Is rust magnetic?

Sorry to rain on everbodies parade. Rust is magnetic.
Ohh boy. Rust is a non-technical term which doen NOT give compositional information (well, yes it does signify it is (mostly) a mixture of iron and oxygen). Ignoring real world rust which will have sulfates, nitrates, chlorides, all sorts of impurities in it...
Iron rusts from Fe to Fe2O3 Ferric Oxide. Red Rust is not ferromagnetic (what we typically mean with the term "Magnetic") . Ferrous Oxide FeO (black rust) IS magnetic. Don't take my word for it! Put a steel nail under water keeping air out. The black rust will be attracted to a magnet. Or you could try pulling some flakes of rust apart. (on a very rusty (wet) surface) They will get darker and darker and if you're lucky you'll find some very dark if not black rust. Check to see if its magnetic. It is. So, if the question is is red rust magnetic, then everybody else is right. If the question is, is there lots of rust that is magnetic then think of all the sunken ships and all that black rust. Go try it!
Fe(metal) +O2 => FeO (black) => + O2 => Fe2O3 (red)
Black rust will turn to red rust as it dries out (the water just helps keeping the oxygen away) but in an open glass of water a nail will rust red just fine.

2006-12-24 10:24:33 · answer #1 · answered by Anonymous · 1⤊ 1⤋

For the best answers, search on this site https://shorturl.im/axyYM

As rust contains Iron, you would think it will be magnetic. But, Rusting and corrosion contain atoms of other elements, mainly Oxygen. This produces completely new elements that behave differently to the surrounding electrons of neighboring atoms. Rusty metals become either non-magnetic or much less so than the pure magnetic metal.

2016-04-03 08:36:02 · answer #2 · answered by Anonymous · 0⤊ 0⤋

Common rust (haematite Fe2O3) is very weakly magnetic. Magnetic iron oxide, magnetite Fe3O4, is extremely magnetic and about 100 times more magnetic than haematite.

2006-12-25 12:20:24 · answer #3 · answered by Anonymous · 1⤊ 1⤋

No, rust is not magnetic; its properties are very different from those of iron.

2006-12-24 09:18:54 · answer #4 · answered by DavidK93 7 · 1⤊ 1⤋

No, because rust is iron oxide and because this compound contains oxygen its not magnetic and iron it self does not have magnetic chemical property.

2006-12-24 09:22:53 · answer #5 · answered by Anonymous · 1⤊ 1⤋

No rust is not magnetic.

2006-12-24 09:18:35 · answer #6 · answered by abbey 1 · 1⤊ 1⤋

No. rust itself is not magnetic.

2006-12-24 09:19:02 · answer #7 · answered by Boondock 1 · 1⤊ 1⤋

nope

2006-12-24 09:21:02 · answer #8 · answered by spawn_of_cookie_monster 3 · 1⤊ 1⤋

No.

2006-12-24 09:17:59 · answer #9 · answered by JJ 7 · 1⤊ 1⤋

9 answers