Chapter 154 Let the lead glass poison someone's head while we count the money
The priests discussed what Rurik had done, and they all had different opinions.
Unexpectedly, this child came in person at night.
After all, it was his decision. Bona welcomed Rurik's arrival with a smile and had no intention of mentioning these things again.
"Rurik, why are you here so late?"
"Yes." Rurik looked left and right, and then deliberately sniffed the air: "Everything seems to be normal in soap production now."
Only this matter made Poona particularly proud. She pinched her waist happily, "We try our best to buy whale oil, whether it is the best spermaceti oil or fish skin (they think whales are also fish)
I'll buy as much oil as I can."
"Or manufacturing at a rate of forty yuan a day?" Rurik asked.
"Yes, if you have special needs, I will find a way to speed it up. Maybe I still have to call the girls who are helping."
"No need." Rurik waved his hand, he really felt that this speed was okay.
In general, even if the priests can only earn 20% of the gross profit by purchasing the processed materials themselves and turning them into finished products, they still feel that this business is worthwhile.
Because only in terms of food expenses for ordinary people, two silver coins a month are more than enough. What's more, the priests are very special. They, a small group of people, never worry about food.
Basically, each priest can earn close to one silver coin a day working without leaving home. They hardly consume, and no one in the Ross tribe takes the initiative to produce consumer goods. No, many priests melt the silver coins to make silver bracelets and
ring.
The maximum amount paid to them is ten silver coins every day, which is only three hundred in a month.
For this reason, Rurik's current most optimistic estimate is that he can get 1,200 dried sharp pieces a month.
Rurik firmly believed that when Gould, the big businessman who made a lot of money, returned, he would buy them all without hesitation.
He composed himself: "Bona, I have no objection to your soap work. Now, I need something else."
"What is it?"
"It's those salt-like crystals precipitated from the plant ash solution. I need it!" At this point, Rurik suddenly thought, "All you priests do your best. I...produce one pound for me, and I will give you ten.
silver."
"Really?" Bona's tired face suddenly trembled.
"I have made my decision. I hope you can make me a pound tomorrow morning."
The request was issued, but Rurik did not linger.
She soon returned home and was forced to talk to her mother about what happened during the day.
Proud? Proud?
No, Rurik was still thinking about the glassware.
Early in the morning, Rurik went to check the plant ash precipitates he needed.
Bona's wrinkled face looked like she was wearing sunglasses, the dark circles under her eyes were shocking, and her steps became shaky as she obviously hadn't slept all night.
What's worse, Bonahun exudes a strong smoky smell, and the reason is very simple. They, the priests, burned dead branches and leaves all night to get so many crystals.
"Rurik, this is what you want." Poona tremblingly carried the small linen bag and opened it immediately.
Inspection? Of course.
Rurik subconsciously stretched out his little finger to dip a little of this strange crystal, and touched it lightly with the tip of his tongue. The extreme bitterness instantly made his scalp numb and his whole body trembled.
"how do you feel?"
"That's the taste." Rurik said excitedly.
Bona looked confused, "This is another key to making soap. Do you think it...is delicious? It's obviously very bitter."
"It's just because of the bitterness that I need it."
Rurik happily got the bag of mixed crystals of potassium nitrate and potassium carbonate, regardless of whether it was a standard pound, and handed ten silver coins to Bona.
In the morning, the children were trained as usual. This time, Rurik ordered them to bring their own wooden bowls.
The fish was in the pot, and the cooked meat was fished out one after another. Today's situation was exactly the same as yesterday. The children used their own bowls to hold the meat, and then directly picked up the fish with their hands, feasting like hungry wolves.
They will receive more nutrition than others, and their physical fitness will be improved. Of course, this improvement is still not enough in Rurik's view.
Although they are children, if they train every morning, their physical energy consumption throughout the day may be 2,000 calories.
Even if they are children.
They finished eating the meat and walked back to their homes one after another.
Rurik held his waist and stayed in the "large-scale meat-eating scene", with Kanuf and Fisk still beside him.
He patted the small bag on his waist and said, "Let's go to the blacksmith shop with me. I hope Klavason succeeds."
