many lovers interesting facts I'm wondering which metal is the hardest? And offhand to answer this question will not be easy. Of course, any chemistry teacher can easily say correctly without even thinking. But among ordinary citizens who last studied chemistry at school, not many will be able to correctly and quickly give an answer. This is due to the fact that everyone has been accustomed to making various toys from wire since childhood and remembered well that copper and aluminum are soft and easy to bend, but steel, on the contrary, is not so easy to give the desired shape. A person deals with the three named metals most often, so he does not even consider the rest of the candidates. But steel is certainly not the hardest metal in the world. In fairness, it should be noted that this is not a metal at all in the chemical sense, but a compound of iron with carbon.
What is titanium?
The hardest metal is titanium. Pure titanium was first obtained in 1925. This discovery made a splash in scientific circles. Industrialists immediately drew attention to the new material and appreciated the benefits of its use. According to the official version, the most solid metal on Earth got its name in honor of the indestructible Titans, who, according to ancient Greek mythology, were the founders of the world.
According to scientists, the total world reserves of titanium today are about 730 million tons. At the current rate of extraction of fossil raw materials, there will be enough for another 150 years. Titanium ranks 10th in terms of natural reserves among all known metals. The world's largest producer of titanium is Russian company VSMPO-Avisma, which satisfies up to 35% of the world's needs. The company is engaged in a full cycle of processing from ore mining to the manufacture of various products. It takes about 90% Russian market for the production of titanium. About 70% finished products goes for export.
Titan - light metal silvery in color with a melting point of 1670 degrees Celsius. It exhibits high chemical activity only when heated; under normal conditions, it does not react with most chemical elements and compounds. It does not occur in nature in its pure form. It is common in the form of rutile (titanium dioxide) and ilmenite (a complex substance consisting of titanium dioxide and ferrous oxide) ores. Pure titanium is recovered by sintering the ore with chlorine and then displacing the more active metal (most commonly magnesium) from the resulting tetrachloride.
Industrial applications of titanium
The hardest metal has a fairly wide range of applications in many industries. Amorphously arranged atoms provide titanium with the highest level of tensile and torsion strength, good impact resistance, and high magnetic qualities. The metal is used to make air transport hulls and missiles. It copes well with the enormous loads that machines experience at great heights. Titanium is also used in the manufacture of hulls for submarines, as it is able to withstand high pressure at great depths.
In the medical industry, metal is used in the manufacture of prostheses and dental implants, as well as surgical instruments. As an alloying element, the element is added to some steel grades, which gives them increased strength and corrosion resistance. Titanium is well suited for casting, as it allows you to get perfectly smooth surfaces. It is also made from Jewelry and decorative items. Titanium compounds are also actively used. Paints, white are made from dioxide, they are added to the composition of paper and plastic.
Complex organic titanium salts are used as a hardening catalyst in paint and varnish production. Titanium carbide is used to make various tools and attachments for processing and drilling other metals. In precision engineering, titanium aluminide is used to produce wear-resistant elements that have a high margin of safety.
Most hard alloy metal was obtained by American scientists in 2011. It consists of palladium, silicon, phosphorus, germanium and silver. new material called "metal glass". He combined the hardness of glass and the plasticity of metal. The latter does not allow cracks to propagate, as happens with standard glass. Naturally, the material was not put into wide production, since its components, especially palladium, are rare metals and are very expensive.
AT this moment the efforts of scientists are aimed at searching for alternative components that would preserve the obtained properties, but significantly reduce the cost of production. However, individual parts for the aerospace industry are already being produced from the resulting alloy. If alternative elements can be introduced into the structure and the material becomes widespread, then it is quite possible that it will become one of the most demanded alloys of the future.
Can you imagine what would have happened if our ancestors had not discovered important metals such as silver, gold, copper and iron? Probably, we would still live in huts, using stone as the main tool. It was the strength of the metal that played important role in shaping our past and now work as the foundation upon which we build our future.
Some of them are very soft and literally melt in the hands, like. Others are so hard that they cannot be bent, scratched or broken without the use of special equipment.
And if you are wondering which metals are the hardest and most durable in the world, we will answer this question, taking into account various estimates of the relative hardness of materials (Mohs scale, Brinell method), as well as parameters such as:
- Young's modulus: takes into account the elasticity of an element in tension, that is, the ability of an object to resist elastic deformation.
- Yield Strength: Determines the maximum tensile strength of a material after which it begins to exhibit plastic behavior.
