Silicon Metal#553

Product Description

Silicon Metal is known as a semi-metallic or metalloid, having several of the characteristics of metals. It is the second most abundant element in the Earth's crust after oxygen, naturally occurring in various forms of silicon dioxide or silicates and very rarely in its pure form in volcanic exhalations. It takes its name from the Latin Silicus, which means flint.
Silicon can be found in the form of sand, quartz, rock crystal, amethyst, agate, flint and opal as an oxide. Granite, asbestos, feldspar, clay, mica are a few examples of the numerous silicate materials. Silicon is abundant, relatively easy to mine and is one of Man's most useful elements.
Properties of Silicon Metal
Most metallurgical silicon metal is used as an alloying agent in the aluminium industry due to its ability to increase the strength of aluminium. Demand from the aluminium industry has grown steadily in recent years due to increased usage of aluminium in structural engineering, aircraft manufacture and the automotive industry. Aluminium alloys are lighter and more resistant to corrosion than carbon-steel and can be made by addition of metals such as copper, zinc, magnesium, manganese as well as silicon.