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What Is Boron?

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My element is Boron. Boron compounds such as borax have been known and used by ancient cultures for thousands of years. Boron was first partially isolated in 1808 by French chemists Joseph L. Gay-Lussac and L. J. Thénard and independently by Sir Humphry Davy in London. Davy first tried to produce Boron by electrolysis of boric acid, but was not satisfied with how the results turned out. In 1909, American chemist Ezekiel Weintraub was able to produce 99% pure Boron, by reducing Boron halides with hydrogen. In 2004, Jiuhua Chen and Vladimir L. Solozhenko produced a new form of Boron, but were not certain of its structure. Boron is a tough element, very hard, and very resistant to heat. In its crystalline form, it is the second hardest element of all the …show more content…

Boron is an indispensable element in NIB magnets. NIB magnets are very powerful magnets invented in the early 1980s. They are used in computers, cell phones, medical equipment, toys, motors, wind turbines and audio systems. Boron is used to control nuclear reactions. It’s an excellent neutron absorber, along with steel or reacted with carbon, titanium or zirconium, it is also used in control rods for nuclear reactors. Boron is not known to be toxic for humans. Boron is a metalloid, intermediate between metals and nonmetals. It exists in many polymorphs, some more metallic than others. Metallic Boron is extremely hard and has an extremely high melting point. Boron does not generally make ionic bonds, it forms stable covalent bonds. It can also transmit portions of infrared light. Boron is also a poor room temperature conductor of electricity but its conductivity improves markedly at higher temperatures. Boron oxide is used in glassmaking and ceramics. Boron Nitride’s hardness is second only to diamond, but it has better thermal and chemical stability, hence Boron Nitride ceramics are used in high temperature

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