Strontium

Applications

At present the primary use for strontium is in glass for color television cathode ray tubes.

Related Topics:
Glass - Color - Cathode ray tube

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Other commercial uses:

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• Production of ferrite magnets and refining zinc.
• Strontium titanate has an extremely high refractive index and an optical dispersion greater than that of diamond, making it useful in a variety of optics applications.
• Strontium titanate has been cut into gemstones, in particular for its use as diamond simulant. However, it is very soft and easily scratches so it is rarely used.
• Strontium is also used in fireworks for red color.
• Strontium chloride is sometimes used in toothpastes for sensitive teeth. One popular brand includes 10% strontium chloride hexahydrate by weight.
• Strontium-90 has been used as a power source for RTGs. Strontium-90 produces about 0.46 watts of heat per gram, about 15% less power per gram then plutonium-238 which is the most common RTG fuel. Strontium-90 also decays roughly 3 times faster than plutonium-238. Most disadvantageously strontium-90 produces very little energy per volume (because of low density), making for large and bulky RTGs not suited for use in outer space. Its only advantages over plutonium-238 are that strontium-90 is much cheaper to produce (common waste product of nuclear reactors) and lacks negative public image (at least among those too young to remember milk scares involving strontium-90).