Ancient times have obscured the origins of tin. Long before pure tin metal was extracted, people employed bronzes, which are copper–tin alloys, in prehistoric times. Early Mesopotamia, the Indus Valley, Egypt, Crete, Israel, and Peru were all home to many bronzes.
The British Isles’ Scilly Isles and Cornwall, where tin mining has been practiced from at least 300–200 bce, are thought to have supplied a large portion of the tin utilized by the early Mediterranean peoples.
Prior to the Spanish invasion, tin mines were in operation in both the Inca and Aztec territories in South and Central America. The Latin term for tin, stannum, is shortened to the sign Sn.
Well, in this reading, we’ll explore what tin is, it properties, and uses. We’ll also explore it’s chemical compounds and composition.
What is Tin?
Tin, a chemical element derived from the Latin stannum, is a silvery metal with the atomic number 50 and symbol Sn. It is derived from cassiterite, a mineral that includes stannic oxide or SnO₂.
Tin has two primary oxidation states: +2 and the marginally more stable +4 and exhibits chemical similarities to its neighbors in group 14, germanium and lead.
It has the most stable isotopes in the periodic table, accounting for 0.00022% of Earth’s crust. Tin has two primary allotropes: less dense gray α-tin, with the diamond cubic structure, and β-tin, a silvery-white, malleable metal.
Pure metallic tin was created after 600 BC. Pewter, an alloy of 85-90% tin with the rest often composed of copper, antimony, bismuth, and occasionally lead and silver, has been used to make flatware since the Bronze Age.
Today, tin is utilized in various alloys, such as tin-lead soft solders and indium tin oxide films for optoelectronic devices. Tin plating steel is also significant, with tin-plated steel used as “tin cans” for food packaging due to its low toxicity.
What are the Uses of Tin?
Iron is protected from corrosion by tin plating; molten tin serves as the foundation for the manufacturing of (float) plate-glass; and tin pipes and valves preserve the purity of water and drinks.
Unless alloyed with other metals to create materials like bronzes, pewter, bearing metals, type metals, lead-based solders, bell metal, babbitt metal, and low-temperature casting alloys, pure tin is not used for structural purposes due to its relative weakness.
Tin oxide, which contains tin in the +4 oxidation state, can be used as a mild abrasive, a weighing agent for textiles, and to make ceramic bodies opaque.
Dentifrices include tin fluoride and tin pyrophosphate, which contains tin in the +2 oxidation state. Organic tin compounds serve as preservatives for wood and stabilizers in certain polymers.
At temperatures as high as 18 K (-427 °F), a crystalline alloy containing niobium maintains its superconducting properties even in extremely high magnetic fields.
It appears that elemental tin is not hazardous, and goods packed in tin-plated containers and cooking equipment that contain up to 300 parts per million of tin are safe.
However, organic tin compounds that are frequently employed as fungicides and biocides are poisonous to humans.
Properties of Tin
Tin is nontoxic, ductile, malleable, and suitable for cold-working processes like extrusion, spinning, and rolling. Its low melting point and strong adherence to clean surfaces make it an oxidation-resistant coating material.
Tin has two distinct allotropes: white (beta) tin and powdery gray (alpha) tin. At temperatures exceeding 13.2°C (55.8°F), the gray form quickly becomes white, while at low temperatures, the opposite transition, known as tin pest, occurs.
Tin’s crystals compress against one another when bent, producing a mysterious “cry.”Tin can be damaged by strong acids and alkalies, but almost neutral solutions have no discernible effect.
At normal temperature, fluorine interacts with tin fairly slowly, while iodine, bromine, and chlorine react with it. Tin’s allotropic changes at various temperatures can be used to illustrate the links between these modifications.
Tin has two oxidation states: +4 and +2. In an acidic solution, elemental tin easily oxidizes to the dipositive ion Sn²⁺, but moderate oxidizing agents like elemental oxygen change this ion into Sn⁴⁺.
The tetrapositive (Sn⁴⁺) state is often obtained by oxidation in an alkaline environment. Ten stable isotopes of tin are found in natural tin in the following percentages.
Physical
Tin, a soft, ductile, malleable, and highly crystalline silvery-white metal, has the lowest melting point in group 14, around 232 °C (450 °F), and the second-lowest boiling point in its group, behind lead, at 2,602 °C (4,716 °F).
Its structure is both metallic and pliable, with a body-centered tetragonal crystal structure. The nonmetallic form, gray tin, is brittle and stable below 13.2 °C (55.8 °F), similar to silicon and diamond.
α-tin, a powdered, dull-gray substance, is only used in specialized semiconductor applications. The term “tin pest” or “tin disease” refers to the tendency of β-tin to spontaneously change into α-tin in cold environments.
Impurities such as Al, Zn, and others cause the α-β transition temperature to drop significantly below 0 °C (32 °F), which is 13.2 °C (55.8 °F).
Commercial grades of tin (99.8% tin concentration) do not undergo transformation due to the inhibitory influence of trace quantities of bismuth, antimony, lead, and silver present as impurities.
Tin’s hardness is increased by alloying elements like copper, antimony, bismuth, cadmium, and silver. It forms basic eutectic systems with bismuth, gallium, lead, thallium, and zinc.
Tin was one of the first superconductors to be investigated, turning into a superconductor below 3.72 K and exhibiting the Meissner effect, one of the defining characteristics of superconductors.
Chemical
Tin can be corroded by acids and alkalis, although it is resistant to corrosion by water. Tin serves as a protective coating for other metals and may be very polished.
It gradually oxidizes in air to produce a thin stannic oxide (SnO₂) passivation layer that prevents further oxidation.
Compounds
In the +2 oxidation state, tin forms the stannous series of compounds; in the +4 state, tin forms the stannic series. Some of the more commercially significant stannous compounds are stannous fluoride (SnF₂), an active component of toothpastes;
stannous chloride (SnCl₂), which is used in tin galvanizing and as a reducing agent in the production of polymers and dyes; and stannous oxide (SnO), which is used in the production of tin salts for chemical reagents and plating.
Important stannic compounds include stannic oxide, SnO₂, which is a helpful catalyst in several industrial processes and a steel polishing powder; and stannic chloride, SnCl₄, which is widely used as a stabilizer for fragrances and as a starting material for other tin salts.
As demonstrated by the more than 500 known organotin compounds, tin can connect with carbon. Stabilizers of organotin are used to stop polyvinyl chloride from changing when exposed to heat and light.
Many organotin chemicals are important components of fungicides and biocides.
FAQs
What is TIN used for?
Tin is a soft, silvery-white metal that is used in many different things, such as solder, producing alloys like bronze and pewter, plating other metals (as in tin cans), glassmaking, and specific dentistry items.
What are 5 uses of TIN?
The majority of tin is used as a protective coating or in alloys with other metals like zinc or lead. Tin is utilized in the manufacturing of glass, bearing alloys, coatings for steel containers, solders for electrical and electronic circuits and pipelines, and other tin-related chemicals.
What is tin best used for?
Tin is frequently used in solder, metals for bearings, and steel cans used as food containers.
What is tin used for at home?
Nowadays, tin is typically thought of in relation to the tin cans that are displayed on supermarket shelves.
But the applications of tin and its alloys go far beyond the production of bronze and food storage. Tin sheets are frequently used to make jewelry and ornamental items for worktops and houses.