The densest metal. The heaviest metal

Since time immemorial, people have been actively using various metals. After studying their properties, the substances took their rightful place in the table of the famous D. Mendeleev. Scientists are still arguing about the question of which metal should be given the title of the heaviest and densest in the world. There are two elements in the balance on the periodic table – iridium and osmium. Why they are interesting, read on.

For centuries people have been studying beneficial properties the most common metals on the planet. Science stores the most information about gold, silver and copper. Over time, humanity became acquainted with iron, more light metals- tin and lead. In the world of the Middle Ages, people actively used arsenic, and diseases were treated with mercury.

Thanks to rapid progress, today the heaviest and densest metals are considered not just one element of the table, but two at once. At number 76 is osmium (Os), and at number 77 is iridium (Ir), the substances have the following density indicators:

• osmium is heavy, due to its density of 22.62 g/cm³;
• iridium is not much lighter - 22.53 g/cm³.

Density refers to physical properties metals, it is the ratio of the mass of a substance to its volume. Theoretical calculations of the density of both elements have some errors, so both metals are today considered to be the heaviest.

For clarity, you can compare the weight of an ordinary cork with the weight of a cork made of the heaviest metal in the world. To balance the scales with a stopper made of osmium or iridium, you will need more than a hundred ordinary stoppers.

History of the discovery of metals

Both elements were discovered at the dawn of the 19th century by the scientist Smithson Tennant. Many researchers of that time were studying the properties of raw platinum, treating it with “regia vodka”. Only Tennant was able to detect two chemical substances in the resulting sediment:

• The scientist named the sedimentary element with a persistent smell of chlorine osmium;
• a substance with changing colors was called iridium (rainbow).

Both elements were represented by a single alloy, which the scientist managed to separate. Further research into platinum nuggets was undertaken by the Russian chemist K. Klaus, who carefully studied the properties of sedimentary elements. The difficulty in determining the heaviest metal in the world lies in the low difference in their density, which is not a constant value.

Vivid characteristics of the densest metals

The substances obtained experimentally are powders that are quite difficult to process; forging metals requires very high temperatures. The most common form of the combination of iridium and osmium is the alloy of iridium osmide, which is mined in platinum deposits and gold strata.

The most common places where iridium is found are iron-rich meteorites. Native osmium cannot be found in the natural world, only in collaboration with iridium and other components of the platinum group. Deposits often contain sulfur and arsenic compounds.

Features of the heaviest and most expensive metal in the world

Among the elements of Mendeleev's periodic table, osmium is considered the most expensive. The silvery metal with a bluish tint belongs to the platinum group of noble chemical compounds. The densest, but very brittle metal does not lose its shine under the influence of high temperatures.

Characteristics

• Element #76 Osmium has an atomic mass of 190.23 amu;
• A substance molten at a temperature of 3033°C will boil at 5012°C.
• The heaviest material has a density of 22.62 g/cm³;
• The structure of the crystal lattice has a hexagonal shape.

Despite the amazingly cold shine of a silvery tint, osmium is not suitable for production jewelry due to high toxicity. Melting the jewelry would require a temperature similar to that on the surface of the Sun, since the densest metal in the world is destroyed by mechanical stress.

Turning into powder, osmium interacts with oxygen, reacts to sulfur, phosphorus, selenium; the reaction of the substance to aqua regia is very slow. Osmium does not have magnetism; alloys tend to oxidize and form cluster compounds.

Where is it used?

The heaviest and incredibly dense metal has high wear resistance, so adding it to alloys significantly increases their strength. The use of osmium is mainly associated with the chemical industry. In addition, it is used for the following needs:

• manufacturing containers intended for storing nuclear fusion waste;
• for the needs of rocket science, weapons production (warheads);
• in the watch industry for the manufacture of movements of branded models;
• for the manufacture of surgical implants, parts of pacemakers.

