312— Mineralogical analysis of slag from iron production in the Adirondack State Park

Slag is a byproduct of iron production formed from the melting of iron-bearing rocks. Iron production in the Adirondacks reached a high in the early to mid 1800s, with many blast furnaces in operation throughout Northern New York. Two sets of samples from different regions in the Adirondacks were collected in the summers of 2019-2020. An unknown sample was taken from the Ausable River at Flume Falls near Wilmington, New York, while other samples were collected from the Mt. Hope iron furnace near Fort Ann, New York. Samples were analyzed through the creation of thin sections and x-ray diffraction. Results were compared against existing slag samples to determine origin in the context of the Wilmington slag, while the Mt. Hope slag was compared against nearby samples to compare mineralogy. The minerals Fayalite and Wostite were found in the Wilmington slag through analysis of x-ray diffraction patterns and thin sections.