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| 116 || livermorium || 2, 8, 18, 32, 32, 18, 6{{Citation needed|date=March 2013}}<!--no experimantal proof available--> |
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Oxygen, sulfur, and selenium are [[nonmetal]]s, and tellurium is a [[metalloid]], meaning that its chemical properties are between those of a [[metal]] and those of a nonmetal.<ref name = "The Elements"/> Little is known about polonium's properties, but it is considered{{by whom}} to be a metal.<!--you say that later, it doesn't belong here--> However, some sources, such as [[John Emsley|John Emsley's]] book ''Nature's Building Blocks'' refer to polonium as a metalloid.<ref name = "ReferenceB"/><ref name = "Chemistry & reactivity">{{Citation|author = Kotz, John C.; Treichel, Paul M. and Townsend, John Raymond |url = http://books.google.com/books?id=jcn6sgt7RpoC&pg=PA65|title = Chemistry & Chemical Reactivity|year = 2009|page=65|publisher=Cengage Learning|isbn=0495387037}}</ref> |
Oxygen, sulfur, and selenium are [[nonmetal]]s, and tellurium is a [[metalloid]], meaning that its chemical properties are between those of a [[metal]] and those of a nonmetal.<ref name = "The Elements"/> Little is known about polonium's properties, but it is considered{{by whom|date=March 2013}} to be a metal.<!--you say that later, it doesn't belong here--> However, some sources, such as [[John Emsley|John Emsley's]] book ''Nature's Building Blocks'' refer to polonium as a metalloid.<ref name = "ReferenceB"/><ref name = "Chemistry & reactivity">{{Citation|author = Kotz, John C.; Treichel, Paul M. and Townsend, John Raymond |url = http://books.google.com/books?id=jcn6sgt7RpoC&pg=PA65|title = Chemistry & Chemical Reactivity|year = 2009|page=65|publisher=Cengage Learning|isbn=0495387037}}</ref> |
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All chalcogens have six [[valence electron]]s. Most of the solid chalcogens are soft<ref>{{Citation|last = Sampsonov|first = G.V.|url = http://www.reade.com/resources/referenceeducational/86-reade-reference-chart-chemical-elements-data/225-mohs-hardnesses-of-the-elements|title = Mohs Hardnesses of the Elements|year = 1968|accessdate = January 2013|publisher = IFI-Plenum}}</ref> and do not conduct heat well.<ref name = "ReferenceA"/> [[Electronegativity]] decreases towards the chalcogens with higher atomic numbers. Density, and melting and boiling points tend to increase towards the chalcogens with higher atomic numbers.<ref name="ReferenceA">{{Citation|last = Jackson|first = Mark|title = Periodic Table Advanced|publisher = Bar Charts Inc.|isbn=978-1-57222-542-8|year = 2002}}</ref> The chalcogens have varying crystal structures. Oxygen's crystal structure is [[monoclinic crystal system|monoclinic]], sulfur's is [[orthorhombic crystal system|orthorhombic]], selenium and tellurium have the [[hexagonal crystal system|hexagonal]] crystal structure, while polonium has a [[cubic crystal system|cubic crystal structure]].<ref name="ReferenceA"/><ref name="The Elements">{{Citation|last = Gray|first = Theodore|title = The Elements|year = 2011|publisher = Black Bay and Leventhal publishers}}</ref> |
All chalcogens have six [[valence electron]]s. Most of the solid chalcogens are soft<ref>{{Citation|last = Sampsonov|first = G.V.|url = http://www.reade.com/resources/referenceeducational/86-reade-reference-chart-chemical-elements-data/225-mohs-hardnesses-of-the-elements|title = Mohs Hardnesses of the Elements|year = 1968|accessdate = January 2013|publisher = IFI-Plenum}}</ref> and do not conduct heat well.<ref name = "ReferenceA"/> [[Electronegativity]] decreases towards the chalcogens with higher atomic numbers. Density, and melting and boiling points tend to increase towards the chalcogens with higher atomic numbers.<ref name="ReferenceA">{{Citation|last = Jackson|first = Mark|title = Periodic Table Advanced|publisher = Bar Charts Inc.|isbn=978-1-57222-542-8|year = 2002}}</ref> The chalcogens have varying crystal structures. Oxygen's crystal structure is [[monoclinic crystal system|monoclinic]], sulfur's is [[orthorhombic crystal system|orthorhombic]], selenium and tellurium have the [[hexagonal crystal system|hexagonal]] crystal structure, while polonium has a [[cubic crystal system|cubic crystal structure]].<ref name="ReferenceA"/><ref name="The Elements">{{Citation|last = Gray|first = Theodore|title = The Elements|year = 2011|publisher = Black Bay and Leventhal publishers}}</ref> |
Revision as of 14:41, 30 March 2013
