Bismuth

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For other uses, see Bismuth (disambiguation).

Bismuth,  Bi83

Bismuth

Pronunciation /ˈbɪzməθ/ (BIZ-məth)

Appearance lustrous brownish silver

Standard atomic weight Ar, std(Bi) 208.98040(1)[1]

Bismuth in the periodic table

Hy
dr
og
en
Lit Be
hi ryl
u liu
m m
So M
di ag
u ne
m siu
m
Po Ca Sc
tas lci an
siu um diu
m m

Ru Str Ytt
bi ont riu
di iu m
 u m
m
Ca Ba La C Pra Ne Pr Sa Eu Ga Te Dy Ho Er Th Yt Lut
esi riu nther seo od om m ro dol rbi spr lmibi uli ter eti
u m an iu dy ym eth ari piuini u osi um u um bi um
m umm miu iu iu u m um m um m u
m m m m m

Fr Ra Ac T Pro Ur Ne Pl A Cu Be Ca Ei Fe Me N La
an diu tin hotact ani ptu ut me riu rk lif nst r nde ob wr
ciu m iu ri iniu um niu on ric m eli orn ein milevi eli enc
m m u m m iu iu u iu iu u um u iu
m m m m m m m m m
lead ← bismuth

Atomic number (Z) 83

Group group 15 (pnictogens)

Period period 6

Block p-block

Element category   Post-transition metal

Electron configuration [Xe] 4f14 5d10 6s2 6p3

Electrons per shell 2, 8, 18, 32, 18, 5

Physical properties

Phase at STP solid

Melting point 544.7 K (271.5 °C, 520.7 °F)

Boiling point 1837 K (1564 °C, 2847 °F)

Density (near r.t.) 9.78 g/cm3

when liquid (at m.p.) 10.05 g/cm3

Heat of fusion 11.30 kJ/mol

Heat of vaporization 179 kJ/mol

Molar heat capacity 25.52 J/(mol·K)

Vapor pressure

P (Pa) 1 10 100 1 k 10 k 100 k

at T (K 941 1041 116 1325 1538 1835
) 5

Atomic properties

Oxidation states −3, −2, −1, +1, +2, +3, +4, +5

(a mildly acidic oxide)

Electronegativity Pauling scale: 2.02

1st: 703 kJ/mol
Ionization energies
2nd: 1610 kJ/mol

3rd: 2466 kJ/mol

(more)

Atomic radius empirical: 156 pm

Covalent radius 148±4 pm

Van der Waals radius 207 pm

Spectral lines of bismuth

Other properties

Natural occurrence primordial

Crystal structure rhombohedral[2]

Speed of sound thin rod 1790 m/s (at 20 °C)

 Thermal expansion 13.4 µm/(m·K) (at 25 °C)

Thermal conductivity 7.97 W/(m·K)

Electrical resistivity 1.29 µΩ·m (at 20 °C)

Magnetic ordering diamagnetic

Magnetic susceptibility −280.1·10−6 cm3/mol[3]

Young's modulus 32 GPa

Shear modulus 12 GPa

Bulk modulus 31 GPa

Poisson ratio 0.33

Mohs hardness 2.25

Brinell hardness 70–95 MPa

CAS Number 7440-69-9

History

Discovery Arabic alchemists (before AD

1000)

Main isotopes of bismuth

Iso- Abun- Half-life  Decay Pro-

tope dance (t1/2) mode duct
β+
207
Bi syn 31.55 y 207
Pb
208
Bi syn 3.68×105 y β+ 208
Pb
209
Bi 100% 2.01×1019 y α 205
Tl
β− 210
Po
210
Bi trace 5.012 d
α 206
Tl
IT 210
Bi
210m
Bi syn 3.04×106 y
α 206
Tl

 Category: Bismuth

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Bismuth is a chemical element with the symbol Bi and atomic number 83. It is

a pentavalent post-transition metal and one of the pnictogens with chemical
properties resembling its lighter group 15 siblings arsenic and antimony. Elemental
 bismuth may occur naturally, although its sulfide and oxide form important
commercial ores. The free element is 86% as dense as lead. It is a brittle metal
with a silvery white color when freshly produced, but surface oxidation can give it
an iridescent tinge in numerous colours. Bismuth is the most
naturally diamagnetic element, and has one of the lowest values of thermal
conductivity among metals.
Bismuth was long considered the element with the highest atomic mass that is
stable, but in 2003 it was discovered to be extremely weakly radioactive: its
only primordial isotope, bismuth-209, decays via alpha decay with a half-life more
than a billion times the estimated age of the universe.[4][5] Because of its
tremendously long half-life, bismuth may still be considered stable for almost all
purposes.[5]

