Why is the price of antimony ingots so high?
Antimony Ingot Price Why is it so expensive?
Antimony Ingot Price Why so expensive? Antimony is a rare silvery-white metal, also known as Antimony, with the chemical symbol Sb. It is toxic, brittle, non-ductile, and possesses the properties of thermal contraction upon cooling and expansion upon heating, as well as corrosion resistance. Antimony belongs to group VA, with an atomic number of 51, a relative atomic mass of 121.75, a density of 6.684 g/cm³, a melting point of 630.74℃, and a boiling point of 1750℃. Antimony is a copper-loving element with an affinity for oxygen. Due to its physical properties, it is commonly used in flame retardants, alloy hardeners, and battery alloy materials, and is rarely used alone.
The history of human use of antimony can be traced back to 3100 BC. As early as the pre-dynastic period in Egypt, antimony trisulfide was used as eyeshadow in cosmetics; antimony was recognized as a chemical element in the 17th century; and electrolytic antimony was first produced in 1896. China is one of the earliest countries in the world to discover and use antimony. It is recorded as "tin" in the Han Shu, Shi Ji, and other historical texts. In the late Ming Dynasty (1541), China discovered the world's largest antimony mine - Hunan Tin Mine (located in Lengshuijiang City). China's earliest antimony mine was built in the 23rd year of Guangxu (1897). Industrial-grade antimony ore resources are limited. Why is the price of antimony ingots so high? According to Asian Metal Net statistics, there are currently 120 known antimony minerals, but only 10 have an antimony content of over 20%. Among them are stibnite antimony (Sb) 71.4%, valentinite (83.3%), China antimony (83.3%), arsenopyrite antimony (74% 79%), arsenopyrite antimony (74.5%), sulfur antimony, oxygen antimony China antimony (75.2%), native antimony (100%), sulfur antimony, mercury antimony (51.6%), sulfur antimony antimony (35.5%), and bornite antimony (25%). Antimony is mainly found in stibnite (Sb2S3), which is the main raw material for smelting.
Antimony is a rare minor metal in the world. It is known as one of China's four major strategic resources, along with rare earths, tungsten, and tin. Its importance mainly lies in: Very scarce reserves: Antimony is unevenly distributed in the earth's crust and is extremely difficult to enrich (in the form of sulfide and sulfite minerals). The average abundance is only about 2~5 ppm, close to (0.5 PPM). Data from the US Geological Survey shows that at the end of 2018, the global antimony reserves were 1.5 million tons, slightly higher than precious metals and some rare metals. Why is the price of antimony ingots so high? Wide range of uses and lack of substitutes: Antimony is an indispensable raw material in modern industrial production, widely used in the production of various flame-retardant materials, metals, glass, semiconductor devices, medicine, chemicals, and defense, playing an important role in ensuring the sustainable development of the national economy, and is known as the "industrial MSG." Among them, the thermal shrinkage and cold expansion characteristics of antimony can change the hardness of the alloy, and antimony alloys are used in various defense weapons; the high strength and corrosion resistance of antimony make it a key production material for mechanical gear shafts. Low-flammability antimony is used to make a substitute flame retardant, and antimony trioxide is added to flammable materials such as plastics, electrical and electronic products, and building materials to form halogenated flame-retardant materials, which is a mandatory practice in developed countries such as Europe and the United States. Currently, there is no better substitute for antimony as a flame retardant.
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