Lead (Pb)

Lead is a soft, malleable and heavy metal with symbol Pb (from the Latin word plumbum) and a dull grayish color when exposed to air, while it burns with a bluish-white flame. It has the highest atomic number of any stable non-radioactive element: Lead-208 is the heaviest known stable nuclide. This metal has been commonly used for thousands of years for being widespread, easy to extract, highly malleable and easily smeltable. Metallic Lead’s first uses are attributed to Ancient Egyptians and Chinese, and date back to 7000 BC, making it the first metal to be ever smelted, to deserve the name of “father of all metals”. During the classical era, Rome had a yearly output of 80.000 tonnes.

PRODUCTION & APPLICATION

World resources of Lead exceed 2 billion tons, with massive presence in Australia, China, Ireland, Mexico, Peru, etc. With its high density, softness, ductility, malleability, poor electrical conductivity and high resistance to corrosion, it is nowadays used in construction, batteries, bullets and firearms, weights, radiation shields, etc. This metal was used during the Renaissance to produce the printing press and firearms, and Britain became and remained the leading Lead producer until half the 19th century. Its consumption is currently increasing worldwide, and an attention for the recycling of this material has been growing. Today almost 60% of it is secondary, namely produced from scrap.