
,

edges of t he piece in rolling while a t ongue o ut on t he opposite roll fits

, , ,

into the groove thus closing the pass on the fourth side The des i gning
,
.

of this pass presents s ome very interesting features I n order t o insure a .

proper delivery Of the pieces from the rolls and provide for fitting t he t on gue
into t he groove the sides of t he l atter are cut at a S l i ght an gle t o the bottom
,
.

Owing t o t he heavy drafts taken the metal is squee ze d up into the cle arance,

between the tongue and the e dges of the groove thus forming a fin on e ach ,
408 T H E ROLL I N G OF S T EE L

Side O f the piece unless pre c autions are taken to prevent it T hese fins
, .

are p revente d from forming by cui ting the groove with fillets at the e dges ,

and arr angi ng the m s o t hat the bevelle d edges of the pie ce fp rm e d by the
‘

fillets enter t he succeeding pass opposite the openings forme d by the clear
ance between t he rolls In this way no fin is formed because the spreading
.
,
'

of the m aterial merely fill s out the bevel of the fillet leaving no e xce ss ,

metal t o be S queez ed up between the rolls To enter t he first tongue and .

groove roll the e dges of the billet are w ell rounde d Off , which prevents
mor e t han a very s li ght fin forming in t his pass Since t he piece is to be .

finishe d in pl ain roll s , no fille t is pl ace d in the l ast t ongue and groove p ass .

The accompanyin g prints S how t he forms of t hese passes and the di fferent ,

steps in the reduction from the billet to sheet bar .

FI G . 70 . Ro l
li ng T o ng u e a nd G ro o ve fo r 8 i nch S e e h t B ar .

S he et Bar is all approximately eight inches w ide and varies in thickness

to give wei ghts per l ine ar foot from S even to fo rty three pounds The gauge
, ,
-
.

in inches i s fo im d by multiplyin g the weight per foo t by 0372 in whic h factor .

the wei ght of a cub i c inch o f steel is take n t o be 28 pounds After t he m ill is .

onc e se t for rol ling S hee t b ar t he differen t w eights of bar are obtaine d by
,

varying t he distanc e between the rolls A s there I s c onsiderabl e d 1ffe 1 e nce .

in t emper ature in di fferen t b illets when rolled as at this mill from the , ,

ori ginal heat of the ingot i t is difficul t t o hol d t he thickness c onstant at

,

the fini shing stand and in order t o k eep t he thickness uniform a man is
, , ,

statione d at this stand of rolls t o adjus t the screws up or down t o sui t the
temperature of the bar A s it is necessary t o produce a very smooth surface
.

on shee t bar on ac count of its being subsequently rolle d into t hin S heets
, ,

chille d rolls a re use d in the finishin g stands Fo r t he s am e re ason water .

,

and steam j ets must b e dire cte d a gainst both surfaces of the bar in order
to remove the sc ale These j ets are used both at the rolls and at the s aws
. .

Ex a m p l
e of lRo l
Mi l l
ai n g S h e e t Bar—T h e Twe n t y =o ne I nc h Mi l l
a t Du q u e s ne : A S previously state d this mill represents a d istinct type ,
.

The desig n aims t o secure the advantages of t he continuous mil l and e l im i

nate the disadvantages S o w hile it i s practic ally continuous in action the
.
,

di fferent stands of rolls are place d s o far apart tha t t he pie ce clears one
stand before it enters th e ne xt A s a tandem arrangement al one woul d .
 S H EE T BA R 409

sprea d t he mill ou t over a too great length the various stands of rolls are ,

usually arrange d in t rain s that are in tandem S uch a l ayout require s l ong .

rol l tables for c arryi ng the piece forward and suitable apparatuses for
transferring the piece transversel y, such as lifting cradles skids diagonal , ,

roll tables and s wi tch or divided , tables I n this respect the twenty one
, , .
-

inch mil l at Duquesne is a good example .

T h e Layo u t fo M11] as for all mills of this typ e is somewhat

r T his , ,

complic ate d The mill c onsists of S ix stands of rolls arranged in two trains
.
,

sep arately driven and of three stands e ach The two trains are separated .

by a distance of 119 feet In e ach train the first and se cond stands next .

to the en g ine a re three high while the third on t he end of the t rain is
-
, , ,

two high F o r convenience the di fferent stands are numbere d in the order
-
.

in which the material passes through them Observing this orde r , t hen .
,

stands No s 1, 4 and 5 c ompose t he first t rain while stands Nos 2, 3 and 6

.
, .

mak e up t he se c ond train The first stand i s l oc ate d 105 feet beyond t he .

twenty e i gh t inch mill and is provide d with a re ceiving t able fi fty three
- -

fee t six inches long e quippe d with swit c hes for guiding the material from
,

the twenty e i ght inch mill into the different passes in the first stand of
-

the t wenty one inc h mill These passes are thre e in number al l of different
-
.
,

S iz es one of which is employe d as a finishing pass for bill ets and the other

two as wor k in g passe s on m a te r1alto be finished on the twenty—

,

one inch
mill.

A r r a n ge lT a b l
o f t h e Ro l es T h e delivery table for No 1 stand
m e nt .

is provi de d with a cé nte r guard for diverting material t o the billet table
that le ads t o the 4 x 4 bille t S hears l
” ”
o c a te d b e y o nd No 2 s tand Further ,
. .

along by me ans of a swi tching device another division of the material

,

may be m ade thus sending billets either t hrough a dummy pass in NO 2

,
.

s t and t o the fourteen inch No 2 continuous mill l o cate d abou t 100 fe et .

,

beyond , or t o a working pass when the material i s t o be finishe d at the ,

twenty one inc h mill S inc e material mus t be cut into suitabl e len gths for
- .

rolling on the twenty o ne inch mill a hydraul ic S hear i s lo cate d 77 feet

-
,

from No 1 st and and arrange d to cut on t he t wenty one inch mill half of
.
- -

the t able only The re ceiving table for the NO 2 stand be gins a t t hese
. .

she ars I t is provide d with a stop which may be se t for lengths from
'

twelve and one half t o thirty ei ght feet A manipulat or for t urnin g the
- -
.

pie ce is also provide d in t h is table The delivery table for No 2 stand is . .

65 feet l ong and has ten rollers fifteen inches in diameter a nd twenty inches
long ; t hese rollers are separated by a side guard from the rollers leading -

to the fourteen inch mill No 2 I n c onnection with this table is a trans fer . .

S k id ta b le for moving the pie ce t o the recei ving tabl e for No 3 stand It . .

consists essentiall y of a frame of rails bolte d t o gether and hinge d t o the

table ont o w hich t hey are t o deliver the s teel The fra m e w hen in its
,
.
,

l owest position lies bel ow the roller tables s o that when the transfer i s
, ,

raised it picks up the steel which slides down the rail skids onto the table
, ,
.
410 T H E ROLL I N G OF S TEE L

T he skids are greased S O that the stee l will S lide more e asily T he frame .

is raise d and l o were d b y means of links keye d t o a line S haft whic h is in

turn Operate d by a hydrauli c cylinder The transfer raises the bars t wenty .

inches from t he t op Of the del ivery table No 2 t o the t op of t he r ollers .

of the re ceiving t able of No 3 stand the distance between t he t wo t ab l

. es ,

being ei ght feet three inches A s No 3 stand is often use d as a three high. .
-

stand this t able is of the tilting typ e and operate d by an hydrauli c cylinder ,

pl ace d ne ar the stand The delivery tabl e of No 3 stand i s 109 feet l ong
. .

a nd serves also as a receiving table for NO 4 stand I t is stationary and in . .

,

order t o re ceive t he material when No 3 stand i s operate d two hi gh as .

-

well as three hi gh it is inclined extendin g from the t op of t he bottom

-
, ,

roll of N O 3 stand t o the te p of the middle roll in No 4 stand C oll ars

. . .

on its rolls serve t o t urn the pie ce between the stands and its S ide guards ,

are adj ustable s o that they may be use d t o guide the pie ce int o di fferent
passes on No 4 stand The delivery table for NO 4 stand i s 79 feet l ong
. . .
,

a nd has guards on t he S ide next t o the engine only in order tha t the piece ,

m a y be t r ansferre d by means of a skid table t o the re ceivin g table for

No 5 stand This transfer t ab l

. . e i s S imilar t o t hat between No 2 and NO 3 . .

stands except that the pie ce here slides t o a lower level , w here it i s stopped
by the guards on the re ceivi ng table for No 5 stand C onne cting No 5 . . .

and N O 6 stands is a stationary table provide d with adj ustable S ide guards
‘

a nd vertical rollers for edging the piece as requ i re d .

Ho t S a w s S he
The delivery t able of the last or No 6 stand
a nd a rs : , .
,

is about 104 feet l ong and at its farther end are l ocate d two ele ctrically
,

driven ho t s a ws set thirty feet S ix inches apart The se s aws made of 8 0% .

,
.

c arbon steel are forty— two inches in diameter and o n

,
e fourth inch thick -
.

T his table feeds into aS hear table one hundre d t hree fee t nine inches long , ,

along which are S ituate d seven e le ctri cally operated S hears These S hears .

are adj usted t o cu t at any length s up t o ninety seven feet S i x inches w hich -
,

is the maximum distance between the first an d l ast S hears They may be .

made t o cu t in unison or s eparately as desired From the S hear t able t he , .

piece may t ake a straight c ourse t o t he S hee t bar S hears and bundling cradle ,

or be diverte d t o t he ho t be ds w hi ch are use d for billets and S pli ce bars .

” ”
Returning now t o the billets from No 1 stand it was mentione d that 4 x 4 .
,

billets c oul d be diverte d t o a S he ar This s hear , of t he duple x t yp e is .

,

locate d s everal fee t beyond No 2 stand and is provide d with a bise cted .

tabl e of whic h e ach par t le ads t o one of the two blades of the S he ars A .

gauge and automati c stopper mounte d on a gauge beam about two feet ,

above the delivery t ables for the sh e ars c an be se t at one quarter inch ,
-

intervals for any lengths from t wenty— three and one half inches t o t wenty -

feet From these S hears an e levate d incline d roller c onveyor c arries the
.
,

short bil lets t o e igh t bins e ach of which has a capacity of 30 tons and is
,

lo c ated s o as t o empty dire ctly into railroad c ars by gravit y .

Dr ive : train is dire c t driven by a Wi l

E ach li am Tod C o 3 4 x 58
'

x 60 tandem c ompound hori zontal c ondensing e ngine of 3 500 h p The

'

. .
412 THE ROLLI N G OF S TE EL

they are three feet six inches long and twelve inches in diameter T hey .

are supporte d on the mill end by another set of similar c oupl ing boxes

whi ch conne ct them to the rolls .

l
Ro l lHo u si ngs :
s a n d Ro l rolls on this mill are twenty S ix inches T he -

long on the body for al l stands except No 3 which is t hirty S ix inches .

-
,

because bein g a three high s t and , i t contains a greater number of passes

,
-

than the two high stan d s The c ollars are usually twenty two and one
-
. -
-

half inches in diameter ; the body diam e ters range from fifteen t o twenty
S even inches ; t he diame t er of t he ne c k s is t hi rteen inches and of t he wobblers ,

twelve inches The t otal length is S i x feet ten inches for the rolls on No 3
. .

stand and si x fee t for the rest The rolls range in wei gh t fr o m 3 800 pounds .

t o 7 000 pounds The rolls are cu t down e ach time they are dressed one
.

ei ght h t o three ei gh t hs of an inch until a collar diameter of nineteen inches

-

is reached when they are s crapped The rolls are of the foll owing materials
,
.

for the various products rolle d :

—
No 1 Stand Usually sand roll ; rarely steel
. .

No .
—
2 S tan d S an d R ol l for billets and c ommon splice bars ; steel in
maj ority of cases for Duquesne and continuous rail
j oint ; always steel for S hee t bar .

—
No 3 S tand S an d Rol l for billets an d common S plice bar ; some t imes
.

'
the top rol l for c ommon splice bar is steel Steel always .

for shee t bar and ne arly always for Duquesne and c o n

tinuo us rai l j oin t ; other wise c as t iron .

No .
—
4 S tand San d Rol l s a l ways for e veryt hin g .

Nos . 5 and 6 Stands—Always san d rol l s e x cep t for S heet bar ; sheet
bar requires chille d iron rolls .

Aboutt hree sets of bille t rolls about t hree sets of cast iron rolls for ,

S hee t bar a nd fi ve se t s of c hi lle d rolls two sets of common S pli ce bar rolls for ,

No 6 stand and one se t of other r o l

. ls are carrie d on han d . Fo r ra il j oint s rolls
are t urne d up as needed a nd all S plice bar rolls are ordere d ne w when spe c i
,

fi c ati o ns fo r a ne w se ctio n c ome i n The rol l housings for the t wenty-one .

inch mil l are s imil ar for stands Nos 1 2 3 and 4 which c an be used as .
, , , ,

three hi gh an d for NOS 5 and 6 which are onl y tw o high I n No 1 train

-
, .
-
. .
,

the rolls in No 1 stan d are conne cte d by S pindle and coupling boxes t o those
.

in No 4 stan d and t he bottom t wo of NO 4 are conne cte d t o NO 5 rolls

. . . .

No 2 t rain is S imil arly c onn e c te d ; the top roll of N OS 1 and 2 stands is a

. .

dummy a ctin g as a S pindle an d t he bo t tom roll s in Nos l a nd 4 stands

’

act the same way The S pindles except those between NO 3 and N O 4 .
,
. .

stands are t wo fee t nine inches long and t we lve inches in diameter ; t he
,

l at t er are t hre e fee t s ix i nche s l on g an d t welve inches i n diameter The .

c ouplin g boxes are all fift een inches l on g and seventeen and one half inches -

in di ame t er The roll housings are c ast i ron hel d in l ine t op and bottom
.
'

, , ,

by cast iron separators Fo r N OS 1 2 3 ,and 4 stands the hous ings stand . .

, ,
 DE FECT S I N B LOOM S A N D B I LLE T S 4 13

five feet e ight and one half inches above the mill S hoes and have twenty
-

two and one half inch windows ; those for N OS 5 and 6 stands rise t hree
-
.

feet eleven and three fourths inches above the S hoes and have twenty two
- -

and one half inch windows From each housing there are two c ast iron
-
.

c aps hel d do wn by s q uare k ey bolts fitting through five inch square holes
, ,

in the caps I n the center of e ach c ap is c ast a hole for re ceiving a phosphor
.

bronze housing nut whi ch is presse d into the cap and thre ade d for re ceiving
-
,

the ho using screw This screw which i s made of Open he arth steel O f
.
,
'

.36 % to 40% c arbon is five and three e i ghths inches in diameter at the base
.
,
-

and is thre ade d at a one inch pitch On all stands but No 6 a c ast steel . .
,

rosette is fastene d on top of the housing s crews t o provi de me ans for turning
them The y thus hol d t he top rolls ti ghtl y do wn On No 6 stand a c ast
. . .

steel disc is used instead of a rosette , and a kin g lever i s attach e d

‘

to it which in turn i s hel d i n plac e by means of bolts through S lots in the

,

outer edge of the disc The bottom be arings for N OS 1, 2 and 3 stands
. .
, ,

as wel l as all the riders and the c arrier be arings are of cas t steel Brass .

bearin g piec es are used in s o m e b ut not in all of the housings The pre , , .

cedin g prints show how the mill may be use d for rollin g billets as well as
Sheet b ar The roll ing of rail j oints t o be des cribe d l ater is gradually
.
, ,

being discontinue d on this mill the intention being t o transfer this business
,

to E dgar Thomson Wor ks .

S EC T I O N I V .

S OM E G E N E RAL P RE CA UTI ON S T o B E OB S E R VE D I N R OLLI N G

S E M I FI NI S HE D
-
P R OD UCT S .

Re as o n s fo r S t u d yi ng De
f e c t s : A great many of the pre c autions
necessary t o observe in rolling the semi fi nis he d products have been -

mentione d at various t imes in pre ceding pages H owe ver as failure t o .

,

Observe t he proper pre cautions in rolling gives rise t o defe cts in the m aterial

whi ch may S ho w up i n t he finishe d article an d as t he re ader may be par

ti cular ly interes t e d in t his phase of t he business i t is t hought tha t a list ,

of rolling defe cts and their c auses m ay b e found usefu l and interesting .

By givin g t he c ause for e ach i t will be shown that many defects are una v o i d
,

able , an d t ha t e ven the most ri gid inspection wil l no t S uffice t o eliminate

some d efe c t s w hich are a common annoyance t o the manufacturer and
consumer ali ke .

Ro u gh S u r f ace Du e t o S c al e : One of the d e fe cts c o m m o n t o semi

fini s he d m aterial and one t ha t often shows up in t he finishe d article is a
very rough or pitte d surface Tha t this roughness mos t often i s due t o
.

the a dherence of s cal e on t he surface of the ingot during t he rolli ng there

can be little doubt , be cause a carefu l examination of such defe cts wil l
generall y revea l its presence in these pits At firs t though t this defe c t i s .

likel y t o be attribute d t o a r olling of t he s cale into the surface and t he ,

remedy at once suggeste d is t o clean the ingot of s cale duri ng rolling But .
4 14 T HE ROLL I N G OF S T EE L

failure t o remove the scale from the ingot will not al ways ac count f or t his
roughness In such cases the blame for the defe ct is t o be l ai d t o t he
.

presence of bl ow holes ne ar t he surface which in the he ating of the ingot ,

in the soakin g pit be come fille d with molten oxides The presence of t h e .

oxide m ay be attribute d t o t wo c auses namely t o the oxi dation of t he , ,

surf a ce of the blow holes or t o its introd u ction t hrough S mal l openings
whic h lea d from t he blo w holes t o t he surface of the ingot Thus if t he .
,

ingo t i s subj e ct t o a t emperature sufficiently hi gh t o fuse the o xi des the ,

oxi de in the hole will mel t , or the li qui d o xide on t he surface will flo w t hrough
these openings t o the blo w holes beneath and partially or c ompletel y fill
these smal l c avities This oxide c annot be removed and when t he ingot
.
,

is rolled i t be comes so firmly embe dde d in t he surface that e ven subse quent
,

pickling will no t remove it The onl y c orre ction re maining for suc h defe cts
.
,

then i s t he very e xpensive one of chippin g or grinding Lo w c arbon

, .

chr ome nickel steel i s very susceptible t o this fault and i t i s very difficult to
-
,

clean the sc ale from its surface Whil e this pe culiarity of nickel stee l may be
.

a ttri b ute d t o t he same c ause as t ha t j ust cite d for pl ai n steels ther e i s ,

much e vidence t o S ho w t hat s c ale pitting i n t his c ase is p artl y due t o an

-

entirel y di fferent cause namely , t he reduction of t he oxide of ni ckel by

,

metalli c iron a t t he rolling temperature of t his stee l Thus as fas t as this .

,

alloyin g element i s oxidize d on the surface its oxide i s reduce d by t he f fe e ,

iron bene ath the resul t bein g t he formation of iron oxide under the surface
,

of the meta l This c ondition gives rise t o an ou t er l ayer c omp o s e d of

.

metallic all oy mingle d w ith o xi d e i n w hich t he o xid e acts a s a binder

,
~

between meta l and S urface s c ale I t c an re adily be seen that this layer
.
“

may vary in t hi ckness and the merging from al l metal t o all oxide is gradual
'

, ,

resultin g i n w hat may be t erme d an interpenetration of metal and oxides ,

whic h c auses t he sc ale t o adhere most firml y t o the surface .

Co b b l
'

i ng :The most fre quen t failure in rollin g is c obbl ing I t oc curs .

at the bloomers as a t urn down or twisting of the pie ce i n t he rolls at the ,

rough e r i n t he s ame wa y or by c atchin g and buckling on t he r oll table ,

an d a t the o ther mills as a rol l t abl e or mil l ac cident The pi ece may .

catch on a t able and buckle up an d be p revente d from coming t hrough the

rolls ; i t may c atch agains t a gui de and buckle ; or i t m ay buckle against
the rolls , if delivere d t o t hem t o o fast I n such c ases practic ally all of t he
.
,

pie ce has t o be scrappe d ; t he uninj ure d se ctions of partially cobbled bloo m s

c an usually be finishe d and be made use of .

La p s : An over filling of a pass c auses the steel t o S pread betwe e n the

coll ars of the rolls an d c auses a l ap ; t his i s usuall y rolle d do wn int o the
surface , partially or altogether , if the s teel is t u rned fo r the next Sass ,
and t he pl ace between t he l ap and the rest o f the piece is left as a surface
crack Or se am A l a p may result from a crac k in the rolls into w h i ch t he
'

.
,
fl

stee l flo ws .

l
Co lar Ma r ks : Owing t o overdraft or possibly defe ctive heating , or ,
in the bl ooming mill t o to o infre quent turning of the piece the steel wil l
, ,

lthe groove c ausing c oll ar marks Lack of alignment or proper

Ove rfi l ,
.
 TH E ROLLI N G OF S TEE L

FIG . Go o d a nd l
B a d P r a c ti ce i n R oli ng B lo o m s
.

To p bl
o o m s h o ws e ffe c t o f no t turni ng t h e bl
o o m o fte n e no ugh .
 DE FE CT S I N B LOOM S A N D BI LLE T S 417

dition There are a number of things responsible fo r t his c ondition on the

.

S heared ends Thus highly se gre gate d stee l will no t S hear uni forml y and
.
,

often results in a pulled ou t c ondition , an d t he s ame thin g i s a lm os t sure to

-

happen in c ase the billet or bloom has a spongy center The t em perature .

at which the billets are S heare d plays a very important part als o These , .

pulle d o ut c avities on t he sheare d en d may have a depth o f more than

-

one inch I t is readily seen wha t happens when S uch bille t s are re
.

heate d and rolle d into small sizes The pull out is cl ose d up and elongated
.
-

with t he r olling and when rolle d into a sm al l ro d or any other s mal ler
,

S hape the effe ct of this pull -out condition m ay extend far bac k into t he

finishe d material V ery often this ma nufacture d pipe i s mistaken for a

.

genuine metallur gical pipe S ince in mo st c ases i t is centrally l ocated The

, .

injurious e ffe ct of a manufacture d pipe on the physical properties of steel

is S imil ar t o that of a metallurgic al pipe .

S pl
its o r l
C r ac ks i n Bi le ts a nd
bre aking down ingots it Bl
oo m s: In
often happens t hat the metal does not yiel d properly t o t he draught and ,

the surface structure is crac ke d or t orn at a number of places an d some ,

times to a depth of two o r three inches As the rolling is c ontinued , these torn .

surfa ce s are gradually closed , but not perfe ctl y welded an d be come much
’

, ,

el ongate d , s o tha t i t is no t e asy t o de t e ct t hem in the finishe d article not ,

onl y be cause they are c omple t ely close d bu t be cause of the ne w s cale which , ,

forming after t he rolling is fini shed , t otally covers up al l si gns of t hei r

presence This fe ature ma ke s t heir o c currence all t he more serious be cause
.
, ,

though t heir dangerous character i s re co gnize d by t he manufacturer and ,

eve ry attemp t i s mad e t o el iminate t hem the inability t o dete c t them ,

,

ofte n l e ads t o t hei r passing t he inspe ction Th e se crac ks are at t ributed .

t o many c auses I n the firs t pl ace certain grades of steel , more partien
.
,

la rl y t hose in which the c arbon c onten t lies between 18 % and are

"

.
,

m ore sus ceptible t o t his defe ct than others The sulphur and mang a nese .

conten t als o appe ars t o affe ct the te nd e ncy o f ingots t o crack Hence '

.
,
‘

m any s teel men are incline d t o l ay most of the blame t o chemic al c ompo
si ti o n, whil e others hol d t ha t the faul t lies in improper t reatment in manu

facture I t is a fact tha t steel no t properl y made may be re d S hort , and

“

that the steel c an be injure d through t o o heavy dr aught and too much redu e
tion w ithou t t urnin g , or poorly desi gned passes in rolling cannot be denied .

I t also appe ars t hat the he ating of t he ingo t in the pits may exert an impor
tant influence upon the rolling properties of the steel .

I ns p e c tio n : billets and slabs are inspe cte d on t he mill

Bl ooms ,
'

yard and when defe cts are not very deep t hey are chippe d out with chipping
’

, ,

hammers if s o ordere d be fore t he stee l is S hipped Al

,
li ns pe ction is
,
.

di re cted t o the elimination of the defects liste d above , an d rej e ction is

accordin g t o the stri ctness of the order in respe ct t o this re quirement .

Billets and sheet bars are hot bed inspe cted and in addi tion t o inspe c tion ,

for surface defe cts sheet bar is also teste d for exactness of weight .
418 ROLL I N G F I N I S H E D P ROD UC T S

C H A P T ER V I I .

T H E R OLL I N G OF T H E H EA V I E R F I N I S H E D P R ODU C T S
P LA T E S .

S EC T I O N I .

PR E PA R A TI ON OF T H E ST EE L F OR ROLLI N G FI N I S HE D P R OD UCT S .

Re he t i ng : While a few finishe d s te e la r ti c l

a e s such as pl ates l arge
~
, ,

rails and he avy S hapes , whi ch on ac c ount of their l arge mass retain their
he at for a c o nsiderable l ength of time , may be rolle d by rapi d methods
dire ctly from the ingot without rehe ating t he m aj ority of articles are so ,

smal l th at their fte m p e r a ture w oul d fall far bel o w t he rollin g r ange before
the gre at amoun t of re duction re quire d c oul d be ac complishe d Fo r al l such .

arti cles a rehe atin g of t he bl oom billet or S l ab i s a n e cessary step pre

, ,
a

liminary t o r olling Nee dless t o s ay this rehe atin g of the steel is a m atter of
.
,

gre a t importance an d require s e ven more c are t han the he ating of ingo ts .

C ompare d w ith ho t ingots the na t ure of he atin g i s very di fferent for here all ,

the he a t i s c onducte d t oward the c enter from the s urfaces ex p osed t o it ;

and S ince i n practice i t i s w el l nigh impossible t o expose al l surfaces e qually
“

t o t he he atin g medium uneven he atin g i s l ikel y t o o ccur the result of whi ch

, ,

is a variation in t he dime ns ions of the finishe d se ction He re , t oo as with .

,

in gots , the danger of burnin g o r overhe atin g i s ever prese n t As t he t e m .

p e r a tur e s attained are far above t he criti c al r ange the re he ating tends to ,

undo the refinin g of t he previous rollin g S ince t he extent of this o b l

. i te r
ation of th e o ri gi nalstructure i s abou t i n proportion t o t he t empe rature
above the c ri tic a l att ained it i s desirable t o k ee p t he reheatin g t em per
ature as l o w as possible and t o finish the r olling as ne ar the criti c al range
,

as practic able H owever , s ome finishe d materials are S O l

. i gh t that the .

highest temperatures attainable without inj ury t o t he s tee l i s b a rely

suffic ien t t o c omplete t h e rolling and in addition the we ar and tear on the
,
- -

mill s incident t o rol lin g a t t he l ower temperatures incre ases S O ra pidly as

to add very m uch t o t he expense of rolling A gain the surface of t he .
,

metal is oxi dize d very r apidly in a fl ame or a ho t atmosphere e ven sli ghtly
oxidizing an d t his oxid ation result s in t he formation of an insul atin g c oat of
,

scale that retards the he ating This s c ale may c ause trouble in other ways
. ,

also be cause at the temp e r a ture which it i s Often necessary to maintain i n

, ,

the furna c e in order to heat the steel t o the proper temperature for rolling ,
42 ROLL I N G F I N I S H E D P ROD UC T S
 REH EA T I N G F URNA CE S 421

for reheating heavy material , such as blooms slabs and the l arger bille ts , , ,

for which purpose they are very wel l adapte d ,

.

“ ”
T h e Re c u p e r a t ive o r Co n t i n u o u s
works upon the principle F u r nace
of c ount er cur rents t hroughout The c ombustion chamber i s l oc ate d at
-
.

one end of t he furnace where the heate d steel i s drawn while the chamber
, ,

for re covery of t he w aste heat i s l oc ate d at the opposite end which is ,

always neare st t he stac k and w here the steel i s char ge d I n one current .
,

the hot gases and flame from the c ombustion chamber are drawn by the
chimney draf t over the floor which i s separate d from the c ombust ion
,

chamber by a bridge wall and th e n downward through a se ries of space d

,

iron pipes t o the stac k flue I n the o ther current the course of the steel
.

and the air for combustion run counter— curren t t o t he heat the stee l over ,

the floor of the furnace the air through the encl ose d S pace about the hot
,

pipes and a flue under the floor t o the c ombustion chamber The p assage .

of al l may therefore be made c ontinuous , hence the name , c ontinuous

, ,

furnace I t wil l be observe d t ha t the billets move from t he col dest part
.

of the furnace t o the hottest part henc e the y are he ate d very gradually , ,

reaching the rolling temperature j us t prior to drawing The sc al e there .

,

fore does not melt , and no slag is formed in the continuous furnace if i t is
,

fired with gas oil or tar When powdere d c oal is used for fuel the sil icious
,
.
,

ash unites with the s cale t o form an easily fuse d sl ag that colle cts at t he
discharge end of the furnace I n order t o push the billets t hrough the
.

furnace s uitable p us hi ng devices must be provided and t o aid in thi s work

‘

t he floor of the furnace is s o m e tim e s l

. i ncli ne d , sloping downward from the
charging t o the drawing end To prevent the tearing up of the floor skids
.
,

for supporting the billets are provided built into the bottom These skids ,
.

are generally made of heavy pipe through whic h a stream of water flows to
keep t hem c ool An obj ectionable feat ure in the use of the skids i s that
.

they c ause cold spots in t he steel where t he billets rest upon t hem To .

overcome t his defec t the pipes are bent or o ff se t at the l ower ends , or the -

billets may be d elivere d from the s ki d s t o a section of the bottom line d

with magnesite I n this way t he tempe rature of the col d spots is restore d
.

to near that of the rest of the billet .

T h e A d va n t age s o f Co n t i n u o u s Re h e ati n g Fu r nac e s are numerous .

I n the firs t pl ace , they are t he bes t type of furnace t o prece de a continuous
mill The use of c omplicate d charging and dra wing machines is avoided
.
.

The he ating , bein g c o nfi ne d t o one end of the furnace makes it e asy t o

'

re gul ate the temperature t o suit the di fferent grades of steel and t o he at ,

t o the rolling temperature only those bil lets that are t o be use d a t once .
.

Where the billets use d are of c onst ant length the width of the furnace i s ,

s o proportioned t o t he l ength of billet that the entire bottom i s c o vere d

with the steel to be he ated Thus t here are no vac ant areas on t he b ottom
.
,

to d e cre ase t he he ating efficiency of t he furnace The ac companying .

prints are int ende d t o show the chief features in the m odern c ons tructi on
of these t wo t ypes of furnaces .
ROLL I N G F I N I S H ED P ROD UC T S

FI G 73 C o nt i nuo us H e ati ng F urn ace .

 ROLLI N G FI N I S H E D P ROD UCT S

the middle rol l twenty two inches A l

-
lthr ee are chille d rolls the depth
"
.
,

of the chill being between one and one and one half inches The bottom -
.

roll is hel d in pl ace by bottom and side be arings of brass which are fitted ,

into the bottom of the c ast stee l h o usings f Fo r the top roll , w hich requires
b oth t op and bottom as well as side be arings , riders for c ontaining the
brasse s are provided This roll is supporte d from bel ow by steel yard rods
.
-

whi ch extend from the bottom rider t o t he shorter arms of counterbalanced

levers in t he p its beneath the mill In t his respe ct as well as in the method
.

of s crewin g down the t op roll the const ruction of the mil l resembles the
,

forty inch mill at Duquesne F o r drivin g the s cre ws however , a 60 h p

-
.
, . .

motor is provided inste a d of the hydrauli c c ylinder , and is conne cte d t o

,

the s crews t hrough a w orm shaf t an d crown ge ar Fo r indic ating the .

draugh t on the mill a l arge drum o r cylinder abou t four fee t in diameter ,

and with an altitude e qual t o the tota l l ift of the mill is mounte d on the ,

top of one of the s crews The surface of t his cylinder is divide d vertically
.

int o paralle l S paces , t he width of whic h e qual s the pitch of the s crews one ,

and one quarter inches The circumference of e ach circle separating a pair
-
.

of spaces i s then divi de d by vertic al line s int o a number of e qual parts .

By me ans of this arrangement and a stationary pointer mounte d on the ,

housin g beside the cyl inder and set t o point at zer o on t he drum w hen all
the rolls are in c ontac t and s crewe d down ti ght , t he distance between the
rolls may be rea d o ff dire ct and with gre at ac curac y Fo r hol ding the .

m 1d d l
e roll in place , bearing boxes with side bearings which fi t into chocks

place d on t he side of t he housin g windows are provided Fo r k eeping .

this roll in l ine , l iners are emp l

oyed and for raisin g and l owerin g it , a rest
,

bar buil t o n t he pl an of a s wi nging lever is fit t e d over e ach ne ck outside

/

of the housin g an d across the window One en d of e ach res t bar is supporte d
.

at an almos t c onstan t l eve l by me ans of a t urn buc kle ro d hung from the
top of the housing w hil e the opposi te e nd i s c onne cte d t o t he plunger of
,

a hydrauli c cylinder w hi ch , l oca t e d in t he pit beneath t he housin gs , furnishes

the power for raisin g an d l owerin g t he roll I n many c ases this cylinder.

is locate d on t op of the housings , and in the most rec entl y c onstruc t ed mills ,

ele ctric motors are empl oye d instead of the hydraulic cylinder .

T h e Dr ive a nd C o n ne c t io n s :
The top and bottom rolls are conne cte d
to the pinions through coupling boxes and S pindles similar t o those in the
bloomin g mill The S pindles are eleven feet long and both are supported at
.
,

t heir centers by s ui table bearings The s addle bo x for the vibrating

.

spindle is attache d a t one en d t o t he pi ni on housin g an d at the other t o

the rol l bearing box , thus keepin g the motion of t he s addle and spindle
co inciden t w th t ha t of t he t op roll
-
i S ince t he mi ddle roll of
. t he mill is
friction drive n, t he middle pinion is use d as a drivin g pinion only , and is
smaller than the top and bottom ones the spee d ratio bein g 11 t o 19 The,
.

pinions are of t he heli c al toothe d type and are hel d in cast steel housings .

A short spindle four feet eleven inches long connects the middle pinion to
, ,

the drivi ng shaft of the en gine on which is mo unted the fly wheel Thi s .
 S H EA RED P LA TE 425

mill is driven by a 42 x 6 6 x 60 tandem compound engine c apable of ,

giving 3500 h p at the speed of 64 r p m Nearly all the new mills buil t
. . . . .

since 1916 are ele ctrically driven The new one hundred ten i nch mill at .

H omestead otherwise known as the Liberty mill is so driven

, This motor , .

was built and installed by t he G eneral E le ctri c C o I t is designed t o

. .

develop 4000 h p and t o give a spee d of 8 2 r p m on full l oad I t uses

. . . . . .

alternatin g 3 phase current with a fre quency of 25 cycles per second and a
-

pressure of 6600 volts The insta ll ation is marke d for its simplicity ; the
.
.

pe ak l o ads are taken c are of by means of a 55 ton fly wheel mounted on -

the same shaft with the motor .

Di ffi c u l
ti e s in l
Ro li ng While the r o l
S h e a r e d Pl l
a te s :
i ng o f pl ate ‘

ma y appe ar t o the novice as one of the simplest of rolling operations yet ,

t here are problems conne cte d with the rol ling of wide pl ate that require
the combine d skill and experience of the heater the millwright the roller , , ,

and roll d esi gner t o overcom e I f the slabs are not he ate d uniformly in
.

all parts , t he pl ates will curl and buckle in rolling while a simil ar e ffe ct ,

is produce d if the rolls are even slightly ou t of ali gnment The stretch .

of the housi ngs and the stoving up of the scre w are minor c onsiderations
in overcoming the diffic ulties of rolling exactly t o g auge The wearing .

away of the rolls whic h in actual ope ration t akes pl ace faster in t he middle
, ,

port ions than at the ends causes them to become holl o w in a shor t t ime so
,

t hat the pl ate is thicker in the middle than at the edges S ince the pressure .

for rolling must be applie d at the ends of the rolls this e ffe ct is increased ,

by the bending of the rolls The opposite effe c t wo ul d be produced if the

.

roll s shoul d be come ho t in the middle the expansion causing an incre ase in ,

t heir diamet ers This l ast complication is avoide d by keeping the rolls cold
.

with water sprays above them This water ru nning do wn upon the pl ate .
, ,

has a t endency to cool i t faster bu t this cooling is not as rapi d as might

,

be e xpe cted , because t he w ate r a ssum e s the S pheroida l st ate on striking

“

the very ho t pl ate and glides o ff withou t being vaporize d t o any great
e xtent . At the o ne hundr e d forty inc h mill , the S pring and wear in the
,

r ol l s a re p r o v i d e d fo r i n th e foll owi ng manner : T o re m o ve the effe cts of wear

the top and bottom rolls are dresse d do wn every S atur d ay e i the r in position ,

by attachin g an ele ctric all y driven reduction ge ar t o the drivi n g pinion ,

w hich virt u all y c onverts the mill into a l athe or by removin g t hem and ,

s ending them to be l athe t u rne d in t he machine shop T o neutralize the .

spring in the rolls the middle roll i s turned so that its diameter at the middle
.

is a l ittl e gre ater than that at the ends I f this s well or belly in t he roll .

w ere made to fit the top and bottom rolls i t woul d almost represent an
arc of a very l arge circl e , bu t as i t is impossible t o dress the roll in this
w ay the lines are o ut onl y approximatel y correc t by t aperin g t he ends and
,

leaving the central portion of the roll cylindrical in form The amount of .

t he t aper will vary with the hollowness of the mill but is never less than ,
426 ROLLI N G F I N I S HE D P ROD UCT S

one s 1xty— fourth nor greater than three sixty fourths of an inc h thus making -
,

the difference in diameter between the ends and the center vary from one
thirty second t o three thirty se conds of an inch
- - -
The dis tance from the .

e nd of t he roll t o which the taper extends may vary from forty si x t o fi fty -

six inches thus making the central cyli ndrical portion twenty— eight to
‘

forty— e ight inches l ong and depends upon the width of plate bein g r olled
, .

I t is the practice , when advantageous t o roll the wide pl ates at the be gin
,

ning of the week while the mill is full , and t o roll t he narrower plates at
,

the end of the wee k when the rolls have been worn down and the holl ow ,

ness of the mil l is more prono unced Even with these changes the mill
.

will often be come s o holl ow that it is ne cessary t o rol l the e dges a l ittle
bel H ollowness in the mill
'

o w gauge in order t o get the wei ght c orre ct .

tends t o make the e dges of the pl ate dovetail or buckle During the week .

the middle rol l wil l be change d four to six times .

T h e Ro l
li ng P ro ce s s on this mill as on the En lish mill may be l ooked
g
, ,

upon as being performe d in two steps o r s ta ge s namely a roughing or

'

, ,

breakin g down stage and a finishi ng Stage I n the breaking down of the .

slab the most important fe ature of the rolling is the determi nation of the
draughts the size of sl ab and the spring of the rolls being the c ontroll ing
, '

factors m t his re gard With a heavy sl ab that is one si x t o ten inches

.
, ,

thick a m aximu m draft or bite of abou t three fourths inch is possible

, , ,
-
.

The amount of bite de creases as the sl ab thickness de creases and the width
i ncre ases The grea t er the surfac e the less the possible draught on ac count
.

of the greater amoun t of work ne cessary in rolling Foll owing the fi rst .

few passes the draughts be come smaller and smaller be cause of the increased
work required and also t o allow materi al for the finishing At least one ; .

fourth inch is allowe d for the finishing p asses as this amount is required ,

to give suffi c ient material with which t o remove the e ffe ct produce d by
the spring of the rolls Were the spring no t remove d that is if the plates
.
,

were finishe d by a c ontinuance of pa sses c arrying the he avy draughts the ,

middle of the resulting pl ates woul d be much he a vi e r t h a n the sides By .

“
de creasing the draughts the spring is remove d and the pl ate approac he s
”
,
/

nearer the desire d wei ght and gauge Blind passes that is p asses in which
.
, ,

no additional pressure is applie d t o the rolls are also use d in finishing for ,

the same re ason The heavier gauge pl ate s cause less spring in t he roll
.

and fewer finishin g p asses are ne cessary , w hile with li ght gauge plates ;
espe ci ally on a full mill , it is ne cessary t o star t the finishing when about
one half inch above the final gauge , since a bi gger draugh t is ne cessary t o
-

hol d the pl ate and prevent buckling Ne ar the be ginning of the r o lling
.
,

the sl abs are passed through the mill transversely a few times t o obtain
the desire d width and are then rolle d l ongitudinally I n gauging the width .

six inches are all owed for shrinkage shearing et c on pl ate not ove r ei ghty
, ,
.
,

five inches w ide while seven t o ei ght inches are allowe d on pl ate from
,
428 ROLL I N G FI NI S HED P ROD UCTS

are still hot when gauged allowance must be made for shrinkage this, ,

allowance amounting to one fourth inch in width and length for e ach hundred
-

inches on plates up t o one fourth inch in thic kness and three ei ghth inch
-
,
-

for e ac h hundre d inches of length or width on gauges over one fourth inch -
.

This di fference is ne cess ary on ac coun t of t he hi gher finishin g t emperature

o f the thi c k er pl a t es I n c ase pl ates c ome t o t he mar king t able t hat will
.

no t ma k e the pl ates ordered on acc ount of being too short or too narrow
, ,

the material must either be applie d on another order or put in sto c k Any .

pl ates with obj e c t ionable s urface defe cts are rej e cted at the mark ing table
and stoc ke d P l ates stoc ke d at the t able are tre ate d in the s ame manner as
.

rej e ctions al t hough they are not liste d as such be cause they have not been
, ,

finishe d a t t he time of stoc king If a pl ate has a sna ke or is pitte d on one

.

e nd this part m ay be she are d o ff and t he remainder use d on a di fferent

,

order than t hat for whic h it was intende d P l ates tha t are t o o narrow t o .

make the ordered pl ates are hel d until an order can be found c alling for such a
gauge width and length as c an be cut from them I t is a duty of the stoc k
,
.

marker t o repl ace such pl ates as are tak en from the mar king t able A .

report is made on t he rolling order sheet , by t he mar ke r of the number ,

of plates made on an order , and the sto c k mar k er informs the office of all
plates made from sto cked material While plates are being l aid out they .

are stampe d giving heat number or sl ab number as is desire d , and any

,

other st amp that may be calle d for on the order by the purchaser Heat .

number sl ab number and size is also painted on the pl ates with wh i te lead
,

after they are marked S ome orders require that heat numbers etc are
.
,
.
,

to be painte d instead of being stamped this being more generally the case ,

on very light gauge pl ates The method used in l aying out a pl ate can be
.

describe d from S ketches such as those shown in Fi g 74 , . .

the width of the plate is taken at A B to determine the amount

First ,
o f stock over t hat of the ordere d width plus allowance for shrinkage The ,
.

s tock is then divide d s o as t o give one half to each side P oint C is set -
.

l eaving the distance BC as excess s t ock P oint 0 18 now se t along X Y .

i n t he same m anner as point C Line CO is drawn with a chal ke d strin g .

or a strai ght edge Width s OM— EN— C P and others if needed , are
.
,
“
measured using line CO as a base Line PM is then drawn by the line .

”
drawer A ri ght angled square is now use d to dr aw line C P at ri ght
.

angles t o CO thus squaring up the pl ate

, The true len gth of the pl ate .

is taken al using C as a starting point and OM is l ikewise

'

o ng C O , ,

d rawn a t ri ght angles to C O .

In
case the plate is curved the base lines must take the dire ction ,

indicate d in S ketch I I in order to avoid scrap and in c ase the length of ,

the pl ate ordere d is such a s X Y the plate c annot be made on ac c ount of ’ ’

the cur ve f T hi s plate must be applied on orders that require lengths of

a pproximatel y X I and QR with wi dths and gauge s uc h a s can be obtained
,
'

on the given pl ate Whenever the number of pl ates ordered t o the same
.
 S HEA RE D P LA TE S 429

dimensions will j ustify the e xpens e patterns of woo d are made for laying
,

out S ketch pl ates are always marked out to a templet or pattern

.
, .

Te s t Pie c e s : I n laying out the plate s ufficient material must be given

to allow for the test pieces that are re quired On she ared pl ates both
\
.

longitudinal and transverse test pieces are often taken .

S h e a r i ng :
Three shears one end and two side shears are use d on the
, ,

one hundre d forty inch mill and are s o arranged that the pl ate does not
,

require turning to shear the sides The ends are sheared first and the
.
,

F ro . 74 . S k e tc h e s I l
lus tra ti ng t h e La y i ng O u t o f Pl
ate s .

plate is then passed over castors to the side shears T his mill is also .

equipped with a rotary shear for heads and other circular pl ates an alligator ,

shear and a s crap shear .

43 0 ROLL I N G F I N I S HE D P ROD UC T S

To le ra nce s : I t is e vident e ven to the c asual observer that

S h e a ri ng , ,

conditions at the mills are such tha t shearin g to exact dimensions is i m p o ss

ible Observations made on any one mill will reveal many of these un
.

favorable c on d itions and also show that it is impossible t o reme dy them .

T he pl ates must be sheared in th e order they are rolle d and t o keep up , , .

with the mill rapid working is re quired a c ondition that makes it di fficult
, ,

t o l ay out or she ar ac cur atel y Owin g t o variations in the thi ckness of t he

.

pl ates an d in the time re qui re d for rolling them , they l e ave the c o oling
beds a t widely varying temperatures S ince there i s no way of knowing .

accura t el y j ust what this temperature is at the time o f_l a y ing out the pl ate ,

proper all owance c anno t be made for the shrinkage , the t otal amo unt of
which wil l als o vary with the dimensions of the pl ate Thus while a pl ate .
,

4 inch thick and 100 inches l ong may re qui re an all o w

1
ance of inch
for length a plate one inch thick and 200 inches long may re quire an
,

allowance of inch Finally since no mechanical stops can be used on

.
,

pl ate she ars the pl ates must be adj uste d t o position under the she ar kni fe
,

by eye and hand methods which are not favorable t o accurate work S inc e
- -
,
.

the c ondi tions in the di fferent mills such as length and type of c o oling bed , ,

kin d of material rolled , etc vary a grea t deal it is practi cally impossibl e
.
, ,

to fi x standard variati o ns covering all k inds of pl ates tha t will be j us t to

the mills and the c onsumers alike In j us tice t o the former it shoul d be .

state d that e very attempt is made to shear as near t o the exact dime nsions
ordere d as the cl ass of material would appear to call for and the mil l
conditions will perm it .

-
I ns p e c tio n fo S iz e : After
the shear i ng all plates are inspe cted for
r ,

si z e I f a plate does not me asure up to the dimensions ordere d or to within

.

the tolerances permitte d by the order department i t is rej e cte d and return ,

e d to be appl ie d on another order calling for the same grade of mat e rial .

lpl ates are wei ghed separately the weight and number
We i gh e r s : A l ,

o f pl ates made being re corded on a copy of the rolling order sheet given

to the wei gher .

r s : The che cker re ceives a copy of all rolling orders and che c ks
C h e c ke
e ach item for size and pie ces ordered On the weigher s copy of the rolling .
’

p r d e r he lists the e stimate d weigh t of the pl ate as ordered s o as t o give

,

the wei gher the ordere d weight who after ta kin g the actua l wei ght c an, , ,

determine at onc e whether the plate will meet the spe cific ations as to
weight The che cker lists all pl ates ordered in the order book and re ceives
. ,

a c opy of all orders t o be rolle d on the mill , s o as t o avoi d the m aking of

duplicates in c ase a pl ate is ordered twice I n case error is found in d im e n .

sions of pl ates liste d o n the rolling order , the che cker informs the rolle r .

and marker The che cker also lists all plates made in the o rd e r book
. ,

thus keeping a record of the pl ates still on order .

