(1670) Aluminum Bronze.

Manufacturer and Builder 10, 1876

— In making Aluminum bronze, the metallic copper is first melted and the metallic aluminum added in the desired quantity. As the aluminum ore is clay, which requires an elaborate chemical operation to extract the metal from, it is of course utterly unavailable for the purpose in question. The use of this bronze at present is only in its infancy, but is continually extending. Two important qualities secure it a very extensive application — its extreme hardness, being next to steel, and its freedom from tarnishing by oxidation, making it similar to gold, of which it has also the color. In Paris it has been used for the steps of public buildings subject to much wear, and has been found for superior to cast-iron. It is now also used for small objects, such as pen and pencil holders, now found in the trade, and sold for gold-plated ones, to which they are however far superior. The price of aluminum is $4 per pound, and the bronze from $1 to $2, according to the ratio of the alloy.