When most people hear the word “nickel,” they commonly associate it with the nickel coin worth five cents in America. That said, nickel is also known as a silvery-white metal you could find in the earth’s crust, typically in hydrothermal veins and in surface deposits thanks to erosion and the weathering of rocks.
If you were to get your hands on pure nickel, you could use it as a strengthening component in metal alloys. Nickel is known to conduct heat and electricity well.
Uses of Nickel
So what are some of the uses of nickel? Well, taking it back to the coin idea, our five cent piece is “nickel” because it’s bright, takes a fine polish and is lightweight. Interestingly, nickels aren’t entirely made of nickel, but that’s a story for another day…
Back in the 1850s, nickel started to get used as electroplating material since it doesn’t easily oxidize. Many batteries back then– and today– use nickel compounds in order to accomplish their purposes.
What industry uses nickel the most? If you guessed the steel industry, you’re right. Because nickel is hard and strong, and able to withstand breaking (even under high forces), it’s used in stainless steel things like appliances for your kitchen. Indeed, in the kitchen you’ll typically find lots of components that contain some nickel, including cutlery (like spoons, forks, knives), sinks/faucets and cookware. Outside the home, nickel can be found in things like motorized vehicles, construction and marine equipment, jet engine parts, and even decorative items, like jewelry.
Eagle Alloys can supply you with nickel alloy seamless and welded pipe and tube alloy 200, 201, 330, 400, 600, 601, 625, 718, 800, 800H, 800HP, 800HT, 825, 904L, AL6XN, Alloy 20, Alloy K500, C22, C276, Hastelloy X®, Inconel®, Monel® and Incoloy.®
Eagle Alloys is a leading global supplier of seamless and welded nickel alloy pipe and tube. A wide variety of sizes are available for immediate shipping from stock. Eagle Alloys is an ISO-certified corporation and has been supplying the highest quality nickel for over 35 years.