- Tensile Strength: Ultimate mechanical stress, after which the material begins to break down.
This metal has three advantages at once: it is strong, dense and very resistant to corrosion. In addition, this element belongs to the group of refractory metals such as tungsten. To melt tantalum, you have to make a fire with a temperature of 3017 °C.
Tantalum is mainly used in the electronics sector to produce durable, heavy duty capacitors for phones, home computers, cameras, and even electronic devices in cars.
But it is better not to approach this handsome metal man without protective equipment. Because beryllium is highly toxic, and has a carcinogenic and allergic effect. If you inhale air containing dust or vapors of beryllium, the disease berylliosis will occur, affecting the lungs.
However, beryllium is not only harmful, but also beneficial. For example, add just 0.5% beryllium to steel and you get springs that are resilient even when brought to red heat. They withstand billions of load cycles.
Beryllium is used in aerospace industry to create thermal screens and guidance systems, to create refractory materials. And even the vacuum tube of the Large Hadron Collider is made of beryllium.
This naturally occurring radioactive substance is very widespread in the earth's crust, but concentrated in certain hard rock formations.
One of the hardest metals in the world, it has two commercially significant applications - nuclear weapons and nuclear reactors. Thus, the end products of the uranium industry are bombs and radioactive waste.
How pure substance iron is not as hard compared to other participants in the rating. But because of minimal cost in mining, it is often combined with other elements to make steel.
Steel is a very strong alloy of iron and other elements such as carbon. It is the most commonly used material in construction, engineering and other industries. And even if you have nothing to do with them, you still use steel every time you cut food with a knife (unless, of course, it is ceramic).
Titanium is practically synonymous with strength. It has an impressive specific strength (30-35 km), which is almost twice as high as that of alloyed steels.
Being a refractory metal, titanium is highly resistant to heat and abrasion, making it one of the most popular alloys. For example, it can be alloyed with iron and carbon.
If you need a very solid and at the same time very light construction, then there is no better metal than titanium. This makes it the number one choice for creating various parts in the aircraft, rocket and shipbuilding industries.
This is very, which, although it occurs in nature in its pure form, usually comes as an "add-on" - an admixture to molybdenite.
If the Iron Man suit were made of rhenium, it could withstand temperatures of 2000°C without losing strength. We will keep silent about what would happen to Iron Man himself inside the suit after such a “fire show”.
Russia is the third country in the world in terms of natural reserves of rhenium. This metal is used in petroleum chemical industry, electronics and electrical engineering, as well as for the creation of aircraft and rocket engines.
On the Mohs scale, which measures the scratch resistance of chemical elements, chromium is in the top five, behind only boron, diamond and tungsten.
Chromium is valued for its high corrosion resistance and hardness. It is easier to handle than the platinum group metals and more common, which is why chromium is a popular element used in alloys such as stainless steel.
And one of the strongest metals on Earth is used in the creation of dietary supplements. Of course, you will not be ingesting pure chromium, but its food compound with other substances (for example, chromium picolinate).
Like its "brother" osmium, iridium belongs to the metals of the platinum group, and according to appearance looks like platinum. It is very hard and tough. In order to melt the iridium, you will have to build a fire at over 2000°C.
Iridium is considered one of, as well as one of the most corrosion-resistant elements.
This "tough nut" in the world of metals belongs to the platinum group and has a high density. In fact, it is the densest natural element on Earth (22.61 g/cm3). For the same reason, osmium does not melt until 3033°C.
When alloyed with other platinum group metals (such as iridium, platinum, and palladium), it can be used in many different applications where hardness and durability are needed. For example, to create containers for storing nuclear waste.
1. Tungsten
The strongest metal found in nature. This rare chemical element is also the most refractory of metals (3422°C).
It was first discovered in the form of an acid (tungsten trioxide) in 1781 by the Swedish chemist Carl Scheele. Further research led two Spanish scientists, Juan José and Fausto d'Elhuyar, to the discovery of acid from the mineral wolframite, from which they subsequently isolated tungsten using charcoal.
In addition to its wide application in incandescent lamps, tungsten's ability to work in extreme heat makes it one of the most attractive elements for the arms industry. During World War II, this metal played an important role in initiating economic and political relations between European countries.
Tungsten is also used to make hard alloys and in the aerospace industry to make rocket nozzles.
