The Olneyville times. (Olneyville [Providence, R.I.]) 1887-1917, 1915-08-13


sz,rzrrxzsxxA ROYAL School of Mines OF the
'p=GyS5aNSNv City of Mexico The honor
Is5AN0NENEklH would be wholly his had he
SeASGLM.SS0I not himself repudiated his own
discovery
Del Rio was born in Madrid, November 10, 1894,
nd graduated from the University OF Alcala de
Ienares In 1880 On account of his extraordinary
ptitude in the natural sciences. and particularly
q chemistry he was pensioned and sent by the
overnment TO study In Germany, France, and Eng
and He spent about twelve years in those coun-
ries, principally in the study Of mineralogy and
aiming and was associated with the leading scien-
ists among others Lavoiser After his return to
spain he was named In 1894, by royal order as
me Of the group of professors to establish the
loyal School of Mines in Mexico City. The royal
rider named Del Rio as professor Of chemistry,
nut on his request this was changed to mineralogy.
rhe school was opened in April, 1875. In 1920 Del
Rio was sent as deputy to the Spanish Cortes.
where he champoned the cause of Mexican inde-
)endence He returned to Mexico in 1924 but in
S29 on the expulsion OF the Spaniards he went TO
he United States. He afterwards returned, and
lied in the City of Mexico May %, 1S49. The
district of Andres Del Rio, in the state of Chihua-
lua where the city of Batopilas and the mines OF
he same name are located, is called after the dis
inguished scientist
In 1901 Prof Del Rio in examining some brown
ead ores from the mines of Zmapan, in what Is
aow the state OF Hdalgo believed that he had dis
covered new element different from chromium
and uranium and this he named erithronium. 1t
was in reality what know vanadium.
The discovery was a genuine one, and had the
matter rested there the name that Del Rio gave
the new element would have been its name now,
and he would have been the undisputed discoverer
thereof But unfortunately the Mexican professor
was little too much under the glamour of the
French school, and so when Colet Descostils pub
lished an article in which he stated that Del Rios
erithronium was nothing more than impure chro-
MUM Del Rio accepted the French professors
Judgment and in the Anales de Ciencas NGurales
Of Madrid in 1904 disavowed his former claim OF
discovery and stated that the substance was a
lead chromate. Del Rio had been right and the
French school wrong for the element does not
even belong in the chromium group. So the mat
ter rested until in 1880 the Swedish scientist. n.
G. Sefstroem rediscovered the element among
the slags of the Taberg iron ores and named 1t
vanadium, which name it still bears. IL is some
times stated that the name chosen by Sefstroem
was in honor OF the Scandinavian goddess Vana-
dis. This is not strictly correct. In the Morse
mythology the gods were divided into two
stocks, Aesir and Vanir, or Asa and Vana. Njoerd,
Frey and Freyja were of the stock Vanir, hence
Vanads. The word may be taken as the sur
name of a number of gods and goddesses al
though perhaps most often used in connection
with Freyja, the Morse Venus.
Neither Del Rio nor Sefstroem nor later Ber-
zelius, obtained the pure element, although Ber-
zelius published what he thought to be its atomic
weight, 1877 and the formlae for its oxides. The
English chemist Sir Henry f. Roscoe. in 1868
demonstrated that Berzelius was incorrect; that
he and other prior investigators had dealt with
nitrides or oxides OF the element and that in
stead Of belonging to the chromium group OF
elements vanadium should be placed In the group
with arsenic and phosphorus
Vanadium is a silver-white metal and readily
oxidized. II has atomic weight OF 512. is
nonrpagnetic, has very high electrical resis-
tivity, and melts at about 1850 degrees c. IL
Is one of the most difficulty reduced and hardest
OF the metallic elements. Fortunately for its use
in the arts Il is not necessary to reduce the
metal to its pure state. Such reduction would
be too costly It can be reduced, however quite
easily as an alloy, particularly as an alloy OF
iron. ferrovanadium, containing approximately
one part of vanadium and two parts Of iron.
Again fortunately. this alloy has q melting point
1900 degree c. 10 1.940 degrees c.. sufficiently low
10 further alloy with molten steel. which would
be difficult in the pure vanadum having a melt
ing point 500 degrees c. higher
Vanadium is one of the most widely dissent
mated OF all the elements, although commercially
available deposits are comparatively rare. IL
IS found in most of the rocks I'm cays and shales.
and in the ashes of plants. In addition TO Mex
ico where Il first discovered, vanadum has
been found I'm Colorado Utah. Oklahoma Ne
vada, New Mexico. and other parts OF the United
States; in Peru. Sweden. Australia, Spain. Eng
land. Turkestan, Chill and Argentina.
The chief from which vanadium Is or
may be derived are patronite carnotite. roscoe.
lte vanadlnte and asphatite Coal is a source
OF vanadium. Ash from the Rockvale Colorado
! coal gave 81 per cent vanadium oxide. Coal
| from the Mendoza district in Argentina contains
about five pounds OF vanadic acid per ton II Is