Contents

 1Main uses
 2History
 3Characteristics
o 3.1Physical characteristics
o 3.2Chemical characteristics
o 3.3Isotopes
 4Chemical compounds
o 4.1Oxides and sulfides
o 4.2Bismuthine and bismuthides
o 4.3Halides
o 4.4Aqueous species
 5Occurrence and production
o 5.1Price
o 5.2Recycling
 6Applications
o 6.1Medicines
o 6.2Cosmetics and pigments
o 6.3Metal and alloys
 6.3.1Lead replacement
 6.3.2Other metal uses and specialty alloys
o 6.4Other uses as compounds
 7Toxicology and ecotoxicology
 8Bioremediation
 9See also
 10References
 11Bibliography
 12External links

Main uses[edit]
Bismuth compounds account for about half the production of bismuth. They are
used in cosmetics, pigments, and a few pharmaceuticals, notably bismuth
subsalicylate, used to treat diarrhea.[5] Bismuth's unusual propensity to expand as it
solidifies is responsible for some of its uses, such as in casting of printing type.
[5]
 Bismuth has unusually low toxicity for a heavy metal.[5] As the toxicity of lead has
become more apparent in recent years, there is an increasing use of bismuth
alloys (presently about a third of bismuth production) as a replacement for lead.

History[edit]
Bismuth metal has been known since ancient times, although it was often confused
with lead and tin, which share some physical properties. The etymology is
uncertain, but possibly comes from Arabic bi ismid, meaning "having the properties
of antimony",[6] or from the German words weiße Masse or Wismuth ("white mass"),
translated in the mid-sixteenth century to New Latin bisemutum or bisemutium.[7][8][9]
The name bismuth dates from around the 1660s, and is of uncertain etymology. It
is one of the first 10 metals to have been discovered. Bismuth appears in the
1660s, from obsolete German Bismuth, Wismut, Wissmuth (early 16th century);
perhaps related to Old High German hwiz ("white").[7] The New
Latin bisemutium (due to Georgius Agricola, who Latinized many German mining
and technical words) is from the German Wismuth, perhaps from weiße Masse,
"white mass".[9] The element was confused in early times with tin and lead because
of its resemblance to those elements. Because Bismuth has been known since
ancient times, no one person is credited with its discovery. Agricola, in De Natura
Fossilium (c. 1546) states that bismuth is a distinct metal in a family of metals
including tin and lead. This was based on observation of the metals and their
physical properties.[10] Miners in the age of alchemy also gave bismuth the
name tectum argenti, or "silver being made," in the sense of silver still in the
process of being formed within the Earth.[11][12][13]
Beginning with Johann Heinrich Pott in 1738, [14] Carl Wilhelm Scheele and Torbern
Olof Bergman, the distinctness of lead and bismuth became clear, and Claude
François Geoffroy demonstrated in 1753 that this metal is distinct from lead and tin.
[12][15][16]
 Bismuth was also known to the Incas and used (along with the usual copper
and tin) in a special bronze alloy for knives.[17]

Characteristics[edit]
Left: synthetic bismuth crystal exhibiting the stairstep crystal structure and iridescence colors, which are
produced by interference of light within the oxide film on its surface. Right: a 1 cm3 cube of unoxidised
bismuth metal

Physical characteristics[edit]

Pressure-temperature phase diagram of bismuth. TC refers to the superconducting transition temperature

