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Chemistry of the Bessemer process
294
Editorial.
mains, one at Sixty-first street and another at Seventy-ninth (at one time there was one at Seventieth street), the island was continually left dependent upon the two weeks' supply in its reservoir, and sometimes water had to be carried over in boats. The main recently laid consisted of an iron pipe, six inches in diameter, encased in a box, formed of heavy timber, twenty-two inches square. The planks were firmly welded and riveted together, the intervening space being filled in with closely packed cement, and the whole forming a single continuous mass nearly 1300 feet in length. When lying along Sixty-second street, in process of formation, it extended nearly to Second avenue. The total weight was about 200 tons. The river at this point is 1140 feet wide and nearly 100 feet deep, while the current moves at least six miles an hour, so that the safe landing of this enormous mass was quite a triumph of engineering skill. The means used were a dredge-boat of 100 horse-power, worked along a wire cable one inch and a half in diameter, and two powerful tug-boats. Under the main, at intervals of every seventy-five feet, were launching ways, and human power was distributed all along the line. In case of the breaking of the cable, ropes were ready at hand to be used with the tugs alone. A successful start was made, and by ten o'clock nearly 100 yards of the mass was projected into the river. Then the strain on the cable proved so great that a wait was made for slack-tide, which was about four o'clock. From that time forward the work was rapidly pushed, and did not cease till the end of the main was securely rested on a stone abutment waiting to receive it on the island. Water was let in soon afterwards, but turned off as soon as it was perceived that the experiment was a success.
Chemistry of the Bessemer P r o c e s s . - - T h e conclusions reached by Kessler in regard to the theory of the :Bessemer process may possess some interest to our metallurgical readers, since they differ somewhat from the views generally advocated. The observer in question finds that in the :Bessemer process of steelmaking the entire amount of carbon present at first is relatively increased, owing to the more energetic oxidation of certain other sQbstances in the iron in the earlier portions of the "blow," and that the carbon first begins to oxidize after the major portion of the silicon has disappeared. Concerning phosphorus--the most obstinate impurity--Kessler declares that its amount is decreased during the middle portion of the
Items and Novelties.
295
process, but that its proportion is relatively increased both at the commencement of the "blow/' owing to the more energetic oxidation ~)f the other impurities, and towards the end of the operation, when it is, to some extent at least, taken up again from the slag. Sulphur decreases rapidly at first, but increases again in the middle stage, up Co the addition of the spiegel-eisen, for the reason that a portion of it, which in the first stage went into the slag, is afterwards taken up again by the iron. When the spiegel-eisen is added and the "blow " recommenced, the sulphur again diminishes, and the suggestion is made that if it were possible to remove the first slag, which contains much of the sulphurous impurities, it would be possible to use brands of iron which are known to contain sulphur for making Bessemer steel.
Rubber Tubes and C o a l - G a s . - - - I t has lately been observed that the illuminating power of coal.gas was considerably affected by the passage of the gas through rubber tubing before combustion. For this observation we are indebted to M. Zulkowsky, who has made a series of photometric experiments to determine the amount of this deterioration. The following series of experiments are tabulated by the author:
illuminating _Powerof Gas. Estimated direct,
1st Series, 2d Series, •~d Series, 4th Series,
13"2 12"2
After passing through rubber tul)irlg,
Estimated direct,
10'7 9"2 7"8 9.8
12"9 12"1 11.'2 ]1"6
After passing through rubber tubing,
7"5 9"9
Estimated direct.
