1. Transition Metals Noadswood Science, 2011

2. Transition Metals To understand the properties of transition metals Monday, May 04, 2015

3. Metals Look at the following metals – what are they and what properties do they have which make them useful to their function? Copper – easily bent and good at conducting electricity Aluminium – light, strong and corrosion resistant Titanium – strong and light

4. Investigation You task is to investigate the different strips of metal and identify some of the properties of each… You will need to work out the following properties for the metals: - ▫Density ▫Mass ▫Hardness ▫Conductivity ▫Reactivity (with water and acid) Draw up a table to record all of the above, and consider how you can test for each – the metals you have are copper, zinc, aluminium, titanium and iron

5. Investigation MetalDensity (g/cm 3 ) Mass (g) Hardness (1-6) Conductivity (  ) React In Water? React In Acid? Copper Zinc Aluminium Titanium Iron

6. Alkali Metals Compare the properties of the previous metals with some alkali metals…

7. Transition Metals The transition metals are found in the large block between groups II and groups III in the periodic table Most metals are placed here, including iron, titanium, copper and nickel…

8. Common Properties The transition metals have these properties in common: - ▫They are metals ▫They form coloured compounds ▫They are good conductors of heat and electricity ▫They can be hammered or bent into shape easily ▫They are less reactive than alkali metals ▫They have high melting points (but mercury is a liquid at room temperature) ▫They are hard and tough ▫They have high densities

9. Copper Copper is a transition metal – it is soft, easily bent and it is a good conductor of electricity This makes copper useful for electrical wiring Copper does not react with water, which makes it useful for plumbing

10. Copper Copper is purified by electrolysis – electricity is passed through solutions containing copper compounds, such as copper sulfate Pure copper forms on the negative electrode

11. Copper Ore We are running out of ores rich in copper – research is being carried out to find new ways to extract copper from the remaining ores, without harming the environment too much This research is very important, as traditional mining produces huge open-cast mines, and the remaining ores are low-grade, which means that they contain relatively little copper and produce a lot of waste rock

12. Aluminium & Titanium Aluminium and titanium are two metals with a low density – this means that they are lightweight for their size They also have a very thin layer of their oxides on the surface, which stops air and water getting to the metal, so aluminium and titanium resist corrosion making the two metals very useful Aluminium is used for aircraft, trains, overhead power cables, saucepans and cooking foil Titanium is used for fighter aircraft, artificial hip joints and pipes in nuclear power stations

13. Extraction Unlike iron, aluminium and titanium cannot be extracted from their oxides by reduction with carbon: - ▫Aluminium is more reactive than carbon, so the reaction does not work ▫Titanium forms titanium carbide with carbon, which makes the metal brittle Aluminium extraction is expensive because the process needs a lot of electrical energy Titanium extraction is expensive because the process involves several stages and a lot of energy – this especially limits the uses of titanium

14. Recycling Aluminium is extensively recycled because less energy is needed to produce recycled aluminium than to extract aluminium from its ore Recycling preserves limited resources and requires less energy, so it causes less damage to the environment

15. Transition Metals As Catalysts A catalyst is a substance that speeds up a chemical reaction without being used up – they are hugely valuable in industry where they can save time and energy Many transition elements (and their compounds) are catalysts: - ▫Iron is the catalyst used in the Haber process (producing ammonia) ▫Manganese (IV) oxide is the catalyst used in the decomposition of hydrogen peroxide ▫Nickel is the catalyst used in turning oils into fats (margarine production)