Naked Science Forum
Non Life Sciences => Chemistry => Topic started by: Tomassci on 16/06/2017 08:55:46
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What is your favourite element in the periodic table? And why?
My is carbon, because it's important for life.
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Iridium is certainly in the top few of my list. Rarest stable element in Earth's crust, most corrosion-resistant metal, 2nd densest (22.4 g/cm3!!!), also one of the hardest, high melting metals. It has a nice luster, and forms beautifully-colored compounds (hence named after Iris, the Greek goddess of rainbows) I have personally seen brilliant yellows, oranges and reds of Ir(III), pale greens and deep blues of Ir(IV), and even a bright purple Ir(V) compound!
It is a very useful element, both as a metal (spark plug and pen tips, crucibles for use at >2000 °C) and in compounds (catalysts for chemical reactions, fluorescent molecules for LEDs).
Oh, did I mention that a thin band of iridium contamination around the world is one of the main pieces of evidence that a meteorite is what did the dinos in 65M years ago?
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Phosphorus and sulfur are also particularly cool.
In their elemental forms each has several allotropes (neither has quite as many as carbon). Phosphorus ( https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Allotropes_of_phosphorus ) can be tetrahedral P4 molecules of white phosphors, or the tetrahedra can connect to to form a long polymer of vertex-sharing tetrahedra (red phosphorus). If the tetrahedra are broken up differently it can also result in purple phosphorus (chains) or black phosphorus (planes). In the gas phase at high temperatures dimeric P2 molecules can also exist. Sulfur ( https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Allotropes_of_sulfur ) as we know it is a floppy octagonal ring S8, that can crystallize in different ways, but the molecule can also form molecular rings or chains of essentially any length.
One especially neat thing about sulfur is that its color changes with temperature from nearly completely white at very low temperatures through yellow (which we are familiar with), to orange (as it melts), to red, to black. In large part this has to do with the vibrations of the S8 ring (which increase with increasing temperature) broadening a very intense absorption in the UV. As the T increases, the low-energy edge of the absorption creeps up through the visible spectrum, blotting out purple first (appearing yellow), then blue (appearing orange), then green (appearing red), then red (nothing left to see, so black). This fact was used to determine the surface temperatures of Io with high accuracy and precision by simple observation of the color of the elemental sulfur on the surface.
Both P and S compounds are very (VERY!!) smelly, are useful as ligands for binding to metals, and form very strong bonds with oxygen.
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If anyone has more gold than they feel they need...
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I kind of like Tantalum, the oxides are a very good insulator, and the colour is a very good indication as to the thickness of it, while almost everybody has a gram or two on them all the time, and often a few more in the home as well, as it is one of the most common materials ( other than aluminium and copper) making up electronic components.
Another is Tin, as this is an unusual metal in having 2 distinct solid forms, and transitioning from one to another at low temperatures, also is the most annoying metal in that it will almost spontaneously grow whiskers out of the surface at grain boundaries, causing all sorts of things to go wrong, including Toyota's "unintended acceleration" and the loss of a few spacecraft.
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I'll vote for the most popular - Hydrogen.
The solar system is basically three quarters Hydrogen plus one quarter Helium. The rest is just impurities.
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The solar system is basically three quarters Hydrogen plus one quarter Helium. The rest is just impurities.
Trace impurities at that, but we seem to think those traces are pretty important though.
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The solar system is basically three quarters Hydrogen plus one quarter Helium. The rest is just impurities.
Trace impurities at that, but we seem to think those traces are pretty important though.
Some of the impurities think they are important.
It's interesting to note that if you get a lot of hydrogen, and wait long enough, some of it starts to wonder where it came from.
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It only wonders after you have had a lot of time, and put it a little under pressure. Plain Hydrogen at the normal distribution of one molecule per cubic kilometer of volume really is not worried much, it barely is anything but totally chill, 3k to be roughly it.
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It only wonders after you have had a lot of time, and put it a little under pressure. Plain Hydrogen at the normal distribution of one molecule per cubic kilometer of volume really is not worried much, it barely is anything but totally chill, 3k to be roughly it.
Given time (+ gravity) it puts itself under pressure.
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Folks, let's try to stay on the topic of the OP. If you want to discuss cosmology, we can split the thread and move it to the appropriate section.
Who wants to share their favorite element(s)?
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Helium. It's noble and makes cool party balloons. It's super cool and slides out of its containers. What more could you ask for?
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I like oxygen, but then what living breathing (aerobic) organism doesn't...?
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I like oxygen, but then what living breathing (aerobic) organism doesn't...?
Well, some oxygen is good, but I don't want too much of it either. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Oxygen_toxicity
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I like caesium.
I think it's amazing how reactive it is with oxygen and water, though disappointed I can't buy it legally.
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Mendelevium z101, it is my birth element, 6/12/1964, 6+12+19+64= z101 Mendelevium.
Depending on your birth element, explains why you bond or react to others.
next I would say Hydrogen, but It is not the element that is my favourite, it is the stand alone PROTON.
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it is the stand alone PROTON.
But a proton's not an element, it's a subatomic particle.
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There are some elements yet to be named .... https://www.change.org/p/support-lemmy-tribute-name-next-discovered-heavy-metal-lemmium
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I think my favorite is radium.
It has looks to die for...
And also because due to her work with radium, Marie Curie was the first woman to win a Nobel Prize in physics (1903) and the first scientist to win two Nobel Prizes (second in 1911)
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I would have to go with Platinum due to its unique properties and multitude of uses in everyday life. In our cars, catalytic converters, oxygen sensors and the heated wire in Mass Airflow sensors. In medicine, cisplatin used to treat various types of cancers is capable of selectively cross linking DNA in tumors. In the petroleum industry, reforming reactors have a platinum cage. Jewelry, watches, instrumentation, testing equipment and many more, it sure is a huge list of everyday uses for this noble metal.
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I would have to go with Platinum due to its unique properties and multitude of uses in everyday life. In our cars, catalytic converters, oxygen sensors and the heated wire in Mass Airflow sensors. In medicine, cisplatin used to treat various types of cancers is capable of selectively cross linking DNA in tumors. In the petroleum industry, reforming reactors have a platinum cage. Jewelry, watches, instrumentation, testing equipment and many more, it sure is a huge list of everyday uses for this noble metal.
I think this is an excellent answer and a strong case for platinum!
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I will go for Hydrogen, whenever I wish to pick up crumbs I have only to wet a finger ,dab them and Hydrogen bonds make them stick
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I like sunny days so Hydrogen, where it all began.
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All you carbon based units are so silly. Silicon based units rule ;)
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All you carbon based units are so silly. Silicon based units rule ;)
Correction: silicon-based units rock! :P
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I also like halogens, like fluorine.
Fluorine is yellowish gas, and is very corrosive. Also, fluorine is used to make toothpaste. Did I mention it's toxic?
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Aluminum - The element of surprise.
Why?
Because -
Al is the most abundant metal in the earth's crust.
Behind the oxygen nand silicon this is third most abundant element.
Despite this in 1852, it was more valuable than gold at $1200 per kg vs gold at $664 per kg (silly speculators).
I love the uses of Al.
It has many uses in the construction product and project.
I love the many uses of Aluminum.
It is strong yet lightweight and bendable.
It is a great non toxic easily recyclable element.
Doing M.Sc in Chemistry
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Bismuth is mine,
Mostly because, have you seen the kind of crystals bismuth makes, these square spiral iridescent staircases.
I have some on my desk and I love it.