Iron
By: Salah El Tarouty
Characteristics
Iron is a ductile, gray, relatively soft metal and is a moderately good conductor of heat and electricity.
It is attracted by magnets and can be readily magnetized.
The pure metal is chemically very reactive and rusts readily in moist air, forming red-brown oxides.
There are three allotropic forms of iron, known as alpha, gamma, and delta.
Alpha iron, also known as ferrite, is the stable form of iron at normal temperatures.
Uses:
Iron is the cheapest and most important of all metals - important in the sense that iron is overwhelmingly the most commonly used metal, accounting for 95 percent of worldwide metal production.
Iron is used to manufacture steel and other alloys important in construction and manufacturing.
Iron is also vital in the functioning of living organisms, transporting oxygen in blood via the hemoglobin molecule.
Facts about Iron
2.The element symbol for iron is Fe, which comes from the Latin word for iron, "ferrum".
3.Iron is one of the most elements. It comprises about 5.6% of the earth's crust and almost all of the earth's core.
4.Iron is formed via fusion in stars that have sufficient mass. The sun and many other stars contain significant amounts of iron.
5. The single largest use of iron is to make steel, an alloy of iron and a smaller amount of carbon.