Curium

chemical element with the atomic number of 96

Curium is a synthetic chemical element in the periodic table that has the atomic number 96. It has the chemical symbol Cm and it is a radioactive metal. In chemistry it is placed in a group of metal elements named the actinides. Curium is a transuranic element. It is a radioactive element that does not exist in nature. Curium has a silver color and it is made by bombarding a plutonium target with alpha particles (helium ions). Curium was named after Marie Curie and her husband Pierre.

Curium, 00Cm
Curium
Pronunciation/ˈkjʊəriəm/ (KURE-ee-əm)
Appearancesilvery metallic, glows purple in the dark
Mass number[247]
Curium in the periodic table
HydrogenHelium
LithiumBerylliumBoronCarbonNitrogenOxygenFluorineNeon
SodiumMagnesiumAluminiumSiliconPhosphorusSulfurChlorineArgon
PotassiumCalciumScandiumTitaniumVanadiumChromiumManganeseIronCobaltNickelCopperZincGalliumGermaniumArsenicSeleniumBromineKrypton
RubidiumStrontiumYttriumZirconiumNiobiumMolybdenumTechnetiumRutheniumRhodiumPalladiumSilverCadmiumIndiumTinAntimonyTelluriumIodineXenon
CaesiumBariumLanthanumCeriumPraseodymiumNeodymiumPromethiumSamariumEuropiumGadoliniumTerbiumDysprosiumHolmiumErbiumThuliumYtterbiumLutetiumHafniumTantalumTungstenRheniumOsmiumIridiumPlatinumGoldMercury (element)ThalliumLeadBismuthPoloniumAstatineRadon
FranciumRadiumActiniumThoriumProtactiniumUraniumNeptuniumPlutoniumAmericiumCuriumBerkeliumCaliforniumEinsteiniumFermiumMendeleviumNobeliumLawrenciumRutherfordiumDubniumSeaborgiumBohriumHassiumMeitneriumDarmstadtiumRoentgeniumCoperniciumNihoniumFleroviumMoscoviumLivermoriumTennessineOganesson
Gd

Cm

(Upn)
americiumcuriumberkelium
Groupf-block groups (no number)
Periodperiod 7
Block  f-block
Electron configuration[Rn] 5f7 6d1 7s2
Electrons per shell2, 8, 18, 32, 25, 9, 2
Physical properties
Phase at STPsolid
Melting point1613 K ​(1340 °C, ​2444 °F)
Boiling point3383 K ​(3110 °C, ​5630 °F)
Density (near r.t.)13.51 g/cm3
Heat of fusion13.85 kJ/mol
Vapor pressure
P (Pa)1101001 k10 k100 k
at T (K)17881982
Atomic properties
Oxidation states+3, +4, +5,[1] +6[2] (an amphoteric oxide)
ElectronegativityPauling scale: 1.3
Ionization energies
  • 1st: 581 kJ/mol
Atomic radiusempirical: 174 pm
Covalent radius169±3 pm
Color lines in a spectral range
Spectral lines of curium
Other properties
Natural occurrencesynthetic
Crystal structure ​double hexagonal close-packed (dhcp)
Double hexagonal close packed crystal structure for curium
Electrical resistivity1.25 µΩ⋅m[3]
Magnetic orderingantiferromagnetic-paramagnetic transition at 52 K[3]
CAS Number7440-51-9
History
Namingnamed after Marie Skłodowska-Curie and Pierre Curie
DiscoveryGlenn T. Seaborg, Ralph A. James, Albert Ghiorso (1944)
Isotopes of curium
Main isotopes[4]Decay
abun­dancehalf-life (t1/2)modepro­duct
242Cmsynth162.8 dα238Pu
SF
34Si...
243Cmsynth29.1 yα239Pu
ε243Am
SF
244Cmsynth18.11 yα240Pu
SF
245Cmsynth8250 yα241Pu
SF
246Cmsynth4060 yα242Pu
SF
247Cmsynth1.56×107 yα243Pu
248Cmsynth3.480×105 yα244Pu
SF
250Cmsynth8300 ySF
α246Pu
β250Bk
 Category: Curium
| references

Uses

Curium is used currently in rovers and space machinery.

Pierre and Marie Curie.

References