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niobium

[nahy-oh-bee-uh m]
noun Chemistry.
  1. a steel-gray metallic element resembling tantalum in its chemical properties; becomes a superconductor below 9 K; used chiefly in alloy steels. Symbol: Nb; atomic number: 41; atomic weight: 92.906; specific gravity: 8.4 at 20°C.
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Origin of niobium

From New Latin, dating back to 1835–45; see origin at Niobe, -ium
Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2018

Examples from the Web for niobium

Historical Examples

  • The oxide of niobium dissolved in a bead of microcosmic salt gives a bluish colour in the reducing flame.

    A Textbook of Assaying: For the Use of Those Connected with Mines.

    Cornelius Beringer and John Jacob Beringer

  • The corresponding group consists of nitrogen, vanadium and niobium; they are triatomic, paramagnetic, and negative.

    Occult Chemistry

    Annie Besant and Charles W. Leadbeater

  • Chemically related to vanadium are the two elements tantalum and columbium or niobium.

British Dictionary definitions for niobium

niobium

noun
  1. a ductile white superconductive metallic element that occurs principally in columbite and tantalite: used in steel alloys. Symbol: Nb; atomic no: 41; atomic wt: 92.90638; valency: 2, 3, or 5; relative density: 8.57; melting pt: 2469±10°C; boiling pt: 4744°CFormer name: columbium
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Word Origin

C19: from New Latin, from Niobe (daughter of Tantalus), so named because it occurred in tantalite
Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012

Word Origin and History for niobium

n.

named by German scientist Heinrich Rose, who discovered it in 1844 in the mineral tantalum; so called because in Greek mythology Niobe was the daughter of Tantalus.

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Online Etymology Dictionary, © 2010 Douglas Harper
niobium in Medicine

niobium

(nī-ō′bē-əm)
n. Symbol Nb
  1. A soft ductile metallic element that is used in steel alloys and superconductors. Atomic number 41.
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The American Heritage® Stedman's Medical Dictionary Copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Company.
niobium in Science

niobium

[nī-ō′bē-əm]
Nb
  1. A soft, silvery, ductile metallic element that usually occurs in nature together with the element tantalum. It is used to build nuclear reactors, to make steel alloys, and to allow magnets to conduct electricity with almost no resistance. Atomic number 41; atomic weight 92.906; melting point 2,468°C; boiling point 4,927°C; specific gravity 8.57; valence 2, 3, 5. See Periodic Table.
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The American Heritage® Science Dictionary Copyright © 2011. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. All rights reserved.