Table of tensile strength of metals
| Metal | Designation | Tensile strength, MPa |
|---|---|---|
| Lead | Pb | 18 |
| Tin | sn | 20 |
| Cadmium | CD | 62 |
| Aluminum | Al | 80 |
| Be | 140 | |
| Magnesium | mg | 170 |
| Copper | Cu | 220 |
| Cobalt | co | 240 |
| Iron | Fe | 250 |
| Niobium | Nb | 340 |
| Nickel | Ni | 400 |
| Ti | 600 | |
| Molybdenum | Mo | 700 |
| Zirconium | Zr | 950 |
| Tungsten | W | 1200 |
Alloys vs Metals
Alloys are combinations of metals and the main reason for creating them is to make the material stronger. The most important alloy is steel, which is a combination of iron and carbon.
The higher the strength of the alloy, the better. And ordinary steel is not the “champion” here. Alloys based on vanadium steel seem especially promising to metallurgists: several companies produce variants with a tensile strength of up to 5205 MPa.
And the strongest and hardest biocompatible materials at the moment is the alloy of titanium with gold β-Ti3Au.
Because they have the highest density. Among them, the heaviest are osmium and iridium. This The density index of these metals is almost the same, except for a slight calculation error.
Iridium was discovered in 1803. It was discovered by the English chemist Smithson Tennat, while examining natural platinum delivered from South America. Translated from the ancient Greek, the name "iridium" means "rainbow".
Scientific interest as a source electrical energy represents a heavy metal isotope - iridium-192m2, since given metal very large - 241 years. Iridium has found wide application in industry and paleontology - it is used for the production of nibs for pens, determining the age of the layers of the earth.
The discovery of osmium happened by accident in 1804. This hardest metal has been found in chemical composition sediment of platinum dissolved in aqua regia. The name "osmium" comes from the ancient Greek word for "smell". This metal is almost non-existent in nature. Most often it is found in the composition. Like iridium, osmium is almost not subject to mechanical stress. One liter of osmium is much heavier than ten liters of water. But this property of this metal has not yet found application anywhere.
The hardest metal, osmium, is mined in Russian and American mines. However, South Africa is recognized as the richest of its deposits. Osmium is often found in iron meteorites.
Of particular interest is osmium-187, which is exported only by Kazakhstan. It is used to determine the age of meteorites. One gram of this isotope costs 10,000 US dollars.
In industry, the hard alloy of osmium with tungsten (osram) is mainly used for the production of incandescent lamps. Osmium is also a catalytic agent in the production. Rarely enough, cutting parts for instruments in surgery are made from this metal.
Both heavy metals - osmium and iridium - are almost always contained in the same alloy. This is a certain pattern. And to separate them, you need to make a lot of effort, because they are not as soft as, for example, silver.
18.01.2016 at 17:21 · Johnny · 110 650
Top 10 most durable metals in the world
The use of metals in everyday life began at the dawn of human development, and copper was the first metal, since it is available in nature and can be easily processed. No wonder archaeologists during excavations find various products and household utensils made of this metal. In the process of evolution, people gradually learned to combine various metals, getting more and more strong alloys suitable for the manufacture of tools, and later weapons. In our time, experiments continue, thanks to which it is possible to identify the most durable metals in the world.
10.
- high specific strength;
- resistance to high temperatures;
- low density;
- corrosion resistance;
- mechanical and chemical resistance.
Titanium is used in the military industry, aviation medicine, shipbuilding, and other areas of production.
9.
The most famous element, which is considered one of the strongest metals in the world, and under normal conditions is a weak radioactive metal. In nature, it is found both in a free state and in acidic sedimentary rocks. It is quite heavy, widely distributed throughout the world and has paramagnetic properties, flexibility, malleability, and relative plasticity. Uranium is used in many areas of production.
8.
Known as the most refractory metal of all existing, and belongs to the strongest metals in the world. It is a solid transitional element of a brilliant silver-gray color. Possesses the high durability, excellent infusibility, resistance to chemical influences. Due to its properties, it can be forged and drawn into a thin thread. Known as a tungsten filament.
7.
Among the representatives of this group, it is considered a transition metal of high density, silvery-white in color. It occurs in nature in its pure form, but is found in molybdenum and copper raw materials. It features high hardness and density, and has excellent refractoriness. It has increased strength, which is not lost with repeated temperature changes. Rhenium belongs to expensive metals and has a high cost. Used in modern technology and electronics.
6.
A shiny silvery white metal with a slightly bluish tint, belongs to the platinum group and is considered one of the most durable metals in the world. Similar to iridium, it has a high atomic density, high strength and hardness. Since osmium belongs to platinum metals, it has properties similar to iridium: refractoriness, hardness, brittleness, resistance to mechanical stress, as well as to the influence of aggressive environments. Has found wide application in surgery, electron microscopy, chemical industry, rocket technology, electronic equipment.
