Appearance and Characteristics
Harmful effects:
Molybdenum is toxic in all but small quantities.
Characteristics:
Molybdenum is a silvery-white, high-melting metal.
It does not react with oxygen or water at room temperature and it also resists corrosion at ordinary temperatures.
When present in compounds, molybdenum exists mostly in the oxidation state IV and VI.
Molybdenum is one of the five major refractory metals (metals with very high resistance to heat and wear).
Molybdenum oxide (MoO3) is soluble in alkaline water, forming molybdate salts.
Uses of Molybdenum
Molybdenum is used in small quantities to harden steel and is used in many alloys.
Molybdenum’s strength and resistance to expanding or softening at high temperatures is particularly sought after in critical areas where high temperatures are common, such as in nuclear power plants and aircraft engines.
Molybdenum is used as glass furnace electrodes due to its high melting point.
It is also used in the petroleum industry, to catalyze the removal of organic sulfur compounds in coal liquification and gas liquification processes.
Molybdenum is an essential trace element for animals and plants. As with selenium, too much of it is toxic, too little of it is fatal.
In nitrogen fixing bacteria, molybdenum is a vital component of the nitrogenase enzyme which allows conversion of nitrogen gas in air into nitrates vital for plant growth.
Molybdenum is also present in 20 or so enzymes needed in animals’ metabolisms.