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Americium vs Curium


Curium vs Americium


Periodic Table

Symbol
Am   
Cm   

Group Number
Not Available   
Not Available   

Period Number
7   
7   

Block
f block   
f block   

Element Family
Actinide   
Actinide   

CAS Number
7440359   
99+
7440519   
36

Space Group Name
P63/mmc   
Not Available   

Space Group Number
194.00   
5
Not Available   

Facts

Interesting Facts
  • Americium metal is produced by bombarding Plutonium with Neutrons.
  • Americium metal was discovered as a by-product while testing an atomic bomb (Manhattan Project).
  
  • Curium metal does not occur free in nature.
  • Curium metal is a synthetically produced metal.
  

Sources
Obtained By Bombarding Plutonium with Neutrons   
Bombarding Plutonium with Helium Ions   

History
  
  

Who Discovered
Glenn T. Seaborg, Ralph A. James, Leon O. Morgan, Albert Ghiorso   
Glenn T. Seaborg, Ralph A. James, Albert Ghiorso   

Discovery
In 1944   
In 1944   

Abundance
  
  

Uses

Uses & Benefits
  • Americium metal is used in smoke detection alarms.
  • In the future, this metal has a potential to be used in batteries of spacecrafts.
  
  • Curium metal is used to provide power to electrical equipment for space missions.
  

Industrial Uses
NA   
NA   

Medical Uses
NA   
NA   

Other Uses
Alloys, Nuclear Research, Research Purposes   
Research Purposes   

Biological Properties
  
  

Toxicity
Toxic   
Unknown   

Present in Human Body
No   
No   

In Blood
0.00 Blood/mg dm-3   
37
0.00 Blood/mg dm-3   
37

In Bone
0.00 p.p.m.   
36
0.00 p.p.m.   
36

Physical Properties

Melting Point
994.00 °C   
99+
1,340.00 °C   
34

Boiling Point
2,607.00 °C   
99+
3,110.00 °C   
30

Appearance
  
  

Physical State
Solid   
Solid   

Color
Silvery White   
Silver   

Luster
NA   
Metallic   

Hardness
  
  

Speed of Sound
Not Available   
Not Available   

Optical Properties
  
  

Allotropes
No   
No   

α Allotropes
Not Available   
Not Available   

β Allotropes
Not Available   
Not Available   

γ Allotropes
Not Available   
Not Available   

Chemical Properties

Chemical Formula
Am   
Cm   

Isotopes
  
  

Known Isotopes
16   
23
15   
24

Electronegativity
  
  

Pauling Electronegativity
1.30   
32
1.30   
32

Allred Rochow Electronegativity
1.20   
27
1.20   
27

Electropositivity
  
  

Pauling Electropositivity
2.70   
22
2.70   
22

Ionization Energies
  
  

1st Energy Level
578.00 kJ/mol   
99+
581.00 kJ/mol   
99+

2nd Energy Level
1,158.00 kJ/mol   
99+
1,196.00 kJ/mol   
99+

3rd Energy Level
2,132.00 kJ/mol   
99+
2,026.00 kJ/mol   
99+

4th Energy Level
3,493.00 kJ/mol   
99+
3,550.00 kJ/mol   
99+

Electrochemical Equivalent
3.02 g/amp-hr   
17
3.07 g/amp-hr   
16

Electron Work Function
Not Available   
Not Available   

Other Chemical Properties
Ionization, Radioactive Isotopes, Radioactivity, Solubility   
Ionization, Radioactive Isotopes   

Atomic Properties

Atomic Number
95   
23
96   
22

Electron Configuration
[Rn] 5f7 7s2   
[Rn] 5f7 6d1 7s2   

Crystal Structure
Double Hexagonal Close Packed (DHCP)   
Double Hexagonal Close Packed (DHCP)   

Crystal Lattice
DHCP-Crystal-Structure-of-Americium.jpg#100   
DHCP-Crystal-Structure-of-Curium.jpg#100   

Atom
  
  

Number of Protons
95   
23
96   
22

Number of Neutrons
148   
12
151   
10

Number of Electrons
95   
23
96   
22

Radius of an Atom
  
  

Atomic Radius
173.00 pm   
21
174.00 pm   
20

Covalent Radius
180.00 pm   
21
169.00 pm   
26

Van der Waals Radius
244.00 pm   
10
200.00 pm   
28

Atomic Weight
243.00 amu   
20
247.00 amu   
18

Atomic Volume
17.86 cm3/mol   
29
18.28 cm3/mol   
26

Adjacent Atomic Numbers
  
  

Previous Element
Plutonium
  
Americium
  

Next Element
Curium
  
Berkelium
  

Valence Electron Potential
44.00 (-eV)   
40
44.50 (-eV)   
38

Lattice Constant
346.81 pm   
99+
Not Available   

Lattice Angles
π/2, π/2, 2 π/3   
NA   

Lattice C/A Ratio
Not Available   
Not Available   

Mechanical Properties

Density
  
  

Density At Room Temperature
12.00 g/cm3   
30
13.51 g/cm3   
25

Density When Liquid (at m.p.)
Not Available   
13.85 g/cm3   
10

Tensile Strength
Not Available   
Not Available   

Viscosity
Not Available   
Not Available   

Vapor Pressure
  
  

Vapor Pressure at 1000 K
0.00 (Pa)   
13
Not Available   

Elasticity properties
  
  

Poisson Ratio
Not Available   
Not Available   

Other Mechanical Properties
NA   
Unknown   

Magnetic Properties

Magnetic Characteristics
  
  

Specific Gravity
13.67   
15
13.51   
17

Magnetic Ordering
Paramagnetic   
Antiferromagnetic   

Electrical Properties
  
  

Resistivity
0.69 nΩ·m   
99+
1.25 nΩ·m   
99+

Electrical Conductivity
0.02 106/cm Ω   
99+
Not Available   

Thermal Properties

Specific Heat
0.11 J/(kg K)   
99+
Not Available   

Molar Heat Capacity
62.70 J/mol·K   
1
Not Available   

Thermal Conductivity
10.00 W/m·K   
99+
Not Available   

Critical Temperature
Not Available   
Not Available   

Thermal Expansion
Not Available   
Not Available   

Enthalpy
  
  

Enthalpy of Fusion
14.39 kJ/mol   
24
15.00 kJ/mol   
21

Enthalpy of Atomization
268.00 kJ/mol   
40
Not Available   

Standard Molar Entropy
Not Available   
Not Available   

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