Chapter 155: First step in trying to make glass and steel
Chapter 155: First step in trying to make glass and steel
In the afternoon Einar, who was looking at the forge with his ski goggles, was trying to make some red and sandy stones start to melt.
This because he was thinking of making the first refractory bricks to build a furnace to create glass.
“Seren, you can wipe the sweat from my forehead, if it keeps accumulating it could fog up the glasses.”
Seren who was next to him used a linen cloth to wipe the sweat from Einar’s forehead.
“To think that the red stone where we get the iron ore can work to make glass and what you call steel.
But how could you find the information on that, did Odin tell you? “
Einar smiled nervously and nodded his head “It was something like that …”
‘Although the truth is just that I did not remember that bauxite also had aluminum ore, so in theory, if it melts with sand it could create a firebrick.
To think that I remembered this after finding a bauxite stone while preparing the hot spring pool in the north fort.
I may be wrong but if I don’t prove it, I’ll never know if I was right. ‘
After waiting for a while, Einar could see the bauxite and sea sand starting to melt.
Although they did not reach the level that he wanted because the heat was not strong enough, using a pair of tongs, he took out the stone container where they were melting.
To later empty the content into an earth mold that had the shape of a brick, when you finished emptying all the content.
Einar put the stone container inside the forge, and after wiping the sweat, he looked seriously at Seren.
“Very well we just made the first firebrick prototype, but since I am not sure if this is the right way we will do the next one using the brick made of clay, sea sand, and Bauxite stones.
If everything goes well, we will only have to place it in the forge over indirect heat so that the material can self-enrage.
We will have to repeat this process enough times until we can make a small oven using the partitions of the two methods.
If everything works out correctly, we will melt sea sand to make glass, then at that moment we will see which method is the correct one to make the
firebrick.
Once we have the correct method, we will only have to repeat it countless times, until we can make a large furnace in which to melt the iron so that it becomes directly into steel.
Which will lead us to a series of investigations because if I remember correctly, high carbon steel is the lasts but less flexible while low carbon steel is more flexible but less resistant.
I really don’t know if I’m correct, but either way, we can find out if my claims are correct or incorrect once we start testing with a blast furnace.
By the way, Seren, you think Gerd and Ibssen will take a long time to make the forge bellows that I asked of them. “
Seren, who was using a pair of pliers to hold the raw firebrick, made a small face as she tried to time the Bellows construction.
“It should take less than three days, which gives us enough time to prepare all the bricks and start building the prototype kilns.
But the real question is if you really have time to be with me when you should be with the Inuit warriors. “
Einar laughed and put in the Bauxite stone and sea sand container “I don’t worry too much because now my father should be with them showing them the advantage of using skis in the snow.
Although it has already started to melt, there is enough left to do some tests so that they know a little more about what we do.
Furthermore, this is only going to take us some time because we are only making the basis of what the artisans will end up doing later.
But if I’m honest, I would like to be here enjoying a little more physical work, although unfortunately, I am the only person who can learn the language of the Inuit warriors.
That means that I have to be with them as long as possible so that I can master their language. The positive side of those would mean that we could establish a long-term business relationship.
Where we could get cheap ivory and maybe a few more things that they have in their tribe but have no value.
Either way, it would be an extra income for our tribe and in the future when the merchants from the southern islands arrive, we will be able to buy all their merchandise and in the process perhaps make our tribe even more trade-friendly.
It’s just that more trade would mean a bit more trouble for us, as I’m sure a few Vikings are going to want to get the riches we’ve been getting.
Fortunately, if those merchants have enough slaves, this year we could finish the defenses of our city.
At that time, just using the crossbows will be more than enough to repel their attacks. “
Seren, who had listened to everything just wiped the sweat from her forehead and looked proudly at Einar “You know, during the last years that we’ve been where Isla is, your father had never thought of a wall or something bigger.
But since you’ve changed, you’ve just turned the entire tribe into something that makes me proud, I’m even just waiting when the orphan building is ready.
In order to let my children go to school, if they can learn more than I could, I am sure they will be good integrations for the tribe.
It’s a shame that I couldn’t get in with the pilot group you did, sometimes they are a bit annoying.
But luckily thanks to Laura and Daven they arrive quite tired, so I don’t have them running around.
I can’t imagine how your children are going to be, I’m sure they will be true leaders who will guide the tribe to great places. “
Einar smiled and emptied the contents of the stone container into another earthen mold.
“Those two little children, I am sure they will achieve great things, they could even be good guardians of my children.
As for my future children, I am sure that they will do what they want as long as they do it respecting the tribe and themselves.
Well, if those two points cannot be respected, then only problems will be created between them or between the whole tribe.
So at that time, my education as a father would show that it was not the correct one and that I ended up making children who only think of themselves.
When we are a society where each of us counts and all our actions influence it.
But that only the future will decide, for now, I think we should start bringing in the other artisans to help us and learn the process. “
So it was happening to you in Seren’s workshop, on the slope on the hill where Einar’s house was.
Natukt was enjoying the air on his face as he sped down the slope using the skis.
Although he did not understand how skis worked, thanks to Sven’s demonstration and the intuition he developed from all the time that he had been living in a place where there is a lot of snow.
He managed to be one of the few Inuit warriors who managed to use skis without any problem, so while his warrior brothers saw him he was going down the hill with a smile on his face.
‘I definitely have to get a lot of these tools, as I’m sure they are going to help our tribe a lot.
Just imagining that we can use them for children, maybe we could find a way to ambush those wretches from the south and at once manage to expel them from our lands.
I just hope I can understand the language of these people, so I can trade in a faster and easier way. ‘
After fully descending the hill, Natukt pulled his glasses off his face and looked at them approvingly.
“With some of these things we could walk through the snowstorms when we are fishing, but I really don’t know how valuable they are.
Well, I think gold is gold, so I am sure it will be quite difficult to exchange something of value with them, but you may be interested in green stones that glow in the dark.
Although they are some of the most precious assets our tribe has, I am sure it will be a worthwhile deal. “
After looking at his goggles for a while, I put them back on and he took off his skis to go back up the slope because he wanted to try again to go down it at full speed.
When he got back up, he showed the glasses to his warrior brothers so they could see the potential of that gadget that covered their eyes.
Sven who was watching it just laughed silently because those glasses were one of the best creations Einar had made because their use was quite varied.
Not only could they use them to protect themselves from sunlight, but they also served the craftsmen and warriors who took care of the night.
Well, they protected their eyes from the cold that was there or the air that often hurt them when they toured their area that they had to take care of.