Josiah Marshall Heath facts for kids

Josiah Marshall Heath (died 1851) was an English metallurgist, a scientist who studies metals. He was also a businessman and an ornithologist, someone who studies birds. Heath invented a special way to use manganese to make steel stronger and better.

He learned about steelmaking in India, including a local method called wootz. After trying to start a steel factory there, he moved back to England. He settled in Sheffield, a city famous for steel. His invention helped Sheffield's steel industry grow a lot. However, his patent (a legal document protecting an invention) was not written clearly. This meant other companies didn't pay him for using his idea. Sadly, he died without much money.

Working in India

In the early 1800s, making metal in British India was done in old, traditional ways. Around 1825, Josiah Heath wanted to bring European metal-making ideas to India. He got a special agreement from the British East India Company. This agreement gave him the only right to produce iron in a large area near Madras.

In 1830, Heath built factories in Porto Novo. He got a loan from the government to do this. By 1833, his company was called the "Porto Novo Steel and Iron Company." They made the workshops bigger and built a new factory in Beypore.

The steel they produced was very good quality. It was even sent to Great Britain. This steel was used to build famous structures like the Menai Suspension Bridge. But the business lost money. This was because of problems with how it was managed. There was also a lack of experience and not enough money. They only used charcoal for heating, even though coal was available nearby.

The East India Company took over the business in 1853. They kept it running until 1874, when it finally closed down.

Working in England

When Heath returned to England, he used what he had learned in India. He had seen how traditional Indian metalworkers made things. In 1839, he got a patent for his invention. This patent was about using a mix of manganese and carbon. He called this mix "carbide." This was not the same as what we call carbide today.

Heath's invention helped make steel easier to shape when it was hot. It also made steel easier to join together by brazing or welding. This was important even if the iron used to make the steel had sulfur in it.

Heath's "manganese carbide" was made by heating manganese oxide and tar. The carbon in the tar would remove oxygen from the manganese oxide. Heating this mix was expensive. So, Heath suggested that companies using his invention could add manganese and charcoal directly to the steel-making pot, called a crucible. The heat needed to make the steel would also help the charcoal react with the manganese oxide.

However, this direct method meant less control over the process. It was hard to use Heath's invention on its own. Making steel in a crucible often involved other secret methods. Because of this, other steel producers argued that Heath's patent didn't fully describe his actual process. His invention worked, but many companies refused to pay him money for using it.

Heath spent nine years fighting in court. The British House of Lords, which was the highest court at the time, finally said his patent was valid. They recognized that he was the first to use manganese oxide in this way. But the legal fight was very long and complicated.

Because of these legal battles, Heath became very poor before he died. Even so, his process was widely adopted. It lowered the price of good quality steel by 30% to 40% in Sheffield.

Other Work

The Greater Asiatic yellow bat (Scotophilus heathi) was named after Josiah Marshall Heath. He gave a special example of this bat to the Zoological Society of London. He also gave them a large collection of birds from Asia.