A Visual Encyclopedia of the Periodic Table

56

Transition Metals

56

Vanadium can be hammered and stretched

without breaking. This hard, strong metal is

easy to shape. Vanadium was first purified

in 1869 by the British chemist Henry Roscoe.

Today, it is commonly extracted from its ore

vanadinite. Ancient metalworkers used tiny

Damascus

Steel knife

This knife has been

strengthened by the

addition of vanadium.

amounts of vanadium compounds to make a

very tough substance called Damascus Steel.

This was named after the capital city of Syria,

where ironworkers made the world’s sharpest

swords. Vanadium is still used to toughen tools,

such as spanners and knives.

Vanadium

23

V

23 23 28

State: Solid

Discovery: 1801

Forms

Uses

This powder y yellow

crust contains tiny

amounts of vanadium.

C

ar

n

o

ti

te

Silver y

surface

These brittle

cr ystals are the main

source of vanadium.

Tools made with

alloys of vanadium

and steel are durable.

Spanners

This mushroom

contains high levels

of vanadium.

Fly

agaric

mu

shroom

About

85% of

all vanadium

is used to

toughen steel.

Van

ad

ini

te

La

bor

ator

y^ samp

le^ of

pu

re^

van

adium

cryst

als

056-057_Vanadium_Chromium.indd 56 02/12/16 6:52 pm