1. Steel industry
About 85%-90% of the world's niobium is used in steel production in the form of ferroniobium. Only adding 0.03%-0.05% niobium to the steel can increase the yield strength of the steel by more than 30%. Adding niobium to steel can not only increase the strength of the steel, but also improve the toughness, high temperature oxidation resistance and corrosion resistance of the steel, reduce the brittle transition temperature of the steel, and make the steel have good welding performance and formability.
2. Superconducting material industry
Some compounds and alloys of niobium have a high superconducting transition temperature, so they are widely used in the manufacture of various industrial superconductors, such as superconducting generators, accelerator high-power magnets, superconducting magnetic energy storage devices, nuclear magnetic resonance imaging equipment, etc. . At present, the most important superconductor materials are niobium-titanium and niobium-tin, which are widely used in magnetic resonance imaging instruments for medical diagnosis and nuclear magnetic resonance instruments for spectral lines (analysis).
3. Electronic industry
Niobium has a high melting point, strong ability to emit electrons, and has the ability to get gas, so it can be used to make electron tubes and other electric vacuum devices. Moreover, niobium compounds have good piezoelectric, pyroelectric and optical properties, and can be widely used in infrared, laser technology and electronic industries.
4. Nuclear energy industry
Niobium has good thermal conductivity, high melting point, good corrosion resistance, and low neutron capture cross-section. It is a material very suitable for atomic energy reactors. It is generally used to make nuclear fuel cladding materials, nuclear fuel alloys, and heat exchange in nuclear reactors. The structural material of the device.
5. Aerospace industry
The aerospace industry is the main application field of high-purity niobium, which is mainly used in the production of engines and heat-resistant parts of rockets and spacecraft. The heat-strength alloys of niobium and tantalum have good heat strength, heat resistance and processing properties, and are often used to manufacture parts of aero-engines and blades of gas turbines.
6. Medical field
Niobium has good physiological corrosion resistance and biocompatibility, will not interact with various liquid substances in the human body, and will hardly damage biological tissue, so it is often used to manufacture bone plates and skull plate screws , dental implants, surgical instruments, etc.
7. Other applications
In the chemical industry, niobium is a high-quality material resistant to acid and liquid metal corrosion, and can be used to make digesters, heaters, coolers, etc. Niobium helps to increase the light transmission performance of the lens, so it is also used in the manufacture of lenses in the optical industry. In the automobile manufacturing industry, ferroniobium can be used as strong body materials, cylinder heads and piston rings of automobiles, etc.
