| Manganese | n. [ F. manganèse, It. manganese, sasso magnesio; prob. corrupted from L. magnes, because of its resemblance to the magnet. See Magnet, and cf. Magnesia. ] (Chem.) An element obtained by reduction of its oxide, as a hard, grayish white metal, fusible with difficulty (melting point 1244° C), but easily oxidized. Its ores occur abundantly in nature as the minerals pyrolusite, manganite, etc. Symbol Mn. Atomic number 25; Atomic weight 54.938 [ C=12.011 ]. [ 1913 Webster +PJC ] ☞ An alloy of manganese with iron (called ferromanganese) is used to increase the density and hardness of steel. [ 1913 Webster ] Black oxide of manganese, Manganese dioxide or Manganese peroxide, or Black manganese (Chem.), a heavy black powder MnO2, occurring native as the mineral pyrolusite, and valuable as a strong oxidizer; -- called also familiarly manganese. It colors glass violet, and is used as a decolorizer to remove the green tint of impure glass. [ 1913 Webster ]
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