Niobium

Occurrence, isolation & synthesis


Occurrence


Niobium is found in the Earth's crust, ~99 ppm (w/w), together with tantalum, in minerals such as columbite, pyrochlore, and tantalite [4]. The isotope found in nature is 93Nb (100%, stable) [4].

In pure form, niobium occur in a body-centered cubic lattice [4].