Market For Molybdenum Products example essay topic

334 words
Molybdenum is a transition metal. It is represented by the symbol Mo. It is a pure metal that is white in color and very hard, and has one of the highest melting points of all pure elements at 4753 ^0 F. Its boiling point is 8382 ^0 F. Its density is 10280 kg / m 3 and its hardness is 5.5. It has a molar volume of 9.38 x 10-6 m 3/mol. Molybdenum has an atomic weight of 95.94 amu.

Its atomic number is 42. The atomic radius is 145 pm and the covalent radius is 145 pm also. Its electron configuration is [Kr] 4d^5 5s^1. It is a strong acid. Its crystal structure is body centered cubic.

Over 2/3 of all molybdenum is used in alloys. Molybdenum use increased a lot during World War I, when demand for tungsten made tungsten rare, and strong steels were at expensive. Molybdenum is used in aircraft and missile parts, and in filaments. Molybdenum acts as a catalyst in the petroleum industry for removing organic sulfurs from petroleum products. Molybdenum is not found in nature, and the compounds that can be found were, until the late 1700's confused with other elements, such as carbon and lead. In 1778 Carl Wilhelm Schiele discovered that molybdenum was separate from graphite and lead, and was able to isolate the oxide of the metal from molybdenite.

Molybdenum was rarely used and stayed in the laboratory until the late 19th century. Plants and animals generally have molybdenum, present in very small amounts. In plants, molybdenum is involved in the pathways of nitrogen fixation and nitrate reduction, and in animals, molybdenum is involved in the pathways of purine degradation and formation of uric acid. In some animals, adding a small amount of molybdenum to food enhances growth. The market for molybdenum products is estimated to been the order of $100 million a year.