Cobalt - (Kobald, from the German, goblin or evil spirit, cobalos, Greek, mine), Co; at. wt. 58.93320(l); at. no. 27; m.p. 1495 deg C; b.p. 2927 deg C; sp. gr. 8.9 (20 deg C); valence 2 or 3. Discovered by Brandt about 1735. Cobalt occurs in the mineral cobaltite, smaltite, and erythrite, and is often associated with nickel, silver, lead, copper, and iron ores, from which it is most frequently obtained as a by-product. It is also present in meteorites. Important ore deposits are found in Zaire, Morocco, and Canada. The U.S. Geological Survey has announced that the bottom of the north central Pacific Ocean may have cobalt-rich deposits at relatively shallow depths in waters close to the Hawaiian Islands and other U.S. Pacific territories. Cobalt is a brittle, hard metal, closely resembling iron and nickel in appearance. It has a magnetic permeability of about two thirds that of iron. Cobalt tends to exist as a mixture of two allotropes over a wide temperature range; the beta-form predominates below 400 deg C, and the alpha above that temperature. The transformation is sluggish and accounts in part for the wide variation in reported data on physical properties of cobalt. It is alloyed with iron, nickel and other metals to make Alnico, an alloy of unusual magnetic strength with many important uses. Stellite alloys, containing cobalt, chromium, and tungsten, are used for high-speed, heavy-duty, high temperature cutting tools, and for dies. Cobalt is also used in other magnet steels and stainless steels, and in alloys used in jet turbines and gas turbine generators. The metal is used in electroplating because of its appearance, hardness, and resistance to oxidation. The salts have been used for centuries for the production of brilliant and permanent blue colors in porcelain, glass, pottery, tiles, and enamels. It is the principal ingredient in Sevre's and Thenard's blue. A solution of the chloride (CoCl2 - 6H2O) is used as sympathetic ink. The cobalt ammines are of interest; the oxide and the nitrate are important. Cobalt carefully used in the form of the chloride, sulfate, acetate, or nitrate has been found effective in correcting a certain mineral deficiency disease in animals. Soils should contain 0.13 to 0.30 ppm of cobalt for proper animal nutrition. Cobalt is found in Vitamin B-12, which is essential for human nutrition. Cobalt-60, an artificial isotope, is an important gamma ray source, and is extensively used as a tracer and a radiotherapeutic agent. Single compact sources of Cobalt-60 vary from about $1 to $10/curie, depending on quantity and specific activity. Twenty six isotopes and isomers of cobalt are known.