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Iron and Steel

  • Coke smelting (Abraham Darby, 1709): Used coke (purified coal) rather than charcoal to smelt iron, dramatically increasing iron production while saving forests.
  • Puddling process (Henry Cort, 1784): Improved the production of wrought iron.
  • Bessemer process (Henry Bessemer, 1856): Allowed mass production of high-quality steel by blowing air through molten iron. Steel became the structural material of the Second Industrial Revolution: railroads, skyscrapers, bridges, ships.
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