- Have good conductivity

- Are malleable

- Have a shiny appearance when polished

2 Types of Metals

- Ferrous (consists of Iron)

- Non-Ferrous (contains no Iron)

• Steel

- Stainless Steel

- Mild Steel

- High Carbon Steel

- High Speed Steel

• Cast Iron

• Any Alloys containing Iron

• Aluminium

• Copper

• Lead

• Nickel

• Tin

• Titanium

• Zinc

• Gold

• Any Alloys not containing Iron

E.g. Steel

E.g. Cast Iron and Diamond

A metal must be ductile to enable it to be drawn into wire.

E.g. Copper

It is usually increased by heat.

E.g. Lead

The amount of energy it takes to fracture is an indicator of toughness.

E.g. Brass

A brittle material can be easily fractured by impact

E.g. Glass, Perspex (Acrylic)

E.g. Spring Steel

A metal needs to be plastic when it is being forged.

The plasticity of metals can be increased by heating them.

E.g. Coins (Copper Nickel and Zinc) and Copper Wire

E.g. Silver, Copper, Tungsten and Aluminium

E.g. Rubber and Wood

A charge is made up of Iron Ore.

Limestone and Coke is put in the furnace.

Hot air is blown into the furnace by the tuyere to increase heat.

The fire bricks (aka Refractory Lining) help keep the heat in the furnace.

As the mixture melts, Molten Iron sinks to the bottom of the furnace.

The Limestone makes the waste (Slag) float on top of the Molten Iron.

The Slag is taken out of the furnace from time to time. (It can be used as a fertilizer for farming)

The Molten Iron, now known as Pig Iron, is removed from the furnace.

How does it keep heat in?

Cup and Cone Arrangement.

This is made up of two cones that can be raised and lowered.

When the furnace is off they are pulled up and the furnace is air-tight.

When you add more charge, only the top cone drops down.

Since the bottom cone is still pulled up, the heat has not escaped.

Once all the charge is loaded in, the top cone is pulled back up.

Now the bottom cone is dropped down and all the charge falls into the furnace.

Once all the charge is in the furnace the bottom cone is pulled back up.

When Pig Iron comes out of The Blast Furnace, it is very brittle and has no use in industry. It must first be refined in another furnace to turn it into steel.

Ways to prevent corrosion or rust:

• Painting the Material

• Dipping it in powder plastic

• Galvanising it (cover it with Zinc)

• Anodize it

• Lacquer it

There are 6 main steps in how Steel is produced in this furnace.

1. First, scrap Iron and Steel are fed into the furnace

2. Molten Pig Iron is then poured into the furnace.

3. The Oxygen Lance is then lowered into the furnace for oxygen to be blown into the furnace to increase the heat. The oxygen also makes slag in the furnace.

   Water runs through the lance to stop it from melting in the furnace.

4. Samples are taken from time to time to check the quality of the Steel.

5. the lance is removed and rolled on it's side to allow the Molten Iron to be poured through the tapping hole.

6. Then it is rolled over to allow the slag to be poured out of the slagging hole.

   
   

   In the past, a blacksmith used a hand bellows to make the forge hotter. This is the same.

A charge of Iron and Scrap Steel is fed into the furnace.

The Carbon Electrodes are then lowered into the furnace and current is supplied through the power cables.

The current jumps or arcs from the tips of the Electrodes onto the Iron and Steel. This produces heat and causes the metals to melt.

Like the Basic Oxygen Furnace, samples are taken from time to time to check the quality of the Steel.

When it is time to remove the slag, the backdoor is opened allowing the slag to flow out.

Once the slag is gone, the furnace is tilted forward allowing the Molten Steel to flow out through the Tapping Hole.