Bismuth is a brittle metal with a white, silver-pink hue, often with

an iridescent oxide tarnish showing many colors from yellow to blue. The spiral,
stair-stepped structure of bismuth crystals is the result of a higher growth rate
around the outside edges than on the inside edges. The variations in the thickness
of the oxide layer that forms on the surface of the crystal cause different
wavelengths of light to interfere upon reflection, thus displaying a rainbow of colors.
When burned in oxygen, bismuth burns with a blue flame and its oxide forms
yellow fumes.[15] Its toxicity is much lower than that of its neighbors in the periodic
table, such as lead, antimony, and polonium.
No other metal is verified to be more naturally diamagnetic than bismuth.[15]
[18]
 (Superdiamagnetism is a different physical phenomenon.) Of any metal, it has
one of the lowest values of thermal conductivity (after manganese, and
maybe neptunium and plutonium) and the highest Hall coefficient.[19] It has a
high electrical resistivity.[15] When deposited in sufficiently thin layers on a substrate,
bismuth is a semiconductor, despite being a post-transition metal.[20] Elemental
bismuth is denser in the liquid phase than the solid, a characteristic it shares
with germanium, silicon, gallium and water.[21] Bismuth expands 3.32% on
solidification; therefore, it was long a component of low-melting typesetting alloys,
where it compensated for the contraction of the other alloying components [15][22][23][24] to
form almost isostatic bismuth-lead eutectic alloys.
Though virtually unseen in nature, high-purity bismuth can form distinctive,
colorful hopper crystals. It is relatively nontoxic and has a low melting point just
above 271 °C, so crystals may be grown using a household stove, although the
resulting crystals will tend to be lower quality than lab-grown crystals. [25]
At ambient conditions bismuth shares the same layered structure as the metallic
forms of arsenic and antimony,[26] crystallizing in the rhombohedral
lattice[27] (Pearson symbol hR6, space group R3m No. 166), which is often classed
into trigonal or hexagonal crystal systems.[2] When compressed at room
temperature, this Bi-I structure changes first to the monoclinic Bi-II at 2.55 GPa,
then to the tetragonal Bi-III at 2.7 GPa, and finally to the body-centered cubic Bi-IV
at 7.7 GPa. The corresponding transitions can be monitored via changes in
electrical conductivity; they are rather reproducible and abrupt, and are therefore
used for calibration of high-pressure equipment. [28][29]
Chemical characteristics[edit]
Bismuth is stable to both dry and moist air at ordinary temperatures. When red-hot,
it reacts with water to make bismuth(III) oxide.[30]
2 Bi + 3 H2O → Bi2O3 + 3 H2
It reacts with fluorine to make bismuth(V) fluoride at 500 °C or bismuth(III)
fluoride at lower temperatures (typically from Bi melts); with other halogens it
yields only bismuth(III) halides.[31][32][33] The trihalides are corrosive and easily
react with moisture, forming oxyhalides with the formula BiOX.[34]
4 Bi + 6 X2 → 4 BiX3 (X = F, Cl, Br, I)
4 BiX3 + 2 O2 → 4 BiOX + 4 X2
Bismuth dissolves in concentrated sulfuric acid to make bismuth(III)
sulfate and sulfur dioxide.[30]
6 H2SO4 + 2 Bi → 6 H2O + Bi2(SO4)3 + 3 SO2
It reacts with nitric acid to make bismuth(III) nitrate.
Bi + 6 HNO3 → 3 H2O + 3 NO2 + Bi(NO3)3
It also dissolves in hydrochloric acid, but only with oxygen
present.[30]
4 Bi + 3 O2 + 12 HCl → 4 BiCl3 + 6 H2O
It is used as a transmetalating agent in the synthesis of
alkaline-earth metal complexes:
3 Ba + 2 BiPh3 → 3 BaPh2 + 2 Bi
Isotopes[edit]
Main article: Isotopes of bismuth
The only primordial isotope of bismuth, bismuth-209, was
traditionally regarded as the heaviest stable isotope, but it
had long been suspected[35] to be unstable on theoretical
grounds. This was finally demonstrated in 2003, when
researchers at the Institut d'Astrophysique Spatiale
in Orsay, France, measured the alpha emission half-
life of 209
Bi
 to be 2.01×1019 years (3 Bq/Mg),[36][37] over a billion times
longer than the current estimated age of the universe.
[5]
 Owing to its extraordinarily long half-life, for all presently
known medical and industrial applications, bismuth can
be treated as if it is stable and nonradioactive. The
radioactivity is of academic interest because bismuth is
one of a few elements whose radioactivity was suspected
and theoretically predicted before being detected in the
laboratory.[5] Bismuth has the longest known alpha decay
half-life, although tellurium-128 has a double beta
decay half-life of over 2.2×1024 years.[37] Bismuth's
extremely long half life means that less than one billionth
of the bismuth present at the formation of the planet Earth
would have decayed into thallium since then.
Several isotopes of bismuth with short half-lives occur
within the radioactive disintegration chains
of actinium, radium, and thorium, and more have been
synthesized experimentally. Bismuth-213 is also found on
the decay chain of neptunium-237 and uranium-233.[38]
Commercially, the radioactive isotope bismuth-213 can
be produced by
bombarding radium with bremsstrahlung photons from
a linear particle accelerator. In 1997, an antibody
conjugate with bismuth-213, which has a 45-minute half-
life and decays with the emission of an alpha particle,
was used to treat patients with leukemia. This isotope has
also been tried in cancer treatment, for example, in
the targeted alpha therapy (TAT) program.[39][40]