Interestingly, the densest metal is considered the only element in the world that is not subject to the aggression of the “hellish” mixture of acids (nitric and hydrochloric). Aluminum combined with osmium becomes so ductile that it can be pulled without breaking.

Secrets of the world's rarest and densest metal

The fact that iridium belongs to the platinum group gives it the property of immunity to treatment with acids and their mixtures. In the world, iridium is obtained from anode sludge during copper-nickel production. After treating the sludge with aqua regia, the resulting precipitate is calcined, resulting in the extraction of iridium.

Characteristics

The hardest silver-white metal has the following group of properties:

• periodic table element Iridium No. 77 has an atomic mass of 192.22 amu;
• a substance melted at a temperature of 2466°C will boil at 4428°C;
• density of molten iridium – within 19.39 g/cm³;
• element density at room temperature – 22.7 g/cm³;
• The iridium crystal lattice is associated with a face-centered cube.

Heavy iridium does not change under the influence of normal air temperature. The result of calcination under the influence of heat at certain temperatures is the formation of multivalent compounds. The powder of fresh sediment of iridium black can be partially dissolved with aqua regia, as well as with a chlorine solution.

Scope of application

Although Iridium is a precious metal, it is rarely used for jewelry. The element, which is difficult to process, is in great demand in the construction of roads and the production of automobile parts. Alloys with the densest metal that is not susceptible to oxidation are used for the following purposes:

• manufacturing crucibles for laboratory experiments;
• production of special mouthpieces for glass blowers;
• covering the tips of pens and ballpoint pens;
• production of durable spark plugs for cars;

Alloys with iridium isotopes are used in welding production, in instrument making, and for growing crystals as part of laser technology. The use of the heaviest metal made it possible to carry out laser vision correction, crushing kidney stones and other medical procedures.

Although Iridium is non-toxic and not dangerous to biological organisms, in the natural environment you can find its dangerous isotope - hexafluoride. Inhalation of toxic vapors leads to instant suffocation and death.

Places of natural occurrence

Deposits of the densest metal Iridium in the natural world are negligible, much smaller than reserves of platinum. Presumably the heaviest substance has shifted to the core of the planet, so the volume of industrial production of the element is small (about three tons per year). Products made from iridium alloys can last up to 200 years, making jewelry more durable.

Nuggets of the heaviest metal with an unpleasant odor, Osmium, cannot be found in nature. In the composition of the minerals, traces of osmic iridium can be found along with platinum, palladium, and ruthenium. Deposits of osmic iridium have been explored in Siberia (Russia), some states of America (Alaska and California), Australia and South Africa.

If deposits of platinum are discovered, it will be possible to isolate osmium with iridium to strengthen and strengthen the physical or chemical compounds of various products.

Physics at every step Perelman Yakov Isidorovich

Which metal is the heaviest?

Which metal is the heaviest?

In everyday life, lead is considered a heavy metal. It is heavier than zinc, tin, iron, copper, but still it cannot be called the heaviest metal. Mercury, a liquid metal, heavier than lead; If you throw a piece of lead into mercury, it will not sink in it, but will float on the surface. Liter bottle You can hardly lift mercury with one hand: it weighs almost 14 kg. However, mercury is not the heaviest metal: gold and platinum are one and a half times heavier than mercury.

The record for heaviness is broken by rare metals - iridium and osmium: they are almost three times heavier than iron and more than a hundred times heavier than cork; it would take 110 ordinary plugs to balance one iridium or osmium plug of the same dimensions.