Rurik believed in the old guy's level. After all, he thought he had a good command of metallurgy, gem setting and other technologies.
Everything was as expected. Rurik saw carefully that Klavasen actually made the so-called "simple version of the manual stamping machine" according to the leak-picking drawings he provided.
This machine was placed in the blacksmith's shop with ventilation on both sides. Since it was completed, Klavasen continued the carburizing and blacksmithing work of his sword blank.
Rurik finally came. This time, Klavasen, who was eager to show off his results, not only stopped working, but was also eager to introduce his results.
It turned out that this senior blacksmith was a very professional copper smelter.
Just like casting a bronze axe, Klavasen used clay mold casting techniques to create two necessary components.
With the help of a leather bag blower, the blacksmith's small stove can reach a high temperature of one thousand degrees without any problem.
Tin and lead were added to bronze to make the melting point of the alloy low enough.
It was precisely because there was still a need to smelt bronze that Clavarson dared to say that he had a large amount of lead on hand.
The two shiny bronze vessels can withstand temperatures of at least a thousand degrees, and they are the core molds for pressed glassware.
The bronze vessel with the groove at the lower end is a container, which is a bronze mortar. The short and thick bronze rod above, which is processed to be close to a cylinder, is the "punch" for pressing.
Although Klavasen is not particularly familiar with the principle of levers, he already knows the wonderful uses of levers. After all, to push a newly built ship into the sea, a crowbar is necessary.
He machined some wooden rods, and iron nails were used as latches at the lever joints. He made this lever system according to the drawings, so that the bronze punch could enter the bronze mortar quite vertically.
Rurik opened his eyes to admire this manual stamping machine from the ninth century AD.
In fact, as far as the machinery itself is concerned, this type of machinery is not surprising at all.
There were similar instruments for pressing grape juice in Eastern Rome. Instruments based on this principle also existed in ancient times. The southern part of the Frankish Kingdom has also been a grape-producing area since ancient times. The locals either used unmarried girls to crush the grape juice with their feet, or
It is a wooden mechanical pressing. As far as preferences are concerned, the nobles still hope to think of those girls when drinking wine.
Hundreds of years later, the Germans used this set of machinery and the engraving printing technology learned from the far East to usher in the printing era in the West.
Rurik's technique of pressing glass and directly making it into finished glassware is beyond the reach of those countries that can make glassware in this time and space.
Because the biggest reason is their material problem.
Rurik had decided to add lead to the raw materials so that the molten glass would begin to melt at just 600 degrees and quickly become as viscous as honey.
As for the toxicity of lead, Rurik also decided to strategically ignore it.
After all, the toxicity of heavy metals such as lead is determined by measurement. Lead glass is indeed toxic. If you don't use it to hold acidic substances or wine, but just use it as a water glass, its problem is not serious.
After checking the machinery, Rurik suddenly asked: "Maybe we can experiment with clay."
"I've already done it." Klavasen pointed to a strange pile of mud with a smile.
"Huh? Fisk, help me get that mud." Rurik casually ordered.
Because of the powerful shaping ability of clay, it was pressed into the shape of a cup.
At this moment, Rurik joked: "Haha, maybe we can produce a batch of clay cups like this? Can't it be done by firing them?"
"That's what I mean." Klavasen said constructively, "Clay is easy to obtain, but the river sand you want is a little more difficult to obtain."
"So you have all the materials I need?"
"Yeah, I got everything you asked for. There's only the third thing."
Rurik patted his waist: "It's here. I didn't even think that the machine I asked for could also produce clay embryos."
After all, Rurik didn't believe that rough technology could make the glass very thin. Besides, compared with blown glass, the pressed production process made it necessary for the glass to have a very thick base, and even the glass walls had to be
thick.
Rurik couldn't help but think of the cat's claw cup he remembered. For this cute little thing worth 198, he tried his best with his hand speed, but failed in the end.
However, the pressing operation of a small local glass factory can use cat claw molds to press out the same glass at a very low cost.
As a cup, of course, high boron glass is the best. But with the current technology, Rurik feels that it is either impossible to realize it, or it still requires accumulation of technology.
