Paul Craddock Phil Andrews Michela Spataro

Abstract

The early records of the Huntsman crucible steel process are sparse and unsatisfactory. Until recently information on the early process had to rely on the often ill-informed speculations of the various visitors or the cryptic comments of the Sheffield crucible steel makers themselves. Excavations at Riverside Exchange in central Sheffield have recovered quantities of crucible debris from contexts dating before the 1790s. The crucibles are of refractory clays in the form of mullite, tempered with graphite. The slag on the interior of the crucibles contains appreciable quantities of manganese suggesting that manganese dioxide was already being added as a flux. The role of manganese through the ages in the production of steel is discussed. In the light of this new information the paper reviews the likely origins of the Huntsman process and of its successors, with especial reference to the central and south Asian processes.

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How to Cite
‘Not even if we had offered him £50’: Early crucible steel production and the history of the Huntsman process. (2021). Historical Metallurgy, 50(1), 28-42. https://hmsjournal.org/index.php/home/article/view/60
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