The Raymer enterprise., 1915-08-12

to Andres Manuel Dei MO-
professor OF m!neralogy IN the
8U Royal School OF Mines Of the
uEINvS1NNv City OF Mexico. The honor
vIydpyOLSsSl would be wholly his had he
tSA91.E0 not himself repudIated his own
discovery
Del Rio was born In Madrid November TO- 1894
and graduated from the University OF Alcaa de
Henares in 1850. On account OF his extraordinary
aptitude in the natural sciences and particularly
in chemistry. he was pensioned and sent by the
government TO study in Germany. France, and Eng
land, He spent about twelve years in those coun
tries. principally in the study of mineralogy and
mining, and was associated with the leading scien
fists. among others Layosier After his return to
spain be was named in 1885, by royal order as
one OF the group Of professors to establish the
ROYAL School of Mines in Mexico City The royal
order named Del Rio as professor OF chemistry
but on his request this was changed to mincraogy
The school was opened In April. 1895 In 1920 Del
Rio was sent as deputy to the Spanish Cortes
where he championed the cause OF Mexican inde
pendence He returned to Mexico In 1924, but in
ls29 on the expulsion Of the Spanards he went to
the United States. He afterwards returned and
died IN the City OF Mexico on May 20, fs49. The
district Of Andres Del Rio in the state OF Chihua.
hna, where the city OF Batopilas and the mines OF
the same name are located Is called after the dis.
tnguished scientist
In 1901 Prof Del Rio In examining some brown
lead ores from the mines Of Zimapan In what Is
nov the state OF Hidago believed that he had dis.
covered new element different from chromium
and uranium and this he named erithronium II
was In reality what We now know as yanadum
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 undsputed discoverer
thereof But unfortunately the Mexican professor
was n little too much under the glamour OF the
French school, and so when Collet Descosts pub
lished an article in which he stated that Del Rios
erithronium nothing more than impure chro
mum Del Rio accepted the French professors
judgment and In the Anales de Cencias Naturales
Of Madrid in 1904 dlsayowed his former claim OF
discovery and stated that the substance was
lead chromats 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
Sefstroem, redscoyered the element among
the slags OF the Taberg iron ores and named It
Fanadum which name 1t still bears 1t 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 divided into two
stocks. Aesr and Nanlr. or Asa and Nana Njoerd
Frey and Freyia were OF the stock Vanir hence
Vanadis The word may be taken as the sur.
name Of number OF gods and goddesses. al.
though perhaps most often used In connection
with Freyia, 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 1871 and the formlae for It's oxides The
English chemist, Sir Henry T. Roscoe. In 1865
demonstrated that Berzelius was incorrect: that
he and other prior investigators had dealt with
ntrides or oxides of the element: and that IN.
stead of belonging to the chromium group OF
elements vanadum should be placed In the group
with arsenic and phosphorus
Vanadium is silyerwhte metal and readily
oxldi2ed II has an atomic weight of 5l2 is
honmagnetic, has very high electrical rests.
tiyity and melts at about 1850 degrees C. II
Is one OF the most difficulty reduced and hardes,
of the metallic elements. Fortunately for its use
in the arts II is not necessary to reduce the
metal TO It's pure state, Such reduction would
he too costly 1t 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 a melting point
800 degree G to 1910 degrees C. sufficiently low
TO further alloy with molten steel which would
be difficult n the pure yanadum having a melt.
Ing point over 300 degrees c. higher
Vanadium Is one OF the most widely dissent.
mated of all the elements although commercially
available deposits are comparatively rare 1t
IL found In most OF the rocks in clays and shales,
and in the ashes OF plants In addition to Mex.
ieo where II was first discovered vanadium has
been found in 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 ores from which vanadium Is or
may be derived are patronte carnotite, roscoe
lite, vanadinte and asphaltite. Coal is source
nf vanadium Ash from the Rockvale Colorado
coal gave q per cent Yanadium oxide. Coal
rom the Mendoza district in Argentina contains
,bout five pounds Of vanadc acid per ton It is