43 2 ROLL I N G FI NI S H E D P ROD UCT S

in the bottom box which furnishes the vertical support for the roll A .

screw bearing on a frame att ache d t o the bearing boxes and act uate d by
,

an ele ctri c motor , furnishes t he means by which the pressure for rolling is
applie d t o these rolls ; for S pre ading them hydraul ic j ac ks are use d Large .

discs graduate d on their circu m ferences and mounte d on the screws indicate
, ,

the spread of t he vertic al rolls As already state d , t hese roll s are driven
.

through a system of gears by t he same engine t ha t d rive s t he horiz ontal

rolls Be ginning wi th the engine the power i s transmitted t o the horizontal
.
,

rolls in the usual manner for reversing mills , while the drive for the vertical
rolls is taken o ff the upper pinion Upon the prolongation of the outside
.

bearin g of this pinion a se cond ge ar is k eye d This ge ar meshes with two

, .

idlers , one on e ither S ide w hich in t urn mes h with ge ars mounted on the
,

ends of the t wo drive Shafts for the vertic al rolls These shafts then extend .

to and across the rol l housings where they are supporte d by suitable bear
,

ings On t he se ction of t hese shafts include d between t he roll housings are

.

mounte d four slidin g mi t er gears which mesh into simil ar crown gears k eyed
to the tops of the rolls Through these gears t he peripheral S pee d of the
.

vertic a l rolls is adj uste d t o e qual the S pee d of t he horiz onta l rolls and ,

never more Hence , the vertical rolls may be use d on t he pie ce onl y on
.

the entering side of t he passes be cause if t he vertica l rolls were use d on

,

the delivery of the pl ate the gre ater S peed of the pie ce due t o t he elongation
produc e d by the horiz onta l roll s woul d j am the material between t he tw o
sets of rolls The rollin g of the pie ce on the enterin g side is preferable to
.

rollin g on the delivery side , as t hen t hin pl ates w oul d t end t o buc kle or
bow up in the center o n applyin g pressure from the verti cal rolls These .

rolls c annot be brought cl oser t o gether than twenty inches Hence the .
,

mill has a range in width of pl ates from twenty t o forty six inches -
.

T he t io n o f Ro l
Ope l i ng : R olling universal mill plates involves
ra

most of the difficultie s of rolling she are d pl ates and in addition there are ,

s everal fe atures due t o t he vertic al rolls that are not peculiar t o sheared
, ,

plate mills Thus the pie ce mus t always enter the mill at right angl es t o the
horizontal rolls as otherwise the action of t he ver t ica l rol l
.

,
s will cause t he
plate t o buckle or cur l or j am be t ween the rolls As t he pl ates rolle d on .

this mill are in very l ong length s the slightest variation in t he spacing of the
,

horiz ontal rolls shows up as a de cide d c amber in t he pl ate as it runs out

on t he t able To c orre c t this defec t which is prone t o o c cur on universal
.
,
’
mill s a S panner bl o c k i s pla ce d under t he s cre w down on t he roller s side
,

of the mill By means of a spanner bar and a sledge hammer , t his bl ock
.

may be t urne d and t he proper adj ust men t m ade on this en d of t he upper
horizontal roll t o c ause the pl ate t o roll strai ght As t o t he draugh t and .

manipul ation of the horiz ontal rolls the plate is reduce d in t he s ame way,

as on t he sheare d pl ate mill On the verti cal rolls the gre at est draughts
.

are taken in the firs t few passes the obj e ct being t o reduce the piece t o
,

the desire d wi dth as quickly as possible after which the pressure on the ,

vertic al rolls is j ust sufficient t o hol d the piec e to width This mill rolls .
 UN I VE RS A L M I LL P LA TE
'

433

many plates directly from the ingot I ngots intende d for this purpose are .

rectangul ar in s e ction be ing from one t o two inches wider at the smaller
,

end than the width of the pl ate desire d In be ginnin g t he rolling of these .

slab ingots the rollers prefer t o have the small end enter the m i l lfi rs t as ,

in thi s way the suddenness of the pull on the mill is avoide d and the draught
c an be more e asily adj uste d , but many plates are r o l
le d wi th the butt end
'

of t he ingot enterin g first The chief obj e ction t o rolling plates directly
.

from ingots i s that the pipe and central line of se gre gation is rolle d into
the pl ate , and in order t o avoid it the s crapping of a l arge amount of
finishe d material is necessary .

S t r a ig h t e n i ngMa r ki n g a nd S h e a r i ng U M Pl
. a te : From the rolls . .
,

the pl ate is c arrie d on live roller tables t o the two c ooling be ds whic h ,

extend in opposite dire ctions from both sides of the receiving table Here .
‘

any curve or c amber i s remove d from the plates by clamping them tightly
to a straight e dge The buckles thus produce d on the e dges of the pl ate
.

are then flattene d out with wooden m allets While the mill is provide d .

with a machine strai ghtener similar t o the one empl oyed at the one hundre d
,

forty inch mill it is seldom used the general practice at universal plate
, ,

mills bein g t o strai ghten the plates in t he manner describe d above E very .

“ ”
plate rolle d on this mill has the na m e and letters C arne gie , U S A . . .

rolle d into i t at intervening spaces of seven fee t While on the c ooling beds .

the pl ates are marke d o ff for length the hea t number i s stampe d on and , ,

the sl ab number size of plate order numbe r and the customer s name is
, ,
’

marke d o n with white paint The pl ates then m ove on t o the re ceiving
.

tables which c arry them t o shears where the plate s are cut to length A
, , .
g

large shear use d for splitting plates is also provided Unless otherwise .

spe cifie d two l ongitudinal tests for t he physical laboratory are taken for
,

each order or on e ach heat of steel ; one tes t is taken from t he top of the
ingot and the other from the bottom The weighing recording and i h
, .
, ,

S pe c ti o n of the pl ates are then conducte d as for sheare d pl ates .

A d va n t a ge s o f Uni ve rs a lMil lPl

ate s : While the e ffe ct of the one
wa y rollin g on Universal mill plates as will be explaine d shortly is su ch , ,

as t o re quire c are an d discrimination in their use , the y nevertheless , ,

possess certain advant ages over S heare d pl ates that make them more
desirable for s ome purposes Firs t , t he possibility of producing pl ates of
.

great length with a rolle d e dge makes them available for many purposes ,

suc h as girder c ons truction , for which sheared pl ates are no t s uita b le .

Se cond the abil it y t o roll t o fairly exact widths reduces shearing c osts t o
,

a minimum Third the rolle d edge el iminates all c osts t o the purchaser
.
,

for machining As a fourth advantage the greater tonnages that t hese

.

mills are c apable of producing may be cited be cause this tends to keep the ,

first cost to the customer l ow .

in

Ph ysi ca l s o f Pl
Pro p e r t ie a te s : The e ffect of rolling on the physical
prope rtie s of s tee l is now generally re co gnize d by the users of plates and ,
43 4 ROLLI N G F I NI S HE D P ROD UCT S

spe cifications are usually written accordingly I n a previous d iscussion of .

this subj e ct it was m ade pl ain that the c ontrolling factors during rolling
are the amount of wor k done and the temperature above the critic al at
whic h the rolling i s c omplete d To these there shoul d now be added the
.

manner in w hich the rollin g is performed A ttention has been c alled to .

the different methods of rolling plates in t he pre ce ding description I t .

will be re c alle d that the pl ate may be rolle d from the sl ab with one reheating
or from t he ingo t dire ct withou t reheating A s t o the di fference in e ffect
.

produce d by these two m ethods t here i s little data on the subj e ct but
, ,

reasonin g from the the oretic al standpoint there S houl d be no di fference

, .

The abandonment of t he metho d of rolling from t he ingot is probably due

to e conomi c c onsiderations rather than t o any tendency of the method to
produce defe ctive material A gain in t he rolling of t he sl ab or ingot it
.
,
‘

was pointe d ou t t hat all the rolling may be in one dire ction only o r the ,

plate m ay be rolle d both transversely and l ongitudinally H ere a marked

'
.

difference is observe d t o resul t from the two methods of rolling Fo r .

example if a slab or ing o t be rolle d in one direction only and al ongitudinal

,

and transverse t est pie ce be cu t from t he resultin g pl ate , l ittle di fference

in tensile strength will be observe d in pulling the two tests bu t a marked ,

difference in ductility will be found Thus the longitudin al pie ce will give
.
,

from 4% t o 7% gre ater el ongation t han t he transverse pie ce and 10% to ,

15% gre ater re duction in area C oncernin g the amount of work and fi ni s h
.

ing temperature , t he ductility is a ffe cte d in a somewha t e rratic way ,

while t he tensile strength i s incre ase d by increased wor k and l ower

finishin g temperatures Thus , a thin pl ate will sho w a very appre ciable
.

increase in t ensile strengt h over a t hick one rolled from the s ame ,

slab or ingot and t o obtain the same s trength in pl ates of

,
‘

di fferen t thicknesses i t is necessary t o e mpl o y chemic al c ontrol The .

following tabl e is intende d t o show approxi m atel y t he vari ations in the

carbon c ontent , other metalloids bein g constant , that shoul d be made to
produce pl ates of uniform strength when varying in thic kness as indicated .

Ta b l
e S h ow i ng V a r i a tio n o f Ca r b o n Co n te n t w i t h T h i c k ne s s
o f Pl a t e s to G i ve t h e S a m e S t r e n gt h .

T H I CK N E S S CA R B ON
RE Q U I RE D
12%
15%
17%
18 %
19%

I ns p e c ti o n o f Pl
ate s
for si z e and wei ght is made by mil inspectors l ,

while inspe ction for surface and other defe cts are m ade either by mill or
customer s ins pe ctors Ce rtain surface defe cts as snake s and surfa c e
’
.
'
,
43 6 T H E ROLL I N G OF S E CT I ONS

C HA PT ER V I I I .

T H E R OLL I N G OF L A RG E S E CT I ON S .

S EC T I O N I .

RAI LR OA D RAI LS .

De ve l
opm e nt o f Rai lMa n u fac tu re : D ating from the invention of
the steam l ocomotive the railroad r ail represents one of the firs t sections
‘

with which t he rolling m ill operators had t o de al as well as one of the ,

most diffic ul t and c ertainly the most importan t The importance of the .

railroad as a factor in m odern civilization and pro gress is re co gnize d by

all and t hat the rail is a most vital part in railroad opera tions is j ust
,

as e vident With the advancement in spee d of travel and weight of

.

loads c arried more and more has been require d of the rail until to day
, ,
-

no material i s subj e cte d to more severe punishment in service than the rail
road rail Expose d t o the weather at all times it is subj e cted under
.
, ,

constantly varying c onditio ns to immense c ompression and bending stresses

, ,
‘
shocks vibrations friction and wear The form of the rail then , s hould
, ,
.
,

be suc h as wil l give the gre atest transverse strength provide abundance ,

of meta l for wear , presen t a wi de b ase for fastening t o the cross tie and ,

still for t he s ake Of e conomy , be of the li ghtest section possible Now it

, .
,

so happens tha t t he form t hat best meets all these r e quirements is the
,

section kno wn as the A merican Te e R ail I t also happens that this se ction .

was i n t he e arly days of rolling mills o ne of the mos t difficult s e ctions

, ,

to roll mainly on ac count of the wide flange The history of r ail devel op
, .

ment as indic ate d in the sketches of F ig 75 gives evidence of this fact . .

T hus ,
the first real departure made from the original strap rail of 1808
was the chair rail of 1820 A s the chair of this rail was expensive a nattempt
.
,

was ma de in t he se ction of 183 1 t o roll a rail with a Wi de and relatively

heavy fl ange on t he bottom t o repl ace this ch air The diffi culty of rolling .

the flange le d t o the better bal ance d bull head of 183 7, the U— shape of 1844
and the pear he ad rail of 18 45 Then c ame the compound rail of 1856 and
.

the form of 18 60 which is the U shape of 1844 with the l ower parts cl osed
,
-

in and wel de d t o form the web As neither o f these forms prove d service
.

able a dem and for m ore metal in the he ad for wear forced a final return
,

in 1865 8 t o t he tee S hape with wide thin flange From this date the desi gn
-
.

of roll s q uality of m ateri al and l ay ou t of the mills has gradually been

, ,
-

improved until a t the present tim e the American rail mill s are not onl y
prod ucing the l argest t onnage of the worl d but also rails of the best possible
grade .
 RA I LS 43 7

Me t h o d s o f Rol l
i ng Ra i l
s: R ails were originally rolle d on the pull
over mill and the n on the reversing mill which in Engl and is the type
,
‘

of mil l still employed for this purpose But in this c ountry all rails are .

rolle d on the three high mill which formerly was usually made up of a single
-
,

train of three stands driven with one engine With the incre ase in the si ze of .

the Se ction whic h has almost doubled in wei ght within t he l ast quarte r
,

cent ury and the growing demand for l arger quantities and better quality
,

in the product a more advantageous l ay o ut of the mills for handling this

,
-

1808 18 20 1830 183 1

Strap RailBirke ns h aw C a r Rail Cl
h i are nce C air Rail Ste ve ns
’
(the l st T rail
-
) Lo ck s (Bul
h ’
l
Head)
19 l l 33 l l
.

Rail58 l
,

b s pe r yd
. . bs .
p e r yd . b s pe r yd b s pe r yd
.
b s pe r yd
. . . .
,

1844 1845 1856 1858 1860

Evans 40 l b U-Rail58 l H Cl
o se d -U Rail
’
b Pe ar e ad Co m po und T ype o f P R R Standard
First Rail Ro l
le d in Rail First T - railRail60 l
. .

85 l
. . .

b s pe r yd b s pe r yd
‘

U l
Ro l U
. .
, , . .

nite d State s e d in S . . .

1868 1874 1883 1892 1910

We lch De sign C h
anute De sign P H Dud l
e y De sig n P R R S tandard C R R o fN J
67 l l l 100 l
. .

l
. . . . . . . .

b s pe r (1 bs pe r yd bs pe r yd b s p e r yd 135 b s p e r yd
l
. . . . . . . . .

First Be ss al
Ro l
le d in U S
.
.

(1865) 8 1111 112

1?
to t is h
I

F10 . 75 S k e tc
. he s o f R ailS e c ti o ns I l
lus tr ati ng th e E vo l
uti o n o f th e R ail
ro ad R ai l
i n A m e ri ca .

material bec ame ne cessary The more modern rail mills will therefore .
, ,

consis t of two or three trains e ach separately driven and made up of one ,

or m ore stands of rolls all s o arranged that the rolling of the pie ce in any ,

one st and is complete before it is passed t o the next succeeding one With .

this arrangement th e output of the mill is greatly increase d without much

incre ase in the S pee d of the rolls be cause di fferent pie ces may be rolling ,

at di fferen t stages at the same time and the turnin g of the piece between ,

passes is avoided A s to the heating of the steel rails may as pre viously
.
, ,
438 THE ROLL I N G OF S E CT I ONS

stated be rolle d either from blooms that have been reheated after having
,

been rolle d from the ingot or on the original heat of the ingot The l atter
, .

m e thod which was introduced a few years ago mainly t o s ave the extra
,

cos t of reheating was until very recentl y l ooked upon wi th favor both by
,

the m anufa cture r a nd the c o nsum e r wh o believed that the scheme would
‘
,
'

have a beneficial e ffe ct upon the quality of rail produced due to the fact ,

that the material was necessarily finishe d at a low temperature Within .

the last two years however sentiment appears t o have t aken a swing in
, ,

favor of reheating because as is claimed by the advoc ates of rehe ating

, , ,

the incre ase d speed of rolling combine d with the he avy draughts required
to c omplete the rollin g on t he ori ginal he at is liable t o produce a c ondition
favorable t o the formation Of fractures The e ffe cts of to o rapid reduction .

have already been disc ussed Fo r t he same reason the temperature of the
.

ingot is k ept hi gh which fact incre ases the danger of overhe ating In
, .

addition the difficulty of k eepin g the finishin g temperature constant pre

, ,

sents a serious problem On the other hand by reheatin g the bl oom the
,
.
,

two initial rolling temperatures may be lower and be k ep t more uniform ,

and the shaping of the rail may pro gress more leisurely A s t o the manner .

of forming the se ction , there are two methods of r olling known as the flat , ,

or sl ab andi e d ging and the diagonal or angul ar m ethod To impart e ven

-
, , , .

a sli gh t understanding of these methods requires a l engthy explanation ;

bu t in t he proper desi gn of the various passes for t he pro gressive forming

of the rail as for any section lies t he crux of the rolling process T h e refore
, , .
,

as the subj e c t i s one of gre at interest an attemp t i s t o be made t o discuss ,

the matter i n as brief an d comprehensive a manne r as possible under t he

headings that follow .

lDe s i g n :
Ho w t o S t u d y Ro l The best way to e xpl ain roll desi gn is
by an example for i t is as yet an ar t ac quire d mainl y by experience While
, .

subj ect t o natural laws th e scientific aspects Of the subj e ct have not been
,

full y developed and the roll d esi gner has few rules to l earn This con
,
.

dition t ends to ward individuality in designing with the result that it i s ,

seldom two desi gners wil l be found t o do the s ame thing in t he s ame way .

To serve as s uch an example t he flat method of rolling as carrie d out at

the E dgar Thomson Works will be described because of the two methods , ,

of rolling this is the Older and t he one more generally employed Before
,
.

be ginn ing with the example however s ome preliminary expl anations are , ,

required .

P re c a u tio ns l
t o b e O b s e rve d i n Des i gni n g t h e Ro ls: Of course the
first c onsideration in roll desi gning is t o produce a finishe d pie ce of the
corre ct size and form an d t his must be done by spreading bendin g and
, ,

dire cting the flow of the steel Th e e ase with which this forming is done .
‘

depends on the plasticity of t he metal whi ch in turn is affe cte d by the k ind ,

Of steel whether open he arth o r Bessemer ; t he grade whether hi gh or low

,
-
,

carbon ; and the temperatur e With t he S pee d of the rolls fixed the tem .
,

p e r atur e c onfine d to a very narro w r a n ge and the kind and grade of st ee l ,

440 THE ROLL I N G OF S ECT IONS

the varying humidity Of t h e atmosphere is taken into consideration and

, ,

the proper all owanc e s are made With this very ac curate drawin g c om
.

l t d the area of the se ction is measured with a pl

a ni m e te r in order to
p e e ,

che ck u p the wei ght of th e se cti o n If this weight shoul d di ffer from t hat
.

given on the original print or drawing t he templet drawing is checke d a nd

, ,

if c orre c t the customer i s notified tha t t he actual wei ght will no t be as

’

specified NO further wor k may then be done t il l t his q uesti on Of wei ght
.

is settled , when the brass t emple t will be made from t he drawin g .

% Re ductio n in Passe s
.

T OTAL % RED SPREAD

.

FI G 7 6
. P as s T e m p l a te D ra wi ng— S l
ab —
a nd —E d g i ng
fl

M e th o d o f R o l
.

li ng R ai l
s.
 ROLL DE S I GN F OR RA I L S 44 1

Te m p l
T h e Ho t e t: The next step , which is really the first step in
desi gni ng the roll passes is the makin g of the hot templet This templet
, .

is exactly like the col d templet but larger in S ize t o allow for contra c tion
, ,

as it represents the se ction of t he rail at the fini s hi ng temperature of rolling .

T he co e fficient of contraction , or exact a mount to allow here is determi ned

-
,

by e xperience From this ho t templet the various passes are designed

.

suc ces sively as the e xperience and j ud gment of the desi gner dictate s .

T he Pa s s T e pl In
desi gning these templets the designer con
m e t: ,

s truc ts e ach in a drawing showing the di f f erent passes superimposed upon

e ach other as in the ac companying illustration I n actual practi ce these .

drawings are c onstru cted ful l siz e bu t for c onvenience in printing thi s
,

photo graph i s three eighths natural size This illustration represents t he

-

and—
.

passes for a l ight rail rolled by the slab— edging method I n this method .
,

the axis of symmetry o f t he rail c oincides with the pitch l ine and i s p arallel
to the train line of t he rolls as can be seen from t he print The more d arkly
,
.

shade d are a in t he photo graph represents the hot t emple t with the pi tch l ine ,

or axis of symmetry drawn through it and from it t he grooves in the finishing

,

pas s are o ut From t his pass t he roll designer works back t o the bl oom
. .

As a preliminary step toward designin g these passes a table like that shown ,

attache d t o the photo graph i s prepare d I n a vertical column he ade d p as s , .

,

are plac e d t he n ames of the various passe s from slabber t o finishi ng while ,

the fi gure s in t he c o l umns desi gnated as h e a d , we b , and b a se represent

the se ctiona l are a of t he di fferen t p asses for these parts expresse d in pounds
pe r yard whic h i s dire ctly proportional t o the are a in square inches This
,
.

table i s prepare d a s follows : The areas of the di fferen t parts of t he rail

are fixe d by t he hot templet I n this se ction t he metal was proporti one d
.

in the d esi gn s o as t o give pounds p e r yard in the he ad pounds ,

per yard in the web and pounds per yard in the flange , t he tot al being
pounds pe r yard w hich i s he avier than t he c ol d section by
,
pounds
per yard This di fference is due t o the fact t hat the w eigh t of t he hot
.

se ction i s c alcul ate d as if it were col d a correction for di fference in gravity

,

no t bein g ne cessary for t hi s purpose Ne xt w ill be pu t down under the .

column heade d p e r c e n t re d uc t i o n t he amount of re duction expresse d in

. .

per cent which from e xperience an d j udgment t he desi gner thinks will
.
, ,

be bes t I n t hi s c ase thes e amount s are as follows : I n the fin ishin g p ass

.

one thirty—
- se cond Of an inch reduction o n e ach S ide of t he web i s all owe d
for the marking ; in the le ader in the thir d former ,
in the se cond ,

former ,
in the first former and in the sl abber , ,
Fr om these
fi gures the areas of the differen t parts of e ach pass are c al cul ated , and the
blanks in the t able fille d in as shown Next the amoun t t o allo w for S pread.
,

of t he pie ce from one pass t o the other is decided upon an d pl ace d in the
column he ade d s p r e a d T his allowance i s expressed in fractions of an inch
.

and is measure d and allowed for al ong t he axis of symmetry as shown by

t he positions of the rail heads in the photograph With the reduction for .

the various passes and their parts thus apportioned the desi gner the npro ,
442 T H E ROLLI N G OF S E CTI ONS

ce e to draw in the passes as desi gnated i n the photograph by the letters

ds ,

a to p and in doing so he keeps the f oll o wing points c onstantl y in mind

,
.

First is the danger Of forming fins

,
A s an aid in avoiding these defe cts the
.

f th e R o l We b H e ad and
‘

S h o wing D ifference i n P e ri p h e ral l

"

F rc S p e ed
gang
. o s at , .

e .

piece is passe d throug hthe m i ll so that e ach si d e of th e pass alternately enters

an open and close d side of the groove H o w this is done on the three high
.
-

mill without turning the piece c a n be seen from a s tud y of Fi g 78 E ven . .

'
444 TH E ROLL IN G OF S E C T I ONS

FI G . 78 . A rrang e m e nt o f R o l
ls and P asse s fo r
 RA I L M I LLS

Ro l
li ng H e a v y Rai l
s b y t h e S Ia b -
a nd - E d g ing M e tho d .
 446 T HE ROLLI N G OF S E CT I ONS

are use d by the roll turner in cutting the grooves whi c h must be of the
'
,

exac t size and shape Of th e templets A t E dgar Thomson the roughin g

‘
.

rolls are adamite or sand r oll s m ore often the l atter ; t he se cond rou gher
,
,

or former are sand rolls ; and the finishing are chille d rolls
, .

l
st R o ugh ing Stand . l
st F i ni shi ng S tand .

2nd R o ugh i ng S ta nd . h
2nd F i ni s i ng S ta nd .
c!

F I G 79
. . Pl
an S h o w i ng A rr ang e m e nt o f Ro l
ls fo r D i ag o n alR o l
li ng o f R ai l
s fr o m B il
le ts
448 T HE ROLL I N G OF S E CT I ONS

finishing this dimension is reduce d to forty inches The first and sec ond .

” ” ”
trains are driven by 50 x 78 x 60 tandem compo un d engines The fly .

wheels on these engines weigh 100 tons each and the S peed of t he engine ,
” ” ”
is about 6 0 r p In The third train i s driven by a 44 x 74 x 54
. . .

horiz onta l vertic a l c ompound engine which has a spee d of 65 r p m , . . .

The first or roughing stands on e ach of these two mills are serve d by lifting
tables and the intermediate stands by tilting tables The No 3 an ei ghteen
,
. .
,
” ” ” ” ”
inch mill , employs 19 x 19 x 38 and 19 x 20 rolls and rolls rails ,

from twelve pounds t o forty pounds per yard I t consists of t wo trains .

in tandem , e ach of two stands ; number one and num b er three stands both ,

three high , make up the first train , while number two a three hi gh stand
-
,
-
,

and the t wo high finishing stand are in the second train E ach t rain is
-
.

independently driven b y a 1500 h p ele ctri c mo t or R ails rolle d on t hese. . .

mil l
s have distinguishin g mar ks Thus he avy rails rolle d on the N O 2
'

.
, .

mill have the si gn 9 rolled on the web and li ght rails rolle d on the No 1
, , .

mill are distinguished b y the si gn similarly lo cated , .

Ro l
li ng He avy Ra i l
s After
the rolls have been properl y turned
they are pl ace d in the housing in t heir proper positions and c arefully lined
up A t ria l rolling on a s hort bl oom will then be made an d durin g this
.
,

rolling the boss roller wil l watch the piece closely t o see tha t i t goes through
the mill all ri ght If the section i s a new one the roll turner and desi gner
.
,

will al so be present t o w atch the trials ; If the trial pie ce goes th r ough
,

the mill without c ausin g t rouble a section is sawed cooled and exam ined, , ,

by the roller and roll desi gner I n doing this the piece thus rolle d is gauged
.
,

by means of the male and female templ et whi ch the desi gner has furnished
the roller If this section is found t o be c orrect the mill is then re ady t o
.
,

be gin the rolling w hi ch is really t he simplest part of the process T he r oller

,
.

watches t he mil l closely t o see t ha t e verythin g is runnin g right and at ,

frequent intervals will gauge an d examine s amples of the rails I n addition .

,

he walks down t o the c ooling be d about e very fifteen minutes t o e xamine

the rails for any d efe ct s that may be c ause d in t he rollin g s uch as c o l lar ,

mar ks unde rfi l ls roll marks o ve r fi l l guide mar ks crac ks or seams I f

‘

, ,
s , , ,
.

he finds a defe ct in ro l ling he hastens to make the necessary adj ustments

,

to c orrect the trouble .

Unavoi d ab l
e V a ri a t i o n s : One of the things that cannot be avoided
in the rolling is the wear of the rol ls While it oc curs over the entire surface .

of the groove the parts of the groove subj e ct t o fastest we a r are those
’

which do the gre atest work Referrin g t o the photo graph of the drawing
.

for the pass t emplets , i t may be seen w here the greatest wear w il l t ake
pl ac e This results in a decrease in the fishin g of the rail as shown in the
.

followin g sket ch I t is also a difficul t mat t er to keep t he base perfe ctly

.

flat because the hi gh coll ar in the finishing passes supporting this part of
,

the rail tends to wear away the e dges faster than at the bottom of the groove .
 S TE P S I N S HA P IN G RA I LS 449 .

T he lthat res ults produces the defect known as the ro c ki n g

slight o ve rfi l
b a se . Thi s wearing is very rapid and with the mill running steadily one
, ,
.

dre ss m g Of the rolls lasts but from twenty four to thirty six hours - -
.

l
Unde rfil

De crease in th e
Fishing due
Worn R oll

Ro cki ng Base

FIG . 80 . S h o wi ng D e fe cts i n R ai l
s D ue to W e a ri ng o f th e R o l
ls

T heV a r io u s S t e ps i n S h a p i ng o f Ra ils : To t race t he material from

the ingot the work be gins at the f o rty ei ght inch mill previously mentioned
,
-
,

where the very slow spee d and rela t ivel y grea t reduction gives more of
the pressing and less of the stretching e ffect of ro l l
i ng and is intended to avoid ,

muc h of the danger of tearing o r cracking the i ngot The large fillets used in .

the grooves k eep the c orners of the ingot well rounded This mill reducing .
,

the ingot from x to x leaves less work than usual

to be done on the three hi gh bloomer which produces a
-
x bl oom .

From the bl oomer the long bloom passes to the S hears where the proper
disc ard which is varied in di fferen t Sp ecification s is made and bl ooms of
, , ,

di fferent lengths are cut to suit the conditions Large rails are rolle d two .
 T H E ROLL I N G OF S E C TI ONS
'
450

lengths t o the bloom while lighter ones may run into three lengths to t he
,

bl oom Le aving the shears the blooms t ravel on roll tables t o a d i s tr i

.
,

buting point where they are s en t t o No 1 and No 2 rail mill furnaces or

, . .

to No 4 billet and s heet bar mill The furnaces serving the two large
. .

rai l mills , which extend parallel t o e ach other and are ho used in the s ame
buil ding are arrange d in one row a t right angles t o t he mill s and in s uch
,

a manner that the blooms may be c harge d on one side and drawn on the
other which is nearer the mills From the rolls the piece passes on t o the .

saws and then t o the finishing and inspe cting department

, .

C u tt i ng : Fo
cuttin g rails four high S pee d (1500 r p m ) toothed
r . . .

circul ar saws are provided The saws are mounte d over the delivery table .

on the free ends of tiltin g arms whose axes are c oncentri c with t he drive ,

shafts Belts then c onne c t the saws with their drivin g shafts which are
.
,

electrically propelled On No 1 mill all the saws are mounte d on one shaf t
. .

which is driven by one mo tor but in No 2 mill e ach saw is mounte d on a , .

separate c arriage and is driven by an individual motor The tilting arms .

are ele ctric ally c ontrolle d s o that all the s aws may be made t o cut simul
t ane o usl
'

y These s aws are adjus table t o cut different lengths from thirty
.

to sixty feet though t hirty and thirty three fee t are standard lengths I n
,
-
.

cutti ng t h e ra i l
s pr o p e r allowance mus t be made for S hrinkage , which is
,

nearly three sixteenths inch per foot , or about seven inches for a thirty
-

three foot , hundre d pound rail The exact amoun t Of the shrinkage depends
'

upon the temperature a t whi ch the rail is sawed hence many rail roads ,

spe cify t he amount of shrinkage per rai land in s o doing fi x the finishing ,

temperature of rolling The allowance shoul d be not less than one — . fourth
inch over o r under length spe cified S ince t he rails do not always leave .

the finishing rolls perfectly s trai ght, i t is not always possible t o make a
square cut and one — thirty— se cond inch o ff square shoul d be allowed R ail s
,
-
.

eighty fi ve pounds o r over are rolle d in double lengths an d on blooms on

-
,

which tests are t aken si x t o e ight fee t is allowe d for physica l test pie ces
, ,

which are cu t from the ends of the piece Smaller rails are rolle d in triple .

lengths G re at c are is required in adj ustin g the hei ght of the saw blocks
.

in order t o avoid k inking or s cra t ching the rail and t o se cure a square cut ,
.

From t he s aws the rails pass under a stamping machine which m arks the
, ,

heat number and the position of the rail in the ingot t he l atter being d e s i g ,

na te d by letters be ginning with A at the top of the ingot A t E dgar Thom .

son the A cut i s disc arde d on all heavy rails About sixty feet from the .

stamper i s l ocate d the c ambering machine which c onsists of a set of

,

horiz ontal rolls with a vertical roll on e ach side all in one housing and set , ,

to bend the r ail slightl y s o as to make t he top surface of t he rail c onvex

from en d t o end A sc ale l oc ate d ne ar the end of the delivery t able is used
.

for che cking the weight of the rails as often as desired before they are sent ,

to the c ooling beds The No 1 and No 2 mills bein g arranged parallel

. . .
,

t o each other deliver their p r o d uct to wha t may be c onsi dere d a single
, ,

large c ooling bed where the rails from both mills are slowly moved i n one
,

dire ction which is toward the finishing room

, .
452 T HE ROLL I N G OF S E CT I ONS

beds where they are walked or inspe cted both by a company s inspe ctor
, ,
’

’
a nd by the customer s if s o specified The o utsi de i nsp e cti o n covers mainly
, .

surface defects s uch as seams slivers gui de m ar ks a nd pits t hat may

, , , ,

have be e n overlooke d by the inside inspe ctor , and t he bol t holes The .

rails having been measure d and gauged by the inside inspectors and rollers
, ,

the dimensions are che cke d only a t intervals by the outside inspector .

The location of the defe cts are marke d with chalk I f these are located .

near the end t ha t portion of the rail may be sawed off and the rail still
,
«

applie d on the order as a shor t of firs t grade Rail s that fall below the .

all owance a s t o length are also dispose d of in the same way Ifthe d efect s .

are m any o r near the center , the rail is either classe d as a number two or
sent bac k t o the mi ll s t o be rolle d into a light rail I n both the inside and .

outside inspe cti o n the rails are walke d twice once with the base up a gain
, , ,

with the heads up As the rails are ac cepted by t h e inspe ctors they are
.
,
-

counted t he number bein g c hecked up with the ori ginal order Then
, .

the y are picke d up by immense magnets attached t o over head ele ctri c cranes
and pl aced in the cars where after weighing they are ready for shipment
, ,
.

Li gh t Ra i l
s: rolling finishing and in spection of light rails as
T he , ,

well as the m aterial use d are somewhat di fferen t from the same operations
,

for he avy r ails T o be gin with the numb er t hree m i l l in which most of
.
,

these rails are rolle d , i s Operated as a separate unit practically independent ,

of the rest of the works and with t he exce ption of re rolling sfrom { ej e cted
,
-

heavy r ails all its pr oduc t is rolle d from billets whi ch are obtaine d from
,

other works Fo r this re ason neither che ck analyse s nor physic al tests are
.

made on l i ght rails be c ause e ven if such tests were made there woul d be
, , ,

no way of i nd e nti fyi ng the rail as having been made from t he s ame s t ee l from
which the tests were t a k en nor of knowin g that the t ests repres e nt e d the
material in an order The billets are heated in one of t wo c ontinuous gas
.

fired furnaces and are rolled by the angul ar metho d on six passes in the mill .

R er oll e d rails re ceive two additional passes i n the first roughin g stand ,

whi c h is provide d w ith t ilting tables for the purpose Le aving the rolls .
,

the r ails are s awe d into l engths of thirty feet or under a nd are passe d t o the
cooling beds When s ufficientl y c ol d they re ceive a preliminary ins pe ction
.
,

in whi ch they are me asure d for length and then passe d through a roll ,

strai ghtener t o pun ching m achines wh e re both bolt holes and bond holes
are punched S ince the roll straighteners straighten the rail in one direction
.

only and usually fail t o produce a perfe ctly s traigh t rail even i n one ,

dire cti on gag presses are empl oyed t o complete the straightening As for
, .

he avy rails l i ght rails are subj e ct t o a se cond though less rigid inspe ction
, , ,

after al l work is completed The mil l is als o e quippe d wi th c o l d s aws

‘

.
,

but c ol d s awing is undesirable for it works a gre at hardship upon the mill
, ,

incre asing the c ost gre atly due t o extra l abor and s crap l os s Fo r handling
,
.

t he r ails a large gantry crane of an improved form wh ich travels on tracks

l ai d on the ground is provi d ed Light rai l s are weighe d in cars before
. .

S hipment .
 RA I L J OI N T S
'

453

Co ntinuo us Railo int J .

We be r RailJo int .

Du q ue sne Rai lJo int . 100 Pe r Ce nt Railo intJ .

Du q ue sne and 100 Pe r Ce nt Jo int

.

Hatfie l
d RailJo int . lRailo int.
Barschal J

Q C Bo nz ano Railo int J . Abb o tt Railo intJ .

Wil
l
iam s Re info rce d Rail
J o int . as Ra ilo int
Atl J .

FI G . 81 . S k e tc h e s S h o w i ng D iffe re nt K i nd s and T yp e s o f R a i l o i nts

J .
454 T HE ROLL I N G OF S E CTI ONS

Ke ysto ne a te d Rail
I nsul Jo int

We be r Insul
ate d Railo int J Braddo ck I nsul
ate d Railo int J

ate d Rail
OBrie n Insul Jo int
'

FI G 82 T yp e f I nsul
s o a ti ng R a i l J o ints
bl i ne s re p re s e nt i nsu l
a ck l
. . .

T he h e av y a t i ng fi b e r .

S ECT I O N I I .

THE S H A PI N G OF RAI L J OI NT S .

l
Ro li n g Rai lJ o i n ts : R ail
j oint s are made in so many different forms ,

it is impossible to sele ct any one that woul d serve as an example t o i llustrate

the probl ems i nvolve d in the rollin g of the others The ac companying .

prints s how t he shapes of t he di fferent passes for e ach of three t yp es of

rail j o i nts nam e l
, i y t he c ommon splice bar , t he Duquesne j oin t of the
,

depending flange type , and the continuous j oint of t he bed pl ate t ype The .

Br addo c k i nsul ated j oint is made up of t wo side pl ates and a be d pl ate .

both being c omparatively simple to roll I n a general way r a i l j o ints are

.
,

more or l ess di fficult t o ro llbeing subj ect t o al l the drawbacks of the rai l
'

section and t o many others in addition due t o thei r irre gul ar section and
,

lac k of symmetry I n t he c ommon splice bar , for examp l

. e t he angles at ,

which t he se ction is rolle d are limite d by danger of undercuts , and the

shape of the passe s in which the pie ce is ne cessarily reduce d are favorable
to the formation of l aps and seams I n the Duquesne j oint these danger s
.
,
 THE ROLLI N G OF S E CT I ONS

FI G 8 4
. . P as s e s fo r Ro l
li ng D uq u e s ne S p l
i ce B ar .
RA I L J OI N T S 457
458 T HE ROLL I N G OF S ECTI ONS

are multiplied while the outstanding parts of the continuous section by

, ,

striking the rolls firs t or being a trifle colder than the rest often prevent ,

the piece from entering the pass ri gh t ly . Fo r similar reasons it is di fficult ,

to ma k e guides that will properly handle this material and it is prone t o ,

become cobble d or caught in the rolls of the t ables The base pl ate .

par t of the continuo us j oint m ust be rolle d a t the angle as shown on the
drawings This par t is later bent up ho t at the splice bar shop t o fit neatly
.

the flange of the rail A fter being rolled usually i n pie ces about ninety
.
,

three feet l ong t he bars are hot sawed into thre e equa l lengt hs and sent
, ,

to the S pl ice bar shop w hich i s l oc ate d at the E dgar Thomson Works
,
'
.

Here they are sheared t o lengths req uired punched sl otted and strai ghtened , ,

by methods shortly to be descr ibed .

Me t h o d s o f F i nis h i n g Ra i lJ oi n t s : While the finishing of rail j oints

be ars no relation to the rolling of them and is a separate industry yet fo r ,

the convenience of the reader it is best t o complete the subj ec t now rather ,

than t o postpone it for some other part of t he book There are four ways .

by which rail j oints may be worke d : Firs t all the operations of shearin g ,

to length straightening pun ching and notching may be performe d upon

, ,

the col d pie ces w ithout he ating in any way w hen the y are spoken of as ,

col d w orke d j oints S ec ond this c ol d working may be foll owe d by an

.
,

annealin g process t o produce the c ol d worked and anneale d bars Third .

,

th e bars may be heated after shearing t o length and the work of punc hing
,

etc be done While t hey are hot after whic h they are all o w
, ,

,
e d t o c ool in
,

air I n this c ase they are c alle d hot worke d bars Fourth inste ad of
. .
,

cooling the bars in the air after hot workin g they may be coole d by i m m e rs ,

ing them in oil when they are designate d as hot worke d an d oi l quenched
,

bars I t will be observe d that all bars no matter by what method they
.
,

are to be worked are she are d c ol d ho t or c ol d s awing bein g too expensive

, ,

to be considered Of course these methods of treatmen t may be varied

.
,

somewha t but it is doubtful if the additional benefits derived are co m

,

mensurate with the additional expense involved .

T h e Ed gar T h o m s o n S pl
i ce Ba r S h o p : The practice at this shop
coincides with that o utline d above Fo r this reason the shop is made .

up of four units designat e d as A B C and D of which all may be use d fo r c ol d

, , , ,

working but only A B and C are e quippe d with furnaces for ho t working
, , . .

The furnace of unit B is use d fo r heating continuous j oints prior t o bending the
depending flange Units A and D eac h c onsist of a she ar an d two presse s
.

for pun ching A gag press for straightening such bars as nee d i t is als o
.

‘
provi de d Unit B which is espe cially equippe d for working c ontinuous
.
,

j oints , c onsists in addition t o the furnace note d above of one shear tw o

'

, , ,
'

punches and a folding press whic h not onl y fol ds the j oint but als o
, ,

straightens down the flange forming the bed plate all i n the one operation ,
.

The Duquesne bar l ikewise requires a S pe ci a l to o lfor cutting out the exces s
in the dependi ng flange Fo r this reason unit C c onsists of two punches
.
, ,

a strai ghtening press and two she ars A continuous oil quenching tan k
,
.
 '
46 0 T HE
'
R OLLI N G OF S E CTI ONS

the steel The proper temperature once reached it is maintained u

. ntil al l ,

the st eel is thoroughly heated which gene rally takes about two and one ,

half hours The heat is then turned o ff and all doors in the furnace are
.

cl osed The steel is now pushed into the c ooling chamber where it is
.
,

all owed to c ool sl owly During this time the doors are cl osed tightly to .

prevent as much as possible sc ale forming on the steel The cooling

, ,
.

require s about two and o ne half hours After the steel is col d the c ars -
.
,

are pu shed out of the furnace and the bars are loaded on cars for shipment , ;

Ho t Wo r ke d Ba r s : I n hot working common angle bars the order o f ,

procedure is as foll ows: shearing t o l e ngt h , heati ng , p unching , notching ,

'

strai ghtening if ne cessary and cooling Patente d bars may require

, ,
.

additional operations Thus in workin g t he Duquesne bar the excess .

, ,

flange is she are d o ff after the heating and j ust before the notching I n .

hot punching any bar in order t o avoid spreading of the metal and con ,

sequent distortion of the bar it is ne cessary to e mploy a confining die , ,

that is the cutting die must be enclose d in a die block or frame t he upper
, ,

surface of which together with the die itself c o nforms in shape t o the
, ,

inside surface of the bar H o t worke d bars must therefore be punched .

, ,

fro m the outside or inward Most c ol d wor ke d bars m ay be punche d from

, .

the inside or o utward as t here is no danger of spreading the meta l and

, ,

enclose d dies are not necess ary The strai ghtening machines are presses .

provide d with a se t of dies for e ach size of e ach section One die conforms .

to the size and shape of one side of the se ction and the second die t o the other
side and both are set in the press s o that at the end of the stroke the space
,

between the di es is of the s ame shape as the bar and just e qual t o i t in
’

thickness As a rule the hi gher carbon angle bars Duquesne and c on

.
,

ti nuo us j oints are hot worke d I n c ase the continuous j oints are cold .

worked they mus t be he ate d befor e the flange is bent down The furnaces
, .

employe d for hot working are of the c ontinuous type They are re ctangul ar .

in shape and wide enough to admit two rows of bars lai d end t o end Natural .

gas is the fuel use d I n order t o obtain an even distribution of the heat
.
,

the furnace is provide d with four ports and in addition four l arge burners ,

of the Bunsen type are l o cate d at the bottom along e ach side of the furnace
to supply he at under the bars Recording pyrometers are employed so the .
,

exact temperature of the furna ce may be ascertaine d at any time After .

being she are d t o length the col d bars are l ai d upon water cool e d skid pipes,

and pushe d into the furnace from the rear b y m e a ns of ele ctrically ope rated '

dogs The lengt h of t he furnace and rate of chargin g is such that about
.

two hours are c onsume d in pushing e ach bar through the furnace this ,

time being su fficient t o bring the bar t o the workin g temperature of about
800 to 8 3 0 C w hich is a little higher than necessary for working as the
° °
.
, ,

temperature drops by the time the bar reaches the m achine t o 790 or °

The skids end near the front of the furnace and the bars descend to a hearth , ,

whence they are remove d with tongs through doors Needless to say the .
,

bad e ffects of cold working are entirely avoided by hot working .

 S T R UC T URA L S HA P E S 46 1

Ho t Wo r ke d a nd Oi lQu e nc h e d
this method , not only are the
: In
evils of c ol d working avoided b ut the strength an d duc t ility or tough ness
, , ,

of the bar are much improved , also T he method w hich is espe cial ly .
,

applic able t o high carbon angle bars and Duquesne j oints c onsists in hot ,

working the bars in the usual way and quenching them in oil before t hey
have coole d to a t emperature below that of the critic al range The m e ces .

si ty of completing the work before the temperature drops bel ow this poin t

may require the bar t o be heate d t o 30 or 40 C higher than for ordinary

° °
.

hot wor king and permits no del ay in the operation Fo r quenchin g t he

,
.

bars a continuous oil tan k in close prox

,
imity t o the presses is provided .

T he t an k is rectangul ar in shape and provid e d with a chain c onveyor which ,

slowl y c arries the bars through t he oil the spee d of t he chain and its ,

dire ction o f t ravel being s o re gul at e d t ha t t he bars upon entering a t one ,

end of the t ank , are c arrie d down int o the oil , across the tank and up to ,

the Opposite end and are c oole d t o 70 C or less The oil use d is a spe cial
°
. .

grade of petroleum product that wi l l not get viscous and has the most
l
favorable c oo in g properties I n order t o k eep it cooled to t he proper
.

temperature , t he oil from the quenc hing t an k is pumpe d t hr ough a set of

water c oole d pipes and i nto a l arge storage tan k The fresh oil for the .

quenchin g t an k is pumpe d from t he bottom of thi s t ank By means of .

this circul ating system the temperature of t he oil i s kept usually at about , ,

60 C
°
.The temperature of the oil i s taken at intervals of an hour or s o ‘

to make sure its temperature does no t rise t oo high .

l
S EC T I O N I l .

ST R UCT U R AL A N D OT HE R S H A PE S .

Pl
an o f S t u d y : I t is needless t o remar k that a detaile d description
of the rollin g of e ach of the many sections m cl ud e d under t his he ading

woul d resul t in a very l engthy discussion an d i t is doub tful if such a dis ,

cussi o n w oul d prove t o be of much value in ac compl ishin g t he ends at w hich

this boo k aims Besides w hile t he rollin g of e ach shape or se ction presents
.
,

difficulties peculiar t o itself al one t here are c ertain problems common t o

,

all se c t ions , and of t hese general fe atures an e x ample has alre ady been
given in t he d escrip t ion of the rolling of rail s Unlike rail mills s t ructural .
,

shape mills vary much both in type and e quipment and often t he methods
, ,

for rolling a given sec t ion mus t be adap t ed t o t he mill conditions In .

general t he size of the se ction for e cono m i c reasons wil l determine t he

, , ,

size o f t he mill and t he di fferent sizes of the s ame se ction will be rolled
,

on di fferent mills No one mill t herefore c an be selecte d as an example

.
, ,
'
of the rolling of e ven one of t hese s hapes Fo r t hese re asons a brief and .

more or less general discus sion of t he di fferent roll desi gns for s ome of t he
more c ommon se ctions is all that will be attempted here and it is hoped ,

the study will be found both interesting and profitable .