Template:Periodic table (chalcogens) The chalcogens (/ˈkælkədʒ[invalid input: 'ɨ']n/) are the chemical elements in group 16 of the periodic table. This group is also known as the oxygen family, and by old styles: VIA and VIB. It consists of the elements oxygen (O), sulfur (S), selenium (Se), tellurium (Te), and the radioactive element polonium (Po). The synthetic element livermorium (Lv) is predicted to be a chalcogen as well.[1] The word chalcogen comes from the Greek word chalkos, meaning "bronze" or "ore", and the word genēs, meaning "born".[2][3] Sulfur has been known since antiquity, and oxygen was recognized as an element in the 18th century. Selenium, tellurium and polonium were discovered in the 19th century, and livermorium was discovered in 2000.
All of the chalcogens are two electrons short of a full outer shell. The most common oxidation states for the chalcogens are −2, +2, +4, and +6. The chalcogens have relatively low atomic radii, especially the lighter chalcogens.[4] The lighter chalcogens are typically nontoxic in their elemental form, and are in fact often critical to life, while the heavier chalcogens are typically toxic.[1] These electronegative elements occur in metal-bearing minerals, in which they form water-insoluble compounds with the metals in the ores.
Oxygen is generally extracted from air, while sulfur is extracted from oil and natural gas and selenium and tellurium are byproducts of copper refining. Polonium and livermorium are only available in particle accelerators. The primary use of elemental oxygen is in steelmaking. Sulfur is mostly converted into sulfuric acid, which is heavily used in the chemical industry.[5] Selenium's most common application is glassmaking. Tellurium compounds are mostly used in optical disks, electronic devices, and solar cells. Many of polonium's applications are due to its radioactivity.[1]
Properties
Atomic and physical
Chalcogens show similar patterns in their electron configuration, especially the outermost shells, where they all have the same number of valence electrons, resulting in similar trends in chemical behavior:
Z | Element | No. of electrons/shell |
---|---|---|
8 | oxygen | 2, 6 |
16 | sulfur | 2, 8, 6 |
34 | selenium | 2, 8, 18, 6 |
52 | tellurium | 2, 8, 18, 18, 6 |
84 | polonium | 2, 8, 18, 32, 18, 6 |
116 | livermorium | 2, 8, 18, 32, 32, 18, 6[citation needed] |
Oxygen, sulfur, and selenium are nonmetals, and tellurium is a metalloid, meaning that its chemical properties are between those of a metal and those of a nonmetal.[5] Little is known about polonium's properties, but it is considered[by whom?] to be a metal. However, some sources, such as John Emsley's book Nature's Building Blocks refer to polonium as a metalloid.[1][6]
All chalcogens have six valence electrons. Most of the solid chalcogens are soft[7] and do not conduct heat well.[4] Electronegativity decreases towards the chalcogens with higher atomic numbers. Density, and melting and boiling points tend to increase towards the chalcogens with higher atomic numbers.[4] The chalcogens have varying crystal structures. Oxygen's crystal structure is monoclinic, sulfur's is orthorhombic, selenium and tellurium have the hexagonal crystal structure, while polonium has a cubic crystal structure.[4][5]
Isotopes
Out of the six known chalcogens, three (oxygen, tellurium, and polonium) have atomic numbers equal to or near a nuclear magic number, which means that their atomic nuclei tend to have increased stability towards radioactive decay. Oxygen has three stable isotopes (16O, 17O, 18O) and 14 radioactive isotopes. Sulfur has four stable isotopes (32S, 33S, 34S, and 36S) and 20 radioactive ones. Selenium has six observationally stable or nearly stable isotopes (74Se, 76Se, 77Se, 78Se, 80Se, and 82Se) and 26 radioactive isotopes. Tellurium has eight stable or nearly stable isotopes (120Te, 122Te, 123Te, 124Te, 125Te, 126Te, 128Te, and 130Te) and 31 unstable ones. Polonium has 42 isotopes, none of which are stable.[8] In addition to the stable isotopes, some radioactive chalcogen isotopes occur in nature, either because they are decay products, such as 210Po, because they are primordial, such as 82Se, because of cosmic ray spallation, or via nuclear fission of uranium.[1][9]
Chemical
On the periodic table, oxygen, sulfur, and selenium are classified as nonmetals, tellurium as a metalloid, and polonium as a metal. The oxidation number of the most common chalcogen compounds is −2. Other oxidation numbers, such as −1 in pyrite and peroxide, do occur. The highest formal oxidation number +6.[4] This oxidation number is found in sulfates, selenates, tellurates, and H2SO4 or Na2SeO4.