Here for reference specific gravity some metals:

This text is an introductory fragment. From the author's book

1911 “Ernest Rutherford... brought about the greatest change in our view of matter since Democritus.” English physicist ARTHUR EDDINGTON What worried scientists? The attack on the atom continued with renewed vigor. Let us remember the “raisin pudding” - the model of the atom that he created

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CHAPTER 1. IT’S NOT ENOUGH FOR YOU, JUST FOR ME Among the many reasons why I chose physics as my profession was the desire to do something long-term, even eternal. If, I reasoned, I had to invest so much time, energy and enthusiasm into something, then

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Which metal is the lightest? Technicians call “light” all those metals that are two or more times lighter than iron. The most common light metal used in technology is aluminum, which is three times lighter than iron. Magnesium metal is even lighter: it is 1 1/2 times lighter than aluminum. IN

The use of metals in everyday life began at the dawn of human development, and the first metal was copper, since it is available in nature and can be easily processed. It is not without reason that archaeologists during excavations find various products and household utensils made of this metal. In the process of evolution, people gradually learned to combine various metals, obtaining increasingly durable alloys suitable for making tools, and later weapons. Nowadays, experiments continue, thanks to which it is possible to identify the strongest metals in the world.

10.

• high specific strength;
• resistance to high temperatures;
• low density;
• corrosion resistance;
• mechanical and chemical resistance.

Titanium is used in the military industry, aviation medicine, shipbuilding, and other areas of production.

9.

The most famous element, which is considered one of the most durable metals in the world, and under normal conditions is a weak radioactive metal. In nature, it is found both in a free state and in acidic sedimentary rocks. It is quite heavy, widely distributed everywhere and has paramagnetic properties, flexibility, malleability, and relative ductility. Uranium is used in many areas of production.

8.

Known as the most refractory metal in existence, it is one of the strongest metals in the world. It is a solid transitional element of a shiny silver-gray color. It has high strength, excellent refractoriness, and resistance to chemical influences. Due to its properties, it can be forged and drawn into a thin thread. Known as tungsten filament.

7.

Among the representatives of this group, it is considered a high-density transition metal with a silvery-white color. It occurs in nature in its pure form, but is found in molybdenum and copper raw materials. It is characterized by high hardness and density, and has excellent refractoriness. It has increased strength, which is not lost due to repeated temperature changes. Rhenium is an expensive metal and has a high cost. Used in modern technology and electronics.

6.

A shiny silver-white metal with a slightly bluish tint, it belongs to the platinum group and is considered one of the strongest metals in the world. Similar to iridium, it has a high atomic density, high strength and hardness. Since osmium is a platinum metal, it has properties similar to iridium: refractoriness, hardness, brittleness, resistance to mechanical stress, as well as to the influence of aggressive environments. It is widely used in surgery, electron microscopy, the chemical industry, rocketry, and electronic equipment.

5.

It belongs to the group of metals and is a light gray element with relative hardness and high toxicity. Due to its unique properties, beryllium is used in a wide variety of production areas:

• nuclear energy;
• aerospace engineering;
• metallurgy;
• laser technology;
• nuclear energy.

Due to its high hardness, beryllium is used in the production of alloying alloys and refractory materials.

4.

Next on the list of the ten strongest metals in the world is chromium - a hard, high-strength metal of a bluish-white color, resistant to alkalis and acids. It occurs in nature in its pure form and is widely used in various branches of science, technology and production. Chrome Used to create various alloys, which are used in the manufacture of medical and chemical technological equipment. When combined with iron, it forms an alloy called ferrochrome, which is used in the manufacture of metal-cutting tools.

3.

Tantalum deserves bronze in the ranking, as it is one of the strongest metals in the world. It is a silvery metal with high hardness and atomic density. Due to the formation of an oxide film on its surface, it has a leaden tint.

The distinctive properties of tantalum are high strength, refractoriness, resistance to corrosion, and resistance to aggressive environments. The metal is a fairly ductile metal and can be easily machining. Today tantalum is successfully used:

• in the chemical industry;
• during the construction of nuclear reactors;
• in metallurgical production;
• when creating heat-resistant alloys.

2.

The second place in the ranking of the most durable metals in the world is occupied by ruthenium, a silvery metal belonging to the platinum group. Its peculiarity is the presence of living organisms in the muscle tissue. Valuable properties of ruthenium are high strength, hardness, refractoriness, chemical resistance, and the ability to form complex compounds. Ruthenium is considered a catalyst for many chemical reactions and acts as a material for the manufacture of electrodes, contacts, and sharp tips.

