Magnesium is a group two element and is the eighth most common element in the earth's crust.

Magnesium is light, silvery-white, and tough. Like aluminum, it forms a thin layer around itself
to help prevent itself from rusting when exposed to air. Fine particles of magnesium can also
catch on fire when exposed to air. Magnesium is essential in nutrition for animals and plants. It
is also used as an alloy to combine with other metals to make them lighter and easier to weld, for
purposes in the aerospace industry along with other industries. It is also used in medicine, in the
forms of magnesium hydroxides, sulfates, chlorides, and citrates.

General Information

Symbol: Mg
Atomic Number: 12
Atomic/Molar Mass: 24.31
Melting Point: 648.8C, 921.8K
Boiling Point: 1090C, 1363K
Density:1.738 g/cc
Oxidation states: +2
Electron Shell Configuration: [Ne]3s2

Characteristics

Magnesium takes it name from magnesite ore, named for the district Magnesia in Thessaly,
Greece. Magnesium is a strong metal that is light and silvery-white. Recognized as a element as
far back as 1775, it was first isolated in pure form by Davy in 1805. Magnesium has the ability to
tarnish, which creates an oxide layer around itself to prevent it from rusting. It also has the
ability to react with water at room temperature. When exposed to water, bubbles form around the
metal. Increasing the temperature speeds up this reaction.

Magnesium Fire

One property of magnesium is high flammability. Like many other things, magnesium is more
flammable when it has a higher surface area to volume ratio. An example of surface area to
volume ratio is seen in the lighting of fire wood. It is easier to light kindling and smaller
branches than a whole log. This property of magnesium is used in war, photography, and in light
bulbs. Magnesium is used in war for incendiary bombs, flares, and tracer bullets. When these
weapons are used, they ignite immediately and cause fires. The only way to extinguish a
magnesium fire is to cover it with sand. Water does not extinguish the fire as water reacts with
the hot magnesium and releases even more hydrogen.

Applications

Magnesium is one of the lightest metals, and when used as an alloy, it is commonly used in the
automotive and aeronautical industries. The use of magnesium has increased and peaked in 1943.
One reason the use of magnesium has increased is that it is useful in alloys. Alloys with
magnesium are able to be welded better and are lighter, which is ideal for metals used in the
production of planes and other military goods.

Another characteristic of magnesium is that it aids in the digestive process. Magnesium is

commonly used in milk of magnesia and Epsom salts. These forms of magnesium can range
from magnesium hydroxide, magnesium sulfate, magnesium chloride, and magnesium citrate.
Magnesium not only aids in humans and animals, but also in plants. It is used to convert the sun's
lights into energy for the plant in a process known as photosynthesis. The main component of
this process is chlorophyll. This is a pigment molecule that is composed of magnesium. Without
magnesium, photosynthesis as we know it would not be possible.

Isotopes

Magnesium has three stable isotopes, Mg-24, Mg-25, Mg-26. The most common isotope is Mg-
24, which is 79% of all Mg found on Earth. Mg25 and Mg26 are used to study the absorption
and metabolism of magnesium in the human body. They are also used to study heart disease.

Magnesium not only has stable isotopes, but also has radioactive isotopes, which are isotopes
that have an unstable nuclei. These isotopes are Mg--22, Mg23, Mg-27, Mg-28, and Mg-29. Mg-
28 was commonly used in nuclear sites for scientific experiments from the 1950s to 1970s.

Reactions With

Water: When exposed to steam, magnesium changes from magnesium to magnesium oxide and
hydrogen.

Mg(s)+H2O(g)MgO(s)+H2(g)

When exposed to cold water, the reaction is a bit different. The reaction does not stop because
the magnesium hydroxide gets insoluble in water.

Mg(s)+2H2O(g)Mg(OH)2(s)+H2(g)

Oxygen: When exposed to oxygen, magnesium turns into magnesium oxide.

2Mg(s)+O2(g)2MgO(s)

Hydrogen: When exposed to hydrogen, magnesium turns into magnesium hydride.

Mg(s)+H2(g)MgH2(s)(1.4)

Nitrogen: When reacted with nitrogen, magnesium turns into magnesium nitride.

