In the shocked eyes of the craftsmen, Li Xiao smiled and said nothing. Pen ~ fun ~ pavilion www.biquge.info

In his previous life, as a college student majoring in iron and steel metallurgy in the 21st century, Li Xiao certainly knew that the 100 steelmaking in this era actually had fatal flaws.

Because, the softness and hardness of steel are closely related to carbon, and the high carbon content is hard, and the low is soft. The most ideal situation of sword weapons is that the outside is hard and the inside is soft, the outside is hard and the edge is sharp, and the inside is soft so that the sword body is elastic and not easy to break.

However, in the process of repeated forging, the outer layer of steel is exposed to air, the carbon is oxidized, and the steel becomes soft due to the reduction of carbon. The interior is not in contact with oxygen, and the carbon is not reduced much. In this way, a structure is formed that is soft on the outside and the inside, the blade is soft and not sharp enough, and the sword body is brittle and hard enough to be tough.

It is true that Bailian forging helps to remove the slag inside the steel and reduce the size of the residual slag, so that its composition tends to be uniform, the structure tends to be dense, the grain is refined, and the performance of the steel is improved; However, the uncoordinated distribution of carbon content is its inevitable defect.

Moreover, in the process of steelmaking, because of repeated folding and forging, an oxide film is formed between the layers, and the metal fatigue is caused by repeated folding, so it is sharp at the same time, but also becomes very brittle and cannot withstand strong collisions.

And Li Xiao's ugly sword, because it is quenched with eutectic steel, the entire sword body forms a hard martensite, which is extremely hard, and after quenching, it is reheated to heat the sword body to 500-600 degrees, which is called tempering. After quenching and then tempering, the tempered sostenite is formed inside the steel, which becomes stronger, stronger, and sharper, far from being comparable to the hardness of 100 steels.

This comprehensive heat treatment process of quenching and high-temperature tempering, in modern steel production, there is a special term, called quenching and tempering.

The eutectic steel that has been quenched and tempered, compared with the hundred steels of the ancestors, has surpassed two thousand years in technology, and it is self-evident what the result of their collision will be.

It's just that because this kind of knowledge is too beyond this era, those craftsmen who are basically illiterate or semi-literate are really difficult to understand such modern knowledge, so Li Xiao can't explain the principle to them in detail. I had to vaguely tell them that this was a method that I had met with a master before and learned about it under his guidance.

The craftsmen are all rough people who only learn from experience and are unwilling to delve into the roots, so Li Xiao's explanation was also fooled. Now that he knows Li Xiao's brand-new crucible steelmaking technology, Zuo Yan and the others are all full of joy. As we all know, now with this high-carbon steel production technology, the steel production of Tielong City can be greatly increased, and there is no need to try their luck to produce a good piece of steel as before.

Li Xiao, who was also smiling, asked Yan Jun: "What is the number of people engaged in steel production and the production equipment in Iron Dragon City now?" ”

Yan Jun replied with a proud face; "Lord Li, since the end of last year, the prisoners brought back from Henan have been added to the Iron Dragon City in large numbers, and now there are 6 blast furnaces and 4 frying furnaces in the Iron Dragon City, and the daily wrought iron output is more than 72,000 catties on average.

Li Xiao smiled on his face, and he was very happy in his heart.

He knew that in the middle of Wanli, when the industry and commerce of the Ming Dynasty reached its peak, the total amount of iron produced in the country in a year was only 180,000 tons, and the iron ore consumption was about 40 to 450,000 tons.

This number, which sounds like a lot, is simply not worth mentioning compared to modern China.

You must know that in contemporary China, as early as 2007, the total annual steel output was 489.66 million tons, compared with the Ming Dynasty, it is not an exaggeration.

And now their daily steel output is 720,000 catties, that is, 36 tons, then, according to the calculation of 20 days of production in a month, the output of a month is 720 tons, and the output of a year can reach 8,640 tons!

Li Xiao's Iron Dragon City, although the annual steel output is as small as a mustard in modern China, is enough to be proud of the iron yards and workshops throughout the Ming Dynasty.

According to modern China, Shanxian County's iron ore reserves alone have 150 million tons of rich ore veins, which is enough for dozens of generations of self-mining, and Li Xiao does not have to worry about the shortage of ore at all.

While Li Xiao smiled and pondered, Wu Liang still added with joy: "Lord Li, now in my Iron Dragon City, the manpower arrangement is roughly 6,000 people, 4,000 people in grinding, washing, screening and transportation, 6,000 male workers operating blast furnaces and frying furnaces, and more than 18,000 male workers and nearly 10,000 female workers in the forging and smelting field. In addition, there are 500 men and 500 women in the ammunition factory, 500 men in the trebuchet factory, and 300 men in the development of artillery guns. ”

Hearing Yan Jun talk about the development of artillery and firearms, Li Xiao's eyes lit up.

He secretly said in his heart that he had been paying attention to other affairs, but he didn't know how the current progress of artillery and firearm development was progressing.

