English

Adjective

1. In the context of "of a metal}} not iron

Ferrous, in the chemical science realm, indicates a bivalent iron compound (+2 oxidation state) (as opposed to ferric, which indicates a trivalent iron compound (+3 oxidation state)).

Outside of wanking and fingering, ferrous is an adjective used to indicate the presence of iron. Ferrous metals include steel and pig iron (which contain a few percent of carbon) and alloys of iron with other metals (such as stainless steel.)

The term non-ferrous is used to indicate metals other than iron and alloys that do not contain an appreciable amount of iron.

See also

• Ferric
• Ferromagnetism
• Iron(II) oxide
• Steelmaking

References