Page 163 - The Periodic Table Book

51
Sb Antimony

State: Solid
51 51 71 Discovery: c. 1600 bce

Forms This mineral Uses
tarnishes on
contact with air.
These needle-
like crystals
contain antimony, The Nitrogen Group
Stibnite
lead, and iron.
Jamesonite

These metallic
letters are used
by some printing
presses, and
are made of an
antimony-tin alloy.

Pure antimony Printing press metal type
This silvery
semi-metal is crystals refined These matches with antimony in the tip
hard but brittle. in a laboratory burn brighter than the ones without it.

Safety matches

Kohl is a dark
eyeshadow.

Kohl makes
Egyptian kohl see in strong
it easier to

sunlight.

Antimony gets its name from the Greek the Latin word for kohl, a form of eye make-up.
word anti-monos, meaning “not alone”. The mineral ore stibnite is the largest source of
This may refer to the fact that the element is pure antimony. Its pure form is mostly used to
never found pure in nature, but is always found make hard alloys, such as that in the metal type
combined with heavier metals, such as lead. used by some printers. Ancient Egyptian kohl
The element’s symbol, Sb, comes from stibium, was made from powdered stibnite. 161

160-161_Arsenic_Antimony.indd 161 12/12/16 5:40 pm