Nickel
Real Metals · Common · Modern
The reason a good stainless steel will not hold a magnet: nickel rearranges the crystal so the steel stays formable and non-magnetic. It is also the commonest cause of contact allergy in the world, picked up from cheap earrings and handled coins, and about one person in ten reacts to it. The core of the planet is mostly iron and nickel.
Identity
- Symbol
- Ni
- Atomic number
- 28
- Source
- Natural element
- Used in
- Celestial Siderite, Cupronickel, Inconel, Maillechort, Nitinol, Stainless Steel, White Gold
- Also known as
- Ni, Kupfernickel (archaic)
- Ores of the industrial age
- Garnierite, Limonite, Nickeline, Pentlandite, Skutterudite
- Ore deposits
- Hydrothermal vein (lode), Lateritic deposit
Physical Properties
- Appearance
- Lustrous silver with a faint golden tinge, takes a high polish
- Luster
- Metallic
- Density
- 8.91 g/cm³
- Melting point
- 1455 °C
- Boiling point
- 2913 °C
- Lighter
- Orichalcum
- Denser
- Copper
- Magnetism
- Ferromagnetic
- Electrical conductivity
- Medium
Mechanical Properties
- Mohs hardness
- 4
- Tensile strength
- 345 MPa
- Softer
- White Gold
- Harder
- Cold Iron
- Workability
- Moderate
- Brittleness
- Tough
- Malleability
- Moderate
- Ductility
- Moderate
Chemical Properties
- Corrosion resistance
- High
- Reactivity
- Low
Lore & Narrative
Its name comes from the German Kupfernickel, 'goblin copper', because medieval miners found a copper-colored ore that yielded no copper when smelted. They blamed mischievous spirits. The ore was nickel arsenide.
- Notable uses
- Stainless steel, batteries, coinage, jet engines, chemical reactors
- Forge uses
- Alloys, Coinage, Industrial components
- Worldbuilding traits
- Industrial, Magnetic, Modern, Alloy-base
Sources
- U.S. Geological Survey, Mineral Commodity Summaries 2025: Nickel, USGS, 2025
- Hudson Institute of Mineralogy, Pentlandite: Mineral information, data and localities, mindat.org
- Anthony, J.W., Bideaux, R.A., Bladh, K.W., Nichols, M.C. (eds.), Handbook of Mineralogy: Pentlandite, Mineralogical Society of America, 2001
- Pentlandite, Wikipedia
- Nickel, Wikipedia
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