From the German word Nickel , which means "Old Nick," a name for the devil. Also from the German word for the mineral niccolite, kupfernickel , which means "Old Nick's copper.
Most of the world's supply of nickel is mined in the Sudbury region of Ontario, Canada. It is believed that this large deposit of nickel ore is a result of an ancient meteor impact. Nickel is a hard, corrosion resistant metal. It can be electroplated onto other metals to form a protective coating. Finely divided nickel is used as a catalyst for the hydrogenation of vegetable oils.
Adding nickel to glass gives it a green color. This alloy was named for its colour and does not contain any silver! They called it Kupfernickel or Devils' Copper because they couldn't recover copper from it. Coins in the USA first used nickel alloyed with copper in Stainless steels were discovered early in the 20th century and nickel was found to have a very beneficial role in many of the common grades, which continues to this day.
Alloys based on nickel were found to have excellent corrosion resistance and could withstand high temperatures, which made them suitable for chemical plants and also allowed the practical realisation of the jet engine.
More nickel was discovered in Russia and South Africa in the early s, further allowing nickel to take a strong place in industry. Few things are made of pure nickel. Instead, nickel tends to play a supportive and stabilizing role in industry materials; it is usually combined with other metals to produce stronger, shinier and more durable products. Nickel is commonly used as a protective outer coating for softer metals.
Because of its ability to withstand extremely high temperatures, nickel is the metal of choice for making superalloys — metal combos that are known for great strength as well as resistance to heat, corrosion and oxidation. In fact, approximately 65 percent of nickel is used to manufacture stainless steels and another 20 percent is used to make other steel and non-iron alloys, including highly-specialized military, aerospace and industrial uses, according to the Nickel Institute. About 9 percent is used in plating and 6 percent goes toward other types of applications, such as coins, batteries and electronics.
Since nickel is such a sturdy and corrosion-resistant material, it is an excellent metal for coin-making. The first coin to include the metal nickel was the one-cent piece Flying Eagle, an American coin made of 12 percent nickel and 88 percent copper. This coin, which was also the first to go by the name "nickel," only circulated two years, between The five-cent nickel was introduced a few years later in just after the Civil War came to an end.
Prior to the war, most coins were still made of gold and silver, which gave them intrinsic value. As rumors of war began to spread, people started hoarding these valuable coins, causing the economy to take a nosedive.
To compensate for the lack of coins, people started trading stamps and notes that had been issued by banks and shops. Even Union soldiers were being paid with notes by the government.
In the meantime, industrialist Joseph Wharton had bought several nickel mines in the early years of the war. Nickel was a much-needed metal during the war as it was used to help make military equipment. Once the war ended, however, there was a surplus of nickel, and Wharton probably wondered what he was going to do with all of his nickel.
He urged legislators to start making more coins with nickel. After all, people would be a lot less likely to hoard this less valuable metal.
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