Niobium
Next in the series is Niobium - number 41. Scientists use the letters Nb for short. Another metal in the transition metals group, Niobium is a silvery, white, ductile metal with a bluish tinge.. Like many other metals, Niobium does not exist on its own in nature and although scientists found it in the early 1800s it wasn't until it was first extracted from minerals.
Chemically Niobium is very similar to Tantalum, the element that is beneath it in the periodic table. They are so similar that it is difficult to tell them apart.
Most of the Niobium we use today is produced in Brazil.
It is used mixed with other metals, particularly in steel to make it stronger. It is also used with other metals in super conducting magnets. Sometimes it is used in special commemorative coins.
It doesn't have a known biological role in humans, but as it isn't toxic it is sometimes used in jewellery and might be suitable for replacement body parts.
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