1.

The ranking of the strongest metals in the world is headed by iridium - a silver-white, hard and refractory metal that belongs to the platinum group. In nature, the high-strength element is extremely rare and is often combined with osmium. Due to its natural hardness, it is difficult to machine and is highly resistant to chemicals. Iridium reacts with great difficulty to exposure to halogens and sodium peroxide.

This metal is playing important role in everyday life. It is added to titanium, chromium and tungsten to improve resistance to acidic environments, used in the manufacture of stationery, and used in jewelry to create jewelry. The cost of iridium remains high due to its limited presence in nature.

Hello friends!

Did you know that initially the periodic table contained a zero group, in which ether stood along with the inert gases? Although that’s not what we’re talking about today.
10 million dollars - this is the amount 1 gram is valued at. The second place in rarity, and therefore in price, is occupied by osmium.

In addition, it is also the heaviest metal in the world, although some scientists believe that this position should be occupied by iridium.

To determine which is heavier, you need to compare atomic weights and see which has a higher density. According to these indicators, osmium and iridium, which is inferior to it by fractions of cubic centimeters, are considered the heaviest today. Imagine: an osmium cube with eight-centimeter sides weighs almost 12 kg!

I suggest you look at the photo of the heaviest metal:

And this is iridium:

Handsome, aren't they?

Top 10 heaviest metals in the world

I suggest you familiarize yourself with the elements according to their rating.

Tantalum

Considered a rare and not very heavy metal, it has a density of 16.65 g/cm³. It is used by surgeons - it is practically indestructible and rust-proof, and is easy to process.

Uranus

The density of uranium is 19.07 g/cm³. Its main difference from its counterparts is natural radioactivity. During the transformation process that uranium atoms undergo, the substance turns into another radiating element. The chain of transformations consists of 14 stages, one of them is the transformation into radium, the last stage is the formation of lead. True, it will take more than one billion years for the complete transition of uranium to lead.

Tungsten

Tungsten (19.25 g/cm³) is jokingly called an ideal candidate for counterfeiting gold bars. This is the most refractory material, the melting point is close to the photosphere of the Sun - 3422 °C. Therefore, it is best suited for filaments in incandescent lamps.

Gold

Gold density is 19.3 g/cm³. Soft, viscous, with good thermal and electrical conductivity, it is not afraid of chemical attack. Gold is not only found on the surface of the Earth. 5 times more of it is contained in the planet’s core.

Plutonium

This element is one of the stages of radioactive transformation of uranium. It also exists in the depths of the planet, but in tiny quantities. Its density is 19.7 g/cm³. Due to its radioactivity, plutonium is always warm and is a poor conductor of current and heat.

Neptunium

This is another creation of uranium, obtained through nuclear reactions. Density – 20.25 grams per cubic centimeter. Neptunium is a fairly soft and malleable material that reacts slowly with air and water.

Rhenium

Rhenium is another refractory, malleable, oxidation-resistant element. Melting point – 2000 °C. In total, world reserves of the element are approximately 17,000 tons. Rhenium density is 21.03 g/cm³. It is used in medicine, jewelry, vacuum technology, electronic devices and metallurgy.

Platinum

Platinum, although not the heaviest metal, is quite close to this - 21.45 g/cm³. It is used not only by jewelers, but also by surgeons, investment professionals, the chemical and glass industries, automotive, biomedicine and electronics. , and products made from it are difficult to scratch. This element is found 30 times less frequently than gold.

Osmium

Density 22.6 g/cm³ - the heaviest metal in the world, it is hard, but quite brittle. No matter how much you heat it, it will not lose its shine and gray-bluish tint under any circumstances. It is difficult to process and mainly occurs in meteorite impact areas.

Iridium

The difference between iridium and osmium in density is in hundredths of a gram. Iridium is refractory and is considered rare and precious. Does not interact with acids, air and water. It is used to control welding seams, and in paleontology and geology it is used as an indicator of the layer formed after the fall of a meteorite.

