Great Power Industry: You're a private company building an aircraft carrier?

"Brother Chuan, everything you asked me to do is done." Li Jianshe greeted him excitedly.

The things Brother Chuan arranged must be done perfectly!

At this moment, the others who had arrived at the steelmaking furnace also looked over, saw the oil drum, and were surprised to smell the familiar odor.

"diesel fuel?"

What are you going to do with diesel fuel?

"Quenching!"

"Quenching with diesel fuel? This...this is such a waste!"

Half a barrel of diesel fuel, how much money would that cost!

"What's the waste? We'll just use it once, filter out the impurities, and continue using it as diesel fuel."

Agricultural single-cylinder engines are not picky about fuel; they can start even with soybean oil in them.

"But, won't this quenching process cause a fire?"

This is diesel fuel!

Putting scorching hot steel in there, it would be a miracle if it didn't catch fire.

"A fire? That's impossible. Combustion requires two conditions. We can just put a lid on it."

Combustion requires not only fuel but also oxygen. When steel is placed in the combustion chamber, it is immediately submerged. Therefore, although the diesel fuel around the steel is heated to a high temperature, it cannot ignite because it cannot come into contact with oxygen.

Even if it catches fire, don't worry, just like if a pot of oil catches fire, you can simply put the lid on.

"Master, I've heard you say that there are two main methods of quenching: water quenching and oil quenching. For large and thick steel pieces, oil quenching is better, but it also has its drawbacks."

"But what's the defect again? I forgot, can you tell me?" Pan San asked.

"That's right. Oil has a weaker cooling capacity than water, so it's less likely to cause steel to break during quenching."

"But oil isn't a panacea either. Oil cools slowly, making it difficult to harden large volumes of steel, and the material surface is prone to oil stains, making it inconvenient to clean," Zhao Shuren said.

He's a veteran craftsman from the Yellow River Factory; he's got real skills!

They had originally planned to watch the show after hearing about quenching, but now that they realized the other side knew about oil quenching, they had to turn around and find the flaws in oil quenching.

"Yes, you seemed to be saying that additives are needed?"

"That's right, we need additives, but these additives are top secret. No master craftsman would reveal the additive formula he has mastered over many years of experience."

"At our Yellow River Factory, there are several experienced craftsmen who make extra money by specializing in this skill."

Zhao Shuren appeared very magnanimous: "Since we're here at Laiyang Factory today, we should offer some advice and suggestions for your factory!"

"You might as well wait a moment. I'll go and invite one of our factory's experienced workers over to help you solve the problem. It will only cost you a thousand yuan each time, and I guarantee that the mold steel will reach its original strength."

additive?

Li Jianshe suddenly remembered something: "Oh right, Brother Chuan, you also asked me to buy some other things, are they additives?"

As he spoke, Li Jianshe took another bag out of the car, which contained several different raw materials.

Qin Chuan nodded: "That's right, you bought the quantity I told you to, right? Pour it all in!"

Zhao Shuren's eyes widened; at that moment, he was deeply shocked.

This person is so young, yet knows so much!

Knowing to use oil quenching is one thing, but knowing to use additives in it is another?

"Xiao Chuan, what are the ingredients in this additive?" He tried his best to keep a friendly expression, as if he were a kind elder.

"I just heard someone say that this additive is a top secret. No master craftsman would reveal the additive formula he has mastered over many years of experience. Master Zhao, did your apprentice just say that?"

Pan San's face immediately turned red, and Zhao Shuren's expression also turned ugly.

Qin Jianguo frowned. This was a master craftsman we had invited. Master craftsmen from the Yellow River Factory were not easy to hire, and they usually worked around the provincial capital. Few were willing to come to a remote place like Laiyang.

If we anger Master Zhao and he leaves...

“Jianshe, they’re talking about a master craftsman, a recipe with years of experience. I’m not a master craftsman, and there’s nothing secret about this recipe. Since Master Zhao is interested, just tell me.”

"Ok."

Li Jianshe nodded: "It's nothing much, just petroleum soap and some kind of calcium cyclic compound. Oh, and there's one more thing... Brother Chuan, I went to several places but couldn't find it. Finally, following your directions, I bought it at the hospital."

"However, the doctor looked at me very strangely and made me write a guarantee."

Petroleum soap is common; it's sodium sulfonate, which is very common in industry. The cyclohexane calcium is probably calcium naphthenate. Zhao Shuren knows that if these additives are mixed in, diesel fuel will be turned into rapid quenching oil.

Under normal circumstances, when a workpiece enters the quenching oil, bubbles will quickly form on its surface, isolating the workpiece from the quenching oil and thus hindering the quenching effect.

These additives adhere to the surface of the workpiece, forming the fulcrum of vapor bubbles, making it difficult for a stable vapor film to form.

But what else do I need to buy at the hospital?

"Xiao Chuan, what did you buy at the hospital?" Zhao Shuren knew Li Jianshe wouldn't be able to answer, so he simply asked Qin Chuan.

"The furnace is full of molten steel, we can start casting!" Zhang Wanhe shouted at that moment.

Everyone quieted down and looked toward the steel furnace.

Molten steel flows out of the discharge port and is then skillfully caught by experienced workers using long-handled crucibles.

Large steel plants have specialized equipment for transferring molten iron, some of which are overhead cranes and others are forklifts with tilting structures, integrating handling and casting.

However, even so, safety accidents still frequently occurred. Later, the transfer of molten iron was carried out using automated unmanned equipment, which improved safety.

As for now, small factories like Laiyang Steel Plant have no equipment at all.

It has only a handle that is a little over two meters long, with a crucible attached to the bottom. It's like using a shovel to transfer molten steel from the steelmaking furnace to the casting mold.

This method is extremely primitive, but since Laiyang Steel Plant will not be manufacturing large quantities of cast iron products in the future, it is still fine to use it once or twice occasionally.

The one in front leaves, and the one behind follows to receive the molten steel, and then they are cast in sequence.

Soon, one sand mold was filled, and then the second one was cast.

Once the second casting was complete, Qin Chuan pointed to the first one and said, "Demold it, lift the workpiece out, and throw it into the quenching oil!"

The most crucial step—quenching—is about to begin!

The hemispherical mold is at the perfect temperature right now, so there's no need for secondary heating; it can be quenched directly!

Anyway, the sand mold doesn't need to be used a second time, so you can just smash it.

Qin Jianguo hesitated for a moment, but still did not stop him.

According to his experience as an old steelworker, castings should not be demolded for two days. If you smash them now, aren't you afraid of casting defects?

The sand mold was smashed open, and the hot, hemispherical mold was thrown into the quenching oil, making a hissing sound.

"Science, grab a stick and stir it!"