Monday, May 16, 2011

Titan Macht Kohlenstoff

Titanium is the carbon of transition metals. The Germans realized this early on. Look again at this "carbo-centric" Periodic Table of the Elements from 1926:

Follow the color code (carbon is black) down and to the left. The association runs right through titanium and zirconium, down to hafnium and thorium. To the right, the rhymes-with-carbon pathway runs down through germanium, tin, and lead; I'll get to the latter later after having some fun with the first row transition metals.

Titanium has probably touched more carbon atoms than any other metallic element. And there are two words for this Benjamin--just two words I want to say to you. Are you listening Benjamin?

Ziegler-Natta!

4 comments:

  1. I like titanium, I just do. My knives and wristwatch are both mostly titanium -- but that stuff is DIFFICULT to work with.

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  2. A former colleague of mine had a wedding ring made of titanium. It doesn't hold a shine well, but neither does platinum.

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  3. Titanium is better than platinum for ring material -- lighter, cheaper, stronger, etc. IMHO

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  4. Well, they're both workhorse metals for industry, unlike gold which is just a store of wealth with very little other utility. Titanium is more susceptible to corrosion for strong acids and bases than platinum.

    What I found astonishing about his ring was how lightweight it was compared with the heft of platinum.

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