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Vanadium is a soft, ductile metal found in Group 5, Period 4 of the periodic table. It was discovered in Mexico by Andrés Del Rio and named erythronium, but later identified as vanadium by Friedrich Wöhler. Vanadium is used to strengthen steel and as an oxidation catalyst in the chemical industry. It is also being studied for its potential to lower blood sugar levels in people with diabetes and its role in skeletal formation in animals.
Vanadium is a metallic element with atomic number 23 and symbol V. In the periodic table of elements it is found in Group 5, and in Period 4 between titanium and chromium. It is called a “transition metal”.
Vanadium is a soft and ductile element. Described as silvery-white or, when powdered, light gray with a silvery sheen.
Although the discovery of vanadium is often attributed to the Swedish chemist Nils Gabriel Sefström, the discoverer was actually the Spanish professor of mineralogy Andrés Del Rio, who in 1801 found the element in Mexico and named it erythronium. Convinced it was nothing new, Del Rio dropped the request for him and Sefstrom gets credit. It was the German chemist Friedrich Wöhler who demonstrated in 1831 that the discoveries were identical.
Vanadium is named after the Norse goddess who also goes by the name Freyja, who is a member of the group of deities called the Vanir. She is the goddess of death and love, marriage and fertility.
Always found combined with other elements in ores, coal, and oil, vanadium is used in both its alloyed and unalloyed state. It is mined in the United States in Arizona, Utah and Colorado as well as in Africa, Peru and Venezuela. Approximately 7,000 tons are produced annually.
Vanadium has several uses. It is used to increase the strength and toughness of steel, mainly in the creation of the ferrovanadium iron alloy. Steel is used, for example, in jet engines. In the compounds V205 and NH4VO3, which are oxidation catalysts, vanadium is used in the chemical industry. Vanadium pentoxide is also used as a dye and color fixer.
Recent studies explore whether vanadium might play a role in helping lower blood sugar levels of people who have diabetes. Other studies have suggested that vanadium may play a role in skeletal formation in animals. Between 10 and 60 mcg of vanadium are consumed daily in a normal diet.
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