Wood's metal
Wood's metal, also known as Lipowitz's alloy or by the commercial names Cerrobend, Bendalloy, Pewtalloy and MCP 158, is a fusible metal alloy (having a low melting point) that is useful for soldering and making custom metal parts.[1] The alloy is named for Barnabas Wood, who invented and patented the alloy in 1860.[2][3] It is a eutectic alloy of 50% bismuth, 26.7% lead, 13.3% tin, and 10% cadmium by mass. [1] It has a melting point of approximately 70 °C (158 °F).[4][5] Its fumes are toxic, as well as being toxic on skin exposure.
Applications
As suggested by the trade names, Wood's metal is used to fill thin-walled tube so that it can be bent to a radius without kinking or collapsing. The filling is easily melted and run out of the tube after bending is completed. The low melting point and lack of contraction on freezing make Wood's metal suitable for this purpose.
Wood's Metal is also used for making fusible links in the sprinkler heads of commercial building automatic fire sprinkler systems.[1] In the event of a fire, ambient temperature increases enough to melt the link, releasing the water. A similar use is fusible plugs in boilers.[1]
Uses also include making custom-shaped apertures and blocks (for example, electron-beam cutouts and lung blocks) for medical radiation treatment, and making casts of keys that are hard to otherwise duplicate.[6][7]
Like other fusible alloys, e.g. Rose's metal, Wood's metal can be used as a heat-transfer medium in hot baths. Hot baths with Rose's and Wood's metals are not used routinely but are employed at temperatures above 220 °C (428 °F).[8]
At room temperature, Wood's metal has a modulus of elasticity of 12.7 GPa and a yield strength of 26.2 MPa.[9]
Toxicity
Wood's metal is toxic because it contains lead and cadmium, and contamination of bare skin is considered harmful. Vapour from cadmium-containing alloys is also known to pose a danger to humans.[10] Cadmium poisoning carries the risk[11] of cancer, anosmia (loss of sense of smell), and damage to the liver, kidneys, nerves, bones, and respiratory system. Field's metal is a non-toxic alternative.
The dust may form flammable mixtures with air.[10]
Related alloys
References
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- ^ a b c d Page Module:Citation/CS1/styles.css has no content.Moody, Bernard (2013). Comparative Inorganic Chemistry. Arnold. p. 179. ISBN 9781483280080.
- ^ Page Module:Citation/CS1/styles.css has no content.Jensen, William B. (2010). "The Origin of the Name "Onion's Fusible Alloy"" (PDF). Journal of Chemical Education. 87 (10): 1050–1051. Bibcode:2010JChEd..87.1050J. doi:10.1021/ed100764f. Archived from the original (Archived Reprint) on 2012-04-03.
- ^ Page Module:Citation/CS1/styles.css has no content."Collection: Barnabas Wood Papers". SCOUT at University of Tennessee, Knoxville. Retrieved March 22, 2022.
- ^ Page Module:Citation/CS1/styles.css has no content.G. W. A. Milne, ed. (2005). Gardner's Commercially Important Chemicals: Synonyms, Trade Names, and Properties. John Wiley & Sons. ISBN 978-0-471-73661-5.
- ^ Page Module:Citation/CS1/styles.css has no content.Khan F. M., Gibbons J. P. "The Physics of Radiation Therapy, 5th ed". Wolters Kluwer.
- ^ Page Module:Citation/CS1/styles.css has no content.DeviantOllam (2019-05-01), Copying Keys via a Mold and Cast Attack, archived from the original on 2021-12-22, retrieved 2019-05-04
- ^ Page Module:Citation/CS1/styles.css has no content.The Modern Rogue (2019-10-04), Duplicating a Key Using Molten Metal (with LockPickingLawyer), archived from the original on 2021-12-22, retrieved 2020-11-09
- ^ Page Module:Citation/CS1/styles.css has no content.Sambamurthy, K. (2007). Pharmaceutical Engineering. New Age International. ISBN 9788122411690.
- ^ Page Module:Citation/CS1/styles.css has no content.Do-Gyoon, Kim (February 2006). "Evaluation of Filler Materials Used for Uniform Load Distribution at Boundaries During Structural Biomechanical Testing of Whole Vertebrae". Journal of Biomechanical Engineering. 128 (1): 161–165. CiteSeerX 10.1.1.721.5864. doi:10.1115/1.2133770. PMID 16532630.
- ^ a b Page Module:Citation/CS1/styles.css has no content."Wood's Metal Safety Data Sheet". Flinn Scientific. Retrieved 7 October 2024.
- ^ Page Module:Citation/CS1/styles.css has no content.Genchi, Giuseppe (May 26, 2020). "The Effects of Cadmium Toxicity". International Journal of Environmental Research and Public Health. 17 (11): 3782. doi:10.3390/ijerph17113782. PMC 7312803. PMID 32466586.
Bibliography
- Birchon's Dictionary of Metallurgy, London, 1965
- Experimental techniques in low-temperature physics, G. K. White, Oxford University Press, Third Edition
External links
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- Making your own low-melting point eutectic: Science Toys: A metal that melts in hot water
- Burdakin et al., "Melting points of gallium and of binary eutectics with gallium", Metrologia, 2008
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