Vanadium  -  V

 

This is a sample of 2 pieces of very pure metallic vanadium (99.7%), each piece having a weight of just over 1 gram. The metal is remarkably expensive in the pure state at a price tag of several dollars per gram. It is very hard to obtain really pure vanadium metal. The sample nicely shows that the metal has a bluish hue.

The samples, shown above have a polished look. When a piece of vanadium metal is broken from a larger piece, then the surface looks totally different. Below, a picture of another sample of very pure vanadium (99.9%) is shown, together with the two small pieces, shown above. The sample, shown below has a weight of almost 100 grams. It also shows a nice bluish hue.

 

Vanadium can also be a shiny metal, but it still has a bluish hue when it is shiny. The picture below shows a piece of thin vanadium foil, which is almost free of oxygen and hence is shiny. The foil, shown in the picture below also is very pure vanadium, at least 99.9% purity.