A small amount of mercury amalgamates itself into an aluminum I-beam and destroys it from within. Gallium scratched into the surface allows the mercury to penetrate the protective oxide layer that normally surrounds anything made of aluminum. This is a time-lapse video, the action takes about two hours in real time. The powdery oxide is falling off, what you don't see is a significant pile of i
![Mercury attacks Aluminum](https://cdn-ak-scissors.b.st-hatena.com/image/square/ecefc25fe9aa8c0aafa55ac0317e8d1a73dbfb45/height=288;version=1;width=512/https%3A%2F%2Fi.ytimg.com%2Fvi%2FZ7Ilxsu-JlY%2Fhqdefault.jpg)