What are the processes to make iron in the early iron industry?
In the west, at the beginning of the Iron Age, a type of furnace called a bloomery was used for treating iron ore. It was a pit or chimney with walls of clay, earth, or stone--heat resistant. Clay pipes near the bottom allowed air to get in. Charcoal was used to heat the bloomery. Iron ore and more charcoal was added through the top.The process reduces iron oxides metallic iron without melting it. The first blast furnaces for iron were developedin China.
