How can iron pipes contain molten iron?

[Running Rat]

Obviously, molten iron is hot enough to melt iron, because, y'know, it's melted iron. And yet, in this game, you can make molten iron flow through iron pipes without melting the pipes. HUH?! I've tried to think of an explanation, but nothing works.

Maybe there is something added to the pipes to make them more heat-resistant? No, creating pipes takes iron plates and nothing else.

Maybe there isn't enough time for the molten iron to melt the pipe? No, you can have a lot of molten iron flowing continuously through the pipe for a long time.

Maybe the iron in this game is some kind of weird alien iron with a higher melting point? No, even if that is the case (which is unlikely) pipes and molten iron are made out of the same type of iron.

Maybe the devs forgot that the pipes are made of iron? No, the foundry can make pipes out of molten iron! How can a pipe made out of molten iron have a higher melting point than molten iron?! I don't understand!

[Serendipitous]

Why do belts run without any external power and can move any kind of load that even rocket can't? We can never know.

[GarbageCollector]

Could make a mod for ceramic pipes...

[malogoss]

How can a chest contain 2400 chests that are exactly its size?

[MangoMan]

especially when the primary new thing on that planet is specifically tungsten

[Dreepa]

If you really want to overthink it:
Why is everthing on gleba spoiling, but ice can be on the belt indefinitely.

[MangoMan]

I agree that ice should spoil, especially when there is actually a spoil mechanic, although it would need to spoil to nothing which nothing else does so far.

[Strategic Sage]

Because game balance.

That's it, and that's all.

[Bimmelkaes]

Originally posted by malogoss:

How can a chest contain 2400 chests that are exactly its size?

pocket dimension

[knighttemplar1960]

Pure Iron (like that of processed iron plates) has a melting point of 1538°C. Un-purified (like that used for making cast iron) has a melting point of 1127-1204°C.

[Running Rat]

Originally posted by knighttemplar1960:

Pure Iron (like that of processed iron plates) has a melting point of 1538°C. Un-purified (like that used for making cast iron) has a melting point of 1127-1204°C.

Good thinking, but isn't it implied that high quality iron is pure iron? And common pipes are entirely capable of transporting molten iron. Moreover, cast iron pipes (from the foundry) can be used to transport molten iron.

[baerra]

How can one bot carry an entire rocket silo? Jeez man, I dunno if we're ever gonna truly figure out the answer to these questions

[Malidictus]

Originally posted by GarbageCollector:

Could make a mod for ceramic pipes...

Closest so far is this[mods.factorio.com]. No ceramic pipes, but iron pipes can't carry lava. The PipeProrotype isn't really set up to filter for fluid. I suspect something like this would need to be done via runtile scripts, which is unlikely to be good for performance. *edit* Might be possible to do by controlling pipe connection restrictions on offshore pumps or some such. There were a few "specialised pipe" mods for 1.1, I think. Probably too much of a bother.

[knighttemplar1960]

Originally posted by Running Rat:

Originally posted by knighttemplar1960:

Pure Iron (like that of processed iron plates) has a melting point of 1538°C. Un-purified (like that used for making cast iron) has a melting point of 1127-1204°C.

Good thinking, but isn't it implied that high quality iron is pure iron? And common pipes are entirely capable of transporting molten iron. Moreover, cast iron pipes (from the foundry) can be used to transport molten iron.

I just think of the foundry as the machine that takes the impure iron and purifies it. Quality =/= necessarily to material condition. You could consider steel to be higher quality iron.

Iron with silicon, oxygen, and sulfur impurities melts at a lower temperature. Also the exterior of the pipe is cooler than the interior of the pipe (and radiates away heat). Should be enough to at least role play it for Factorio.

[TheKillerChicken]

Well, I modified the game stacks so they all go up to 2 billion, so I completely obliterated any realism that Wube possibly intended to have.

[Descriptor]

Boy, I sure hope somebody got fired for that blunder