5.
Belongs to the group of metals, and is a light gray element with relative hardness and high toxicity. Due to its unique properties, beryllium is used in a wide variety of industries:
- nuclear power;
- aerospace engineering;
- metallurgy;
- laser technology;
- nuclear energy.
Due to its high hardness, beryllium is used in the production of alloying alloys and refractory materials.
4.
Chromium is next in the top ten most durable metals in the world - a hard, high-strength bluish-white metal that is resistant to alkalis and acids. It occurs in nature in its pure form and is widely used in various branches of science, technology and production. Chromium Used to create various alloys that are used in the manufacture of medical and chemical technological equipment. In combination with iron, it forms a ferrochromium alloy, which is used in the manufacture of metal-cutting tools.
3.
Tantalum deserves bronze in the ranking, as it is one of the most durable metals in the world. It is a silvery metal with high hardness and atomic density. Due to the formation of an oxide film on its surface, it has a lead tint.
Distinctive properties of tantalum are high strength, refractoriness, resistance to corrosion and aggressive media. The metal is a fairly ductile metal and can be easily machined. Today tantalum is successfully used:
- in the chemical industry;
- in the construction of nuclear reactors;
- in metallurgical production;
- when creating heat-resistant alloys.
2.
The second line of the ranking of the most durable metals in the world is occupied by ruthenium - a silvery metal belonging to the platinum group. Its feature is the presence in the composition of the muscle tissue of living organisms. Valuable properties of ruthenium are high strength, hardness, refractoriness, chemical resistance, and the ability to form complex compounds. Ruthenium is considered a catalyst for many chemical reactions, acts as a material for the manufacture of electrodes, contacts, and sharp tips.
1.
The rating of the most durable metals in the world is headed by iridium - a silvery-white, hard and refractory metal that belongs to the platinum group. In nature, a high-strength element is extremely rare, and is often combined with osmium. Due to its natural hardness, it is difficult to machine and has a high resistance to impact. chemical. Iridium reacts with great difficulty to the effects of halogens and sodium peroxide.
This metal plays an important role in everyday life. It is added to titanium, chromium and tungsten to improve acid resistance, used in the manufacture of stationery, used in jewelry business for creating jewelry. The cost of iridium remains high due to its limited presence in nature.
What else to see:
When it comes to the most durable metal in the world, for sure, many people imagine a formidable warrior in armor and with a sword from damascus steel. However, steel is far from the strongest metal in the world, since it is obtained by alloying iron with carbon and other additives. The hardest of pure metals counts titanium!
There are two different versions about the origin of the name of this metal. Some say that the silver-colored substance began to be called that in honor of the fairy queen Titania(from Germanic mythology). Indeed, in addition to being a very durable metal, it is also amazingly light. Others are inclined to believe that the metal got its name thanks to the Titans - strong and powerful children of the Earth goddess Gaia. Be that as it may, both versions look quite beautiful and poetic, and have the right to exist.
Titanium was discovered by two scientists at once: the German M.G. Klaptor and the Englishman W. Gregor. Such a discovery, with a difference of six years, was made at the end of the 18th century, after which the substance was immediately added to the periodic table. There it took the 22nd serial number.
True, because of its fragility, the metal was not used for a long time. Only in 1925, having gone through a series of experiments, chemists managed to obtain pure titanium, which became a real breakthrough in the history of mankind. The metal turned out to be very manufacturable with low density, high specific strength and corrosion resistance, as well as high strength at high temperatures.
In terms of mechanical strength, titanium and six times the strength of aluminum. That's why the list possible application titanium unlimited. It is used in medicine for osteoprosthetics, in the military industry (to create a submarine hull, armor in aviation and nuclear technology). Also, the metal has established itself in sports and jewelry, the production of mobile phones.
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By the way, in terms of distribution on earth, the strongest metal in the world occupies the tenth position. Its deposits are located in South Africa, China, Ukraine, Japan, India.
Although, judging by the latest discoveries in the field of chemistry, over time, titanium will have to give the title of super-metal to another representative. Not so long ago, scientists invented a substance stronger than metal. This is "liquid metal", or in translation - "liquid". The miracle substance has managed to establish itself as stainless and flawless for casting. And although humanity still needs to work hard to learn how to fully use the new metal, perhaps the future will belong to it.