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-iron ore and limestone melt when temperatures reach 2,000 to 3,000 degrees Fahrenheit. Ouch! Charcoal is almost free of sulfur, and its ash, consisting largely of lime and alkalis, supplied part of the flux necessary for proper separation.
The manufacture of charcoal was at least as complex and perhaps more so than the operation of the iron furnace, so much so that charcoal production was considered an art with the necessary skills sometimes referred to as “The Mystery of Charring.” The one thing that was not a mystery was the quantity of charcoal required. The numbers are staggering: an average iron furnace would consume from 600-800 bushels of charcoal every 24 hours. This required about 30-40 cords of wood from trees 25-30 years old. To give some perspective, some furnaces con1 sumed the equivalent of a mature acre of woodland per f day!
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