There are many acids containing chalcogens, including H2SO4, H2SO3, H2SeO4, and H2TeO4. All hydrogen chalcogenides are toxic except for water.[1][10] Oxygen ions often come in the forms of oxide ions (O2-), peroxide ions (O22-), and hydroxide ions (OH-). Sulfur ions generally come in the form of sulfides (S2-), thiosulfates (S2O32-). Selenium ions usually come in the form of selenides (Se2-), and selenates (SeO42-). Tellurium ions often come in the form of tellurates (TeO42-).[4] Molecules containing metal bonded to chalcogens are common as minerals. For example, pyrite (FeS2) is an iron ore, and The rare mineral calaverite is the ditelluride AuTe2.
![Water flowing from a bottle into a glass.](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/0/02/Stilles_Mineralwasser.jpg/170px-Stilles_Mineralwasser.jpg)
2O) is the most familiar chalcogen-containing compound.
Oxygen is the most electronegative element except for fluorine, and forms compounds with almost all of the chemical elements, including some of the noble gases. It commonly bonds with many metals and metalloids to form oxides, including iron oxide, titanium oxide, and silicon oxide. Oxygen's most common oxidation state is −2, and the oxidation state −1 is also relatively common.[4] With hydrogen it forms water and hydrogen peroxide. Organic oxygen compounds are ubiquitous in organic chemistry.
Sulfur's oxidation states are −2, +2, +4, and +6. Sulfur-containing analogs of oxygen compounds often have the prefix thio-. Sulfur's chemistry is similar to oxygen's, in many ways. One difference is that sulfur double bonds are far weaker than oxygen double bonds, but sulfur single bonds are stronger than oxygen single bonds.[11] Organic sulfur compounds such as thiols have a strong specific smell, and a few are utilized by some organisms.[1]
Selenium's oxidation states are −2, +4, and +6. Selenium, like most chalcogens, bonds with oxygen.[1] There are some organic selenium compounds, such as selenoproteins. Tellurium's oxidation states are −2, +2, +4, and +6.[4] Tellurium forms the oxides TeO, TeO2, and TeO3.[1] Polonium's oxidation states are +2 and +4.[4]
Although all group 16 elements of the periodic table, including oxygen, can be defined as chalcogens, oxygen and oxides are usually distinguished from chalcogens and chalcogenides. The term chalcogenide is more commonly reserved for sulfides, selenides, and tellurides, rather than for oxides<1--then why are you talking about oxygen here at all?-->.[12][13][14] Binary compounds of the chalcogens are called chalcogenides (rather than chalcides; this breaks the pattern of halogen/halide and pnictogen/pnictide).
