ClipArt ETC

The Iron and Steel Industry ClipArt gallery offers 75 illustrations furnaces and related equipment used in the iron and steel industries.

A primitive device of fire-brick, shaped like a beehive. It is simply filled with coal, part of which is allowed to burn with a limited supply of air.

Beehive Oven

A primitive device of fire-brick, shaped like a beehive. It is simply filled with coal, part of which…

"a Bessemer converter, which is an egg-shaped furnace built of wrought iron plates and lined with a thick layer of refractory material. The bottom is perforated with holes so that streams of air can be blown through the molten metal." -Brownlee 1907

Bessemer Converter

"a Bessemer converter, which is an egg-shaped furnace built of wrought iron plates and lined with a…

Sir Henry Bessemer invented this furnace that creates "Bessemer steel" by burning carbon out of cast iron.

Bessemer Converter

Sir Henry Bessemer invented this furnace that creates "Bessemer steel" by burning carbon out of cast…

"Bessemer Converting Vessel. Bessemer Steel is steel made direct from pig iron by a process patented in 1855, and subsequently, by Henry Bessemer. This process, as now worked, is briefly as follows: The pig iron is remelted in a cupola, and poured into a large vessel called a converter, lined with fire bricks and capable of revolving upon horizontal trunnions." -Vaughan, 1906

Bessemer Converting Vessel

"Bessemer Converting Vessel. Bessemer Steel is steel made direct from pig iron by a process patented…

A blast furnace measuring 42 feet high and 15 feet across that contains 4356 cubic feet of space.

Blast Furnace

A blast furnace measuring 42 feet high and 15 feet across that contains 4356 cubic feet of space.

A blast furnace measuring 47.5 feet high and 16.5 feet across that contains 6174 cubic feet of space.

Blast Furnace

A blast furnace measuring 47.5 feet high and 16.5 feet across that contains 6174 cubic feet of space.

A blast furnace measuring 55 feet high and 16 feet across that contains 7175 cubic feet of space.

Blast Furnace

A blast furnace measuring 55 feet high and 16 feet across that contains 7175 cubic feet of space.

A blast furnace measuring 58 feet high and 17 feet across that contains 8000 cubic feet of space.

Blast Furnace

A blast furnace measuring 58 feet high and 17 feet across that contains 8000 cubic feet of space.

A blast furnace measuring 60 feet high and 20 feet across that contains 12778 cubic feet of space.

Blast Furnace

A blast furnace measuring 60 feet high and 20 feet across that contains 12778 cubic feet of space.

A blast furnace measuring 75 feet high and 16.5 feet across that contains 11983 cubic feet of space.

Blast Furnace

A blast furnace measuring 75 feet high and 16.5 feet across that contains 11983 cubic feet of space.

A blast furnace measuring 80 feet high and 20.5 feet across that contains 15500 cubic feet of space.

Blast Furnace

A blast furnace measuring 80 feet high and 20.5 feet across that contains 15500 cubic feet of space.

A blast furnace measuring 95.5 feet high and 16 feet across that contains 15050 cubic feet of space.

Blast Furnace

A blast furnace measuring 95.5 feet high and 16 feet across that contains 15050 cubic feet of space.

A blast furnace measuring 95.5 feet high and 22 feet across that contains 25940 cubic feet of space.

Blast Furnace

A blast furnace measuring 95.5 feet high and 22 feet across that contains 25940 cubic feet of space.

A blast furnace measuring 95.5 feet high and 24 feet across that contains 28950 cubic feet of space.

Blast Furnace

A blast furnace measuring 95.5 feet high and 24 feet across that contains 28950 cubic feet of space.

A blast furnace measuring 85 feet high and 25 feet across that contains 26000 cubic feet of space.

Blast Furnace

A blast furnace measuring 85 feet high and 25 feet across that contains 26000 cubic feet of space.

A blast furnace measuring 90 feet high and 30 feet across that contains 41149 cubic feet of space.

Blast Furnace

A blast furnace measuring 90 feet high and 30 feet across that contains 41149 cubic feet of space.

A machine that blasts hot air to produce temperatures from 600 to 900 degrees Fahrenheit.

Blast Furnace

A machine that blasts hot air to produce temperatures from 600 to 900 degrees Fahrenheit.

