|
General |
Name, Symbol, Number | Polonium, Po, 84 |
Series | Metalloids |
Group, Period, Block | 6 (VIA), 6 , p |
Density, Hardness | 9196 kg/m3, no data |
Appearance | silvery |
Atomic Properties |
Atomic weight | [209] amu |
Atomic radius (calc.) | 190 (135)pm |
Covalent radius | no data |
van der Waals radius | no data |
Electron configuration | [Xe]4f14 5d10 6s2 6p4 |
e- 's per energy level | 2, 8, 18, 32, 18, 6 |
Oxidation states (Oxide) | 4, 2 (amphoteric) |
Crystal structure | Monoclinic |
Physical Properties |
State of matter | Solid (nonmagnetic) |
Melting point | 527 K (489 °F) |
Boiling point | 1235 K (1764 °F) |
Molar volume | 22.97 ×10-3 m3/mol |
Heat of vaporization | no data |
Heat of fusion | 60.1 kJ/mol |
Vapor pressure | 0.0176 Pa at 527 K |
Speed of sound | no data |
Miscellaneous |
Electronegativity | 2.0 (Pauling scale) |
Specific heat capacity | no data |
Electrical conductivity | 2.19 106/m ohm |
Thermal conductivity | 20 W/(m*K) |
1st ionization potential | 812.1 kJ/mol |
Most Stable Isotopes |
|
SI units & STP are used except where noted. |
Polonium is a
chemical element in the
periodic table that has the symbol Po and
atomic number 84. A rare radioactive
metalloid, polonium is chemically similar to
tellurium and
bismuth and occurs in
uranium ores. Polonium had been studied for possible use in heating
spacecraft.
This radioactive substance dissolves readily in dilute
acids, but is only slightly
soluble in
alkalis. It is closely related chemically to bismuth and tellurium.
Polonium-210 is a volatile metal with 50% being vaporized in air after 45 hours at 328 K. This isotope is an alpha emitter that has a half-life of 138.39 days. A milligram of this metalloid emits as many alpha particles as 5 grams of radium.
A great deal of energy is released by its decay with a half a gram quickly reaching a temperature above 750 K. A few curies of polonium emit a blue glow which is caused by excitation of surrounding air.
When it is mixed or
alloyed with
beryllium, polonium can be a
neutron source. Other uses;
- This element has also been used in devices that eliminate static charges in textile mills and other places. However beta sources are more commonly used and are less dangerous.
- Polonium is used on brushes that remove accumulated dust from photographic films. The polonium in these brushes is sealed and controlled thus minimizing radiation hazards.
Since nearly all
alpha radiation can be easily stopped by ordinary containers and upon hitting its surface releases its energy, polonium has been proposed as a lightweight heat source to power thermoelectric cells in
artificial satellites.
Also called Radium F, polonium was discovered by
Marie Curie in
1898 and was later named after her home country of
Poland.
This element was the first one discovered by Curie while she was investigating the cause of pitchblend[?] radioactivity. The electroscope showed it separating with bismuth.
A very rare element in nature, polonium is found in
uranium ores at about 100
micrograms per ton. Its natural abundance is approximately 0.2% of
radium's.
In 1934 an experiment showed that when natural bismuth (Bi-209) is bombarded with neutrons, Bi-210, which is the parent of polonium, was created. Polonium may now be made in milligram amounts in this procedure which uses high neutron fluxes found in nuclear reactors.
Polonium has more
isotopes than any other element, all of which are
radioactive. There are 25 known isotopes of polonium with
atomic masses that range from 194 to 218. Polonium-210 is the most widely available. Po-209 (
half-life 103 years) and Po-208 (half-life 2.9 years) can be made through the alpha, proton, or deuteron bombardment of
lead or
bismuth in a
cyclotron. However these isotopes are expensive to produce.
Polonium is a highly radioactive and toxic element and is dangerous to handle.
Even
milligram or
microgram amounts, handling polonium-210 is very dangerous and requires special equipment used with strict procedures. Direct damage occurs from energy absorption into tissues from alpha particles.
The maximum allowable body burden for ingested polonium is only 0.03 microcuries, which is equivalent to a particle weighing only 6.8 x 10-12 gram. Weight for weight polonium is approximately 2.5 x 1011 times as toxic as hydrocyanic acid[?]. The maximum permissible concentration for airborne soluble polonium compounds is about 2 x 10-11 microcuries/cm3.