Lead replacement technologies are on the increase. After many centuries of extensive use which has seen its application in all manner of industries, the dangers that lead in the environment can pose have been recognised and alternatives are being sought by industry, often now spurred by legislation. This is not always as simple a task as it sounds as lead does have unique properties which are not always easy to reproduce using alternative materials. Its density is one of the most difficult to get around. Many applications, most obviously those involving the use of lead in weights, have been developed around this and the fact that it is a low melting, soft, deformable metal. Other metals just do not have the same combination of properties and therefore the search has been on for combinations of non-toxic materials that do.
展开▼
