HAFNIUM

An element isolated in 1913 by Dr. Alexander Scott of the ‘British Museum from a black sand obtained from New Zealand. It was not definitelyfidentified by him as a new element until 1922, when the Danish ‘chemists, Coster and Hevesy, discovered the same element in xirconium minerals. ‘The claim is also made that the element was discovered several years previously by Prof. G. Orbain, a well known French chemist, but there appears to be some doubt as to whether this element, named ‘celtium’ by the profe or, is identical with the hafnium of Coster and Hevesy. ‘The element is stated to be very similar to the metal zirconium and has an atomic weight of approximately 180. its oxide, as prepared by Dr. Scott, is a cinnamon colored powder. If the new element is found to have a commercial value, it can probably be produced in large quantities, as the deposit of sand in New Zealand, from which it was isolated, is reported to be seven miles in length and of considerable depth, and it is also believed to exist in appreciable quantities in some Norwegian zirconium minerals.