Characteristics of the densest metal

Scientists agreed that, despite almost the same density, iridium is only slightly inferior to the heaviest metal. However, the physicochemical properties of these two elements have not yet been fully studied.

The rarity and labor-intensive nature of extraction determine the cost of osmium - on average, $15,000 per gram. It is included in the platinum group and is conventionally considered noble, but the name of the metal contradicts its status: in Greek “osme” means “smell”. Due to its high chemical activity, osmium smells like a mixture of garlic or radish with chlorine.

The melting point of the heaviest metal is 3033 °C, and it boils at 5012 °C.

Solidifying from the melt, osmium forms beautiful crystals with an interesting blue or silver-blue tint. But, despite its beauty, it is not suitable for making precious accessories, since it does not have the properties necessary for jewelers: malleability and plasticity.

The element is valuable only because of its special strength. Alloys to which very small doses of the heaviest metal are added become incredibly wear-resistant. Usually it is used to cover units subject to constant friction.

History of discovery

The years 1803-1804 became a turning point for the heaviest metal: it was at this time that its discovery took place practically under competition conditions.

First, the English chemist Smithson Tennant and his assistant William Hyde Wollaston, who made more than one important discovery, discovered during an experiment with platinum ores and nitrogen and hydrochloric acids unusual sediment with a characteristic odor and shared their find with others.

Then the baton was picked up by French scientists Antoine de Fourcroy and Louis-Nicolas Vauquelin and, based on previous and their own research, announced the discovery of a new element. The name was given to it “pten”, which means “flying”, since as a result of the experiments they received flying black smoke.

However, Tennant did not sleep either: he continued his research and did not lose sight of the experiments of the French. As a result, Smithson achieved more concrete results and, in an official document sent to the Royal Society of London, indicated that he had divided pten into two related elements: iridium (“rainbow”) and osmium (“smell”).

Where is it used?

The list of areas of application is quite extensive: aviation, military and missile technology, aerospace industry, medicine. Although weapons manufacturers are already thinking about what can replace the heaviest metal in the world, since osmium is too difficult to process.

Almost half of the world's reserves of the heaviest metal are devoted to the needs of the chemical industry. It is used to stain living tissues under a microscope, ensuring their preservation. In addition, it is used as a dye when painting porcelain.

Isotopes of the heaviest metal are used to make containers for storing nuclear waste.

This element is also used to make elite “eternal” fountain pens and Rolex watches.

Places of natural occurrence

It is almost impossible to detect osmium in its pure form. This heavy element is usually found in combination with iridium. The substance is also contained at the crash site or in the meteorites themselves that hit the Earth.

Conclusion

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Osmium is currently defined as the heaviest substance on the planet. Just one cubic centimeter of this substance weighs 22.6 grams. It was discovered in 1804 by the English chemist Smithson Tennant; when gold was dissolved in a test tube, a precipitate remained. This happened due to the peculiarity of osmium; it is insoluble in alkalis and acids.

The heaviest element on the planet

It is a bluish-white metallic powder. It occurs in nature in seven isotopes, six of which are stable and one is unstable. It is slightly denser than iridium, which has a density of 22.4 grams per cubic centimeter. Of the materials discovered to date, the heaviest substance in the world is osmium.

It belongs to the group of lanthanum, yttrium, scandium and other lanthanides.

More expensive than gold and diamonds

Very little of it is mined, about ten thousand kilograms per year. Even the largest source of osmium, the Dzhezkazgan deposit, contains about three ten-millionth parts. The market value of the rare metal in the world reaches about 200 thousand dollars per gram. Moreover, the maximum purity of the element during the purification process is about seventy percent.

Although Russian laboratories managed to obtain a purity of 90.4 percent, the amount of metal did not exceed a few milligrams.

