Application and characteristics of zirconium metal

Metal zirconium, also known as sponge zirconium, is a silver-gray metal with steel-like appearance and luster;

Zirconium has a strong affinity for oxygen. Dissolving oxygen in zirconium at 1000 degree can significantly increase its volume. Zirconium is relatively stable in air, powdered zirconium is easy to burn, and thin zirconium wire can be ignited with matches. It can be directly combined with dissolved oxygen, nitrogen and hydrogen at high temperature;

Zirconium is very soft, which is mainly used to make bulletproof alloy steel and can also be used as cladding alloy for uranium fuel in reactors.

Zirconium is easy to emit electrons at high temperature, and it is also used in surgical tools and other industrial uses in a small amount.

Compared with stainless steel, nickel-based alloy and titanium, zirconium has better corrosion resistance, mechanical properties and technological properties, and is very suitable for manufacturing chemical equipment such as containers and heat exchangers.

The symbol of zirconium, Zr, has an atomic number of 40 and is a silvery white transition metal.

The surface of zirconium is easy to form a shiny oxide film, so its appearance is similar to that of steel.

It has corrosion resistance.

At high temperature, it can react with nonmetallic elements and many metallic elements to form solid solution compounds.

Zirconium has good plasticity and is easy to be processed into plates and wires.

Zirconium can absorb a lot of gases such as oxygen, hydrogen and nitrogen when heated, and can be used as hydrogen storage material.

The performance of zirconium is superior to that of titanium and close to that of niobium and tantalum. ? Zirconium mainly exists in nature in the form of minerals, ranking 20th in the earth's crust, surpassing common metals such as copper, lead, nickel and zinc, but it is called "rare metal" because of its complicated preparation process and difficult economic extraction.

Zirconium has a wide range of applications, mainly in the form of zirconia in ceramics, refractories and other fields, and this part of the application accounts for more than 90% of zirconium consumption.

In addition, zirconium and its alloys are used as fuel cladding materials and other structural materials for nuclear power reactors.

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