46 2 T H E ROLL I N G OF S E CT I O N S

A ng l
e s: Among
the first shapes to b e rolle d was the angle Three .

meth ods of rolling this s hape have been developed I n two of these methods .

the forming of t he angle is be gun fr om a re ctangular bl oom or if the bl oom ,

’

is s quare from a re ctangular roughing pass in the mill I n wha t may be

, .

terme d t he first method t he grooves are so desi gne d t ha t e ach successive

,

pa ss from t he slab approaches the ri ght angle of t he finishe d bar t he piece ,

be in g gradually bent and re duced a t the s ame time I n t he sec ond method .
,

c al le d the butterfly method the le gs are k ept flat until the le ader and
,

fini shing passes w hen they are bent t o form a ri ght angle I n t he third
, .

method the forming of t he angle is be gun from a re ctangular bloom by

,

lthe desire d thickness

firs t wor k ing o ff one c orner and then recessing i t t i l
'

of the le gs i s obtained .

FI G . 86 . M e th o d s o f Ro l
li ng A ngl
e s .

T heT h ree Me t h o d s C o m p a r e d : T h e part of the angle that gives

the most troubl e in rolling is the bac k and the apex which must be square ,

and sharp A s shown in t he a cc ompanyin g sketches this difficulty is

.
,

overcome in the firs t an d se con d methods by reserving metal in the first

passes on both side s of t he bar where the ape x is t o be formed I nthe .

last passes t his excess metal is avail able t o fill out what woul d be lacking
on account of the bending which t ends t o draw the metal down from the
,

apex I n the third method the apex and back are perfe ct fro m the be ginning
. .

A s t o the rel at ive merits of the three methods there is of c ourse much , , ,

difference of Opinion H owever there are two features about the butterfly
.
,

method that appears t o a decided advantage when c ompared with either

of the other two The ability to employ an edging pass so near the finishing
.
 T HE ROLLI N G O F S EC T I ONS
'

464

T h e Ch a n ne l
: Channels are rolle d by two distinct methods known
as the butterfly and beam ro ughing methods The butterfly method is .

said t o have ori ginate d in the year 1873 a t t he Upper Union Mills of Carne gie ,

Kl o w m an Co and is sometimes c alle d the slabbin g method I n bein g

.
, .

formed by this method the section resembles two angles being rolle d side
,

by side in one set of grooves and by t he same b utterfly method I n the , .

second method the bloom in t he re ctangular form is edge d for the first
, ,

pass and is t hen worke d down fro m e ac h e dge or face alternatel y by groove s
’
in t he roughing passes until it much resembles a beam and i n reality it i s ,

a beam in the rough S ucceedin g passes , however wor k o ff the flanges on

.
,

one side of the we b The function o f these temporary flanges is to supply

.

metal fo r holdi ng the heigh t of t he flanges on the opposite side thus forming ,

a channel with full sharp edges an d s quare sides This me tho d is said to .

have an advantage over t he butterfly method in that the roughing roll s

may be use d either for beams or c hannels an d a greater number of wei ghts
may be taken from t he same se t o f rol l s I n rollin g d eep channels the .

butterfly metho d woul d appear t o overc om e t he d ifficulty of making the

flanges nicely bu t more r o l , lsp a ce is re quire d t han in the beam roughing
method and sinc e t he grea t width of the section makes e dging i m pra c
,

t i c ab l
e ,it is mor e d i fficul t t o secure wel l formed e d ges on l arge c hannels .

In the beam method the butterfly idea is us ed t o some extent and in order
, ,

to obtain the proper heigh t an d t hi ckness of flange readily the flanges are ,

rolle d at an angle t o the web an d finally bent t o righ t angles in the leader
and finis hi n g pass in t he same way , t hough t o l ess de gree as in the butter ,

fly method Fo r channels , about the same number of passes are required

.

as for angles Very large channe ls are often rolle d from shape d blooms
.
,

as at the thir t y fi ve inch mil l a t H omes t ea d, whi ch wor k s in c onj unction

-

with the forty inch bl oomin g mil l to rol l l arge beams an d channels The .

blooms for both these shapes have much t he same form the channels bein g ,

finished by the beam rougher method in the thirty fi ve inch mill

- -
.

Be Ti e s , a nd Pi l
am s , i n g : Be ams were doubtless first made by , ,

rivetin g a plate an d four angle bars t o gether , the n l ater by bolt ing or
rivetin g t wo channel s t ogether bac k t o back Up until 1895 t hey were .

c onsidere d very d iffic ult se ctions t o roll bu t t he gre a t demand for t hese ,

shapes during the suc cee ding ye ars so stimulated thought in t heir manu
facture that mos t of the former difficultie s have been overcome and standard ,

beams are no w rolled with as little trouble as angles channels or rails , ,

'
.

I ndee d the rolling of these se ctions very much resembles that of rails ,
,

for if t he he ad of the rail be replaced by a flange the se ctions woul d be

practically t he same Like rails t here are two me thods of rolling beams
.
, ,

namely the flat or slab and e dging method and t he diagonal But un
, ,
- -
,
.

like rails the diagonal method for beams is far superi or t o the older flat
,

method be c ause t he oblique desi gn of the passes makes it possible t o secure a

,

much greater length of flange than was e ver produce d by the first method .

T h is advanta ge is forcibl y illustrate d in the steel tie se ction the rolling of ,

 S T R UC T URA L S H A P ES
'

465

which was first suc cessfully accomplishe d at H omest e ad This se ction with
“
.

its very thin flange , whi ch has almost no taper would have been 1o o ke d upon
, ,

FI G 8 8
. . M e th o d s o f Ro l
li ng Be am s .

FI G 8 9
. . M e th o d s o f Ro l
li ng Pil
i ng .

fifteen years ago as an impossibility from a roll ing st andpoint , and is con
s i d e r e d o ne of t h e gre atest achievements in rol l desi gh U S steel piling . .
t
466 T HE ROLL I N G OF S E C T I ONS

i s another se ction which much resembles the rail in rolling H ere the ball .
,

and w eb of t he pilin g , as finished is almost a duplicate of the head and web

,

of t he r ail , and t he remainder i s r olle d as a flange up t o the le adin g and

finishin g passes w hen t he t wo halve s or le gs ar e ben t down to form the
,

socket for the interloc k I t is rolled either by the fla t or diagonal methods

. .

Z ee s Tee s : Z ees may be looked upon as double angles or channel s

a nd

with reverse d le gs o r flanges and the methods of rolling c orrespond t o the

, ,

first two methods for angles A s t o tees i t i s doubtfu l if any other se ction
.
,

o ffers as little Opportunity for vari ation There is only one way by which .

the tee c an be rolled In this method the shaping begins from a square bil
.
~

le t or bloom One s ide of the square i s retained t o form the base , or table
.
,

of the te e , while the e dges of the opposite side are both re cessed in the
first forming pass b y c ollars on e ach side of a groove into which par t of
the metal flows t o s tart the stem The piece is then e dged for the next.
‘

pass in w hich t he s tem is reduced between the flat surfaces of the rolls
, ,

while the t wo parts o f the t able p ass through grooves in the two rolls .

In the ne xt pass t he p iece is t urned with the stem up whi ch will pass ,

through an idle groove , w hile the t able on e ach side of the stem will be
r educe d between t h e p l ain surfaces of the rolls This process is then .

r epeated t he piece being worke d alternately on the stem an d t able unti l

, ,

the section reaches th e s iz e desire d in t he finishin g pass Usuall y, in t his .

l ast pass t he s tem i s i n the groove o f the lower roll an d the t able is
reduce d between th e r olls I n order t o prevent the b ar from following the
.

rol l on the delivery s ide , this groove as for al l the idle grooves , mus t taper
,

s lightl y from the t op a nd be l arge e nough t o give e asy passage for the stem ,

thus making i t s omewhat wid e r t han the stem i s thick The reduction of .

the t abl e t hen results in the formation o f a slight o ve rfi l lat the base of the
stem Thi s bi t of e xcess meta l
. c anno t b e removed b ecause the stem was ,

necessarily finishe d in the pre ceding or l e a d i ng p a ss I f the se ction were

, , .

finished by working on t h e stem the same defe ct woul d be developed

, .

M ost shape mills are provide d with hot saw

Fi ni s h i n g S e c ti o n s : s
locate d after the finishing pass and near the c ooling beds These saws are .

intende d m ainly for cuttin g t est pieces but in s ome mill s t hey are used ,

for cuttin g o ff c rop e nds o r d ividing mill lengths where the c ooling beds
l mil l l
are t o o s hort t o t a ke ful en gths The t es t pie ces are o f t wo kinds .
,

namel y those for t he r oller whose duty i t is t o se e th at the s e ction is rolle d

, ,
'

to the c orre ct dimensions an d w eight , and t hose for t he physic a l laboratories .

With these e xceptions however t he full mill l ength is sen t dire ctly t o t he
, ,

coolin g be d Here as in t he c ase of rails the c ooling c auses the s hapes

.
, ,

to bend c onsiderably a nd c old straightening i s necessary Fo r this purpose

, . ,

the pie ce i s ne xt passe d t hrough a col d roll strai ghtening machine and if ,

necessary t hrough a ga g press The roll s trai ghtener i s c apabl e o f

.

strai ghtening in one dire ction only s o that if through handling or other , ,

c ause the piece has been t wiste d or bent l at erally it can be made straight
, , ,
468 TH E ROLL I N G OF S E C T I ON S

less than two inches in diameter are rolle d with guides but there is a , ,

narrow range from about one and three fourths inches t o two and one half - -

inches where e ither method may be employe d R e garding the rel ative .

merits of these two methods hand rounds are by many preferre d t o guide,

rounds where great ac curacy and uniformity in diameter are re q u ired .

H owever guide r ounds are now rolled with a high de gree of ac curacy and
, ,

since the uniformity and ac curacy of the hand rounds depends on the skill
of the workmen it is doubtful whether e qual care and attention applied
,

to both methods woul d leave on the average much wherewith to choose , ,

between them .

C u tti n g a nd S t ra i gh te n i n g Ro u n d s :
order to keep up with the In
mills ro unds are e ither hot sawed or c ol d sheared to convenient lengths
, ,

and neither method is at all exact Hence in these lengths either single '
.
, ,
'

or multiples of those d e s i re d p r o pe r allowance must be made for the exact

,

c utting which is performed by special cutting machines after the round is

,

straightened The straightening may be done either on the gag press or

.

on special s traightening machines c alled from the inventors the Brightman ,

and Ab r a m se n straighteners The Brightman consists of two rows or sets

.
, ,

of concave rolls mounte d upon opposite sides of a revolv ing frame s o that , ,

with their axis of rotation at an angle to that of the frame the concave ,

surfaces of opposite r olls be ar on the round and grip it in such a manner as

to force the bar alon g l ongitudinal ly and at the same time bend it at the
crooke d places enough t o strai ghten it I n the other type of machine the .

roll s are mounte d on a stationary frame while the pie ce itself is revolved ,

and force d through it The straightening devel ops one serious defe ct
.
,

which renders the bar unsuitable for some purposes T he s cale in the spiral .

path of the rolls is rolle d into the surface causing a slight pitting whi ch , ,

can be remove d only by machining .

Fl
a ts : Because
they are the simplest the flats were the first se ctions ,

to be rolled The main problem involved in designing the rolls for flats is
.

the control of the width which is done in two ways after the pie ce has left
,

the roughing rolls The first method c alle d t he fl a t a nd e d gi ng , c onsists

.
,

merely of rolling the piece on e dge at intervals in deep grooves cut in the
rolls The other method of controlling the width lies in the use of the
.

tongue and groove passes as describe d under the r olling of sheet bars a nd ,

is best suite d t o the rolling of thi n m ate ri al In thi s metho d the last two .

passes will be between pl ain rolls while in the fla t and e dging method the ,

pl anisher will be an e dging pass I t is in this pass that the three d 1ffe r e nt .

edges on fl ats are forme d T hus if the bottom of the groove is flat a
.
, ,

common swell or oval e dge will be forme d by the sprea di ng of th e material

in the center which is hotter t han the outside ; but if the base of this groove
,

is made s ufficiently c onc ave the e dge of the bar will be roun d ; if convex a
, ,

square e dge will be formed I n the eighteen inch mill at C lairton and also
.

in the fifteen inch mil l a t Lower Union City M ills there is used next to the ,

finish ing pass a se t of vertical rolls which eliminates the di fficulty of

, ,

rolling a wide thin flat in an ordinary groove .

 H E X A GONS A N D DEF ORM E D BA RS 46 9

He x a go n s :
There are two methods used for rolli ng hexagons By one .

method all six corners are forme d in the rolls three in the top and three in ,

the bottom T h e clearance between the rolls in this c ase comes on opposite
.

flat surfaces of the bar I n this manner of rolling the c orners of the hexagon
.
,

cannot pinch out Hexagons rolle d thus are best suite d for col d drawing
.

purposes as the y will be free from pinches which draw out into l aps I n this .

method the first pass in the strand or first former is a square whi ch h as
, , ,

been broken do wn from the bill e t in the roughing and pony roughing stands .

T h e square is then put into the S econd strand or former and c omes out , ,

in the form of a six sided flat the two widest sides of whi c h are c onvex
,
.

T h e bar i s then edge d into the leading or pla ni shing pass where a reduction
of about 25% takes pla ce in th e c ase of small hexagons The bar c oming
’

.
,

out of this pass has six sides as before bu t has two o f its c orners formed
'

by the c le aranc e of the rolls The top and bottom sides are sli ghtly c oncave
.

t o allow for the S pre ad as the bar i s e dged into the finishing Here the .

bar i s given a light draft in order t o square it up the re duction being only
, ,

8 to 10 % I n the other method two of the c orners of the finishe d bar are
.

formed a t the clear ance of the rolls and hence care must be t aken t o k eep ,

these c orners from pinching out The bar c oming out of the pl anishing in .

this method is in the same position as the finishe d bar of the first method
, .

T h e bar is turned 90 and entere d into the finishing s o that its top and
°

bottom surface are flat or hori z ontal and two of its corners are in the
clearance between t he rolls I n the, one metho d b ut t hr ee passes are
.

r e q u1r e d to form t he finished bar from the s quare while the other method

requires four .

De fo rm This term is meant to include any bar having an

e d Ba rs :
irre gul ar surface or a surface on which there are proj e ctions or depressions ,

such as the various c oncrete reinforcing bars clip iron hame strap et c , , ,
.

S ome of these bars are s o c omple x as t o excite t he hi ghe st adm iration and
astonishment from those not familiar with t heir manufacture While they .

require the gr e ates t ingenuity on t he par t of t he roll desi gner the y are , ,

however produce d with less di fficulty than m i ght be suppose d Briefly

,
.
,

the se cret of their form ation consists in first w orking the metal d own through
the ordinary passes t o one of the common f o rms such as a flat s quare
'

, , ,

round or oval whichever is best for form ing the bar desire d , and t hen
, ,

putting it t hrough one or two deformin g grooves c ontaining the ne cessary

re cesses or elevations I t is here the c hief trouble oc curs A s the deforma
. .

tions must be m ade in the finishing pass or the le ader and finishing c om ,

b ine d a hea vy draught in these passes is ne cessary and the metal is usually
, , ,

even with the fastest working a t a very low temperature for working ,
.

T hese conditions put a heavy strain on the mill and owing to the l ack , ,

of pl asticity in the metal the proj e ctions will not fill out e asily In order
,
.

to avoi d vibrations whic h c ause the bar t o slip in passing through the rolls ,

thus c ausing the deformations t o be made at irre gul ar intervals mills ,

rolling these s ent ions are provided with separately driven finishing stands
470 T H E ROLL I NG OF S TE E L

C HAPT ER l
x .

T H E R OLL I NG OF S T R I P A ND MER C H A N T M I LL P R OD UC T S

S EC T ON l
l
S T R IP , OR H OOP ,
MI LLS A N D T HE I R P R OD UCT S .

Me a n i ng o f t h e Wo r d Hoo p : As ori ginally applied the word hoop ,

meant that li ght narrow material which cut i nt o S hort l engths was used ,

to bind c asks barrels b ucke ts a nd the like bu t as now empl

,

oye d the
'

, , , ,

word is a class name t hat stands for a l arge number of products The .

Carne gie S teel C ompany for instance uses t he term t o c over all materials
, ,

from 13 gauge t o the thinnest material rolle d on their mills an d from three ,

ei ghths inch t o eight and fi ve eighths inches in width This range c overs
-
.

material use d for a gre at variety of purposes in addition t o hoop such as ,

skelp fo r tubes blades for kni ves and bl anks for stampin g hundreds of
, ,

hardware spe cialties a class of material that shoul d represent a littl e better
,

grade than ordinary hoop I n a w ay t his use of t he Word hoop i S unfo rtu
.
,

nate espe cially as a m ore suitable cl ass name i s supplied by the term strip
, .

With strip for a cl ass name hoop woul d have retaine d its ori ginal meaning
, ,

for which there is no substitute and all danger of ambi guity woul d have ,

been avoided .

Hoo p as Rol l
i ng S p e c i al
a t y : Being , perhaps , the l argest pro
du o er of strip in the c ountry , the C arne gie S teel C ompany s mills furnish
’
,

th e best example of the e quipment and organiz ation re quire d to roll this
class of m aterial A spe cialty mil l is no t a mil l tha t r olls a spe cialty
.

nor a variety of S pecialties but one that has S pe cialize d in the rolling of
,

a singl e product : A c cor din g t o this definition and usin g the term hoop ,

in its bro a d s ense as outline d in t he precedin g paragraph , the hoop mills

of this c ompany are best describe d as S pe cialize d S pecialty mills be cause ,

they are l ai d down not for the general purpose of rolling hoop or str i p , but
,

in such a manner that e ach mill 18 desi gne d and e quippe d to roll a certain
kind or grade of hoop The advantage of such a system is at once e vident
.
,

making it possible for the mills t o meet the many demands of the trade
most readily Thus they are able t o give accuracy where accuracy is
.
, ,

required ; finish where finish is desire d ; quantity where quantity is the

, ,

main c onsideration ; and all with a better quality t o t he customer and at

a greater s aving t o the producer than would be possible in any other way .

T he C ar ne gi e Hoo p Mi l
ls: From what has just been said , it will
r e adily be surmise d that the hoop mills of this company are many in number
and of various types and no detailed description of all of them can be
,
472 T H E ROLL I N G OF S TEEL

schemes First the mill is run at as high a speed as p ra ct1cab l

.
, e Se c ond .
,

it is arrange d and operate d s o that as little time as possible int ervenes

between passes Thus in the more modern hoop mill s roughin g rolls on
.
, ,

the c ontinuous pl an ar e used and these are pl ace d very close t o the furnace
,

whence t he billet being at once reduce d in the two or three roughing pa sses
, ,

passes over r oll tables t o the tongue and groove rolls which are arranged ,

on the continuous pl an or in t rain If the latter plan is followe d me chanic al

.
,

repe aters are employe d for short lengths or the pie ce is l oope d from pass ,

t o pass by hand , by which me ans it may be rollin g in two or more stands

at one time I n order t o avoid havin g t he l oop which incre ases with the
.
,

length of the pie ce run far ou t on t he floor and thus be come chille d e ach
, , ,

pass following the t ongue and gr oove passes is made t o run as much faster
as its predecessor as i s ne cessary t o t ake up t he sl ac k due t o the el ongation .

Other schemes t o e qualize the finishin g temperature are als o employed .

It is s aid t hat a t s ome hoop mills t he end of the billet which represents
the l as t e nd o f t he ho op t o p ass t hrough th e r olls is heate d t o a
higher t emperat ure than the fi rs t end In the c ot t on tie mill at Youngs .

town where the s t rips are about 1800 fee t in length , o ne en d of t he billet
‘

wi ll be in the furnace , while the other wil l be coilin g some 200 feet away
at the other end of t he mil l a s finishe d strip Other factors affe cting th e .

uni formity of gauge or t hi c kness , are the wear of t he rolls and t he bearings
, .

To overcome the we ar of the former which als o affe cts the fi ni sh the , ,
t

pat h of the pie ce through the l eadin g an d finishin g passes is move d over
to a new surface abou t e very t wenty minutes o r whenever these surfaces ,
'

b e c o ine to o rough The vi bration of the mill pinions produces w a ve s o r

.
‘

sl i p marks on the surface if the l ast stands are in t rain with the tongue
,

and gro ove rolls hence t he planishin g and finishing rolls are generally
,

separately driven in mills rollin g t he best grades of hoop , and onl y one
of the roll s is driven the other revol vi ng by frictio n due to c ontact
,

with the driven roll The planisher may be in train with the ton gue and
. ,

groove rolls but t he finishin g stan d is almost always separatel y driven

,
.

A t some of the mills where the finisher or pl anisher o r both is in train , ,

with the res t of t he stand s the bottom roll i s much larger in diameter
,

than the t op roll or the rest of the mill , and i s driven while the t op roll ,

revolves by friction The l arger diameter of the bottom rol l increases the
.

S pee d of del ivery of t he stand The finish on s ome hoop is of gre at i m

.

portance To provide for this requirement s crapers are employe d in front

.

of the chill or finishing rolls These S crapers c onsist of two horiz ontal
, , .

bars S pace d abou t e ight inches apar t and fixe d parallel t o and j ust in front
of the rolls , and of two other bars s imilarly arrange d but fastened t o the
two prongs o f a for k that c an b e move d up an d down by means of a lever .

I n this way t he movable bars c an b e l owere d as desire d int o the spaces

between t he fixe d bars and the rol l s As soon as the rolls grip the pie ce .

the s craper is brought int o action and the piece is bent sharpl y up and ,

down over its e dges thus cracking the scale and removi ng it at once A s
,
.
 H OT S T R I P OR H OOP 473

t he pie ce after c omin g out of t he finishing pass is near or below the critical
, ,

temperature no more s cale is forme d and a smooth bluish surface re sults

, , .

Abou t five or si x fee t of hoop o nt he front end is no t t hus scr aped because ,

the gre at spee d of the piece carries i t t hrough t his di stance before the
scraper c an be brought into play I n order t o eliminate this unfinishe d .

end with as little waste as possible th e shears are locate d preferably at , ,

the mill end of the c ooling bed , s o tha t this end of the strip i s the l ast
to be cut The adj ustment of t he rolls is a ls o an i mportant matter in
.

rollin g hoop To illustrate this point , if one of the finishin g rolls is enough
.

out of level to make a difference of onl y one ten— thousandth of an inch in -

the thic kness of the hoop on it s e dges i t wil l bend t oward the h e avy s ide ,

i n le avin g th e pass an amount e qual t o one foo t in t hirty feet of length .

A s the s ti ffness o f an o rdinary hoop i s onl y s ufficien t to push it e ven on a ,

very S mooth run ou t , a distanc e of abou t thirty feet , so me means of cheaply

deliverin g the strip away from the l as t s tand of rolls mus t be use d I n .

C arne gie mills t his d elivery is ac complishe d in t hre e w ays , namely by

, ,

hot coilers b y c onveyor belts in t he runouts or by pneumati c runouts

, , .

I n the l ast name d type of conveyor , air blown at high pressure through
holes in the bottom of the runout and a t angles dire cte d away from the
mill lifts the strip de crease s the friction and helps t o carry it al ong
, ,
.

Fi n is h i n g Hoo p : H oop may be finishe d in many ways

to the ,
. As
cutting of hoop i t is always col d sh e are d an d this may be done s o as to
, ,

give either both ends s quare o r_ one e nd square and one e nd round Fo r .

this k ind of cuttin g a specia l die with a doubl e e dge one round the other
, , ,

square i s used , and the shapes on t he ends of the hoop are formed by
,

punching out a smal l part of t he hoop Ordinary hoop , no t coiled i s cut .

,

on alligator or small guillotine s hears , bu t the c otton t ie mil l i s e quipped

with t wo shears of a S pecia l t ype w hich c onsists of t wo revolvin g wheels
,

on each of w hich a she ar knife i s mounted By re gul ating the rel ative .

speeds o f t he w heels these shear blades are brought to gether in every so

,
-

many r evolutions s o that as the strip i s fe d into t he she ar a t a definite

,

speed i t is cu t into approximately e qua l lengths An ything ne ar exact

,
.

cutting is impossible on this machine due t o slipping of the belts and t he ,

play in the parts of the machine Flaring and punchin g machi nes are .

provided at some of the mills and in this conne ction it is t o be remembered

,

tha t the flare on a hoop is measured c orrectly by one half the di fference -

between the largest and smalles t diameters A l l thre e methods of bundling .

,

in strips in scrolls and in coils are practice d As to coils some of the mills
, , .
,

can coil in multiple o r S ingle strips while others c an c oil only in S ingles ,
.

H o t coiling c an be done only at certain mills also I t is a matter of pride , .

with the men at the mills t o turn out the finest product an d any order ,

tha t c alls for extra quality and finish is sure t o receive the attention i t
deserves On such material special tests s uch as t he acid tes t for s cale
.
,

pits and bending over t ests for se ams are often made in addition to the
-
,
.

ordinary inspe ction for surface defe cts and gau ging for thic kness and width .
474 TH E ROLL I N G OF S TEE L

S EG T I O N l
l .

M E R CHA NT MI LLS .

lIs : The first mills were what we of to day

W h a t t h e Me r c h a n t Mi l -

woul d c all merchant mills though the term was perhaps no t then applied
,

to them I n t he be ginnin g of the industry all mills doubtless rolle d a

.
,

variety of simple se ctions s uch as ro unds s quares flats etc bu t as the

, , ,
.
,

busines s grew and the demand for heavier material and for certain s hapes
incre ased mills designe d t o mee t a given demand or t o roll a certain k ind
,

of product be gan t o appe ar Then it was that the smaller o r older mills
.
,

whic h c ontinued t o roll a vari ety of se ctions and often stocke d material
that w as retaile d out l ater were designated as merchant m i l
,
ls i n or der to ,

distin guish t hem fro m the S pe cialty mills and those whose product was
handle d in l arge lots Later on , espe cially in this country the mill manner
.
,

of handling materials and doin g business underwent a change and t he mills ,

were more or l ess divorce d from t he store house , s o that these mills , while
the y c ontinue t o roll a variety of se ctions always rol l to orders Thus
, .
,

though t hey have l os t all t he characteristics they still retain the name of
,

merchant mills Therefore in this c ountry a merchant mill is any s m all

.
,

mill s ay twenty two inches and under which re gularl y produces more than
,
-
,

one shape .

Ki nd s o f Me r c h a n t Mi l ls : I n touring the var i ous works the visitor ,

is surprise d and often no t a little c onfused by the grea t num ber of and
seemingly meaningless term s applie d t o these mills Thus t here is heard .
,
“ ”
the term bar mill applie d t o two
mill s of a ltogether di fferent types .

’
T he term guide mill is apparently
use d in t he s ame w ay A dded to .

“
these are such names as M organ
”
Plan mill l oop mill S hape mill c on
, , ,

t inuo us mill and semi continuous ,

-

mill hoop mill , Bel gian mill c om

, ,

bination mill e tc and such l o c al

,
.
,
~

“ ”
terms as the iron mill and the ,
“ ” “ ”
steel mill t he ele ctri c mill
, ,

l
E e v at o n
i “
or j ust merchant mill ”
a s a t one ,

Fm 91 .F i rs t M e r c h ant R o l
. l l of our own Plants Where there is
i ng M i l .

b ut one merchant mill While one .

not f amiliar with the mills is incline d t o thin k most of these names are
ac cidental l oc alisms many of the m are really des criptive of the mills and
,

als o for m l inks in a systematic classification base d mainly on construction

and design These terms and the classification of t he mills is best
.

expl aine d from a historic al vie w point Fo r this re ason it is desirable to

.

trace very briefly the e volution of the small mill

-
.
476 T H E ROLLI N G OF S T EE L

function the guide must fit neatly against the roll or rolls so one end mus t
, ,

be shaped to conform to the S hape of the space in front of the rol ls .

Entering g uides are usuall y of the cl osed type They are made in two parts
. .

FIG . 93 . G e ne r alLay o u t fo r an E i g h t I nc h G ui d e l
M il—B e l
gi an T yp e .

Ine a ch Of these two parts a groove is cut parallel to its long axis so that ,

when the two parts are fitte d together the Opening forme d by the groove s
 M E RCHA N T M I LL S 477

will be Of the require d shape of section to support the piece properly T h e .

guide prove d to be of immense advantage in another way in as much as i t ,

permitte d the rolling Of very l ong lengths Today any mill desi gne d t o .
,

roll sections that re quire the use Of guides may be c alled a guide mill
‘
.

T he Be l
gi a n a nd Mi ll Loo pi n g
s : T hough it was now possible to
roll in lon g lengths a serious drawback was en countered i n the Ol
,
d and
slow going mill for if the pie ce were l ong and espe cially if the se ction
-
, , , ,

were small the steel woul d get to o c ol d t o roll before t he pie ce c oul d be
,

finished The remedy of c ourse was foun d i n grea t er S peed but here
.
, , ,

troubl e was again encountere d be cause Of the roughing rolls whic h refuse
to bite t he bille t if t he spee d is to o gre at Then there ori ginate d in Bel gium
.

the scheme of settin g up an independent roughing stand that c oul d be driven

from the main d rive shaf t of the e n
gine a t a lower spee d thanthe fi ni sh
ing tra in w hi ch was driven by power ,

transmitte d by belt from a l arge

pulley on the drive S haft t o a much
smaller one mounte d on a S hort
shaft c onne cte d w ith t he train
pini on Up t o this t ime the piece .

was rolle d throughou t i t s l ength

in a given pass before it was
starte d into the ne xt Who the .

man was or what his de gree that , ,

was responsible for t he next a d

vanc e in rolling hi s t ory d oes not ,

s ay bu t doubtless i t w as s ome ,

F I G 94
. E arly T y p e o f Lo o p i ng M il
.
l bol d Bel gi an c atcher who first c on
.

ce i ve d t he ide a Of c at ching the first end as i t c ame through the rolls and
returning i t immediately through the next pass , t hus rollin g the s e ction in
two passes a t once S ince t he S pee d Of t he pie ce on t he delivery S ide is
.

greater than that of the rolls due t o t he el ongation t he material overfed

, ,

and forme d a l oop By t his l oopin g s cheme the c apacity Of the finishing
.
,

train was in cre ased beyond that of the roughin g stand .

T h e Se m l
i -c o n t i n u o us o r C o m b i na t io n Mi l: S uch was the extent
of the devel opmen t until a few ye ars prior t o 1900, when t wo things c om
b ine d t o force another advance in t he merchant mill ; one was t he previous
-

development and suc cess of t he continuous mill as a semi fi ni s hi ng mill ; -

the other was the ne cessity for e conomy due t o l abor troubles and a severe '

depression in the steel business S O in order t o de crease labor c osts and

.
,

spee d up the mill t o t he limit of the finishing train the c ontinuous rougher ,

was installe d t o replace the single three hi gh ro ughing stand of the Bel gian -

mill By this i no v a ti o n the mill force was de crease d by about nine men
.
,

while the output was incre ased The mill proper was then in a position
478 T HE ROLLI N G OF S TEEL

uo g ua e m pug

suo m g
d

-s
48 0 THE ROLL I N G OF S TEE L
M E RCH A N T M I LLS 48 1
 '

48 2 T HE ROLL I N G OF S TEE L

other toward specializ ation As to the first the adoption of electricity for
.
,

drivin g t he mills promises t o e ffec t e conomies Much advancement has .

been made S ince 1900 in the construction Of ele ctrical motors which thro ugh , ,

supplemental e quipment such as rotatin g resistors bal ancin g sets etc , ,

.
,

have reached a very high state Of efficiency and a great maj ority Of the ,

mill s installe d since 1916 are e quipped with these motors Specializ ation .

is takin g t wo c ourses Thus more an d more spe ci al t y mills are being

.
,

erected and other mills are bein g supplie d with special equipment such
, ,

as supplementary roll stands whi ch adapts t hem to t he rolling of certain ,

se ctions yet leaves them free to rol l other products al so , .

S EC T I O N I I I .

E
D S I G N I N G ROLLS A N D M A KI N G UP SC HE DU LE S F OR M E RCH A NT M I LLS .

lDe s i gni ng fo
Ro l l
Me rc h a n t Mi l r
s: I t does not re quire much imagin
ation t o see that the problems Of the roll desi gner for merchant mills are
many and t he most di fficul t t o s ol ve That t he ar t Of desi gning rolls for .

these small mill s mus t have m ade wonderfu l progress i s indicate d by the
re cent appearance of sections of t he mos t intri cate design ye t rolle d with ,

minute accuracy But t he desi gnin g of passes for the se ctions is but one
.

of the problems c on fronting the roll desi gner as a visi t t o t he mills w ill ,
'

S how . Amon g t hese S houl d be ment ioned the gre a t number o f designs ,
"

which require the most systemati c filing and re cording Of rolls templets , ,

and t ools The ingenuit y of t he roll desi gner is taxed t o the utmost to
.

keep the number of rolls at a minimum S O the visitor in the mills will .
,

find that numerous sizes di fferin g by only a few thous andths of an inch
, ,

are pl aced in the s ame roll The e ff orts of t he roll desi gner al ong this
.

line are espe cially noticeable in t he roughin g stands H ere the process is .

merely one of re duction the pie ce le aving the roughers in t he form Of a

,

square or re ctangle To bring about this reduction one of five methods

. ,

or combination Of passes m ay be empl oye d Thus in continuous roughing

, .
,

the studen t wil l observe four methods in use whi ch may be desi gnated as
Diamond—square ; 2 Oval — square ; 3
,

1. Flat and e dging ; 4

. Al l .
- -
.

diamond to square In three hi gh roughers e ither the fl a t and e dging or

- -
.
-
,
- -

the diamond pass method is used The foll owing S ketch is intende d to
-
.

'
illustrate t hese methods Nearly all the S haping except in the case o f
.
,

deforme d bars already allude d to is done in the stands c alle d the strands , , ,

immediately followin g the rougher The strands are sometimes pre ceded
by an auxi li ary set of roughers calle d the pony roughers The p l
.

anisher .

may be employed as a l ast forming pass only or in addition t o give a finish , ,

to the bar The finishing pass is reserved exclusively for removing the
.

little irre gul arities of the previous rolling .

Ec o n o m ic Fe lDe
f Ro l
i gni ng ; I t s carcely needs to be
a t u re s o s

pointe d out that aside from the suc cessful rolling Of the various se ctions ,

the chief incentive behind the e ff orts Of the merchant mill roll desi gner
 T H E ROLLI N G OF S TEE L

is found in the ne cessity for e conomy .

T he r olls alone as m ay be surmise d from

, ,

what has been said concerning their

manufacture ,very expensive ,

and a large number of roll s on hand

means a large investment in something
that is idle most of the time A dde d .

to this feature is t he e xpense Of roll

changes during the time for whi ch the
,

entire mill is cl ose d down I n the climi .

nation o f roll changes m uch depends on .

the way the orders are s che duled This .

point should therefore always be c on

, ,

s i d e r e d in making up the mill s chedules ,

and is a problem t o be solve d in making

up promises of delivery for small l ots .

A s an example of how s cheduling is

done the system empl oye d at the Upper
,

and Lower Union Mills at Y oungstown

is e xplai ned .

Ma ki n g U p S c h e d u le s—T h e O r d e r
i n t h e Offi c e : Upon re ceipt Of the l arge
’
buyers schedule which usually comes ,

about the middle Of the month for t he

following month the respe ctive s che dule
,

clerks pick out from the files the index

ca rds corresponding t o t he buyers ’

schedule and file them in a d e sk file A t .

the same time all those inde x c ards w ith

promises on them for the next month are
taken out and put al ong with those
already in the des k file I n addition t o .

these the oldest index c ards are also

worke d in whenever it is possible Before .

these i nde x cards are put in the des k

file however they are che cked against
, ,

the book orders for mistakes et c and ,

.
,

the date of order By this me ans it is .

known t hat the item is e ither i n the

des k file or out on the mill T he .

index c ards in the d e skfi l e s thus represent

all the pro m ls e d and sche dule d material

for the next month From these files .

the s che dule clerks make up rollings

for their resp e ctive mills F o r this .
 M E RCHA N T M I LL P ROD UC T S 485

m u mf m o r

Paq
48 6 THE ROLL I N G OF S TEE L

purpose index c ards showing the di fferent sizes of se ctions and grades
T O keep the S crap l oss
‘

of steel on the s che dule are also kept .

on the mill t o a minimum t he longes t exac t cuts are put first the exact short ,

lengths c ome next and after t hese are place d the comm on lengt hs There .

fore when S hearing t he long exact cuts the short ends may be sheared into
, ,

t he S horter lengths ; and if a long piece comes a t the end i t may be sheare d ,

t o one of the long common length cuts The amoun t Of tonn age t o a roll .

ing varies with the mill and the s e ction bein g rolled In ma k ing up a .

r ollin g it must be watched that a c ar l oad Of ma t erial is che cke d out s o ,

m a te ri a lwill no t have t o be piled I f t here is not enough material a t

.

either Upper or Lower Mills to ma k e up a c ar l oad for t he cus t omer the

products for both Upper and Lower for that customer are c ombined to
make up a c ar load the S hipping Offices having previously de ci ded at
,

which pl ant to start the car S ometimes an order will be transferre d from
.

one mill t o the other s o as t o prevent t his condition I n this case the .
,

order is transferre d by m aking ou t t wo c orre ction slips One Of the S lip s .

goes t o the one mill telling its foreman t o c ancel the order t ha t i s to be
transferre d and the other goes t o the other mill telling its foreman t o
,

reinstate the order mentione d The c orre ction slips are made out in
.

triplic ate form a copy Of e ac h remaining at the order depar t ment and the
, ,

original and a c opy of e ach going t o the proper s hi pping office where the
ori ginal is ret urned an d note d t o t he or der department while the copy i s ,

kep t on file a t t he shipping Office The s chedule clerk in the order depart
.

men t k eeps a r e cord of t he orders he se nd s to the mill order clerk for e ach fi

mill and from t ime t o time che cks up wi th him re garding the amoun t of steel
on hand After a ro l l
'

. i ng h a s been made up the index cards are hectograph ,

e d and three copies are made These copies are known as mill order sheets
. .

T h e Ord e r at th e Mi l—
l S iz e The ori ginal inde x
o l
f Bi le t o r Bl
oo m :

c ar ds together with the copies are sent to the mill order clerk , who gives
, ,

the inde x c ards t o t he shipping Office , keeps one copy of the mill order ,

and S ends the other two t o the mill foreman These S houl d be sen t over .

t o the mills at least t welve hours before they are t o be put out on the mill ,

so t ha t the foreman will have time t o fi gure out the weight bille t require d
and t o order t he ste el from t he mill stocker Due t o various i nfl uences .
,

however the orders are Often sent out only a few minutes before they are
,

put on the mill I n fi guring out the billet or bloom require d for t he order
.
,

the foreman fi gures t he length t o which he can run the material on the
c oolin g be d and Obtain mul tiple lengths of the cut ordered taking int o ,

c onsideration both t he length of the hot be d and the mill p ractice H e .

then multiplies the mill length that the bar is t o be rolle d on by the weight
per foo t of the se ction which gives him the wei ght billet or bloom needed
, ,

no t allowing for scrap or furnace l oss About 10 % is adde d to most orders

.

to Offset furnace and scrap loss H owever this factor changes with the
.
,

section and the cut C o m mon length cuts on l arge material requires some
.

times as little as but on the other hand light material such as crescents , ,
48 8 T H E ROLL I N G OF S TEE L

as to S ize shape and freedom from rolling defe cts I n building up rolls
,
.

in the housings care shoul d be taken by the roller that they are plumb ,

square and level If the r olls are not plumb i e if the line j oi ni ng t heir
.
, . .
,

centers is no t strai ght and perpendi cul ar t o a horiz ontal the bar will not ,

delive r properl y and t rouble with t he guides wi ll undoubtedly o c cur Thi s

, .

c ondition is Often c ause d by be arings wearing ou t or poor babbitting

ori ginally and c an onl y be reme d ie d by changing bearings or in s ome ,

instances by the use of S ide liners or wedges S houl d the rolls be out of
,
.

square t hat is if the center of t he pass in the top rol l is not dire ctl y above
, ,

the center Of the pass in the lower r oll the bar will be out of square and ,

will twis t as it issues from the rolls In order t o square up the rolls set .
,

screws w h i ch wor k against the be arings are provided on the sides of the
housings , and thus t he rolls c an be thrown either one way or the other as
the c ase may demand The dire ctions for c orre cting this fault are in the
.
,
“ ”
l an guage Of the mill F oll o w the twist a nd t he top roll is always t hrown
, ,

over in the dire ction that the bar is twisting I n the e vent that the r oll s .

a r e no t level tha t is , perfectly parallel m ore wor k w ill be done on one side
, ,

than o n the other with the result t hat the bar will not del iver straight
,

but wi ll tend to curve around toward the side on which there is the l ightes t
draft due to the other side being el ongated the more This c ondition may
, .

be remedie d either by t he use of liners or by operating the scre w down at

the proper side G uides and guards pl ay a most important part i n roll ing
.

mill pr a ctice and the proper se t ting of these is one Of the roller s most
,
’

import an t duties H is assistants m ay set the guides for the strand and
.

pl anishin g rolls bu t t hose for the fin ishing pass are always set by the
,

rol ler Entering guides on t he finishin g passes are usually closed the
.
'

inner end being s o shaped that it will provi de sufficient bearing t o hold the
piece up in c orre c t position while entering the pass I f the guides are not .

set properly the bar will not be formed rightly E specially when rolling
, .

rounds , the entering gui des shoul d be tigh t in order t o hol d the oval i n a
vertic al position , for a l eaning t o either one S ide or the other will produc e
a high and a low S houlde r on the finishe d round The position of the .

guid e s on the delivery S ide is also mos t important for since t he bar has a ,

tendency t o foll ow the smaller roll diameter the guide agains t w hi c h the ,

bar is t hrown must be w at ched mos t carefully I f t he bottom roll is the .

smaller , t hen t he bottom guide shoul d not be place d tOO l ow for the bar ,

comin g ou t woul d have a t endency t o follow the rol l down for a S hort space
before striking the guide This would c ause an up and dow n kink or a .
,

buckle A S hort guide has the same e ffect

. .

Ro l
li ng De fe c t s : addit ion t o worki ng for the proper S ize and finish
In
on the bar , t he ro ller must wa t ch for such surface defects as o ve rfi l l
s or

pinches , unde rfi l ls buckles S livers se ams l aps fi re cr a c ks roll mar ks e tc

, , , , , , ,
.

l
Ove rfi l s or p i nc h e s m ust be wat c hed especially in changing from Bessemer t o

open hearth steel as the l atter ha s more of a t endency to S pre ad than does
,

the former Wh en o v e rfi l
. ls occ ur the a mount of stoc k entering the pas s
«

,
 M E RCHA N T M I LL P RA C T I CE 48 9

ust be reduced by a d j usting the rolls in ‘

corrected by reversing these operations .

Buc kles are sometimes caused by worn ou t p inions S l ivers c an be .

produced from many c auses at the bl oomin g mill or by the bar she aring
against a guide or c ollar Of a r o l lat the finishing mills The former .

condi tion c annot be c orrecte d by the merchant mill roll er but the l atter ,

c an be eliminate d by a proper adj ustment of the prope r guide or by re ducing

the stoc k in the bar which is shearin g a gainst the c ollar S eams are defe cts.

in the steel that c annot al ways be c orre cte d by the finishing mill as t he y ,

are usually forme d in the bloom or the billet A l ap is cause d by an o ve r fi l

. l
or fin being forme d and then being double d over and rolle d down in the
subse que nt pass es This defe ct can be c ontrolle d by the roller by going
.

back t o the stand at which the o ve r fi l lwas forme d and reducing the sto ck .

Fi re cr a cks are cause d by the rolls be coming overhe ate d and cracking on
the surface These cracks c ause corresponding smalle levations on the
.

Surface of the b ar which in some instances c ondemn the material

,
When .

“ ” “ ”
this defe ct appears the roller moves over and uses a clean pass The
, .

s ame procedure is foll owed when any other roll mark appears on the finished
bar R oll marks o c cur at e qual intervals al ong the bar and si gnify that
.

ther e is a pie ce out of the roll or that the roll is marking the bar with e ach
revolution in s ome other m anner .

T wo Di ffe re n t Fi nis h e s on bar s are furnishe d at the Y oungs t own

pl ant namely , c ommon and spe cial T he S pe cial finish has a smooth highly
, .
,

polishe d appe arance and is produce d by cleaning all s cale from the bar at
the planishing stand and finishing at such a l ow temperature that no more
s cale will form on the surface .

T h e S pe c ia lFi nis h
is produc e d on rounds by holding the square back
before entering the planishing until a dark scale has forme d and then bend
,

ing the bar with a pair Of spe cial tongs as i t enters the r olls A strea m of
'
.

wate r pl ays dire ctly upon the bar as i t enters both the pl anishing and fi ni s h
ing passes and s c ouring blocks O
, o v e r e d with emery powder are use d on the

finishin g stand in order t o keep the pass clean Material re quiring the .

speci al finish is always rolled ahead of the common orders of like S i z es ,

so that a clean pass will be available Flats are not s crape d in order to
.

furnish the S pe ci al finish but are S impl y hel d bac k until their temperature
,

reac hes the critic al range before entering the planishing pass On l arge .

flats water is use d on the bar as it issues from the pl anishing s o that the
, ,

scal e t hus broken up will be remove d and not be rolle d int o the steel .

Another reason for using water on l arge se ctions is that they will be delivere d
to the hot be ds bel o w the s cale forming temperatures C ooling is un .

ne cessary ho wever o n s mall se ctions such as crescents half ovals and

, , , ,

ovals as these l ose their heat s o rapidly that e ven water is not used dire ctly
,

on the bar A scraper l oc ate d at the enter ing side of the finishing stand
.
, ,
490 T HE ROLL I N G OF S T EE L

is the onl y means use d for producing the special finish upon these se ctions .

Due t o the fac t t ha t s cale adheres more tenaciously t o open hearth than
it does t o Bessemer steel t he latter takes a much better finish t han the
,

former Open hearth s teel wi l l become smooth but does not have the
.

highl y polishe d appearance of Bessemer s t eel I t is the r o l

le r s exp erience .
’

that Bessemer s crew s teel takes the best finish Of any grade turne d out at
the converting mills This grade not onl y t akes a smooth finish but some
.

times g ives a mirror— like surface I t S houl d be observed that the hol ding
.

bac k of the bar t o produce this finish may S O retard t he rolling as t o

de crease seriously the total output Of the mill .

S ECT I O N V .

S HE A RI N G A ND B U N DLI N G ME R C H A NT M I LL P RO D UCT S .

T he Me t h o d s r i n g a n d Bu n d l
o f S he i n g vary at the di fferent plants
a

according t o e quipment product l oc ation etc and no d e s crip ti o fi of value

, , , .
,

ye t general enough to be descrip t ive of all pl ants can be given As t he .

greates t variety o f s ections are produce d a t t he Youngstown Upper and

Lower Union Works a brief outline of the methods and practices at this
'

pl ant may be found of val ue .

Du ti e s o f t h e S h e a r Fo re m The man who is responsible for

an :

completing orders , i e , for the S he aring and t he bundlin g on e ach mill

. .
,

is the shear foreman Hi s force is usually c ompose d of a shearman , a

.

gauger a push up, a pull up and two or more bundlers The firs t duty
,
- -
, .

of the shear foreman is t o k eep the di fferent orders heats and t urns separate ,

on t he c ool in g beds an d t o t a g e ach item on t he t ruck properly The .

different lots are kep t separate on the tr ucks by means of bands A load .

shee t is made out for e ach t ruck S howing the materia l loaded on i t When
,
.

t he t ruck is full it is the duty of the S hear foreman t o notify the yard master
,

or dinkey engineer t o pull the load t o the warehouse or shippin g ro om ,

.

I t is also the duty Of the S hear foreman to set t he gauge for shearing the
material , allowing a certain amoun t for c ontraction during t he COOl l
Ilg \

process The amount allowed on the smaller mills is one fourth inch o ver
.
-

or under for every five feet , but this amo unt vari es with the size Of the bar .

