Abundance in Earth’s Crust: Aluminum is the most abundant metallic element in Earth’s crust. It constitutes about 8% of the outer 16 km (10 miles) of the crust, exceeded only by oxygen and silicon. Its widespread occurrence makes it an essential resource for various industries.
Chemical Activity: Aluminum is highly reactive and never occurs in its metallic form in nature. Instead, it exists as compounds in rocks, vegetation, and animals. Its chemical activity allows it to form stable compounds, making it useful for various applications.
Historical Significance: Humans have used aluminum compounds for thousands of years. Mesopotamians made fine pottery from clay containing aluminum compounds around 5000 BCE. Egyptians and Babylonians used aluminum compounds in chemicals and medicines nearly 4,000 years ago. Pliny referred to “alumen” (now known as alum), a compound of aluminum, for fixing dyes in textiles.
Isolation and Discovery: In the 18th century, chemists recognized alumina (aluminum oxide) as a potential source of a metal. Danish physicist Hans Christian Ørsted isolated crude aluminum in 1825 by reducing aluminum chloride with potassium amalgam. British chemist Sir Humphry Davy had already named the element aluminum, which was later modified to “aluminium” in England and other European countries.