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   Ni

NICKEL

(German, Nkkel, Satan or "Old Nick," and from kupfernickel, Old Nick's copper)

Ni at. wt. 58.71
   at. no. 28
   m.p. 1453°C
   b.p. 2732°C 
   sp. gr. 8.902 (25°C)
   valence 1, 2, 3.
Electronic configuration
 SHELL  K L M N O P Q
 SUB  SHELL He Neon Argon Krypton Xenon Radon Eka-radon
1s 2s 2p 3s 3p 3d 4s 4p 4d 5s 5p 4f 5d 6s 6p 5f 6d 7s 7p
Nickel 1s22s22p63s23p63d84s2      
Symbol 3F4
Nickel was discovered by Cronstedt in 1751 in kupfernickel (niccolite). Nickel is found as a constituent in most meteorites and often serves as one of the criteria for distinguishjng a meteorite from other minerals. Iron meteorites, or siderites, may contain iron alloyed with from 5 % to nearly 20% nickel. Nickel is obtained commercially from pentlandite and pyr- rhotite of the Sudbury region of Ontario. This district produces about 70% of the nickel for the free world. Small deposits are found in Norway, New Caledonia, Cuba, Japan, and elsewhere. Nickel is silvery-white and takes on a high polish. It is hard, malleable, ductile, somewhat ferromag- netic, and a fair conductor of heat and electricity. It belongs to the iron-cobalt group of metals and is chiefly valuable for the alloys it forms. It is extensively used for making stainless steel and other corrosion-resistant alloys, such as Invar, Monel, Inconel, arid the Hastelloys. Tubing made of a copper-nickel alloy is extensively used in making desalina- tion plants for converting sea water into fresh water. Nickel is also now used extensively in coinage, in making nickel steel for armor plate and burglar-proof vaults, and is a com- ponent in Nichrome, Permalloy, and Constantan. Nickel added to glass gives a green color. Nickel plating is often used to provide a protective coating for other metals, 'and finely divided nickel is a catalyst for hydrogenating vegetable oils. It is also used in ceramics, in the manufacture of Alrilco magnets, and in the Edison storage battery. The sulfate and the oxides are important compounds. Natural nickel is a mixture of five stable isotopes. Seven other unstable isotopes are known.

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