Smelting

:See smelt for the style of fishing with dip nets in tributaries of the Great Lakes during the spring spawning run of that small fish.

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Chemical reduction, or smelting, is a form of extractive metallurgy. The main use of smelting is to produce iron and steel from iron ore. Smelting is also used to extract copper and other base metals from their raw ores.

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It makes use of a chemical reducing agent such as carbon (coke, or in earlier times charcoal) to change the oxidation state of the metal ore. When coke is mixed with iron ore and heated, the oxygen will move from the iron to the carbon. The iron will be reduced, and the carbon will be oxidised, producing carbon dioxide and carbon monoxide. A fluxing agent such as limestone is used to remove the accompanying rock gangue as slag (also called scoria or cinder).

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In Ancient Egypt somewhere between the Third Intermediate Period and 23rd Dynasty (1100 BC - 750 BC) there are indications of iron working. There are further indications of iron smelting and working in West Africa in 500 BC http://www.louisville.edu/a-s/history/herlin/textsup.htm. The process of smelting became widely used during the Industrial Revolution, when it was used extensively in the production of iron and steel.

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Smelt: :See smelting for the chemical process....

Great Lakes: The Great Lakes are a group of five large lakes on or near the United States-Canadian border. They are the largest group of fresh water lakes on the earth and the Great Lakes-St. Lawrence system is the largest fresh-water system in the world. They are sometimes referred to as inland seas....

Chemical: REDIRECT Chemical substance...

Smelting related Images and Photos (experimental)

Section of a Blast Furnace for Smelting Ore at High Temperatures Created by Forced Draught of Air

Liquid Metal from the Blast Furnace Running on the Smelting-House Floor to Form Pig Iron