WebElements Periodic Table of the Elements | Polonium

Polonium: the essentials

Polonium has more isotopes than any other element, all of which are radioactive. Polonium dissolves readily in dilute acids, but is only slightly soluble in alkalis.

Weight for weight it is about 2.5 x 10¹¹ times as toxic as hydrocyanic acid (HCN). Polonium has been found in tobacco as a contaminant and in uranium ores.

Table: basic information about and classifications of polonium.
Name: Polonium Symbol: Po Atomic number: 84 Atomic weight: [ 209 ] Standard state: solid at 298 K CAS Registry ID: 7440-08-6	Group in periodic table: 16 Group name: Chalcogen Period in periodic table: 6 Block in periodic table: p-block Colour: silvery Classification: Metallic

Polonium: historical information

Polonium was discovered by Marie Curie at 1898 in France. Origin of name: named after "Poland" (birthplace of Marie Curie).

Polonium was the first element discovered by Marie Sklodowska Curie in 1898, while seeking the cause of radioactivity of pitchblende from Joachimsthal, Bohemia. It required several tonnes of pitchblende to produce very small amounts of polonium.

Polonium: physical properties

Melting point: 527 [or 254 °C (489 °F)] K
Boiling point: 1235 [or 962 °C (1764 °F)] K
Density of solid: 9196 kg m^-3

Ground state electron configuration: [Xe].4f¹⁴.5d¹⁰.6s².6p⁴
Shell structure: 2.8.18.32.18.6
Term symbol: ³P₂
Pauling electronegativity: 2.0 (Pauling units)
First ionisation energy: 812.1 kJ mol^-1
Second ionisation energy: no data kJ mol^-1

Isolation

Isolation: polonium is radioactive and excessivley rare in nature. It is made in very small qunatities through a nuclear reaction of bismuth. Neutron irradiation of ²⁰⁹bismuth (atomic number 83) gives ²¹⁰polonium (atomic number 84).

²⁰⁹Bi + ¹n → ²¹⁰Po + e^-

Metallic polonium can be fractionally distilled from the bismuth or electrodeposited onto a metal surface such as silver.

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Sb	Te	I
Bi	Po	At
Uup	Lv	Uus

Polonium	Polonium
Polonium	Polonium
Polonio	Polonio
Polonium	Polônio

Polonium
- Essential data: names, symbol, atomic number, and atomic weight; block, period, and group in periodic table; description; standard state; registry number; and isolation
- History: meaning of name; discovery; and history of the element
- Uses
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Polonium around us
- Geology: Abundance of elements in the universe; the sun; meteorites; Earth's crust; oceans; and streams
- Biology: Abundance in humans; biological role; and health hazards)
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Chemistry and compounds
- Compounds: halides, oxides, sulfides, hydrides, and complexes; lattice energies; and reduction potentials
- Reactions of polonium: reactions of polonium with air; water; halogens; acids; and bases
- Electronegativities: Pauling; Sanderson; Allred Rochow; Mulliken-Jaffe; and Allen
- Bond enthalpies of diatomic species
- Lattice energies
Element properties
- Physics properties: Boiling point; melting point; density; molar volume; thermal conductivity; and electrical resistivity; bulk modulus; critical temperature; superconductivity temperature; hardness (mineralogical, Brinell, and Vickers); linear expansion coefficient; Poisson's ratio; reflectivity; refractive index; rigidity modulus; Young's modulus; velocity of sound
- Crystal structure
- Thermochemistry: enthalpies of atomization, fusion, and vaporization; thermodynamic properties
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Atom properties
- Electron shell properties: Electronic configuration; term symbol; electron affinity; ionization energies; and atomic spectra
- Atom sizes: atomic radius; Shannon and Pauling ionic radii; covalent radius; metallic radius; element bond length; and Van der Waals radius
- Atomic orbital properties: effective nuclear charge; electron binding energies; and valence orbital radii maxima
Nuclear properties
- Isotopes: isotope abundances; radioactive isotopes; isotope masses; nuclear spins; and nuclear magnetic moment
- NMR properties: frequencies; isotopes; magnetogyric ratios; quadrupole moments; receptivities; and relative sensitivities
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1	2															3	4	5	6	7	8	9	10	11	12	13	14	15	16	17	18

1 H																															2 He
3 Li	4 Be																									5 B	6 C	7 N	8 O	9 F	10 Ne
11 Na	12 Mg																									13 Al	14 Si	15 P	16 S	17 Cl	18 Ar
19 K	20 Ca															21 Sc	22 Ti	23 V	24 Cr	25 Mn	26 Fe	27 Co	28 Ni	29 Cu	30 Zn	31 Ga	32 Ge	33 As	34 Se	35 Br	36 Kr
37 Rb	38 Sr															39 Y	40 Zr	41 Nb	42 Mo	43 Tc	44 Ru	45 Rh	46 Pd	47 Ag	48 Cd	49 In	50 Sn	51 Sb	52 Te	53 I	54 Xe
55 Cs	56 Ba	57 La	58 Ce	59 Pr	60 Nd	61 Pm	62 Sm	63 Eu	64 Gd	65 Tb	66 Dy	67 Ho	68 Er	69 Tm	70 Yb	71 Lu	72 Hf	73 Ta	74 W	75 Re	76 Os	77 Ir	78 Pt	79 Au	80 Hg	81 Tl	82 Pb	83 Bi	84 Po	85 At	86 Rn
87 Fr	88 Ra	89 Ac	90 Th	91 Pa	92 U	93 Np	94 Pu	95 Am	96 Cm	97 Bk	98 Cf	99 Es	100 Fm	101 Md	102 No	103 Lr	104 Rf	105 Db	106 Sg	107 Bh	108 Hs	109 Mt	110 Ds	111 Rg	112 Cn	113 Uut	114 Fl	115 Uup	116 Lv	117 Uus	118 Uuo

Polonium

Polonium: the essentials

Polonium: historical information

Polonium: physical properties

Polonium: orbital properties

Isolation

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