Excerpt from Basic Slags and Rock Phosphates

The utilisation of basic slag in agriculture is an excellent example of the help that modern science affords to the working farmer. A waste product of steel-making, resulting from a modification by Thomas and Gilchrist in 1878 of the Bessemer process, it was at first considered worthless and thrown on the refuse heap. The late Prof. John Wrightson made field experiments in 1884 and 1885 at Ferryhill and at Downton, and showed that the material had noticeable fer tilising value: this discovery was confirmed and developed by the systematic pot experiments of Paul Wagner at Darmstadt, which began in 1885 and continued for several years afterwards. Extensive field tests were made during the 'nineties by Sir (then Professor) J. J. Dobbie and Prof. D. A. Gilchrist at Bangor, and by Prof. W. Somerville and later on by Sir T. H. Middleton at Cockle Park, with the result that a considerable body of information was accumulated as to the effectiveness of basic slag under the various conditions obtaining in practice. This has already been summarised by Prof. Somerville in the Journal of the Board of Agriculture for 1911, 1918, etc.

Some ten years ago, however, it became evident that the basic open hearth process would be a serious competitor with the Bessemer process, and chemical examination showed that the slag, though correctly described as 'basic slag, ' was altogether different from the material with which the agriculturist had become familiar. The upheaval caused by war and post-war conditions gave an enormous impetus to the Open hearth process, and it is now extending to so many works that before long the older process will probably cease to be Operated.

This result is of course distinctly awkward for the agriculturist who sees a valuable fertiliser disappearing, and being replaced by one which is more costly and at first sight seems to be nothing like as good.

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