Name       : Aluminum
Symbol     : Al
Atomic #   : 13
Atom weight: 26.9815
Melting P. : 660.37
Boiling P. : 2467
Oxidation  : +3
Pronounced : ah-LOO-men-em, al-yoo-MIN-i-em
From       : Latin alumem, aluminis "alum"
Identified : Antoine Lavoisier in 1787
Appearance : Soft, lightweight, silvery-white metal
Note       : Most abundant metal on the surface of earth

[Properties]

  In its purest form, aluminum is a bluish-white metal which is highly
malleable and ductile. It is commercially notable as a lightweight
construction material and as a good conductor of heat and electricity. Pure
aluminum is, in fact, too soft for construction applications; however,
adding small amounts of silicon and iron (less than 1%) hardens and
strengthens it.
  It is said than aluminum resists oxidation. This is quite true, but only
in the sense that the metal is actually protected by a thin film of
corrosion-resistant aluminum oxide that forms the moment the pure metal is
cut. Without its ever-present oxide coating, aluminum would be quickly
destroyed by atmospheric gasses and moisture. Even the protective oxide
coating cannot protect aluminum metal forever, thus accounting for the
fact that the metal does not exist in nature in its elemental state.
  Aluminum belongs to the boron group, Group IIIA, on the periodic table.
Like its companions in this group - boron, gallium and indium for example -
aluminum's principal oxidation state is +3.