"Iron ores are smelted in a blast furnace which is operated in a manner similar to that employed in the production of copper matte. An iron blast furnace consists of a steel shell from 75 to 90 feet in height, lined with a thick layer of fire-brick." -Brownlee 1907

Blast Furnace for Cast Iron

"Iron ores are smelted in a blast furnace which is operated in a manner similar to that employed in…

"A verticle section of one form of blast-furnace is represented [here]. the crucible (C) is the part of the furnace in which the molten matte and slag collect. The body of the furnace consists of two concentric shells (cs), made either of wrought iron or of steel, between which cold water (W) is caused to circulate to precent the inner shell becoming heated...Pipes called tuyeres (T) enter the furnace a short distance above the hearth...Above the body of the furnace extend the hood (H) and the stack (S). A door (D), used in charging the furnace, is placed in the hood." -Brownlee 1907

Blast-furnace

"A verticle section of one form of blast-furnace is represented [here]. the crucible (C) is the part…

"Cascade Furnace—Longitudinal Section." — The Encyclopedia Britannica, 1893

Cascade Furnace

"Cascade Furnace—Longitudinal Section." — The Encyclopedia Britannica, 1893

This coal sifter was used to sort coal into various sizes.

Sifter, Coal

This coal sifter was used to sort coal into various sizes.

"Prior to the introduction of the cup and cone, a form of tunnel-head in which no valve or cone exists was employed. A hollow annular chamber BB is built in the upper portion of the stack, communicating by arched cavities A, A, A with the shaft, and also with the exit gas main C; a considerable fraction of the gases then passes out through the arched vavities when the materials are heaped up to the level of the charging door D. With small furnaces the wall between the shaft and the chamber B is made of past or wrought iron; in some cases the gas has been collected through a central tube in the axis of the shaft supported by groins springing from the shaft and the ore." — The Encyclopedia Britannica, 1893

Collecting Top

"Prior to the introduction of the cup and cone, a form of tunnel-head in which no valve or cone exists…

A compound riveted girder is designed to bear a large load in a building or bridge, and is made of either iron or steel.

Compound Riveted Girder (side by side)

A compound riveted girder is designed to bear a large load in a building or bridge, and is made of either…

A compound riveted girder is designed to bear a large load in a building or bridge, and is made of either iron or steel.

Compound Riveted Girder (Vertical)

A compound riveted girder is designed to bear a large load in a building or bridge, and is made of either…

"Condie's Hammer." — The Encyclopedia Britannica, 1893

Condie's Hammer

"Condie's Hammer." — The Encyclopedia Britannica, 1893

An illustration of the exterior of the Bessemer converter. The Bessemer process was the first inexpensive industrial process for the mass-production of steel from molten pig iron. The process is named after its inventor, Henry Bessemer, who took out a patent on the process in 1855. The process was independently discovered in 1851 by William Kelly. The process had also been used outside of Europe for hundreds of years, but not on an industrial scale. The key principle is removal of impurities from the iron by oxidation with air being blown through the molten iron. The oxidation also raises the temperature of the iron mass and keeps it molten.

Bessemer Converter (Exterior)

An illustration of the exterior of the Bessemer converter. The Bessemer process was the first inexpensive…

An illustration of the interior of the Bessemer converter. The Bessemer process was the first inexpensive industrial process for the mass-production of steel from molten pig iron. The process is named after its inventor, Henry Bessemer, who took out a patent on the process in 1855. The process was independently discovered in 1851 by William Kelly. The process had also been used outside of Europe for hundreds of years, but not on an industrial scale. The key principle is removal of impurities from the iron by oxidation with air being blown through the molten iron. The oxidation also raises the temperature of the iron mass and keeps it molten.

Bessemer Converter (Interior)

An illustration of the interior of the Bessemer converter. The Bessemer process was the first inexpensive…

An illustration of a foundry crane.

Foundry Crane

An illustration of a foundry crane.

An illustration of a foundry crane which is used in steel-making.

Foundry Crane

An illustration of a foundry crane which is used in steel-making.

"Danks rotary Puddling Furnace. The feel is burnt in an ordinary fireplace, a blast B being admitted under the bars and another over them A, level with the firing hole, so that by regulating the two streams of air the atmosphere can be kept reducing or oxidizing at will. A circular chamber or drum C is supported on massive friction rollers and arranged so that its axis is about level with the top of the bridge; at the other end is a movable terminal shaped like the frustum of a cone D, supported by chains or rods from a crane so that it can be swung on one side if required, thus serving as a door." — The Encyclopedia Britannica, 1893

Danks Furnace

"Danks rotary Puddling Furnace. The feel is burnt in an ordinary fireplace, a blast B being admitted…

"A peculiar furnace, known as Ferrie's self-coking furnace after the name of its inventor, in which raw coal is employed, has been used at the Monkland Iron Works and elsewhere during the last few years. On the top of an ordinary furnace of about 53 feet in height and 7000 cubic feet capacity were erected four chambers or retorts about 20 feet in depth, each having a capacity of 500 cubic feet; external flues, in which a portion of the waste gases were burnt, served to heat these chambers in such a way as to coke the raw coal." — The Encyclopedia Britannica, 1893

Ferrie's Furnace

"A peculiar furnace, known as Ferrie's self-coking furnace after the name of its inventor, in which…

An illustration of a forge powered by a hand-bellows which forces air on glowing coals. A forge is a hearth, or a place for heating metals.

