History

Niobium was discovered by chemist and mineralogist Charles Hatchett in 1801. He found the element in a columbite sample sent to England from a riverbed in Columbia. For this reason, Hatchett named the element “columbium”. Until about the middle of the 19th century it was presumed that “columbium” was the same element as Tantalum, discovered in 1802, because the two elements almost always occurred together in minerals.

It wasn’t until 1844 that the Berlin professor Heinrich Rose showed that Niobium and Tantalum were different elements. Due to the similarity to Tantalum, and not knowing of the name “columbium”, he gave the element the name of the daughter of Tantalus, Niobe. In 1864, Christian Blomstrand was successful in producing metallic Niobium by reducing Niobium chloride with Hydrogen under heat.

After many years of discussion, Niobium was deemed the official name of the element by the International Union of Pure and Applied Chemistry (IUPAC) in 1950.

Properties

In the periodic table, Niobium (chemical symbol: Nb) is in the 5th group of elements with the atomic number 41. Niobium is a grey, shiny, ductile metal. The chemical behaviour of Niobium is similar to that of Tantalum.

Like Tantalum, Niobium gets its resistance to corrosion from an oxide film that provides passivation, and is therefore resistant to various acids.

Niobium is also used as a material in the construction of a broad spectrum of components in the chemical and pharmaceutical industries.

Specifications

The specifications for Niobium and Niobium alloys are determined by the ASTM as follows:

ASTM B392 – 09 Standard Specification for Niobium and Niobium Alloys – Bar, Rod, and Wire
ASTM B393 – 09 Standard Specification for Niobium and Niobium Alloys – Strip, Sheet, and Plate
ASTM B394 – 09 Standard Specification for Niobium and Niobium Alloys – Seamless and Welded Tubes


See also www.astm.org