| Author | Message | ||
     bd |
What are the ratios of the metals in Field's Metal? I can't seem to find them here. | ||
| Simon Quellen Field (Sfield) |
I have been asked not to divulge the exact proportions, since it is being used as an analysis question in a lab test at several universities. By measuring the density, and how the melting point changes as a few other metals are added to it, the exact ratios can be determined by college freshmen. There are several other ways to find the exact ratio of Indium, Bismuth and Tin that are used. You could separate them and weight them, you could mix the three elements in different ratios looking for a minimum in the melting point, or use any of several other methods. | ||
| Anonymous |
Google knows, of course. | ||
| AnotherAnonymous Unregistered guest |
Spoilers: http://www.popsci.com/popsci/print/0,21553,1014596,00.html It may not be the exact Field's Metal mixture, but it use Indium/Bismuth/Tin and melts at around 140°F I made some of the lead/bismuth/tin and it works great for temporarily casting/cementing a quartz crystal into a graphite base, allowing me to drill a hole into the quartz using a tungsten carbite bit. I know I've overheated the quartz if it melts the casting. I'd like to get some indium for mixing of custom alloys. Simon? Sell us some affordable elemental indium? | ||
| Simon Quellen Field (Sfield) Senior Member Username: Sfield Post Number: 587 Registered: 12-2004 |
Theodore Gray is one of my frequent correspondents. You should Google that name and look at his other work. Affordable indium is an oxymoron. I have a few pounds of it sitting on my desk, which I bought before plasma televisions (which use indium) caused the price to go sky high. It is currently over three times the cost of silver. If you get it for less, your supplier is probably mixing in some other metals, which might be toxic, and would certainly screw up the low melting point alloy. | ||
| AnotherAnonymous Unregistered guest |
Well, I meant affordable amounts, rather than affordable prices. The price of small samples of pure indium seems to be about on par with gallium (according to sites like emovendo.net), and you sell gallium. Since you stand behind what you sell, explain what/how/where/when/why, and interactively communicate with your past and future clients, you would be a more-trusted source for it, IMHO. And yes, I read most of Theo's popsci artcles, his PToET site, and saw him on techtv/g4 a year or three ago. As for silver, for some reason I have a 100oz Engelhard bar in my sock drawer (long story). Oops. This thread seems to be wandering in topic. |
