Element Family
Lanthanide
Actinide
Space Group Name
P63/mmc
P63/mmc
Interesting Facts
- Erbium metal is used as alloyed with Vanadium to make it softer.
- Recent studies shows that it is helpful for metabolism.
- Americium metal is produced by bombarding Plutonium with Neutrons.
- Americium metal was discovered as a by-product while testing an atomic bomb (Manhattan Project).
Sources
Mining
Obtained By Bombarding Plutonium with Neutrons
Who Discovered
Carl Gustaf Mosander
Glenn T. Seaborg, Ralph A. James, Leon O. Morgan, Albert Ghiorso
Discovery
In 1842
In 1944
Abundance In Earth's Crust
Uses & Benefits
- It has a tendency to get tarnished in the open air, but when alloyed with elements like erbium, vanadium, its hardness levels decreases.
- Its compounds like Erbium oxide is used in safety glasses of welders and metal workers.
- Americium metal is used in smoke detection alarms.
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In the future, this metal has a potential to be used in batteries of spacecrafts.
Industrial Uses
Chemical Industry
-
Other Uses
Alloys
Alloys, Nuclear Research, Research Purposes
Toxicity
Mildly Toxic
Toxic
Present in Human Body
No
No
Physical State
Solid
Solid
Color
Silvery White
Silvery White
Pauling Electronegativity
Sanderson Electronegativity
Allred Rochow Electronegativity
Mulliken-Jaffe Electronegativity
Pauling Electropositivity
Electrochemical Equivalent
Other Chemical Properties
Ionization, Radioactive Isotopes, Solubility
Ionization, Radioactive Isotopes, Radioactivity, Solubility
Electron Configuration
[Xe] 4f12 6s2
[Rn] 5f7 7s2
Crystal Structure
Hexagonal Close Packed (HCP)
Double Hexagonal Close Packed (DHCP)
Crystal Lattice
HCP-Crystal-Structure-of-Erbium.jpg#100
DHCP-Crystal-Structure-of-Americium.jpg#100
Valence Electron Potential
Lattice Angles
π/2, π/2, 2 π/3
π/2, π/2, 2 π/3
Density At Room Temperature
Density When Liquid (at m.p.)
Other Mechanical Properties
Malleable
-
Magnetic Ordering
Paramagnetic
Paramagnetic
Electrical Property
Conductor
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