Chemical compounds[edit]
See also: Category:Bismuth compounds.
Bismuth forms trivalent and pentavalent compounds, the
trivalent ones being more common. Many of its chemical
properties are similar to those of arsenic and antimony,
although they are less toxic than derivatives of those
lighter elements.
Oxides and sulfides[edit]
At elevated temperatures, the vapors of the metal
combine rapidly with oxygen, forming the yellow
trioxide, Bi
2O

3.[21][41] When molten, at temperatures above 710 °C, this

oxide corrodes any metal oxide, and even platinum. [33] On
reaction with base, it forms two series of oxyanions: BiO−
2, which is polymeric and forms linear chains, and BiO
3−

3. The anion in Li

3BiO

3 is actually a cubic octameric anion, Bi

8O
24−
24, whereas the anion in Na
3BiO
3 is tetrameric.
[42]

The dark red bismuth(V) oxide, Bi

2O

5, is unstable, liberating O

2 gas upon heating.  The compound NaBiO3 is a strong

[43]

oxidising agent. [44]

Bismuth sulfide, Bi
2S

3, occurs naturally in bismuth ores.[45] It is also produced by

the combination of molten bismuth and sulfur.[32]

Bismuth oxychloride (BiOCl) structure (mineral bismoclite). Bismuth

atoms shown as grey, oxygen red, chlorine green.

Bismuth oxychloride (BiOCl, see figure at right)

and bismuth oxynitrate (BiONO3) stoichiometrically
appear as simple anionic salts of the bismuthyl(III) cation
(BiO+) which commonly occurs in aqueous bismuth
compounds. However, in the case of BiOCl, the salt
crystal forms in a structure of alternating plates of Bi, O,
and Cl atoms, with each oxygen coordinating with four
bismuth atoms in the adjacent plane. This mineral
compound is used as a pigment and cosmetic (see
below).[46]
Bismuthine and bismuthides[edit]
Unlike the lighter pnictogens nitrogen, phosphorus, and
arsenic, but similar to antimony, bismuth does not form a
stable hydride. Bismuth hydride, bismuthine (BiH
3), is an endothermic compound that spontaneously

decomposes at room temperature. It is stable only below

−60 °C.[42] Bismuthides are intermetallic compounds
between bismuth and other metals.
In 2014 researchers discovered that sodium bismuthide
can exist as a form of matter called a “three-dimensional
topological Dirac semi-metal” (3DTDS) that possess
3D Dirac fermions in bulk. It is a natural, three-
dimensional counterpart to graphene with similar electron
mobility and velocity. Graphene and topological
insulators (such as those in 3DTDS) are both crystalline
materials that are electrically insulating inside but
conducting on the surface, allowing them to function
as transistors and other electronic devices. While sodium
bismuthide (Na
3Bi) is too unstable to be used in devices without

packaging, it can demonstrate potential applications of

3DTDS systems, which offer distinct efficiency and
fabrication advantages over planar graphene
in semiconductor and spintronics applications.[47][48]
Halides[edit]
The halides of bismuth in low oxidation states have been
shown to adopt unusual structures. What was originally
thought to be bismuth(I) chloride, BiCl, turns out to be a
complex compound consisting of Bi5+
9 cations and BiCl
2−

5 and Bi

2Cl
2−

8 anions.  The Bi5+

[42][49]