When material is t o be bundle d the weight of the bundles is nearly always

,

spe cified but when instructions are no t given i t is t he mill practice t o

, ,

bundle material t o weigh 100 t o 150 pounds per bundle By multiplying .

the w ei ght per foot of the se ction by t he cut and dividing t he product into
the wei ght of a bundle the shear foreman determines how many bars t o
,

put in a bundle ; but in order to check himself up he wei ghs the first bundle
492 THE ROLL I N G OF S T EE L

As e ach item is wei ghe d Off from the truck it is ent e re d on a we i ght sheet ,

by a wei gh man and che cked Off on both the index card and load sheet
-
.

“ ”
If the index c ard is mar ke d Car a car is starte d for that customer if ,

this has not alre ady been done and material is S O l oaded I f inde x c ard
, .

“ ”
is marke d Pile the item is pile d and s o noted on the weight S heet One .

weight S hee t is made out for e ach truck load and when this c ar has been ,

wei ghe d o ff the S heet is che cked o ff on the car card of w hi ch there i s one
, ,

for e ach c ar , and ret ur ned t o the office Here the wei ght s heets are checked
.

against the order boo k s Memorandums are made out for t he items that
.

have been pile d S O that these c an be given out t o the w ei ghmen when a
-

c ar load ha s been starte d for the customer When an item of an order is .

under wei ght or short in number Of pieces the S hortage is discove re d by ,

a wee kly survey of the order books by a cler k in t he shippin g Office who ,

makes out a reindex c ard for t he S hortage and notes the da t e made out
with blue pencil on both the reindex c ard and the boo k order I f however .
, ,

there is a c h ance t o get the item on the mill immediat ely the boo k order
‘

and the inde x c ard are blac k pencile d A rollin g order i s m a d e out from
‘

the reindex c ard and he ctographed after which the inde x card and three
,

mill order S heets are given t o t he mill order clerk He re turns the reindex .

c ard t o t he S hipping Offices an d if he does no t have t he grade of steel in

,

stock he has t o make out a requisition fo r i t t he procedure then being

, ,

the same as for ordinary orders .

S t r aig h t e ni ng : the lower mill straightening is done by the Labo r

At ,

Department machines for this purpose being locate d at three di ff erent

,

pl aces These machines are of the seven roll type the rolls being buil t
.
,

up in a c asting similar t o roll housings F our rolls are bel o w and thre e .

above the bar passing between in grooves which are desi gned t o fit eac h
,

separate se ction On ac coun t of the vast amount of tire an d w indow sash

.

sections rolle d at the Upper Mills the straightening is under t he j uris

,

diction of a S pe cial department for tha t purpose Angles and sash se ctions .
,

molding t ees and mud guard se ctions are strai ghtened a t the mill ther e
, ,

bein g a s t rai ghte ni n g machine l ocate d at e ach mil l w here such materia l
is rolled R ound e dge tire however is strai ghtened in t he t ire house
where tw
.
, , ,

o strai ghtening machines of a new type are l ocated These are .

more flexib l e than the ol d type and are more easil y adj usted t o the variou s
S izes.

I nvo i c i ng : A fter the c ars have be en loaded the car c ards are take n ,

into the shipping office and from these , invoi ces are made out The ori ginal
‘

.
,

o ffi ce c opy of t he invoice which is made out in the shipp i ng Office

,
is sent ,

to the order departmen t where it is c arefully che cke d against the book
order t he numbe r of bars or bundles and t onnage b eing entere d on s ame
,
.

T h e invoices are next given t o a cler k who enters all detaile d information
“ ”
on a re c ap s heet The credits for the various sections and sizes are als o
.

“ ”
entere d under the proper headings on a credit re cap sheet .
 M E RCH A N T M I LL P RA C T I CE 493

S EC T I O N V I .

I N S PE CTI ON DE P A R T ME NT OF A ME R C H A NT MI LL P LA N T .

T he I n s p e c tio n De p a r t m e n t makes all physical tests and keeps

re cords and s amples Of the various sections One of the duties of this .

d epartment i s t o inspe c t and ac cept o r rej ect all S pecial steel before being
r o lle d int o finishe d product C heck anal ysis is made of al l steel re quiring
.

the same and a close inspe ction Of all material when being rolle d is provi de d
,

for. Al lspe cial steel ordered from the semi fi nis hing mills mus t pass -

inspe ction by this department Approval or disapproval of material is

.

base d upo n chemical anal ysis and surface c onditions Only very l ow .

limits for the various impurities are allowe d on spe ci al steels and the ,

ins pe ction is very rigid C onsequently any he ats no t fallin g within the
.
,

requirements must re ceive spe cial attention Much in t he way of good .

j udgment is re quire d t o dispose of such he ats s atisfactorily Usually the .

,

department will ende avor t o c onsult the customer before permittin g ano ff
grade he at t o be rolled as original ly planned Certain orders re q uire the .

ladle analysis to be checke d before being rolle d int o the finishe d b ar Orders .

requesting che c k analysis are held in the yard unt il drillings from
the bil lets are analyzed I f t his analysis shows t hat the c omposition of
.

the steel is as ordered the steel is rolled on t he order for w hi ch it was

,

ori ginall y intended If the c he c k an a

. lysis does not practicall y agree with
the l adle analysis t he ste e l i s applied on a less particul ar Order C heck
, .

analysis may also be made o n finishe d material S ome orders require tha t .

the steel be inspe cte d for s urface defe cts before rolling I n such c ase .

each billet i s carefull y examined t o dete c t any S livers s eams che cks or , , ,

faulty shearing tha t may o c cur Billets found t o be defe ctive are chipped
.

and put into c ondition for rollin g if a t all possibl e Wh en orders spec i fy ,

physical requirements it is then the duty of t his dep artment to supply such
,

c hemic al S pecifications as wi ll fulfill the physical requirements

‘

A no t h e r o f t h i s De pa r t m e n t is that Of mill inspe ction

F u nc t io n ,

whi ch is one of mos t importance I n th is c apacity the depar t ment a cts

.

as a chec k upon the r olling Mill inspection re quires one man on e ach mil l ,
.

devoting his entire t ime t o gauging and watchin g for faulty steel Se ctions .

not fulfilling the prescribe d measurements are e ither hel d for further
inspe ction or thrown out as s crap The rollers as well as the inspe ctors .
,

have the given dimensions and tolerances The inspe ctors che ck the rollers .

an d i nform t hem of any faul t s tha t t he rollers themselves have not alre ady
dete cte d I n case an inspe ctor d oes not accept stee l as rolled and the
.
,

roller c ontinues t o ma ke the s e ction t he ins pe ctor s ignals for the depart ,

ment superintendent and l ays t he c ase before him If the fault c annot be .

remedie d , an d i t is known the customer wi ll not accep t t he stee l as rolled ,

the mill must go Off t he order The defe cts watche d for m ost closel y
.

depend upon the se ction being rolle d A ccurate size applies to all se cti ons
’

. .
494 MERCHA N T M I LL P ROD UCT S

Fo the more complicated se ctions templets are furnishe d Usually one

r .

exact and one ful l temple t is made Fo r gauging rounds squares flats .
, , ,

etc only a gauge and m i crometer is use d Re adings on t he micrometer

.
,
.

are ac curate t o 001 inch while on the gauge one sixt y fourth inch is about
.
,
- -

the most exac t reading that c an be determined Other t ools used for spe cial
‘

purposes are S quares and steel tapes The square is used t o dete c t diamond .

ing in certain instances where e ach surface must be at right angles to the ,

adj acent one The tape is used when inspe cting clip sections t o determine
.
,

the re gularity Of the impressions that are rolle d on the bar

’

S u r face De
f e c ts : The inspector is responsible for the detection Of
s urface defects These may appear as buckles kinks o ve rfi l
. ls und e rfi l
ls , , , ,

slivers laps seams or burne d steel While the nature and causes of these
, , , .

defe cts have already been more or less fully expl ained the foll owing re sum e ,

Of defe cts most likely t o occur in merchant mil l rolling is appende d for

ready reference :

Bu c kl
Ki n ks : A bar when delivere d from the finishing rolls
e s a nd , ,

may be wavy e ither up and down or sideways The former is known as

,
.

a buckle while the latter is a k ink These defects are more inj urious to
,
.

some se ctions than others H owever all sections should b e rolle d as free .
,

from buckles and kinks as possible Crescents have a tendency to b uckle .

,

conse quently they must be watche d c losely .

a bar has a fin or extra amount of metal at the sides where

Fi n s : If
the finishing rolls come together the bar is said to be over fi l l
e d Bars ,
-
.

l
rolle d for c ol d d rawing must be free from over fi ls for t hese draw into -
,

laps On the other hand , in order t o get perfect corners on half ovals a
.
,

well known file manufacturer re quests a small o ve rfi llat the edges .

U n d e rfi l
l
When a bar is sc ant in certain dimensions or when it is
s:

not completely fille d o ut the bar is said to be und e rfi l

le d This defe ct
, .

sometimes appears on rounds and channels .

Sl
are l oose pie ces Of steel rolled flat on a bar They may be
ive rs .

present on the billet or be cause d by faulty shearing or incorre ct entering ,

Of the bar in a cl ose d pass S livere d steel is thrown out as scrap and seldom
.

hel d for further inspection .

La p s : If lhas been
a bar is given a pass in the rolls after an o ve rfi l
produced a lap usual ly results This de fect is e sp e c1al
,
l
y liable to oc cur .

with skelp hoop and c ottontie F aulty ingots and poor rolling at the
,
-
.

semi fi ni shing mills also c ause l aps

-
.

Steel must be inspe cte d c arefully for seams , a surface defe ct

Se am s :

always difficult to dete ct A seam is a crevice in steel tha t is cl osed .

up but not welde d Se ams are c ause d by blow holes and cracks in the
.

ingot as well as faulty methods of ro l

,
ling T hey render steel unfit for .
 96 M E RCHA N T M I LL P ROD UC T S

Ma n ne r o f G a u gi ng Di ffe r e n t S e c tio ns : R o unds are gauge d on four

diameters distinguishe d at the mill as top and bottom sides and hi gh a n
,
'
d - -
, ,

low s houl der By t op and bottom of a round is me ant those two surfaces
.
- -

subj e c t t o compression in the fi nis hi ng pass and by sides is meant the ,

points Opposite the clearance between the rolls in t his pass The shoul ders .

lie between these two diameters The longer of the shoulder diameters .

is calle d the high shoul der the S horter t he l ow shoul der Three s amples
, .

are taken from e ach bar gauge d namel y front end middle and l ast end , , , .

These samples are t a k en at the S hears as the ori ginal bar is being cut into
the lengths ordere d The t op and bot t om Of a round may be distinguished
.

from the S ides by the way the scale i s broken along the sides If an o ve rfi l l .

occurs it shows also on the sides of the round Usually the ends of a mill
, .
,

length o f a round are sli ghtly o ve rfi l

‘

le d Fl ats s quares and nut steel are .

,

gauge d for width t hi ckness and diamonding but only the variations in
, ,

width and t hickness are reporte d C otton tie hoop an d skelp are reported .
-
, ,

for width and gauge thickness Special sections are usually gauged by .

means of templets but certain overal l dimensions are generally give n on the
,

report A sketch is sometimes made and the important dimensions lettere d

. .

T he hourl y variations for these dimensions are then inserte d under the
proper heading C lip iron box strap and bit mouth are pe culiar se ctions
.
-
,
- -

requiring special attention for gauging and the various dimensions must ,

be watche d t o get t he se ction uniform I nspe ctors at t he c otton t ie mill .

-

have spe cial duties t o perform They must ge t from e ach b uckle machine
.

every half hour a s ample w hich must be properl y t agge d and t aken to
,

the dep ar t ment superintendent for persona l inspection They are require d .

to wei gh t en bundles of c ott on tie e very hal f hour and t o post the weight
-

on a bl ackboard in plain view of the roller C oncrete bar is rolled t o .

weight , and inspe ctors m ust che ck the wei ghts of the S he ar foreman I f .

for any reason an inspe ctor is not willing t o take the responsibility of passing
s lightly defe ctive bars the trucks l ,
o a d e d with such s teel are m arke d W i th
‘

“ ’
g reen tags S i gnifying
,
hol d for further inspe ction
, This steel i s examined .

b y the assistan t chief inspe ctor , who either S craps t he entire l ot or details
a spe cially instructed inspe ctor t o sort the good from the bad U ses for .

whi ch steel i s rolle d , as well as customers cl aims o ff er guides as to what ’

,

defects a customer c an accep t .

 CI RCULA R S H A P ES 497

C HAPT ER x .

C I R CUL A R S H AP E S .

S EC T I O N 1 .

S OM E G E N E RAL F E AT UR E S P E R T A I NI N G TO T HE R OLLI N G OF CI R C ULA R S HA P E S .

T h e Ro l
li ng o f Ci r c u l
a r S h a pe s
presents one Of the most interesting
studies of the rolling mill industry bec ause it is the l atest devel opment,

in rolli ng and though the ide a of rollin g whee l

, ,
s originate d in Europe i t ,

is in Americ a that the art has been most highly developed The be ginn ing .

of this branch of t he industry dates from the ye ar 1903 when solid rolle d ,

steel c ar wheels were first use d under fr e ight c ars The use of suc h wheels .

resulte d from the introduction in 1896 Of all steel freight c ars which on ,

account of their incre ase d weight and gre at c arryin g c apacity re quired
a stronger and tougher wheel t han any that had been made up t o t ha t time .

I t was t o meet this requirement th at Mr C harles T S choen who w as the . .

,

pioneer in the manufacture of all steel c ars , perfecte d the mill which now ,

bears his name for rolling these wh eels Later on Mr S choen s method
,
'
.
,
.
’

of preparing the steel which will b e explaine d l ater was much improved
, ,

by the C arne gie S teel C ompany , who purchase d this mill in 1908 Co n .

s i d e r e d from the standpoint of circul ar S hapes in general the S choen mill ,

has the one drawbac k of a very limited product Bein g desi gne d for one .

particular purpose i t c an roll onl y c ar wheels , or wheels of t ha t cl ass and

, ,

of these it is limited t o wheels between t hirty and forty two inches in -

diameter Whil e wheels as smal l as t wenty e i ght i nche s in diameter have

'

-
.

been made on th is mill , these smaller si z es are rolle d wi th much diffi culty ,

due both t o the form of the roll s an d the m anner of rolling Fo r forming .

wheel s l ess than thirty inches in d iame t er t he Carnegie S teel C ompany has
found that the forging press gives the most satisfactory results .

P r e p a ri n g t h e Bl
a n ks : T he
circul ar shapes all require a round blank
to start wi th Mr S choen. originally sheare d his blanks from S labs with
.

a spe cially c onstructe d punch like shear t he furthe r work bein g then c om
-
,

l
p e te d in much t he s ame manner as it is done today But t his me t hod .

had the serious faul t of producing a wheel in which the line of se gre gation ,

or pipe , if any were presen t in the S l ab was lo cate d diametric ally across ,

the wheel and terminate d at both ends in the tread From what has already .

been sai d about pipes and se gre gated steel it is e asy t o see how this l o cation ,

Of the segre gate d are a mi gh t develop defe cts at these two Opposite points .

As h a s alre ady been intimated , t he C arne gie S teel C ompany was responsible
for bringing abou t t he c orre ction of this fault which is remove d by l ocating ,
498 T HE ROLLI N G OF S T EE L

the se gre gate d line at the center and at right angles to the radi i o f the
Wheel where the faulty material may be punche d out for the bore
, I t is .

evident that t he l ine of se gre gation may be so loc ated in any one of three
ways , namely by c astin g t he bl an ks individually by cutting the blanks
, ,

from round or hexagonal ingots and by rollin g the ingots into a round ,

bloom from which the blanks may be sheare d or s awed A l lthese methods .

are in use by the various manufacturers of wheels but it woul d appear ,

that the se cond and the third metho d shoul d produce the best wheel bec ause ,

more work is put on t he steel The third method is the one use d by the
.

C arne gie S teel C ompany The round blooms for t he S choen mills are
.

rolle d a t presen t on a twenty e i ght inch bl oomer at H omestea d H ere a

-
.

”
22 x 22 ingo t i s sl owl y and carefully r e d uce d i n from twenty one t o thirty -

one passes t o a round bl oom e leven or fifteen inches i n diameter for forged
,

products or fifteen inches in diameter for al l wheels t ha t are t o be r olle d

,

a t S choen From the bloomin g mill the bl oom is del ivere d t o a patented
.
, ,

shear known as t he S lic k shear which is s o l o c ated , in c onj unction with the
, ,

delivery t able and the manner of rolling tha t first cuts are made from that ,

part of the bloom c orresponding t o the bottom or but t of the ingot This .

first cut , usually about 5% of the ingot is j ust sufficient t o square up the ,

butt en d of the bloom an d is always disc arded The remainder of the .

bloom , e xceptin g the disc ard for pipe is t hen cut in t o lengths t o give the ,

proper wei gh t of met al require d i n the wheel with an allowanc e of ten ,

pound s over o r under wei ght and , if requeste d e ach cu t is hand stamped
, ,

with a letter t o indic a t e i t s position in t he ingot , starting with A

for the firs t o ut nex t t o t he disc ard at t he t op of t he ingot Out A .
,

and often cu t B, also is use d in making wheels for t he use of the Steel Co r
,

p o r a ti o n onl y In any case the total discard which may include both A
.
,

and B cuts on w heels t o the customer is never less than

, which amount
is sufficien t t o insure so un d stee l in the whee ls Fo r markin g the heat .

number and weigh t of cut the shear is provide d with a stamp mounted
,

on the revol vin g clamp for t he shear knife , s o t ha t each dis c , or bl ank is ,

pl ainl y s t amped with its he at number and weigh t From the shears the .

bl an ks are t a ken t o a s hipping yard , w here t hey are c arefully inspe cte d for
surface d efects which are cut ou t by means of pneumatic chipping tools
,
.

Such of the bl anks as pass this inspection are then sent t o the mills to be
w
q e d into wheels .

S EC T I O N I I .

THE CA R N E G IE SC H OE N M E T H OD F OR M A N UFACT U R I N G S T EE L W HEE LS .

T h e C ar neg i e S c h o e n Me t h o d : A t the S choen pl ant whi ch consists ,

of three separate units the finished wheel is produce d in several stages

, ,

the number of w hich depen d upon the kin d of wheel t he u nit in which it ,

is made an d the w or k in g c onditio ns of the he ating furnaces Upon re ceipt

, .

of the bl an k s a t t he plant t hey are che c k wei ghed and t he hea t number
, ,

of e ach bl ank as well as the l etter indi cating its position in the ingot are _
500 T H E ROLL I N G OF S TE E L

D uring the punching , the hub of the wheel is supporte d in neatly fitting
dies in o rder t o avoid forc ing this part of the wheel out of shape .

I n t h e S e c o nd Me t h o d o f Fo rgin g , t he press is provide d with the two

top dies mentioned in c onne ction with the two presses used in t he first
method These dies are mounted upon a slidi ng frame in such a manner
.

that either may be brought at will beneath the piston of the press thereby ,

dispensing with the firs t for gi n g press an d permittin g t he forgin g to be

ac complished in one operation when t he con di tions are favorab l e Thus .
,

if the bl an k is at a temperature sufficiently high and is evenly heate d thr ough

out the second t op die c onforming t o t he inside of t he wheel is brought over
, , ,

t he bl ank , and the forgin g is c omplete d in a single stage If t he conditions .

are suc h as are l ikely t o c ause an uneven fl o w of the met al , which results
if the blanks are unevenly heated the pl ain die is use d first , then t he inside
,

die is move d into position and the pressure applied thus forming the blan k ,

in two stages bu t on a s ingle heatin g The bore is then immediately

, .

punche d as in the first method After t he forging by whi chever method

.
,

that may have been use d and the punchin g of t he bore the bl ank is placed
, ,

in a reheatin g furnace where it remains until i t has reac he d t he proper

temperature for rolling .

T h e Ro l
li ng l
Mi l: T he tw o older mills are very similar in ever y detail
.

of their c onstruction bu t in the number t hre e mill w hi ch made its first

, ,

tri al rollin g Jun e 5th 1917, a few changes l o o k ing t o w ard an improvement
,

in construction o ver t he ol der mil ls have been made Fo r this reason t his .

mill , rather t han e ither of t he older ones wil l be described This d e s crip , .

tion i s , however m ade rather brief for t he mill , itself is a s omewhat

, , ,

compli cate d piece of machinery , as the reader wil l surmise when he is t old
that seven rolls play upon the w hee l a t o ne t ime durin g the rolling These .

roll s c onsis t of one t read roll , two we b rolls , and fo ur (2 se t s ) rim rolls ,

and are supported , t ogether w ith al l t heir bearings pinions or gears , , ,

adj usting s crews l evers etc in one pair of horizontal housings which are
, ,
.
,

lar ge steel c astings and pl ace d one above t he other The bottom housing .
.

lies dire ctl y upon t he mill foun dation and forms t he suppor t for the rolls
and for the top housin g some four fee t above i t The housin gs are held .

apart by suitable pill ars or posts an d are bound fi rmly t o gether by means
of immense bolts Between t he se hous ings t he rolls are lo cated ; t hey may
.

be describe d as foll ows : The l arges t r ol l i s t he t read and flange rol In l

.

form i t resembles a wheel s ome t hi r t y t hree i nches i n diameter and is so

,
-
,

locate d b ack near the centra l poin t of t he housings that during the rolling , ,

it revolves in the s ame vertical pl ane as t he w heel and bears upon its tread
from t he rear I ts face is somewhat wider than t he rim of the wheel and
.

is groove d t o c orrespond t o t he t read and flange I t is friction driven

‘
‘

and is c arrie d on a slide bearin g s o t ha t by means of a s crew , c onne cting

, ,

the sliding box t o a fixture a t the re ar of the housings and operate d through
a w o rm shaft and gear by means of a 15 h p ele ctri c motor located on . .
 CI RC ULA R S H A P ES 50 1

FIG 1 00 D raw ing o f S ch o e n M i l lS h o w i ng W h e e lw i th We b , T re ad , and One S

Ro l
l l
s i n P o s i t i o n a t E nd o f t h e R o l
. .

R im i ng O p e r ati o n
.
502 THE ROLLI N G OF S T EEL

top of the upper housin g t his roll may be move d bac kward or forw ard at
,

the will of the operator Fe w oper ators however , move this roll after the mill
.
,

is once adj us t e d t o rol l t he w hee ls of a given size and t ype On the opposite .

s ides o f t he t read roll are l o cate d the two w eb rolls They are abou t t hree .

fee t in l ength l ie in a horizontal position an d exten d inward s o t hat their

, ,
°
c enter lines form angles of nearly 3 0 with the center l ine of t he mill and
interse c t a t a point near the center of the w heel t ha t is bein g rol led On .

their fron t ends they c a rry t he rolling he ads or surfaces w hich c o nform , ,

t o the shape of the w hee l bene ath the rim , w hil e their re ar ends are anchored
i n rotatin g c oupling boxes Ligh t s teel spindles s ome five fee t in length
.
,

and provided with proper wobblers conne ct these c ouplin gs t o t he two

,

bevel gears , one of w hich stands on e ach side of the mil l a t the rear These .

gears mesh into simil ar ge ars mounted on t he drivi ng shaft o f a 750 h p . .

D C motor (500 volts , 1100 amperes 130 r p

. . which lo cate d at the
, . .
,

rear an d on t he cent er l ine of t he mill is used t o drive these rolls Just , .

bac k of t he rollin g heads t hese r olls are supporte d in slidin g bearings

,

which permi t of t heir being spre a d as desire d The pre ssure for rolling .

is transmit t ed t o t hese bearin g s t hrough r adial levers the l on g arms of ,

whic h are e ach attached above t he housings t o the same screw , s o that the
s ame moti o n , but opposite in direc t ion and e qual pressures are imparte d t o
,

the two rolls a t t he same t ime This s crew which c orresponds to the
.
,

adjustin g screws on ordinary mills , i s actuate d by me ans of a 15 h p direct . .

current motor (220 volts 6 4 amperes 550 r p

,
By this means the
, . .
,

power of the motor is multiplie d many times and i s capable at its maximum , ,

of exertin g such pressure on the w eb rolls as t o stall the mill As to the .

relative alt i tude of t hese t hr e e rolls t hey are s o place d that their lines of
,

c ontact with t he wheel in rollin g and t he axis of the wheel itself , al l lie in ,

the same horizonta l pl ane The four rim rolls which are friction driven
.
, ,

are lo cate d one pair above an d one pair bel ow the web rolls s o t hat all the
, , ,

°
rolls lie within an ar c of 18 0 of t he circumference of the whee l being rolle d .

These rolls are appro ximately t welve inches in length and nine inches in '

diameter , an d are s o place d t ha t the proj e cte d axes of rotation of th e tw o

on either side of t he w heel intersect at t he axis of rotation of the wheel .

The y are mounte d upon slidin g frames attache d t o t he fron t of the mill
housings These four frames are move d by horiz ontal screws connecte d
.

by vertic a l w orm shafts an d ge ars t o a common shaft which extends in ,

fron t o f and beneath t he hous ings and is operate d by an ele ctri c motor set
some e i gh t or t en fee t t o t he ri gh t of t he mill measuring from t he side of ,

the housings I n this w a y the spread of these rolls is made uni form H o w
. .

e ver the bot t om se t o f rim rolls , due t o the manner of rolling do n e arly
, ,

all the wor k An ind i c ato r , mounte d on the upper horizontal screw attache d
.

t o t he s lidi n g frame on t he ri gh t s ide of t he mil l is in plain view of the

"

operator w ho is able by this means t o read the spread of the rolls and thus
, , ,

c ontrol the wi dth of the rim These rolls may be s o forme d tha t t hey will
.

roll the sides of the rim at a sli ght angle to the vertic al so that these surfaces ,
504 T HE ROLLI N G OF S T E E L

o f t h e Ro l
Effe c t li ng : I t will be observe d that all the work of the rolling
is concentrate d upon the outer part of the web and the rim where the ,

additional refinement due t o rolling is most needed T hi s refinement is .

very marked as is shown by Brinell tests on secti ons of the wheel and by
,

the Visible di fference in the structure of the metal between the hub and
rim T his e ffe ct is most marke d on the t read where the hardness of t he
.
,

metal and cl oseness of grain c an no doubt be considerably i ncre ased by

, ,

rolling at low temperature or by c hillin g the meta l by usin g an increase d

amount of water durin g the rollin g H owever as such practi ce i s likely .
,

t o cause spall i ng it i s not employe d by the operators As machining the

, .

tre ad removes much of this super— r e fi ne d metal , i t w oul d appe a r t hat the

whee l rolle d t o a finish shoul d b e far superi or in we arin g proper t ie s t o t he

machine d w heel on first run a t l eas t Evidence of t hi s fact i s seen in the
, ,
.

increas in g demand fo r rolle d t o finish wheels for passenger c ars e ven where ,

formerly o nly machine d tre ads were use d The mil l practice o n rolle d to .

finish wheel s i s high , but a greater or less number of the wheel s re quire
machining in order t o eliminate slight surface defe cts or true up the d i m e n
s i ons .

P u nc h i n g We b Ho l
es C o ni ng :
the rolling the wheel is
a nd A fter ,

taken on a buggy to a small press , where the web holes are punche d when ,

these are required This press is fitted t o punch either two or four h oles
.
,

one and t hree fourths inches in diameter and e quall y space d on radii of
-
,

9M 10 11, or 12 inches whi ch are standard radii for al l t he di fferent

, , ,

sizes of wheels From the punching press or f rom t he rollin g mil l if web
.
, ,

holes are no t require d the wheel i s taken t o the coning press being hot
, ,

stampe d in transit with the word C arne gie on the inner surface of the web .

This press is provide d with dies w hich conform t o the exac t c ontour of the
finishe d wheel t he t op die correspondin g t o the inside of the wheel F o r
,
.

preservin g t he rot undity of the wheel , t he bottom die is surrounded with

a series of t re ad bl ocks in the form of se gments of a circle whi le the top ,

die i s simil arl y provided with a t ape re d ring t o fit over these se gments .

Thus w hen the dies are b ro ught t o ge th e r for coning this rin g slips over
'

, ,

the outside of the se gments and forces t hem firml y against the tre ad while
the con i n g or dishin g i s being e ffe cted As these bl ocks leave slight i m .

pressions on t he tre ad where adj oining bloc k s meet the wheel is turned ,

t hrough an a r cof a fe w degrees and again subj e cte d t o t he pressure which

'

removes al l but traces of these m arks e xcept in o cc asio nalcase s w here , ,

‘

they are unusuall y de ep Upon removal from this press the wheel is hot
.
,

stampe d with a mill serial number the heat number and the date then , ,

it is passe d t o the cool ing bed .

Whe e l
-

I n s p e c ti o n o f Ca r ne gie S c h oe n
s is very rigid When c old the .
,

whee l is rolled t o the inspection platform for its initial inspe ction This .

inspe ction c overs surface defe cts l oc ation of the hub rotundity of tread
, , ,

and the si z e which is measure d in C arne gie S tandard tape sizes These
,
.
 CI R C ULA R S H A PE S
'

505

A. The Bl
ank .

B. Bl
ank afte r First Fo rging.

Bl
ank afte r Se cdnd Fo rging .

and Co ning .

FI G 101
. . h
Ske tc es Il
l
ustrating the Manufacture o f Car Whe e l
s by ho e n Me tho d
the Carne gie -Sc .
506 THE ROLL I N G OF S TE E L

’
tapes are graduat e d in eighth s of an inch be ginning with seven fee t for a ,

zero mark The surface defects c onsist principally of over fi l

. ls under fi lls -
,
-
,

slivers sc ale pits and bloc k marks and as t hey are seldom deep they m ay
, , , ,

be remove d by m achining The tape siz e and all defects are pl ainl y m arke d
“

on e ach wheel the former with a stencil , t he latter in chalk After t his
, .

preliminary inspe ction the wheels are m achine d as required to meet t he

, ,

specific ations or remove the defects On rolle d to finish wheels t he machin .

,

in g c onsists of rough borin g and facin g o f t he hub and cuttin g in t he limit

of we ar circle on t he outside of t he rim The wheels are t hen rolled back .

t o the platforms for final inspe ction w hi c h i s e ven more ri gid t han t he first , .

I n t hi s i nspe ction t he wheels are tes te d fo r s ize , e ccentri city and s ize of
bore , p osition and size of hub t hicknes s and hei gh t o f flange , radius of ,

t hroa t , t hi cknes s o f rim , c oni n g rotun di t y, and s oun dness After being
,
.

re stencile d with tape size an d mar k s requeste d by the customer such wheel s
-
,

as c ome within the all owable t olerances are m ated and sent t o the shipping
platform .

H e a t T re a t i n g C a r W h e e l
s: He at treating is a re cent innovation in
the manufacture of c ar wheels and may be said t o be still in the e xp e ri ,

mental stage Owi ng t o t he irre gular se ction of the w h eel quenc hi ng is a

.
,

di fficult process be cause if the entire whee l i s quenched , the uneven c ooling
, ,

o f t he he avy and l i gh t parts se t up stresses in the shape tha t re sul

i
i in t he
d estruction o f t he whee l In order t o o vercome this tendency the C arne gie
.
,

S tee l C ompany s research department has develope d a metho d w hereby the

’

rim only i s q uenched after which t he w h eel before the hub and web have
, ,

c ooled , i s g iven a drawbac k a t a suitable temperature under the l ower

criti cal r an ge I f the hub and web are c oole d in air after t he quenching of
.

the rim , t he wheels show a dangerous t en dency t o crac k by t his metho d , also ,

hence the quick dra w bac k From an e conomical poin t of view i t w ould
.
,

appe ar that th e cheapest pl an woul d be t o q uench the wheel on t he r olling

heat , bu t o n account of unavoidab l e v ari ati ons in the finishin g t emperature
this treatmen t w as foun d t o be uns atisfactory The w heels therefore are . , ,

allowe d to bec om e c ol d after rollin g an d c o mi ng, w he n t he y are reheated

above their c ritical r an ge before q uenchin g This process is ac c omplished .

in a re ctangul ar t an k provi de d with rollers groove d t o c onform t o t he

trea d and fl ange an d so pl ace d i n t he tan k tha t they suppor t t he w heel
in a vertica l position transverse t o the t an k, w hich c ontains e nough of the
q uenching flui d t o c over the rim only Wi th the rollers , w hich are mou nted .

on a shaft c onne cte d t o a motor , revol ving , the wheel at the prope rtem ,

pe r atur e , i s pl a c ed in position o n t he roll ers , w hic h immedi atel y s t art the

whee l revolving o r S pinning also The spinnin g is c ontinue d un
, ,
t il t he rim
.

be comes sufficiently coole d when it i s wi th d r awn and imme di atel y given a ‘

draw back , as s tate d above The pro ces s a dds c ons iderable t o the c ost of
.

t he wheel and though t here are many w heels in servi ce t hus treated and
, ,

apparently with promising resul ts s ufficient time has no t ye t e lapsed to ,

determ ine j ust t o what extent the wheels are improve d by the t re atmen t .
508 F ORGI N G OF A X LES , S H A F T S , E T C .

C HAPT ER x l .

FORG I N G o r A X L E S , S H AFT S A ND OTHE R R OU N D S H A P E S .

S EC T I O N I .

H OW A R D A XLE WOR K S AS AN E XA MPLE OF A F O R G I N G S H OP .

Pl
'

T he ant a nd I ts Eq u i p m e nt : A si de
from the forg i ng o f a rm o r
plate and other articles require d b y our government small wheels and a ,

miscellaneous l ot of shapes for its own use the C arnegie Steel C ompany h a s
‘

restricted its market activity in the forging line to the manufacture of

axl es, shafts and simil ar heavy products Fo r these produ cts the company.

operates a pl ant especially de si gned for the work known as the H oward ,

Axle Works which may be taken here as an example of a modern forging

,

plant The essential equipment of the pl ant includes three c ontinuous c oal
.

fire d furnaces for heatin g the blooms a twenty four inch roughing mill of ,
-

two stands of rolls in t andem ten 7000 pound and t wo 7500 pound double
,
“

actin g steam forging hammers three gag press straighteners thirty d ouble
, ,

cutting o ff an d centering machines twenty seven rough turnin g l athes two

-
,
-
,

finis hi n g l athes one b oring l athe two hollow drill machines and a c omplete
, , ,

hea t t reatin g pl ant that will be described more in detail l ater The for ging .

limits of t he pl ant as t o si ze is as follows : M aximum wei ght 2500 pounds ; ,

maximum length ten feet ; maximum diameter t welve inches ; minimum

, ,

diameter three inches As t o arrangement the l ayout of the pl ant provides

,
.
,

for the most e conomic a l handlin g of the materi als The blooms sta rt in .

at one end of the plant and c ontinue in one dire ction pro gressing step by ,

step through the various operations until upon arrival at the other end o f
, ,

the pl ant they are in a form ready for shipme nt

,
.

t o b e O b s e rve d i n t h e M a n u f ac t u re o f Ax l
P re ca u t io ns e s: A s the
failure o f an axle in servi ce usually results with serious consequences great ,

responsibility rests up o n the manufacturer at all times to see t hat e ach

and every axle is as nearly perfe ct as i t is possible to make it Before .

describing the processes of manufacture it m ay be well t o poin t out ,

some of the things that may c ause axles to fail because the thing aimed ,

at i n developing a metho d of manufacture is the elimination of as m any

of the c auses of failure as possible There are many of these c aus es of
.

failure according t o some writers upon the subj ect but the m aj ority m a y
, ,

be trace d t o t he following which are t o be l ooke d upon as the c hief s our ces
,

of danger : 1 Pipe ; 2 Se gre gation ; 3 Unequal or improper he at ing ;

. . .

4. S lag inclusions : 5 F orging strains ; 6

. I ncipient cracks F rom t his. .

list i t i s seen at a glance that some of these sources of danger are ve ry

 I NS P E CT I N G A ND H EA T I N G B LOOM S 509

d ifficult
t o eliminate and that the making of a good axle must be gin with
the m aking of the steel itself The other defects may be overc ome by
,
.

proper attention t o details d uring the pro cesses o f rolling and for ging the
steel Startin g with the s teel after it has been rolle d int o bl ooms which
.
,

must c orrespond in dimensions and wei ght t o the size of the axles i t is
intende d for t he v arious steps in the process of manufacture at these works
,

are as follows :

I n s p e c tio n f t h e Bl
L o cate d at H omestead ,P a the H oward
oo m ’

o s: .
,

Works receives its steel from the H omeste a d S teel Works at Munhall .

Here before the steel is shippe d t o the axle w orks the bl ooms are subj e cted
, ,

to a ri gid inspe ction Those blooms t ha t show any si gns of pip e or

.

insufficient disc ard at the blooming mill she ars are rej e cted Surface .

defects s uch as se ams sli vers an d surfa c e cr a cks are c arefully chipped
'

, , ,

out and those blooms in which the defects extend beyond certain depths
, ,

or o ccur on t he par t t hat corresponds t o the wheel seat are also discarded .

S uch blooms as pass the inspection a re shippe d to the axle works where ,

they are stored under c over un til ne e ded .

He a t i ng t h e Bl
oo mThe proper heating of the blooms for forging
s :

requires that they be uniforml y he ate d throughout and be brough t gr ad

ua ll
y t o the forgin g t emperature , w hi ch shoul d be k ept as low as possible
and yet permi t the wor k t o be done The advantages of a lo w finishing .

temperature i n se curi ng maximum gra i n refinement is re adily u nderstood .

The importance of he ating slowly i s als o realize d when i t is pointe d out ,

that rapid heating may c ause the outside of the bloom which is first to ,

rise in temperature t o expand away from the more sl owly he atin g core and
‘

thus c ause ruptures tha t may not be wel de d up by the action of t he hammers .

“ ”
Slow heatin g gives the hea t a chance to soak into the bl oom thus giving ,

that uniformity in temperature from center to surface s o necessary t o secure

a finished forging of the best quality As t o the proper tempera t ure t he
.
,

manufacturer has always had to depend upon the eye an d j ud gment of the
traine d heater in the past and must continue to do s o to a grea t extent in
,

the future The use of pyrometers does not repl ace this hum an element
.
,

because the p yrometer records the temperature of the furnace and not of
the steel particularly in the c ase of the continuous furnace The rate of
, .

heating i s fixed by the type of furnace At these wor k s t herefore the .

, ,

continuo us furnace is use d because this type heats up t he steel very grad
ua ll
y .The bloom is pl ace d in the furnace a t the col d end and is sl owly
pushe d towar d the hot end so that it re aches a full forging temperatur e
,

only a short time before it is drawn from the furnace .

T h e Rol l
i ng a nd io n : H aving been brought t o the
Fo r gi n g O pe ra t

proper temperature for forging the bl ooms within a certain range of si zes
, , ,

are pushe d out of the hot end of the he ating furnaces upon a conve yor ,

which serves all three furnaces and are c arrie d by it to the rolling mill
,
.
5l
0 FORGI N G OF A X LE S , S HA FT S , E T C .

This mill c onsists of two stands of rolls in tandem as previously state d , .

Each stand is provide d with four passes cut to take four di fferent sizes o f
square blooms These si z es are . 8 and SK 2 inches The passes .

are shape d t o ro un d o ff the c orners of t he bloom to se cure which result ,

,

is the main obj e c t in t he use of the mill The reduction in cross sectional .

are a due t o t he rolling varies from to From the mill a r oll ,

tabl e distributes t he blo oms t o t he hammers which are arranged in two ,

rows one on e ach side of t he t able Adj ustable deflectin g rails built in
, .

the side guards of the t able serve t o diver t t he blooms t o small receiving
tables of w hich t here is one for e ach hammer an d l e ave them in positions
, ,

to be most c onveniently graspe d by t he hammer tongs w hi ch are s uspended ,

from cranes The t ongs havin g been quickly c lamped on t he bl oom is

.
,

swun g aroun d between t he formin g dies of the hammer These dies are .

provide d , w hen desire d with two or more grooves ; one the pl ain groove
, ,

use d t o d o t he gre ater part of the forging is l oc ate d di re ctl y under the ,

piston ro d while the other groove s use d t o form S pecia l se ctions such as
, , ,
-

the j ournals a re pl ace d beside t he plain groove The for gin g is be gun at
, .

the middle o f the bloom w hich is rapidly re duce d by heavy bl ows of the
,

hammer , t he forgin g pro gressin g t oward the free e nd of the bloom Here .
'

by t he S pe ci a l grooves in t he die , t he j ourna l o r other spe cial s ection is

forme d by a few s trokes when the piec e i s again pl ace d i n the pl ain groove
, ,

an d the forging i s s moothe d up and brought by li ght strokes of t he hammer , ,

t o c orrec t di ameter , w hich is determined by caliper The t up is then .

brough t t o res t upon t he axle , which is hel d betwee n t he dies while t he

tongs are released and t hose on t he Opposite S ide of the hammer are made
,

fast t o t he finishe d end The other en d o f t he axle i s then forged down

.

like the first , e xcept t hat , in addition t o d iam eter t he length is also fixed ,
.

The crane is t hen swung around , and the axle is place d on the cooling bed ,

where i t i s s upported about thre e fee t abo ve the floor by t wo rai ls which ,

arrangemen t a ll ows i t t o be c oole d uniform l y by t he air The average .

reduction in cross sectional are a under the hammer is about For gings
requiring blooms l arger t han e i ght and one half inches are reduce d e ntirely -

by hammer Two crews e ach made up of a hammerman who has c harge

.
, ,

of the forging and thre e helpers and o ne hamm e r driver a re assi gne d to
, , ,

each hammer T he crews work alternately e ach cre w completin g one axle
.
,

at a time .

Ad va n ta ge Me t h o d : A side from the incre ased to nnage made

s o f the
possible by the rapidity of the w ork the method of forgin g employe d at ,

Howar d presents many advantages which bear dire ctly upon the quality
of the produc t The rollin g mill which ac c omplishes only a small fraction
.
,

of the tota l w or k done upon the axle , i s a great help t o the hammers By .

r ounding o ff t he c orners of the bloom i t practic ally eliminates all danger ,

of forming hammer l aps and permits t he for gin g t o be ac complishe d in the

,
‘
s hortest time possible He nce a low initial temperature c an be use d for
.

for gi n g and the work c an be c omplete d at a more uniform temperature

,
.
512 FORGI N G OF A X LE S , S H A F T S , E T C .

for points at the bottom one half inch in depth and three eighths inch in
- -
'

diameter When axles are ordere d t o be smooth forge d only the operation
.
,

of cuttin g Off and centering completes the work done by the mill On such .

axles some excess stock is ne cessarily left on those parts t hat are t o be
finishe d later This allowance on c ar ax les is general ly one half t o three
.
-

fourths inch over t he finishe d diameters of the end c oll ars j ournals and , ,

dust guards and one fourth t o three ei ghths inch on whe e l

,
-
s e a ts -
.

Ro u gh T u r n i ng : On account of the saving that c an be e ffe cted in

h andling and transportation of excess weight it is a de cide d advantage t o ,

b oth the customer an d t he shop , e specially t o t he l atter tha t al l rou gh ,

t urning be d one befor e shipment i s made as i t is only by rough turning ,

tha t cer t ain flaws c an be dete cted R ough t urne d materia l fall s into t wo
.

classes known as rough turne d on j ournals and whe e l

,
“
se ats
” “
and rough ,
”
turne d al l over Axles of t he firs t cl as s are pu t int o s er vi ce with t he
.

center portions be t ween t he whe e l se a ts smooth forge d t o size I n t he .

c ase of axles rough t urne d al l over , the center portions are forge d slightly
over size t o provi de for the met a l remove d in t urnin g t o Size I n the c ase .

of c ar a xles or other axles with a tapere d body , t his meta l is removed at

the s ame t ime (or after ) the j ournals an d whe e l s e ats a re r ough t urned ,

in a spe cial l athe provide d with tw o t ools c ontrolle d by a former— bar whose
contour is t he s ame as t he middl e p ortion of the axle I n finishing rough .

turne d axles , t he whe e ls e a ts are fi ni s h turne d only , w hile the d us t guards

-
,

j ournals and c oll ars are fi ni sh turne d and burnished , and in order t o provid e
-

the excess metal require d for t hi s w or k , these parts are rough turne d one
ei ghth inch over size on their diameters .

Ho l
low Bo ri ng : Owing t o the many apparent advantages arising
therefrom the practice Of boring l arge axles and for gings l ongitudinally
,

t hrough the center is bein g advocate d more and more s t rongly These .

a d vantages are briefly discusse d under the following headings :

1 . Pi p i n g ,
it will be re called w as given as one of the c auses of failure
,
.

Whi le the C arne gie S teel C omp any , by a generous d iscar d and close
inspe ction aims t o eliminate this defect yet it is possible tha t s ome forms
, ,

o f piping notably c ompoun d pipes m ay escape both t he di scar d and t he

, ,

inspe ction and remain in the axl e as a menace t o s afety Hollo w boring
, .

gives the inspe ctors a chance to detect t his hidden pipe .

2 . Se
g re ga t io n was given as another source of failure This d efect .

canno t be entirely overcome in the manufacture of steel and inspection is ,

no safe guard agains t it But as the are a of greatest se gre gation l ies about
.

the c e n t ra l axis boring a hole of proper S i z e l ongitudinally through t he

,

center should and does remove the greater part of all the segre gated
, ,

material from the axle .

3 . S t re n g t h a nd We i gh t : The central portion of an axle removed

by b oring is really a non essential part so far as strengt h is c oncerned
- .
 HEA T T RE A TI N G FORGI NGS 513

T he transverse strength of rounds is proportional t o the cubes of the ir

diameters S o , for example if a three inch bore be made in a s i x inch axle
.
, ,

the maxi mum loss in stren gth is bu t l 2 5% ; i n an ei gh t inc h ax le , but .

These fi gures represent the l oss in strength provide d the center i s as s trong
as the outer portion which condition i s never true in axles or simil ar f o r gi ngs
, ,

s o th at t he actual loss in strength in ne arly e very c ase w ould be much less

than these fi gures indicate A gain the axle with the bore d center may
.
,

actually be stronger than i t woul d have been s olid pro vi de d i t contained .

muc h se gre gate d m aterial or the remnan t of a pipe—conditions that favor

the formation of internal cracks Another factor c oncerns t he rel ation.

between t he loss in strength and the loss in wei ght I n this c onne ction .

i t wil l be observe d that w hereas the strength varies as the cube of the
,

diameters the weight varies as the squares Referring t o the example j ust
, .

cited (a nd applying this l aw t he reader w ill find that while in the c ase
, ,

of the si x and ei ght inc h axles t he t hree inch boring gives a l oss in strength
,

of and respe ctively t he loss in weight is 25% for the first ,

and for the second .

4 . Hol l
o w Bo ri n g a nd He a t T re a t i ng :
i d in heat treating As an a ,

espe cially in q uenching and tempering or toughening hollow b oring i s of , ,

gre at importance I n he ating it permits the he at t o be absorbe d much

.
,

more rapidly and in quenc hing t he 1hea t is more rapidly remove d t han
, ,

in solid pie ces with the resul t t ha t th e structure is more uniform F urther
, .

more c ontrac t ion a nd e xp ansi o n strain sare l argel y overc ome and shrinkage
, ,

cavities in the center are avoided The Am erican S ociety for Testing .

M ateri als spe cify that al l forgings over seven inches in di ameter t hat are
to be quenche d S hall b e bore d The diameter of t he hole bore d shoul d
- .

equal or excee d 20% of t he l arges t diameter of t he forgin g exclusive of

coll ars o r flanges Howar d Ax le Wor k s are e quippe d to bore holes either
.

two or three inches in diameter .