Forge

An illustration of a forge powered by a hand-bellows which forces air on glowing coals. A forge is a…

"Formerly, all nails were hand made, by forging on an anvil; and vast quantities are still made in this manner, being preferable, for many kinds of carpenter's work, to those made by machinery." —The Popular Cyclopedia, 1888

Nail forge

"Formerly, all nails were hand made, by forging on an anvil; and vast quantities are still made in this…

"Ponsard Furnace or Forno-Convertisseur. This apparatus is essentially a combination of the Pernot furnace with the Bessemer converter, consisting of a hearth movable about an obliquely vertical axis. Instead of rotating round and round on this axis, the hearth D only moves through half a revolution." — The Encyclopedia Britannica, 1893

Forno-Convertisseur

"Ponsard Furnace or Forno-Convertisseur. This apparatus is essentially a combination of the Pernot furnace…

"The section and ground plan of one of the older forms of open-mouthed furnaces used at Dowlais (Truran), consisting of a heavy mass of mascury, square at base, strongly braced together with iron tie-rods, rising in the shape of a truncated pyramid to the height of the boshes, and then surmounted with a conical top surrounded at the throat by a gallery for the introduction of the enarging materials. In the square base were four arched recesses or tuyere houses, one on each side, F, F, for the introduction of G also serving for the removal of cinder and the tapping of the furnace for the running of the pig. The lowest portion of the hearth or crucible, A, was constructed of refractory sandstone, grit, or conglomerate, or of difficulty fusible firebrick, the inner portion of the upper part of the furnace being also built of firebrick set in fireclay with an air course between the double lining thus constructed; exteriorly the furnace was built of less expensive and refractory materials, usually of stone, strongly bound round with iron hoops." — The Encyclopedia Britannica, 1893

Furnace

"The section and ground plan of one of the older forms of open-mouthed furnaces used at Dowlais (Truran),…

"The more modern furnaces are constructed like this, but the masonry at the base is still less massive, so that, instead of there being four distinct tuyere houses, the separating walls of the houses are wholly cut away and replaced by a number of stout iron pillars on which rests the greater portion of the weight of the superstructure; through the walls of the hearth are pierced conical arched openings for the tuyeres; the throat is fitted with a valve for introducing materials from time to time, such as the cup and cone arrangement." — The Encyclopedia Britannica, 1893

Furnace

"The more modern furnaces are constructed like this, but the masonry at the base is still less massive,…

"Any arrangement in which heat is produced by burning fuel. It usually is a structure of iron or brick, lined with fire-brick to withstand intense heat." — Beach, 1909

Furnace

"Any arrangement in which heat is produced by burning fuel. It usually is a structure of iron or brick,…

"Gjers's Furnace Hoist. I. Section. II. Elevation. III. and IV. Plans." — The Encyclopedia Britannica, 1893

Furnace Hoist

"Gjers's Furnace Hoist. I. Section. II. Elevation. III. and IV. Plans." — The Encyclopedia Britannica,…

A blast furnace is a type of metallurgical furnace used for smelting to produce metals, generally iron. In a blast furnace, fuel and ore are continuously supplied through the top of the furnace, while air (sometimes with oxygen enrichment) is blown into the bottom of the chamber, so that the chemical reactions take place throughout the furnace as the material moves downward. The end products are usually molten metal and slag phases tapped from the bottom, and flue gases exiting from the top of the furnace.

Blast Furnace

A blast furnace is a type of metallurgical furnace used for smelting to produce metals, generally iron.…

A furnace for smelting of iron from iron oxide ores; combustion is intensified by a blast of air

Blast Furnace

A furnace for smelting of iron from iron oxide ores; combustion is intensified by a blast of air

Crucible furnace used to melt metal. The stream of ignited gas enters the chamber to mix with air at the valve. The heat generated by this process will reach the metal's melting point to create a desired product.

