Zirconium

• Overview

  Zirconium is a transition metal and has two structures, namely the alpha form of the hexagonal system and the beta form of the cubic system. Zirconium has a silver gray metallic luster in appearance. It is insoluble in water, slightly soluble in acid, soluble in hydrofluoric acid and aqua regia, etc. Its atomic weight is 91.224 and its density is 6.506 g/cm³. Zirconium is highly plastic and resistant to high temperature, corrosion, radiation and acid. Zirconium can also store hydrogen and has good inspiratory properties at high temperatures. Zirconium reacts with water, acids and bases to release hydrogen; It can react with oxygen, hydrogen, nitrogen, halogen and other non-metallic elements to form zirconium containing binary compounds. Can absorb carbon monoxide and carbon dioxide under high temperature conditions, but also can react with zirconium tetrabromide and other substances.

• Application of Zirconium

  Pure zirconium metal has excellent acid and alkaline resistance, so it is used in the manufacture of reactors, pumps, heat exchangers, valves, agitators, nozzles, thermocouple bushing, conduit and container lining in chemical, pesticide, fertilizer and dye equipment. Zirconium wire can be used as the electrode head of air plasma cutting machine. Zirconium chips can be used as steel additives for deoxidation and nitrogen removal; It can also be used as grain refiner for the production of aluminum alloy. Zirconium powder can be used in powder metallurgy, the production of pyroluminant, and zirconium powder friction can emit high temperature enough to ignite hydrocarbon vapor bouquet, so it can be used in the military for the manufacture of bullets and shells fuse and high explosives, armor-piercing incendiaries and incensed cluster bombs and other weapons.

• Application of Zirconium Alloy

  Zirconium can be alloyed with other metals or non-metals and has a wide range of applications in the atomic energy industry, electronics industry, medical device manufacturing and building materials manufacturing.

   

  Atomic energy industry

  Zirconium alloys are used in the atomic energy industry. Because zirconium has the advantages of high melting point, moderate density, high strength, strong plasticity and small neutron capture cross section, so its alloy can be used as nuclear reactor, nuclear fuel, nuclear submarine and uranium rod structural materials, commonly used zirconium alloys are Zr-2, Zr-4, Zr-1Nb and Zr-2.5Nb.

   

  Electronics industry

  Zirconium alloys are used in the electronics industry. Since zirconium is aspiratory, other elements can be added to form alloys with highly absorbent active gas properties for use as aspirants in the vacuum tube industry. For example, zircon ink getter can be used in traveling wave tube, X-ray tube and trigger tube, etc. Zirconium vanadium alloy getter can be used in stainless steel vacuum insulation cup, solar vacuum water heater and oil high efficiency insulation tube. Zirconium alloy can also be used in the production of gyroaccelerators and other special electronic instruments in the electronics industry because of its excellent electron radioactivity.

   

  Medical device manufacturing

  Zirconium is used in the manufacture of medical devices. Due to its excellent mechanical properties, corrosion resistance and biocompatibility, and low elastic modulus, zirconium alloy can be used in the manufacture of medical instruments, such as implant materials for prosthetics, bone and muscle, and wearable artificial kidneys, as well as in blood filtration, hemodialysis and peritoneal dialysis tests.

   

  Other fields

  Due to its high heat resistance, zirconium alloy can be used in the manufacture of spacecraft parts such as rocket nozzles and jet engine blades to prevent spacecraft from heating up seriously when they return to Earth through the atmosphere. In other construction fields, zirconium alloy is also widely used in the manufacture of bearings, plates, pipes, forgings, rods, welding wires, abrasives, ceramic colors and refractory materials.