Characteristic

Zirconium is a chemical element with the symbol Zr and atomic number 40.  It is a lustrous, grey-white, strong transition metal that closely resembles hafnium and, to a lesser extent, titanium. Zirconium forms a variety of inorganic and organometallic compounds such as zirconium dioxide and zirconocene dichloride, respectively. Five isotopes occur naturally, three of which are stable. 

Phase at STP：solid

Appearance：silvery white

Melting point：2128 K (1855 °C, 3371 °F)

Boiling point：4650 K (4377 °C, 7911 °F)

Density (near r.t.)：6.52 g/cm³

when liquid (at m.p.)：5.8 g/cm³

Heat of fusion：14 kJ/mol

Heat of vaporization：591 kJ/mol

Molar heat capacity：25.36 J/(mol·K)

Application

Zirconium is resistant to corrosion and is used primarily as a sheath material for fuel rods in nuclear reactors and as an alloy for corrosion resistance.

Zirconium is also used in X-ray diffraction instruments, and when molybdenum is used, zirconium is used to filter out other unwanted frequencies.

In organic chemistry, zirconium is a relatively new metal in the study of organic synthesis methodology in which transition metals are involved. Zirconium can form a five-membered ring or a six-membered ring with carbon, and then be attacked by other groups to leave, thus building the skeleton of organic matter.Many novel compounds can be synthesized using zirconium chemistry.

Zirconium alloys are often used in metal cutting. White zirconium dioxide is the main component of ceramic knives.

Zirconium_MSDS.pdf