Density of matter beyond planet Earth

Osmium is undoubtedly the leader of the heaviest elements on our planet. But if we turn our gaze into space, then our attention will reveal many substances heavier than our “king” of heavy elements.

The fact is that in the Universe there are conditions somewhat different than on Earth. The gravity of the series is so great that the substance becomes incredibly dense.

If we consider the structure of the atom, we will find that the distances in the interatomic world are somewhat reminiscent of the space we see. Where planets, stars and others are at a fairly large distance. The rest is occupied by emptiness. This is exactly the structure that atoms have, and with strong gravity this distance decreases quite significantly. Up to the “pressing” of some elementary particles into others.

Neutron stars are super-dense space objects

By searching beyond our Earth, we may find the heaviest matter in space in neutron stars.

These are quite unique space inhabitants, one of the possible types of stellar evolution. The diameter of such objects ranges from 10 to 200 kilometers, with a mass equal to our Sun or 2-3 times more.

This cosmic body mainly consists of a neutron core, which consists of flowing neutrons. Although, according to some scientists’ assumptions, it should be in a solid state, reliable information does not exist today. However, it is known that it is neutron stars that, having reached their compression limit, subsequently transform into a colossal release of energy, on the order of 10 43 -10 45 joules.

The density of such a star is comparable, for example, to the weight of Mount Everest placed in a matchbox. This is hundreds of billions of tons in one cubic millimeter. For example, to make it more clear how high the density of matter is, let’s take our planet with its mass of 5.9 × 1024 kg and “turn” it into a neutron star.

As a result, in order to equal the density of a neutron star, it must be reduced to the size of an ordinary apple, with a diameter of 7-10 centimeters. The density of unique stellar objects increases as you move toward the center.

Layers and density of matter

The outer layer of the star is represented in the form of a magnetosphere. Directly below it, the density of the substance already reaches about one ton per cubic centimeter. Given our knowledge of the Earth, on at the moment, this is the heaviest substance of the discovered elements. But don't rush to conclusions.

Let's continue our research into unique stars. They are also called pulsars because high speed rotation around its axis. This indicator for various objects ranges from several tens to hundreds of revolutions per second.

Let us proceed further in the study of superdense cosmic bodies. This is followed by a layer that has the characteristics of a metal, but is likely similar in behavior and structure. Crystals are much smaller than we see in the crystal lattice of Earthly substances. To build a line of 1 centimeter crystals, you will need to lay out more than 10 billion elements. The density in this layer is one million times higher than in the outer layer. This is not the heaviest material in the star. Next comes a layer rich in neutrons, the density of which is a thousand times higher than the previous one.

Neutron star core and its density

Below is the core, this is where the density reaches its maximum - twice as high as the overlying layer. The substance of the core of a celestial body consists of all elementary particles known to physics. With this, we have reached the end of the journey to the core of a star in search of the heaviest substance in space.

The mission to search for substances unique in density in the Universe seems to be completed. But space is full of mysteries and undiscovered phenomena, stars, facts and patterns.

Black holes in the Universe

You should pay attention to what is already open today. These are black holes. Perhaps these mysterious objects may be candidates for the fact that the heaviest matter in the Universe is their component. Note that the gravity of black holes is so strong that light cannot escape.

According to scientists, matter drawn into the space-time region becomes so dense that there is no space left between elementary particles.

Unfortunately, beyond the event horizon (the so-called boundary where light and any object, under the influence of gravity, cannot leave a black hole), our guesses and indirect assumptions based on the emission of particle streams follow.

A number of scientists suggest that space and time mix beyond the event horizon. There is an opinion that they may be a “passage” to another Universe. Perhaps this is true, although it is quite possible that beyond these limits another space opens up with completely new laws. An area where time exchanges “place” with space. The location of the future and the past is determined simply by the choice of following. Like our choice to go right or left.

It is potentially possible that there are civilizations in the Universe that have mastered time travel through black holes. Perhaps in the future people from planet Earth will discover the secret of traveling through time.