What is Vanadium
Vanadium is a metallic element. Its elemental quality is silver-gray metal. Vanadium belongs to group VB in the periodic table. Its crystal structure is body-centered cubic. Common valences of vanadium are +5, +4, +3, +2. Due to its high melting point, vanadium is defined as a refractory metal. Vanadium is ductile and relatively hard and non-magnetic. Vanadium-titanium-magnetite is the main source of vanadium production in the world. There are abundant vanadium-titanium-magnetite resources in Russia, South Africa, China, Australia and the United States.
| I | O | |||||||||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 1 H |
II | III | IV | V | VI | VII | 2 He |
||||||||||
| 2 | 3 Li |
4 Be |
5 B |
6 C |
7 N |
8 O |
9 F |
10 Ne |
||||||||||
| 3 | 11 Na |
12 Mg |
III | IV | V | VI | VII | VIII | I | II | 13 Al |
14 Si |
15 P |
16 S |
17 Cl |
18 Ar |
||
| 4 | 19 K |
20 Ca |
21 Sc |
22 Ti |
23 V |
24 Cr |
25 Mn |
26 Fe |
27 Co |
28 Ni |
29 Cu |
30 Zn |
31 Ga |
32 Gc |
33 As |
34 Se |
35 Br |
36 Kr |
| 5 | 37 Rb |
38 Sr |
39 Y |
40 Zr |
41 Nb |
42 Mo |
43 Tc |
44 Ru |
45 Rh |
46 Pd |
47 Ag |
48 Cd |
49 In |
50 Sn |
51 Sb |
52 Te |
53 I |
54 Xe |
| 6 | 55 Cs |
56 Ba |
57-71 La-Lu |
72 Hf |
73 Ta |
74 W |
75 Re |
76 Os |
77 Ir |
78 Pt |
79 Au |
80 Hg |
81 Tl |
82 Pb |
83 Bi |
84 Po |
85 At |
86 Rn |
| 7 | 87 Fr |
88 Ra |
89-103 Ac-Lr |
104 Rf |
105 Db |
106 Sg |
107 Bh |
108 Hs |
109 Mt |
110 Ds |
111 Rg |
112 Uub |
||||||
| La-Lu | 57 La |
58 Ce |
59 Pr |
60 Nd |
61 Pm |
62 Sm |
63 Eu |
64 Gd |
65 Tb |
66 Dy |
67 Ho |
68 Er |
69 Tm |
70 Yb |
71 Lu |
|||
| Ac-Lr | 89 Ac |
90 Th |
91 Pa |
92 U |
93 Np |
94 Pu |
95 Am |
96 Cm |
97 Bk |
98 Cf |
99 Es |
100 Fm |
101 Md |
102 No |
103 Lr |
|||
- Item Name: Vanadium
- Element Symbol: V
- Atomic Number: 23
- Atomic Weight: 50.94
- Atomic Radius: 132pm
- Density: 6.00g/cm3
- Melting Point: 1890°C
- Boiling Point: 3380°C
- Electronic Layout: [Ar]3d34s2
The Atomic Structure of Vanadium
Physical Properties
Vanadium is a silver-grey metal. It has a melting point of 1890°C and is classified as a rare metal with a high melting point. Its boiling point is 3380°C. Pure vanadium is relatively hard, non-magnetic, and malleable. If vanadium contains a small amount of impurities, especially nitrogen, oxygen, hydrogen, etc., the plasticity will be significantly reduced.
Chemical Properties
The properties of vanadium are similar to those of tantalum and niobium, which establishes the basis for the three elements to form a group together in the periodic table. Vanadium is a moderately reactive metal with valences of +2, +3, +4 and +5. Among them, the +5 valence is the most stable valence. Its compounds are oxidizing, while low-valent vanadium is reducing. The ionization energy of vanadium is 6.74 eV. It is resistant to hydrochloric acid and sulfuric acid, and is better than most stainless steels in gas, salt, and water corrosion resistance. Vanadium is not oxidized in air and is soluble in hydrofluoric acid, nitric acid and aqua regia.
Solid Solution Strengthening Effect of Vanadium
Vanadium in superalloys is mainly distributed in γ austenite, accounting for about 70% to 87%. The atomic radius of vanadium distributed in the γ matrix is 0.1311 nm, which is 5% larger than the atomic radius of nickel (0.1246 nm). This difference in atomic radii will produce lattice distortion and play a significant role in solid solution strengthening. The study showed that as the vanadium content was increased from 0.2% to 1.6%, the tensile strength and yield strength of the alloy at 850°C increased.
Precipitation Strengthening Effect of Vanadium
The proportion of vanadium in the precipitation strengthening phase is about 14%~29%. A small amount of vanadium can still play a certain role in the precipitation strengthening phase. For example, in Incoloy A-286, the content of vanadium is specified as 0.1%~0.5%. This is beneficial to the solid solution strengthening and precipitation strengthening of the alloy at the same time. However, in general, vanadium plays a more solid solution strengthening role in superalloys.
A-286
Si
C
Mn
Al
Ti
V
Mo
Fe
Cr
Ni
The table below shows the distribution of vanadium in the different phases of the alloy.
| Vanadium Content | Vanadium Content in the γ' Phase | Vanadium Content in Trace Phase | Vanadium Content in γ Matrix | |||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Proportion in Alloy (%) | Proportion in Vanadium (%) | Proportion in Alloy (%) | Proportion in Vanadium (%) | Proportion in Alloy (%) | Proportion in Vanadium (%) | |
| 0 | - | - | - | - | - | - |
| 0.21 | 0.027 | 13.5 | - | - | 0.174 | 86.5 |
| 0.80 | 0.21 | 26.3 | 0.0047 | 6 | 0.585 | 73.13 |
| 1.61 | 0.46 | 28.8 | 0.032 | 2 | 1.12 | 69.5 |
Other Effect of Vanadium
Vanadium has a refining effect on alloy grains. When there is no vanadium in some alloys, the grain size is No.0 ~ No.4. When the vanadium content is 1.6%, the grain size of the alloy is No.2 ~ No.5.
For nickel-based superalloys, vanadium significantly improves the hot working process plasticity of the alloy. For iron-based superalloys, the role of vanadium is mainly to improve the notch sensitivity of the alloy.
Conclusion
Vanadium is a metallic element. Its properties are very similar to niobium and tantalum. The difference is that in the alloy, niobium and tantalum mainly play the role of precipitation strengthening, while vanadium mainly plays the role of solid solution strengthening. A small amount of vanadium content in the alloy can refine grains, improve hot working plasticity and improve notch sensitivity.
We can customize superalloys according to the standard and your requirements, if you have any needs, please contact us.