Rurik opened his linen bag, showed these transparent crystals, and said to Klavasen: "This is the third raw material. What about the others? I want to see it immediately. Don't wait any longer, let's start right away.
.Hopefully we can make it tonight."
"Okay!" Klavason slapped his thigh and quickly went to get the materials.
Soon, Klavasen placed all the materials on a simple wooden table.
What's there in Knock Knock?
A pile of sun-dried, crystal clear sand with some impurities from a nearby creek.
A pile of dry and whitish processed quicklime.
There was also a pool of deliberately ground lead, specifically lead oxide powder.
Rurik nodded, and finally put his own bag of potassium carbonate and potassium nitrate mixture on top.
"What to do next?" Klavasen asked.
Rurik pointed with his little hand: "Put them into your hard clay pot, the one where you poured the bronze."
"In what proportion?"
A professional question, Rurik smiled and said, "Listen to me now."
Is glass a liquid or a solid? What is its essence? This matter cannot be explained clearly even in the 21st century.
But the principles of how to make glass easier to process are already very clear.
Microscopically, after the molten silica is cooled, the molecules will do their best to arrange into hexagonal crystals. The deliberate addition of various alkaline ions such as calcium, potassium, lead, etc. can interfere with its molecular structure.
This allows the glass to melt at very low temperatures, but it can never become a pure liquid.
When it begins to cool down and solidify, these impurities cannot destroy its stability. Some special substances can even make the glass more transparent and clear!
The main component of glass is silica. Rurik vaguely remembers that the so-called lead glass may have a lead content of up to 20%. As for other formulas, it is also necessary to add some. The combined effect of such a large amount of alkali metals will eventually make the glass
Easy to melt plastic.
In this regard, Rurik only had theories. He had never made glass himself, and now he was doing a bold experiment in Klavassen's blacksmith shop.
At least in the entire Viking world around the Baltic Sea, no one has yet attempted to make glassware.
Rurik informed Klavassin of the proportions of the recipe.
"Is this the ratio? Are you sure?"
"Yes." Rurik said cautiously: "Just try it like this. If the effect is not good, we will adjust the proportion."
"Okay. Let's start now."
Compared to Rurik's caution, Klavasen was really full of fighting spirit. Looking at the various raw materials he had obtained, no matter how he thought about it, he didn't think it could be related to natural crystals. But Rurik kept saying
Say, people can make artificial crystals.
The hard pottery crucible used by Clavarson to smelt bronze was cleaned of debris. Then, various raw materials that had become sandy and soiled were put in.
The crucible was placed in the furnace, and then he put a large amount of dry charcoal vertically, and all the operations were like burning bronze water.
The noble Rurik could not do the job of controlling the air bag blower, so Klavasen asked the curious Kanuf and Fiske to do this job. The two children were very happy to try new toys, and here they pressed the huge air bag.
With this strong air intake, the flames quickly burst out.
Rurik stood tall and stared at the condition of the crucible in the furnace.
I could see that the various raw materials inside really began to melt into a shiny paste.
Not only them, but the entire crucible is also glowing.
Rurik even felt that he saw white flames. He could estimate that his two subordinates, who were already sweating profusely, had helped the charcoal reach the limit of calorific value.
This is because Clavarson's so-called hard pottery crucible actually contains a large amount of iron. It has become a mixture of silicon and iron and has very good heat resistance.
Klavasen always pays attention to the changes in the crucible, and until now he doesn't think there is anything special about the changes in the material inside the crucible.
"Rurik, I think... the glass you mentioned reminds me of sticky slag."
"Yes, we can get it after removing the debris from the slag." Rurik tried his best to answer calmly.
"Really? But even if those slags have cooled down, they are still a pile of brittle sand. Is it because of the impurities in them?"
"Of course. Now let the fire continue to burn! Klavasen, have you really studied the atomic theory I gave you? These debris contain a lot of carbon, we must burn them! Finally
What you get is silica."
Anyway, I have already come up with a set of atomic theory. Although this theory is not the truth, it is at least more reliable than people from other places who rely on subjective assumptions to judge everything in the world.
