Page "Brass" Paragraph 70

However the cementation process was not abandoned and as late as the early 19th century there are descriptions of solid state cementation in a domed furnace at around 900 – 950 ° C and lasting up to 10 hours.

The European brass industry continued to flourish into the post medieval period buoyed by innovations such as the 16th century introduction of water powered hammers for the production of battery wares.

By 1559 the Germany city of Aachen alone was capable of producing 300, 000 cwt of brass per year.

After several false starts during the 16th and 17th centuries the brass industry was also established in England taking advantage of abundant supplies of cheap copper smelted in the new coal fired reverberatory furnace.

In 1723 Bristol brass maker Nehemiah Champion patented the use of granulated copper, produced by pouring molten metal into cold water.

This increased the surface area of the copper helping it react and zinc contents of up to 33 % wt were reported using this new technique.