An ordinary person who is not associated with chemistry and medicine, as a rule, has a vague idea of the importance of cob alt for his life and he alth. Another reason why we find it difficult to explain what cob alt is is its scarce distribution in nature. Only 0.004% - this is its content in the earth's crust. However, the metal and its compounds are actively used in metallurgy, agriculture and medicine. In our article, we will expand our understanding of the role of cob alt in industry, as well as dwell on its functions in the human body.
Place of an element in the Periodic Table
What place does cob alt occupy in the periodic system? The properties of chemical elements, including the metal we are considering, depend on their position in the table of D. I. Mendeleev. It is located in group VIII b (in the short form of the table - in the iron triad of group VIII). Like iron and nickel, in its atom at the last energy level aretwo electrons, which indicates that the metal belongs to d-elements and determines its main characteristics. The metal has two valences - II and III. It is also characterized by the phenomenon of allotropy, metal modifications can have a cubic or hexagonal structure.
What is cob alt?
What are the physical properties of the element? In appearance, it is a metal with high hardness and magnetic properties. Silvery luster, malleability and thermal stability are some of the physical features of the element, which are also inherent in its other two neighbors in the periodic system - nickel and iron. Neither oxygen nor water acts on cob alt at ordinary temperatures. Its compounds, such as sm alt, have long been known as substances used to produce blue stained glass and color ceramics.
Cob alt is a typical metal similar in chemical properties to iron. What are the features of its oxides, bases and s alts?
Compounds of divalent and trivalent cob alt
The ability to form complex s alts is the main distinguishing feature of Co (III) atoms. These substances are unstable, the coordination number of cob alt in them is always equal to six. They have a high oxidizing power. Medium s alts, e.g. CoCL3 or Co2(SO4)3 easily transform into s alts, in which cob alt is already a divalent metal. Its anhydrous compounds have a blue color, and crystalline hydrates and solutions -pink. Unlike other bases, trivalent cob alt hydroxide, when interacting with hydrochloric acid, does not form s alt and water, but releases free chlorine from it. The base of the divalent metal in the form of a blue precipitate is obtained by direct reaction of the corresponding s alt with an alkali. Let us give a description of the properties of cob alt, which is part of the solid solutions of metals in each other - alloys.
It gives the material exceptional technical parameters of high temperature resistance, hardness, abrasion and corrosion resistance. Alloys containing cob alt are used in the defense industry, rocket science and in closed-loop chemistry. In the production of tool grades of steel, materials with magnetic properties, cob alt is also used as an alloying additive. The properties of these iron alloys are very different from conventional stainless steels containing only chromium or nickel.
Use of cob alt in engineering
About a third of all metal produced in the world goes to the production of cermets - artificial composite materials. Tungsten carbide serves as a solid base in them, and cob alt acts as a binding and fixing component. It is also a strategic raw material for the production of engine turbines in the aircraft industry.
In its pure form, the metal is practically not used, but the use of cob alt in a mixture with other elements (iron, copper, tungsten and chromium) is widespread in variousindustries. The stellite alloy, containing up to 60% cob alt, is characterized by increased heat resistance and hardness; it is an indispensable material for the manufacture of cutters and drills in tool production. Alloying elements such as tungsten and molybdenum enhance its performance. Vitalium alloy, which has a high resistance to plastic deformation, also contains cob alt. The characteristic of the properties of the compound is as follows: heat-resistant and acid-resistant, it is used in the manufacture of chemical equipment: synthesis columns, distillation apparatus. The role of alloys in counteracting various types of corrosion is great, for example, parts and mechanisms made of stellite resist destruction during oscillatory and rubbing movements of mechanical surfaces in internal combustion engines.
Methods for obtaining cob alt
Different sectors of the economy require the use of materials containing cob alt. This contributes to an increase in the extraction of ores and minerals, namely: cob alt spice and gloss. The composition of these rocks also includes arsenic, which forces the use of increased safety measures in the processes of metal smelting. The main method for obtaining cob alt is pyrometallurgy, and the method of treating the ore with sulfate acid is also used. The most promising are deposits of silicate-oxide ores, pyrite and pentlandite in China, Russia (on the Kola Peninsula, in the Republic of Tuva and the Krasnoyarsk Territory), as well as in Canada.
The use of metal in agriculture andmedicine
Certain important properties of the trace element cob alt contribute to its use, for example, in crop production to increase the vegetative mass of plants. In alfalfa, lupine, clover and other valuable forage grasses of the legume family, it is included in the enzymatic reactions of nitrogen fixation, which occur with the help of nodule bacteria. The lack of a microelement is manifested by such symptoms as discoloration of leaf blades and their loss of the ability to photosynthesis, slowing down growth processes and disruption of the entire plant development cycle. Excessive content of cob alt is possible due to violation of the norms for the introduction of microfertilizers. Since its compounds are highly soluble in water, they immediately enter the xylem and through the conductive elements (vascular-fibrous bundles) enter the leaf mesophyll, causing their discoloration and wilting. Cereal crops are most sensitive to an excess of a microelement: oats, barley, rice.
Biochemistry about the role of cob alt compounds
The branch of biology that studies living matter at the molecular and cellular level has established the important function of this chemical element. It is part of the non-protein part of biologically active substances - enzymes and hormones. For example, cob alt in the human body is found in thyroxine molecules produced by the thyroid gland and controlling metabolic processes. Another vital hormone that regulates blood glucose levels is insulin. It is secreted by the β-cells of the islets of Langerhans of the pancreas and also contains cob alt compounds. Insufficient supplyelement in human cells and organs is observed during the transition from mixed nutrition to vegetarianism, with helminthic invasions and diseases of the digestive system. As you can see, cob alt is a trace element that seriously affects the level of homeostasis in the human body.
The importance of a chemical element in metabolism
Hematopoiesis, carried out by the red bone marrow, occurs with the participation of cob alt-containing substances - activators of the corresponding enzymes. One of the main B vitamins - cyanocobolamin (B12), participating in the formation of red blood cells in the hematopoietic organs, protects the body from anemia. Proper and balanced nutrition, containing liver, beef, seafood, dried apricots, beets, will provide the necessary level of cob alt in the human body (about 40 mg per day) and protect it from diseases of the immune, cardiovascular and endocrine systems.
