Intelligence and Miscellaneous Articles. 4 1 7 



ON ILMEN1UM — A NEW METAL. 



This new metal was discovered by M. Hermann in a mineral which 

 he supposed at first to be yttro-columbite, which he now proposes to 

 call yttro-ilmenite, since it contains no columbic acid. The ilme- 

 nium which occurs in this mineral is in a form that has many cha- 

 racters in common with columbic acid, but is distinguished from it by 

 several others ; for example the density of ilmenic acid is much less 

 than that of columbic acid ; it becomes very yellow by calcination ; 

 its hydrate, moistened with hydrochloric acid, assumes a blue colour 

 when in contact with zinc ; and it expels when fused with carbonate 

 of soda a much larger proportion of carbonic acid. In the same way, 

 ilmenic acid is distinguished from niobic acid, by the perfect insolu- 

 bility of its hydrate in concentrated hydrochloric acid, and by its 

 giving no colour to glass by the blowpipe. 



A characteristic property of ilmenic acid is, that a solution of il- 

 menate of soda gives with a mixture of hydrochloric acid and tinc- 

 ture of galls, or ferrocyanide of potassium, precipitates which are of 

 a much deeper brown colour than hydrate of iron ; neither columbic 

 nor niobic acid gives a precipitate of so deep brown a colour. The 

 atomic weight of ilmenium is not so great as that of columbium and 

 niobium. If it be admitted that ilmenic acid contains two atoms of 

 oxygen, the atomic weight of ilmenium will be 753 - 0=Il 2 . 



The preparation of ilmenic acid from yttro-ilmenite is effected by 

 reducing the mineral to fine powder and fusing it with six times its 

 weight of bisulphate of potash, till a limpid solution is obtained ; this 

 is to be treated with boiling water, so as to leave an insoluble sub- 

 sulphate of ilmenium. 



To be sure that none of the mineral remains undecomposed, the 

 subsulphate of ilmenium is to be again fused with bisulphate of potash 

 and treated as before. After having well- washed the subsulphate, it 

 is to be moistened, without drying, with hydrosulphate of ammonia, 

 and digested with it ; it is then to be washed, boiled with concentrated 

 hydrochloric acid, again washed and dried. These operations yield 

 subsulphate of ilmenium, which when heated in a forge, gives pure 

 ilmenic acid. 



Metallic ilmenium is obtained by calcining in an atmosphere of 

 ammonia, the ammonio- chloride of ilmenium, in the same manner as 

 employed in reducing niobium. It forms porous particles or cohering 

 leaves having the black appearance of soot, or of the charcoal pro- 

 duced by the burning of sugar. Ilmenium does not decompose water ; 

 neither nitric nor hydrochloric acid nor aqua regia, even when boiling, 

 acts upon ilmenium ; when heated in the air it takes fire, burns and 

 yields white ilmenic acid. 



Ilmenic acid is therefore obtainable by three processes, — by the 

 combustion of ilmenium, the calcination of hydrate of ilmenium, and 

 the calcination of subsulphate of ilmenium in a forge. When obtained 

 by the first or third method, it has the form of perfectly white frag- 

 ments, with an earthy fracture ; these fragments possess but slight 

 cohesion, for bv the slightest pressure, or by moistening with water, 



Phil. Mag.'S. 3. Vol. 29. No. 195. Nov. 1846. 2 F 