T h e He T re a t i n g Pl
at a n t is hous ed in the s ame b uil ding with the

hammers and l athes and c onsists of t wo furnaces for he ating with the
for gings in a horiz ontal position one furnace for he atin g t he m aterial in ,

a vertic al p osition one water quenchin g t ank one oil quenchin g t ank and
, , ,

all the ne cessar y supplementa l e quipmen t for handlin g and testing the
material .

T h e F u r nace The inside w or ki n g space of t he two furnaces o f the

s: .

first t ype are e ach t wenty four feet in length and nine fee t in width and are
-
,

desi gne d t o hea t uni forml y t o a hei gh t of about four feet above the bottom .

They are provide d with removable bottoms of t he c ar type , w hich much

facilitates the chargin g and drawin g operations This bottom is m oved .

into and ou t of the furnace b y me ans of a t oothe d rac k attache d t o t he

bottom of the c ar and a stationar y pinion actuate d by an e le ctri c motor the ,

car itself resting on rollers that move over a double trac k The doors of the . ’

furnace are of the verticall y l ifting type and are hydraulicall y operate d ,
.
514 FORGI N G OF A X LES , S HA F TS , E T C .

These fe atures , to gether with the close proximity of the q uenching tan ks ,

permit the drawing and quenching of a charge in t he quic kest possible time ,

less than a minute being require d t o transfer a charge from the cl ose d furnace
t o ei t her of t he q uenchi ng t an ks T he measures t aken t o se cure unifo rm
.

heat in g are parti cul arly notice able in this furnace The furnace i s of the .

reversin g flame t ype , in whi ch na tural gas is employe d as fuel and is he ate d ,

by me ans of burners place d a t space in t ervals of less than two fee t al ong
each S ide thus permitting t he temperature at any point in the furnace t o
,

be c ontrolle d t o a ni ce t y At the top the furnace is cl ose d with a roof

.
, ,

arche d from side t o si de while inside high bridge walls e xten d al ong in
, , ,

front of the gas burners t o prevent the flames from impinging upon the
charge I n order that the entire surface of t he material may be expose d
.

to he a t of t he same intensity , the charge is supporte d at a height of about

ei ght e en inches above the floor of t he c ar bottom by two steel rails that
e xtend t he entire le ngth of t he c ar These rails are space d about four feet
.

apart and are supporte d by castings in the form of four le g ge d stools The -
.

floor of t he c ar bottom is c onstruc t e d of bric k l aid upon a bottom of steel

pl ates , an d is of such thic kness as to give ampl e insulation from the he at of
the furn ace The bo t tom is made t o fit the furnace ne atl y and the e scape
.
,
'

of ho t gases from the he ating chamber is prevente d b y m e ans o f sand se al s , .

The c ons t ru ction of the furnace for heatin g the charge in a vertic al position
is somewha t like that of a soaking pit I t has a capacity of abou t Six axles .

and sufficien t head room for maximum lengths of ten feet I n operating .

this type of furnace , the axles are loade d on a c ast steel rac k which is ,

spe cially desi gne d t o support them in a vertic al posi t ion and are lowered ,

throu g h the t op int o the furnace wh e re they are maintaine d in a vertical

position t hroughout the he ating operation Thi s furnace is sel d om used , .

as more sa t isfactory Opera t ing c onditions are obtaine d by usin g t he other

type . Fo r takin g t emperatures the S iemens Water pyrometer i s use d
exclusively .

T he Que nc h i ng T a nks : F o r us e in conne ction with these heating

furnaces t he pl ant is e quippe d wi t h one water quenc hing and one oil quench
,

ing tan k These t anks are bo t h place d as near as possible t o the furnaces
.
,

the water t ank being d irectly in fron t of one of t he furnaces o f the horiz ontal
heating type This tank approxi matel y twenty fi ve feet l ong t welve feet
.
,
-
,

wide and four teen feet deep is o f t he sub level type and is c ons tructe d of
,

c oncre te Whe n in use the water level lies about t wo fee t above t he floor
.
,

of the shop S o an ample volume of water is supplied for any charge it is

.
,

practic abl e t o handle and in addi t ion provision is made whereby fresh
, , ,

wate r m ay be introduced during the quenching operation a t one c orner of

the tan k and the excess conducte d away at the diagonally opposite c orner ,

both inle t and outlet being locate d near the top of the t an k Two be am s .

extending the ful l length of the t an k and supporte d about two feet above
the bottom prevent the charge from resting on the bottom when l owered
,

by the crane thus se curing more uniform cooling The oil quenching tank
,
.
516 CONS TI T U T I ON OF S T EE L

PA RT I I I .

T H E C ON S T I T U T I ON H EA T T R E A T M E N T A ND C OM P OS I T I ON
OF S T EE L .

I n t r o d uc t o
y : I t i s the desire in this part of this l ittle boo k to center
r

the interes t of t he reader chiefly about t he he a t t reatmen t of s t eel S o .

much pro gress in the study of t his subj ect has been made in re cent years
that many are incline d t o l oo k upon it as s omething new That remarkable
.

changes in the physic al properties of a given steel c an be brou g ht about

through the agency of heat al one has been k no wn for many ye ars but ,

until 1890 the subj e ct h ad receive d very little attention from s cientists .

Up to that time both t he scientific knowle dge about t he subj ec t and the
technic al appl ic ation of the art of he a t t re atment were very limite d being ,

confine d for the mos t part to the ma k ing of tools and a few sp e é i al ti e s .

T h e invention of the automobile the aeropl ane and other m achines the
, , ,

di fferen t parts of w h i ch are re quire d t o be ligh t and at the same t ime suit
able for the usages t o w hich the par t s are subj e cted gave rise t o demands
,

for steel of gre at strength combine d w ith various other spe cifi c properties
These dem ands dire cte d the attention of investi gators to heat tre atment
because i t was found that this w as the o nl y means of meeting these require
ments Practically all all oy s teels must be heat tre ate d in some w ay and
.
,

few steels in their natural state will give their full value in service , so that
the various combinations of static and d ynamic strengt h an d wearing
qualities re quire d c an be Ob ta m e d in their hi ghest degree only by adj usting
and c orrel ating both the chemical c ompos ition and the he at t re atment .

Jus t as cer t ain chemical components intensify one S e t of properties and ,

others another se t , s o the heat tre atme nt may be change d t o devel op

different qualities in a S imilar way Thus by combining the proper chem i cal
.
,

c omposition with the proper hea t t reatment ther e results a product posses
,

sing in the hi ghest de gree the properties most desire d for t he work the
steel is t o do So i t is eviden t t hat the intelli gent app l
. ication of heat
treatment to se cure the best results re quires a thorough knowledge , on the
part of those supervi sing the wor k , of the c o m p cisi ti o n of the steel and the
e ffect of the various elements that are t o be found in all steels or that may
be added as alloys to produce the special steels Again : H ea t tre atment
.

consists in heating and c ooling stee l under conditions tha t wil l produce
the d esire d change or changes in physic al properties and embraces the ,

three processes of anneal ing hardening and tempering t o which m ay be

, , ,
 CONS T I T U T I ON OF S TEE L 517

” “
a dded the spe cial processes known as pro cess anne aling patenting , ,
“ ”
case hardening etc The remarkable changes in properties that may
, .

be obtained together with the phenomena observe d durin g he atin g and

,

c ooling all connote vital changes t hat are brough t abou t by the heat
,

treatment As no change in c omposition of the me t al ta kes pl ace the

.
,

c ause for the phenomena must be sought in chan ges of arrangemen t or

c ondition of t he c onstituents Of the steel itself An other pre requisite .
-
,

then t o t he study of hea t treatment is t he study of t he s t ructure and c on

,
,

s ti tue nts of s t eel , a thorough knowle dge o f whi ch is essentia l t o any

underst anding of t he subj e c t , w hatever Fo r this reas on t he study of hea t
.
,

treatment shoul d be preface d by a brief summary of t he knowledge c on

c erning t he s t ruc t ure an d c ons t itution o f steel .

beginning t his st udy however the student shoul d understand

Before , ,

t hat part I I I of this boo k is inten d e d merely as an introduction to the study

o f metall o graphy hea t t reatmen t and c omposition of steel Those who
,
.

desire a further knowled g e of these valuable and fascinatin g subj e c t s ar e

r eferre d t o such authorities as A lber t S a uve ur l , w hose pl an Of de vel opin g

the subj ect is closel y foll owe d in t his study ; H M H owe , w hose iron
2
. .

c arbon diagrams are use d herein ; and D K Bullens , whose practices in

3 . .

heat tre atment are frequentl y referre d t o .

lS e e th e M e tal
S auve ur and B o y l
l o g r a p h y a nd H e at T re atm e nt o f I r o n and S te
s t o n , M e t al
e lP u b l
i h s e d by
lurg i c a l
,

E ngi ne e rs , C am b ri d ge , M ass .

2S e eI ro n , S t e e l l
and O th e r A l
’
o ys and T h e M e tal l
o gr ap h y o f I r o n a nd S t e e l
p u bli s h e d b y M c G r aw- H i l
lB o o k C o m p any , I nc , 23 9 We st 3 9th S tre e t, N e w
, .

13o rh
0
I
t .

S Se e S te e la nd I ts H e at T re atm e nt . P ub l
i sh e d b y J o hn Wi l
e y S o ns , I nc .
,

Ne w Yo rk C i ty .
 518 CONS TI T UE N T S OF S TEE L

CHA PT ER I .

T HE C ON S T I T UT I ON A ND S TR U C T URE OF PLAI N S T E E L .

S EC T I O N I .

S TE E L A S A N A LLO Y OF I R ON A N D CA RB ON .

T h e Co n s t i t u e n t s o f S te e l
: Stee l is not a single element or c ompound ,

bu t a comple x artificial produc t , compose d of many e lements hel d in the

solid mass as a mechanica l m ixt ure of alloys and chemica l compounds with
the element iron In ordinar y steel t hese elements are iron , c arbon
.
, ,

manganese phosphor us sulphur , silicon an d oxygen with t race s of ni t rogen

, , , ,

hydro gen an d other e lements , such as aluminum c opper and arsenic Of , .

t hese all are t o be c onsidere d as impurities excep t c arbon which is an

, ,

essentia l i ngredien t , and manganese , or other e lements added for a definite

‘

purpose .Fo r the sa k e of simplicity and bre vity only pure steel , c ons isting
of the two essentia l e lements i ron and c arbon , w il l be consider e d i n t his
,

c hapter Even in t his c ase stee l i s foun d to b e an a ggre g ate made up of

.

mine ral li ke components s ome o f which are visible only with t he aid of
-
,

the mi crosc ope after t he s ur face of t he spe cimen h as been highly pol ishe d
and etche d with dilute acids or other corrosive mi xtures which a ffe c t t he
”

various c onstituent s in di fferen t w ays To t he structure t hus reve aled by .

the microsc ope t he t erm micro s t ruc t ure is given , to d istinguish i t from t he
-

macroscopic struc t ures or t hose visible t o t he nake d eye ; and to the

,

di fferen t c onstituents mineral o gic a l names have been applie d Thus in .

,

pure s t eels w hich have cool e d sl owly from a hi gh tempera t ure , t hree dis
t inc t cons t i tuents are rec o gnize d They are c alle d ferrite , pe arlite and
.
,

cementite , and in the di fferent s t eel s wil l vary in amoun t ac cording to the
c arb on c on t en t .

Fe rri te i s the term applie d t o pure

ron , 1 c , c arbonless iron when 1 . .
,

i t is con sidere d as a mi croscopica l cons t i t uen t o f stee l I t is soft ductile .

,

and rel atively weak , havin g a t ensile stren gth of about pounds
and an elongation o f 40 per cent in two i nches I t has practically no . .

hardenin g power a hi gh e l e ctric conductivity and can be magnetized

, ,
.

I t appears w hi te l n c olor after being etche d with dilute al coholic nitric or

picric aci ds I t is bes t seen in steels containing 10% t o 30% c arbon
. . .
,
‘
when i t appe ars as a networ k surrounding bodies of pearlite , ano t her con
sti tue nt of s t eel t o be describe d shortly .

Ce t i te : As already state d iron and carbon are the essential

m e n ,

e lements in s t eel and of t hese c arbon may b e te rm e d t he con t rolling element

,
.

When steels are c oole d slowly from high temperatures from the fusion ,
520 CONS T I T U TI ON OF S TEEL

point for example al

,
lthe carbon is found c ombine d with a definite amount
,

of iron in the form of a c arbide of iron c orresponding t o the chemi c al formula

Fe g C. T his c ompoun d consists of c arbon per cent an d iron , , .

per cen t , and i t is kno wn micrographically as cementite Any excess iro n

. .

is practically free Of c arbon at atmospheric temperatures and remains a s

fe rr1te in s t eels t ha t have cooled sl owly Little is known abou t t he
’

.
,

properties of cement i t e excep t tha t it is very har d and brittle I ndeed .

,

i t is t h e hardest c omponent of steel , an d will scratch gl ass and fel dspar

but no t quar t z I t is about two thirds as magneti c as pure iron under an
.
-

excitin g current Aft er polishing the surface of s t eel i t stands in relief

.
, ,

and is brilliant whi t e after etchi ng with dilute hydrochl oric or pi cri c aci ds .

I t occurs free in o r dinary s t eels of more t han 90 % carbon , i n whi ch it .

appears as a ne tw or k o r as spines and needles I t takes its name from .

cement steel made by t he cementation process which contains a great

, ,

deal of this carbide Fe s C ,

.

Pe ar l
i te : One of t he mo s t remar k able characteristics of cementite
and ferrite i s t heir power of for ming the c onglomerate known as pe arlite .

Durin g t he process o f sl owly c ool i n g s tee l from highe r t emperatures say ,

above 1000 C , i t has been foun d t ha t t he cementi te and ferrite alway s

°
.

form at abou t 700 C a me chanica l m i xt ure made up of definite amount s

,
°
.

of e ach and in t he proportion of about seven parts ferrite to o ne part

cementite s o that the resultan t c onglomerate w il l c ontain approximately
,

.90% c arbon This c ons t ituen t t hen c onsist s o finte rstrati fi e d l ayers or bands
.

of ferrite and cementite and i s c alle d pearlit e o n a ccount of its resembl ance
,

to mother o f pearl Whil e pearlite c ommonl . y oc curs in sl owly coole d steels

in the l amellar formation c ompose d o f al t ernate layers of ferrite and
,

cementite , i t may under di fferen t r ate s o f coolin g an d dependent on the

relative amounts of ferrit e and cementite present , e xis t in other formations ,

or phases of which some authorities have re co gnized a t leas t four ma kin g

, ,

in al l five modifications Normal pearli te has a maximum te nsile strength

.

of about poun d s , and an e lo ngati o n of abou t 10% in two inches I t is .

re g arde d as a separate and di stinc t cons t i t uen t of s t eel be c ause it forms

“ ”
distinct masses or grains a lways cont ains this definite percentage of
,

c arbon an d i s a lways forme d at a definite temperature or a range of ,

tempera t ures to be more e xact , .

Ma nne r o f Fre e z i ng o f S o lu t io ns a nd A l
lo ys : I n order to cl arify
the exp l anation of t he form ation of pe arlite i t i s nec e ssary to d i gress t o ,

t he exten t o f e xplainin g som e of t he freezin g l aws of solutions A study .

o f t he free z in g of s lutions has shown t hat they fall into two classes namely
o , ,

t hose in which t he ingredients in solution in t he liqui d state remain in

solution in t he soli d state and those in which the state of solution is not
maint aine d in t he soli d stat e , t hat is those in whic h the ingre dients separ ate
,

on fre e zing .

A n Ex a m p l a ss o f S o l
e o f t h e Fi rs t C l One of the best examples
u t i o ns :
of the first kind of solution is a mixture of gol d and silver I f quantities of .
 FREE Z I N G OF A LLOYS 521

these two metals be pl ace d in a vessel and he ate d until they mel t a homo ,

ge ne o us mixt ure or a l iquid Solution results ; and if this mixture be all owed
, ,

to cool t o t he solid sta t e ,i t i s still homo geneous that is it i s a s ol id s olution , , .

A study of m any m i xt ure s i n whi ch the proportions of gol d t o S ilve r are varied
shows that free zin g be gins at a di fferent tempe rature for e ach mixture .

Pur e gol d free zes at 106 2 C and pure silver at 96 1 C and t he freezing
° °
. .

points of the mixtures occur between t hese t wo points Unlike the pure metals .
,

however these mixtures do not solidi fy c omple t ely a t a cons tant temperature
,
.
,

bu t t heir freez in g is prol on ge d through ranges o f temperatur e These facts .

,

defini t el y determine d by experiment , may be represente d by a diagram or ,

curve such as the following in which t he ordinates represent temperatures

, ,

and the abscissae the pe rcentage of gol d or silver or both .

fi e e z ingPo int
o f Pure Go ld .

7 Go l
d
Sil
ve r
0 20 40 60 80 100
FI G . 104 D i agr a m o f th e F re e zi ng o f Li q uid G o l ve r A l
d - Si l lo y s.

To illustrate f urthe r , s uppose sixty ounces of gol d be mixed with forty

of S i l
ver , and the whole he a t e d t o a t emperature of 1090 C The l o cus of °
.

“ ”
t his p o m t woul d be at I in the re gion of t he l iquid state I f now t his .

molten mass be all owe d t o c ool , c rys t als e ach of whi ch c ontains 60% gold ,
“ ”
and 40% sil ver be gin t o separate ou t a t f abou t 1041 C , an d c ontinue
, ,
°
.

t o do s o until the point abou t 990 C where the l ast of t he l iquid °

.
,

freezes is re ached No fur t her change t a k es pl ace as the c ooling proceeds

,
.
,

and the solid mass is found t o be homo geneous and of t he s ame composition
as the l iqui d s olu t ion Any o t her mi xt ur e of these t wo m e tal
. s woul d gi ve a

l ike result excep t with respec t t o the freezing poin t s , and the solid crystals
,

woul d be found t o be made up of go ld and s i l ver in t he same proportion

as they were in the liqui d stat e .

Exa m p l
e o f t h e S e c o nd C l
a ss Wa te r : I t i s
o u t io ns—S a l
f S ol t a nd
a well known fac t t ha t a solution of c ommon t able s al t freezes at a l ower
tempe rature than pure water This l owerin g of the freezing point or rather
‘

.
,

the temperat ure at which freezing be gins varies with the proportion of ,
522 THE CONS TI T UTI ON OF S TEE L

s alt t o water until this proportion has reache d the definite limi t of
when any further addition of salt c auses t he point a t which freezing be gins t o
rise This l owest temperature at which the s olution containing of salt
freezes is —22 C These facts are represente d by the dia gram of Fi g 105
.
,
°
.
, . .

Two or t hree examples

wi ll suffice t o expl ain t he
freezin g of s olutions c ontain
ing Varying amounts of s alt ,

and any other p oint s about

t he diagram t ha t may not b e
l
cle ar Thus suppose a s olu .
,

tion c ontainin g 10% of salt is

at a temperature indic ated by
Al
“ ”
l th o ugh w ate r fre e z e s
.

a t 0 C the temperature of °
.

this S olution must fall t o the

“ ”
it 8
er 1 0

ag £ 28
8
3
3
0t f abou t
°
10 9 ,
-
10 C .
,

Fm 10 5 D i agr am R e p re se nti ng th e F re e zi ng
before fre e z 1ng b e gm s H ere .
,

uti o ns o f S al
o f So l t i n W at e r unl
. .

i ke the S olution o f gol d

.

and silver , c rystals of pure water begin t o separate fro m the s olution T he .

separation of these crystals has the e ffe ct of increasing the percentage of sa l t

in the mother l iquor , s o t hat the separation of t he water cr ystals c on tinue s
only s o l on g as the t emperature is bein g l owere d Furthermore if t he rate .
,
“ ”
of c oolin g has been uniform down t o t he poin t f a mar ked retardation ,

takes place he re , bec aus e the he a t of fusion o f t he w ata m us t b e removed

before i ce c an be forme d With the removal of this he at however , and t hat
.
,

ne ce s s ary t o l ower the t emperature of t he remainin g solution , the s epara

tion of ice c rystals c ontinues c ausin g a c oncentration of sal t in the m othe r

,

liquor tha t bears a d efinite relation t o the t emperatur e as i ndicate d by the

l ine M 0 F inally
. when a temperature
, of —22 C is re ached , the mothe r
°
.

liquor , which no w c ontains of s alt , freeze s as rapidly as the he at of

fusion is abstracted When al l thi s liquor h as s olidified the t emperature
.
,

of the soli d mass will continue to fall uniformly in a m anner simil ar t o tha t
before freezin g be gan .

If inste ad of the wea k solution , a strong brine containing more than .

of s al t i s s ubstitute d in t he experimen t j us t d escribed it is fo und ,

that j us t as i ce separate d along t he l ine M O , s al t crystal s separate o ut

—
.
,

along the l ine N 0 until t he temperature 22 C i s reache d an d the mother °

.

liquor c ontains of s alt This liquor then freezes as describe d before

. .

When these facts were first observe d , it was thought that the mother liq uo r
tha t is the last t o freeze w as a hydrate of sodium chloride of t he formul a
Na Cl10 H 20 and was c alle d therefore the c ryo h yd ra t e , c ol d hydrate
. .
, , ,

me aning a hydrate that c oul d exist in the s oli d state only a t l o w temper
atur es I t has s ince been shown that these cryohydrates are no t chemica l
.

compounds though they have a definite c omposition bu t are m e chanica l

, ,

mi xtures made up of crystallize d salt and ice in intimate c ontact .

 524 CONS TI T UTI ON OF S TE E L

o f freezing ,where one metal separates alone is known as s e l

e c tive f re e z i n g
,

t o distinguish it from the k ind of freez ing illustr ate d by the gold silver -

alloys which since both metals separate together , is known as no n =s e l

, , e c=

t ive fre e z i ng .

T h e Iro n =C a r b o n Eu t e c t i c : C oming
now to a c onsideration of th e
iron c arbon alloys the student finds that the freezing o f all oys of these
,

two elements presents phenomena tha t are like those of both the gold
silver and the l ead—
tin alloys The freez ing of these alloys is represented
.

by the followin g diagram from which it is seen that the c arbon c onten t
,

IRON CARBON S YS TEM-

S TEEL

CARBON

F ro . 10 7 . D i agram D e m o nstr ati ng th e Fre e zing and C oo l

i ng o f I ro n C arb on Al
lo ys .

A fte r H M H o we
. . .

of the eutectic alloy 1s about Therefore when alloys tha t contain ,

more than t hi s amoun t of carbon are c oole d from temperatures above the
line M O N, c arbon in t he form of graphite separates alon g N 0 until
the poin t 0 is reached when the eute cti c solidifies Nat urally the reade r
, .
,

woul d expec t a simil ar separation of iron along the line M 0 ; bu t i t is

here tha t the freez ing of the solution produces phenomena similar t o t he
freezing of gol d silver al
loys for it is found t hat instead of pure iron separat
-
, ,
 F REE Z I N G OF I RON- CA RB ON A LLOYS 5

ing a defini t e mixture or all oy c ontaining approximately

, , ,
car b on and
calle d p ri m a r y a u s te n i t e separates from all mixtures in which the c arbon
’
,

content is two per cent or more By drawin g in t he vertical line A D

.
,

c orresponding t o about c arbon thi s diagram is divide d into two ,

parts The p art t o the ri ght of A D shows the freezing of the iron c arbo n
.

alloys t o b e like that of the le ad tin alloys tha t is selective while that
-
, , ,

part t o the left of A D shows that the freezin g of all iron carbon alloys -

whose c arbon conte nt is less than is non sele ctive and analogous to -

the freezing of the gold— S ilver all o y F o r example suppose an iron c arbon
.
,
-

alloy c ontaining 10 % c arbon t o be at a temperature of 1500 C I t is in the °

.

l iquid state and represents a homo geneous mixture of iron and c arbon or ,

a solution of c arbon in iron I f now this solution is allowed t o c ool crys

.
,

t al l
i z a ti o n will be gin when the temperature indic ate d by the c orresponding
point f on the line M O is re ached and will c ont i nue up t o t he poin t
“ ”
,
“ ”
S on the line M P when the solidific ation will have been completed
,
‘

“ ”
E ach crystal that separates contains C and when the point S i s .
,

passe d t he mass represents a sol id solution with a carbon content of

,

T his sol id s olution is also known as primary austeni te Be caus e of this .

difference i n the freezin g of the iron carbon alloys between those c ontain
ing m o re t han c arbon and those c ontaining less than c arbon ,

the c arbon c ontent of m ay be c onsidere d as t he di viding line between

stee l and pi g iron ; consequently t his study i s c o nce rne d mainl y in the
,

change s t hat o c cur in alloys whose co mpositi on is represented by the re gion

in the diagram th at l i e s t o t he left Of t he line A D .

Fo r m t io n o f Pe arl
a i t e a nd t h e Eu t e c t oi d : By studying the c ooling
of the primary a ustenite through the re gion bel ow M P it is found that this ,

solid solution of c arbon in iron undergoes changes similar in character to those

presente d by the free z ing of the liquid solution These changes are r e p re .

sented by a se condary set of curves as sho wn in the p art of t he diagram t o the

left o f A D This diagram indicates tha t a substance c orres pondin g t o the
.

eute cti c of liq ui d alloys i s forme d and t ha t it contains about 90% carbon .
,

but since it i s forme d from a solid solution it is calle d t he e u t e c t o i d a , ,

“ ”
term that mean s somethin g of the nature of an eute ctic I t will be .

observe d t hat as the primary austenite i s c oole d from M P t he line of ,

complete solidification that any all oy w ith a c arbon c onten t greater than
,

. 90% pre cipitates iron carbide F e 3 C al ong the l ine P O where as those
, ,
'
, ,

i n which the c arbon c ontent is less t han throw ou t of solution p ure

i ron or ferri t e al ong M 0 until the eute ctoid c omposition is reached
’ ’
.

T he unchange d al loy t o w hich the term mother metal m ay be applied

, ,

then undergoes a change wherein the pre cipitation of both t he iron and
the iron c arbide Fe gC is c omplete d simultaneous ly with the resul t that t he
, , ,

eute ctoid thus formed c onsists of i nte rstr atifi e d layers of ferrite and cement
ite c ommonly c alle d pe arlite as previously expl ained Hence t he term
, , .
,

eute ctoid is often applie d t o pearlite wh en it is des ire d to indicate the ,

manner of its formation and its structural cha racteristics S ince the metal .
526 CONS T I T UT I ON OF S TEE L .

i s in the solid form during these changes it having re ache d its freez ing ,

point 500 t o 800 C above the temperature of formation for pe arl ite the
° °
.
,

c ause fo r t hese changes c anno t be ascribe d t o a chan g e in state While .

many the ories have been advance d to e xpl ain this an d other fac ts the
mos t s at isf actory explanation i s t hat iron exists in at le ast t wo possi b l y ,

three all otropic forms Thus bel ow a tempe rature of 6 90 C i t exists in

,
.
,
°
.

a form desi gna t e d as the alp ha form in which it has no power of dissolving ,

c arbon or t he c arbide cementite whereas above this t emperature it c an, ,

hol d t his c ons t ituen t in soli d solution At these hi gher temperatures i t is .

desi gnate d as t he gamma form and the soli d s olution of carbon or c arbide , , ,

in iron is mi cro graphi cally c alle d a u s te ni te

, ,
Furthermore t he change , . ,

from austenite t o pearlite i s no t instantaneous an d as wi l l be expl aine d , ,

l ater several t ransition products may intervene t he c omplete series being

, ,

austenite martensite , t roostite , sorbite and pearli t e From wha t has been
, .

said i t i s e viden t t ha t a stee l t ha t c ontains 90% c arbon will if coole d

,
.
,

sl owly from any poi n t ab ove the critical temperature for its formation ,

consis t entirely of pearlite Such steels are desi gnate d as e u te c t oi d s t e e l

. s ,

while those that contain less than 90% carbon are terme d h ypo =e u te c t oi d .

s tee ls , and those in which the c arbon content exceeds 90% are called .

h y p e r =e u t e c t oi d s t e e l
s Other phenomena which accompany the c ooling
.

of the primary austenite w ill be described in the next se ction .

S t r u c t u r alCo m p o s i t io n f Sl y Co o l
owl e d S te e l Al
lste e l
I

o : s t h at

have been c ool e d slowly from a temperature above that for the formation
of pe arlite w ill c ontain i t as a c ons tituent Thus in the c ase of hypo .
,

eute ctoi d st eels all t he c arbon present will be found as pe arliti c cementite
, ,

th e amount o f pearl ite bein g c ontrolled by the amoun t of carbon present .

Any ferrite above that re quire d by t he cementite in th e formation of pe arlite

will be rej e cte d as free , or excess , ferri t e In such steels this excess ferrite .
,

is in t he form of a networ k surrounding small masses of the pearlite I n .

the c ase of hype r eute ctoid steels t he amount of pe arlite is again c ontrolled
-
,

by t he c arb on but in an indire c t way As all the c arbon c ombines w ith

, .

iron t o for m cementite onl y a limite d portion of ferrite remains for the ,

formation of p e arlite As this ferrite is not suffi cient t o interstratify with

.

all of the cementite a n excess of the l atter remains Like the rej e cted
, .

ferrite this excess cementite will also appear as a networ k ab ou t the masses
,

of pe arlite Thus from the c arbon c ontent of a sl owly c ooled stee l it is

.
,

possible t o d etermine ac curately the struct u ral c omp osition , or from the
rel ative propor tions of p e arlite and ferrite or cementite as re ve ale d by ,

the microscope the practice d metallographer can determine the app ro xi

,

mate c arbon c ontent .

Effe c t T h e s e C o n s t i t u e n t s Up o n t h e Ph ys i calP r o p e r tie s : T he

o f
data on the phys ic al properties of these c onstituents enables the student
to understand the remarkable e ffe c t of carbon upon t he physical prope rties
of ordinary steel In brief the fa cts in their rel ati on t o t he static strength
.
,

o f slowly c oole d steel are as follo ws : 1 E ach c onstituent has the p ower .
528 CONS T I T UTI ON OF S TEEL

mass actually rises These facts show that heat is spontaneously generated
.

wi thin t he metallic body in amount sufficient to balance or more than ,

balance , t ha t l os t t hrough radiation an d c onduction If the e xperiment is .

performed in t he d ark the steel w ill be observed t o g low a t t his point due
,

to the hea t evolved and s o the term re c alescence has been applie d t o it
, .

I nvestigation has shown tha t the amount of heat given OH in t his c ase is
abou t 16 c al per gram of pe arlite
. .

T h e rm alC ri t i c a lP oi n t s fo r P u re I r o n : I f inste ad of the eutectoid

steel a piece of t he purest iron obtainable be substitute d in t he e xperiment
,

j ust describe d , t he c ool in g of t his pure iron is foun d t o be very unlike that
for the eutectoid s t eel Thus the metal will be found t o c ool at a uniformly
.
,

retarded ra t e till a t emperature of 900 C i s reache d when a m arked °

.
,

incre ase in re t arda t ion o ccurs showin g that he a t is being e volved but
, ,

insuffi cien t t o c ause an actual rise in temperature of the bo dy of metal .

,

i e a re c alescence
. .
,
The c ooling wil l then resum e a normal rate until
.

°
the t emperature of about 760 is re ached when a se cond evolut ion of heat ,

takes pl ace but no t So pronounced as in t he fi rs t instance The metal then

, .

cools normally to at mospheri c t emperatures Thus in pure iron t here are .

,

two evoluti ons of he a t i e t wo cri t ic a l points both o f which t a k e place

,
. .
, ,

a t a hi gher t emperature t han t ha t note d for eute ctoid steel and w ithout
actua l rise in temperature C arbonless iron therefore has no poin t of
.
, ,

re calescence .

T h e r m alCri t i calPo i n t s o f Lo w C ar b o n S te e l
: I f the same e xpe ri
ment be now performe d with a steel c ontainin g e ven a s mall per cent of .

carbon , s ay t he influence of t his elemen t i s found t o be very mar ke d .

Three t hermal retardations will be d etecte d , the first t he mos t m ar ked , ,

a t abou t 8 50 C , t he second hear 760 C , and the t hi r d at the po in t o f

°
.
°
.

rec alescence , near 700 C The l ast two are very fain t
°
. .

T h e r m alC ri t icalPo i n t s o f Me d i u m C ar b o n S t e e l
: If t he e xpe ri
ment with l o w c arbon s teel s be repeate d w it h spe cim ens c on t ai nin g higher

and higher percentages o f c arbon , the Uppe r criti c al p oints o bserve d in t he

pre ce din g e xperiment o n 10% c arbon s t ee l and c arbonless iron wi ll be found
.

t o be l ower and l ower a s t he percentage o f c arbon i s increased until finally , , ,

the determinat ion of t he rate of c oolin g o f a steel cont ainin g 3 5% or 40% . .

carbon reve al s o nly two critical points , the upper one a t abou t 740 C °
.

and t he other at the poin t of re calescence 700 C This fac t me ans that ,
°
.

the c arbon has c aused t he t wo upper points observe d in pure i ron and l ow
carbon s t ee l s to merge int o one cri ti cal poin t Fur thermore , e xperiments .

on stee l c ont ai ni ng a hi gher per cent of c arbon than 40 S how t ha t t he two

. .

l ower c ri t ic a l points remaining also apparent ly merge int o o ne o n s teel s

containin g 60% c arbon and over Theoretically , t his apparent mer ging
. .

shoul d no t t a k e place t il l t he steel is c ompose d e nt irely o f pearlite that ,

is when it has the eute ctoi d c omposition an d c ontains 8 5% t o 90% c arbon

, . . .

The e arly merging is attribute d t o the diffi culty of dis t inguishin g by e xpe ri
m ent two critical points s o close together .
 T H E RM A L CRI T I CA L P OI N T S 29

T h e C a r b o n =l
ro n Di a gr a m Me t h o d s o f No t a ti o n fo r S tee l
s a nd

These critic al points o r ranges are indicate d graphic ally in the a cco m
panying dia gram of Fi g 109 which i s seen t o be the same a s t hat use d in
.
,

expl ainin g the formation of pe arlite This diagram refers t o the critical .

m l
ro n
'

% Car bn o
T

Ce m e ntite 0 . 3
. 6 . 9 . 12 . 15 . 18 . 21
. 24 . 27
.

0 . 24 . 48 . 72
. 96 100
. . 94 . 87 . 83
.

Fre e Fe m te 100 . 76 . 52 . 28
. 4 . 0 . 0 . 0 . 0 . 0 . 0
.

Fre e Ce m e nti fe o 0 0 0 0 0 3 6 10 13 17
fl
. . . . . . . . . .

F I G 10 9 D i agr a m S h o w i ng P o s i ti o n o f t h e C ri ti ca lR a e s a nd th e R e l
ati o n o f th e
h a t o r P e ar l
. .

C ar bo n C o nt e nt t o t i te a nd Fe rri t e a nd e m e n ti te .

points on cooling which o cc ur at temperatures somewhat l ower than on

,

heating A l lthese critic al ranges are denote d by t he l e tt er A followed

.
“ ”
,

by e ither t he s mal l l e tter r, an a bbre viation fo r t h e French w ord

“ ”
refroidissement c oo l in g o r t he smal l letter c , which s tands f o r
, ,
”
chauffage si gnifyin g heating These si gns , A r and A 0 are further
, .
,

modifie d by t he num erals 1 2 3 indi c at in g t he p oin t of re c alescence the

, , , ,

second and the t hird po ints encountere d on he ating respe ctively Thus
, , .
,

A 0 1 means the first critic al point passe d upon he a ting the s teel an d s o on , .
530 CONS T I T U T I ON OF S T EE L

T h e P o s i tio n f t h e C r i ti c a l
o Ra n ge s is a ffe cte d in many ways . Atten
tion has already been called to the di fference between the ranges on
heating
and cooling In commercially pure c arbon steels Ar 1 almos t i nvari ably
.
,

takes place between 690 C and 720 C an d A c1 20 t o 40 de grees higher

°
.
°
. .

I t has been well establishe d that t hi s laggin g of t he point on cooling and

the poin t on heating behin d t he true point is a c ase o f hysteresis ofte n ,

observed in phys ical phenomena Evidence of the c orre ctness of this .

explanation i s foun d in the fac t that the sl ower the heating and c ooling
the nearer the tw o points approach e ach other The spee d of c o oling or .

heatin g, t hen i s t he first fact or affe cting the position of these points A
, .

s econ d factor influencin g the position s of A r l is found in the temperature

to whic h the s tee l i s heate d before c ooling be gins The hi gher t his tem .

p e r a ture and t he l ong e r i t i s held at the high t emperature t he l ower the

position Of Arlw ill be ; but this change in position o f t he critic al point i s
no t pronounce d and takes plac e very gradually and slowly A third factor .

is tha t of chemica l c omposition In general t he presence of impurities i n

.

the stee l have a t endency t o l ower the position o f Ac a nd Ar an d in some ,

cases t hi s t endency i s very d e cide d Thus m anganese l ower s the position.

,

of Ar s ome 25 C t o 50 C for e ach per cent of t hat elemen t presen t in the

° °
. . .

steel Nic k e l and c opper als o lower t he Ar r an g e In the c as e o f nicke l

. .

and mang anes e t he lowerin g i s s o prono unce d t ha t in a stee l c ontaining

13 % Mn and 25% Ni no retardation i s observe d in c ool i n g fro m a high
. .

to atmospheric temperature bu t appe ars on c oolin g i n l iquid air , w hich

,

indicate s t hat the Ar 1 poin t has been l owere d i n t his stee l t o bel o w the
temperatur e o f the air In t he ordinary stee l of c ommercial quality the
.
,

impuritie s ar e present in s o smal l amo unts that they can c ause little vari
ation in the position of the critic al points .

C h a n ge s T h e rm a lC ri tic alPo i n t s : Besides the r i se ln tem

at th e
p e r ature o r retardation o f c ool in g alre ady e xpl aine d , c areful investi gatio n
has shown t hat othe r i mportan t c hange s t a ke plac e in steels in passing
through t hese ranges Fo r convenience t hes e c hange s and t he ir e ffe cts
.

are summed up as foll ows

1 . C h a nge s The point A3 as already shown applies t o

at A3 : ,
‘

c arbonless iron and s teel s c ontainin g l ess t han 3 5% c arbon T he p assing . .

of such steel s t hrough t his poin t i s ac companie d by the followin g phenomena :

1. On c oolin g t he metal , w hich above Ar3 w as contracting undergoes a
, ,

sudden and m arke d expansion i n volume on passing through A r3 I n linear .

units the expans ion amounts t o about one one t housandth of its length This - .

d 1la ti o n i s then imme diately followe d b

y no rm al
contraction again 2 Above ,
. . .

A3 the m e t a l has an e le ctri c a l resistanc e abou t t en t imes gre ater t han its
resistanc e at o rdinar y t emp eratures At Ar3 a sud den drop in t hi s resist .

ance t akes pl ace after whi ch th e de crease pro cee ds slowly at a uniform
,

rate until atmospheri c temperature i s reached 3 A change in crystalline . .

32 CONS T I T U T I ON OF S T EE L

into an aggre gate of the eute ctoid makes possible the refining of ste e lb y , .

heat treatment be cause on being he ate d through its c ri ti calrange t he

, ,

steel i s change d from a c oarse aggre gate t o a fine almost amorphous s olid , ,

solution This fact is also the se cre t of hardening steel as wi ll be shown

.
,

later .

Ca u s e s o f th e T h e rm a lC ri t i calPoi n t s
seeking a cause i n S te e l
: In
for the existence Of the thermal critical points in steel all the phenomena ,

exhibited must be considered Starting first then with the thermal .

, ,

changes note d in the experiments previously described i t is well t o note ,

that there are but three well kno wn causes of spontaneous e volution of
heat in c oolin g bodies and of similar absorptions of he at on heating t hem .

Briefly these c auses are

,
the formation or dec omposition of chemical
compounds ; changes of state whether by solution o r by the agency ,

of heat ; and allotropi c or polymorphi c transformations which are ,

always ac companied by e ither an absorption or e volution of he at when

the substance of the body passes from one allotropi c c ondition t o another .

As to the upper points A3 and A 2 i t has been s hown tha t at these points
, ,

e ven c arbonless iron either absorbs or evolves heat depending upo n whether ,

the metal is be ing heate d or coole d while passing through the ranges T he .

fact that the iron is pure nothing be ing present with which it coul d c ombine
, ,

and the fact that it is i n the solid state throughout the experiment p re clude ,

the possibility of e ither a chemica l change or a ch an ge of s tate having

taken place t o c ause the thermal changes indicate d Only the explanation .

founde d o n the basis of allotropy therefore remains A c cordin g t o the , , .

two thermal changes that occur then pure iron or ferrite exists in a t l east, ,

thre e allotropic forms Below the point A 2 it i s c alle d a l

. p h a i ro n , between
A 2 and A3 it is known as b e t a i ro n , while above A3 it is sai d t o be i n the
ga m m a fo rm While it is not desirable t o undertake a discussion of this
.

i
theory here it may be po nte d out tha t al l the changes in properties pre
,

vi o us l
y mentione d as ac c ompanying these critic a l points are but additional
evidence of the corre ctness of this vi ew S ince t he influence of c arbon is .

t o del ay the separation of ferrite it m ay be t hat bet a iron i s no t formed ,

on coolin g steels c ontaining 35% c arbon or more , fo r since the t emperature

.

of the poin t A r3 2 in such s t eel s is bel ow t ha t for t he formation of beta

-

iron i t is probable tha t j us t a s iodine passes directly from the S o lid t o the
,

gaseo us s t ate by sublimation , or as amorphous sulphur a t atmospheric

temperatures passes t o rhombic s ulphur , s o g amma iron passes directly
to the alpha form The fac t t hat the point A 1 does not o c cur in c arbo nless
.

iron an d onl y faintly in l ow c arbon irons while with increase of the c arbon ,

it incre ases in intensity i s evidence that this point is due solel y t o the
,
‘

presenc e of c arbon Unlike the points A3 and A2 whic h are due t o all o
.
,

tropi c forms of iron , A 1 i s no t due t o any change in t he c arbon itself but ,

merel y t o the formation of pearl ite w hich implies the crystalliz ation or ,

fallin g out of soluti on of cementite Fe 3 C c oupled with t he c ompl ete , ,

change of the ferrite from the gamma t o the alpha state as well A bove
'

.
 CR YS T A LL I N E S T R UC T URE 53 3

A I , the F e 3 C , being
in solution with the gamma iron and thoroughly di ffused ,

has the powe r of imparting its o wn properties hardness and brittleness , ,

to the steel in a more pronounce d way t han when in the se gre gate d form
i n whi ch i t oc curs belo w A1 Hence , formerly due t o the theories t he n
.

advanced t o expl ain t he hardeni n g e ffe c t of c arbon the term h a r d e ni n g ,

c a r b o n was applie d t o it above A 1 while below A I it was c alle d ce m e n t ,

ca r b o n .

se c r1O N 1 11 .

T HE CR YS T A LLI N E STR U CT U RE OF S T EE L .

C rys t al
s a n d G ra i n s : T hat
the c rystalline struc ture of steel exerts
a deep influence upon its strength and ductility i s a well known fact S ince .

this structure l ends i tself t o refinement t hrough pr oper he at treatment a ,

cl e a r understanding of all the l aws governing the crystalliz ation of steel

is essentia l t o the art of heat t re atin g steel When steel like many other .
,

substances passes from the liqui d t o t he s oli d s tate the pro cess of s olidi
, ,

fi c ati o n i s ac companied by crystalliz ation t ha t is t he mole cules of the , ,

various ingredients arrange themselves s o as to for m small bodies having

re gul ar geometri cal outl ines Each of such bodies c onstitutes a crystal
. .

I n the c as e Of 1ron in the gamm a form the crystals are o ct ahe dra or s mall ,

eight side d bodies , bu t when the n o n i s in the alpha c ondition t hese crystals
are cubi c ln form Crystals have t he remar ka ble pr o perty c alle d c l
. e ava ge , ,

of bre aking mos t e asil y a long certain planes usually paralle l t o t he faces of
the crystal Hence t hese pl ane s o f e asy rupture are c alle d c l
.
,
e ava ge a nes .

The dire ction of the cleavage planes c onstitutes t he o ri e n t a t io n f the

cryst al Perfe c t c rystal s calle d i d io m o r p h i c c r y s t al
.
,
s are forme d only ,

when t he c onditions are favorable Thus with hi gh fluidity absence o f .

, ,

forei gn parti cles sl o w rate of c ool i n g, and with t he liqui d at rest and
,

undisturbe d pe rfe ct crystals of l arge size m ay form Because of the unfavor

, .

able c onditions tha t us ually prevai l i n its manufacture t he crys t alliz ation ,

of s tee l results in t he formation of imperfe ct crystals wi th irre gul ar forms ‘

an d smaller in siz e t han perfe ct crystals These imperfe c t crystals are .

,

s cienti fically d esignate d as a l

,
lo t r i m o r p h ic c r ys t al
s , but t he metallurgist

spe aks of them S imply as gra i ns .

l
C ry s ta li z a t io n oan aid to understanding the c rystal
f S tee l
: As l iz a
tion of stee l i t will perhaps be best t o follow the crystallographi c history
, ,

of a steel casting t hat i s all owe d t o coo l S l owl y from the castin g t emper
ature t o atmospheric temperature Fo r the present let this steel be of .
,

any carbon content During the solidi fic ation perio d wha t has been
.
,

terme d t he primary crystal liz ation t a ke s place which consists in the ,

formation of macroscopi c tree like bodies of austenite c alle d dendrites

-
.

E ach of these dendrites i s c ompose d of smal l o ctahe dra w hich i s re pre ,

se nta ti ve of the crystallo graphi c form for austenit e Of t hese S tead wr 1te s : .
,
“
The fine fi r tree crystalli t es containing probably a fraction of the a mount
-
,
534 CON S T I T U T I ON OF S TEEL

of the carbon in the l iqui d steel grow steadily forwar d from the col d surface ,

of the containing moul ds The crystallites develop branches in three .

directions corresponding to the axes of the cube and these branche s throw ,

out simil ar branches themselves E ventually parts of the most fusible

portions are trappe d between the branches and are the last t o solidify .

When there is much phosphorus or some sulphur in the metal they are ,

always present to gether with an exce ss of the carbon in the l ast residue
of metal that remains liquid and although in cooling down after the liquid , ,

has sol idified the excess carbon di ffuses ou t of it into the purer part the
, ,

sulphides and phosphides do not but remain fixed and can generally be , ,
”
dete cte d in the solid metal .

After the solidification is c omplete a crystalline transformation c alle d ,

granul ation sets in and continues until the critical range is reached where
al l steels are foun d t o be made up of grains e ach grain having its Ow
, ,

n ,

orientation and being made up of smal l o ctahedra of crystalline matter .

The size of these grains varies with the rate of cooling j ust as the rat e of ,

c ooling a ffects the siz e of crystal in any metal In passing through the .

critical range the structural changes are affected by t he amount of c arbon

present an d for this reason i t is bes t t o c onsider the thre e gr ades o f
,

eutectoid hypo eute ctoid and hyper eute ctoi d stee l

,
-
s separ ately from thi s
,
-

point onward .

C r ys t al
liz at io n f Eu t e c t oi d S te e l
the eute ctoi d steel s the In
‘

o s:

gr o w t of the grains will c ontinue do wn t o the poin t A r l where the metal ,

wi l l b made up of grains of austenite containing ferrite and cementite in

'

proper proportions t o form pe arlite Therefore , in passing through the .

criti c al point A r1 e ach austenite grain changes bodily into a grain of

, ,

pearlite Hence t he coarse aust e niti c structure ac quire d by c ooling from

.
,

a hi gh temperature gives rise to a c orrespondingly c oarse pe arlite structure .

