Element Family
Transition Metal
Actinide
Space Group Name
R_ 3m
P63/mmc
Interesting Facts
- At room temperature mercury is found in a liquid state.
- A coin of pound or rupees floats in mercury.
- Because of its low melting point and boiling point it is used in thermometers.
- 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, Ores of Minerals
Obtained By Bombarding Plutonium with Neutrons
Who Discovered
Ancient Chinese and Indians
Glenn T. Seaborg, Ralph A. James, Leon O. Morgan, Albert Ghiorso
Discovery
Before 2000 BCE
In 1944
Abundance In Earth's Crust
Uses & Benefits
- It is a liquid metal at room temperature, but it is a toxic heavy metal and hence many uses of mercury are under review or phased out.
- It is manly used as a catalysts in chemical industry.
- 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
Electrical Industry, Electronic Industry
-
Other Uses
Alloys, Mirror Manufacturing, Pharmaceutical Industry
Alloys, Nuclear Research, Research Purposes
Toxicity
Highly Toxic
Toxic
Present in Human Body
Yes
No
Physical State
Liquid
Solid
Color
Silver
Silvery White
Pauling Electronegativity
Sanderson Electronegativity
Allred Rochow Electronegativity
Mulliken-Jaffe Electronegativity
Pauling Electropositivity
Electrochemical Equivalent
Other Chemical Properties
Flammability, Ionization, Solubility
Ionization, Radioactive Isotopes, Radioactivity, Solubility
Electron Configuration
[Xe] 4f14 5d10 6s2
[Rn] 5f7 7s2
Crystal Structure
Rhombohedral (RHO)
Double Hexagonal Close Packed (DHCP)
Crystal Lattice
RHO-Crystal-Structure-of-Mercury.jpg#100
DHCP-Crystal-Structure-of-Americium.jpg#100
Valence Electron Potential
Lattice Angles
-
π/2, π/2, 2 π/3
Density At Room Temperature
Density When Liquid (at m.p.)
Other Mechanical Properties
-
-
Magnetic Ordering
Diamagnetic
Paramagnetic
Electrical Property
Conductor
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