Rocky Ford enterprise., 1915-08-13
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than like plates made without the of vana-
dium. No immediate results. however. followed
the French tests. owing perhaps to the fact that
at this time no adequate supply of vanadium was
in sight. About four years later Prof ]. o.
Arnold of Sheffield in an address before the Brit
ish Iron and Steel institute declared that vana-
dium was the master weapon OF the steel metal
lurgist. At this time price of vanadium alloy
very high and the supply uncertain. The
greatest advances. however, made in the use OF
vanadium in the steel industry have followed the
experiments and practical applications OF J. Kent
Smith of Liverpool. Mr. Smiths work has been
principally in the production of the various
grades of vanadium alloys. and he has supervised
personally the initial of vanadium in most
of the leading steel mills of England and the
continent and some in .he United States.
About 1905 the supply of vanadium began to
increase to a large degree due to the purchase
of the Minas Ragra deposits In Peru by the
American vanadium company. also to the devel-
opment of mines in other parts OF Peru, spain
and elsewhere. From having been rare metal.
owing to the large output, 1t became available In
quantities claimed to be unlimited, as steel
making element. The claims made by Its users
are that 1t has accomplished wonders In crucioie
steel and in open-hearth steel, that 1t gives cast
iron greater strength and endurance. and that
copper and aluminium are remarkably Improved
for certain purposes by its addition. 1t Is used
in steel for engine axles and frames. In trans
mission shafts and gears in wire springs IN
piston rods hydraulic cylinders tires. TOOLS boiler
plates bolts. gun Shields projecties. armor
plates, gun barrels, watch springs. and in cast
ings and forgings generally.
The claim fs made that In steel making II
untes with the nitrides and oxides. and carries
them into the Stag. The quantity OF vanadium
that will remain in the Stag is in proportion to
the amount OF scavenging thus done by It. In
welldeoxidized steel It is said that the scaveng'
ing will consume about one-ffth of the vana-
dium.
The alloy, ferrovanadium. is introduced into
the steel by a very simple process. In the cruel
BILE process the alloys are broken into small bits
and put into the charge with the second addition
of the manganese In the acid openhearth proc
the alloy in larger pieces is dropped into the
bath when the fame has been blanketed. In the
basic openhearth practice the alloy broken small.
is run through a spout that empties into the lade
in which the molten steel is being poured. A
similar method is followed in the Bessemer and
Tropenas practice and also in the cupola process
for cast iron In the latter. the alloy is crushed
quite fine
1t is claimed that vanadium increases largely
the resistance of metals to vibratory disintegra
tion. that the steel is stronger and tougher and
tempers more uniformly and to greater depth
than steel without vanadium. One of the prin
cipal advantages in the use of vanadium steel in
the future will doubt be that It will enable the
steel man to reduce weight in such constructions
as locomotives. cars. machinery, etc, through the
use of a smaller amount of the stronger and
tougher stee' The question of weight has be
come serious not only in locomotives but in other
forms of machinery. Another great economy
claimed for vanadium steel is its greater dura-
bility. II this can be established. it would Of
itself more than justify its more extensive use.