Hobbies And Interests
Cobalt Producers
The world's supply of cobalt comes mainly from a few countries, including the Democratic Republic of Congo, Zambia, Canada, Cuba, Australia and Russia. According to the British Geological Survey, Katanga province of Congo is by far the world's biggest producer, turning out 40 percent of the global supply. The United States has limited deposits of low-grade cobalt but is one of the world's biggest users. It is also found on the ocean floor, but cannot be retrieved economically.
Cobalt Blue
Cobalt is renowned for its vivid blue coloring properties. It has been used for hundreds of years by many civilizations to give a deep blue to all manner of products, including glass, ceramics, pottery, tiles and paint. In ceramics, it has been particularly notable for its use in Chinese porcelain, in which it was used in impure form. It was discovered properly as an alumina-based pigment by Louis Jacques Thenard, a French chemist, in 1802.
Alloy Uses
The main use for cobalt today is in the creation of alloys or super alloys, along with nickel-based and iron-based compounds. The main driver of this development has been the use of jet engines, in which increasingly high temperatures are encountered. However, cobalt-based super alloys are also used in the construction of such items as hi-tech turbines, space vehicles, rockets, nuclear power generators and chemical equipment. Cobalt also raises the operating temperature range of nickel-based alloys.
Medical Uses
Cobalt is also important to food irradiation, helping to eradicate germs from foods. The radioactive form of cobalt (Cobalt 60) emits photons, called gamma rays, that penetrate foods to a depth of several feet, without giving off neutrons, which means they do not make anything around them radioactive. This method has been in use for many years to sterilize products such as medical and dental equipment, and has been used to treat patients with cancer.