INTRODUCTION
Europium is a soft, silvery metallic element that is among the least abundant of the rare earth elements of the lanthanide series. It ranks 50th in order of abundance of the elements in Earth's crust.
Europium occurs in monazite, bastnasite, and other rare earth minerals, as well as in fission products of uranium, thorium, and plutonium.
BASIC INFORMATIONS
- Atomic Number
- 63
- Atomic Mass
- 151.964
- Atomic radius
- 0.185
- Ionization energy
- 1st,2nd,3rd (4033)
- Electronic config
- 2,8,18,25,8,2
- Principal Valency
- +2
- Density g/cm³
- 5.24
- Melting point °C
- 826
- Boiling point °C
- 1529
- Type of Element
- Metal
- Electronegativity
- N/A
- Element Category
- Lanthanide series
- Appearance
- Silvery white solid
- Block
- f-block
- Period
- 8
- Group
- 10
- No of Isotopes
- 38
- Occurrence
- Combine form
- Abundance in ppm
- 2.1
- Year of Discovery
- 1901
EXTRACTION
It is obtain by ion exchange process
OXIDATION STATES
+3,+2,+1 (Mildly basic)
MAJOR SOURCE
Monazit, Bastnasite
EXAMPLES OF COMPOUND PRESENT
Europium oxide
ECONOMIC IMPORTANCE
* It has been found that if a small amount of europium oxide is added to yttrium oxide, it gives a brilliant-red phosphor.
* Europium incorporated into control rods is used to regulate the operation of nuclear reactors or to shut them down should they get out of control.
* Europium is used as a phosphor activator.
