Pig Iron

Pig iron is a primary iron-carbon alloy produced by smelting iron ore in a blast furnace. It serves as the foundational raw material for steelmaking and cast iron production. The name originates from historical casting practices, where molten iron was poured into sand molds arranged in a “sow-and-pig” pattern (a large central mold “sow” feeding smaller “pig” molds), forming ingots resembling small pigs.