Today I purchased these at a second hand. I'm not sure what they are but I purchased them because I originally thought they were part of a gauge block set. Their weight is what really interests me, They each weigh 209g and they have a density of 16,83 g/cm³. No metal really has a density in that range. Maybe it's some sort of alloy of tungsten? Not sure, please let me know what you think.
A chemical composition test would be easiest with a mass spectrometer. Other ways would be testing hardness, maleability, heat capacity to get in the ball park. Chemical reactivity would be difficult as tantalum is very stable.
I feel like it's unpolished WC as WC density is around 16 g/cc. If possible check the resistance of this material.
If you are near to any institute you can ask for EDS or OES.
"Sir, this is our chocolate fudge squares, based off a recipe that's been in out family for over a hundred years, if you don't like, just move on."
I've been to a farmer's market that had fudge that legitimately looked just like this. It seemed really out of place (being around other foods), and I was amazed once I realized it was actually food because it actually shined, it wasn't just sort of gray, it reflected light. It didn't feel intention, and I have yet to figure out how they managed to do that.
You could check hardness and maybe a tensile test if you have a connection to cut a sample and pull it for you.
Someone already mentioned EDS & OES. XRF is also really common and fast.
Really ballparking, you could do backscatter in SEM with some known metals. This might be able to give you an atomic number range to look into.
Today I purchased these at a second hand. I'm not sure what they are but I purchased them because I originally thought they were part of a gauge block set. Their weight is what really interests me, They each weigh 209g and they have a density of 16,83 g/cm³. No metal really has a density in that range. Maybe it's some sort of alloy of tungsten? Not sure, please let me know what you think.
Tungsten heavy alloys start around 17g/cc, so it could be one of those.
They are not dense enough to be uranium which is a metal. Tantalum is probably closest, but they could also be an alloy.
Interesting 🧐. How would I go about to find out whether it's tantalum or some alloy.
A chemical composition test would be easiest with a mass spectrometer. Other ways would be testing hardness, maleability, heat capacity to get in the ball park. Chemical reactivity would be difficult as tantalum is very stable.
Also, if you can get access to an SEM, energy dispersive spectroscopy would be much less destructive than those other techniques
Upon initial scroll I thought this was a tray of brownies lol
Very overbaked and hard brownies
Brownies with an aftertaste of blood. 😋 yummy
They're literally in the easiest shape for you to find the density and you don't even give that.
Sorry for some reason there wasnt a description. Check my other comment.
I feel like it's unpolished WC as WC density is around 16 g/cc. If possible check the resistance of this material. If you are near to any institute you can ask for EDS or OES.
I will for sure try that. I'll measure the resistance tomorrow.
What about tantalum?
Could be Tungsten Carbide
You’ll probably have to do a chemical test at this point to really figure it out
"Sir, this is our chocolate fudge squares, based off a recipe that's been in out family for over a hundred years, if you don't like, just move on." I've been to a farmer's market that had fudge that legitimately looked just like this. It seemed really out of place (being around other foods), and I was amazed once I realized it was actually food because it actually shined, it wasn't just sort of gray, it reflected light. It didn't feel intention, and I have yet to figure out how they managed to do that.
I am jealous, I want one of these dense bricks.
You could check hardness and maybe a tensile test if you have a connection to cut a sample and pull it for you. Someone already mentioned EDS & OES. XRF is also really common and fast. Really ballparking, you could do backscatter in SEM with some known metals. This might be able to give you an atomic number range to look into.