Category Science

To maintain good health, the human body needs a lot of minerals like iron, calcium and sodium. We have already discussed how our blood is enriched by iron. But, very few people are aware of the enormous role magnesium plays in our bodies.

After oxygen, water and food, magnesium may be the most important element needed by our bodies. In fact, it is by far the most important mineral in the body.

Magnesium is necessary for over 300 different biochemical reactions that help the functioning of the human body. Magnesium is necessary for the growth and strength of bones and teeth. It plays an important role in the synthesis of protein and is responsible for fighting infections. Magnesium is vital for muscle contraction and the functioning of nerves.

Needless to say, we need to eat a lot of food that is rich in magnesium like nuts, whole grains, dark green vegetables, seafood, and cocoa.

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Iron and steel corrode after being exposed to oxygen or water. Corrosion is a huge trouble for ships, pipelines and oil rigs.

To prevent the troubles caused by rusting and protect the iron, another metal is used. Magnesium and zinc are often used for this purpose.

Magnesium is either attached with a cable or bolted to an object made of iron or steel. This method is known as sacrificial protection. As long as magnesium stays in contact with the steel or iron, the rust will form on the magnesium bar, since it reacts more strongly with oxygen and water than either of the other two metals. When the rust attacks the magnesium bar, it will be eaten away.

One magnesium bar must be replaced with another to protect iron or steel. Since magnesium is willingly allowed to be destroyed for the protection of iron or steel, this method is known as sacrificial protection.

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Magnesium was not discovered until the 19th century. But much before that, humans had been using compounds of magnesium. Isolating magnesium is a tough task. This is because the compounds of magnesium are highly stable and cannot be broken down easily.

Careful studies of magnesium and its compounds began in the mid 1700’s. Some of the earliest studies on magnesium and its compounds were carried out by Joseph Black, a Scottish physician and chemist.

He conducted various experiments on compounds of magnesium and published his studies in an article. Black’s article became famous in the scientific circles and he is sometimes given credit for ‘discovering’ magnesium.

Though Black’s experiments were famous, it was Sir Humphry Davy who first isolated magnesium. Davy passed an electric current through melted magnesium oxide. The current caused the compound to break apart, forming the impure magnesium metal and oxygen gas. But this was a strenuous task, requiring a large battery with 200 pairs of metal discs to isolate the metal!

In 1798, a French chemist, Louis-Nicolas Vauquelin discovered a brittle, steel-gray metal. It was found as a component of coal, oil, certain rock minerals, volcanic dust, and soil. This metal was named beryllium.

Beryllium is used to make an alloy – beryllium copper- which has a wide variety of uses. Beryllium copper is used to make springs, electrical contacts, spot-welding electrodes, and non-sparking tools.

This alloy absorbs a lot of heat energy without becoming as hot as other metals. It is used in high-speed aircraft, missiles, spacecraft, and communication satellites for the same reason. It is also used to make windshield frames, brake discs, support beams, and other structural components of the space shuttle.

Though ordinary light cannot pass through beryllium, X-rays seep through it. So, it is used in the windows of X-Ray machines and radiation detectors. It is used to make computer parts and instruments where lightness, stiffness, and stability are required and even in nuclear reactors.

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The method of spectroscopy was instrumental in the discovery of some elements. Spectroscopy is the process of analyzing light produced when an element is heated. Each element produces a different light when heated.

The spectrum of an element consists of a series of coloured lines. In many cases, the amount of an element present in a sample is too small. But, the element is much easier to detect by spectroscopy.

Caesium was discovered using spectroscopy by two German scientists, Robert Bunsen and Gustav Kirchhoff. It happened in 1859. Bunsen and Kirchhoff discovered caesium while they were busy studying a sample of mineral water taken from a spring.

At first, they identified the spectral lines for sodium, potassium, lithium, calcium, and strontium; these elements were well-known at that time. After removing these elements from the sample, they could still see two blue lines in the spectrum.

This was due to the presence of caesium. It was Bunsen who suggested calling the element caesium; it is derived from the Latin word for ‘sky blue’.

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Francium is one of the most radioactive elements in nature. Apart from being one of the least stable elements, it is also the second rarest naturally occurring element on Earth.

Marguerite Perey discovered francium in 1939. She chose to name the metal after France, the nation of its discovery. Francium is formed when uranium and thorium ores decay. It is usually made from radium in nuclear reactors.

Numerous experiments and calculations have been carried out since francium was discovered to study its basic physical and chemical properties. The half-life of this element is around 22 minutes.

Due to its high reactivity, francium is not used commercially. However, from experiments conducted on rats, scientists have proved that francium is a promising aid in the early diagnosis of cancer. This is because francium accumulates in cancerous tissues.

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