The production of this alloy results in a grayish silver crystalline solid that can be crushed into a powder called "ferrovanadium dust".
[3] In addition to iron and vanadium, small amounts of silicon, aluminum, carbon, sulfur, phosphorus, arsenic, copper, and manganese are found in ferrovanadium.
[4] 3 V2O5 + 10 Al → 6 V + 5 Al2O3 [5] Vx + Fe1−x → (Fe1−xVx)alloy Ferrovanadium dust is a mild irritant that affects the eyes when touched by contaminated skin and the respiratory tract when inhaled.
The dust caused chronic bronchitis and pneumonitis in animals exposed to high concentration (1000–2000 mg/m3) at intervals for two months.
[2] It is suggested that those working with high concentrations of ferrovanadium dust wear a respirator to prevent inhalation and irritation of the respiratory tract.
[2] This increase in strength is a result of the formation of vanadium carbides which have a rigid crystal structure as well as a finer grain size which decreases the ductility of the steel.
[11] Between 2013 and 2017, the United States imported 13,510 tons of ferrovanadium, a majority of which came from Czechia, Austria, Canada, and South Korea.
[12] In more recent years, it has once again seen an increase in price as environmental standards shut down some of the vanadium producers in China.