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Definition: The Bessemer Steel Process was a process of producing high-quality steel by shooting air into molten steel to burn off carbon and other impurities. It was named for the British inventor Sir Henry Bessemer, who worked to develop the process in the 1850s.
The Bessemer method converts molten pig iron into steel in a squat, egg-shaped bowl. Blasts of cold air are blown through the liquid metal via perforations in the bowl's base. The air burns off excess carbon and other impurities. When the iron is nearly purified, more carbon might be added. Finally the bowl is tilted down and the newly made steel poured into a ladle ready to cast into ingot moulds. The Bessemer process was simple but the visual effect was extraordinary.