The fourth period/row of the periodic table contains the transition metal nickel, which has an atomic number of 28. Even though the body needs it, too much of it may be harmful.
Smoking cigarettes, consuming contaminated food or drinks, or breathing in contaminated air may all infect humans. Cancers of the larynx, prostate, nose, and lungs may result from consuming too much nickel.
in this article we discuss what nickel is its application Compounds, and properties
What is Nickel?
Pure nickel, a hard and ductile transition metal, is found in Earth’s crust in tiny amounts, usually in ultramafic rocks and in the interiors of larger nickel-iron meteorites.
Meteoric nickel is found in combination with iron, reflecting the origin of those elements as major end products of supernova nucleosynthesis. The use of nickel as a natural meteoric nickel-iron alloy has been traced back as far back as 3500 BCE.
Axel Fredrik Cronstedt first isolated and classified nickel as an element in 1751, initially mistaking the ore for a copper mineral in the cobalt mines of Los, Hälsingland, Sweden.
Nickel minerals can be green, like copper ores, and were known as kupfernickel nickel’s copper because they produced no copper. Most nickel in the earth’s crust exists as oxides, but economically more important nickel ores are sulfides, especially pentlandite.
Major production sites include Sulawesi, Indonesia; the Sudbury region, Canada; New Caledonia in the Pacific; Western Australia; and Norilsk, Russia. Nickel is one of four elements (iron, cobalt, and gadolinium) that are ferromagnetic at about room temperature.
Alnico permanent magnets, based partly on nickel, are of intermediate strength between iron-based permanent magnets and rare-earth magnets. Nickel is used chiefly in alloys and corrosion-resistant plating.
Applications
- Nickel is a widely used alloy metal, with 68% used in stainless steel, 10% in nonferrous alloys, 9% in electroplating, 7% in alloy steel, 3% in foundries, and 4% in other applications.
- It is used in various industrial and consumer products, including stainless steel, alnico magnets, coinage, rechargeable batteries, electric guitar strings, microphone capsules, and special alloys.
- Nickel is traditionally used for kris production in Southeastern Asia due to its corrosion resistance.
- It is an excellent alloying agent for certain precious metals and is used in the fire assay as a collector of platinum group elements (PGE).
- Nickel foam or nickel mesh is used in gas diffusion electrodes for alkaline fuel cells.
- Nickel and its alloys are often used as catalysts for hydrogenation reactions.
- Nickel is naturally magnetostrictive and used as a binder in the cemented tungsten carbide or hardmetal industry.
- It is useful in krytron devices as a beta particle emitter and is being investigated as a power source for betavoltaic batteries.
- Around 27% of all nickel production is used for engineering, 10% for building and construction, 14% for tubular products, 20% for metal goods, 14% for transport, 11% for electronic goods, and 5% for other uses.
- Nickel is also used for the hydrogenation of unsaturated oils to make margarine.
Properties
A metal that takes a high polish, nickel is silvery-white with a hint of gold. Iron, cobalt, gadolinium, and this element are the only four that are ferromagnetic at or close to room temperature.
Above 355 °C (671 °F), which is its Curie temperature, bulk nickel loses its magnetic properties. Nickel’s unit cell is a face-centered cube with an atomic radius of 0.124 nm and a lattice parameter of 0.352 nm.
At least 70 GPa of pressure does not affect the stability of this crystal structure. For a transition metal, nickel has a comparatively high electrical and thermal conductivity and is hard, ductile, and malleable.
Because of the development and mobility of dislocations, the high compressive strength of 34 GPa that is expected for perfect crystals is never achieved in the actual bulk material. Nonetheless, Ni nanoparticles have achieved it.
Compounds
Nickel sulfide, nickel carbonyl, and trigonal bipyramidal are common compounds with oxidation states of -1, 0, +1, +2, +3, and +4.
Nickel chloride, nickel nitrate, and nickel sulfamate are commonly used in industrial applications, such as nickel electroplating baths, textile printing, and dyeing. Nickel sulfate is used in the production of ground-coat enamels, catalysts, and mordants.
Nickel oxide and nickel peroxide are used in storage batteries and fuel cells. Nickel ferrites are used in various electrical devices, including transformers and antennas.
Nickel sulfide, arsenide, antimonide, diarsenide, thioarsenide, and thioantimonide are typical compounds found in nature, mainly found as minerals in association with arsenic, antimony, and sulfur.
Nickel carbonyl, also known as tetracarbonylnickel, is a significant commercial compound with a zero oxidation state, transporting carbon monoxide when acetylene and alcohols are converted into acrylates, which are used in plastics.
It was the first discovery of a family of metal carbonyls in 1890. Carbon monoxide reacts with finely split nickel, generating a colorless, volatile liquid with an electrical structure similar to noble gases.
FAQs
What is nickel used for?
The silvery-white metal nickel is primarily used to strengthen and improve the resistance of stainless steel and other alloys to corrosive conditions and high temperatures.
What is the IUPAC name of the negative [NiCl₄]²⁻?
The metal complex with the formula [NiCl₄]²⁻ is the tetrachloronickelate (II) ion.
Why is [Ni(CN)₄]²⁻ square planar?
All of the electrons are coupled up when there are strong field CN– ions present. In square planar geometry, the vacant 4d, 3s, and two 4p orbitals proceed via dsp2 hybridization to form bonds with CN– ligands. [Ni(CN)₄]2- is square planar accordingly.
Is [NiCl₄]²⁻ paramagnetic?
Despite being tetrahedral, [NiCl₄]²⁻ and [Ni(CO)₄] have distinct magnetic properties. This is because ligands vary in their nature. Cl⁻ does not couple unpaired 3d electrons since it is a weak field ligand. [NiCl₄]²⁻ is hence paramagnetic.