C ry s t a l
li z a t io n o f Hy p o =Eu te c to i d S t e e l
an example Of the : As
genesis of the crystalline structure of steel s of hypo eute ctoid composition -

let a steel c ontaining 60% carbon c orresponding t o 72% pe arlite and 28 %

.
,

free ferrite be sele cted I n such a steel the granul ation wil l procee d till the
,
.

upper criti cal p oint A r3 2 is reache d where free ferrite be gins t o be rej e cted
-
,

and continues till the point A rl i s re ache d when the residual austenite , ,

being of the proper e ute ctoid c omposition passes into pearlite as described ,
'

for eute ctoid steels An important poin t t o be noted here i s the fa ct th a t

.

this setting free of the excess ferrite is brought about through the rej e ction
of ferrite in excess of t he eute ctoid c omposition b y e ac h i n d ivi d u a lg ra i n
o f a u st e n i t e , e ither t o i ts b o undaries or between its cleavage planes .

When e ach grain of austenite bec omes a gram of pearlite , t he ferrite pre
vi o usly rej ecte d stil l remains as an envelope t hus formin g the net work ,
-

“ ”
mentioned under F errite Therefore the structure of cas t hypo eute ctoid
.
,
-

steel is very c oarse for the following three reasons : 1 The sl ow and
, .
536 CONS T I T UTI ON OF S T EE L

of the origina l alpha ferrite is gradually absorbe d s o that as the range

, ,

Ac3 1s passe d the whole of t he steel passes into the c ondition of austenite ,

or a solution of iron c arbid e in gamma iron I n a simil ar m anner the changes .

in the c onstituents of steels of any c arbon conten t up t o eute ctoid steel

might be expl ained I n e ach c ase however it is t o be note d that the
.
, ,

temperature a t w hi ch the transformations are complete d falls as t he c arbon

content is incre ased being at its l owest when the eute ctoid rati o has been
,

reached .I n the c ase of hyper eute ctoid steels the free cementite is
-
,

absorbed in a manner analo gous to the absorption of free ferrite in hyp o

eute ct oid steels But the fin al solution of the cementite t akes pl ace at
.

a t emperature range indic ate d by the l ine A cm and much more sl owly ,

than ferrite This l atter point being a matter of grea t practi cal import ance
.
, ,

shoul d be kept in mind .

C r y s t al
li ne Re fi ne m e nt o n He a ti ng :
these structural Besides
changes brought about by he ating the stee l through the various criti cal
ranges there still remains a matter of extreme importance t o be expl ained
,
.

This matter refers t o the crystalline or grain refinemen t observe d when , ,

a steel is heate d through these ranges A gain assuming tha t the steel is .

in a normal c ondition after m anufacture in t he usual manner no change ,

on he ating i s observe d t o take pl ace in the grain structure until the tem
p e r a ture has reache d t ha t of the l ower critica l range , A c1 A t this tem .

p e r a ture w hich m ar ks the point where the origina l pearlite grains are
,

transforme d into austenite grains t he m aximum refinement that is the , , ,

smallest grain size possible o c curs This refinement i s t o be expe cted

,
.

from the c onditions of the formation of the austenite S ince the c onditions .

favorable for the formation of l arge grains re quire slow cooling from a high
temperature the formation of the austenite a t this l ow temperatur e permits
,

no growth of the grain structure at all Hence , it is found t o be almost .

amorphous in respe ct t o its grain structure But it is t o be espe cially .

note d t hat , as the temperature i s raise d above thi s critical range , grain
growth be gins whi c h fac t results i n a gradual c oarsenin g of t he gr ain of
,

the austenite as the t emperature i s pro gressively raise d above t hi s range .

I t i s als o t o be note d t ha t this incre ase in grain size no t only varies with
the t emperature above t he criti cal range but also with the l ength of time ,

a t which t he steel i s maintaine d a t t he hi gh tempera t ure I n eute ctoid .

steels t hen c omplete and maximum refinement of the grain t akes place
, ,

imme di ately t he p oin t A c 1 i s passe d But if the steel contains free ferrite
or fre e cementite , tha t is if i t is of hyp o eute c t oid or hyper—
.

, eutec t oid -

grade then t he s tee l as a whole is no t refine d on passing A 0 1 be cause the

, ,

excess ferrite or c ementite remains unaltere d In all c ases it i s onl y when .

al l the constituents of t he steel have p assed into the state Of a s olid solution ,
or austenite tha t c omplete refinement c an be obtained To brin g about
,
.

such a condition i t i s ne cessary to heat such steels t o a temperature a little

,

above that of their upper critical ranges as indi cated on the iron c arbon
diagram on account of hysteresis previously disc ussed
, .
 CR YS TA LL I NE S T R UCT URE

1 . H eate d to about 1300 C °

.

and quenched in water .

2 . H eated considerably above

the critical range and quenched
in water .

3 . Heate d to j ust above the

critical range and quenched in
water .

4 . H eate d to j ust below the

critical range and quenched in
water .

Steel
as forged and c ooled
in air to atmospheri c temperatures .

a 1 10 N at uralS i z e P h o to ap h s S h o w i ng E ffe c t o f H e a t Up o n G r ai n S iz e o f a
R ol
l
. .

ed and F orge d S te e l on 7 5 % (M e tc al f s E xp e ri m
’
, ar b . e n t).

1 . Steel as cast and c ooled

naturally .

2 . H eate d to 927 °
c . a
nd

quenched in water .

F I G. 1 1 1 U
N atur alS i z e P h o to gr ap h S S h o wi ng E ffe c t o f H e a t p o n th e G rain S iz e o f
C as t S te e l S p e ci m e ns l
.

e ft to ri g h t co nt ai n, 2 5 % C ar b o n a nd 3 6 % C ar b o n
O

. , . . .

Prac t ic alI m p o r t a nce o f G r a i n S t r u c t u re

The proper refinement :

of grain structure is of gre at practical importance An illustra tion of the .

way in whi ch the facts pointe d out above in connection with the e ffe cts
of me chani c al wor k an d he a t upon t he grain st ructure of stee l may be p ra c
538 CONS T I T UT I ON OF S T EE L

tically applie d is furnishe d by the weldin g of steel I f two steel bars are .

welde d t ogether by s c arfi ng the ends sli ghtly an d hammerin g li ghtly over
the wel d onl y as i s the practice of mos t blac ksmiths in w eldin g iron b ars
, ,

it is found that , while t he wel d itself i s stron g t he welde d bar wi l l be wea k ,

on each side of the wel d A bendin g tes t applie d t o s u ch a wel d generally

.

causes t he bar t o bre a k a shor t distance from the weld whi ch fact is ,

responsible for t he assertion often made by s ome b l acksmiths , t ha t the

,

wel d is stronger t han t he bar A c arefu l e xamination of the w hole b ar

.
,
‘

however wil l usually s ho w tha t t he re gions on e ach s ide of th e w el d are

,

the we akes t points in t he e ntire bar E videntl y t hi s weaknes s has been .

develope d i n t he pro cess of w elding The hi gh t emperature re quire d in .

weldin g incre ases t he grain siz e of t he ends t o be welded fo r a c ons i derable

distance a l on g t he bars The subsequent hamme ri n g re fi ne s t hi s l arge
.

grain i n the wel d itself but no t in the areas on e ach s ide o f it By changi ng
, .

the manne r o f wel ding somewhat t he structure ,o f the w elde d b ar c an b e

,

made alm os t uniform throughout and t hes e defe ctive are as w il l no t appear
, .

This re sul t c an be ac complishe d by makin g t he wel d in th e following

manner , w hi ch is t he usual practice i n weld in g stee l : The two ends t o be
welde d are firs t he ate d t o a moderate forging t emperature for a d ist ance
of severa l i nches back t he e xac t distanc e d epending upon t he siz e of t he
,

bar ; t hese e nds are then s tove up , o r upse t , t ha t i s t he heate d re gions ,

are s hortene d and t hickene d by hammerin g dire ctly a gains t t he e nds .

Ne xt t he ends are s carfe d , bu t inste a d of a short blun t s carf s ometimes

, ,

use d a w el l bevele d s carf s houl d b e m ade

,
The s carfe d e nds are t hen .

he ate d t o a welding temperature ; a flux of c ommon rive r s an d or a reliable

commercial welding c ompound i s applied ; the weld i s made as usual ; and
the thi c k ene d portion of t he bar i s forge d d own t o a siz e c onformin g t o the
remainder This forging refines the grain whi ch had pre viously been made
.

coarse by t he he ating and restores the uniform structure of th e bar If

, .

the bars have been stove up ri gh t in t he be ginning t he form of t he we ld ,

will be such as t o re quire the gre ates t amount of forgin g w here the gr ain
is the l argest and will de crease to none Where the st e e l w as he ate d only to
the critic al range .

S um m a ry o f C h a p te r I The
conditions and properties of the iron
.

carbon alloys and t heir co nstituents

may be summe d up about as follows :
Above the critic a l ranges , t he iron is in t he g amma form , an d the carbon
is dissolve d t hus imparting t o t he alloy w hen the c arbon i s presen t t o t he
‘

, ,

amount of abou t t he power of hardening ; the alloys are non magnetic -

and crystallize on c ool ing slowly but me chanical working prevents t he growth
,

of the crystals an d reduces t heir s ize Bel o w t he critica l r ange , t he m etal

.

represents an aggre gate of ferrite an d cementite Fe 3 C and i t possesses l ittle , ,

he ar dni ng po wer Here t he iron is in t he alpha form the alloys are magnetic
.
, ,

no crystalliz ation take s place and me chani ca l w or king dis t ort s t he grain
,
‘

structure .
540 T H E T REA TI N G OF S TEE L

T r u e A nne a l
i n g a n d P r o c e s s o r Wo r ks A n ne a l
“
i n g : To aecom
”

pl i s h t he results s ough t as expresse d above in aims (l ) and it is not

always necessary to hea t the s tee l to t he criti c al range Thus , in t he .

“ ” “ ”
process or works annealin g employed in w ir e d rawin g i t is only ,

necessary t o hea t the steel , w hich contains l ess than 10% c arbon t o about .
,

550 C in order t o relieve th e s traine d c ondition o f t he ferrite and restore

°
.

“ ”
the ductility The s ame i s als o t r ue i n t he c ase o f the whit e anne aling
.

of col d rolle d sheets I t is t o be note d , howe ver , t ha t this t re atment does

.

no t devel op the maximum softness be c ause the pe ar lite i s not a ffe cte d But
, .

as t hi s c onstituen t i s presen t i n s o s mal l amounts , i ts i nfluence is s carcely

eviden t This method is als o s ometimes applie d to t oo l s teels i n order to
.

s often t hem for mac hi ni n g Al lt rue o r ful l annealin g, however re quires

.
,

tha t t he steel be he ate d t o a t emperature above t hat of its upper critical

range , and it is t o this true annealin g t he following dis cussion is to b e
c onfined .

He a t i n g fo rT r u e A n ne a l
i ng : The firs t s t ep in t he annealing
operation is t o hea t the stee l pas t its critica l range , for in s o d oing the
pre v ious s tructure is c omple t ely o bliterate d an d a new one , nearly amor
p h o us is born
, As has been previously e xpl aine d , t his import an t change
.

is due t o the passage of the stee l s tructur e from th e s tate o f an aggre gate
of ferrite and cementite t o a homogeneou s s ol id s olu t ion S houl d the stee l .

remain bel ow t he critical range , no structura l c hange t ake s place , if the

c ase of s train relief note d above in c ol d w orke d s te el be excepte d The .

c oarsenin g e ffe ct upon the grai n s iz e o f s teel brough t abou t by heating ,

above t his range has already been expl ained The proper t emperature ,
,
.

then for t rue a nne alin g is one bu t slightly above t he critic al range of the
,
'

steel and this temperature must be maintaine d uniforml y as near the

,

range as possible durin g the time the steel remains at the annealing
temperat ure .

The follow ing ranges of temperatures are recommended by the c ommittee

on hea t treatment of the American S ociety for Tes t ing M ateri als .

TA B L E 59
. Anne aling Temperatur es as Re commended by the
American S ociety for Testing M aterials .

Ra n ge o f C ar b o n Co n te n t . Ra n ge o f A n ne a l
i ng Te m pe r at u re .
Less than per cent . 875 t o 925 de grees C .

to per cent . 840 t o 8 70 degrees C .

to per cent . 8 15 t o 840 de grees C .

to pe r cent . 790 to 8 15 de grees C .

l
These t emperatures are shown d i a gram ati caly in t h e , a cco m p anyi ng
figure together with re commendat io ns by other authorities
,
.
 A NNE A LI N G
'
541

. 4

Pe r Ce nt Carbo n
.

Fm . 1 1 21 A nn e ali ng (and H ard e ni ng) R ang e s S h o w i ng A p p ro xi m a te l

y th e T e m pe r
a ture s R e co m m e nd e d b y D i ffe re nt A ut h o ri ti e s
.

Le ge nd .

o S auveur
(for t re a t ing forgin gs ) .

Ameri can S ociety for Testing M aterials .

Bullens (for anneal in g and hardening ) .

Stead s Lower Curve (for refining and hardening )

’
.

Stead s Upper C urve (for annealing and normalizing )

’
.
542 T H E T REA T I N G OF S T EE L

In l arge bodies , the central portion will lag in temperature be hind the
‘

e xte ri or ,hence s uch obj e cts should be he a t e d very s l owly , for very e vident

reasons The practice of raising the t emperatur e o f the furnac e b eyond

.

the proper anne al ing te m p e r ature in order t o drive the hea t to the i nterior
of the p ie ce i s a great mista k e , for then the temperature of the exterior
may be c ar rie d beyond the proper poin t wi th c onse quent evil results
attending .

o f Ti m e i n He a ti n g fo r A n ne a l
I m p o r t a nc e i n g : T he time the obj e ct
should remain at t he annealing t emperature is governe d largely by its siz e .

Evi dentl y , i t shoul d be maintained at this temperature un t i l i t has become

.

uniform l y he ate d throughout The committee quote d above re commends

.

tha t an exposure of one hour is suffi cient for pieces twelve inches t hi c k I n .

practice however i t is often necessary t o keep the obj ect a t the anneal ing
, ,

tempera t ure for a much longer period than tha t indi cate d by the committee
or t ha t which t heoretic ally woul d appear sufficient T hi s is espe cially .

true wi t h pl ain steel in c ases where the me chanical wor k upon the steel has
been severe or where t he steel has been improperly heated in working and
, ,

in cer t ain of the alloy stee l s I t has been shown by Bullens .

1 “
that the
grea t er t he interna l stress upon t he steel the greater is the amoun t of l a g ,

or fi na l release of t his stress be hind the actual change of constituents

,
.

Tha t is e ven though a t otally new structure may be forme d by the anneal
,

in g t emperature , there remains for a considerable length of time a ten d ency

of the new struc tur e t o return upon sl ow cooling to the stressed condition of
, ,

the ori ginal even though the constituents themselves may be those born
,

a t t he new temperature I t is importan t , therefore if a soft steel

.
,

free from all interna l stresses and strains is desired tha t a sufficient length ,

of time be allowe d for the permanent elimination of these stresses and

strains , before c oolin g To accompl ish this result a peri od of time
.

extending over severa l hours , or even days may be required ,

.

Co o l
i n g : H aving thus by proper rate of heating and lengt h of tim e
, ,

of heating , o b taine d the steel in a state favorable to maximum refinement ,

the nex t step i s t o c ool i t properly A s variatio ns in the rate of c ooling .

produce very profound e ffe cts upon the physical properties of the metal ,
thi s process i s no t a s s imple a s i t appears The e ffe cts of c ooling at different .

rates and in di fferen t w ays shoul d then be c arefully studied The property , ,
.

mos t noticeably affe cte d by the cooling process is the hardness As i s .

wel l known , t his property in a given steel depends upon the rate of c oolin g
from above the critic al range Thus by the most rapid c ooling it is possible
.
, ,

to develop t he maximum hardness or by the sl owe st c ooling the greates t ,

softness and by varying the rate of cooling any de gree of hardness between
,

these extremes may b e obtained I n searching for a reason for these changes
.

in properties i t is not s urprising t ha t i nvesti gators have found that

,

important structural changes acc ompany al l cooling and that these change s ,

vary , in the e ffects they produce w ith the spee d of the c ooling ,
.

1 S te e land I ts He a t T re a tm e n t , Se co nd E d i ti o n p p
, . 1 33 t o 1 48 .
544 TH E T REA TI N G OF S TEE L

1 . S orbite . C ementite
is emulsified .

Obtained in steels of low carbon content by

cooling rapi dly to atmospheri c temperatures .

2 . S orbitic Pearlite is partly . Cementite

se gre gated Obtained by cooling rapidly through
.

the upper range only .

3 . Pearlite . a r ge l
Cementite is l y s e gr e gate d .

Obtained by moderately slow coolin g .

4 Laminated
. P earlite . Cementite
is co m
pl
e te l
y se gre gated . Obtained by s l
o w cooling .

M assive Pearlite
0 . C ementite and ferrite
.

are coagul ated Obtaine d by very sl ow cooling

.

to atmospheric temperatures .

FI G . 1 13 M i c ro p h o to g rap h s h
S o w i ng P r o g re ss i ve S e g re g ati o n o f C e m e nt i te i n th e
D e ve l l
.

o pm e nt o f Pe ar l
i te fr o m b
S o r i te .
(W hi te a re a s re p re se nt fe rri te ack
, b
ar e a s , c e m e nti te .
)
 A NNEA LI N G 545

Oth e r Fac t o rs
t o consider in c ooling are the c arbon c ontent and the
size of the obj e ct I n general the lower the carbon the mo re rapi d may
.
,

be the rate of c oolin g withou t a ffectin g to any mar ke d d e gree the s oftness
and ductil ity of t he me tal Fo r example , steel s containing l ess t han 15%
. .

carbon may e ven be quenche d in w a t er and thos e c ontainin g less than ,

.30% c arbon i n o i l ,
withou t markedly de creasing t heir ductili ty I In o rder
, .

to secur e t he same rate of c oolin g ln o bj ects of di fferent size , i t i s o bvi ously

necessary t o re gul ate t he externa l c onditions i n acc o r d anc e with the di m e n
sions o f t he obj e cts treate d T hus , the c ooling in ai r o f a very fine wire
.

may be e quivalen t t o quenching in oil or water an axle of the s ame c arbon

content .

Me t h o d s o f C oo l
i n g : I n gene ral there are three methods of cooling , ,

namely furnace c ooling insulate d c ooling and air c ooling Of these furnace
, , .
,

coolin g may be made t he slowest e spe cially if t he furnace is large and can ,

be e ffe ctually seale d from air drau ghts This method gives maximum .

softness and ductility I n other words the t ensile strength and e lastic
.
, .

limi t w ill be at their l owes t while the e longation an d re duction in area

,

will be a t or near their maxima Stee l s ubj e cte d to such tre atm e nt w i l . l
resis t severe distortions In wha t has been t erme d above as insul ated
.

cooling t he obj e c t is remove d from the furnace and c overe d with a bl anket
,

of lime , s and ashes e tc , or i t may be place d in a bric k o r c oncrete lined

, ,
.

under ground pit w ith a t ight fittin g cover w hich i n t urn may be c overed ,

with ashes or loose e arth I n cases where l arge amounts o f stee l are placed
.

in a s ingle p i t thi s metho d may b e s lower e ven t han furnac e c ooling I n

, .

air cooling t he obj e c t i s s imply remove d from t he furnac e an d all owe d to

,

cool in t he air Evidently , the rat e of cooling by t his metho d will be a ffected
.

by the size of t he pie ce an d the seasonof the ye ar In addition t he physical .

ropertie s imparte d will depen d s omewhat upon t he carbon c onte n t H ence

p .
,

the American S ociety for Testin g Material s re co m mends that T hick “

obj e ct s w ith l ess t han of c arbon may be c oole d completely in air ,

of course , prote cte d from rain o r snow Obj e cts with 0 50 % of c arbon o r .

more and t hin obj e cts w ith from

, to of c arbon m ay be c ool e d ,

in air i f t heir c oolin g is s omewhat retarde d , as for instance by m assing ,

them to gether as happens in t he c ase o f ra i l

i
”
,
s The e ffect o f t he more .

rapi d c ooling in air i s t o i ncre ase the strength and elasti c l imit but lower ,

the reduction and e longation I n order t o hasten the c ooling articles of

.
,

low c arbon c ontent are s ometimes immerse d in water after they have
be come bl ac k in color This method is then c alle d water annealing
. .

Me t h o d s o f Co o l
Co m b i na t i o n i ng Besides t he three general
methods of c ool in g describe d above various combination methods have ,

been emp l oyed with grea t success Three of these as dire cte d by Bullens .
, ,

are as follows
1 .
"He at to slightly over
‘
air cool t o j ust over Ar l ret urn to a A c3 , ,

furnace whic h is held at that temperat ure (abou t hea t until

546 THE T REA T I N G OF S T EEL

uniform and then coo l slowly The latter heating should no t be any
,
‘

longer than is possible Thi s metho d wi l l t en d to preven t the formation .

of l arge amo unts of free ferrite bu t wil l a ffe ct t he pearlite as there will , ,

be slow c oolin g through the Ar 1 ran g e 2 He at t o slightly o ver the A 0 3 . .

range air cool t o j us t under the Arlrange retur n t o a furnace and heat to
, ,

730 C and slow c ool

°
. This method wi l le ffe ct a greater toughening if
.
,

the temperature has not been prolonged t oo greatly at the second he ating .

3. Heat t o s lightly above A o 3 air c ool t o bel ow A rl return t o a furnace ,

heate d at a te mperature sl ightly bel o w Ar l (660 t o 6 70 C ) hol d a t this ° °

.

temperature until uniformly heate d and sl o w cool (in lime or air ) By , .

permittin g th e steel t o air c oo l to a temperature belo w the l owest t rans

formation , a dvantage i s t a ken of any hardening e ffe ct or retardation in
’ ‘

the transforma t ion of a ustenite int o a conglomerate of pearlite and ferrite .

T his e ffe c t w ill increase with the percentage of c arbon and the small er the
siz e of the pie ce The reheating t o a temperature bel o w the lower critic al
.

range if not prolonged will neither change the grain size nor allow of the
, ,

c oalescin g of t he e xcess ferrite or of the indivi dual c onstituents of the

pe arlite bu t will form a mass of irresolvable and intermixe d pearlite and
,
' ’
At the same t ime however it wi l l give the
‘
ferr ite known as sorbite .
, ,

maxim um combination of large d uctility , g oo d stren gth and excellent

machinin g properties This method is o f particular value in t he annealing
.

”
of too l s teels , i n w hich i t has given mos t excellen t results
'

e A n ne a l
Do u b l i ng consists in he atin g t he steel t o a temperature c on
si d e ra b l
y over the oolin g rapidly t o some poi nt be l ow the
A 0 3 point , c

lower t ransformation range then immediately reheatin g t o a poin t s l ightly ,

under o r over A 0 1 , and finally c oolin g slowly This me t hod is empl oyed t o .

relieve t he mos t se vere strains w hich do no t respond re adily to o rdinary ,

anne aling The hi gh first annealing temperature e fface s the strains while
.
,

the rapi d c ooling prevents their returning As t hi s coolin g tends t o harden .

the metal the se c ond process i s ne cessary t o soften it and refine the grain
, ,

coarsened by the firs t operation as much as possible The se cond he ating ,

.
,

of course may be t o a temperature just above A c3 when e ven bet t er results

, ,

shoul d be obtained provide d softness i s the chie f end sought

,
.

Bo x A nne a l
i ng : In many instances , espe cially w ith t oo l steel , it is
important that the s urface be prote cte d from o xida t ion or d e carboniz ation ,
.

Som e furnace s are no w d esi gne d s o that the o bje ct bein g heated m ay be
surrounde d by a reducin g atmosphere and so oxidation is pre vented Where ,
.

suc h furnace s a re no t provided , i t i s the p ractic e t o pac k the obj ect i n a

metal box c alle d an annealing box with s ome refractory materi al such as
, , ,

sand ground mic a etc in the c ase of lo w c arbon steel or with some reducing
, , .
, ,

subst ances a s for e xample a mixture made up o f a little charc oal with
,
.

ashe s burne d bone etc in the c ase of higher c arbon steels like the t oo l
, ,
.
, ,

steels for example

, .
548 THE T REA TI N G OF S TEE L

of over it This method however is subj ect t o the obj ection that the stee l
.
, ,

will not be refined but will possess a large grain size on ac count of the hi gh
,

normalizing temperature But on the other hand the l o wer annealing t e m

.
,

p e r atur e entirely prevents the formation o f free cementite e ither as S pines

or as a networ k and the excess cement i te i s t hro wn out under these c on
, ,
“ ”
d i ti o ns as l ittle nodules o r spheroi ds , if the reheating temperature has
,

been ne ar t he e nd of the l o wer critic a l range Sp heroidal cementite m a y .

a ls o b e obtained by coolin g very sl owly t hrough the end of t he Ar ltrans

formation range Spheroidizing is a gre at help in the machinin g of high

.

c arbon steels .

S EC T I O N I I .

H A R DE NI N G .

T h e Hard e ni ng O p e ra t i o n : The operation of hardening as applie d

to steels c ontaining a sufficient amount of c arbon c onsists fundamentally
of the t wo operations of he atin g t o a s uitable t emperature an d suddenly ,

or rapi dly , c ooling The he atin g m ay be accomplishe d in a number of

.

ways varyin g from c ostly an d specially desi gned furnaces an d b aths heated
,

with g as o r e lectricity t o the s impl e for ge fire of t he bl ac ksmi t h ; bu t t he

c oolin g is always brou gh t abou t by plun gin g the steel into a sui t able l i quid ,

a pr o ce ss c alled quenchin g Le t t he means be what t hey wi ll in properly

’

.
,

hardene d steel the ori ginal s t ructure as i t e xiste d before t he har d ening ,

process such as c oarse gr ain size , ne twor k , etc , has entirely di sappe ared
,
.

an d has been replaced by a ne w st ruc t ure , t o t ally di fferen t fro m t hat of the
unhardene d s teel To un derstand thoroughl y the hardening process aclose
.

study of the t wo opera t ions by whi ch these changes are brought about
shoul d be made .

He a t i ng fo r Ha r d e
The structural changes that accompany the
ni n g :
he ating of steel through its critical r anges have already been briefly
describe d G raphic ally these changes are represente d in the central part of
.
,

the ac companying diagram (Fi g depic t in g t he heating and c ooling of a

.

stee l wi th a c arbon c ontent of about From thi s evidence i t w ill be

s een that the function of the heating is t o brin g about the proper c hange in
'

structure s o as t o obtain (1) the formation o f the hard constituents of t he

steel and (2)the smallest grain size or highest refinement of the crystalline ,

structure From w hat has already been s aid these structura l changes c an
.
,

be obtained o nly by he ating the steel above its criti cal range Any attempt .

a t hardening it a t a temperature inferior to t his range results in o nl y a very

s li ght , if any incre ase of the hardness
, A gain t he meta l s houl d not be .
,

heate d much above the top range for then its grain structure is c oarsene d as, ,

has been previously e xpl ained also and no additional hardness is imparted
, ,
.

C le arl y , t he best t emperature t o w h ic h t he steel should be he a t ed is one ‘

j ust above the critic al range The proper t emperature t o w hi ch pl ain

.

carbon steels should be he ated i s the same as for the true annealing of the
s ame steels What has been said about the rate of he ating and the influence
.
 HA RDEN I N G 549

l
of size of section in annealing also appl ies to heatin g for hardening .

If any di fference ad d itional emphasis shoul d be place d on t he uni formity of

,

heating The rule for he atin g may be pu t t hus : Hea t s lowly , uniforml y
.
,

and thoroughly to t he l owest temperature and no hi gher tha t will give

, , ,

the desire d results To meet these requirements t he final heating of steel

.
,

for hardening i s oft en and commendabl y so , conducted in baths of molten

,

l ead or of t he c hlorides of sodium cal cium potassium or barium , ,

.

E ffe ct o f co o l
i ng at d iffe re nt
rat e s fro m abo ve th e cri ti c al
r ang e .
th e cri ti c

Le gend : P= Pe ar l
i te , A=Auste ni te , M=Martensite ,
= T roostite ,

=S orbite .

F ro 1 14 D i ag ra m D e p i cti ng th e D iffe r e nt M e t o d s b y W h i c th e F ive D i ffe re nt

h h
S tr uctura lC o nsti tu e nts o f E ute cto i d S t e e l
. .

M a y B e O t ai ne d (A fte r S a uve u r ) b . .

oli ng fo r Har d e ni ng : Thus it is seen that heatin g for both anneal

Co
i ng and hardenin g are very simila r, and tha t the changes wrou g h t in the
microsc opi c c ons t ituents of the stee l a re the s ame in both c ases The main .

di fference in the two o perations is found i n t he rate of c oolin g t hrough the

c ritica l ran ges a t l eas t Fo r hardenin g t his c ool in g mus t b e very rapid
, .
, ,

whereas in anne alin g i t w as characterize d as sl ow The transitions attend .

ing the transformation o f austenite t o pe arlite o n slowly c ooling t hrough

the critical r an ges have been described I t wi l l be recalle d tha t thi s t rans .

form ation is not instantane ous , nor is i t dire c t , but t akes place b y stages
through transitional structures calle d mart ensite troostite , and s orbite , ,

the order on slow c ooling being from austenite to martensite to t roostite , ,

t o sorbite t o pearlite On he ating this order is reversed I t now may

, .
,
.

b e e xp l
'
ai ne d that the secret of the hardening process is reve ale d by the

fact th at ra p i d c ooling through the critical range m ay prevent this trans

'

formation in part or in whole , depending on the rate of the c ooling Thus .

,

by the most rapid coolin g, t he steel at atmospheri c temperatur es is found ,

to consist almost entirely of austenite w hile a little slower cooli ng pro ,

d uces martensite ; still slower troostite ; slow sorbite ; and Very ,sl ow , ,

pearlite Incidentally it may be remarke d that the constituents found in

.
,

the steel after treating also depends on the temperature within the critical
550 THE T REA T I N G OF S TEEL

range at which t he rapid coolin g be gins and the c arbon conten t of the steel ,

be cause t hese constituent s are forme d a t di fferen t temperatures and the

presence o f c arbon re t ar d s t he transformation Since the properties of the
.

coole d steel are imparted to it by the constituent which predominates a ,

study of t he characteristics of these t ransitiona l c onstituent s will , there

fore be b f value Fo r the sake of brevity an d c onvenience , t his knowledge
,
.

is here put down in tabul ate d form .

Ta b l
e 60 . Da t a w i t h Re fe re nce to t h e Co n s t i t u e n t s o f H a r d e ne d S t e e l .

Nam e
Pro pe rtie s

Auste ni te Varie s wit h car

Ve ry hard b ut
so ft e r t h a n

tal
l
ize d l
pha
a

iro n
.

in wate r
.

Neither pe arlite no r s orbite are s trictly speaking constituent s of

, ,

hardene d st eel , bu t the l atter , on acc ount of its position in the transforma
tion scale , forms the c onne cting lin k between hardene d and anne ale d steel ,

henc e may o c cur in b oth The nature and properties of sorbite have already
.

been given , and i t shoul d here be re calle d t hat i t is the toughest constituent
of stee l The t r ansition from austenite t o pearlite is admirably illustrated
.

in the preceding dia gram of figure 114 .

552 T H E T REA T I N G OF S T EE L

in g special m ethods of quenching have proved of great value Thus , when

‘

high tensile strength is require d yet on account of the size of the piece o r
t he chemical composition—manganese t oo high for example—water
,

quenchin g is unwise t he bath of water may be c overed with oil t o an e qual

,

depth s o t hat the pie ce upon being l owere d int o the bath i s partly c oole d
,

in this o i l
,
which then forms a film over the surface t hat retards the cool ing
by t he w ater somewhat This method is sometimes applie d t o l arge .

forgings such as axles Fo r small tools a t hin film of oi l on t he wate r

,
.

suffices Another method use d by s ome t ool hardeners , c onsists of first

.
,

plunging t he tool into water t o remove a part of the heat , then into oil t il l
the cool in g is c omple t e I nformation as to wha t is aime d a t by t his metho d
.

is not a t hand bu t it is e viden t tha t the method is not s o severe as straight

,

water c ooling Where gre at toughness with li t tle hardness is re quire d th e

.
,

article may be plunge d into and forcibl y submerged in molten le a d , as t his

manner of quenchin g produces sorbi t e in s teel s under t he eute ctoid i n
c omposition .

2 1 3 457 6

Time in S e conds R equire d t o C ool Test P ie ce from 1200

°
F to 700 °
F .

Le ge n d
B Brine —
6 New Bleached Fish Oi l .

W—City Water
.

.
—
7 New C otton S eed Oi l .

—
l New Fish Oi l [
—
8 Tempering Oil
60% C otton S eed
l
. .

2—No 2 Lard Oi l . . 4o % M ineral .

3 Lard Oi l
— in Use Two Years .
—
9 M ineral Tempering Oil .

4 Boile d Linsee d Oi l
— . 10—D ar k M ineral Tempering Oi l .

5—R aw Linsee d Oi l —
l V ery Viscous Tempering
l Oi l
.

.
.

N OTE . 10 and
milar t o cy linder oils
11 are Si .

F ro . 11 5 D i agram I l
. lustrati ng A p p ro xi m a te l
y t h e Q u e nchi ng P o we r o f V ari ous
Li q ui d s (D at a b y M e s srs M atth e w s and S tag g )
. . .
 H A RDE NI N G 53

Ma n h e r o f Q u e nc h i ng : M uch skil lis required on the part of the

Operator in the quenching of steel to preven t cracking and warping B oth .

d efe cts are due t o unequal or non uniform c ooling of the different parts of
-

the pie ce and are more liable t o o ccur for obvious re asons in bodies of
, , ,

l arge s ize or of irre gul ar se ction I t is t o overcome this danger that l arge
.

axles are hollow bo red before treatment A l ll arge se ctions if solid must .
, ,

be rehe ate d imme diately after hardening in order t o relieve t he i nte rna l
stresses and strains else incipien t fractures will result Warpin g will
, .

a lways o c cur in small sections if the quenching is not uniform

, As wa rp ing .

more often results when t he pie ce is plunged into the quenching bath at an
a ngl e it i s always best t o quench verti cally in the dire ction of greatest
, ,

length whenever such pro cedure is possible

, .

Pr o gr e s s ive H a r d e ni n g : Progressive ,
or di ff erentia l hardening is ,

accomplishe d by quenching only a part of t he obj e ct In such a m e tho d the .

h ea t i s sl owly withdrawn from the part furthest from the q ue nc hing l i q uid ,

bu t more and more rapidly as the part q uenche d is approached s o that ,

the stee l be comes progressively softer an d t ougher from t he hardene d part .

By withdrawa l of t he pie ce before cool ing i s c omple te t he hea t in the ,

unquenche d p art m ay be made t o t emper t he hardene d portion In this .

metho d c are is neede d t o avoi d hardening , or quenching rings whic h form , ,

if the pie c e i s hel d in the quenching bath at a uniform depth To avoid .

them t he pie ce s h o ul d be r aised and l owere d durin g the quenching This .

method is empl oye d in tre ating such tool s as anvils die bl o cks e dged , ,

tools pointed t ool s e tc

, , .

Har d e ni n g Eu te c t oi d S t e e l
s (C . . 80 to Steel of eutectoid
composition posse sses the maximu m hardening power t ha t is the di ff erence , ,

in hardness between t he quenche d and unquenche d article of e u t ectoid

c omposition is greater than tha t in any other grade of the pl ain steels S o .
,

thi s statement does not mean that quenche d e ute c o i d steel s are the hardest
steels , for hyper eute ctoid steel s may sho w much greater hardness both
-

befor e an d after hardening than eutectoid steels , due t o the presence of

free cementite or t o more hi ghly carbonize d martensi t e bu t t heir gain in ,

har dness on quenchin g is less I t is clear that eutectoid steels shoul d be

.

h ardene d from a temperature j us t above A c 1 that i s 750 t o 800 C for

° °
.
, ,

at t his t emperature t he c arbon being in solution and thoroughly di ffused

, ,

possesses its full hardening power , and the grain structure is a t its finest .

Fo r the maximum hardness the metal shoul d then be quenched as suddenly

,

a s possible i n water , by which treatmen t the austenite i s changed int o a

fine graine d martensitic or tr o o sti to martensiti c structure depending upon

-
,

the size of the article and other incidental conditions I n order t o avoid .

the danger of cracking m any opera t ors will prefer t o quench in oil when
, ,

troosti t e may be the predominating constituen t if t he piece is of l arge size .

Ha r d e n i n g Hy p e r=Eu te c to i d S t e e
to Steels that l
s

contain more than 90% c arbon are al so hardene d by heating j ust above
.
554 T HE T RE A T I N G OF S T EE L

A Cg -
or in other words at the s ame temperature as steel of Eute ctoi d
z
-
l, ,

composition the reason for whi c h is readily seen by a l ittle reflection To

, .

cit e an e xample , suppose t he stee l t o be hardene d has a c arbon c ontent of

Such a ste el in its natur al stat e i s compose d approximat ely of 93 %
pearli t e and 7% fre e c ementite To caus e both pe arlite and free cementite .

t o change t o austenit e woul d re quire t he steel t o be he ate d above A c cm

.

abou t bu t such a hi gh t emperature woul d resul t in a decide d and um

desirabl e c oarsenin g o f t he grain size , w hich is avoided by he ating only
above A 0 3 2 1 Besides quenchin g from t his l ower temperature woul d
- -
.
,

giv e a h arder steel t han woul d be obtained in t he firs t instance Fo r .

,

supposing the quenching i s such as t o produce martensite in t he first c ase , ,

the hardene d steel w oul d be c ompose d of martensit e only w hereas in the ,

secon d inst ance i t w oul d be m ade up o f 93 % mart ensite an d 7% fre e

cementi t e , w hi ch bein g harder t han m artensite w oul d impar t a dditional ,

hardness t o t he quenched steel When for any c ause i t i s d esirable t o avoi d

.

the presence o f any free cemen t ite the meta l may be heate d above A ccm ,

and c oole d in molten l ead then reheate d t o slightly above A 0 1 and quenched
, ,

as usua l The quenching in le ad preven t s the re formation of free cementit e

.
-

and i s no t s evere enough t o c ause crac k in g or w arping w hile t he rehe ating ,

to A c l ac complishes t he grain refinemen t s o much to be desire d in the s e

‘

steel s .

Ha r d e ni n g Hyp o =Eu te c to i d S te e l
s (C 30 to . S teel containing
l ess than 30% c arbon c anno t be materially hardene d by any of t he ordinary
.

commercia l method s of q uenchin g on ac coun t of the separation o f ferrit e

from the s olution which takes pl ace t o s ome exten t even with t he ino st
v

,
'

rapi d me t ho d s of c oolin g Fo r hardenin g hypo eute ctoid steel s with a

.
-

hi gher c arbon c ont en t , t wo methods may b e e mploye d First , t he metal .

may be heat e d slightly above Ao 1 and quenched when only t he pearl ite of ,

t he s t ee l will be affe c t e d , i t bein g c hange d int o martensite or t roostit e

ac cording t o the rate of c ooling and the free ferrite wi ll undergo no r e fi ne ,
~

ment a t all E vidently , t he se cond an d better pl an i s t o he at the meta l

.

above A ce 2 when its entire bul k changes into hardenable austenite which
-
, ,

on q uenching rapidly may be converte d into m artensite or a t le ast tro o sti to

mar t ensite While t his martensite , be cause of its l ower c arbon c ont ent i s
.
,
.

no t s o har d as t he martensite forme d from t he pearli t e in t he firs t method ,

the stee l as a w hol e wil l be har d er an d c ertainly m ore uniform and of a

much finer gr ain s t ruc t ure , be cause t he ori ginal network of coarse ferrit e
will have been absorbed and refined .

S EC T I O N I I I .

T H E T E MP E R I N G OF HA R DE NE D S TEE L .

T he Te p e r i n g P r oc e s s :
Tempering sometimes spoken of as drawing
m ,

bac k o r simpl y as drawing c onsists in reheating the metal after hardening

,
,

to some temperature bel ow the critic al ranges and may have for its primary ,
556 T HE T REA TI N G OF S TEE L

result is no sooner ac complishe d than the troostite in turn be gins to chan ge

into s orbit e When t he t emperature has been r aise d t o a p oin t ne ar t hat
.

of the l o we r cri t i ca l r ange s orbi t e , t o the e xc l us ion o f othe r constituents

, ,

will pre do m inate the structur e Any highe r hea t in g , t hen , c arries t he
.

transfo rmation into t he critica l ranges , w here the o rd e r of t ransition is '

reverse d , s orbite passin g int o t roostite and t hen to m ar t ensit e , w hi ch as ,

the temperature on risin g e merge s from t he r ange , be c omes austenite

, , .

The pre cedin g diagram , Fi g 116, c opie d after S auveur , wil l ai d in under
.

standin g t hese c hanges when t he y t ake pl ace under di fferen t con ditions .

E videntl y t hen all he ating for t empering i s conducte d below the cri t ical
,

ran ge . By properl y adj ustin g t he t emperatur e the t ransition describe d

above m ay be arreste d a t any stage d esire d and any combination ,

of physic al properties of which the st ee l i s capabl e may be obtaine d It .

i s c le ar t ha t the manner of coolin g from th e t empering temperature is

immaterial t hough for t he s ake o f spee d or c onvenience quenching or air
,

cooling is the general practi ce in heat treating shops .

Me t h o d s o f De t e r m i ni n g Te m p e ri ng T e m p e r a tu re s : The original
metho d of estimating tempering temperatures is by c o l or Thus , if a piec e
”

of hardene d s teel is bri ghtene d or polishe d wi t h a piec e o f e m ery , s an d stone ,

or other s ui t abl e means and i s t hen sl owly heat e d in cont ac t with ai r the ,

c ol or o f the brightene d surface will , d ue to the formatio n o f a surface fi l m

of oxi d e un dergo a s eries of c olor c hanges , c a l le d t empe r colors rangin g fro m

, ,

fain t yello w to blue , which wil l be c haracteristic o f t he di ff eren t t emper

ature s re ache d by c ont inue d applic a t ion o f hea t That these c ol or s a re .

indicative o f a kno wn t emperatur e o r at l eas t a defini te c ondition of the

hardene d s tee l i s g enerally a c cepted ; bu t i t is e viden t t ha t th e method i s
subj e c t t o t he obj e ction t ha t d ifference s in distin guishin g differen t c ol ors ,

or s hades of c olor i s boun d to o cc ur amon g differen t opera t ors Distinc tion

, .

of thes e c olors is als o affe c t e d by differen t l i gh t c onditi ons The s ame .

temper wil l no t give the s ame c olor in a dimly l ighte d room as in a well
lighte d one ; While t hese shades are h ar d t o d escribe t he c olor c orrespond ,

ing t o t he s ame t empera t ur e o ften bein g di fferently described by di fferent

individuals the foll owin g t abl e will give s ome ide a of the c olors c orre
,

sp o nd ing to the different temperature changes .

Ta b l
e 61 . Te m p e r i n g Co l
o r s a n d T e m p e r a t u re s Co r re s p o n d i n g
to Th e m .

Pale yellow 220 de g C. . P ale blue

S traw 230 Dark blue
G olden yellow 243 Re d in the dark
Brown . 255 Re d—indire ct sunli ght 525 .

Bro wn d apple d with purple . . 265 Re d in sunlight 580

Purpl e 277 Dark Re d
Bri ght blue .
 T E M PE RI N G 7

That the c olor method has its limitations is now well established and ,

so other metho ds are bein g develope d on a more scientific basis These .

metho ds involve t he use of s and baths or liquid baths such as oil , ,

molten l e ad , or alloys fused salts etc , for heating the stee l and t he use
, ,
.

of pyromete rs for c ontrolling the temperature and aim a t the elimination

,

of the personal e quation in the results obtained S eein g that the tempering
.

°
action o ften t akes plac e very rapidly and t ha t a di fference of 15 or 20 °

of temperatur e wil l o ft en spe ll success o r failure , s uch appliances w ould

appe ar t o be a very necessary part of the e quipment of the modern heat
treating shop .

I nfl u e n c e oTi m e i n Te m p e ri ng : From what has been sai d about

f
the transformations wrough t in t he tempering process t he re ader mi ght ,

i nfer t ha t t he t ime the s t e e l i s kept a t t he t emperin g temperatur e w ould

exer t no influence Les t suc h s houl d be t he c ase , o ccasion i s t a ken t o
.

explain t hat , c ontrary to t his inferenc e and , in fact , t o the c ommon bel ief ,

m aint ainin g t he meta l at the temperin g t emperature for a considerable

len gt h o f t im e wil l resul t in producin g additional t empering This fact is .

evidence d by t he c hange of the t emperin g c olors a t c onstant t emperature .

Thus , i t h as been ascertaine d t ha t the t emper c olor , ins t ea d of remainin g

the s ame at a given t emperature advances in the t empering c ol o r s c ale
,

as i t w oul d if the t emperature w ere bein g raise d whi ch phenomenon w oul , d

appe ar t o indicate tha t the t emper c ol or s are indi c ative of t he temperin g
condition o f the stee l rather t han o f t he t emperature Fo r example , by .

heatin g a s tee l to where i ts tempe r c olor is purple an d keeping it ,

there t il l i ts c olor i s br i gh t blue , a t empe r c orresponding t o t he t e m peratur e

288 i s o b t aine d A c cordin g to s ome i nves t i gators however , the t emper
°
.
,

will no t fol l o w the col or to the e nd 1 The y m aintain t ha t e ach t emperature

.

has a m axi mum t emper e ffe ct w hich is re ache d qui cker and quicker as
,

the temper temperature i s raised .

P h y s ic al Te m p e ri n g : It is t o be remembered
Pro p e r t i e s Affe c te d b y
tha t besides t he hardness t he other physic a l properties of the s teel are
,

likewis e a ffecte d by t emperin g Thus , as t he hardness an d brittleness are

.

decrease d , t he tens il e stren gt h and e l as t i c l imi t wil l follo w the har dness
closel y and be c orrespondin gly d e crease d , w hile t he d uctility , i e , e l onga . .

tion an d reduction in are a wil l b e i ncrease d t hough no t follo win g in t he

, ,

wake of t he hardness with t he s ame re gu l arity as the tensile strength and

elastic limit (Se e table 62 p age 56 1)
.
,

s o f Di ffe r e n t S t r u c t u r a l
Te m p e r i ng th e S t e e l C o m p o s i t i o n : S eein g
tha t t he hardenin g process has devel oped a certain structure in the s teel ,

it may b e w ell , in t urning t o the prac t ica l applicat ion of t he pri nciples
an d t he ories of t empering the hardened steels t o c onsider t his phase of
,

the sub j ec t from t he standpoin t of their structural composition The .

accompanying diagram is intended to depict the temperin g of all the

hardened steels .
558 T HE T REA T I N G OF S TE E L

Te m p e ri n g A u s te ni ti c S t ee l
s: A s has alre ady be en sh own austen ite ,

does not oc cur in steels hardened by any of the c o mmercial methods .

Hence a lengthy discussion of the tempering of aus t eni tic steel is ou t of

,

place in this study I t may be pointe d out however that inste ad of passing
.
, ,

Le gend : A=Auste ni te , M=M ar te nsite ,

T =T r o o sti te , S =So rb i te .

Fm . 1 17 . Di agr am D e p i cting th e T e m p e ri ng o f H ard ened S te e l (By S auve u r )

. .

into martens i te t hen t o t roos t ite , as sho wn a t I in t he d ia gram austenite ,

may on temperin g pass directly in t o troostite as in di cated at I I

, The .

diagr am shows tha t austenite be gins t o be transforme d at a very l ow tem

pe r ature being c ompletel y converte d into martensite at 200 C or into
,
°
.

t roostite a t 400 C °
.