Chalcophile elements
Chalcophile elements are those that remain on or close to the surface because they combine readily with chalcogens other than oxygen, forming compounds which do not sink into the core. In the Goldschmidt classification of elements, the chalcophile elements include the chalcogens themselves (except for oxygen), as they combine with each other,[1] as well as Ag, As, Bi, Cd, Cu, Ga, Ge, Hg, In, Pb, Po, S, Sb, Se, Sn, Te, Tl, and Zn.[15] Chalcophile ("chalcogen-loving") elements in this context are those metals and heavier nonmetals that have a low affinity for oxygen and prefer to bond with the heavier chalcogen sulfur as sulfides.[16] Because sulfide minerals are much denser than the silicate minerals formed by lithophile elements,[15] chalcophile elements separated below the lithophiles at the time of the first crystallisation of the Earth's crust. This has led to their depletion in the Earth's crust relative to their solar abundances, though this depletion has not reached the levels found with siderophile elements.[17]
Allotropes
![](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/b/b0/Phase_diagram_of_sulfur_%281975%29.png/170px-Phase_diagram_of_sulfur_%281975%29.png)
Oxygen's most common allotrope is diatomic oxygen, or O2, a reactive paramagnetic molecule that is ubiquitous to aerobic organisms and has a blue color in its liquid state. Another allotrope is O3, or ozone, which is three oxygen atoms bonded together in a bent formation. There is also an allotrope called tetraoxygen, or O4,[19] and six allotropes of solid oxygen including "red oxygen", which has the formula O8.[20]
Sulfur has over 20 known allotropes, which is more than any other element except carbon.[21] The most common allotropes are in the form of eight-atom rings, but other molecular allotropes that contain as few as two atoms or as many as 20 are known. Other notable sulfur allotropes include rhombic sulfur and monoclinic sulfur. Rhombic sulfur is the more stable of the two allotropes. Monoclinic sulfur takes the form of long needles and is formed when liquid sulfur is cooled to slightly below its melting point. The atoms in liquid sulfur are generally in the form of long chains, but above 190° Celsius, the chains begin to break down. If liquid sulfur above 190° Celsius is frozen very rapidly, the resulting sulfur is amorphous or "plastic" sulfur. Gaseous sulfur is a mixture of diatomic sulfur (S2) and 8-atom rings.[22]
Selenium has at least five known allotropes. The gray allotrope, commonly referred to as the "metallic" allotrope, despite not being a metal, is stable and has a hexagonal crystal structure. The gray allotrope of selenium is soft, with a Mohs hardness of 2, and brittle. The four other allotropes of selenium are metastable. These include two monoclinic red allotropes and two amorphous allotropes, one of which is red and one of which is black.[23] The red allotrope converts to the red allotrope in the presence of heat. The gray allotrope of selenium is made from spirals on selenium atoms, while one of the red allotropes is made of stacks of selenium rings (Se8).[1]
Tellurium is not known to have any allotropes,[24] although its typical form is hexagonal. Polonium has two allotropes, which are known as α-polonium and β-polonium.[25] α-polonium has a cubic crystal structure and converts the rhombohedral β-polonium at 36° Celsius.[1]
History
Early discoveries
Sulfur was known in the ancient history and is mentioned in Bible 15 times. Sulfur was known to the ancient Greeks and commonly mined by the ancient Romans. Sulfur was also historically used as a component of Greek fire. In the Middle Ages, sulfur was a key part of alchemical experiments. In the 1700s and 1800s, scientists Joseph Louis Gay-Lussac and Louis-Jacques Thénard proved sulfur to be a chemical element.[1]
Early attempts to discover oxygen from air were hampered by the fact that air was thought of as a single element up to the 17th and 18th centuries. Robert Hooke, Mikhail Lomonosov, Ole Borch, and Pierre Bayden all successfully created oxygen, but did not realize it at the time. Oxygen was discovered by Joseph Priestley in 1774 when he focused sunlight on a sample of mercuric oxide and collected the resulting gas. Carl Wilhelm Scheele had also created oxygen in 1771 by the same method, but Scheele did not publish his results until 1777.[1]
Tellurium was first discovered in 1783 by Franz Joseph Müller von Reichenstein. He discovered tellurium in a sample of what is now known as calaverite. Müller assumed at first that the sample was pure antimony, but tests he ran on the sample did not agree with this. Muller then guessed that the sample was bismuth sulfide, but tests confirmed that the sample was not that. For some years, Muller pondered the problem. Eventually he realized that the sample was gold bonded with an unknown element. In 1796, Müller sent part of the sample to the German chemist Martin Klaproth, who purified the undiscovered element. Klaproth decided to call the element tellurium after the Latin word for earth.[1]
Selenium was discovered in 1817 by Jöns Jacob Berzelius. Berzelius discovered a reddish-brown sediment at a sulfuric acid manufacturing plant. The sample was thought to contain arsenic. Berzelius initially thought that the sediment contained tellurium, but came to realize that the sample also contained a new element, which he named selenium after the Greek word for moon.[1][26]
Periodic table placing
![](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/5/55/Mendelejevs_periodiska_system_1871.png/400px-Mendelejevs_periodiska_system_1871.png)
Three of the chalcogens (sulfur, selenium, and tellurium) were part of the discovery of periodicity, as they are among a series of triads of elements in the same group that were noted by Johann Wolfgang Döbereiner as having similar properties.[27] Around 1865 John Newlands produced a series of papers where he listed the elements in order of increasing atomic weight and similar physical and chemical properties that recurred at intervals of eight; he likened such periodicity to the octaves of music.[28][29] His version included a "group b" consisting of oxygen, sulfur, selenium, tellurium, and osmium.
