Hafnium History
Hafnium (Latin Hafnia : Copenhagen) was discovered in 1923 by Dirk Coster and Georg von Hevesy in Copenhagen, Denmark. In terms of Bohr theory, scientists had predicted a new metal element to be associated with zirconium. Finally it was identified in zircon through X-ray spectroscope analysis in Norway.
Most zirconium minerals contain 1 to 5 percent hafnium. It is extremely difficult to separate hafnium from zirconium. The original separation is made through repeated recrystallization of the double ammonium or potassium fluorides by von Hevesey and Jantzen. Metallic hafnium was first prepared by Anton Eduard van Arkel and Jan Hendrik deBoer by passing tetraiodide vapor over a heated tungsten filament. |