3Mg(s)+N2(g)Mg3N2(s)
Halogens: When reacted with a halogen, magnesium is very reactive. An example will be with
chloride. When reacted with chloride, the product is magnesium(II) chloride.

Mg(s)+Cl2(g)MgCl2(s)(1.6)

Acids: When reacted with acids, magnesium dissolves and forms solutions that have both the
Mg(II) ion and hydrogen gas.

Mg(s)+2HCl(aq)Mg2+(aq)+2Cl(aq)+H2(g)

Bases: When reacted with bases, magnesium react.

References

1. Avedesian, M. M., and Hugh Baker. Magnesium and Magnesium Alloys. Materials Park,
OH: ASM International, 1999. Print.
2. Cowan, J. A. The Biological Chemistry of Magnesium. New York: VCH, 1995. Print.
https://chem.libretexts.org/Core/Inorganic_Chemistry/Descriptive_Chemistry/Elements_Organiz
ed_by_Block/1_s-
Block_Elements/Group__2_Elements%3A_The_Alkaline_Earth_Metals/Z%3D012_Chemistry_
of_Magnesium_(Z%3D12)
History Of Mg
In 1618 a farmer by the name of Henry Wicker at Epsom in England attempted to give his cows
water from a well. They refused to drink because bitter taste of the water. However the farmer
noticed that the water seemed to heal scratches and rashes. The fame of Epsom salts spread.
Eventually it was recognized to be magnesium sulphate, MgSO4.

Joseph Black recognized magnesium as an element in 1755. It was isolated by Sir Humphry
Davy (1778-1829) in 1808 almost 200 years after its discovery. He electrolysised mixture of
magnesia (magnesium oxide, MgO) and mercuric oxide (HgO). Davy's first suggestion for a
name was magnium but the name magnesium is now used.
Kata Magnesium berasal dari kata Yunani Magnesia, sebuah distrik Thesally. Tahun
1618 seorang petani di Epsom(Inggris) menemukan sebuah sumur yang didalamnya terdapat
sebuah air. Kemudian petani tersebut mengambil air untuk diberikan kepada sapi. Namun sapi
tersebut menolak karena rasa air tersebut pahit. Lalu petani menyadari bahwa air tersebut
tampaknya digunakan untuk menyembuhkan goresan dan ruam. Kemudian pada tahun 1755, Sir
Humphrey Davy menemukan magnesium dalam air tersebut dan kemudian air tersebut
dinamakan magnesium sulfat.Tahun 1808 Davy mengisolasi magnesium sulfat yang
dielektrolisis magnesium oksida dan merkuri oksida. Namun logam magnesium baru bisa
dipisahkan dari senyawa tersebut pada tahun 1829. Kemudian sampai pada tahun 1918, logam
magnesium banyak diproduksi untuk keperluan pembuatan lampu kilat dalam fotografi dan
dalam piroteknik. Pada tahun 1930 logam magnesium dapat diproduksi untuk pembuatan produk
cor. Paduan logam magnesium sangat kuat namun beratnya ringan sehingga logam magnesium
digunakan untuk industru pesawat terbang .dalam perang dunia II dan sesudahnya.
The first person to recognise that magnesium was an element was Joseph Black at Edinburgh in
1755. He distinguished magnesia (magnesium oxide, MgO) from lime (calcium oxide, CaO)
although both were produced by heating similar kinds of carbonate rocks, magnesite and
limestone respectively. Another magnesium mineral called meerschaum (magnesium silicate)
was reported by Thomas Henry in 1789, who said that it was much used in Turkey to make pipes
for smoking tobacco.
Duralumin, strong, hard, lightweight alloy of aluminum, widely used in aircraft construction,
discovered in 1906 and patented in 1909 by Alfred Wilm, a German metallurgist; it was
originally made only at the company Drener Metallwerke at Dren, Germany. (The name is a
contraction of Drener and aluminum.) The original composition has been varied for particular
applications; it may contain about 4 percent copper, 0.51 percent manganese, 0.51.5
percent magnesium, and, in some formulations, some silicon. After heat treatment and aging,
these alloys are comparable to soft steel in strength.
Duralumin alloys are relatively soft, ductile, and workable in the normal state; they may be
rolled, forged, extruded, or drawn into a variety of shapes and products. Their light weight and
consequent high strength per unit weight compared with steel suit them for aircraft construction.
Because aluminum loses corrosion resistance when alloyed, a special laminated sheet form
called alclad is used for aircraft construction; it has thin surface layers of pure aluminum
covering the strong duralumin core.

uralumin is an alloy, a trade name given to the earliest types of the age hardenable aluminum
alloys. It is an alloy made up of 90% aluminum,4% copper, 1% magnesium and 0.5% to 1%
manganese. It is a very hard alloy. These alloys are used in places where hard alloys are required,
for example in the vehicle armor that is used in the defense industry. These alloys were the first
widely used deformable aluminum alloys.

