What is Antimony used for? Finding scrap made of pure antimony will definitely brighten the day because it is worth more than copper. However because of its limited supply globally, it is often mixed with other metal.
Below I answer the question that many scrappers have contacted me about and that’s what is antimony used for relating to scrap metal. I also explain a little about the background of the metal.
Antimony, the 51st element on the periodic table (symbol: Sb), is a shiny, silver-gray metal that has been used by mankind for millennia. Relatively rare, it is sometimes found as a base metal, but more often occurs bound to other elements in one of up to 100 mineral compounds.
One popular theory for the origin of the name Antimony is that it comes from the ancient Greek “antimonos,” which can be translated as “not alone,” reflecting the fact that the element is almost always found in compounds.
Others believe that the origin was the Greek “antimonachos” or the French “antimoine,” which mean “anti-monk.” This etymology rests on the presumed deaths of many of the medieval scientists and alchemists (who were, in large number, monks) who worked with Antimony.
The use of stibnite for eye makeup dates back to at least 3100 BC, and a vase made of antimony from around 3000 BC is on display at the Musée du Louvre in Paris, France. It was used in glaze and pigment in ancient Babylon, and in the Middle Ages it was used to harden lead to make move typeface after the invention of the printing press.
What is Antimony Used for Today
Some 60 percent of all antimony produced today is used in the clothing and fabric industries in flame retardants, most often in its trioxide form, since the material inhibits combustion by reacting with oxygen and hydrogen atoms.
This same property makes it a key part of computer and television screen manufacture, in which it is used to ensure that no microscopic bubbles remain in the glass when it cools.
More recently the semiconductor and microelectronics industry has begun using its compounds in the manufacture of silicon wafers, diodes and other components.
Today antimony is produced in a handful of countries, including China, which holds 75 percent of the world’s reserves, and accounts for almost 90 percent of world production, which totaled 135,000 metric tonnes in 2010.
Although current known global reserves are expected to be depleted in approximately 13 years, and a shortage would dramatically affect the Western economy and lifestyle (according to a UK government report), scientists expect that more deposits will be discovered.
As you have read, scrap in the future will be much more than metal goods. Scrap yards may start requesting antimony scrap specifically or items containing antimony. Some scrappers are ahead of the game and are already scrapping computer, phone and television parts that contain high amounts of antimony. Antimony has been worth more than $4 a pound for the last 4 years.