9 cation has a distorted tricapped trigonal

prismatic molecular geometry, and is also found in Bi

10Hf

3Cl

18, which is prepared by reducing a mixture of hafnium(IV)

chloride and bismuth chloride with elemental bismuth,

having the structure [Bi+
] [Bi5+
9] [HfCl
2−

6]

3.  Other polyatomic bismuth cations are also known,

[42]:50

such as Bi2+
8, found in Bi

8(AlCl

4)

2.  Bismuth also forms a low-valence bromide with the

[49]

same structure as "BiCl". There is a true monoiodide, BiI,

which contains chains of Bi
4I

4 units. BiI decomposes upon heating to the triiodide, BiI

3, and elemental bismuth. A monobromide of the same

 structure also exists.[42] In oxidation state +3, bismuth
forms trihalides with all of the halogens: BiF
3, BiCl

3, BiBr

3, and BiI

3. All of these except BiF

3 are hydrolyzed by water.
[42]

Bismuth(III) chloride reacts with hydrogen

chloride in ether solution to produce the acid HBiCl
4.
[30]

The oxidation state +5 is less frequently encountered.

One such compound is BiF
5, a powerful oxidizing and fluorinating agent. It is also a

strong fluoride acceptor, reacting with xenon

tetrafluoride to form the XeF+
3 cation:
[30]

BiF
5 + XeF

4 → XeF
+

3BiF
−

Aqueous species[edit]
In aqueous solution, the Bi3+
 ion is solvated to form the aqua ion Bi(H
2O)
3+

8 in strongly acidic conditions.  At pH > 0 polynuclear

[50]

species exist, the most important of which is believed

to be the octahedral complex [Bi
6O

4(OH)

4]
6+

.[51]

Occurrence and production[edit]

See also: List of countries by bismuth production

Bismite mineral
In the Earth's crust, bismuth is about twice as
abundant as gold. The most important ores of bismuth
are bismuthinite and bismite.[15] Native bismuth is
known from Australia, Bolivia, and China. [52][53]
According to the United States Geological Survey, the
world mining production of bismuth in 2016 was
10,200 tonnes, with the major contributions from
China (7,400 tonnes), Vietnam (2,000 tonnes) and
Mexico (700 tonnes).[54] The refinery production in
2016 was 17,100 tonnes, of which China produced
11,000, Mexico 539 and Japan 428 tonnes. [55] The
difference reflects bismuth's status as a byproduct of
extraction of other metals such as lead, copper, tin,
molybdenum and tungsten.[56] World bismuth
production from refineries is a more complete and
reliable statistic.[57][58][59]
Bismuth travels in crude lead bullion (which can
contain up to 10% bismuth) through several stages of
refining, until it is removed by the Kroll-Betterton
process which separates the impurities as slag, or the
electrolytic Betts process. Bismuth will behave
similarly with another of its major metals, copper.
[57]
 The raw bismuth metal from both processes
contains still considerable amounts of other metals,
foremost lead. By reacting the molten mixture with
chlorine gas the metals are converted to their
chlorides while bismuth remains unchanged.
Impurities can also be removed by various other
methods for example with fluxes and treatments
yielding high-purity bismuth metal (over 99% Bi).
Price[edit]

