Bessemer process
Topic: The Age of Industrialisation · NCERT: Beyond NCERT
Meaning
The Bessemer process was a method of making steel cheaply and in large amounts. Henry Bessemer of England patented it in 1856. Air was blown through molten pig iron, the impure iron that comes out of a blast furnace. This burned off the extra carbon and impurities. Steel became much cheaper and was used for rails, ships, bridges and buildings. This fits the period when iron and steel replaced cotton as Britain's leading industry, driven by railway expansion.
Example
By 1873, Britain exported iron and steel worth about £77 million, double the value of its cotton exports. Cheap steel made by new methods such as Bessemer's was a big part of this growth.