Category: Metal

Discovery and development of tungsten | History of Tungsten

tungsten

The history of tungsten dates back to the 17th century. At that time, miners in the Erzgebirge Mountains of Saxony, Germany, noticed that some of the ore would interfere with the reduction of cassiterite and produce slag. The miners gave the mines some German nicknames: “wolfert” and “wolfrahm”.

Axel Fredrik Cronstedt
Axel Fredrik Cronstedt

In 1758, the Swedish chemist and mineralogist Axel Fredrik Cronstedt discovered a mineral called “tungsten”, which means “heavy stone” in Swedish. He was convinced that this mineral contained an element that had not yet been discovered.

 

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What is Magnesium Fluoride?

Chemical Formula of Magnesium Fluoride
Chemical Formula of Magnesium Fluoride

SAM®Magnesium fluoride is an inorganic compound with the formula MgF2, which is a white, fluorescent crystal. It is insoluble in water and alcohol, and soluble in nitric acid. It can be used in ceramics and glass. Magnesium Fluoride is one of the lowest index infrared materials that it is transparent over a wide range of wavelengths, thus is used for optical elements in both the infrared and ultraviolet. It is resistant to thermal and mechanical shock and is twice as hard as Calcium Fluoride.

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How was niobium discovered? | History of Niobium

Last week, we talked about the discovery of Titanium, which raised many interest. So we decide to start a history column, aiming at introducing the discovery of different kinds of metals. If you are a metal lover or history lover, you can follow our website. For previous posts of this column please search the keyword “history”. So let’s get down to the point. Today SAM Sputter Targets will teach you the history lesson of Niobium.

niobium hostorySAM®Niobium, often found in the minerals pyrochlore and columbite, is a silver-gray, soft and ductile rare metal with high melting point. At normal temperature, niobium does not react with air, but it can directly combine with sulfur, nitrogen and carbon at high temperatures to form NbS2, NbN and NbC. Niobium does not react with inorganic acids or alkalis, and is insoluble in aqua regia, but soluble in hydrofluoric acid. Because of its good superconductivity, high melting point, corrosion resistance and wear resistance, niobium is widely used in steel, superconducting materials, aerospace, atomic energy and other fields.

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Application of molybdenum in metal smelting

Compared to metals such as titanium, aluminum and platinum, molybdenum does not seem to be as famous, but it is also a very widely used metal in our life. So in the next few weeks, SAM Sputter Targets will introduce different applications of molybdenum. If you are interested in metals, please follow us for subsequent updates. Today we will first introduce the application of molybdenum in metal smelting.

Molybdenum
Molybdenum

Steel

The main use of molybdenum is to produce various types of steel and alloys. The addition of molybdenum (mainly in the form of ferromolybdenum, molybdenum oxide and calcium molybdate) to a range of steels such as structural steel, spring steel, bearing steel, tool steel, stainless steel and magnetic steel can significantly improve the properties of steel. Molybdenum improves the hardenability, toughness and heat strength of steel and prevents temper brittleness. Molybdenum also improves the corrosion resistance of steel to certain media so that it does not pitting. The addition of molybdenum to the cast iron enhances the strength and wear resistance of the cast iron.

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How was titanium discovered? | History of Titanium

Titanium historySAM®Titanium is a metal element that is known as “space metal” because of its light weight, high strength and good corrosion resistance. The most common compound of titanium is titanium dioxide, and other compounds include titanium tetrachloride and titanium trichloride. At present, titanium is widely used in aerospace, automotive, medical, marine and other fields. Its abundant reserves provide a resource base for the wide application of titanium – titanium is one of the most widely distributed and abundant elements in the earth’s crust, accounting for 0.16% of the crustal mass, ranking ninth. However, do you know how this magical element was discovered? Let SAM Sputter Targets give you a history lesson.

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