Vanadium is a bright white, soft, ductile metal..
It most commonly used in steels such as rust resistant, spring and high speed tool steels. .
Its occurrence, production, toxicity, properties and other applications are covered. In Encyclopedia Britannica can we read: "The production of ferrovanadium, containing 35-80 percent vanadium, is carried out in an electric-arc furnace. Scrap iron is first melted, and a mixture of V2O5, aluminum, and a flux such as calcium fluoride or calcium oxide is added". Nearly 80% of the vanadium produced is used to make ferrovanadium or as an additive to steel. Ferrovanadium is a strong, shock resistant and corrosion resistant alloy of iron containing between 1% and 6% vanadium. Ferrovanadium and vanadium-steel alloys are used to make such things as axles, crankshafts and gears for cars, parts of jet engines, springs and cutting tools. The division experienced growth in volume in 2007 versus 2006 in the ferrovanadium, aluminium master alloys and specialty alloys for titanium and super alloys product lines. Most of the vanadium (about 80%) produced is used as ferrovanadium or as a steel additive. Mixed with aluminium in titanium alloys is used in jet engines and high speed air-frames, and steel alloys are used in axles, crankshafts, gears and other critical components. Vanadium alloys are also used in nuclear reactors because vanadium has low neutron-adsorption abilities and it doesn not deform in creeping under high temperatures. When vanadium is processed and reduced into ferrovanadium, it is useful in the manufacture of alloy steel, and is sold primarily to steel companies in competition with other ferroalloys. As mining progressed down through the ore bodies, however, the vanadium content diminished until by 1930, the ore yielded less than 10 percent V(2)O(5), and it became necessary to fuse the ore before reducing it to ferrovanadium.
Almost all of the vanadium oxide was converted to ferrovanadium in plants owned by the two companies. The two companies controlled the market for ferrovanadium which was sold to the steel companies on requirement contracts at identical prices.