World mine production and annual averages of bismuth price

(New York, not adjusted for inflation).[60]
The price for pure bismuth metal has been relatively
stable through most of the 20th century, except for a
spike in the 1970s. Bismuth has always been
produced mainly as a byproduct of lead refining, and
thus the price usually reflected the cost of recovery
and the balance between production and demand. [60]
Demand for bismuth was small prior to World War II
and was pharmaceutical — bismuth compounds were
used to treat such conditions as digestive
disorders, sexually transmitted diseases and burns.
Minor amounts of bismuth metal were consumed in
fusible alloys for fire sprinkler systems and fuse wire.
During World War II bismuth was considered
a strategic material, used for solders, fusible alloys,
medications and atomic research. To stabilize the
market, the producers set the price at $1.25 per
pound (2.75 $/kg) during the war and at $2.25 per
pound (4.96 $/kg) from 1950 until 1964. [60]
In the early 1970s, the price rose rapidly as a result of
increasing demand for bismuth as a metallurgical
additive to aluminium, iron and steel. This was
followed by a decline owing to increased world
production, stabilized consumption, and the
recessions of 1980 and 1981–1982. In 1984, the price
began to climb as consumption increased worldwide,
especially in the United States and Japan. In the early
1990s, research began on the evaluation of bismuth
as a nontoxic replacement for lead in ceramic glazes,
fishing sinkers, food-processing equipment, free-
machining brasses for plumbing applications,
lubricating greases, and shot for waterfowl hunting.
[61]
 Growth in these areas remained slow during the
middle 1990s, in spite of the backing of lead
replacement by the United States federal government,
but intensified around 2005. This resulted in a rapid
and continuing increase in price.[60]
Recycling[edit]
Most bismuth is produced as a byproduct of other
metal-extraction processes including the smelting of
lead, and also of tungsten and copper.
Its sustainability is dependent on increased recycling,
which is problematic.
It was once believed that bismuth could be practically
recycled from the soldered joints in electronic
equipment. Recent efficiencies in solder application in
electronics mean there is substantially less solder
deposited, and thus less to recycle. While recovering
the silver from silver-bearing solder may remain
economic, recovering bismuth is substantially less so.
[62]

Next in recycling feasibility would be sizeable

catalysts with a fair bismuth content, such as bismuth
phosphomolybdate.[citation needed] Bismuth used in
galvanizing, and as a free-machining metallurgical
additive.[citation needed]
Bismuth in uses where it is dispersed most widely
include certain stomach medicines (bismuth
subsalicylate), paints (bismuth
vanadate), pearlescent cosmetics (bismuth
oxychloride), and bismuth-containing bullets.
Recycling bismuth from these uses is impractical.

Applications[edit]

18th-century engraving of bismuth processing. During this era,

bismuth was used to treat some digestive complaints.

Bismuth has few commercial applications, and those

applications that use it generally require small
quantities relative to other raw materials. In the United
States, for example, 733 tonnes of bismuth were
consumed in 2016, of which 70% went into chemicals
(including pharmaceuticals, pigments, and cosmetics)
and 11% into bismuth alloys.[63]
Some manufacturers use bismuth as a substitute in
equipment for potable water systems such as valves
to meet "lead-free" mandates in the U.S. (began in
2014). This is a fairly large application since it covers
all residential and commercial building construction.
In the early 1990s, researchers began to evaluate
bismuth as a nontoxic replacement for lead in various
applications.
Medicines[edit]
Bismuth is an ingredient in some pharmaceuticals,
[5]
 although the use of some of these substances is
declining.[46]

 Bismuth subsalicylate is used as an antidiarrheal;

