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Difference between Melting and Smelting
The fundamental difference between melting and smelting is that melting is a process in which the state of a substance is changed from solid to liquid by heating it, while smelting is a process of obtaining pure metal from its ore by heating it to a higher temperature. In this article, we will explore all the major differences between melting and smelting along with their basic description.
What is Melting?
The process of changing the solid state of a substance into its liquid state by the application of heat is called melting. Hence, in the melting process, a substance is heated to a temperature above its melting point, so that it can change its phase from solid to liquid.
When the heat energy is provided to a substance, it breaks the chemical bonds that hold the molecules of the substance together in the solid phase, resulting to change the state into the liquid state. However, during the change in state of the substance from solid to liquid, no change occurs in the chemical properties of the substance.
In industries, melting is used in various applications such as foundries, recycling process, production of glass, etc.
In the melting process, a substance is gradually heated by using a source of heat like a heating furnace to its melting point. Once the temperature of the substance reached to its melting point, its state changes from solid to liquid. A temperature control system is involved in the melting process to avoid excess heating that may cause degradation of the substance.
What is Smelting?
The process of obtaining a pure metal from its ore by the application of heat and chemical reactions is called smelting. Ore is basically raw material available in the nature and contains the desired metal and different kind of impurities.
Smelting is one of the effective methods to obtain pure metals from their natural ores. In short, smelting is a process of separating the desired metal from impurities with the help of heating and chemical reactions.
Smelting process involves two major steps namely, roasting and reduction. In the case of roasting, the metal ore is heated to high temperatures in the presence of oxygen or air. While, during reduction, the reduction reaction takes place to remove oxygen atoms from the ore. In smelting process, the carbon-based reducing agents like charcoal or coke are used. Overall, in metal processing industries, smelting is an important process to obtain metals in their purest form.
Difference between Melting and Smelting
The following table highlights all the significant differences between melting and smelting −
Parameter |
Melting |
Smelting |
|---|---|---|
Definition |
Melting is a process of changing the solid state of substance into its liquid state by heating it. |
Smelting is a process of obtaining a pure metal from its ore. |
Primary objective |
The primary objective of melting is to change the solid state of a substance into the liquid state. |
The primary objective of smelting is to separate pure metal from its ore. |
Applicable materials |
Melting can be applied to various substances like metals, glass, plastic, etc. |
Smelting can be applied to metal ore only. |
Final product |
Melting produces a substance in its liquid state. |
Smelting produces a metal in its purest form. |
Temperature |
Melting takes place at relatively lower temperatures than smelting. However, it depends upon the type of substance. |
Smelting takes place much higher temperatures than melting. |
Energy consumption |
Melting consumes comparatively less amount of energy. |
Smelting consumes more energy than melting. |
Chemical reaction |
No chemical reactions occur during melting. |
Smelting involves chemical reactions to separate the desired metal from its ore. |
Instruments |
For melting, a variety of instruments are available, such as furnaces, crucibles, heating torches, etc. |
A specialized instrument is used for smelting, called smelter. |
Complexity |
Melting is comparatively a less complex process than smelting. |
Smelting is a complex process. |
Removal of impurities |
Melting does not remove impurities from the substance. |
Smelting removes impurities from the desired metal. |
Impact to environment |
The impact of melting to the environment is lower. |
Smelting releases harmful gases and emission that impact environment. |
Operating temperature |
Melting takes place at melting point of the substance. |
Smelting takes place at a temperature higher than the melting point of the ore. |
Applications |
Melting is used in a variety of applications like foundries, plastic manufacturing, glass manufacturing, metalworking, etc. |
Smelting is primarily used in metal processing industries, mining industries, metallurgical industries, etc. |
Conclusion
The most significant difference between melting and smelting is in their primary objective, i.e., melting changes the physical states of a substance, i.e. from solid to liquid, whereas smelting extracts the desired pure metal from its ore. However, both melting and smelting are heat-based processes.
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