Next, Li Xiao gave Yan Jun a regulation, requiring him to start producing steel from crucibles in large quantities from now on, based on the calculation that a crucible can produce 50 catties of steel, and use 40 crucibles to produce together each time, so that the output can reach 2,000 catties at a time, that is, the output of 1 ton. Because crucibles are consumables, it takes time to remake crucibles, and a month is calculated as 15 days of production time, so that the output of qualified high-carbon steel per month reaches the minimum production standard of 15 tons.

Li Xiao emphasized that all the high-hardness and high-strength steel produced now are used to make and replace the original gunner's stainless steel gun heads, so that the gun heads are sharper and more durable.

Then, the shield skin of the shield soldier was replaced with this type of steel, making the shield lighter and less defensive, but several times more defensive.

If there is still a surplus of steel, it will be used for the research and development of artillery and firearms. Because the ductility and durability of steel can be much stronger than that of concocted guns made of wrought iron, Li Xiao plans to directly skip the original stage of using wrought iron to make artillery and guns when the existing steel can be supplied in sufficient quantities, and use all steel for production.

Yan Jun agreed to Li Xiao's request, and he assured Li Xiao that he would definitely do a good job in this steel production work with quality and quantity.

After leaving the steel smelting area, Li Xiaozhen took over the artillery and firearm R&D base in the northwest area of Tielong City.

At this time, Zhao Jie, the chief of firearms, with Fulang Aranda, Ami Er, and Sa Cong, as well as a group of craftsmen who Li Xiao exchanged salt money from Dongjiang Town, were preparing to test and cast a light Hongyi cannon.

According to Li Xiao's original instructions, Zhao Jie and other R&D craftsmen should give priority to the development of artillery, and then develop firearms.

This is because the current Tigers have a thirst for artillery with good performance and powerful firepower, far more than guns such as the Lumi Gun.

In this era, firecrackers, including the Lumi guns, were far less powerful than the army infantry of later generations because of their unstable performance and high probability of not hitting or exploding. And taking the Lumi gun as an example, the average service life is only about 50 rounds, and it will be scrapped because of the cracking of the barrel, so it is not particularly helpful for the army that is still in the transition from cold weapons to hot weapons.

In the Elephant Tiger Army, there are still more than 40 Lumi guns left, because they are approaching the service life of Lumi guns. In the next battle, Li Xiao really didn't plan to send them to the battlefield again.

And the current Tiger Army, in fact, the biggest weakness is the lack of siege means.

The last time I attacked the city on the edge of the town, if it weren't for the fact that the city was not covered with bricks, and the rammed earth of the city wall was soft due to its disrepair, it would have been impossible to successfully capture the city with Li Xiao's trebuchet throwing thunder.

And if the town border city cannot be captured, Li Xiao's series of plans later will only be empty talk.

And to conquer the city, the best way, of course, is to bombard the city with heavy artillery, with a very impactful solid cannonball, smash the city walls and gates, in this way, can greatly reduce the siege time, reduce the number of soldiers, and crush the enemy army defending the city from the momentum.

For example, in real history, when Li Zicheng was guarding Tongguan, the Qing army general Duoduo would rather spend nearly a month waiting for the Hongyi cannon to arrive in order to successfully capture Tongguan, rather than let his soldiers and ants join the siege of the city, thus adding unnecessary deaths.

Because considering that artillery such as the Franco, Tiger Squat Cannon, and Shenwei General Cannon, whether it is a siege or a defense, the power is insufficient, and there are trebuchets and earth-shaking thunder that can replace part of their functions, so Li Xiao asked Zhao Jie and them to make every effort to imitate the Hongyi cannon under the condition of a limited number of craftsmen, so that the Tiger Army can also have the ability to attack the fortified city.

Seeing Li Xiao coming, Zhao Jie hurriedly ordered everyone to stop what they were doing and greeted Li Xiao. Li Xiao warmly greeted them, especially the three Portuguese, and Li Xiao asked them how they were doing in a caring tone.

"Master Li, we live very well in Iron Dragon City, in order to make us get used to our lives, from housing to food, Manager Wu Liang has arranged for us very thoughtfully." Fulang Aranda said to Li Xiao with a happy face.

"Yes, thank God for allowing us to meet Master Li, and now here, we get enough monthly salary, we don't have to worry about living expenses, etc., and we can devote ourselves to the development of firearms, this feeling is really wonderful." Sa Cong interjected from the side with a wink.

"Master Li, we are thinking that when the artillery is successfully developed, we still want to bring our families from Macao, and I will tell them that in this oriental country, the living conditions are no worse than in our own country or Macao, and we can live together as a family."

Amigil spoke last, and as soon as he finished speaking, the three Portuguese all looked at Li Xiao with an expectant look.

