Scandium is number twenty-one. It is used for sports in lights and equipment. It is shiny and tarnishes to a pinkish yellow.

 

 

History

Mendeleyev predicted Scandium about ten years before it was discovered. He predicted it by looking at the element above it (Boron) and predicting that the properties would be similar. He named this element “ekaboron” which translates to “like Boron”. Lars Nilson (a Swedish scientist) was analyzing two minerals; gadolinite and euxenite and accidentally discovered scandium oxide. But it was only until 1937 when it was isolated. It was named Scandium after Scandia which is where Sweden was located.

 

Use

Scandium is used in a lot of sporting equipment. It is used in baseball bats, lacrosse sticks, and bike frames. When it is made into metal frames, it is used as an alloy. Scandium can also be used in sun-like lights, such as the ones used in baseball fields and football stadiums. Some say it is expected that scandium-aluminum alloys will be important in the manufacture of fuel cells. Scandium iodide is added to mercury vapor lamps so that they will give off light that closely resembles sunlight.

 

Rare Earth Metals

The rare earth metals are a group of 15 chemically similar elements (grouped separately in the periodic table) known as lanthanides. Commercially, the rare earth grouping usually also includes scandium and yttrium, both of which are actually elements above lanthanum in the periodic table. These metals range in color from shiny silver to iron gray. As the USGS describes them, they "are typically soft, malleable, ductile and usually reactive, especially at elevated temperatures or when finely divided.

 

Physical and Chemical Properties

The physical properties of scandium include; its melting point of 1,538° C (2,800° F) and a boiling point of 2700° C (4,900° F). Another physical property is its density- 2.99 g per cubic centimeter. The chemical properties include; it reacts readily with acids and it does not react easily with oxygen in the air.

Isotopes

There are about ten radioactive isotopes of scandium that are known. There are no commercial uses of radioactive isotopes. Some isotopes only have a half life of 182.3 milliseconds while others have a half life of 83.79 days.

General Information
Name Scandium
Atomic Number 21
Chemical Symbol Sc
Group Transition Metals
Atomic Mass

44.9559
Melting Point 1,538 degrees Celcius
Boiling Point 2,700 degrees Celcius
   
   

 

Mendeleev used Boron to Predict Scandium's properties. Oxygen is usually found combined with Scandium (called Scandium oxide). To look at that element's page, click on its name. Ytterbium was trying to be found when Scandium was discovered.

 

Glossary
Alloys Two or more elements bonded together, one or more being a metal.
Isotopes the different possible versions of each element.
Tarnish To dull the luster of; discolor, especially by exposure to air or dirt.
Radioactive Radioactivity refers to the particles which are emitted from nuclei as a result of nuclear instability.
   
   

 

Bibliography
  "Isotopes." 18 May 2009 <http://www.colorado.edu/physics/2000/isotopes/index.html>.
"Periodic Table: Scandium." 18 May 2009 <http://www.chemicalelements.com/elements/sc.html>.
"Scandium." 15 Dec. 2003. 18 May 2009 <http://periodic.lanl.gov/elements/21.html>.
   


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