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corrosion

(Encyclopedia)corrosion, atmospheric oxidation of metals (see oxidation and reduction). By far the most important form of corrosion is the rusting of iron. Rusting is essentially a process of oxidation in which iro...

rusting

(Encyclopedia)rusting: see corrosion.

brass

(Encyclopedia)brass, alloy having copper (55%–90%) and zinc (10%–45%) as its essential components. The properties of brass vary with the proportion of copper and zinc and with the addition of small amounts of o...

enamelware

(Encyclopedia)enamelware, utensils having a metal foundation and a coating of special glass, called porcelain enamel, applied by fusion. The porcelain enamel, or vitreous enamel, is applied to make the utensils cor...

tantalum

(Encyclopedia)tantalum tănˈtələm [key] [from Tantalus], metallic chemical element; symbol Ta; at. no. 73; at. wt. 180.94788; m.p. 2,996℃; b.p. 5,400±100℃; sp. gr. 16.65 at 20℃; valence +2, +3, +4, or +5....

palladium, chemical element

(Encyclopedia)palladium [Gr. Pallas, goddess of wisdom], metallic chemical element; symbol Pd; at. no. 46; at. wt. 106.42; m.p. 1,554℃; b.p. 2,970℃; sp. gr. 12.02 at 20℃; valence +2, +3, or +4. Palladium is a...

zirconium

(Encyclopedia)zirconium zərkōˈnēəm [key], metallic chemical element; symbol Zr; at. no. 40; at. wt. 91.224; m.p. about 1,852℃; b.p. 4,377℃; sp. gr. 6.5 at 20℃; valence +2, +3, or +4. Zirconium is a very ...

German silver

(Encyclopedia)German silver, name for various alloys of copper, zinc, and nickel, sometimes also containing lead and tin. They were originally named for their silver-white color, but use of the term silver is now p...

Mössbauer, Rudolf Ludwig

(Encyclopedia)Mössbauer, Rudolf Ludwig, 1929–2011, German physicist, Ph.D. Max Planck Institute for Medical Research, Heidelberg, Germany, 1957. Mössbauer was a professor at the California Institute of Technolo...

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