Iridium on Alumina

See more Aluminum products. Aluminum (or Aluminium) (atomic symbol: Al, atomic number: 13) is a Block P, Group 13, Period 3 element with an atomic weight of 26.9815386. It is the third most abundant element in the earth's crust and the most abundant metallic element. Aluminum's name is derived from alumina, the mineral from which Sir Humphrey Davy attempted to refine it from in 1812. Aluminum was first predicted by Antoine Lavoisier 1787 and first isolated by Hans Christian Øersted in 1825. Aluminum is a silvery gray metal that possesses many desirable characteristics. It is light, nonmagnetic and non-sparking. It stands second among metals in the scale of malleability, and sixth in ductility. It is extensively used in many industrial applications where a strong, light, easily constructed material is needed. Although it has only 60% of the electrical conductivity of copper, it is used in electrical transmission lines because of its light weight. Pure aluminum is soft and lacks strength, but alloyed with small amounts of copper, magnesium, silicon, manganese, or other elements, it imparts a variety of useful properties.

See more Iridium products. Iridium (atomic symbol: Ir, atomic number: 77) is a Block D, Group 9, Period 6 element with an atomic weight of 192.217. The number of electrons in each of iridium's shells is [2, 8, 18, 32, 15, 2] and its electron configuration is [Xe] 4f¹⁴ 5d⁷ 6s². The iridium atom has a radius of 136 pm and a Van der Waals radius of 202 pm. Iridium was discovered and first isolated by Smithson Tennant in 1803. In its elemental form, Iridium has a silvery white appearance. Iridium is a member of the platinum group of metals. It is the most corrosion resistant metal known and is the second-densest element (after osmium). It will not react with any acid and can only be attacked by certain molten salts, such as molten sodium chloride. Iridium is found as an uncombined element and in iridium-osmium alloys. Iridium's name is derived from the Greek goddess Iris, personification of the rainbow, on account of the striking and diverse colors of its salts.