11"3 12"
The diminution in the intensity of the light was so marked after the gas had been passed through rubber tubing of 4½ yards in length that it could be perceived without the help of a photometer ; so perceptible, indeed, that the author deemed it to prove beyond question the fact that a positive absorption of some of the light-giving constituents of the gas takes place under these circumstances. To ascertain which of the ingredients of the gas were thus effected the author carefully dried and weighed several pieces of black tubing and passed a stream of carefully dried gas through them for 62 hours, and found that at the end of that time the tubing had increased in weight 8"64 per cent. The tubing was subsequently placed beneath
Editorial.
mains, one at Sixty-first street and another at Seventy-ninth (at one time there was one at Seventieth street), the island was continually left dependent upon the two weeks' supply in its reservoir, and sometimes water had to be carried over in boats. The main recently laid consisted of an iron pipe, six inches in diameter, encased in a box, formed of heavy timber, twenty-two inches square. The planks were firmly welded and riveted together, the intervening space being filled in with closely packed cement, and the whole forming a single continuous mass nearly 1300 feet in length. When lying along Sixty-second street, in process of formation, it extended nearly to Second avenue. The total weight was about 200 tons. The river at this point is 1140 feet wide and nearly 100 feet deep, while the current moves at least six miles an hour, so that the safe landing of this enormous mass was quite a triumph of engineering skill. The means used were a dredge-boat of 100 horse-power, worked along a wire cable one inch and a half in diameter, and two powerful tug-boats. Under the main, at intervals of every seventy-five feet, were launching ways, and human power was distributed all along the line. In case of the breaking of the cable, ropes were ready at hand to be used with the tugs alone. A successful start was made, and by ten o'clock nearly 100 yards of the mass was projected into the river. Then the strain on the cable proved so great that a wait was made for slack-tide, which was about four o'clock. From that time forward the work was rapidly pushed, and did not cease till the end of the main was securely rested on a stone abutment waiting to receive it on the island. Water was let in soon afterwards, but turned off as soon as it was perceived that the experiment was a success.
Chemistry of the Bessemer P r o c e s s . - - T h e conclusions reached by Kessler in regard to the theory of the :Bessemer process may possess some interest to our metallurgical readers, since they differ somewhat from the views generally advocated. The observer in question finds that in the :Bessemer process of steelmaking the entire amount of carbon present at first is relatively increased, owing to the more energetic oxidation of certain other sQbstances in the iron in the earlier portions of the "blow," and that the carbon first begins to oxidize after the major portion of the silicon has disappeared. Concerning phosphorus--the most obstinate impurity--Kessler declares that its amount is decreased during the middle portion of the
Items and Novelties.
295
process, but that its proportion is relatively increased both at the commencement of the "blow/' owing to the more energetic oxidation ~)f the other impurities, and towards the end of the operation, when it is, to some extent at least, taken up again from the slag. Sulphur decreases rapidly at first, but increases again in the middle stage, up Co the addition of the spiegel-eisen, for the reason that a portion of it, which in the first stage went into the slag, is afterwards taken up again by the iron. When the spiegel-eisen is added and the "blow " recommenced, the sulphur again diminishes, and the suggestion is made that if it were possible to remove the first slag, which contains much of the sulphurous impurities, it would be possible to use brands of iron which are known to contain sulphur for making Bessemer steel.
Rubber Tubes and C o a l - G a s . - - - I t has lately been observed that the illuminating power of coal.gas was considerably affected by the passage of the gas through rubber tubing before combustion. For this observation we are indebted to M. Zulkowsky, who has made a series of photometric experiments to determine the amount of this deterioration. The following series of experiments are tabulated by the author:
illuminating _Powerof Gas. Estimated direct,
1st Series, 2d Series, •~d Series, 4th Series,
13"2 12"2
After passing through rubber tul)irlg,
Estimated direct,
10'7 9"2 7"8 9.8
12"9 12"1 11.'2 ]1"6
After passing through rubber tubing,
7"5 9"9
Estimated direct.
11"3 12"
The diminution in the intensity of the light was so marked after the gas had been passed through rubber tubing of 4½ yards in length that it could be perceived without the help of a photometer ; so perceptible, indeed, that the author deemed it to prove beyond question the fact that a positive absorption of some of the light-giving constituents of the gas takes place under these circumstances. To ascertain which of the ingredients of the gas were thus effected the author carefully dried and weighed several pieces of black tubing and passed a stream of carefully dried gas through them for 62 hours, and found that at the end of that time the tubing had increased in weight 8"64 per cent. The tubing was subsequently placed beneath