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What is Plutonium? Origin / Meaning of the name Plutonium
The name originates
from the the planet Pluto because it is the next planet in the
solar system beyond the planet Neptune and the element plutonium
is the next element in the period table beyond neptunium.
What is Plutonium? Periodic Table Group and Classification of the Plutonium Element
Elements can be classified based on their physical states (States
of Matter) e.g. gas, solid or liquid. This element is a solid. Plutonium is
classified
as an element in the Actinide series as one of the "Rare Earth
Elements" which can located in Group 3 elements of the Periodic
Table and in the 6th and 7th periods. The Rare Earth Elements are
of the Lanthanide and Actinide series. Most of the elements in the
Actinide series are synthetic or man-made. Nearly 75%
of all the elements in the Periodic Table are classified as
metals which are detailed in the
List of Metals.
Facts about the
Discovery and
History of the Plutonium
Element
Plutonium was discovered by
Dr. Glenn T. Seaborg, Edwin M. McMillan, J. W. Kennedy, and A. C.
Wahl
in 1940 in the USA.
Glenn T. Seaborg
The American scientist Glenn T. Seaborg (1912 - 1999) won the
1951 Nobel Prize in Chemistry for "discoveries in the chemistry
of the transuranium elements". Glenn Seaborg contributed to the
discovery and isolation of ten elements: plutonium, americium,
curium, berkelium, californium, einsteinium, fermium,
mendelevium, nobelium and element 106, which was named
seaborgium in his honor whilst he was still living. Glenn
Seaborg also developed the actinide concept, which led to the
current arrangement of the actinoid series in the periodic table
of the elements.
Glenn Seaborg (1912 - 1999)
What is Plutonium? Occurrence of the Plutonium Element
Manufactured synthetically
Found naturally in uranium ores
Abundances of the element in different environments
% in Universe N/A
% in Sun None
% in Meteorites None
% in Earth's Crust None
% in Oceans None
% in Humans None
Associated Uses of Plutonium
Radiological weapons
Poison
Electrical power generation |
