Antimony: (Sb) is a brittle, silvery-white non-ferrous, metalloid element (atomic number 51) with a hexagonal crystal structure and a melting point of Known for its high corrosion resistance and low conductivity, it is primarily used to harden lead in batteries, as a flame retardant in antimony trioxide form, and in specialized semiconductors.

Key Characteristics & Properties

• Physical State:Brittle, silvery-white, and metallic, it can be ground into a fine powder.
• Expansion:Similar to water, it expands upon solidification.
• Reactivity:Stable in dry air at room temperature but burns to form white antimony trioxide when heated.
• Structure:It has a distinctive scaly crystalline structure.

Key Applications

• Lead-Acid Batteries:Used to enhance the mechanical strength and corrosion resistance of lead plates.
• Flame Retardants:In the form of antimony trioxide, it is a key additive for plastics, textiles, and electronics.
• Metallurgical Alloys:Used in cable sheathing, bearings, and gears.
• Electronics:High-purity antimony acts as a dopant in semiconductor devices and infrared detectors.

Supply & Production

• Largest Producer:China is the leading producer of antimony, with significant operations in Hunan.
• Extraction:Primarily derived from the sulfide mineral stibnite
• Market:It is a strategic metal, often traded in ingot form.

Key Considerations

• Toxicity:Antimony is toxic, which impacts its handling in industrial processes.
• Environmental Stability:Generally resistant to attacks from acids and alkalies.
• Antimony ingot Antimony is a non-ferrous heavy metal. It has a silvery-white appearance and belongs to the hexagonal crystal system. Its melting.

 

Antimony

Antimony is identified by atomic number 51 and symbol Sb (stibium) alongside lead (Pb), tin (Sn) and bismuth (Bi). It is mainly sourced in China and Myanmar in its sulfide mineral stibnite form. As a metalloid, it has a combination of metal and non-metal properties, which makes it a very versatile element. The oldest recorded use of Antimony is as kohl (cosmetic) during biblical times, in ancient Egypt and Southern Asia. Since then, many more forms and uses of Antimony have been developed and identified.

Antimony facts and figures

According to the international Antimony Association,   World Antimony resources were estimated at 5 million tons in 2011 by Bio Intelligence Service (2015). According to USGS in 2016 the world Antimony reserves amounted to 2 million tons, 80% of which is concentrated in three countries: China, Russia, and Bolivia (USGS, 2016).

The annual globally mined production of Antimony is approximately 175,500 tons (BGS, 2015), most of which is extracted in China and Myanmar.  Antimony is furthermore a co- or by-product of the production of gold, lead, copper, and zinc.

The pie chart provides an overview of the main uses of Antimony.  In all applications, only relatively small quantities of Antimony are needed to achieve the required function.  Even in such small quantities, Antimony enables the availability and performance of significant quantities of articles which are indispensable to society:

• Flame retardant textiles and plastics (43 million tons in 2015 (PlasticsEurope, 2016) which are crucial in saving the lives of millions of people
• PET resin used to produce PET bottles and many more lightweight recyclable food packaging materials helping to maintain the original properties of their contents (27.8 million tons in 2015 (PlasticsInsights, 2016)
• Polyester textiles used in fashion, domestic, automotive, IT hardware, and industrial applications
• Lead-based batteries which remain the most cost-efficient rechargeable batteries (demand of 478 million KVAh in 2014 – PR Newswire, 2016)
• Lead-based alloys, which enable cost-efficient solutions for construction, ammunitions, weights, solders, pewters, fusible alloys, and radiation shields
• High purity and transmission flat glass (global photovoltaic glass consumption reached 580 million m² in 2015 – Globe Newswire, 2017) which promotes increased sustainability in both energy production and consumption solutions
  … to name just a few.

We AT Fourteen Merchants are specialized in the production, processing and sales of antimony ingots. With collaboration with our ore source smelters in Cambodia, we take advantage of local favorable policies and geographical superiority, strictly control product quality, and provide high-quality antimony ingot products for global markets covering ASEAN, Europe, America, China, Japan and South Korea.

Adhering to the principle of integrity, quality and win-win cooperation, we are committed to becoming a benchmark enterprise in the Southeast Asian antimony ingot industry and a high-quality global supplier of antimony products.