Molybdenum (pronounced /məˈlɪbdɨnəm/ mə-LIB-də-nəm, from the Ancient Greek Μόλυβδος molybdos, meaning lead), is a Group 6 chemical element with the symbol Mo and atomic number 42. The free element, which is a silvery metal, has the sixth-highest melting point of any element. It readily forms hard, stable carbides, and for this reason it is often used in high-strength steel alloys. Molybdenum does not occur as the free metal in nature, but rather ...
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Molybdenum (pronounced /məˈlɪbdɨnəm/ mə-LIB-də-nəm, from the Ancient Greek Μόλυβδος molybdos, meaning lead), is a Group 6 chemical element with the symbol Mo and atomic number 42. The free element, which is a silvery metal, has the sixth-highest melting point of any element. It readily forms hard, stable carbides, and for this reason it is often used in high-strength steel alloys. Molybdenum does not occur as the free metal in nature, but rather in various oxidation states in minerals. Industrially molybdenum compounds are used in high pressure and high temperature applications, as pigments and catalysts.
Molybdenum minerals have long been known, but the element was "discovered" (in the sense of differentiating it as a new entity from minerals salts of other metals) in 1778 by Carl Wilhelm Scheele. The metal was first isolated in 1781 by Peter Jacob Hjelm.
Most of molybdenum compounds have low water solubility, but the molybdate ion MoO2−4 is soluble and will form if molybdenum...
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