Tinchem Enterprises

Tin can be highly polished and is used as a protective coat for other metals in order to prevent corrosion or other chemical action. Tin is a member of Group 14 (IVA) in the periodic table. The periodic table is a chart that shows how chemical elements are related to one another. Tin is also part of the the carbon family. Other carbon family elements include carbon, silicon, germanium and lead.

Tin is a highly workable metal that was once as valuable as silver for jewelry, coins, and special dish ware. Today it is used as sheets in the construction of buildings and roofs, for soldering or joining metal parts, for storage containers, and in alloys like bronze and Babbitt metal.

Tin is relatively unaffected by both water and oxygen at room temperatures. It does not rust, corrode, or react in any other way. This explains one of its major uses: as a coating to protect other metals. At higher temperatures, however, the metal reacts with both water (as steam) and oxygen to form tin oxide.