Bessemer process

American  

noun

Metallurgy.

1. a process of producing steel, in which impurities are removed by forcing a blast of air through molten iron.

---

Bessemer process British  

noun

1. (formerly) a process for producing steel by blowing air through molten pig iron at about 1250°C in a Bessemer converter: silicon, manganese, and phosphorus impurities are removed and the carbon content is controlled

2. a similar process for removing sulphur and iron from copper matte

---

Bessemer process Scientific  

/ bĕs′ə-mər /

1. A method for making steel by forcing compressed air through molten iron to burn out carbon and other impurities.

---

Etymology

Origin of Bessemer process

First recorded in 1855–60; after H. Bessemer

Example Sentences

The availability of cheap steel from the Bessemer process in the late 19th century opened up a new era of bridge building: graceful steel forms spanned greater and greater distances.

From Scientific American • Jun. 13, 2020

The Bessemer process, named for English inventor Henry Bessemer, and the open-hearth process, changed the way the United States produced steel and, in doing so, led the country into a new industrialized age.

From Textbooks • Dec. 30, 2014

In the 1870s, Carnegie became the first person in the United States to build steel plants that used the Bessemer process.

From Textbooks • Jan. 1, 2012

The Bessemer process produced good steel at a much lower cost.

From Textbooks • Jan. 1, 2012

Further purification is commonly carried on by a process very similar to the Bessemer process for steel.

From An Elementary Study of Chemistry by McPherson, William