Besides, my theory is completely correct when it comes to general chemical reactions.
Klavason seemed to understand somewhat, but at least he had thoroughly understood one thing. For example, flame is not a substance, but "a violent reaction when substances are recombined."
Compared with sea sand, Rurik thinks that river sand is most suitable for making glass. Of course, if you can get a lot of natural crystals, break them into pieces and melt them to make glass, that would be great. The reason why sea sand is not good
, precisely because there must be a large number of small shells inside, and it is troublesome to remove these debris.
The crucible has been being heated, and Klavasen has filled it with several new charcoal sticks to support the continued heating.
He gently shook the crucible with the tongs, and gradually noticed that the substance that looked like molten slag was indeed very different from real slag.
It is definitely not the kind of viscous molten slag, nor is it the shiny and hot "water" like bronze water.
"Rurik, do you think this thing is like honey?!" Klavasen deliberately teased.
"Huh? It looks a bit similar. It's the kind of warm honey. I really didn't expect it to become so runny after adding lead."
"Is it okay now? It's been a long time." Klavason urged, "Your two followers also seem to lack the strength to press the air bag."
"Then let's get started!"
Rurik held his breath, and Kanuf and Fisk stood up panting. The three of them watched Klavasen holding the crucible with pliers and walking towards the "simple manual punching machine" that had been made.
Isn't this the first time Klavasen has done this?
He carefully tilted the crucible and stared at the paste-like molten substance falling freely into the bronze mortar.
"Start? Rurik?" he asked.
Rurik hurriedly approached. He gently poked his head and saw that the molten material in the bronze mortar was obviously cooling down rapidly. "Let's get started! Once it cools down, we won't be able to plasticize it."
"Okay." Klavasen moved the lever handle: "Ah! It's in contact. There is really a force that prevents me from continuing to press it."
"Continue to press until it reaches the level I designed." Rurik urged.
"Then I'll use my strength." With a dull roar, Klavasen pressed the bronze punch to the designed limit.
Rurik was surprised to see that the still red molten substance, like butter, was squeezed out along the reserved annular gap.
Seeing this, Rurik drew his steel sword without hesitation.
The sharp steel sword began to cut the molten material, and Rurik suddenly felt like cutting thick and hot ginger candy. He completed the circular cut with the bronze punch rod, and all the unnecessary scraps were cut off.
"What should I do next? Should I lift it up?" Klavasen asked, and before Rurik could answer, the old guy had already started to move up.
Rurik hurriedly ordered a ban.
"What's wrong?"
At this moment, Rurik suddenly thought of something. In a panic, he suddenly thought of annealing. Otherwise, the glass cooled in this way would easily collapse on its own.
"Klavasen." Rurik ordered suddenly.
"What are your orders?"
"Now let go and light a pile of firewood. Well... let the firewood burn naturally. I need the hot ashes inside."
"Ashes? Okay."
Lighting a fire is very simple. You only need to take out some charcoal blocks from the still burning stove and light a pile of firewood outdoors. When the flames begin to light up, Ryuri orders his two followers to start tending to the pile of firewood.
Klavason came back and asked, "Is it okay now?"
"Okay, just lift the lever. I think there won't be any resistance."
Rurik estimated that as the glass shrank, the bronze rod responsible for stamping would not have any resistance, but this was the result.
Now, the bronze mortar is no longer a red molten substance, it has completed its plasticity, and Rurik is satisfied to see that it has become transparent!
Although its temperature is still over 100 degrees, ordinary touching, like picking it out with tongs, will not cause it to deform or disintegrate.
That's what Klavason did. When he used pliers to pick out the glass, everyone was shocked!
"Ah?! This? Is it a crystal? Rurik, we made a crystal cup like this? Oh, it's even wonderful. I'm going to put it into the water and see how it fills the water."
"What? You want to quench it? Never!" After Rurik blocked it, Klavasen took the thick-bottomed and thick-walled pressed glass with a light brown color and put it into the bucket. Indeed, the glass cooled instantly, but when
Klavasen took it in his hand and saw the terrifying cracks on it.
