Scandium (Sc)
Rare soft silvery metallic element belonging to group 3 of the periodic table. There are ten isotopes, nine of which are radioactive and have short half-lives. Predicted in 1869 by Mendeleev, isolated by Nilson in 1879.
| Atomic Number | 21 |
|---|---|
| Atomic Weight | 44.955908 |
| Mass Number | 45 |
| Group | 3 |
|---|---|
| Period | 4 |
| Block | d |
| Protons | 21 p+ |
|---|---|
| Neutrons | 24 n0 |
| Electrons | 21 e- |
Properties
| Atomic Radius | 160 pm
|
|---|---|
| Atomic Volume | 15 cm³/mol
|
| Covalent Radius | 148 pm
|
| Metallic Radius | 144 pm
|
| Ionic Radius | 74.5 pm
|
| Crystal Radius | 88.5 pm
|
| Van der Waals radius |
215 pm
|
| Density | 2.99 g/cm³
|
| Boiling Point | 3,104 K
|
| Melting Point | 1,814 K
|
| Electrons per shell | 2, 8, 9, 2 |
| Electronegativity |
1.36
|
| Electrophilicity | 0.893458985189 eV/particle
|
| Proton Affinity | 914 kJ/mol
|
| Electron Affinity | 0.188 eV/particle
|
| Ionization Potential | 6.56149 eV/particle
|
| Heat of Vaporization | 332.7 kJ/mol
|
| Heat of Fusion | 15.8 kJ/mol
|
| Heat of Formation | 377.8 kJ/mol
|
| Molar Heat Capacity | 25.52 J/(mol K)
|
| Specific Heat Capacity | 0.568 J/(g⋅K)
|
| Thermal Conductivity | 15.8 W/(m K)
|
| Gas Basicity | 892 kJ/mol
|
| Dipole Polarizability | 97 a₀
|
| C6 Dispersion Coefficient | 1,383 a₀
|
| Oxidation States | 1, 2, 3 |
| Color | Silver
|
| Crystal Structure | Simple Hexagonal (HEX) |
| Lattice Constant | 3.31 Å
|
| Bulk Modulus | |
| Electrical Resistivity | |
| Electron Configuration | [Ar] 3d1 4s2 |
| Magnetic Ordering | |
| Magnetic Susceptibility | |
| Phase | Solid |
| Poisson Ratio | |
| Shear Modulus | |
| Young's Modulus | |
| Allotropes | |
| Alternate Names | |
| Adiabatic Index | |
| Appearance | |
| Electric Conductivity | |
| Critical Pressure | |
| Critical Temperature | |
| Curie Point | |
| Electrical | |
| Hardness | |
| Magnetic Susceptibility | |
| Magnetic | |
| Neel Point | |
| Neutron Cross Section | |
| Neutron Mass Absorption | |
| Gas Phase | |
| Quantum Numbers | |
| Refractive Index | |
| Space Group | |
| Speed of Sound | |
| Superconducting Point | |
| Thermal Expansion | |
| Valence Electrons | |
| Classification | |
| Category | Transition metals, Transition metals |
| CAS Group | IIIA |
| IUPAC Group | IIIB |
| Glawe Number | 48 |
| Mendeleev Number | 11 |
| Pettifor Number | 20 |
| Geochemical Class | first series transition metal |
| Goldschmidt Class | litophile |
| Radioactivity | |
| Radioactive | No |
| Decay Mode | |
| Half-Life | |
| Lifetime | |
| Abundance | |
| Abundance in Earth's crust | 22 mg/kg
|
| Abundance in Oceans | 0.0000006 mg/L
|
| Abundance in Human Body | |
| Abundance in Meteor | |
| Abundance in Sun | |
| Abundance in Universe | 3×10-6% |
Isotopes of Scandium
Stable Isotopes
45Sc
Unstable Isotopes
36Sc 37Sc 38Sc 39Sc 40Sc 41Sc 42Sc 43Sc 44Sc 46Sc 47Sc 48Sc 49Sc 50Sc 51Sc 52Sc 53Sc 54Sc 55Sc 56Sc 57Sc 58Sc 59Sc 60Sc
History
In 1879, Lars Fredrik Nilson and his team detected scandium in the minerals euxenite and gadolinite. Nilson prepared 2 grams of scandium oxide of high purity. Per Teodor Cleve showed that scandium had properties similar to those predicted by Mendeleev for eka-boron. Metallic scandium was first prepared in 1937 by Fischer and his colleagues. From the Latin word Scandia, Scandinavia
| Discoverers | Lars Nilson |
|---|---|
| Discovery Location | Sweden |
| Discovery Year | 1879 |
| Name Origin | Latin: Scandia, Scandinavia. |
Scandium is considered to be of low toxicity
The stable form of scandium is created in supernovas via the r-process
Uses
Scandium is used in sports equipment such as golf iron shafts, baseball bats, bicycle frames and fishing rods. Scandium iodide, along with sodium iodide, when added to a modified form of mercury-vapor lamp, produces a form of metal halide lamp. The radioactive isotope 46Sc is used in oil refineries as a tracing agent. Scandium metal is used in some aerospace applications. Scandum oxide (Sc2O3) is used in the manufacture of high-intensity electric lamps. Scandium iodide (ScI3) is used in lamps that produce light having a color closely matching natural sunlight.
Sources
Occurs mainly in the minerals thortveitile (~34% scandium) and wiikite. Also in some tin and tungsten ores. Pure scandium is obtained as a by-product of uranium refining.