Analysis on Ancient Bloomery Ironmaking Technology: The Earliest Ironmaking Evidence in the Central Plains of China Was Taken as the Research Object

Abstract

The slag found in Hengdong Jiangxian County, Shanxi Province has been recognized by archaeologists as the earliest evidence of bloomery ironmaking in China. The slag was characterized and analyzed by chemical titration, inductively coupled plasma atomic emission spectrometry (ICP-AES), X-ray diffraction (XRD), scanning electron microscopy coupled with energy dispersive spectrometer (SEM-EDS), and tescan integrated mineral analysis (TIMA). The smelting technology in ancient China was explored, combined with thermodynamic theory. The results of chemical titration shown that the total Fe was as high as 64.18%, which means that it was very difficult to produce iron on a large scale with the ancient bloomery ironmaking technology, consuming a lot of iron ore while producing very little iron. The distribution of FeO was relatively dispersed, while that of Fe2O3 particles was concentrated and large. The source of Fe2O3 in the slag can be roughly identified as the oxidized metallic iron, which could not be separated in the slag in the past. Tescan integrated mineral analysis (TIMA) images show that Fayalite and Wustite are the main phase forms in smelting slag. The existence of fayalite proves that the temperature of a slag system should reach the condition of liquid phase formation during the smelting process. Based on the characterization results, the metallurgical conditions of the slag at that time are inferred by FactSage7.1. The theoretical smelting temperature was between 1150 °C and 1200 °C. The fayalite and aluminosilicate in the slag had obvious displacement and inhomogeneity, which pointed to the forging temperature ranging from 1050 °C to 1100 °C.