Quality of foundry coke in question

Press, Volume CXII, Issue 33065, 4 November 1972, Page 20

Quality of foundry coke in question

Foundry owners what steps will be tab the quality of metallu provement is possibl licences so that coke Australia for compa quality. The director of the Canterbury Manufacturers’ Association (Mr I. D. Howell) said |that one Christchurch founjdry which had been using $29 worth of coke a day to produce an amount of iron now used $74 worth of coke to produce the same tonnage. Mr Howell has written to Mr G. H. Datson, assistant secretary (Industrial Division) of the Department of -Trade and Industry, asking ■ what progress has been made - other than keeping New Zealand’s only producer of - foundry coke—the Smokejiess Fuel Company, Ltd, of I Sockbum—in production for the next six months by peri mitting it to increase its price -by $lO a ton. Mr Howell said that the - coke at present being pro- ' duced by the company was . no better than before. "Therefore, if no altema- ! tive coal source will be tried, and if the Mines Department ! is not prepared to open up ’ any new source of supply, it ■ seems useless to continue ; with local coke longer than ■ necessary,” he said. ‘ “With the Paparoa coal -formerly used, the coke s would give good hot metal. ■ However, because of the inability of Sullivan mine - coal to make sufficiently - hard coke, and its different -physical character as distinct

are anxious to know ten, if any, to improve irgical coke. If no imle, they want token can be imported from rative assessment of (from chemical properties, it - is not possible to develop full heat in the cupola. - “Many foundries are now - using up to twice the amount of coke for a given weight of metal and still not getting i the metal as hot as they re--quire,” Mr Howell said.