[5]
 it is the active ingredient in such "pink bismuth"
preparations as Pepto-Bismol, as well as the 2004
reformulation of Kaopectate. It is also used to treat
some other gastro-intestinal diseases
like shigellosis[64] and cadmium poisoning.[5] The
mechanism of action of this substance is still not
well documented, although an oligodynamic
effect (toxic effect of small doses of heavy metal
ions on microbes) may be involved in at least
some cases. Salicylic acid from hydrolysis of the
compound is antimicrobial for toxogenic E. coli, an
important pathogen in traveler's diarrhea.[65]
 a combination of bismuth
subsalicylate and bismuth subcitrate is used to
treat the bacteria causing peptic ulcers.
 Bibrocathol is an organic bismuth-containing
compound used to treat eye infections.
 Bismuth subgallate, the active ingredient in
Devrom, is used as an internal deodorant to treat
malodor from flatulence and feces.
 Bismuth compounds (including sodium bismuth
tartrate) were formerly used to treat syphilis[66][67]
 "Milk of bismuth" (an aqueous suspension
of bismuth hydroxide and bismuth subcarbonate)
was marketed as an alimentary cure-all in the
early 20th century.
 Bismuth subnitrate (Bi5O(OH)9(NO3)4) and bismuth
subcarbonate (Bi2O2(CO3)) are also used in
medicine.[15]
Cosmetics and pigments[edit]
Bismuth oxychloride (BiOCl) is sometimes used in
cosmetics, as a pigment in paint for eye shadows, hair
sprays and nail polishes.[5][46][68][69] This compound is
found as the mineral bismoclite and in crystal form
contains layers of atoms (see figure above) that
refract light chromatically, resulting in
an iridescent appearance similar to nacre of pearl. It
was used as a cosmetic in ancient Egypt and in many
places since. Bismuth white (also "Spanish white")
can refer to either bismuth oxychloride or bismuth
oxynitrate (BiONO3), when used as a white pigment.
Bismuth vanadate is used as a light-stable non-
reactive paint pigment (particularly for artists' paints),
often as a replacement for the more toxic cadmium
sulfide yellow and orange-yellow pigments. The most
common variety in artists' paints is a lemon yellow,
visually indistinguishable from its cadmium-containing
alternative.
Metal and alloys[edit]
Bismuth is used in metal alloys with other metals such
as iron. These alloys are used in automatic sprinkler
systems for fires. It forms the largest part (50%)
of Rose's metal, a fusible alloy, which also contains
25–28% lead and 22–25% tin. It was also used to
make bismuth bronze which was used in the Bronze
Age.
Lead replacement[edit]
The density difference between lead (11.32 g/cm3)
and bismuth (9.78 g/cm3) is small enough that for
many ballistics and weighting applications, bismuth
can substitute for lead. For example, it can replace
lead as a dense material in fishing sinkers. It has
been used as a replacement for lead in shot, bullets
and less-lethal riot gun ammunition. The Netherlands,
Denmark, England, Wales, the United States, and
many other countries now prohibit the use of lead shot
for the hunting of wetland birds, as many birds are
prone to lead poisoning owing to mistaken ingestion
of lead (instead of small stones and grit) to aid
digestion, or even prohibit the use of lead for all
hunting, such as in the Netherlands. Bismuth-tin alloy
shot is one alternative that provides similar ballistic
performance to lead. (Another less expensive but also
more poorly performing alternative is "steel" shot,
which is actually soft iron.) Bismuth's lack
of malleability does, however, make it unsuitable for
use in expanding hunting bullets.[citation needed]
Bismuth, as a dense element of high atomic weight, is
used in bismuth-impregnated latex shields to shield
from X-ray in medical examinations, such as CTs,
mostly as it is considered non-toxic.[70]
The European Union's Restriction of Hazardous
Substances Directive (RoHS) for reduction of lead has
broadened bismuth's use in electronics as a
component of low-melting point solders, as a
replacement for traditional tin-lead solders.[63] Its low
toxicity will be especially important for solders to be
used in food processing equipment and copper water
pipes, although it can also be used in other
applications including those in the automobile
industry, in the European Union, for example.[71]
Bismuth has been evaluated as a replacement for
lead in free-
machining brasses for plumbing applications,[72] althou
gh it does not equal the performance of leaded steels.
[71]

Other metal uses and specialty alloys[edit]

Many bismuth alloys have low melting points and are
found in specialty applications such as solders. Many
automatic sprinklers, electric fuses, and safety
devices in fire detection and suppression systems
contain the eutectic In19.1-Cd5.3-Pb22.6-Sn8.3-
Bi44.7 alloy that melts at 47 °C (117 °F)[15] This is a
convenient temperature since it is unlikely to be
exceeded in normal living conditions. Low-melting
alloys, such as Bi-Cd-Pb-Sn alloy which melts at
70 °C, are also used in automotive and aviation
industries. Before deforming a thin-walled metal part,
it is filled with a melt or covered with a thin layer of the
alloy to reduce the chance of breaking. Then the alloy
is removed by submerging the part in boiling water. [73]
Bismuth is used to make free-machining steels and
free-machining aluminium alloys for precision
machining properties. It has similar effect to lead and
improves the chip breaking during machining. The
shrinking on solidification in lead and the expansion of
bismuth compensate each other and therefore lead
and bismuth are often used in similar quantities. [74]
[75]
 Similarly, alloys containing comparable parts of
bismuth and lead exhibit a very small change (on the
order 0.01%) upon melting, solidification or aging.
Such alloys are used in high-precision casting, e.g. in
dentistry, to create models and molds.[73] Bismuth is
also used as an alloying agent in production of
malleable irons[63] and as a thermocouple material.[15]
Bismuth is also used in aluminium-silicon cast alloys
in order to refine silicon morphology. However, it
indicated a poisoning effect on modification of
strontium (Sr).[76][77] Some bismuth alloys, such as Bi35-
Pb37-Sn25, are combined with non-sticking materials
such as mica, glass and enamels because they easily
wet them allowing to make joints to other parts.
Addition of bismuth to caesium enhances the
quantum yield of caesium cathodes.[46] Sintering of
bismuth and manganese powders at 300 °C produces
a permanent magnet and magnetostrictive material,
which is used in ultrasonic generators and receivers
working in the 10–100 kHz range and in magnetic
memory devices.[78]
Other uses as compounds[edit]