Duralumin is a hard, but a lightweight alloy of aluminum. It has a typical yield strength of 450
Mpa, and there are certain other variations, that depend on the composition, type and temper.
Duralumin Metal

Duralumin is actually a metal, which us an alloy of aluminum, copper, magnesium and

manganese. Duralumin is a special kind of metal, and is made strong by subjecting it to heat
treatment. It may be well spun, tempered, riveted, welded or machinated. The duralumin, which
is effectively given heat treatment, can be effectively being resistant to corrosion. It can carry
heavy loads, and is ductile. It is specially suited for aircraft construction.
When copper is added to the alloy, its strength increases, but then it also makes it susceptible to
corrosion. For the duralumin sheet products, the metallurgical bonding of the highly pure metal
layer can increase the corrosion resistance. These sheets are called alclad, and are generally used
by the aircraft industry.

Picture 1 Duralumin
Source en.ccmotor.cn
Duralumin Properties

Duralumin is a strong, light weighted and hard alloy of aluminum. It is also reflective and
impermeable. It is a malleable metal, and can be easily shaped. It is a very good conductor of
heat and electricity. It is odorless, and reacts with the oxygen that is around, and forms aluminum
oxide. It is resistant to corrosion. It has a thin surface, which is made up of a layer of pure
aluminum, which is corrosion resistant, and covers the core of the strong duralumin. Generally,
Duralumin alloys are soft, ductile and workable when they are in normal state. They can be
easily rolled, folded or forged. They can also be drawn into a variety of shapes and forges. It has
a high strength, which can be easily lost during wielding. So it can be easily transformed, and
hence is used in aircraft construction. It is suited for aircraft construction because of its
lightweight and high strength.

Duralumin Uses

Duralumin has the following uses:

It is used for making wire, bar and rods for the screw machine products. It is used in places
where good strength and good machinability are required.
 It is used in heavy-duty forgings, wheels, plates, extrusions, aircraft fittings, space booster
tankage and trauck frame, and other suspension components. It finds applications in places
where high strength is required, and services at elevated temperatures.
It is used for making Aircraft structure, truck wheels, screw machine products, rivets and
other structural application products.
It is used as a sheet for the auto body panels.
It is also used in forgings, in aircraft engine pistons, impellers of the jet enginesand the
compressor rings.
It is also used for making die and hand forgings.

There is a proper method that is used for the conversion of Duralumin into ingots. It has to
undergo a high pressure before being converted to ingots. This pressure treatment includes
rolling, pressing and so on. It is then converted to plates, sections, sheets, tubes and wires. It is
quenched in water at a temperature of about 500 degree Celsius, for about four days. This is
called natural aging. Often, it undergoes artificial aging at a temperature of about 190 degree
Celsius, This heat treatment ultimately leads to the inculcation of various strengths in duralumin.
In fact, the initial period in which metal airplane was constructed with duralumin; it had to go
through these processes. Duralumin is also used widely in the surface transportation, aviation
and mechanical engineering.

Alloying elements[edit]
In addition to aluminium, the main materials in duralumin
are copper, manganese and magnesium. Duralumin is 95% aluminium, 4% copper, 0.5%
magnesium, and 0.5% manganese.

History[edit]
Duralumin was developed by the German metallurgist Alfred Wilm at Drener Metallwerke AG.
In 1903, Wilm discovered that after quenching, an aluminium alloy containing 4% copper would
slowly harden when left at room temperature for several days. Further improvements led to the
introduction of duralumin in 1909.[1] The name is obsolete today, and mainly used in popular
science to describe the Al-Cu alloy system, or '2000' series, as designated by the International
Alloy Designation System (IADS) originally created in 1970 by the Aluminum Association.