Ye Feng was in charge of mixing the mud, which was a skilled job...
If too much water is added, the soil will become too wet, making it difficult to sculpt and shape.
Adding too little will make it too dry and difficult to shape.
Therefore, for ordinary clay, it is about 100 grams of clay to 25 to 33 grams of water.
Fortunately, Ye Feng's water bottle was a large plastic one with clear markings indicating the weight in grams.
A little while later, he filled a kettle with water and dug a hole in the middle of the pile of dirt…
Start by stirring and adding water... all the steps are done in an orderly manner.
It's obvious that he's a genius when it comes to playing with mud...
Before long, the soil began to gradually mix together, turning into mud clumps.
Ye Feng felt it was about time, so he immediately put down the kettle.
He quickly took a piece of charcoal from the fire in the treehouse, crushed it into small granules, and added it to the mud.
Because charcoal is a sustainably burning material, this makes the smelting pot made from the clay more malleable.
Moreover, once the can is heated, the many charcoal particles hidden inside will also contribute to the heating effect.
The melting temperature in the pot will be increased slightly…
After finishing, Ye Feng began to knead the mud ball continuously, just like kneading dough...
A few minutes later, the mud ball had taken shape...
He quickly flattened it…
Then, I measured the size of the smelting tank base with a tape measure, and made a simple compass using two tree branches.
And a circle was drawn on it... Cut it with a knife according to the line...
In this way, he obtained a circular clay pan, which also served as the base of the smelting vessel.
So, at this point, the most technically challenging step has been completed.
The rest became much simpler. He only needed to tear off a section of the mud and slowly roll it into a long, symmetrical strip.
Then roll the clay strips into appropriately sized circles, place them on the disc, and stack them one by one.
Finally, depending on the location of the unevenness, fill in where necessary and smooth out where needed...
Aside from paying attention to the thickness and uniformity of the clay strips, this process is not particularly difficult.
Twenty minutes later, a fairly well-made, brown melting pot was completed…
It looks like a large water glass…
To be honest, for Ye Feng, who was doing this kind of work for the first time, he had done an excellent job.
But he didn't stop. Seeing that there was still some clay left, he spent a few more minutes making a lid.
But this is far from over; the goal is to create a smelting vessel capable of withstanding temperatures of 1,400 degrees Celsius.
The most crucial step is baking…
The firing process of earthenware pots is very particular, especially the temperature requirements…
From a thermodynamic perspective, the transformation from clay to pottery is a slow process of energy release.
The clay blank contains many powder particles, which must be heated to transform them into the unique crystals of ceramics.
At the same time, as the air pores are continuously expelled, the body becomes increasingly compact (that is, it hardens), and this is how a piece of ceramic is born.
(There are too many points to cover here, so I won't go into detail.)
In layman's terms, the higher the fire, the stronger and more durable the ceramic will be.
However, the temperature of an open flame is too low, and it is easy to heat unevenly, which can cause the ceramic to crack.
So, Ye Feng's next step is to build a kiln. In other words, what he calls a smelting furnace…
After briefly considering the steps, Ye Feng began mixing the mud again…
This time, we used far more mud than before…
After making up, they flattened the mud ball into a round disc about 50 centimeters in diameter.
Then, using a wooden stick about two fingers thick, poke a dozen or so holes in the mud cake.
It looks like a large honeycomb briquette, but it's a crucial part of the smelting furnace, called the grate...
Its main function is to support the fuel layer, distribute air downwards and evenly, thereby improving fuel efficiency and promoting fuel reaction...
The general idea is that it heats up more evenly, resulting in better cooking.
After he finished, he placed both items in a shady place and called Qi Xiaojie over.
He lit four bonfires next to the grate and slowly roasted the animals...
Ye Feng, without stopping for a moment, went back into the house, grabbed a wooden shovel, and began digging into the ground…
He planned to dig a large, oval-shaped pit in the ground to serve as a bellows…
Then, using cement, a wall was cast horizontally at one-third of the way through the pit.
In this way, a pit that is neither too big nor too small, just big enough to fit the grate, is formed.
Then, a hole was carved out in the middle of the mud wall as a ventilation opening, for use with adding firewood…
Next, the grate is placed in the previously opened hole, and then all that's needed is to...
Build a circle, fix it firmly inside, and turn it into a kiln wall. Then slowly build it up.
The final step is to place several furnace bars horizontally along the edge of the opening...
Leave the firewood and the ground in a hollowed-out state...
This step is very important because the perforated ground allows the flames to rise fully when the firewood is burning.
It can greatly increase the temperature inside the furnace…
The plan had been formulated, and Ye Feng meticulously executed every step…
Before we knew it, the sky had gone from a light glimmer to the blazing sun...
The group was so busy they didn't even have time to make breakfast, and they were busy until noon...
Seeing Ye Feng covered in sweat yet so focused, Fu Changxiong and the other two felt too embarrassed to remind him...
The group of them had already finished dismantling the pine tree.
As per Ye Feng's instructions, all the wood was chopped into small blocks ranging from 30 to 50 centimeters in size…
Because this is the optimal length for making charcoal...
At this moment, all three of them were watching Ye Feng play with the mud intently…
Liu Sisi watched with particular fascination, her eyes filled with admiration…
She truly hadn't expected that something she only saw in books and videos would actually be made so convincingly by Ye Feng...
I couldn't help but feel a surge of admiration...
"My goodness, with Brother Feng's hands-on skills, no wonder he dared to bet with me so confidently."
But... can this mud furnace really reach 1400 degrees Celsius?
As I was thinking about this, another half hour passed...
Finally, with a groan from Ye Feng, the smelting furnace was completely completed...
Liu Sisi couldn't wait to step forward and take a look, gazing at the yellow and black stove that resembled a chimney...
Touching this and looking at that, he couldn't help but praise:
"Brother Feng, you're amazing! You can even play with mud like this?"
Is there anything you can't do?
Ye Feng stretched, a faint smile appearing on his face covered in mud…
"Don't be so quick to praise us. Whether it can be refined into steel or not, we'll have to try it to find out..."
However, in my estimation, you're most likely going to lose...
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