Rurik stomped his feet in regret, and shouted loudly: "How can you quench the fire? This is not blacksmithing, it must not be quenched. Otherwise, why do you think I asked you to light a bonfire? I want it to cool down slowly, only
That way it won't break."
"Is there such a thing?" Klavasen played with the quilt with three cracks in his hand. Then, he placed it lightly on the wooden pillar and felt its stone-like texture. Just with this knock, suddenly,
It completely broke apart and fell to the ground into many transparent and beautiful fragments.
Rurik squatted down and picked up the fragments on the ground. Although it was a pity, when he carefully observed these fragments, for a moment, a trance that spanned time and space suddenly occupied Rurik's mind.
No matter what, these fragments are indeed glass. Although it is not completely transparent, it has a light brown color. But this texture is also beautiful!
Rurik was no longer angry. After all, he was not well prepared and didn't even have the original annealing equipment.
"Child, don't be angry. Please forgive my recklessness." Klavasen's tone was obviously coaxing Rurik, as if he was really coaxing an eight-year-old child.
Rurik smiled and nodded: "For our ultimate success, we always have to fail once or twice. Now that we can make up for our mistakes, let's consume all the materials."
After saying that, Rurik picked up all the pieces carefully to avoid scratching his hands.
With the experience of failure, the next work becomes easier.
Because the materials prepared by Klavasen were actually so large, especially the lead, that Rurik suspected that this old guy was also engaged in exchanging silver for lead.
The new work of pressing glassware began, with the old but powerful Klavasen still as the main force.
The old guy couldn't help asking his soul question: "Rurik, I remember what you said, it is easy to make things with lead, and people will become stupid? Since you asked me to put so much lead powder into the raw materials, what if we use it?"
Wouldn’t he also become a fool?”
"No." Rurik shook his head, "Lead is also put in bronze vessels. I saw the high priest drinking water from a bronze cup for so many years. She has miraculously lived to be seventy years old. But she is still the wisest.
people."
"That's true. But as you said, lead is poisonous."
"Its toxicity is absolutely true, but if you just use it to hold water, the toxicity can be ignored. Besides, maybe a person will die of illness before he becomes an old fool because of an illness. Anyway, we don't put lead powder
It’s okay, the cup is still a cup, even if it takes you longer to burn and you have to use more force to suppress it.”
"Oh?" Klavasen smiled, "Then, I would rather use more strength than to make you a fool by drinking from a glass."
"Haha? Are you worried about me? Thank you. I have decided that the price of glass with lead added can be sold at a lower price, just one silver coin. As for the glass I use myself, of course it does not add lead. Klavasen, I
You will be paid. And you blacksmiths have formed a guild, so you can take on the work of making glass as well. As usual, we will sign an agreement, you will divide your hands to make glass, and we will discuss how to share the money."
"Okay! At least make this, even if a cup is sold for one silver coin, it will be faster than me making a steel sword. Haha, I think really about what we are discussing, you will never agree to sell a cup for just one silver coin."
"That's true." Rurik suddenly thought that in this era, glass bottles were originally a luxury product for the nobility, and they were mainly consumed by them.
Poor homesteaders? What they need to solve most urgently is the problem of metal farm tools. Wooden cups and barrels are enough for them.
Since the buyer's market is like this, it is indeed ridiculous to say "one silver coin and one cup" without thinking.
No matter what, you have to trick those big players. Isn’t it ten silver coins for a cup? As long as it’s cheaper than the glass bottles made by Gould!
Soon, Klavasen ran out of all the raw materials, specifically, because Rurik was the first to use up all the potassium carbonate and potassium nitrate.
The glassware hasn't become a real finished product yet, at least they have become quite transparent. They are still hot enough to scald raw meat!
A pool of firewood gradually turned into the last embers, and its temperature was still 400 degrees! This temperature was not enough to soften the lead glass, but this firewood was the simplest so-called "annealing furnace" that Rurik could think of.
A total of twenty glasses were buried in ashes under the shocked eyes of Kanuf and Fisk.
Klavasen asked: "Rurik, what next?"
"We'll wait!"
"What's the right time to wait?"
"When the embers are completely extinguished, we take the cup out so it doesn't break easily."