IRONSAND WORKS.

Taranaki Daily News, Volume LIV, Issue 230, 27 March 1912, Page 7

IRONSAND WORKS.

START SOON TO BE MADE. MORE PRECIOUS THAN IRON. WHAT THE INVENTORS CLAIM. It is only a matter of days now before, if the consummation of years of hope and experiment is to be realised, pig-iron will be in the pro -ss of manufacture at Moturoa. The i'a-woa Iron Ore Co.'s works at the port are almost completed, and no time will be lost in commencing operations. Two months ago the site was thickly covered with lupins, and these have disappeared, and in their stead several well-planned buildings have been erected. It is common history that many thousands of pounds have been spent in time past in trying to bring this latent wealth that Taranaki has in its ironsand to a marketable commodity. A few days ago a "News" representative was shown over the works by Mr. James Dunbar, the general manager of the contractors for the plant, Messrs Cooper and Duncan. Ltd., Christchurch. At the time of his visit men were busy erecting buildings, placing machinery and putting in concrete foundations, which gave at once the conviction that the plant is being installed for future developments. What strikes one most is the fine 50-fo.h.p. producer gas engine, by Hornsby and Co.. Grantham, England. This arrived from' Sydney by the Corinna on her last trip, and* the erection has been pushed on so well that it will be going this week. The big concrete foundations also takes the eye. The engine will be driven by a "Cambridge" gas producer, made by Messrs Booth, McDonald and Co., and it will make the gas to. drive the engine' as it is required. It is the first of its kind in New Plymouth. The principle that is being adopted to treat the ironsand is to convert the substance into briquettes competed of ironsand and suitable fluxes. These will be subjected to great heat in an improved smelter, which was shown to the reporter in process of being; bricked up. This is of defined shape inside and has the necessary water service to keep the necessary parts cool I during process of smelting. The fuel and ore are fed from a platform at the top. This is constructed of steel plates and iron stanchions, with a stair to reach the top of same. The whole design closely follows the modern blast furnace and differs very materially from that used by the late Mr. E. M. Smith—who did so much for the ironsand industry—years ago. PLANT NOT TEMPORARY. A powerful blast is also provided by means of a Roots' blower. In fact, a visitor cannot fail to be agreeably surprised at the thorough preparations and i the up-to-date plant that the company is putting in. Some people have the idea that the plant is temporary, but a visit to the works dispels this idea. The ground is covered with cases of machinery, some from America and England, and as much as possible from 'Dominion firms. The main building comprises the engine room, and adjoining same is the room that holds the brick-making plant, capa/ble of turning out 20,000 full-sized bricks, or if briquettes are required it could produce 100,000 of these. The machine itself takes up about 25ft in length. The interior of the. foundry contains the pig-bed for the finished product. At one end are two furnaces, to be woTked under a new process, the exact nature of which was not disclosed to our representative. It- is the outcome of years of experimenting bv Messrs J. C. Smith and W. Tweedalc, of this town, and is to recover other precious metals of much more value than iron.

With foresight the company has decided to be in a position to do'their own repairs, and a tine works hi,;) has been erected containing a separatogas engine, by Clayton and Shuttlcworth.' England' ball-ben ring drilling machine, forge.'pnmp and other plant. "Adjoining the shed is an oflice -ad laboratory, which can be used by the caretaker if necessary. Brick sheds to dry the briquette's are also under construction, and Mr. Duriibar informed the reporter that the whole plant will bo ready to hand over to the- Paraparu company this week. The works have given employment to quite a number of men, and if desired the sand deposits can be worked by means of a wire ropeor aerial tramway, so as to expedite the conveyance of .sand from the rich deposits at the back of the works to the drying-sheds. There is ample fall in the land for the purpose. Subsequent to the mixing (with clay and limestone) and drying process, the briquettes will be taken to another bra'Hi of the works. Here the smelting is undergone.

EUREKA! Now comes the element of secrecy about the works in which the inventor* claim lies the eureka c:' the ironsand project. . Their process is auxiliary to the smelting for treating refractory metals that are in the ironsand. Beyond this unembellished statement practically nothing else could be gleaned by the reporter as to the nature of the process. A rival company is afoot, it is asserted, somewhere on the West Coast, and there in doubtless lie* much of the reason for the company's reticence. Immediately a prospective visitor hoves in sight of the works at Moturoa he is confronted with a conspicuous notice warning the public "off the course." In the case of the pressman the objection to entrance was waived, with certain reservations. Regarding the proposed < orations, Mr. Dunbar stated that later on it might pay the company to erect revolving magnets. These will separate the liYht grey, and consequently useless, sand from the ironblack variety. In the meantime there re no necessity for the magnets, for a quantity of the sand on the beach is §0 rich that it is practically pure ironsand. In all the company has a leasa of 45 acres of sand, running over nearly a mile of beach. For the purpose of at first only tapping the richest deposits extant, the beach will be picked over. IRON NOT THE ONLY GOAL. While at the works our representative had an interesting chat with Mr. J. Smith, one of the inventors of the secret process for dealing with the refractoryores, and who is a son of the late Mr. E. M. Smith. According to Mr. Smith, lie and his colaborator (Mr. W. Tweedale) had been working at their idea for the past two years, and as a result they now claimed to have perfected a new process for treating the sand. Iron, explained Mr. Smith, was not their only objective. As far back as '2.'i years ago iron had been culled from the sand by his father, but within the last two years more valuable metals than that had. lie asserted been extracted from the sand. He referred to certain new metals, one of which lis said had all the properties of platinum. He added that it had been tested for motor cur work, and also at an Australian wireless station, with good results. This new metal had not, said Mr. Smith, ever been put on the market before. Underlying the sand are deposit* of «lay, and besides manufacturing pig-iron and the other metals which are' to be experimented upon, the company has procvided machinery capable of turning out 25,(W1 bricks per day. TO BE OR NOT TO BE? As soon as the plant is in running order a start will be nuultt with the proposed new industry. There will be no opening ceremony, no preliminary flourish of trumpets, and if the statement of

those interested is to be. relied upon the whole .scheme is to he given an exhaustive trial. So within a comparatively short time Taranaki should be in the position of knowing whether the ironsand industry is to be a success or not. The result will doubtless be awaited with interest, for if it is that the iron and other metals said to exist can be produced, and at the same time as a payable proposition, there should be no limit to the production, seeing that the deposits are practically inexhaustible.