Crucible
The crucible is an important machine as it is the central component of metallurgy in NTM. It is used as a method of ore processing, alloying (of which some are either more efficient or specific to this machine), and metal casting. It requires an external heat source to melt the inputs into liquids and when filled, it emits a consistent amount of soot that can cause a fair amount of pollution that cannot be mitigated. Some alloys, as mentioned before, can be made alternatively using a blast furnace, however this is generally slower.
The machine requires heat to operate, which can be provided by placing it on top of any heat generating machine. It will operate as long as it has at least 50,000TU provided to it.
The crucible has two outlets, a green recipe side, where metals that are valid for the recipe will end up and mix, and a red waste side, where other metals will collect. If no recipe is set via template, all materials will flow into the red side.
Metallurgy
The crucible utilizes a special molten fluid system that uses various item based units. These units are:
- Block - a unit equivalent to a block of metal, it can be divided into 9 ingots
- Ingot - a unit equivalent to an ingot or powder, it can be divided into 9 nuggets
- Nugget - a unit equivalent to a nugget or tiny pile of powder, it can be divided into 8 quanta
- Quantum - the smallest unit, it cannot be further divided
This means that a single quantum of iron is equivalent to 1/72 of an iron ingot.
Foundry scraps can be retrieved from any foundry block or the crucible itself by using a shovel on them. This scrap can be used to filter foundry outlets to only allow certain materials to flow. This scrap can also be remelted in the crucible to return it to a usable state.
Foundry Blocks
In order to cast the molten material created inside the material, various blocks are used to route the molten material into molds. The molds themselves are shaped in an anvil using the two work-piece slots available in the top of the anvil GUI. These blocks are crafted using firebricks and stone; and the molds themselves also require iron. Foundry basins that create items can be emptied using hoppers and conveyor ejectors.
Foundry Channel
Foundry channels are used to route molten material produced in the crucible to basins that hold molds, they are crafted in a crafting table like so:
4
Shallow Foundry Basin
Shallow foundry basins receive molten material from channels, either from above via an outlet, or directly from the sides. The foundry basin must be fitted with a mold before it can receive material. Once it has filled up with enough material to satisfy the current mold, it will begin cooling. Hoppers and conveyors can be attached to both basin types to pull the finished products from them, otherwise they must be right-clicked to extract the finished products, and won't accept any more material until they have been emptied. These basins are crafted like so:
Foundry Basin
Foundry basins receive molten material from channels, filling up material. Once enough material has flowed into the basin, it will begin cooling the material. Foundry basins require molds to be inserted to function, otherwise they will not receive material. Unlike the shallow foundry basins, they will not receive material from their sides, and must be poured into from above with an outlet. These basins are crafted like so:
Foundry Outlet
Foundry outlets are used to drop material down to lower foundry channels, into foundry basins, or into storage basins. These outlets can be disabled by right-clicking on them, and can be filtered to certain materials by using foundry scraps of the given type.
Foundry Spill Outlet
Foundry spill outlets are almost identical to foundry outlets, except that they can also be placed over empty space, allowing slag and other waste products to be spilled into the world without the need for a basin.
Foundry Molds
All basins require a foundry mold to be placed in them before they can receive material and create items. These molds can be removed from basins using a screwdriver. To start us off, we're going to need a blank mold, which is crafted like so:
The two foundry basins accept different molds, the shallow basin can be fitted with:
| Mold | Recipe |
|---|---|
| Nugget |     
|
| Billet |  
|
| Ingot | 
|
| Plate |  
|
| Wire x8 |  8
|
| Cast Plate |  
|
| Dense Wire |  
|
| Blade |  
|
| Shredder Blades |  
|
| Press Stamp |  
|
| Shell |  
|
| Pipe |  
|
| .357 Magnum Casings |  
|
| ,44 Magnum Casings |  
|
| Small Caliber Casings |  
|
| Large Caliber Casings |  
|
| Buckshot Casings |  
|
The full sized basin can be fitted with:
| Mold | Recipe |
|---|---|
| Ingot x9 | 9
|
| Plate x9 | 9
|
| Dense Wire x9 | 9
|
| Block |  
|
| Steel Pipes |  
|