Welfare of generations depends on metallurgists: Blast Furnace and Steel Plant, Vol. 34, No. 12
✍ Scribed by R.H. Oppermann
- Publisher
- Elsevier Science
- Year
- 1947
- Tongue
- English
- Weight
- 77 KB
- Volume
- 243
- Category
- Article
- ISSN
- 0016-0032
No coin nor oath required. For personal study only.
✦ Synopsis
Welfare of Generations Depends on Metallurgists. (Blast Furnace and Steel Plant, Vol. 34, No. 12.)--Metallurgists are custodians of materials on which the welfare of countless generations must depend, stated Walter S. Tower, president of the American Iron and Steel Institute, before members of the American Society for Metals at their annual dinner. Mr. Tower said that every advance in the science of metallurgy tends to make metals more serviceable, to enhance their economic value, and to prolong the life of existing natural resources.
Mr. Tower stated, "The metallurgist has dug deep into his bag of tricks and come up with industrial applications of elementswhich were, until a few years ago, largelylaboratory items. Our whole manner of livingwould be far different without the wide range of qualities of the numerous alloys which the metallurgist has made available. Many of these metallurgical marvels have been designed specifically for the benefit of the distaff side of the house, such as the gleaming stainless steel sink, the enameled gas range, stainless or clad metal pots and pans, satin-like silver and keen carving tools.
"The wider and more attractive horizons to lure the venturesome metallurgist now seem to lie in the direction of preparing metals for use, since the basic knowledge of separating metals from ores has been pretty well solved and great strides have likewise been made in the metals and economies of refining metals."
Commenting on some belief that the use of ferrous metals (steel iron and their alloys) may be displaced in the not distant future because of desirable qualities of the light metals, aluminum and magnesium, Mr. Tower declared, '!It does not seem likely that future progress of metallurgical skills will bring any considerable displacement of ferrous metals by the non-ferrous. It is likely, and perhaps desirable, that in some uses other metals may take the place which some kind of steel has heretofore occupied. However, as we know metals, it seems clear that the broad foundation of industrial use of metallic products must continue indefinitely to rest on the ferrous family. That conclusion is supported by the facts in regard to potential supply, prospective cost of production, price to the user and versatility in use.
"In none of those four respects has the ferrous family any serious rival. What the metallurgist has done and can still hope to do in preparation of ferrous metals for use has no parallel elsewhere.
"In every consideration of the use of metals, it is important to recognize that we are dealing with exhaustible resources. Every ton of metal extracted, refined and put to use is an irreplaceable subtraction from the aggregate which this earth offers. Some metals, once used, can be recovered from scrap, and in secondary form contribute substantially and repeatedly to the needs of industry. But existing resources cannot be increased by any magic of metallurgists. Synthetic metals in quantities are beyond the imagining of fiction. You metallurgists, therefore, are custodians of materials on which the welfare of countless generations must depend." R. H. OPPERMANN.