Li Xiao laughed and patted everyone on the shoulder affectionately: "Don't worry, your request, this official promises that you will definitely do it, if the artillery is successfully developed, you can go to Macao to pick up your family, and from then on, the family will be reunited, and you will settle in my Iron Dragon City with peace of mind." ”

Li Xiao's answer made the three Portuguese very happy, and then Li Xiao chatted with everyone for a while, and then began to look at the light Hongyi artillery that Zhao Jie and they were developing.

The Hongyi cannon that Zhao Jie and the others are developing is a copper-tired iron core cannon.

This is at the end of the Ming Dynasty, Denglai Governor Sun Yuanhua and others, after obtaining the bronze made of Western Hongyi cannon, imitated and improved, and developed an advanced cannon casting method on their own.

In Europe at the same time, homogeneous copper or iron cannons were still cast, and no consideration was given to mixing the two materials to reduce costs. It was not until the mid-eighteenth century that hydraulic machinery became popular, and the method of casting solid metal cylinders and drilling them into gun chambers appeared in Europe to obtain better performance guns.

And this method of making artillery, in short, is to first cast an iron barrel, then wrap a clay fan on it, and then cast a layer of copper barrel. The result was a double-layer barrel with copper on the outside and iron on the inside, which reduced the weight of the gun. It also has the advantages of iron cannons and copper cannons, that is, they are more durable than iron cannons and cheaper than copper cannons. This cannon is not only sturdy and durable, the range is slightly longer than that of a pure iron cannon, and the cost is much cheaper than a pure copper cannon.

This is the main reason why at the end of the Ming Dynasty, since the Denglai firearms research and development base was put into use, Sun Yuanhua and others were able to quickly produce hundreds of Hongyi cannons in large quantities within a few years.

In fact, at this time, the artillery could be made entirely of bronze, which was not only convenient to make, but also better than the iron cannon. In fact, until 1850, most artillery pieces were made of bronze or brass, especially large-caliber guns that pursued performance.

But the biggest reason why, in the course of historical development, copper cannons have gradually been replaced by iron cannons, is that because Europe is a copper-deficient region, limited by the production and price of copper, the price of each copper cannon is five times that of the same type of iron cannon!

In this way, the iron cannon is simply too cheap compared to the copper cannon. Saving money and producing large quantities is the main reason why Western countries have vigorously developed steel casting technology and made every effort to develop iron cannons for hundreds of years.

The manufacturing technology of copper tire iron core cannon invented by Sun Yuanhua can be regarded as the product of a compromise between the two. Of course, there are also specific factors that take into account China's lack of copper. Because China, like Europe, is very poor in copper, and it is a notoriously poor copper country. If it is to be made of bronze and brass like the imported Hongyi cannons, because the price of copper can make the price of iron much more expensive, I am afraid that it will not be able to afford it for the difficult finances of the late Ming Dynasty.

And if you really want to solve the problem of expensive copper mines, unless the Ming Empire has the ability to occupy Luzon, because many islands in the Philippines are rich in copper ore. It's just that for the last Ming Dynasty, this is obviously beyond its capabilities.

Being able to combine the durable advantages of copper cannons with the cheap advantages of iron cannons is also Sun Yuanhua's cleverness.

As for the current European iron cannons, although they are also cast, their performance is still much worse than that of copper cannons with long-term production practices. For example, the barrel life of the current European copper cannon is 1,000 rounds, while the iron cannon is only 600 rounds. Only the British produced iron cannons with better performance, but their prices were four or five times higher than those made in other European countries.

But in fact, the reason for the good performance of the British iron cannons was also because they adopted a rather extravagant manufacturing method: they did not use the coal iron-making method that is currently popular in Europe, but made all the iron cannons out of charcoal, similar to the best quality Fujian iron production in the Ming Dynasty, thus ensuring the performance of the iron cannons.

The price of the good performance of the British iron cannon was that the entire United Kingdom was over-deforested and the forest cover was extremely low. It was not until the 18th century, when Britain began to use coking coal for ironmaking, that this problem was partially alleviated. However, in the end, it was not until the second half of the 19th century, after the invention of the method of desulfurization and dephosphorization by slag method, that this problem was truly solved.

Therefore, although China's artillery at the end of the Ming Dynasty was imported from foreign countries, through imitation and self-reliance research, the performance of the new cannon actually produced was no worse than that of Western artillery, and a cast copper-tired iron core cannon had an average service life of nearly 900 rounds, and in terms of mass production and production speed, it was better than similar European products.

It is said that after Sun Yuanhua produced this unique copper-tired iron-core red cannon in China, the Portuguese who participated in the development of it all sighed that the wisdom and ability of the Chinese would definitely only be higher than that of the Europeans, who regarded themselves very highly.

Therefore, now Zhao Jie and the others inherit and use this kind of cannon casting technology developed by Sun Yuanhua in Dengzhou, which is really a normal thing.

It's just that Li Xiao, who was originally watching Zhao Jie and them busy with a group of craftsmen, what he didn't expect was that in the end, he only heard Zhao Jie's sigh of regret.

"Alas, why is the barrel bad again." (To be continued.) )