**Physical Characteristics of Aluminium:**
– Aluminium is a chemical element with symbol Al and atomic number 13.
– It has a density about one-third that of steel.
– Aluminium forms a protective oxide layer when exposed to air.
– It visually resembles silver and is soft, nonmagnetic, and ductile.
– Aluminium has one stable isotope, Al, making it the twelfth-most common element in the universe.
– An aluminium atom has 13 electrons in an electron configuration of Ne 3s.
– Aluminium can surrender its three outermost electrons in chemical reactions.
– The electronegativity of aluminium is 1.61.
– A free aluminium atom has a radius of 143pm.
– Aluminium metal appears silvery white to dull gray.
– Aluminium mirrors are highly reflective in various light spectra.
– Aluminium is good at reflecting solar radiation.
– The density of aluminium is 2.70g/cm.
– Anodizing aluminium adds a protective oxide layer to prevent wear.
**Isotopes and Electron Shell of Aluminium:**
– Only Al is stable among aluminium isotopes.
– Al is the only primordial aluminium isotope on Earth since the planet’s formation.
– Other aluminium isotopes are radioactive, with Al having a half-life of 717,000 years.
– Minute traces of Al are produced from argon in the atmosphere.
– Al isotopes have been used for radiodating geological processes.
– Aluminium atoms form a face-centered cubic crystal system under standard conditions.
**Discovery and Industrial Use of Aluminium:**
– Aluminium was discovered in 1825 by Hans Christian Ørsted.
– Industrial production began in 1856 by Henri Étienne Sainte-Claire Deville.
– The Hall–Héroult process led to mass production in 1886.
– Aluminium was crucial in World Wars I and II for aviation.
– In 1954, aluminium became the most produced non-ferrous metal.
**Chemistry and Compounds of Aluminium:**
– Combines characteristics of pre- and post-transition metals.
– Strongly polarizing and bonding in compounds tends towards covalency.
– Most electropositive metal in its group.
– Forms icosahedral quasicrystal alloys.
– Used as a reducing agent in the thermite reaction.
– Most compounds feature aluminium in oxidation state 3+.
– Coordination number of compounds is generally six- or four-coordinate.
– Almost all compounds of aluminium(III) are colorless.
– Forms salts and aluminates, dissolves in acid and alkali.
– Aluminium trichloride used as a catalyst in industrial reactions.
**Global Impact and Production of Aluminium:**
– Production costs lowered over technological progress and economies of scale.
– BRIC countries share in primary production and consumption grew substantially.
– China accumulated a large share of global production and consumption.
– Most aluminium consumed in transportation, engineering, construction, and packaging in the US, Western Europe, and Japan.
– Industrial metal prices, including aluminium, soared in 2021 due to energy shortages in China.
– Aluminium production surpassed copper in 1954.
– Aluminium widely used in civil engineering and military applications.
– World production of aluminium exceeded 50,000,000 metric tons in 2013.
– Bauxite is processed into alumina using the Bayer process.
– The Hall–Héroult process is used to produce aluminium metal.
