Omaha daily bee., 1910-03-20

Though Tantalum has been known for
a century, it was not commercially useful
until Moissan in 1903 brought 1t into the
limelight through the electric furnace, 1t
is found in the Black Hills OF Dakota and
its most important minerals are columbite
and tanalite. A small quantity has been
kept in this country for experimental work,
but the yearly output, amounting to sew
eral tons, has been shipped to Germany.
The most important use TO which tan
talum is put is in the manufacture of fila
ments for incandescent lamps. They were
put on the market in Germany in 1905
and in the United States in 1906. The
tantalum lamp scores on these three points
high efficiency, ability to withstand high
currents and whiteness Of light.
Tantalum pens give promise of being the
pen Of the future, as they are not only
hard and elastic, but resist chemical action
Steel pens are both hard and elastic but
do not resist chemical action. Gold pens
resist chemical action, but are soft and
pliable.
Vandaium in small qualities is distributed
in sandstones, limestones and igneous
rocks, Its greatest value, when alloyed
with iron as ferrovanadium, is in the max
ing OF steel The addition OF from one
tenth to one half Of 1 per cent Of fer
rovanadium enormously increases the
strength toughness and elastic limit Of
the resulting steel products.
The automobile business has greatly in
creased the market for vanadium. The
spurs used In Sir Thomas Llpton's racing
yacht Shamrock III were of vansdum
! steel and so were those on Emperor Will
| liam's yacht Meteor.
In the form OF vanadic acid vanadium
is used as mordant in dying; in medicine
under the name OF vanadin It has a use;
waterproof black ink is made from vana-
dates and tannin acid. 1t is also used in
| developing photographs in stained glass
and in beautiful imitation Of gold bronze
! Uranium, in many respects the most in
! teresting OF all the rare medals, was
| recognized as an element in 1882 by the
chemist Klaproth, who named it after the
planet Uranus. The chief ore Of uranium
is uranite, commonly Galley pltchblende
and from pitchblende comes radlum.
! Uranium is found in Joachlmsthal, Bo.
hemia; in Saxony, Germany; in Cornwall
| England, and in Gilpin county, Colorado
| where It is said TO have been discovered
by Dr. Garrett in 1878 It's uses are moi
many. Two of its oxides produce pur,
| black glaze for porcelain and some OF IL.
salts are used in photography. 1t is a stee
hardener, but is in no way superior I,
In the manufacture OF incandescent ga
mantles It's presence is said to improve thu
properties OF thOrium, cerium and zirconiun
salts applied for the same purpose Th
entire worlds production at the presen
time only amounts to about 300 tons OF or
yielding from to 10 per cent OF the metal
Though rich lodes Of pitchblende are ii
Colorado the ore has been shipped almos
entirely to Germany for treatment. Tn
chemical products have been imported.
Thomas F. Walsh has endowed IN
School OF Mines at Golden, Colo. with
research fund for the special purpose O
promoting interest among the mine opers
tors and prospectors in the search fo
pitehblende The fund pays the assayer'
bill As result Of this generosity Cole
rado is being carefully prospected fc
pitchblende