nickel metallic chemical element; symbol Ni; at. no. 28; at. wt. 58.6934; m.p. about 1,453°C; b.p. about 2,732°C; sp. gr. 8.902 at 25°C; valence 0, +1, +2, +3, or +4.

Nickel is a hard, malleable, ductile, lustrous, silver-white metal with a face-centered cubic crystalline structure. It takes a high polish. In its magnetic properties and chemical activity it resembles iron and cobalt, the elements preceding it in Group 10 of the periodic table . It is a fairly good conductor of heat and electricity. In its familiar compounds nickel is bivalent, although it assumes other valences. It also forms a number of complex compounds. Most nickel compounds are blue or green. Nickel dissolves slowly in dilute acids but, like iron, becomes passive when treated with nitric acid. Finely divided nickel adsorbs hydrogen.

Commercially, the most important compound is the sulfate, which is used in electroplating, as a mordant in dyeing, in preparation of other nickel compounds, and in paints, varnishes, and ceramics. The nickel oxides are also important; they are used in ceramic glazes, in glass manufacture, in the preparation of alloys, and in the Edison battery . Pure wrought nickel in the form of sheets and wire has many uses. Finely divided nickel is used as a catalyst, e.g., in the hydrogenation of oils. Nickel is used as a protective and ornamental coating for less corrosion resistant metals, especially iron and steel; it is applied by electroplating and by other methods (see plating ). It is used in the nickel-cadmium (NiCad) storage battery.

The major use of nickel is in the preparation of alloys. The chief attributes of nickel alloys are strength, ductility, and resistance to corrosion and heat. Many stainless steels contain nickel. Nickel steels are used in safes and armor plate. Alloys of nickel and copper are widely used, e.g., Monel metal, nickel bronze, and nickel silver. The so-called German silver is a nickel-copper alloy. Nickel-copper alloys are used in coinage; the American "nickel" coin is about one-fourth nickel. Constantan is a nickel-copper alloy used in thermocouples. Other alloys of nickel include nickel-chromium alloys (such as Nichrome) used for electric heating elements; alloys of aluminum, nickel, cobalt, and iron (such as Alnico) used to make magnets; and alloys of nickel, chromium, and cobalt used structurally in jet engines.

Nickel occurs in a number of minerals; its chief ores are pentlandite and pyrrhotite (nickel-iron sulfides) and garnierite (nickel-magnesium silicate). Nickel is present in most meteorites. It is also found in trace amounts in plants and animals. Nickel sulfide ores are concentrated by the flotation process , then smelted or roasted to partially convert them to the oxide form, and further treated in a Bessemer converter to form a matte. The metal is separated from copper and other metals present in the Bessemer matte by electrorefining or chemical methods (see Mond process under Mond, Ludwig ). The end product is in the form of nickel cathodes, pellets, or powder. Nickel was discovered in 1751 by A. F. Cronstedt in kupfernickel (niccolite), a copper-colored nickel arsenide mineral.

Nickel

melting point: 1,455°C
boiling point: 2,913°C
density: 8.9 g/cm ³
most common ions: Ni ²⁺, Ni ³⁺, Ni ⁴⁺

Nickel is a silver-white, lustrous metal . It was first isolated by Swedish chemist Axel Fredrik Cronstedt in 1751. Cronstedt had been attempting to isolate copper from a mineral called niccolite (the German word kupfer-nickel means "Devil's copper" or "Old Nick's copper"). He instead found nickel, which he named after the mineral.

The abundance of nickel in Earth's crust is 90 parts per million (ppm); in ocean water, its abundance is 2 parts per billion (ppb). In meteorites, however, its abundance approaches 13,000 ppm. Much of the world's supply of nickel is found in Ontario, Canada, where it is isolated from the ores pentlandite and pyrrhotite. Other large deposits are found in Australia, New Caledonia, Cuba, Indonesia, and Greenland.

The most common isotope of nickel is ⁵⁸Ni, which has a natural abundance of 68.1 percent. Other stable isotopes include ⁶⁰Ni (26.2%), ⁶¹Ni (1.1%), ⁶²Ni (3.6%), and ⁶⁴Ni (0.9%). Important nickel compounds include nickel oxides (NiO and Ni₂O₃), nickel sulfides (NiS, NiS₂, Ni₃S₂), and nickel chloride (NiCl₂).

Nickel metal is malleable, ductile , and a fairly good conductor of electricity and heat. Its most common use is in stainless steels, where it may be combined with various other metals (such as iron, chromium, chromium, copper, etc.) to form alloys that are highly resistant to corrosion. Nickel is also used to make coins (U.S. five-cent pieces contain 25 percent nickel), batteries, magnets, and jewelry; to protectively coat other metals; and to color glass and ceramics green.

see also Coordination Compounds; Inorganic Chemistry.

Stephanie Dionne Sherk

Bibliography

Lide, David R., ed. (2003). The CRC Handbook of Chemistry and Physics, 84th edition. Boca Raton, FL: CRC Press.

Other Resources

Winter, Mark "Nickel." The University of Sheffield and WebElements Ltd., U.K. Available from <http://www.webelements.com>.

nickel (symbol Ni) Silvery-white metallic element, one of the transition elements. Its chief ores are pentlandite and niccolite. Hard, malleable and ductile, nickel is used in stainless steels, other special alloys, coinage, cutlery, storage batteries and as a hydrogenation catalyst. Properties: at.no. 28; r.a.m. 58.71; r.d. 8.90 (25°C); m.p. 1453°C (2647°F); b.p. 2732°C (4950°F); most common isotope Ni⁵⁸ (67.84%).

nickel hard silvery-white lustrous mineral. XVIII. shortening of G. kupfernickel ‘copper nickel’ (mining name of the copper-coloured ore from which the metal was first obtained); -nickel app. = nickel dwarf, mischievous demon, the name being given to the ore because it yielded no copper in spite of its appearance.

nick·el / ˈnikəl/ • n. 1. a silvery-white metal, the chemical element of atomic number 28. (Symbol: Ni) 2. inf. a five-cent coin; five cents. • v. (-eled, -el·ing; Brit. -elled, -el·ling) [tr.] coat with nickel.

nickel An ultra‐trace mineral; known to be essential for experimental animals, although its function is not known. There is no information on requirements. Metallic nickel is used as a catalyst in the hydrogenation of oils.

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