The extractive metallurgist in an emerging world of materials

Abstract

Extractive metallurgy was born in fire some 6000 years ago, but it is only in the last 50 years that knowledge of the chemical and physical aspects of metals has flowered. During this latter period, a beginning has been made to probe the dynamics of metals processes and, spurred by advances in computer technology, to quantify complex process behavior with mathematical models. But this process engineering activity is, in many respects, at an early stage, especially when compared to physical metallurgy. The application of process engineering to both extractive and thermomechanical processes unifies the broad flow sheets by which metals are produced and, at last, provides the quantitative linkage between the metal product (intermediate or final) and each process stage. Owing to the complexity of metals processes, whether treating metal in the liquid or solid state, process engineering is, by definition, interdisciplinary; and it is as depen-dent on measurements on the full or pilot scale as it is on mathematical models to characterize process behavior quantitatively. There are lessons to be learned from the extractive metallurgist by the materials scientists and engineers who are renaming our Metallurgy Departments and restructuring curricula as well as research. Process engineering must be taught as a discipline to undergraduates and graduate students alike, particularly those planning a career in industry. The reality, however, is frequently the opposite at many universities, where the characterization of materials properties dominates the curriculum and isolates students unnecessarily from the needs of industry. Likewise, process engineering research must be boosted in the metals and materials field to replace descriptive information on processes with quantitative knowledge. The competitiveness of our industry depends on it.