Te m pe ri ng Ma r t e n s i t ic S te e l
s: I f steel of high c arbon c ontent has
been fully hardene d by q uenchin g rapidly , as in w ater , i t c ons ists m ainly
of martens i t e , if o t her c ondi t ions were a t al l favorabl e Thi s c onstituent .

is more stable than austeni te and on t empering will begin to c hange to

,

troostite belo w 200 C and this transformation is complete a t about

°
.

400 C as shown a t I I I on the di agram R e calling the properties of

°
. .
,

troostite , i t will be seen , t hen tha t t emperin g between these two points
,

res ults in a ma t erial de crease of the hardness and brittleness ac companied

by a de cre ase also of t ensile strength and elasti c limit while some increase ,

in the ductility will be noted I t is to be observed that j ust as martensite

.

predominates in the structure o f hardened steels and pearlite of annealed , ,

steels so the presence of t roostite indicates tempering either as a separate

, ,

rehe ating process or by re gul ating t he c ooling in the hardening operation ,

as for example in oil quenching which is often c alled oil tempering on this
, ,

ac count .

T e m p e ri n g T r o o s t i ti c S t e e l
s: C ommercially hardene d steels ,

espe cially t hose q uenche d in o il will sometimes show l arge proportions ,

of troostite From the diagram it will be seen tha t t o temper this steel
.

will re quire a tempera ture of at leas t the temperature at whi ch it

be gins to be c hanged into sorbite At 600 C the transformation of .
°
.
 M e c h a ni c a l
P r o p e r ti e s S tru c ture

11 . . 66 %
fo r g e d

A nne ld
a e

n . . 54 % H e a te d
Elas ti c
0 20 % to 8 3 0 C
°
Li m i t
l bs .

. 03 6 % an d c o o l
e d El
o ng a ti o n
"
in 2
23
in air

x 1 00 . So r i t e —G r ai n S i z e
b i ti c P e arl Goo d .

n . . 66 %
H e a te d t o El
as ti c
8 2 5 C an d
°
0 20
q u e nc h e d l
bs .

. 0 26 % in w a te r

El
o n g a ti o n
”
in 2

25 %

D ra w n
°
b ac k R e d u c ti o n
at 58 5 C o f A re a

x 1 00 . So r b i t e — G r ai n S i z e E xce l
le nt

ig 1 18 Sh o w i ng C h ang e i n S tru c t u r e and C o ndi ti o n o f C o nsti tu e nts i n S te e lD u e

t o H e at T r e at m e nt w i t h t h e A cc o m p anyi n g C h ang e s i n th e P h y s w alP r o p
. .
.

S p e ci m e ns t ak e n fr o m l
,

ar g e fo r g i ng s s i x i nc h e s i n d i a m e t e r m i d w ay
.

e r ti e s ,

b e t w e e n c e n t e r a nd o u t s i d e a l lfro m a rti cl
.
,

, e s o f t h e s am e s i z e and d e s i g n
an d fo rg e d i n t h e s a m e m ann e r (M i cro g r ap h s b y O M A sh )
. . . .
 EFFE CT OF H E A T T REA T M E N T 56 1

advantages and disadvantages Water is the more rapid and drasti c .

medium and on this account is more liable to develop cracks in the steel
, , ,

hence some he at treaters re commend that only oi l be use d On t he other .

hand a deeper penetration Of the e ffe cts of t he quenchin g an d greater

,

tensile str ength an d elastic l imit are obtaine d wi t h water th an with Oil ,

thus making it e asier t o meet S pe cific ations calling for hi gh tensile proper
ties Therefore others wil l prefer water quenchin g under certain c on
.
,

diti o ns In selectin g the quenc hin g medium , i t is evi den t tha t much
.

depends upon the article , its shape size and the gra d e of s t eel it is made of
, , ,

and much upon the skill of the operator Al lthese features Of toughening .

are brought out in Fi g 118 and table 6 2 . .

Ta b l
e Il
lu s t r a t i n g th e Effe c t o f Va ri o u s He a t T r e a t m e nt s u p o n
th e Me ch a ni c a lP ro p e r tie s o f Me d i u m Ca r b o n Pl a i n
el
S te
s .

C hemic al C omposition ; C . Mn . Si . P .

S .

Description of P ieces Treated ; one inch rounds , 29 inches l ong ;

14 pie ces all from same billet
,
.

Description of Test P ie ces ; One test piece from e ach Of the 14

pieces turned to a diameter of
, inch as in
, F i g 47
.

H eat Treatment P hysical T ests

Hard e ning and

Re fining De g C .

As R olled
H e ated t o 760
°
n
a d
cooled in f urnace

Heate d t o 8 15
°
427
°

°
quenche d in oil 48 2
°
538
°
593
°
649
°
704

Heated to 8 15
°
427
°

°
quenched in 48 2
°
water 53 8
°
593
649
°
704

1T h e d a t a fo r thi s ta bl e a s we l
, las t h a t fo r t a b l
e s 6 5 , 6 8 . and 6 9 . w e re sup p l
ie d
by H e nry Wyso r , o f th e B e thle h e m S te e lC o m p any .
56 2 T EE T REA T I N G OF S TE E L

S EC T I O N V .

CA S E H A R DE N I N G ,

T h e Pr o ce ss o g I r o n : I t is a well kno wn fac t that i f

f Ca r b u ri z i n

a bar of wrough t iron or s oft steel be heate d t o a temperature close to or

above the critic al range in cont act with carbonaceous materials and within a
suitable re ceptacle from which air is exclude d after the heati ng is started ,

the bar of metal wil l absorb c arbon the amount s o absorbe d depending ,

upon the time the bar i s kept ln c o ntac t with the c arbon the t emperature ,

maintaine d d uring the operation the nature of the carbonace ous m aterial
, ,

and the initial c omp o sition of t he bar itself This characteristic of iron .

with respe ct t o c arbon was first m ade use of in the manufacture of s teel
from wrought iron by t he cementation process then for the surface c ar ,

b uri z ing of armor plate and finally for case hardening or surface carburizing
, , ,

smaller articles E ssential ly c ase hardening is but a special applicat i on

.
,

of the cementation pro cess in which the articles tre ate d are but partially
,

carburize d and t he c ase extends but a short distance from the surface ,

leaving t he central portions of the articles unchange d in chemi cal com

position Thus wh i le the c h ief principle of c arburizing iron has been
.
,

kno wn and made use of for ye ars it is onl y Within re cent times that case
,

hardening has be come a pro cess of c ommercial importance .

Ap pl
i ca tio no f Ca s e Ha r d e n i n g : The result sought in most cases ,

where c ase hardening is employed is the production of a hard we ar resisting

, ,
-

surface upon a tough ductile c ore I t is therefore applie d t o many t ools

, .
, , ,

to gears t o ball be arings and t o various parts of automobiles a i rpi ane s ,

, ,

—
bicycles and the like ih fact wherever a comb ination of tou ghness and
,

lightness with a wear resisting surface is desired On ac count of the wide

-
.

applic ation of the process and the fact that the art has not yet re ached
the stage of fulles t d evelopment a wide variation in t he methods of ,

applying the pro cess i s to be expected This condition makes the subj ec t .

a difficult one t o de al with briefly and at the same time satisfactoril y .

I n the following paragraphs an attempt has been made to give a summary

,

of the facts as reveale d by the wor k o f many investi gators who have pub
li sh e d or otherwise made known the results of their experiments and e xp e ri
ence Onl y general features are thus dealt with be cause the w orking out
.
,

of details is l argely a matter to be determine d by experience .

T he T wo o f t h e C a se Ha r d e ni ng Pro ce ss : I n order t o
Pe ri o d s
obtain t he gre atest benefits from c ase hardeni ng it is necessary t hat t he ,

carburiz ation be succeeded by proper heat treatment or that the carburizing ,

process be considere d as a part of a special heat treating process The .

chief factors that c ontrol the c arburization have already been enumerated .

S ince a rel atively hi gh temperature i s empl oye d l n the c arburizin g process

and t he cooling at the end of the c arburizing period , i s usually sl ow the
, ,

steel as a whole i s in its softest condition and has a l arge grain structure
, , ,
.
56 4 T H E T REA T I N G OF S T EE L

i u m : The lo w carbon chrome steels espe cially those con

Ch ro m ,

taining about per cent chromium are well adapte d to case hardening .
, ,

for the chromium not only increases the rate of penetra t ion and the con
centration of the c arbon in the case but also materially re duces the grain ,

size Furthermore this amoun t of chromium does not harden t he c ase

.
,

nor render it brittle beyond that which woul d be obtained by slightly

increasin g the c arbon content of the pl ain carbon steel .

T h e Car b u r i z i ng A ge n t : Many investi gations have been conducte d

to determine j ust what the c arburizing action is Originally it was held .
,

that the carbon was absorbe d dire ctly at the surface of the metal and
there dissolved the dissol ve d c arbon being t hen disseminated towards the
,

interior Tha t dissolve d carbon may move about or di ffuse within the
.
, ,

meta l is accepted but it has been prove d that carbon alone in c ontact with
,

iron has only a slight c arburizing action and that for commerc ial c arb uri ,

z ati o n the presence of carbon bearing gases is necessary

,
By di ffusing i nto .

the steel where they may react w ith the iron these gases act as c arriers ,

of the c arbon The gases avail able for this purpose are carbon monoxide
.
,

cyanogen and gaseous hydrocarb ons Of these c arbon monoxide and

, .
,

cyanogen bearing gases are the most e ffective but the former gives a much ,

more uniform gradation of the c ar b on conten t from the e xterior to the

interior of t he case and is t o be preferre d on tha t account The reaction
, .

by w hi ch c a rb uri z ati o n i s e ffe cte d with c arbon monoxi d e is generally

'

assume d t o be t he f o llowing : 2

Ma te ri al
C a r b u ri z i ng s: A grea t number Of di fferen t c ar b ui i z i ng
materials consisting of gases l iquids and solids have been te sted by the
, , ,

many investi gators and of these solids are by far t he mos t convenient for
, ,

the purpose as well a s t he most effective when they are of the proper com ,

position I n the use of solid carburizers the chief essentials t o success are
.
,

carbon in suitable form a s ufficiently high and properly re gul ated temper
,
'

ature m aintained for a proper length of t ime and reasonable c are as to the ,

details of preparing the carburizer and packing the articles therein F o r .

supplyi n g the c arbon many di fferen t substances may be empl oyed such as
, ,

coke wood charcoal sugar charcoal animal charcoal charred bones

, , , , ,

charre d leather etc C o ke and woo d charcoal are not as rapid as these
, .

other forms of c arbon C are is required in using c o k e b on e s leather and

.
, ,

anima l charc o al t o guard agains t imparting phosphorus and sulphur t o the

metal The material selected should be gro und or crushed to the proper
.

de gree of fineness and t o a fairl y uniform size after which it should be ,

sifte d free of dus t .

Pac ki n g a nd th e t hat
Ac t i o n o f C h a rc o alC a r b u r iz e r : Assuming
charcoal is sele cte d the article or arti cles t o be case hardened are packed
,

with the c arburizer i n a hardenin g po t or bo x of suitable size and shape .

T he boxes may be of soft steel wrought iron or c ast iron The walls should ,
.

be thin about one fourth inch in thickness and of a size and shape that will
,
-
,
 CA S E H A RDE N I NG 56 5

pe rmi t t he rapi d penetrati on of the he at so that the l a g in temperature of ,

the central part of the pac ked box behind the furnace temperature will be
as small as possible The best shape i s one that conforms to that of the
.

pie ce or pie ces to be carburized The article , or each of the articles in a .

,

charge shoul d be placed so that it will be completely surrounded by a

l ayer of t he c arburizing material about an inch in thickness I n case , .

it is desire d to carburize only certain parts of the article the parts ,

that are not to be carburize d may be c overe d with asbestos cement ,

or sl aked lime or fire cl ay in the form of a paste When the packing has .

been completed the op en end of the box is close d with a neatly fitting
,

lid w hi ch is presse d down firmly against the top l ayer of c arburiz ing
,

mate ri al and fastened tightly in pl ace so that it will permit no displacement ,

of the pac k or packing in handling The small opening about the edge of .

the lid is then luted with asbestos cement cl ay or a mixt ur e of fire clay , ,

and sand ; then the box is ready for charging When the contents of the
, .

box have re ache d a certain temperature in the furnace the oxygen of the ,

air that fi lls the interstitial spaces of the packing reacts with the carbon ,

giving ca rbon monoxide whic h in turn reacts with iron t o give iron carbide
,

and carb on d ioxide gas as pre vi ously described The iron carbide of
, .
,

course rem ains in the metal to form the case whil e the carbon dioxide
, ,

is given o ff When it c omes in contact with the carburizing material

.
,

C O gas is again generated thus C 0 2 + C= 2 C O This CO then reacts

, , .

w it h i ron as before This cycle is made again and again until the process
.
,

i s stopped or the iron becomes saturate d with carbon I n the case of bones
,
.
,

leathe r and other animal or ve getable matter other more complicated

, ,

reac ti ons due t o cyanogen and hydrocarbon vapors given o ff by these

,

subs t ances o c cur in addition to the simpl e re actions res ul

,
tin g from the
c arb on , as explaine d in conne ction with the use of charcoal .

Ca r b u riz i ng Mixt u re s
These simple substances a nd C o m p o u nd s :
m ay al so be use d as the base material s for various c arburizing mixtures
desi gne d to suit the conditio ns and the results desire d Thus in the case .
,

of th in cases where it is desire d to increase the spee d or rate Of penetration

,

an d where the forming of a c ase of uniform thickness is essential the f o ll

o w ,

in g mixtures have been re commended :

1 Powdere d wood charcoal with a l ittle heavy hydrocarbon oil added
.
.

2 . wood charcoal leather charcoal , and l ampblack in the

Powdere d ,

proportion of 5, 2 and 3 parts respectively , ,

.

3 P owdere d wood charcoal 7 parts and anima l charcoal 3 parts

.
, , ,
.

4. Powdered
wood charcoal charre d horn and animal charcoal in , ,

proportion of t hree parts of the first and two parts of e ac h of the others .

The incre ase d rat e of c arburiz ation that may be obtaine d by the use
of these mixtures is due t o the fact that they gi ve o ff volatil e hydrocarbons
and c yanogen c ompounds as wel l as c ar bon monoxide and tha t these com ,

pounds are capable of c ausing c arburizing react ion s indepe ndent of and in
addition to t hat involvin g carbon monoxide .
56 6 T H E T REA T I N G OF S T EE L
'

In
addition to these mixtures of wood charcoal with c ommon salt or
,

with barium carbonate have been found very e fficien t and desirable c ar
b uri z ing m ate ri a l
s J ust what part common s alt may pl ay in the process
.

is not known , but the action of barium c arbonate is easily explained A t .

the higher carburizing temperatures it is de compose d ac c o rd ing t o the

followin g reaction : Ba CO3 = BaO+ CO2 The C0 2 thus generate d is .

immediatel y re duced by the hot carbon t o CO g as e ac h volume of C0 2 ,

givin g two volumes Of CO; thus C0 2 + C= 2 CO The net e ffe ct of the , .

bari um c arbonate then is t o increase materially the amount of the C O

, ,
'

avail able By exposing the mixture after use to t he air the bar ium
.
, , ,

oxi de t akes up COz forming barium carbonate again s o t ha t with the

I , ,

o c casi ona l addition of small amounts of charc oal the s ame mixture may be
use d repe ate dly Another advantage se cure d i n using the barium c arbonate
.

charco al mixtures is tha t the danger of c ontaminating the steel with sulphur
is entirel y avoided as these materials m ay be obtaine d practically sulphur
,

free The mi xture tha t has been found t o give the best results is one c om
.

pose d of 40 parts of the c arbonate t o 60 parts of charcoal by wei ght .

When it is desire d t o obtain a thin c ase of hi gh carbon c ontent in a

very short i n t erval of t ime , q uic k acting mi xtures are use d The sub .

stances empl oye d i n t hese mi xture s are woo d charcoal bit uminous c oal , ,

saw dust c h arred lea t her prussia t e of potash s al s oda an d c ommon s alt
, , , .

From these substance s mixt ures tha t will give various speeds of c arburizing
may be made Fo r example a mixture of 2 parts wood charcoal , 1 part
.
,

salt and 3 part s saw dust i s rel atively s low in its action while a mixture
,

of 10 parts charre d le ather 2 parts prussiate of potash and 10 parts saw

,

dust is characterize d as very rapid .

He a t i n g t h e Ca r b u riz i n g Pac k :
he at ing up the charged c arbur Fo r

izing boxes s ome form of gas fire d muffle f urnace I S preferable T he

,
.

essential re quirements of the furnace are t hat it must be c apable of giving

a maximum temperature of a t le ast 1000 C , any definite temperature °
.

lowe r than and also be c apable of maintaining these definite t em

pe r atur e s uniformly t hrough out t he he atin g chamber for periods of several
days at a t ime I n orde r t o avoi d the rapid oxidation and consequent
.

destruction of the carburizing boxes a reducin g atmosphere shoul d be ,

maintaine d in the heating c hamber and furnaces c onstructe d s o as t o e ffect ,

this resul t are most desirable The furnace should be cold or nearly so .
, ,

when th e pac k ed boxes are char ged , and t he heating up to t he carburizing ,

point sh oul d be very gradual The steel will thus have time t o adj us t
, .

itself t o t he c onditions ; the pac k will be uniformly heate d throughout so ,

tha t c arburiz ation w ill be gin in all parts of the pac k at the same time ;
an d t he e volution and generation of gases which be gins at temperatures ,

sli ghtl y bel o w 700 C w ill not be t oo energetic The temperature and the
°
.
, .

length of t ime for c arburizin g depen d on t he depth and the carbon c ontent
of the case desire d the c arburizing material and the character of the raw
, ,
568 TH E T REA T I N G OF S T EE L

H e a t T re a t m t o f Cas e Ha rd e ne d A r t ic l
e n e s : The correct heat
treatment of case har dened articles involves a c omb ination of methods
suitable to steels of di fferent carbon c ont ent Upon t he c or e of low c arbon .

content there is superimposed a layer of high carbon steel whi ch may be ,

of hypo e ute ctoid eute ctoid or hyper eutectoid composi t ion and the
-
, ,
-
,

treatments should be varied t o correspon d t o these three di fferen t c ases

and to t he temperature at which t he c arburiz ation was c arrie d on To .

secure m aximum refinement of grain i n the cor e i t is necessary t o heat the

steel j us t above i t s Ae g poin t , w hich fo r a 15% to 20% carbon c ore is . .
,

a temperat ur e near and q uench preferably in oil As t hi s temper

, , .

ature i s far above t he Ac range of either a hypo eutectoid or eute ctoid -

c ase thi s tre atm ent hardens the c ase but le aves its grain structure rel atively
,

coarse Therefore the article shoul d be reheate d to a temperature s lightly

.
,

above the A 0 3 2 1 range of t he c as e and aga in quenche d in water or oil

- -
.

Finally t o prevent bri tt leness in t he c ase and t o remove strains i t is desir

, ,

able t o t emper the steel a t once by reheatin g t o 200 or over depending °

,

upon the har dness i t i s desire d the c ase shall retain The t emperature .

mentione d woul d relieve strains but woul d reduce t he hardness ve ry little ,

if any Hyper e ute ctoid cases require that the tre atment describe d above
.
-

b e modifie d t o the exten t that either t he first reheating shall be above the
A c e m range , or that t he article be q uenche d from the c arburizing t emper
ature in order that the excess cementite may be retaine d in solution The
, .

further tre atment may t hen be a rep etition of that for hypo eute c t oi d cases -
,

or m erely a quenching from a bove the A 0 3 2 1 range (750 Thi s l ast

- -
°

metho d le aves the c ore somewhat brittle d ue t o a l arge grain s iz e but , ,

produces a surfac e of exceptional wear resisting properties I n any o f t hese .

cases where t h e carbur izing has been c arrie d on at a high temperature

,

and has oc cupi e d a considerable perio d of t ime double quenchings are ,

sometimes neces sary t o secure the best results .

S u pefi c i a lHa r d e ni n g : Fo r the most superficial hardening and at

r

the same t ime the most rapid such as i s sometimes desir able for hardening
,

certain t ools cyanide of potassium or prus sia te of potassium al one may be

,

use d in either one o f two ways In one , the s al t i s melted and t he article
.

to be hardened is brought to the quenc hi n g t emperat ure by immersing i t

in the fused sal t , held a t tha t temperature for a fe w minutes the exac t ,

time depending upon t he amount or extent of the c arb uri z ati o n d e si re d, '

and then quenched as for ordinary hardenin g except tha t lime water s houl d ,

be use d t o neutralize the poisonou s cyanide In the other method , the .

article t o be hardened is heate d t o t he h arden ing temperatur e a nd is then

sprinkle d with the dry s alt or plunge d int o a q uantity o f t he dry s alt It .

is then reh e ate d t o the hardening t emperature an d quenched as in the ,

first metho d Altho ugh often S poken Of as such this treatm e nt is not a
.
,

true case hardening process .

 I NFL UEN CE OF E LE M E N TS 569

C HAPT ER I I I .

CON S T I T U E NT ELEM E NT S OF COMM ERC I A L C A R BON S T EE L

A ND T H E I R I N F LUE N CE U P ON I TS
M E CHA N I C A L PROPERT I E S .

I n t r o d u c t o ry :
Needless tO s ay tha t a complete d 1s cuss 1o n of the
'

effe cts upon the properties of steel of all the elements that naturally may
be fo und in i t or that may be adde d t o i t woul d be a very lengthy one ,

indeed Even a thorough study of t he subj e c t as l imi te d by the title of

.

thi s chapter woul d involve an immense amount of l abor on the part of the
wri ter and much t im e o n the part of t he reader t o peru se i t The m ost .

tha t is t o be e xpected , therefore in t he following d iscourse is but a brief

,

summary of the Opinions o f the differen t authorities as presente d in t he

vari ous t e xt books t he t rade papers and t he reports of c onventions and
, , ,

some deductions and c onclusions arrive d at through personal e xperience In .

examinin g the i nformation from t hese s ources , t he student is confronted

with much difference o f opinion which often results in much c o nfusion of
,

thought But a systemati c searc h enables t he studen t to arrive at t he

.

conclusion t hat certain e lements l ik e man g anese , for e xample are bene
, ,

fi ci a l
; others l ike oxygen , are harmful ; some , l ike phosph o rus and sulphur
, ,

are of doubtful influence ; while other sm a y be benefi cial or harmful depend ,

ing upon c onditions I n this re gard it is importan t t o note that opinion

.
,

at present is changing with respec t t o the influence of many of the elements .

This is particularly true of phosphorus and sulphur both of which were ,

recently hel d t o be injurious t o steel under any c onditions and at all times .

Now , however these elements far from bein g c onsidere d as foes t o good
, ,

steel making are , wi thin certain limits being looked upon as harmless to
, ,

the steel , and even as aids for certain purposes With these things in .

mind an attempt has been made here t o pu t down what appears t o be the
,

truth c oncerning the se elements as revealed after a study such as that

suggeste d above .

Pro pe tie s o f I ro n : Since iron is the element that forms the base
r

material for the steel ; the discussion of this subj e ct i s naturally be gun
with a c onsideration of the properties of t hi s element , t hough pure iron is
un known c ommercially A s the physical and chemica l properties of the
.

elemen t will be found under the subj ects of Physics and C hemistry and
the He a t Treatmen t of C arbon S teel , it i s not ne cessary even t o t abulate
them here I n this c onn ection spe cial emphasis is t o be l aid upon the
.
,

strength and ductility of the element Seeing that it is almost impossible

.
570 I N FL UEN CE OF E LEM E N T S

to obtain pure iron in sufficient quantity for testing the determination Of ,

these properties cannot be made dire ctly H owever fi gures that appear .
,

to be as n ear the true values as it is possible t o get have been assigned ,

for these properties by calcul ating from resul ts of pullin g t ests upon the
pure st forms of annealed or normalize d c ommercial sof t steels After making .

what would appear to be a proper allowance for the influence of the small
am ounts of carbon that these steels c ontain it has been establishe d t hat ,

pure iron has an elastic limi t of about 20000 pounds a tensile stren gth or , ,

maximum stre ss , of 38000 t o 40000 pounds a reduction of are a of and ,

an el onga t ion , me asure d in 8 inches of From these values i t is seen

,

that pure iron i s a very ductile s ubs t ance , bu t wea k as c ompare d with steel
’

Effe c t o The influence o f c arbon upon iron is s o character

f Car b o n :
i sti c and beneficia l tha t i t is employe d as the c ontrolling elemen t in re gu
lating t he physical propert ies of al l c ommon s teels While this e l emen t is .

capable of c hangin g most of t he physica l properties of iron by unitin g an d

alloyin g w ith it , its mos t importan t influence is c onne cte d wi t h t he hard
ness s t ren gth an d d uctility of t he me t al I ts effe c t upon t hese proper t ies
, , .

may b e varie d in e xten t by he at treatment , as i s fully explaine d in the

chapte r o nt hat subj e c t It is t o be note d here however , that w ith respec t
.
, ,

t o its i nfl uenc e upon t he strength and ductility of naturally c oole d s teel ,

the avera ge resul t s obtained by four eminent investigators S ho w tha t for
each c arbon added t o steel up t o these properties are a ffe cte d
approximately as follows
Yield point is raised 3 98 7 pounds per s q in
. . .

Maximum stress is rais ed 9363

Elonga tion is re d uced
R eduction of are a is re duc e d 7 27 .

Above in c arb on con t ent t he brittleness of steel increases s o

,

rapidly , due t o t he presence of excess cement ite tha t its use is then l i m i te d ,

to arti cles rel atively few in number requiring gre at hardness and l i t t l e
, ,

to ughness or ductility Hence the c arbon content of commercial steel will

.
,

seldom excee d

I nfl u e nceo f Ma nga n e se : The chemical properties of manganese ,

whic h impart t o it the power of c omb ining with the oxygen of ferrous— oxide
and of setting free the iro n make it invaluable as a cleansing or deoxidizing
, ,

agent , and have been referred to time and again , in describin g t he various
,

proc esses of making steel I t is here appropriate t o c onsider the e ffect of

.

the manganese tha t remains in the steel after de oxidiz ing Of t hi s residual .

mangane se , it may be said tha t every one i s agree d that its effects , when
present up t o certain limits varyi ng with c onditions and the us e t o w hich
,

the steel is t o be p u t , are w holly beneficial Aside from causin g th e steel .

to roll and forge b e t t er , i t is a well known fact that manganese adds some
what t o th e tensile strength this beneficial e ffe c t dependin g upon the
,

carbon content as well as that of the manganese A c cording t o H H . . .

572 I NF L UE N CE OF E LE M E N T S

5. E ach of manganese lowers the critical range on he ating by

about 3 C °
.

6 . A c cording to one authority ele ctri c steel permits a higher content ,

of both the c arbon and the man ganese in heat t re ating than would be per
missib l e with ordinary open he arth steel .

I nfl ue nce o f Ma nga ne se o l
n S u p h ur :
gre at benefit t o be An other
gained from the use of m anganese is due t o its ability t o neutralize or ,

Offset , the e vil e ffe cts o f sulphur Like oxygen this e lemen t combines .
,

with both iron an d manganese t o form sulphides but in the presence of ,

both elements an d at a hi gh temperature i t unites w ith t he l a t ter in pref

erence t o the former thus producing manganese sulphide MnS which is
, , ,

practic ally harmless in steel for reasons that will be e xplaine d shortly .

I nfl u e nce o f S ulp h u r : The e ffe ct of this element upon the tenacity

and ductility of steel a t leas t up t o , i s s o slight tha t i t m ay be dis
regarde d One inves t igator asserts tha t i t accelera tes corrosion o f the
.

s teel tha t contains i t I ts mos t m ar ke d e ffe cts however are e ncount ered
.
, ,

in ho t working i e , r ollin g or for ging , the st ee l , and t hey w ere form al ly

, . .

believe d t o be always e vi l ones Tha t in the form o f fe rrous sulphide ,

.

Fe S , i t i s c apable o f doin g gre a t harm in s t ee l by c ausing re d sh o rtne ss i s

,

conce d e d by all , bu t when neutralize d wi t h mangan e s e in sufficien t amount

i t may be c omparatively harmless e ven when pres ent t o t he extent of a ,

much higher c ontent than one tenth per cent -

.

Wh y Ma nga ne se t liz e s th e Effe c t o f S ul

Ne p h ur :
u ra The o nl
y pl
a us

i ble expl anation s o far Offere d t o account for t he di fference in the effect of
the t wo s ulphides is t ha t t he iron sulphide forms films or cell walls about , ,

the grains of t he metal , an d as t hi s sulp hi de fuses a t a re d heat these c ell ,

walls by be comin g fluid i nterrup t the continuity of t he mass and s o render

, ,

the s t ee l ho t shor t Manganese sulphide i nstead of forming envel opes

.
,

about t he grains of the metal c ollects or se gre gates , int o globules a t t em

, ,

pe ra ture s ne ar tha t of t he metal on s olidifyin g upon w hi ch t he main body ,

of me t al then c on t rac t s Manganese sulphide has a much hi gher fusion

.

poin t t han ferrous s ulphide hence does no t melt a t a rollin g he at but

, ,

bec omes merel y pl astic like t he rest of the metal I n this form it is rolled .
,

into fibers which give t o t he steel when present in sufficientl y l arge quan
, ,

tities a fibrous st ructure similar t o tha t of wro ught iron I n order to

, .

get the full b enefi t of the m anganese it is necessary tha t it shoul d be present ,

in the s t eel to t he extent of about three t imes t he theoretical amount

,

required for the formation of the s ulphide R oughly this means that t he .
,

per cent of manganese shoul d be five times that of the sulphur

. .

Us e s fo r S ul
p h ur i n S te e l
: T hi s fibrous s t ructure of high sulphur
steel is made use o f in t he manufac t ure of fre e cutting ste e l , like s crew

stoc k for example , be cause the free cuttin g properties of this stee l are
,

undoubtedly due to its fibrous structure Thus in this c ase at least .

, , ,
 S ULP H UR A ND P H OS P H OR US 73

sulphur is t o be re g arded as a frien d r at her t han as a foe I n this c on .

ne cti o n it should be observe d t hat e xperiments c onducted during 1914 and

,

1915 in both this country and England tend to show that sulphur w hen ,

a ccompanied with a sufficient amoun t of manganese is not such an enemy ,

a s it i s sometimes suppose d t o be Ext ensive investi gations b y our own

.

researc h department have s ho wn tha t t here i s practically no d i fference in

the rolling forging or wel ding qualities nor i n the physical prope rties of
, , ,

s teels c ontaining from 030% t o 120% s ulphur . I t i s interesting t o c onsider

. .

h o w t he unfavora ble attitude t oward sulphur c ame about Up t o within .

the p re se nt d e c a de mos t o f t h e steel produce d in this c ountry w as made

,

by the aci d Bessemer process i n whi ch the sulphur c onten t w oul d often
range from 070% t o . Ye t there w as no c ompl aint abou t this steel ,

a nd tha t it gave excellent s ervic e for ne arl y all purposes that steel is us ed

c annot be denie d But w ith t he advent of basi c steel , t he notion be came

.

p re v a l
e nt , t hr o ugh academi c discussi ons t o e xpl ain why this steel S hould
’

be be tt er than Bes sem e r that e ven a smal l q uantity of s ulphur was harmful
,

t o the steel ; and cons umers als o , naturally insisted on pl acing the limit for
,

s ulphur a t t he l owes t possible fi gure under 040 per c ent or e ven under 030
, . . .

per cent in order t o se cure t he better stee l E vidently however , such an

. .
,

a ttitude shoul d be c orre cte d now , for e conomi c reasons if no other I n , .

view o f t he fac t that i t is becoming increasingly d ifficul t t o k eep the sulphur

c onten t below i t s eems ridicul ous t o i nsi s t upon s o l o w a limit ,

w hen t he evidence points s o strongly t o 100% as a l imit t ha t may b e made .

t o serv e as well , for many purposes , a t l east A s mos t basic steel made in .

this c ountry appears t o tend naturally t oward a sulphur content of from

.050% t o even raisin g t he limit t o 080% would result in a gre at .

s av m g.

I nfl u e nce o f P h o s p h o r u s : Phosphorus is another element that has

been painte d a little blacker , perhaps , than it should I t has been .

e verywhere c harge d wi th producin g c ol d shor tness , or brittleness when

c old,
but experiment s and tests c onduc te d by our rese arch department ,

durin g t he firs t half of the year 1917 seem t o indi cate tha t up t o 10% at .

leas t , phosphorus does not p roduce brittleness in the meta l t o a degree that
is noticeably harmful I n these experiments steel with phosphorus c on
.
,

t ents ranging from 018 % t o 110% were subj e cted to severe cold bending
. . ,

s tampi ng an d pressin g tes t s t hat steel is c alle d upon t o withs tand in

shapin g with the resul t t ha t t he higher phosphorus steels stood up under
,

the tests as well as t he l ow phosphorus grades othe rwise of identical com ,

position That i t does incre ase the hardness and tensile strength of the
.

s tee l , c ausing a t the same t im e a proportionate reduction in the ductility ,

is wel l e stablished as a fac t I n this respe ct it is very s imilar t o c arbon

. .

S ome authoritie s c laim t ha t i t increases t he t ensile strength a l ittle more

than c arbon with a less reduction in t he ductility ; others say that its e ffe ct
is pract i cally t he same as c arbon except that it increases the brittleness
a little more C ampbe ll c laims that the tensile strength of basic steel is
.
574 I N F L UE N CE OF ELEM E N T S

incre ase d 1000 pounds for e ach incre ase of 01 % of phosphorus I t ; also . .
,

benefits the wearing properties of the steel in much the same way that
carbon does In l ow carbon St eels , it is used in many c ases w ith entirely
.

beneficial results Thus , it is useful in sheet bar as it is cl aimed that it

.
,

prevents the sheets from sticking together in the pac k during the rolling .

Evi l H owever , it is not to be inferred

‘

T h e T wo s o f Ph o s p h o r u s :

that the indiscriminate use of high p hosphorus steel i s advocated b e c ause ,

i t has accordin g t o H owe , H arbord and others a t leas t two evil tendencies
'

, ,

tha t ma k e i t a d angerous element in steels for certain p ur poses Speaking .

of these t endencies Harbord states that of all the impurities usually present
, ,

in steel , practica l exp erience has establishe d the fact that phosphorusis the
o ne that mos t prej udicially influences the physical properties of the metal

by producin g brittleness under shoc k , and hence for practi c al commercial

purposes , phosphor us in steel shoul d not exceed A gain , H owe
m aintains that while phosphorus sometimes a ffe cts iron b ut slightly at ,

o ther times under apparently similar conditions , it a ffects i t profoundly

, .

I n vie w of this fact w hich may be calle d the tre acherousness of p h o sph o re ti c
,

steel i t is diffic ul t to define a limit for the maximum content of phosphorus

,

which can be safel y all owe d in steel bu t reasonin g tha t the l ower t his is
, ,

the safer the material many would insist upon a very l ow limit That
,
.

this limit may be unreasonably l ow is illustrate d in the c ase of s tructural

steel Many users of this material refuse to accept any steel that contains
.

a higher percentage of this element than Yet a class of material

subj ecte d t o much more severe usage in service namely railroad rails made , ,

by the Bessemer process is permitted t o contain as muc h as 110% p hos

, . .

ph o rus Furthermore while structura l material is subj ected t o static

.
,

stresses m ainly a cl ass of stress that p h o sp h o re ti c steel is most capable

,

of resisting rails are require d to withstand shocks and impacts which

, ,

the evidence shows , high phosphorus ste e l s should be le ast c apable of

resisting .

I nfl ue nce o f S il
ic o n : Apparently owing t o the fact that all .
b ut
traces of silicon may be remove d in any and al lof the processes for manu
fa cturi ng steel the attention of investigators has not been s o universally
,

dire cte d t o t he e ffe cts of this element on steel as in the c ase of t he other
impurities Besides whatever evidence may be c olle cte d will be found t o
.
,

vary somewhat Thus while certain English investi gators found tha t
.
,

steels c ontaining as much as silicon a c ontent much hi gher than ,

any empl oye d in ordinary carbon steel , suffere d a m arked reduction in

ductility others maintained tha t t he ductility i s not markedly a ffe cte d Up
,

to a content of Allagree d that the -tensile strength is incre ased ,

and some maintain that small percentages of silicon incre as ed the resis t ance
of the steel to shoc k In short it is generally accepted by all practical
.
,

steel men that silic on up to 75% is benefi cial that it incre ases the yiel d
.
,

point and tensile strength but does not materi ally impair the ductility .
576 I NF L UE N CE OF E LEM EN T S

sé cb nd M ethod (by P lotting )

‘

C . A ci d S teel Mn+R=Ul
C + 1000 P + X ti m ate S trength .

D . Basic St eel C + 1000 P + Y Mn+ R=Ul

ti m ate S tren gth .

In
these formulas 38600 37430 40000 and 41500 represents the ini t ial
, ,

strength of pure iron ; C P , M n stand for c arbon phosphorus and manganese

, , ,

expresse d in hundredths of one per cent respectively ; X and Y represent .

,

variables c han ging with the c arbon content a s given under the he ading ,

I nfluence of Manganese ; and R i s a factor that depends on the finishing

temperature , and may be either pl us or minus .

Fo r l o w c arbon pl ain basic steel , such as that use d for pla t es and
structural shapes rolle d at t he or dinary temper ature for hot rolling the
, ,

fol lowin g simple formul a is us e d by many

T (Ultimate St ren gth )=39000 + 950 C + 1050 P +85 Mn .

The s ymbols in this formul a have t he same signific ance as t he same

symbols in C ampbell s formulas ’
.

T he I nfl ue nc e upon the m e c hanic al properties of steel ,

o f Co p p e r

when present in small amounts , s ay up to is not very pronounced .

In terms of tenths of one per cent the e ffe ct of Copper as determined by .

,

several di fferen t investi g ators is abou t as follows : The yiel d point is

increase d 1800 pounds in steels of low carbon an d 720 po unds in those of ,

medium c arbon content ; t he maximum stress , o r ultimate strength is ,

increase d 1200 pounds for l ow c arbon , and 600 pounds for me dium ; the
elongation is de creased 75% for l ow c arbon , and 2 5% for medium ; the
“

reduction of are a is decrease d 45% for lo w c arbon and 50% for medium
.
, . .

From these results i t is t o be de cide d t hat the e ffe c t of small percentages

of copper is slight and what e ffe ct i t has is beneficial This de c laration
,
.

agrees also with the verdict of the A merican S ociety for Testin g M aterials
, ,
.

Fo r years copper was looke d upon as bein g very inj urious to t he steelit ,

bein g charge d wi th making t he steel re d shor t and unweldable However -

.
,

as e arly as 1899 A L C olby made an extensive series of investi gations to

. .

d etermine wha t really were t he e ffe cts of smal l percentages of c opper upon
the physic al proper t ies of t he steel Briefly these investi gations and the .
,

results obtaine d were as follows : A steel shaft 15 inches in diameter by

fo urteen fee t lon g correspondin g i n composition with the propeller shaft s
,

adopte d by the U S Navy Board but containing als o 565% o f c opper

. .
,
.
,

was forge d without difficulty Test spe cimens were double d fl at in the
.

col d without showing crac k s or flaws and t he tensile stren gth and d uctility ,

were wel l up t o requirements Of the Navy I n another series of t ests t he .

material , cont aining 553 % c opper , was forge d int o a gun t ube an d s atisfied
.
-
,

all the re q uirement s for t he U S Navy for a 6 inch gun M il d steel in the
. . .

form of ship pl ates c on t ainin g 573 % c opper passed all the tests re quired
-
, .
, ,

except a q uarter inch pl ate which was rolle d too c ol d The bending and .
’

q uenching tests of the bars cut longitudinally were also satisfac t ory , bu t
 COPP E R , T I N , A RS E N I C 577

som e bent transversely to the dire cti o n of rolling developed cracks T he

, , .

material c oul d be successfully welded , only one of the specimens tested

bre aking a t the weld and even then the breaking l oad was
, pounds
per square inch Flange d c old the material gave excellent results a nd
.
, . ,

though most severel y tested develope d neither defe cts nor flaws Other
,
.

investi gations were dire cte d t o merchant bars rails and nickel steel a l l , ,

containing c opper and in no c as e was there any e vidence of red shortness

,
-
,

although the c opper range d from 089% t o C olby s c onclusions .

’

were that a goo d steel may contain as much as 1% of c opper without su ffer .

ing provide d that the sulphur c ontent is not also hi gh in which case the
, ,

metal is likely to crack in rolling .

\
E ven smal l amounts of copper in steel c auses the l atter to resist cor
ro s i o n by acids muc h better than steels tha t do not c ontain it The .

researc h department of the American Sheet and Tin Pl ate C ompany has
shown that 15% t o 2 5% of c opper i n steel sheets of heavy gauge practicall y
.

preserves them from general c orrosion and that the resistance t o c orrosion ,

be gi ns t o be manifeste d by the steel with the c opper content as low as

Whil e c opper compounds occur in many iron ores onl y tra ces if , ,

any , are t o be found in the Lake Superior Ores Hence steels made from .

these ores are practic ally c opper free excep t in cases where it is added t o ,

produce the non c orroding steels Oc casionally however , w hether intro

-
.
,

d uce d through ac cident or from the ore steel s will be found to c ontain ,

copper to the smal l amount of 0 1% t o .

I nfl u e nc e o While this element is not found in any of the iron

f T im .

ores t he use of d e tinne d s crap may resul t in its intro duction into the steel
,

during the process of manufacture Hence the e ffects of smal l quantities .

,

of tin in steel are not t o be overlooked but unfortunately this matter d oes ,

not appe ar t o have been very thoro ughly investi gated What w or k has .

bee ndone s hows tha t tin forms an alloy or a compound with i ron which ,

has the property of making the steel very hard at rolling t emperature .

Thus at one steel works it was impossible t o roll a heat of steel into which
,

ther e had acc idently been introduce d tin t o the extent of Tin in
s teel incre ases the yiel d point and the ultimate strength of the metal b ut ,

to a l ess d e gree t han c arbon or phosph orus S o far as they have gone .
,

investi gations appear t o indicate tha t 05% tin in steel woul d have l ittle .

influence upon its mechanical or physical properties but that l arger quan ,

tities must be avoided .

I nfl u e nce o f A r s e ni c : This element does not oc cur in any of the iron

ores from the Lake Superior re gion and is therefore never found in steels
'

, , ,

made from these ores When present however in small amounts unless
.
, , ‘
,

spe cial prec autions are t aken in making an analysis of the steel it is reported ,

as phosphorus Small amounts of arsenic do not affect the physical prop

.

e rti e s of steel ; above 20% i ts effe ct is similar t o that of phosphorus causing

.
,

c ol d shortness .
578 A LLOY S T EE LS

C HA PT ER IV .

ALLOY S T EE L S .

S EC T I O N I .

I NT R OD U C I OR Y
’ ‘
.

Defi n i tio ns : many diffe rent elements may oc cur naturally in

So
steel or be added to it in such varying amounts with c orresponding vari
, ,

fe cts that it i s a di fficul t matter t o determine j ust what c on

a ti o ns in e f ,

s ti tute s an alloy stee l e ven from the standpoint of chemical c omposition

alone When it i s further c onsidere d that the di fferent methods of manu

.

facture als o exer t their influence and that ce rtain elements may be added
,

or allowe d t o remain for widely different reasons the difficulty of wordin g ,

c oncisel y an adequate definition bec omes more apparent The definition .

adopted by t he I nterna t iona l Associ ation for Testing M a te ri al s is as follows :

“
All oy s teel is s te el w hich owes its d istinctive properties chiefly t o s ome
‘

element or elem ents other than c arbon or j ointly t o such other eleme nts ,

and c arbon S ome of t he all oy st eels ne cessarily cont ain an important

.

percentage of carbon e ven as much as , There is no a greem e nt as -

t o where the l ine between all oy stee l and c arbon steel sh al lbe drawn ”
.

I n this c onne ction it is well t o note t ha t elements othe r than carbon are
al ways t o be desire d in steel of c ommerci al grade at le ast Such elements , .

'

may be adde d or permitte d t o remain for three distinct re ason s namely

‘

, ,

(1) t o c orre ct or preven t defe cts t hat otherwise woul d be liable t o occur
in the fina l product ; (2) t o impar t t o the s teel some distinctive property
or t o improve materially its natural properties ; (3 ) t o form all oys fo r t he
purpose of expe rimentation and investigation The addition of silicon and .

manganese t o steel illustrate s t he point i t is desire d t o expl ain In ordinary .

practice sm al lamounts of t hese elements are added t o de oxidiz e the steel ,

and incide ntally t he small amounts t hat remain in the metal may improve
its proper t ies Large amounts of these elements
. to in the ,

case of silic on and 11% t o 14% in the c ase of manganese may be added
, ,

to impart properties t o the steel that are distinctive and useful Other .

proportions may be use d of course , whi ch result in impartin g properties

,

that w hile t hey are distinctive are no t useful and s o these iron alloys
, , ,

have onl y a s cientifi c value With these facts in mind we agree with
.
,

Henr y D H ibba rd of the Bureau of M ines who suggeste d the following

.
1

1Se e M anu fa c tu r e and U se s o f Al

lo y S te e l
s . B ur e au o f M i ne s l
B ule ti n 1 00 .
58 0 TA LLOY S TEE LS

Ta b l
e 64. Ca r ne gi e S t a n d ar d O p e n He ar th Al
lo y S te e l
s .

Ni c ke lS te e l Lo w Nicke l
=Ch ro m S te e l
'

. e .

C arbo n . 10 to . 50% C arbon . . 15 to . 45%

M anganese . 50 to . 80 M anganese . . 50 t o . 80
P hosphorus not over . . . 04 P hosphorus not o ver . 04
Sulphur not over 045 Sulphur no t over . . 045
Nickel to Nickel . to
Chromium 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 45 to . 75

C h ro m e S te e l . C h ro m e- V a na d i u m S te e l .

C arbon . 15 to . 70 C arbon . 15 to . 55
Manganese . 25 to . 50 Manganese . . 50 to . 80
Phosphorus no t o ver . . 04 Phosphorus not over . 04
Sulphur not over . . 045 Sulphur no t over . 04
Chromium . 60 to . 90 Silic on no t over 20
Chromium 80 to
V anadium not under . 15

C h ro m Va na d i u m S p ri n g S tee l S p e c i al
e- Lo w C h ro m e . S p ri ng S t e e l .

C arbon 45 t o 55 50 to .60 55 to 65% C arbon

. .
,
.
, . . . 80 to . 95%
M anganese . 80 t o M anganese . . 30 t o . 50
Phosphorus not over 04 Phosphorus not over . . . 04
Sulphur no t over 05 S ulphur no t over . 05
S ilic on no t over 20 S il ic on no t over . . 20
Chromium to Ch ro mium 20 to . 40
V anadium not under 15 .

S EC T I O N" .

NIC KE L ST EE L .

Ma n u fac t u re f S im pl
o e Nic ke lS t e e l
: Nickel steel , said t o have
been use d for the first time in 1888 , m ay be made by any of the vari ous
processes for the manufac t ure of steel , but t he gre ater portion i s produ ced
by the open hearth process At t he s t eel meltin g t emperat ure nicke l is
-
.
-

chemically ne gative t o i ron w hich is c apable of reducin g its oxides and ,

preventing its oxi dation , e ven when the bath is a highly oxi diz in g one .

Ni ckel m ay therefore , be adde d t o t he bath at any time practicall y without

,

any l oss or waste bu t its addition is us ually made j ust l

,
o ng enough before

tapping t o enable it t o become properly di ffused F o r t he same re ason .

nickel c anno t deoxi diz e iron neither wil l i t decomp o se c arbon monoxide ,

nor hol d other g ases in solution t hough it is said t o preve n t , or hinder in ,

the se gre gation of c arbon and the other metalloids I t is not

i

a m e asure ,
.

used t hen for a curative agent b ut onl y for its beneficial e ffe ct up o n the
‘

, , ,

physical p roper t ies of the steel for which purpose it is preeminentl y a ,

stren gth giving element .