Crucible Furnace for Melting Metal

Crucible furnace used to melt metal. The stream of ignited gas enters the chamber to mix with air at…

A kind of reverberatory furnace in which iron is puddled.

Puddling Furnace

A kind of reverberatory furnace in which iron is puddled.

A reverberatory furnace is a metallurgical or process furnace that isolates the material being processed from contact with the fuel, but not from contact with combustion gases. The term reverberation is used here in a generic sense of rebounding or reflecting, not in the acoustic sense of echoing.

Reverberatory Furnace

A reverberatory furnace is a metallurgical or process furnace that isolates the material being processed…

A furnace that causes reverberations.

Reverberatory Furnace

A furnace that causes reverberations.

An illustration of a section of the reverberatory furnace. A reverberatory furnace is a metallurgical or process furnace that isolates the material being processed from contact with the fuel, but not from contact with combustion gases. The term reverberation is used here in a generic sense of rebounding or reflecting, not in the acoustic sense of echoing.

Sectional View of a Reverberatory Furnace

An illustration of a section of the reverberatory furnace. A reverberatory furnace is a metallurgical…

An enclosed chamber in which heat is produced to heat buildings, destroy refuse, smelt or refine ores, etc.

Smelting Furnace

An enclosed chamber in which heat is produced to heat buildings, destroy refuse, smelt or refine ores,…

"Girders (in cross-section). a to l, wrought-iron girders; m to z, cast-iron girders; aa, box-girder; bb, compound I-girder; cc, coumpound beam girder; dd, I-girder." -Whitney, 1911

Girder

"Girders (in cross-section). a to l, wrought-iron girders; m to z, cast-iron girders; aa, box-girder;…

Homestead Steel Works, located in Homestead, Pennsylvania, was a rival of the steel company, Carnegie Steel.

The Homestead Steel Works

Homestead Steel Works, located in Homestead, Pennsylvania, was a rival of the steel company, Carnegie…

A type of furnace for smelting metal ore.

Hot Blast-furnace

A type of furnace for smelting metal ore.

An I-Beam girder is a load bearing beam of steel or iron. It is shaped like a capital letter I.

I-Beam Girder

An I-Beam girder is a load bearing beam of steel or iron. It is shaped like a capital letter I.

An iron mine.

Iron

An iron mine.

An illustration of an iron furnace located at Iron Mountain, Missouri.

Iron Furnace

An illustration of an iron furnace located at Iron Mountain, Missouri.

An illustration depicting iron furnaces located in Rockwood, Tennessee.

Iron Furnaces

An illustration depicting iron furnaces located in Rockwood, Tennessee.

An illustration of mine workers refining iron ore.

Iron Workers

An illustration of mine workers refining iron ore.

The lift hammer is a large hammer used in forges. The hammer is tilted up and then allowed to drop.

Lift Hammer

The lift hammer is a large hammer used in forges. The hammer is tilted up and then allowed to drop.

This illustration shows a light inverted bow-string girder, as well as a section.

Light Inverted Bow-String Girder (Elevation and Section)

This illustration shows a light inverted bow-string girder, as well as a section.

Steel mill where metal is rolled into sheets and bars

Rolling Mill

Steel mill where metal is rolled into sheets and bars

"Machine used to take water out of mines." -Comstock 1850

Newcomen's Engine

"Machine used to take water out of mines." -Comstock 1850

"The simple outline of the atmospheric engine. Its mode of operation is as follows. Steam is admitted from the boiler into the cylinder, through the tube l, by means of a regulating cock, e, which is worked by a handle outside the boiler; the pressure of the atmosphere above the piston being thus balanced by the force of the steam beneath it, the extremity of the lever beam to whch the piston is attached is elevated by proportionate weights, w, attached to the pump-rod, and the piston is drawn to the top of the cylinder, the other extremity of the beam being depressed." —Comstock, 1850

Newcomens Engine

"The simple outline of the atmospheric engine. Its mode of operation is as follows. Steam is admitted…

"The parting vessels are of porcelain which, to protect them against fracture by irregular heating, are covered with wire netting and plastered over with a mixture of clay and smithy scales. They are mounted in a frame and set loose in an iron pot with a hemispherical bottom, which is heated by a fire from below, the pot also serves to catch the contents of the porcelain vessel if the latter should be accidentally broken. The cover is perforated by a hole in the center for the passage of a lead pipe to carry off the sulphurous acid fumes." — Encyclopedia Britannica, 1893

Parting Vessel

"The parting vessels are of porcelain which, to protect them against fracture by irregular heating,…