antimony (ăn`tĭmō'nē) [Lat. antimoneum], semimetallic chemical element; symbol Sb [Lat. stibium,=a mark]; at. no. 51; at. wt. 121.75; m.p. 630.74°C;; b.p. 1,750°C;; sp. gr. (metallic form) 6.69 at 20°C;; valence 0, +3, −3, or +5. Antimony exists in two allotropic forms (see allotropy allotropy (əlŏ`trəpē) [Gr.,=other form].
..... Click the link for more information. ); the more common is silvery blue-white and has a rhombohedral crystalline structure. It is a poor conductor of heat and electricity and is brittle and easily powdered. It is primarily used in alloys and chemical compounds. It is a member of Group 15 of the periodic table periodic table, chart of the elements arranged according to the periodic law discovered by Dmitri I. Mendeleev and revised by Henry G. J. Moseley . In the periodic table the elements are arranged in columns and rows according to increasing atomic number (see the
..... Click the link for more information. . Antimony rarely occurs free in nature, but its ores are widely distributed. The principal ore is stibnite stibnite (stĭb`nīt), antimony sulfide, Sb₂S₃, a mineral, silvery gray in color, with a metallic luster.
..... Click the link for more information. , a sulfur compound known since early times; there are extensive deposits in China. Antimony is often found in other ores as well, e.g., silver, copper, and lead. The pure element antimony is produced from the ore by roasting it to form the oxide, then reducing the oxide with carbon or iron; often a flux of sodium sulfate or sodium carbonate is used to prevent loss of molten antimony by evaporation. Antimony does not react with air or water at room temperature; it does react with fluorine, chlorine, or bromine and is soluble in hot nitric or sulfuric acid; at higher temperatures, antimony will ignite and burn in air. It unites with hydrogen to form stibine, a poisonous gas. In combination with metals antimony forms alloys that are hard and brittle and have low melting points. The alloys of antimony include britannia metal britannia metal, silvery-white alloy of tin with antimony, copper, and sometimes bismuth and zinc. It is very similar in appearance to pewter, but is harder. It is used widely for the manufacture of tableware.
..... Click the link for more information. , type metal type metal, alloy of lead with antimony, tin, and sometimes copper, so named because of its one time extensive use for making printing type. Expanding upon solidification, the alloy takes a fine and clear impression of the mold in which it hardens.
..... Click the link for more information. , Babbitt metal Babbitt metal, an antifriction metal first produced by Isaac Babbitt in 1839. In present-day usage the term is applied to a whole class of silver-white bearing metals, or "white metals.
..... Click the link for more information. , and sometimes pewter pewter, any of a number of ductile, silver-white alloys consisting principally of tin. The properties vary with the percentage of tin and the nature of the added materials.
..... Click the link for more information. ; these alloys expand on cooling, thereby retaining fine details of a mold. Alloys and compounds of antimony are used in bearings, storage batteries, safety matches, and as a red pigment in paint. Although antimony and many of its compounds are toxic, tartar emetic tartar emetic, poisonous, odorless, transparent rhombic crystals or white powder with a metallic, sweetish taste. Chemically, it is potassium antimony tartrate, KSbC₄H₄O₇· 1-2H₂O. It is used as a mordant in dyeing.
..... Click the link for more information. (potassium antimonyl tartrate) is used as a medicine. Small concentrations of antimony can be detected by a method similar to the Marsh test Marsh test, method for the detection of arsenic , so sensitive that it can be used to detect minute amounts of arsenic in foods (the residue of fruit spray) or in stomach contents. The sample is placed in a flask with arsenic-free zinc and sulfuric acid.
..... Click the link for more information. for arsenic. Antimony is mixed with soot and other substances to make kohl, used for centuries by women in some countries as an eye cosmetic. A method for the extraction of antimony from stibnite was first described c.1600 by Basilius Valentinus. Although known to the ancients, the element was first adequately described by Nicolas Lémery in 1707.

antimony

Semimetallic to metallic chemical element (see metal), chemical symbol Sb, atomic number 51. Of its various allotropes, the most common is a lustrous, bluish, brittle, flaky solid. In nature antimony occurs chiefly as the gray sulfide mineral stibnite, Sb₂S₃. Pure antimony metal has no important uses, but its alloys and compounds are extremely useful. Some antimony alloys have the rare quality of expanding on solidifying; these are used for castings and for type metal. Alloys with lead are used in car batteries, bullets, and cable sheaths. Antifriction alloys with tin and lead (babbitt metals) are used as components of machine bearings. Antimony compounds (valences 3, 4, and 5) are widely used as flame retardants in paints, plastics, rubber, and textiles; others are used as paint pigments.

antimony

a toxic metallic element that exists in two allotropic forms and occurs principally in stibnite. The stable form is a brittle silvery-white crystalline metal that is added to alloys to increase their strength and hardness and is used in semiconductors. Symbol: Sb; atomic no.: 51; atomic wt.: 121.757; valency: 0, --3, +3, or +5; relative density: 6.691; melting pt.: 630.76°C; boiling pt.: 1587°C

antimony (redirected from antimony potassium tartrate)

antimony

antimony
(redirected from antimony potassium tartrate)