30-Second Elements

The 50 most significant elements, each explained in half a minute

Eric Scerri

• Publisher: Icon Books
• Year: 2013
• Print ISBN: 9781848315945
• eBook ISBN: 9781848316164
• Topic: Physical Sciences
• Subtopic: Chemistry
• Index: Chemistry

When was radium discovered? Who are Dmitri Mendeleev and Glenn T. Seaborg? Who discovered uranium's radioactivity? Which element is useful for dating the age of Earth? And why doesn't gold have a scientific name? 30-Second Elements presents you with the very foundations of chemical knowledge, explaining concisely the 50 most significant chemical elements.This book uses helpful glossaries and tables to fast track your knowledge of the other 68 elements and the relationships between all of them.

TRANSITION METALS

TRANSITION METALS

GLOSSARY & ELEMENTS

alloy A material that has metallic properties and is composed of two or more chemical elements of which at least one is a metal. Alloys are usually harder than pure metal and more resistant to corrosion. Brass is an alloy made from 70 per cent copper and 30 per cent zinc; bronze is an alloy of 90 per cent copper and 10 per cent tin.

amalgam An alloy of mercury with another metal. Iron does not form an amalgam with mercury but most other metals do. Dental amalgam, combining mercury with silver, tin and other metals, was popular from around 1800 onwards, but is less used today because of health concerns over the use of mercury.

ductile Capable of being pulled out into a wire.

heavy metal One of a group of elements among transition metals, metalloids, lanthanides and actinides that have metallic properties. The term generally refers to those that are heavier than iron and zinc. Examples include mercury, lead and cadmium. They are toxic to humans if ingested.

insulator Material that prevents an electrical charge flowing through it.

isomers Compounds with an identical molecular formula but different structural formulae. While a molecular formula describes the combination of elements in a molecular compound, the structural formula describes how the atoms are fitted together in the molecule. For example, isomers of hydrocarbons have the same number of hydrogen and carbon atoms, but they are connected in different ways.

metastable state A relatively stable state of an atom or molecule, more stable than its most excited states, but less stable than its most stable state.

nuclear isomer A metastable state of an atomic nucleus, in which one or more of its protons or neutrons is excited (has an elevated level of energy).

ore Rock containing a valuable element (typically a metal), for which it is mined.

photon A quantum (bundle) of electromagnetic energy.

quadruple bond Bond between two atoms that involves eight bonding electrons. A single bond involves two electrons, a double bond four and a triple bond six. Quadruple bonds are most commonly made among transition metals such as rhenium and chromium.

salts Ionic compounds formed when an acid undergoes a neutralization reaction with a base.

superheavy element Another name for transuranic elements (see here), elements with an atomic number greater than 92 (the atomic number of uranium). In some contexts, however, superheavy element refers to elements with an atomic number greater than 100.

TRANSITION METALS

The transition metals are in groups 3–12 of the periodic table. They are mostly dense and hard, and are good conductors of electricity and heat. Their valence electrons (with which they combine with other elements) are in more than one electron shell.

Transition metals

	Symbol	Atomic Number
Scandium	Sc	21
Titanium	Ti	22
Vanadium	V	23
Chromium	Cr	24
Manganese	Mn	25
Iron	Fe	26
Cobalt	Co	27
Nickel	Ni	28
Copper	Cu	29
Zinc	Zn	30
Yttrium	Y	39
Zirconium	Zr	40
Niobium	Nb	41
Molybdenum	Mo	42
Technetium	Tc	43
Ruthenium	Ru	44
Rhodium	Rh	45
Palladium	Pd	46
Silver	Ag	47
Cadmium	Cd	48
Lutetium	Lu	71
Hafnium	Hf	72
Tantalum	Ta	73
Tungsten	W	74
Rhenium	Re	75
Osmium	Os	76
Iridium	Ir	77
Platinum	Pt	78
Gold	Au	79
Mercury	Hg	80
Lawrencium	Lr	103
Rutherfordium	Rf	104
Dubnium	Db	105
Seaborgium	Sg	106
Bohrium	Bh	107
Hassium	Hs	108
Meitnerium	Mt	109
Darmstadtium	Ds	110
Roentgenium	Rg	111
Copernicium	Cn	112

CHROMIUM

the 30-second element

Chromium is one of the so-called transition metals (like iron, cobalt, nickel and copper). Its compounds form the basis of many traditional artists’ pigments and paints; chrome yellow, for example, is pure lead chromate. The colour of rubies and emeralds is due to contamination of otherwise transparent crystalline material with small amounts of chromium oxide. Chromium was discovered in 1798 by French chemist Louis-Nicolas Vauquelin, who ground up precious stones in an effort to explain thei...

Table of contents

• Cover
• Title
• Copyright
• Contents
• Introduction
• Alkali & Alkaline Earths
• 30 Rare Earths
• Halogens & Noble Gases
• Transition Metals
• Metalloids
• Other Metals
• Non-metals
• APPENDICES