Iron (chemical symbol - Fe, from Latin Ferrum) is a chemical element of Group 8 (according to the outdated classification - a side subgroup of Group 8, VIIIB) of the fourth period of the periodic system of chemical elements of D. I. Mendeleev with atomic number 26. The simple substance iron is a malleable transition metal of silvery-white color with high chemical reactivity: iron corrodes rapidly in air at high temperatures or at high humidity. In pure oxygen, iron burns, and in its finely di...