 58 1

T he Di ffe r e nt Ni c ke lS te e l
s a n d T h ei r G e ne r a lC h a r ac te r i s t i c s
The nickel content of the useful nickel steels varies from 2% t o which
is a wider range than that c overe d by any other alloying element Be l ow .

2% the benefits derive d from its addition al one to steel are very sli ght
.

and are not w orth the extra c ost The gre at bul k of simple ni ckel s teel
.
,

containing from two t o four per cent nickel is use d for structura l purposes .
, ,

suc h as bridges gun for gings machine parts engines l arge dynamos s teel
, , , , ,

rolls and various parts of automobiles be cause of the superior me chanical

, ,

properties imparte d by the metal when adde d in these amounts Thus .

,

for e ach 1% of nickel adde d above 2% and up to an i ncrease o f

approximately 6000 pounds in the tensile strength of this steel over t he
c arbon steel is note d w hi l e only a slight de crease if any in the ductility
, , ,

occurs , and all this improvement is se cure d without any heat treatment
whatever The bes t results , c osts and benefits considered appe ar t o be
.
,

obtaine d when the nickel content i s between 3 and 4 per cent the c ontent .
,

aime d at for structural purposes being to This steel also

resists rusting and abrasion better than t he pl ain c arbon steels Nic kel .

steel of this grade l ends itself well t o he at treatment , and may also be used
for c ase hardening the onl y obje ction t o its use for this purpose being the
,

slight tendency of the nickel t o retard the rate of penetration of the c arbon .

When the ni ckel content is raise d above t he metal be comes very hard ,

is di fficult t o wor k e ither hot or c old and is rolled onl y by taking the gre atest
,

care I t is in deman d w here gre at resistance t o sho ck i s a prime quality

.
,

such as shiel d pl ates for prote cting the ammunition of fiel d artillery and
the men serving t he guns from rifle fire Up t o nickel incre ases the .

hardness of the steel t o which i t is added but leaves the metal still amenable ,

t o he at treating Steels c ontain ing 10% or more of nickel c annot be

.

hardene d by quenching but be c ome softer after be i n g subj e cte d t o this

,

heat tre ating operation I n 1914 a new all oy steel , containin g 13 % nickel
.

and 55% c arbon w as dis covere d by A rnol d and Re ad I t is s o hard that

.
,
.

it c anno t be machine d or drilled has a yiel d point of 134000 pounds a

, ,

tensile strength of 195000 pounds and an elongation of 12% in t w o inches

,
.

Before this discovery 15% nickel steel tensil e strength about 170000 pounds
, ,

was thought t o be the strongest one of the series This steel has been empl oyed .

o ccasionally for shafting Nickel st e el c ontainin g 22% nickel is use d when

.

resistance t o rustin g is the prime consideration Thus it was empl oyed .

,

in the valve stems of the salt water fire prote ctive system installe d by the
cit y of New York and in simil arl y expose d parts of the pumps use d in the
,

drainage system for the city of Ne w Orle ans I t is also said to be suitable .

for the spar k poles in spark plugs for internal combustion engines 24% .

to 3 2% ni ckel steel is use d for ele ctrical resistance , such as those empl oye d
in irons toasters and other househol d he aters Ni c kel steels with a nickel
, ,
.

content of about 24% are non magnetic 3 6% ni ckel steel is characterized

-
.

by an extremely low coeffi cient o f expansion hence is used in b a l anc e w h e e l

s ,

of watches the pendulums of clocks etc in order to dispense wi th c om

, ,
.
,
58 2 A LLOY S T EE LS

pe ns a ti o k nown as i nvar Fi nally 46 % n i ckel steel conta i n i ng

n
. It is .
, ,

onl y 15% carbon is k no w n as platinite bec aus e i t has about the same
.
, ,

coe fficient of expansion as platinum and gl ass H ence it is employed in .

,

the lead wires of inc andescent l amp bulbs where formally pl atinum was ,

he ld to be indispensable Later a 38 % nickel steel wire coated with

.
, ,

copper was found to give better satisfaction than pl atinite

,
.

Re a so ns fo i a ri tie s o f t h e Ni c ke lS te e l
T h e s e Pe c u l r s : A study o f
the e xpl anation o ffere d t o ac coun t for the pec uliar influence of nickel upon
steel i s both interesting and instructive Referring again t o the nickel
.

steel it is t o be note d that nicke l primaril y influences t he stren gth of the

,

steel and t o a less de gree th e ductility These facts are expl aine d when
, , ,
.

the solubility of nickel in iron is considered Thus when ni ckel is added .

,

l
to stee s ay of hypo eutectoid c omposition i t dissolves in the iron t o form
,
-
,

an iron nickel all oy When t his steel is c oole d through the criti ca l range
-
.
,

it is this alloy t hat replaces both the free ferrite and the pearliti c ferrite
of the carbon steel Naturally , a change in the physical prop erties due to
.

this fact al one are t o be expecte d But it is in the influence of t his alloy .

upon the formation of pearlite t hat t he reason for t he grea t incre ase in
tensile strength of nickel steel is found The separation of the cementite .

from the iron nickel carbon solution does no t take pl ace as re adily as from
- -

a plain iron c arbonsolution hence the pearlite areas are larger and less
-
,

clearly define d t han in pl ain carbon steels I n other words jus t as c arbon .
,

and rapid cooling are obstructing agents t o t he transformation from

a ustenite t o pearlite s o also does t he ni ckel ac t in a similar manner
, As .

long as the ni ckel content is very l ow no t over this influence shows ,

itself only in a sli ght change in the physi cal properties as note d Thes e .

changes become more marked with increase of ni ckel as is t o be expe cted , ,

but the quic k change in heat treating properties a t 8 % or 10 % and a t abou t

25% are not thus accounted for A little re fle c ti o n h o w e v e r sho ws all
.
,
‘

these characteristics t o be due t o the s ame c ause namel y t he retarding , ,

acti on of the nickel uponthe transformation ranges One writer represent s .

this influence of nickel upon the criti cal points in he ating as foll ows :
Nic k el lo wers the A 0 3 range 235 C
01% .
°
.

01% Ac 3 — 2 range 180 C

°
. .

0 1% A c 2 ra nge 087 C
°
. .

0 1% A c 1 range 103 C
°
. .

No fi gures are given for the Ar points bu t other authorities have ,

established that the Arlp oint is about 80 C bel ow the A c l point In °

. .

addition t o and in c onne ction with these facts the e ffe ct of nickel upon ,

the eute ctoid ratio shoul d also be c onsidered

‘
The statem e n t that ni ckel .

interferes with the free formation of pearlite has already been made and , l

it now remains to be pointed out that nickel up to about reduces the ,

eutectoid ratio bel o w t ha t for straight carbon steels A cc ording t o .

Bullens t he eutectoid for a steel containin g 3 % ni ckel is reache d when

the carbon content is 75% and for one c ontaining 7% nickel this value
.
584 A LLOY S T EELS

The prece d ing diagram is intended to depict the general e ffects of nickel
upon t he transformation ranges , w hich bec ome lower and lower as the
nickel c ontent is incre ased and the eutectoid ratio whi ch d e cr e ase s w ith
,

increase of nickel The diagram shows the position of the A c and Ar points
.

for carbo n steel and also for steel c ontaining 3 % nickel Thus : .

S olid line indicates the position of the ranges on c ooling carbon steel .

D otte d l ine in di cates t he position of the ranges on heating c arbon steel .

Do t and dash line indic ates t he position of the ranges on heating 3 % nickel
steel .

Dash and dash line indicates a pproximately the position of the ranges on
cooling 3 % nickel steel Due t o a number of factors the Arranges
.
,

are subj ec t t o considerabl e variation .

When the nickel content has been increased t o these ranges are
found to lie in a position that is entirely bel ow atmospheric temperatures .

S t r u c t u ral t o Ni c ke l
Ch a nge s Du e : From the preceding data a simple
c alcul ation w il l show that as the nic k el or nicke l and c arbon c ontents are
, ,

incre ase d t he t ransformation ranges are progressively l owere d until they

,

reach atmospheric temperatures This fac t forms a basis for the classi
.

fi c ati o n of the nickel steels whi ch are divide d into the following three
,

divisions :

1 . i t ic-Ni c ke lS t e e l
Pe a r l t hose in which the ni c kel and carbon
s are

contents are such t hat w hen sl owly cooled from a hi gh temperature they
, ,

will consist in w hole or in part of pe arlite I n these steels t he ni cke lr ange s. .

from 0 to 10% and follows inversely the percentage of c arbon which theo ,

r e ti c a l
l
i

y ranges from 0 to .

Mar t e n si t i c -Ni c ke l S te e l
2 . s: I n t hese steels the nickel and c arbon
contents are high e nough t o l ower the critic al ranges t o such a de gree that
only a partial transformation from austenite to pearlite o c curs e ven on
slow cooling I n these steels the nickel contents range from 10% to 25%
.

with the carbon varying as above .

3 . A u s te ni tic =Nic ke I S t e e l
s: A bove 25%
the influence of the nickel
is so great that the transformation range i s l owere d t o atmospheric tem
pe ra ture s and the s t eel is always aus t enitic re gardless of the c arbon c on t ent
,
.

A s previously pointe d out onl y the pearlitic steels containing about

,

nickel are of real importance commercially .

T he o r y o f T e r na ry S t e e l
Co ns t i t u t io nalT h e s: In causin g these
structural changes the action of nickel is in accord with that of all the
alloying e lements Brie fly state d the theory I S t hat , upon t he introduction
.
,

of a t hird elemen t into a given carbon stee l , t he s tee l remains a t first

pearliti c ln structure bu t as the conten t of t he special element i s incre ased
,

the steel be comes m artensitic then austenitic or ce m e nti ti c depending

, ,

upon the chemic al action and alloying powers of the special element with
 NI CKE L S TEE L 58 5

respe ct to c arbon and iron ; and also that by keeping the amount of the
spe cial element c onstant the same tra nsformatio ns may be e ffecte d by
,

raising the c arbon content T his statement in so far as it relates to nickel

.
, ,

steel s is expressed diagrammatic ally in the ac companying fi gure .

Auste nite

Pe arl
i te

Pe r Ce nt Carb o n
.

Fm . 120 . C o nst ituti o nalD i a gr am fo r th e N i ck e lS t e e l

s .

'

This d i a gram s ho ws t ha t with a very low carbon content say abou t ,

-the steel remains in the pearlitic condition until the nickel content
reaches when i t will be found t o be in the martensitic condition With .

a nickel conte nt of 30 % the same s t eel would be austenitic But with a .

carbon content of about for example the steel becomes martensitic

,

when the nickel content exceeds and austenitic when it reaches 16 %

or Diagrams like the pre ceding are useful in illustrating the e ffect
of the di fferent alloying elements and wil l frequentl y be made use of in
the discussions t o follow .

i ti c Nic ke lS t e e l
He a t T re a t i n g Pe a r l what has been said it
s: From ,

shoul d be apparent that the heat treating of nickel steel to secure the ,

d esire d results is an art that re quires much e xperience and kn o wledge

,
.

H ence it is only desirable to indicate what should be the proper treatment

,

for this steel and although the heating and cooling of this steel presents
,

some phenomena quite distinctive from carbon stee l s it is considered that ,

this obj e ct has already been attained H owever a few remarks as to how
.
,

the l ow ni ckel steels are benefi te d by heat treatment may not be out of
586 A LL OY S TEE LS

place A he at treate d nickel steel has a l ower reduction and elongation

.

than a correspondingly he at tre ate d steel without nickel bu t the increase ,

in strength is much greater Thus for the s ame strength the nickel steel
.
, ,

is muc h tougher and o n this account nickel is mu ch t o be preferre d t o c arbon

,

for incre asing tensile strength The tensile strength and el astic limit are .

both a ffe cte d by the temperature of the drawback being decrease d as this ,

temperature is raised but the reduction in are a and elongation are not
,

so c orrespondingly and gradually incre ase d as in the pl ain s t ee l s In thi s .

connection , a study of tables 62 and 6 5 wil l be found of value .

Ta b l
e 65 l
Ilu s t ra t i n g t h e Effe c t o f V a r io u s H e a t Tr e a t m e n t s u p o n
t h e Me c h a n i c a l
P ro pe r t ie s o f T h re e Pe r Ce n t Ni c ke lS t ee l
s .

C hemical C omposition : C . Si . P .

S . Ni .

Description of P ieces Tre ated : One inch rounds 25 inches l ong ;

’

14 pieces all from same billet

, .

Description of Test P ieces : One test pie ce from e ach of the 14

pieces turned t o a diameter of
, inch as in ,
F i g 47
. .

P HYSI CAL T EST

El l
B it e l
'

H “d lé w
iiiZfi Ec
' ' '

’ m T 1 ° g t a
55123
‘
Re fi
i
e
Big é 3 1 in 3
f 2
2in
~

i
Nu nb e r

A s R olled

H eated to 76 0 and °

cooled in F urnace

H eated to 427
°

8 15 quench
°
48 2
°

ed in oil 538
°

°
593
649
704
°

Heated to 427
5
°
8 15 quench 48 2
°

ed in water 538
°

°
593
649 8 0 , 000
°
704
58 8 A LL OY S TE E LS

the c arbon content as well as upon the chromium An excee dingl y fine
. .

grain structure is characteristic of he at treated chrome steels whi ch fi ne ,

ness of grain c onfers the valuable property of toughness Thus t he net .

,

resul t from the influence of this element is t o increase the tensil e s trength
and elastic limit without a not ic e able l oss in the ductility
, One .

investi gator has found chromium t o be very efficient in retarding corrosion

of the steel by neutral media such as se a water and therefore re commends
, , , ,

its use in ship pl ates .

Th e Mic ro sc o pi c C o ns ti t u e n ts o f t h e
The influence C h ro m e S te e l
s:

of chr omium and c arbon in d etermining the constitution of the st eel is

shown in the ac companying diagram .

Ce m e nti tic Structure

(Do ubl
e I ro n , ,
h
C ro m i um Car ide b
in Matrix o f Marte nsite )

Pe r Ce nt Car
. . b o n
F ro . 12 1 . C o ns ti tuti o na lD i a g r a m fo r C hr o m i um S te e l
s .

Fr om
this diagram it is seen that when the chromium c ontent exceeds ,

7% in steels of l ow c arbon content or about 5% in ste e ls of hi gh c arbon

content the steel is c omposed onl
,
y of martensite hen c e is very hard and ,

strong but i s l ackin g in ductility and is inclined t o be brittle I t c an be

, .

neither hardene d nor softened by hea t t reatment I t will be note d that .

unlike nickel increasing the chromium content beyond a certain limit in

,

a steel with a given carbon content fails t o produce th e a us te ni ti c c ondition /

but gives a ne w structure made up of grains of the double carbide embedded

in martensite Between these two areas is a narrow ran ge in w hich the
.

carbide grains are somewhat less numerous than in the ce m e nti te re gion ‘

proper This range marks the gradual transition from the martensitic t o
.

the c e m e nti ti c c ondition with the gradual increase in the chromium and ‘

the carbon c onte nt Like the martensiti c c ondition steel of ce m e nti ti c

.
,

composition is not affe cte d by he at treatment Fo r obvious reasons then .

, ,

to produce steels of greatest usefulness the chromium c ontent will be ,

restricte d to that required to give the pearlitic conditi o n only .

 CH ROM E S T E E LS 58 9

s o f the S im pl
Us e e Ch ro m e S te e ls : T hese steels are used
whe rever extreme hardness is desired Thus , they have long been used .

'

for stamp shoes and dies for crus hin g har d ores l i k e some of the gol d and ,

silver o res Another use is for fi ve pl y plates for safes where their great
.
-
,

hardness is value d on account of t he resistance they o ffer t o the drilling

tool s use d by burglars R olls for col d rolling metals are made of steel .

containin g abou t 9% c arbon and 2% chromium while several thbus and

.
,

tons of steel containing about carbon and 5% chr omium are used .

annually for files I t is often use d in steel for various spe cial purposes
.
,
“ ”
as for exa m ple t he steel known by the name of Crucia which is nothing ,

more than a good grade of spring steel t o which has been adde d from 20% .

to 40% chromium The C arn e gie S teel C ompany m a nufactures this steel
. .

as a par t of their re gul ar product A t yp e for axes and hammers w hich .

,

contains 60% t o 70% c arbon and 60% to 90% c hromium ; another for
. . . .

chains c ontaining 2 5% t o 33 % c arbon and 65% t o 95% chromium ; and

, . . .

a thir d for t rack bolts with 25% to 40 % carbon and 60 % t o 90% chromium . . . .

are als o manufacture d by this company But the mos t important use for .

these steels i s in the balls and rolls for bearings F o r this purpose they are .

employe d in l o w carbons for c ase hardeni ng and in high c arbons for heat
treatin g i e , quenching and t emperin g Of the tonnage furnishe d by
, . . .

Carne gie S teel C o mpany for this purpose that for c ase hardening is made ,

in the open hearth while the hi gh c arbon material is produced in the ele ctric
,

furnace .

He a t T re a t m e C h ro m e S te e l
o f S i m pl : To cite an example of the
e nt
high grade of chrome steel : One large maker of bearings uses steel c on ,

taining c arbon , c hromium manganese sulphur , , ,

and phosphorus S i z es smaller than one half i nch diam ,

-

eter are heat treate d b y bein g quenche d in water from 774 C and then
-
°
.

drawn t o 190 C for half an hour Fo r larger balls the q uenching tem
°
. .
,

pe r ature i s 8 02 C The se c o nd heating does no t produce even an oxide

' ° “

color bu t is enough t o relieve in some de gree the internal stresses due

,

to the irre gular cooling of quenching s o that the balls are less liable to ,

crac k spontaneously or to be broken in use The strength of a good well .

,

treate d bal l i s prodigious ; a ball three fourths of an inch in diameter tested -

,

by the three ball method sustaine d a l oad of

-
poun ds On the small ,
.

are a of contact the intens ity of the pressure amounts t o over one million
pounds per square inch The S ociety of A utomobile Engi neers reco m mends .

less chromium than that gi ven above or 1 t o per cent The critical
”

.
,

ranges for these steels c ontaining 90% c arbon vary about as follows .
,

from 720 C to 745 C ° °

Fo r a chromium content of . .

Fo r a chromi um content of from 760

°
C . to 785 C °
.

indicating what may be expe cted by varying the tre atment of the
As
steels of this grade , the foll owing will serve as an illus tration
590 A LLOY S T EE LS

Tab l e 66 P h y s i ca l
. P ro p e r tie s o f a He a t T r e a te d Ch r o m e S te e l
.

Material : 1 inch rounds .

Analysis : C .
, Mm .
, Si . Cr .
,

T reatment : Heate d t o 870-871 °

C . Q uenched in oil , and tempere d as
indic ated .

S EC T I O N I V
‘

C H R OME —N I C KE L ST EE LS .

I nfl u e nc eo f C h r o m i u m a n d Ni c ke lW h e n Co m b i ne d : H aving
considere d the e ffe cts of c hromium an d ni ckel when adde d separately t o
the steel , t he student is interested in knowing what their c ombine d influence
may be I n the wo r ds of Bullens an impartial j udge of high s tanding as
.
,

an authority upon the subj e ct of allo y steels e specially from a practical ,

standpoint “
The chrome — nickel steel s probably represent the bes t all
ro und al loy steels i n c ommercial use for genera l purposes C hrome nickel .
-

steel s of suitabl e c omposition appear t o have c ombine d in them the beneficial

e ffects o f both the chrome an d ni c kel bu t w ithout the disadvantages w hich
,

are inheren t in the use of e ither o ne separately More over , the presence of .

both c hrom e an d nicke l seem s t o intensify c ertain physical characteri sti cs .

'
To the incre ase d ductility an d t oughness c o nferre d by nickel on t he ferrite
there i s a dded t he mineral hardness given t o t he cementite an d pearlite
by the c hrome but w ith a greater resultan t e ffect A gain w hil e the
, .
,

addition o f nicke l al on e serve s t o diminish t he s us ceptibility to brittleness

—
in the stee l upon prolonge d he ating o r sudden c ooling i n c omparison with
—
the correspondin g straigh t c arbon s teels and o n t he other hand t he , ,

presence of chrome alone t ends t o the opposite e ffe ct a suitable c ombi nation ,

of the two all oyin g e lements t ends to neutralize t he harm fu l e ffe cts and
als o t o magnify the good poi nts This is not only brought out in the stati c
.

strength and ductility but also in the dynamic strength or fati gue
,
”
resistance .

Ty p e s o f C h r o m e -Nic ke lS te el
: A c cord i ng to the testimony of some
he at tre ating experts there appe ars t o be a certain ratio of chrome t o ni c ke l
whi ch gives t he most efficien t c ombination of t he physic a l properties .

Th us if the nickel an d chromium are present i n the ri gh t proportions the

,
‘
,

lesser susceptibility of t he nickel t o brittleness for example will s o mo dify , ,

the gre ater tendency t o brittleness whi ch i s given by c hrome alone , t hat
a better s t ee l is obtaine d t han w hen t hi s r a t io is not observe d This r ati o .

is sai d t o be about 2% parts of nickel t o one part of chromium Further .

more , i t is cl aime d that if the chromium content greatly exceeds this rel ation
592 A LL OY S TEE LS

this armor is approximately C Mn S P , ,

.
,
.
, .
, .

S Ni and C r . The nickel chromium steels are

,
.
,

used in the manufacture of most armor piercing proj e ctiles also , .

t o f C h ro m e =Nic kl
He a t T re a t m e S te e l
e n
s: The heat treatment of
these steels is about the same in kind and method as that for simple nickel
and chrome steel s ahd is varie d t o sui t the kind of material and the purpose
,

for which the steel is t o be use d To give a general idea of the proper .

t reatment for these stee ls the re commendations of Bullens may be cited :

,

Fo r forgings

a . Q uench in oil fro m about 175

°
to 200
°
F . (97
°
to 110 C
°
.
) over
the critical range .

Q uench in oil from about (28 C ) over the critical range

°
50 F
°
b . .

0 . Anne al at about 75 F (42 C ) under the critic al range and

° °

machine .

Quench in the proper medium from about (28 C ) over the

° °
(1 . 50 F
range .

e . Draw the temper t o suit the work in hand .

Fo r shafts and other struc tural parts _i n whi ch the desire d physical
properties may be obtained by a drawing temperature of abo ut
900 F (500 C ) or over and which will le ave the st e el in a
° °
.
,

machinable c ondition tre atment I may be modified at (c )as thus ,

.

noted and no further tre atment will be re quire d

,
.

Quench in oil from abou t F (97 to 1 10 C )

° ° ° °
a . 175 to 200 over
the critical range .

Quench in oil from about (28 C ) over the critic al range

° °
b . SO F .

Draw at 9OO F (482 C ) or more , as the work may require

° °
c . .

Machine .
”

The full tre atment as given under (I )may be mo difie d if desire d ,

to the foll owing for parts t o be dr a wn bel ow 900 or 1000 F

°
,
°
.

(48 2 or 540 C )
° °
.

Q uench in oil fr om about (97 t o 1 10 C) over the

° °
a 175 to °
. 200
criti cal range .

Rehe at t o abou t25 28 C) over

°
b . t o 50 F (14 t o ° °
.
°
the critic al
range and c ool sl owl y M achine . .

Q uench in oil from about (28 C ) over the c

ritical range
°
c . 50
°
.

d . Draw t o the temperature require d by the work .

 A LLOY S T EELS 593

, data supplie d in tables 68 and 69 will serve as a basis for comparing

T he
the me chanical properties of the chrome nickel steels both in their natural-
,

and heat treate d states

-

T a b le 68 : I l l u s t r a ti ng t h e Effe c t o f Va rio u s He a t T re at m e nt s u po n t h e
Me c h a nic a lPro p e r t i e s o f Lo w =C h ro m e =Nic ke I S te e ls .

C hemical C omposition : C . Mn . Si . P .

S . Ni . Cr .

Description of P ieces Treated ; One inch ro unds , 25 inches l ong ;

14 pie ces ,
a l
lfrom same billet .

Description of T est P ie ces ; One test piece from each of the 14

pieces t urned t o a diameter of
, inch as in
,
F i g 47
. .

PHYSI CAL TESTS

Harde ning and w

Re fining De g C .
gg é
I Num be r COp e Te st

As R olle d

H eated to and °
760
cooled in F urnace

H eated to
°
427
°
8 45 quench
°
48 2
°
e d in oil 538
°
593

H eated to
°
427
°
8 45 quench
°
48 2
°
ed in water 538
°
593
594 A LLOY S T EE LS

Ta b l
e 69 Il o f Va rio u s Hea t Tr e a t m e n t s u p o n t h e
l u s t r a ti n g t h e Effe c t
Me c h a nica lPr o per t ie s o f H i gh =C h ro m e =Nic ke lS tee l .

C hemical C omposition ; C . Mn . Si . P .

S . Ni . Cr .

Description of P ieces Treated ; One inch rounds , 25 inches l ong ;

14 pieces all from same billet
, .

Description of Test P ieces ; One test pie ce from e ach of the 14 ‘

pie ces , t urne d to a diameter of inch as in

,
F i g 47
. .

HEAT T REAT MENT HYSI CAL

P T ESTS

gdw
H arde ning and
An a and
T e nsil
e
Re fini ng De g C
.

De g
r
. C .
Stre ngt h

A s R olle d

Heate d t o and °
0
cooled in F urnace

Heate d to
°
427
° °
845 quench 48 2
°
e d in oil 538
°
593
°
649

H eated to 427
8 45 quench
°
48 2
°

°
e d in water 53 8
°
593
649
 A LLOY S T EE LS

S E OT I O N V I

C H ROME VA NA DI UM
-
S T E ELS .

Effe c t o i u m a n d V a n ad i u m : I n order that the

f C o m b i ni ng C h r o m
influence of vanadium as indic ate d above may be re alize d t o the fullest ,

the presence of another element as an intensifier is re quired Just as

'

chromium int ensifies the influence of nickel s o does it als o stimul ate ,

vanadium but t o a much gre ater de gree i t is said than with the former
, , , .

Hence though various c ombinations have been tried such as vanadium

, ,

nickel chrome vanadium nickel etc the tendency at present points t o

,
- -
,
.
,

the general adoption of the one combination chrome vanadi um ,

-
.

Pro pe t ie s a nd Use s o f Ch ro m e -Va na d i u m S t e e l

r s: The hot working
of these steels presents no difficulties t he steel behaving in the press and ,

rolls much like the higher carbon plain s t eel s In physical properties they
are similar t o chrome—
.
,

nickel steel except tha t their c ontraction of are a

for a given el asti c limit is a little gre ater They are also said to be m ore .

easily machine d t han chrome nic k e l stee l an d are more free from surface
defe cts such as s cale pi t s an d seams While some enthus iasts maintain
,
-
.

that it is the steel best adapte d to resist shoc k and fati gue others hol d ,

that the chrome nickel steel answers al l requirements j ust as well Perhap s
-
.

the truth of the matter is that while both steels are available for most ,

purposes there are limite d fields in whi ch one may excel the o t her and in
,

which e ach has its own sphere of usefulness Mos t of the chrome vanadium .
-

steel made by the C arne gie S teel C ompany i s use d for driving axles and
'

other forgings for locomotives automobile springs and axles c ompressed

, ,

air flasks to rpedo tubes and gun forgi n

,
gs They are nearly always heat
,
.

treate d before being put into service but in som e automobiles the frames , ,

and even part of the forgings and shafts are made o i t he steel in its n atural ,
-

state The composition and properties of three gr ades of this stee l in t h e

.

untreate d condition are given h e re w 1th .

Ta b l
e 70 . T h e Co m p o s i t io n a n d Me c h a n i c a P ro p e r t ie l s o f
U n t re a t e d C h ro m e =V a n a d i u m S t e e l s .

COMPOSITI ON TENSILE PROPERTIES

G rade

S ome ide aof t he

general results obtaine d from he at treating the chrome
‘
vanadium s t eels and of the methods employe d may be gained from the
following table
 CH ROME —
VA NA DI UM S TEE L 597

T ab l
e P h y s i c alP r o p e r ti e s o f T r eat e d Ch r o m e =V a n a d i u m S te e l
s.

Te s ts m ade o n S m al lRo l
le d S e c t io ns

HEAT U
MINIM M PHYSI CAL RES LT S AFT ER U
T REAT MENT TREAT MENT

Anne al
ed

As Ro l
l
ed

*
Silicon P h osphorus under Sulphur under
”
“
(Silicon P hosphorus Sulphur Tests on 1 ro unds .
600 WORD I NDE X "

h
Be e ive co ke o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o 152
H
o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o 143-156

pro ce ss o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o 153
134
O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O 322
0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0
0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 188
0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 221
80
O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O 12

o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o
135

0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0
135
137
136

O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O
p l
ate bo xe s 136
Bo tt 134
Be nzine
101 to 110
Bo tto m bl
o wn co nve rte r

casting 229-3 24
100 to 105
.

bl
.

o f ast furnace 132

grade s o f 107
185
107- 109
219
Be nzo ic acid 112
po uring 228
201
stufl 185
co nstructio n o f
Bo x anne al
Be sse m e r co nve rte r, 183
ing . 546
176
Bo x pass 323
40
Bo yl
es
’
l
aw (se e vo um e o f a gas) l . i
t

2
129
454
190
Braddo ck wo rks (se e Edgar T ho m so n) 177- 183
175
33 1
183 to 186
304
193 to 196
230
532 90
365 29
0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0

391 to 406
30
18 137-138
Binde r in co al
O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O

80 137-138
Binding m ate rial
fo r re fracto rie s 29-30-31 137-138
Birm ing ham o re district 42 211
Bitum ino us l co a 66-78-80 O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O 468
anks fo r whe e l
Bl s . 497-505 551-552
Bl
as t fo r Be sse m e r co nve rte rs 180 3 10-3 11
fo r l b
ast furnace 150 3 10-3 11
fo r cupo l
a 179 q
Bri ue tte s (o r Bri ue ts) q 66-220-242
furnace , co nstructio n o f 131 7-60
e q uipm e nt o f 130 331
fo undatio n o f 13 1 e co al
Bro o kvil
l be d 79
gas 66-71 Bro wn co al 77
Bl
e e de r 141 —
36 37
426 B T UorB t
. . . . u 7-60
435 e s i n pl
Buckl ate s 426-435
87 i n b ars . 494
365 Bucke t ho ist . 140
o o m i ng m i l
Bl l 366 to 384 Buggy fo r Be sse m e r pl
ant 182
187 207
188 Bul
k he ad 211
517
437
 WORD I NDE X 60 1

Bundl
ing m e rc ant h bars Car b o n m o no xide in ste e l 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0

fo r e xpo rt
H
ste e l(se e pl
ain ste e l
)
Burde ning blst fu nace
a r i n pig iro n
n o n a bl
4‘
Burde ast furnace

Burne d ste e l .
grap itic h
ste e l
ste e lfo r case harde ning
Butte rfly h
m et od o l
f ro l
ing

By-pro duct co ke .

o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o

advantage s o f Ca
r d um pe r

Carne gie Sc ho e n whe e l

s

11
cinatio n o f do l
Cal o m ite 25
H H
25
m agne site 25-23 1
32
m agnesite 32
202
o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o

36
o o o o o o o o o

11-25
carbide in l
e e ctric furnace s agl 122-228
Ce m e ntatio n pro ce ss
25- 166
.

uro ide (se e Fl

fl uo rspar)120-223 —
282
Ce m e ntite i n pig iro n

25
ste e l

Cal
i pe r

inte nsity

m ac hine
Ch em cul
cal
ical atio ns

h
c ange

co m po und
e q uatio ns

Carbo n
l
no m e nc atur e
radical s
dio xide in Be sse m e r p ro ce ss
.

re actio ns l
.

aws o f
i n bl
as t furnace ,

sym bo l
in O . H
.
pro ce ss
s

i n pro duce r gas Che m istry

i n bl
ast furnace

C il
h l
ed he arth
in Be sse m er pro ce ss
(I O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O
O O O O O O O O O O O O

0 0 0 0 0 0 0

0 0 0 0 0 0

0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0
o
602 WORD I N DE X

Co nce ntric co nve rte r O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O

Co nductio n o f e l
e c tri ity
g O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O

he at 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0

Co nducto rs o f e l
e ctricity o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o

Co nfining d ie .

o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o Co ngo re d

Co ni ng o f whe e l
s

Co nstitutio nal dingt 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0

ste e l
fo r case harde ning . Co ntinuo us co i l .

N
Cinde r

Co ntractio n o f are a (se e re ductio n o f are a) 307

343
Circul
ar m 11 o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o 34
Circul
ar s hape s .
Q Q Q Q Q Q Q Q Q Q Q Q Q Q 59
Cl
Q Q Q Q Q Q Q

airto n co ke pl
ant .
183-186
Cl
ario n co albed 193-197
479
543
flint harde ning 551
p l
astic .
557
brick .
324
e aning p l
Cl ant fo r blt f as urnace gas 12
576
e ffe cts o n ste e l 576
166
i n be aring m e ta l 33 1
577
0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 3 18
553
472-496
245
. 3 18 322-330 334 — —
90
l
Cracks i n bil
e ts and bl ooms . 417
ingo ts . 349
bre e ze 115
o ve n G as Critical
p o ints 527
range 527
Co l
by .
Cro ss co untry m il
l . .
—
330 479
Co l
d be nd te sts Cruci bl
e o f bl
ast furn ace 132
174
sho rt . Crude sti l
l 102
te l m p et . Cryo hydrate . 522
as t val
bl ve 533
wo rki ng . Crystal
l
izatio n 5-3 48
Co l
l
ar m arks 533
ars o n axl
Co l
l es . 15
139
179
178-204
Cuppe d fracture 306
511
450
O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O 4664 68
47
60 4 WORD I N DE X

Faggo ts Fl h
us ing cinde r (se e tapping s ag) l
Fahre nhe it scal
e tar

Fall
ing we ight te st (se e dro p te st)
Fatigue stre ss
H
i n the e e ctri c l furnace s

Fe rric o xide .

129- 190 228 — p re ss

te sts .

Fe rro us and fe rric co m po unds Fo undry iro n

Fo ur p ass sto ve
in o pe n he arth
o xi de
Fracture te sts at blt f as urnace
p ro ducts
o pe n he art h
Fre e ce m e ntite

520-526

he r (se e finishing stand )

Fini s
Fue l
Finishing pe io d i n O H p o ce ss
s
r . . r
fo r Ope n he art h
Fue l
o il

0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0

te m pe rature
O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O

0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O

0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0

O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O

Fi rsthe lpe r O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O

Fish o ilfo r hard e ning .

Fixe d carbo n .

G as

Fl
am e i n co nve rte r

O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O

Gayl
e y dry blt as

0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0
Ge ne rato r, e l
e ctric

0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0
 WORD I N DEX 60 5

re actio ns in bl
ast furnace

co nve rte r

tre ating, ax e s l
car w h l
s ee

Go o se -ne ck . rai l
j o ints
tre atm e nt

ical
Hle Pi ni o ns

Ho l
l
o w bo ring fo r axl
es

ll
'

ro ing o f
Ho ppe r o f bl
ast furna ce

O
O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O

Hand guide mi l
l.
O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O

0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0

O
O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O

to p ld
m ou

wo rke d spli ce b ars

e Wo rks
Ho ward Axl

and bos h brick Huntch pit (se e l

s a g pit)

Hydraul
ic p re ss (se e fo rging pre ss)
pre ssure
units
606 WORD I N DE X

0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 Jo u nal r

O Jum p ro l
l: a pl l
in ro lwi th l
lrs o n e ach a co a

U
O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O

e nd. se d l
in ro l
ing flats .

O O O O O O O O O O O O O

K l
O O O O O O O O O O O O

0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 i (
ao n se e c l
ay)

K p blt f
0 0 0 0

O O O ee e r, o ne in charge o fa as urna ce

Kl
O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O .

lfe er urnace F
‘

Kll
y W
e , m

Idio m o rphi c crysta s l Kidn y e o re

Igni tio n p o int (se e kindl

ing te m pe rature ) .

I m p act stre ss .

te st .

o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o

Ki h s , graphite - ike su l bstan e give n o ff b y

c

I nductance
Kj e l
l
in furnace
K o pp e rs b y pro duct co ke
-
o ve n .

I ngo t de fe cts Labo rato ry te sts o n fue s l

re fracto rie s

348 Ladl
e ste e l , .

Ino rganic c he m is try . 8 to 27 addi tio ns

Inspe ctio n 417-430-451-493- 498-504-509 re actio ns

de p artm e nt 493 te s t (se e sam p ing l)

o fm e rc ant m h l
ilpro ducts . 493 to 495 Lag (se e hyste re sis)
,

plate s . 430 Lake Supe rio r o re

rail
s 451 district
se m i-finishe d pro ducts 417 Lam inatio n
504
245
582 O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O

136- 137
137- 138
12
14
12-27- 125 Law o f co nstancy o f na ture 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0

actio n i n the co nve rte r 194 de fini te pro p o rtio ns

—
0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0

b
car o nate 27-36 37 e b ul
itio n
125 e vap o ratio n

no tc h . 132 fusio n
o re 36 he at e xchange .

o xide s . 36 m ass actio n .

o xide s in o p e n he arth 232 m u l

tipl
e pro po rtio ns

pyri te s 36
b th qu nching
.

l
si i cate s 36 a , e

harde ni ng (se e qun hing inl

. .

sul
phate s 27 e d) e c a
O

sul
phide s 3 6-3 9
Irre gul
ar fracture 306 Le ad
Iso m e ri c co m p o unds 105

Jo ne s, WR .
7

0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0
 608 WORD I NDEX

Missab e o re range Occl

usi o n se e a so rp tio n)
x b
Mi xe r Octane
Mo do l us o f e l
asticity Off take s .

Ohm
’
l
s aw

Oil
and tar b urne r

ha de ne d (se e o ilq ue nche d)

.

Mo lte n m e tal
(se e ho t m e tal
) scrubbe s r

Mo l
ybd e num . so o il
te m pe r (se e al q ue nche d) .

Mo ne llcharge . o f vitro l(se e H2 80 4 )

pro ce ss . One l
e ve l
typ e o f o p e n he arth
Mo nke y fo r bl
ast furnace

Mo rgan C H , . 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0

m il
l

Mo to r Be nzo l

m e ta l 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0

Mo ulds fo r ingo ts O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O

Muck b ar
i

Mul tip l
e pro po rtio ns

Muriatic acid (se e hydro chl

o ric acid) O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O

O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O

O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O

0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0

O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O

O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O

O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O

O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O

Ne utral
fl
ux .

b
su stance (se e sa t) l
Nicke l .

ste e l
in ste e l
fo r case harde ning
Nicke l
-Chro m
e ste e l .
in the l
e e ctric furnace .

in
Nigge r he ads in o pe n he arth
‘

Nine ty pe r ce nt be nzo l .

Nitric acid
Nitro be nze ne P and A tar e xtracto r .

Parab e nze ne sul

.

pho nic acid

Nitro ge n
in bl
ast furnace Paraffin wax
Nitro naphthal e ne

Nitro to l
ue ne Pass in ro l
l
ing .

No dul izing (se e Sphe ro idizing)

No m e nclature Pass te m pl
et

No n Be sse m e r o re

0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0

0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0
0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0
 WORD I NDE X 609

Pe n sto ck . Po ny ro ughing stand

0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0

Phase o fe l
e ctri c curre nt 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0

0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0

l
e e ctric furnace

O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O

Pro gre ssive distil

l
atio n anal
ysis
hh l
P t ic a acid . harde ning

Pro pe rtie s o f m atte r

Pro spe cting fo r o re
o f pl
ate s .

Puddl
e b ar (se e m uck b ar)

iro n (se e wro ug t iro n) h

Pul
l
ing te st .

Pig and o re p ro ce ss
scrap pro ce ss Pul
pit
casting m ac hine Pul
ve rize d co a l(se e po wde re d co al
)
i ro n, co m po sitio n o f
Punching spl
ice bars
Purificatio n pro ce sse s
Pym - h
c e m ica l
pro ce ss
Pyro m e te rs .

0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0

0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0

O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O

Quickl im e (se e cal cium o xide )

Pitts bu gh co al
rbe d Qui ck silve r (se e m e rcury)

ain ste e l
Pl .

Ra bbl e

O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O

O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O

O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O

0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0
0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0

0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0

O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O

Pne um atic pro ce ss o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o

0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0

Po l
yp hase curre nts , e e ctric l ste e lBe sse m e r
, .
6 10 WORD I NDE X

0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0

b
0 0

Raw m ate rial

s (se e asic m ate ria s) l fo r il
l l
e t m il
s b
Re actio ns, c he m ical bloo m ing m l
il
s

in b l
ast furnace . Ro o f o f o pe n he arth
Re aum ur Ro ta ry h
s e ars

Re cal
e sce nce . Ro ug h surf ace , cause o f
Re carb o ni zing (se e re carb urizing) turning ax l
es

Re carb urizing, Be sse m l e r ste e

o p e n he arth ste e l O O O O O O O O O O O O O O

Re cup e rative furnace O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O

pri ncip l
e

Re d o re

h
s o rt (se e ho t sho rt) .
straig hte ning o f
Re ds to ne co a l
be d
Re ductio n 16
o f are a . 3 01 307
- Runne rs
Re fracto rie s 28 Runni ng sto ppe r

Re ge ne rative c amh be rs 212-217

0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0

furnace 419
l
0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0

p rincip e 63
Re he ating fur nace 41 9 to 422
—
330 479
Re pe ating m i l
l 3 30
Re pho spho ri z atio n
0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0

226-298
Re run b e nz o l
O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O

103- 104
uo l
to l
0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0

104
110
191
575 bo tto m furnace
256 ro l
l4 ,

263 se a l
64 te st
3 02 Sandsto ne (a se dim e ntary ro ck )
527 Saturate d so l
utio n
Re te ntio n the o ry . 555 Sauve ur .

Re to rt co ke (se e b y pro d uct co ke ) -

. 85 to 98
o ve n (s e e b y- pro d uct co ke ) 93 Scaffo l
ding
Re ve rbe rato ry furnace 420 scal
—
e 1
l
Re ve rsing m il
0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0

330-366 367-3 68-3 69 Scarf

Rho m b ic sul
phur 23 Sche dul
e fo r m e rc ant m h l
il
s
R
o asting (se e l
ca ci ning ) 25 Scho e n, Chas E .

Ro l
lbe arings . . 33 1-371 CC
m il
l
l
e t m il
de sign fo r b il l
s 3 94-402
bl
o o m i ng m i l
l
s 373-377-379 383 —
Scrap and p ig pro ce ss .

o o o o o o o o o o o

0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 in Ope n he ar th pro ce ss
0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0
Scre w do wn
O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O

0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0

0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 in bl
o o m s, il
l
e ts, e tc b
O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O
6 12 WORD I N DEX

So l
utio n

So l
ve nt , su stance b disso l
ve d :

l
va ve s

b
So r ite
h
Straig te ning ax e s l

m achi ne

Sp ar (se e fluo r spar)

Sp awl ing te sts (se e sp al
l
ing te sts)

ro unds

Strain .

Stratifie d structure
Straw o il .

kinds o f .

Stre tch (se e l

e o ngatio n)

Strippe r
Stripp ing .

Structural
fo rm ul
a

h
s ape s, ro l
l
ing o f
lte sting o f ste e ,

Sub cutane o us bl
o w ho le s (se e bl
o w ho l
es

ne ar the skin) 346

Spring he at (spring ste e l
he at) Substance 2
q
S uare m il Sulphani l
ic acid 112
Stack o f bl
ast furnace . Sul h
p ate s (se e sa l
ts o f sul
phuric acid) 27-l
16
o pe n he arth furnace 18
—
.

Sul
p urh 12 23
in Be sse m e r pro ce ss 175
bl
as t fu nace r 165-171
Star co nne ctio ns 236
Stassano furnace 39
Static stre ss 128
Statio nary furnace (o ne no t m o va bl
e) 23
Sul h
p uro us a cid O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O 19
Supe rficialarde ning h 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 568
Surface de fe cts . 413-435-4514 94- 504
0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0
Surface harde ni ng (se e case harde ning) . 562
o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o
221
176
iro n . 176
3 24
Sym s che m i cal
bo l , 9
16

Ta ble o f a te e shape
,

pil
e (se e o re pil
e) T able s o f a m il
, l
yard T albo t furnace
 WORD I N DEX 6 13

T ap he at (se e tapping furnace )

a 3 16
e bl
T ap ho l ast fu nace
, r 183
200-294
335
11
l
e e ctric furnace in ste e l 577
ho l
e Ti tania (Ti 0 2 ) O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O 166
Ti tanium . 12-165
ro d T N T
. . 111
e rance , re aso ns fo r190—
l
s ag To l 226-329 348-428-430-467 -

111
su l
pho nic acid . 112
To l
uidin 1 12
To l
uo l 101- 105- 106—
e xtracto r
111-112- 113
.

T o ngue and gro o ve p ass 406

137-138
Te a (sam e te e m i ng)
g as
o fbl
ast furnace 139- 141
T o rsio nalst e sse s 301
ro l
l
ing o f
r

1398 1} 308
T e e m ing Be sse m e r 8 138 9 1
T o tal
, .

el
e ctric ste e l .
car bo n 127

adl
l e
T o ug he ni ng 559
219
477
Transfo rm atio n range (se e critica range ) l 527

te sts in o pe n he arth .
260
56
auste ni c ste e l Tri-basic acid 19
uo l
Trinitro t l (T o . N T) . . 111
Tripl
e x p ro ce ss 297
T e m plet T ro o stite . 550-556
Te m p o rary m agne t . 540
T e nacity (se e te ns i l
e stre ngt ) h 87
140
204
12
37
329
134
134
co o e rl 134
135
135
re fracto ri e s
T we e r (se e T uye re ) 134
T we re (se e tuye re ) 134
T he ise n s
’
l
c e ane r
Twiste d guide (se e twisting guide )
T WO LGV e lOpe n e art H h 209
Do ints 330
T e ctri c co upl
he rm o e l e
142
pyro m e te r
Th m om et
er er
T wo p hase curre nt 253
T wye re ( tuye re ) 134
Tho m as G il
se e
ch ist p o ce ss
-
r r

Th e e high bl
r -
o m ing m il l o

U bine d c rbo n (se e

nco m a

O tt o -o o o o o o i o ' o o o o o o
Unde rfill
6 14 WORD I N DEX

Upp er Fre e po rt co al
be d
Kitt nni a ng co a l
be d

We l
lo f o pe n he a rth

We nstro m m il
l
in case harde ning
Whe e l
blank

Vapo rizatio n, he at o f
in harde ning
V-co nne ctio n .

Ve rm il
io n o re range Wicke t .

Vibrating spindl e

Visco sity o f que nching l

iquid
Vo l e m atte r o f co al
atil

Vo l
t Wo o d .

Wo rk .

e ffe cts o f o n ste e l

Wabbl
e r (se e wo bbl)
er Wo rking pe rio d in o pe n he arth

Wro ught

Washing o pe n he arth furnace

Waste he at . z

Wate r co m po si tio n and fo rm ul

, a

Yo ungs m o d ul
us

harde ning (se e q hing)

ue nc
que nching Ze e
’
s (o r Z s)
'

l
se a

se p arato r in b l
as t furnace
 14 DA Y U SE
RET URN T O DESK FROM WH ICH BORR OWED

LOA N DEPT .

Th i s b o o k i s due o n th e l
a st da te stam pe d b e l
o w , o r
o n th e d ate to w h i ch re ne w e d.

Re new e d bo oks a re su b j e ct to i mm e d iate re ca ll .