Bismuth vanadate, a yellow pigment

 Bismuth is included in BSCCO (bismuth strontium

calcium copper oxide) which is a group of similar
superconducting compounds discovered in 1988
that exhibit the highest superconducting transition
temperatures.[79]
 Bismuth subnitrate is a component of glazes that
produces an iridescence and is used as a pigment
in paint.
 Bismuth telluride is a semiconductor and an
excellent thermoelectric material.[46][80] Bi2Te3 diodes
are used in mobile refrigerators, CPU coolers, and
as detectors in infrared spectrophotometers.[46]
 Bismuth oxide, in its delta form, is a solid
electrolyte for oxygen. This form normally breaks
down below a high-temperature threshold, but can
be electrodeposited well below this temperature in
a highly alkaline solution.
 Bismuth germanate is a scintillator, widely used in
X-ray and gamma ray detectors.
 Bismuth vanadate is an opaque yellow pigment
used by some artists' oil, acrylic, and watercolor
paint companies, primarily as a replacement for
the more toxic cadmium sulfide yellows in the
greenish-yellow (lemon) to orange-toned yellow
range. It performs practically identically to the
cadmium pigments, such as in terms of resistance
to degradation from UV exposure, opacity, tinting
strength, and lack of reactivity when mixed with
other pigments. The most commonly-used variety
by artists' paint makers is lemon in color. In
addition to being a replacement for several
cadmium yellows, it also serves as a non-toxic
visual replacement for the older chromate
pigments made with zinc, lead, and strontium. If a
green pigment and barium sulfate (for increased
transparency) are added it can also serve as a
replacement for barium chromate, which
possesses a more greenish cast than the others.
In comparison with lead chromates, it does not
blacken due to hydrogen sulfide in the air (a
process accelerated by UV exposure) and
possesses a particularly brighter color than them,
especially the lemon, which is the most
translucent, dull, and fastest to blacken due to the
higher percentage of lead sulfate required to
produce that shade. It is also used, on a limited
basis due to its cost, as a vehicle paint pigment.[81]
[82]

 A catalyst for making acrylic fibers.[15]

 As an electrocatalyst in the conversion of CO2 to
CO.[83]
  Ingredient in lubricating greases.[84]
 In crackling microstars (dragon's eggs)
in pyrotechnics, as the oxide, subcarbonate or
subnitrate.[85][86]
 As catalyst for the fluorination of arylboronic
pinacol esters through a Bi(III)/Bi(V) catalytic
cycle, mimicking transition metals in electrophilic
fluorination.[87]

Toxicology and ecotoxicology[edit]

See also bismuthia, a rare dermatological condition that results from the
prolonged use of bismuth.
Scientific literature indicates that some of the
compounds of bismuth are less toxic to humans
via ingestion than other heavy metals (lead,
arsenic, antimony, etc.)[5] presumably due to the
comparatively low solubility of bismuth salts. [88] Its
biological half-life for whole-body retention is
reported to be 5 days but it can remain in the
kidney for years in people treated with bismuth
compounds.[89]
Bismuth poisoning can occur and has according to
some reports been common in relatively recent
times.[88][90] As with lead, bismuth poisoning can
result in the formation of a black deposit on
the gingiva, known as a bismuth line.[91][92]
[93]
 Poisoning may be treated with dimercaprol;
however, evidence for benefit is unclear.[94][95]
Bismuth's environmental impacts are not well
known; it may be less likely to bioaccumulate than
some other heavy metals, and this is an area of
active research.[96][97]

Bioremediation[edit]
The fungus Marasmius oreades can be used for
the biological remediation of bismuth in polluted
soils.[98]