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The discovery of niobium was not straightforward. In 1801, an American
scientist discovered a new element in a museum collection. A mineral sample which
was thought to contain chromium was analyzed. In the preliminary
analyses, it was concluded that the mineral was not chromium, but rather the oxide
of an unknown element. The new element was named columbium. This discovery
did not gain universal acceptance. Many chemists believed that columbium and tantalum
were actually the same element. This was finally proven incorrect 50 year later
by a European scientist who separated out what he thought was a new element from
tantalum. He named his element niobium.
It turned out that columbium and niobium were the same element.
American chemists attempted to resurrect the original name, columbium. However,
since European scientific publications were commanding the greater amount of
respect in those days, the new name eventually prevailed.
Pure niobium is soft and ductile. It resists corrosion at room temperature
because of a thin film of niobium oxide that forms on its surface. The only
acid that attacks niobium at room temperature is hydrofluoric acid.
Today, niobium is commercially refined and used:
