Antimony can be used to take lives - and to save lives. Check out episode 4 of Elemental with Professor Allan Blackman from AUT, as he shares the varied uses of antimony (chemical symbol Sb and element number 51).
Compounds of antimony have uses ranging from hardenng lead in printing presses to the black eyeliner beloved of early Egyptians.
Photo: RNZ
You can subscribe to the Elemental podcast for free, at Apple Podcasts, Spotify, Stitcher and RadioPublic.
Antimony might ring bells if you've listened to William Ray's Black Sheep podcast from RNZ - it features in the story Poisoner - the story of Thomas Hall. And if you haven't already listened, it comes highly recommended.
Find out more about events during the United Nation’s International Year of the Periodic Table.
Nights with Bryan Crump is also celebrating the chemical elements during their Friday night Sonic Tonic and Element of the Week.
Professor Allan Blackman is at Auckland University of Technology.
