Niobium | Chemistry

Norwalk School, Norwalk, Connecticut, U.S.A.

Niobium, 41, Norwalk School, Connecticut, U.S.A.

Niobium: Niobium was chosen simply because the symbol, Nb, represents the name and mascot for our school, the Norwalk Bears. The tearful woman surrounded by 14 skulls is Niobe, daughter of Tantulus. She bragged that her children were better than Apollo’s. Apollo ordered that Niobe watch as her 14 children were executed. Serendipitously, we found that the first governor of Connecticut, John Winthrop, sent a sample of a mineral, columbite, to Charles Hatchett in England for analysis and discovered the new element. Originally named columbium, a mythological name for the United States, IUPAC decreed element 41 to be called niobium.

Original artwork by Stephanie Orellano, Teacher: Joseph Sencen, Norwalk High School, Norwalk, Connecticut, U.S.A.

Atomic properties*

Name:

Niobium

Symbol:

Nb

Atomic number:

41

Atomic mass:

92.91 amu

Melting point:

2477°C

Boiling point:

4744°C

Density:

8.57 g/cm³

Electronegativity:

1.6

# of Isotopes:

1

State:

Solid

Colour:

White

Classification:

Metallic±

* Haynes, W. M. (2011). CRC Handbook of Chemistry and Physics, 91st edition: http://www.hbcponline.com/ Retrieved April 7, 2011

± Winter, M. (2010). Home of the Periodic Table. Retrieved April 8, 2011, from Web Elements: http://www.webelements.com/