Uses of Semi-Metals in Industry _ EHow

11/13/2013Uses of Semi-Metals in Industry | eHow SEARCH Mom Style Food Tech Home Money Health Crafts More eHow Now Featured: Tax Time Pawsitive Change Smart Living eHow » Hobbies, Games & Toys » Science & Nature » Science » Uses of Semi-Metals in Industry Uses of Semi-Metals in Industry By John Brennan, eHow Contributor Share Semi-metals or metalloids are intermediate between metals and nonmetals in their properties. Their conductivity is intermediate between that of metals and nonmetals; unlike metals, they are not malleable. Their ionization energies and electronegativities are also intermediate between metals and nonmetals. There are seven metalloids among the elements, namely, boron, silicon, germanium, arsenic, antimony, tellurium and polonium. They form a stair-step pattern on the periodic table starting with boron in column 13. Some of them are very useful in industry. Related Ads Other People Are Reading Uses of Metalloids in Industry How Many Isotopes Does Hydrogen Have? Boron Certain boron compounds like borane or diborane are very useful in organic chemistry. Chemists can use borane and diborane, for example, to add an -OH or alcohol group to a carbon chain that contains a double bond. Sodium borohydride or NaBH4 is an invaluable reducing agent that adds a hydrogen with two electrons to organic compounds. Ketones like acetone, for example, contain an oxygen atom double-bonded to a carbon atom in a chain. Adding sodium borohydride to a ketone will reduce it to an alcohol. Boron is also important for glassware. Glass made with boron oxide is called borosilicate glass or Pyrex. Borosilicate is less likely than ordinary glass to crack when heated, so it's used to make lab glassware and some kinds of oven cookware as well. Silicon Silicon is the second-most abundant element in the Earth's crust. Its most common compound is silicon dioxide, typically found as sand or quartz. When heated and combined with sodium and calcium oxides, silicon dioxide forms a hard transparent substance called glass that enjoys countless uses both in industry and around your home. Although it's abundant, silicon isn't easy to refine and purify. Nonetheless, pure silicon has become essential to industry for the manufacture of devices the modern world considers essential: transistors and integrated circuits. The microchips in the computer you're using at this very moment contain silicon refined from quartz. Many solar panels are made from silicon as well. Germanium Check It Out DIY Leprechaun Traps for Kids You May Like What Are Some Common Kinds of Alloy? The Properties & Uses of Noble Gases Uses for Halogens What Metal Is Most Reactive? Silicon and boron are the two most useful and abundant metalloids; the others have fewer uses. Germanium is often found as an impurity in zinc ore, so it's produced primarily from http://www.ehow.com/info_8278407_uses-semimetals-industry.html 1/3 Other Metalloids Antimony is a toxic metalloid that was at one point in history had medicinal and cosmetic uses. but is used to make cadmium telluride thin-film solar cells. antimony is primarily used to harden lead for storage batteries. diodes and other solid-state electronics. Arsenic was also once used in small doses to treat syphilis. germanium is a semiconductor. Ceramic About Industrial Metal Detectors Scrap Metal Industry Information Comments You May Also Like How to Use Semi-Precious Stones Precious and semi-precious gemstones have been used for centuries in healing. Other uses include catalysts for the manufacture of polymers in the chemicals industry and doping glass for use in fiberoptics cables. Polonium is a radioactive. Peter Atkins. Physics Index: Arsenic USGS Minerals Information: Tellurium Photo Credit Ryan McVay/Photodisc/Getty Images More Like This Semi Metallic Vs. Tellurium is a fairly rare element. 2008 Occupational Health and Safety Administration: Antimony and Compounds University of Denver. 4th Edition". unstable toxic element with no major uses at present. Today. It achieved infamy in late 2006 when an assassin used it to poison ex-KGB agent Alexander Litvinenko. today. The stones can be used to.. the Quest for Insight.html 2/3 .. it's used in some pesticides and to strengthen lead alloys in lead shot or other applications.ehow. energy production and spiritual growth.. so it's often used in transistors.com/info_8278407_uses-semimetals-industry.11/13/2013 Uses of Semi-Metals in Industry | eHow the flue dust of plants that process zinc. http://www. Like silicon. et al. Related Searches Why Is Carbon Important to Living Organisms? What Are Types of Metalloids? What Are the Uses of Distillation in Industry? Sponsored Content What Does the Baby in a King Cake Represent? Tupai Tupai Malaysia's Best Kept Secret Foreign private equity 3 Easy Steps To Make firms expanding Women Fall In Love property portfolios in… LOLFa n a t ic Hu n g r y GoW h er e Fin a n cia l T im es [Live Updates] Missing MAS Flight MH370 T h e Ra k y a t Post by Taboola References USGS Minerals Information: Germanium University of Guelph: Semi-Metals "Chemical Principles. although it's also used to make solder for wire soldering. Its uses are limited by its toxicity. html 3/3 .com/info_8278407_uses-semimetals-industry.ehow. Inc.11/13/2013 Uses of Semi-Metals in Industry | eHow Featured Others Also Viewed Uses of Metalloids in Industry Science on the Similarities of Elements in Metals & Non-Metals View Photos Check It Out Check It Out What Useful Things Do Metalloids Do? Metalloids Used in Transistors Uses of the Element Tellurium Create Your Own Sacred Meditation Space © 1999-2014 Demand Media. DIY Upcycled Sweater Beret Creative Seed Starter Ideas About eHow eHow Blog Terms of Use eHow UK How to by Topic Privacy Policy eHow en Español How to Videos Report Copyright eHow Brasil CONNECT WITH US: Ad Choices en-US eHow Deutschland Sitemap http://www.