After 1869, Dmitri Mendeleev proposed his periodic table placing oxygen at the top of "group VI" above sulfur, selenium, and tellurium.[30] Chromium, molybdenum, tungsten, and uranium were sometimes included in this group, but they would be later rearranged as part of group VIB and actinides, respectively. Oxygen, along with sulfur, selenium, tellurium, and later polonium would be grouped in group VIA, until the group's name was changed to group 16 in 1988.[31]
Modern discoveries
In the late 19th century, Marie Curie and Pierre Curie discovered that a sample of pitchblende was emitting four times as much radioactivity as could be explained by the presence of uranium alone. The Curies gathered several tons of pitchblende and refined it for several months until they had a pure sample of polonium. The discovery officially took place in 1898. Prior to the invention of particle accelerators, the only way to create polonium was to extract it over several months from uranium ore.[1]
The first attempt at creating livermorium was from 1976 to 1977 at the LBNL, who bombarded curium-248 with calcium-48, but were not successful. After several failed attempts in 1977, 1998, and 1999 by research groups in Russia, Germany, and the USA, livermorium was created successfully in 2000 at the Joint Institute for Nuclear Research by bombarding curium-248 atoms with calcium-48 atoms. The element was known as ununhexium until it was officially named livermorium in 2012.[1]
Etymology
The name chalcogen comes from the Greek words χαλκος (chalkos, literally "copper"), and γενές (genes, born,[32] gender, kindle). It was first used in 1932 by Wilhelm Biltz's group at the University of Hanover, where it was proposed by Werner Fischer.[12] Although the literal meanings of the Greek words imply that chalcogen means "copper-former", this is misleading because the chalcogens have nothing to do with copper in particular. "Ore-former" has been suggested as a better translation,[33] as the vast majority of metal ores are chalcogenides and the word χαλκος in ancient Greek was associated with metals and metal-bearing rock in general; copper, and its alloy bronze, was one of the first metals to be used by humans.
Oxygen's name comes from the Greek words oxy genes, meaning "acid-forming". Sulfur's name comes from either the Latin word sulfurium or the Sanskrit word sulvere; both of those terms are ancient words for sulfur. Selenium is named after the Greek goddess of the moon, Selene, to match the previously-discovered element tellurium, whose name comes from the Latin word telus, meaning earth. Polonium is named after Marie Curie's country of birth, Poland.[5] Livermorium is named for the Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory.[34]
Occurrence
![](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/a/a3/Chalkogene.jpg/220px-Chalkogene.jpg)
The four lightest chalcogens (oxygen, sulfur, selenium, and tellurium) are all primordial elements on Earth. Polonium forms naturally after the decay of other elements, even though it is not primordial. Livermorium does not occur naturally at all.
Oxygen makes up 21% of the atmosphere by weight, 89% of water by weight, 46% of the earth's crust by weight,[4] and 65% of the human body.[35] Oxygen also occurs in many minerals, being found in all oxide minerals and hydroxide minerals, and in numerous other mineral groups.[15] Stars of at least eight times the mass of the sun also produce oxygen in their cores via nuclear fusion.[27] Oxygen is the third-most abundant element in the universe, making up 1% of the universe by weight.[36][37]
Sulfur makes up 0.035% of the earth's crust by weight, making it the 17th most abundant element there[4] and makes up 0.25% of the human body.[35] It is a major component of soil. Sulfur makes up 870 parts per million of seawater and about 1 part per billion of the atmosphere.[1] Sulfur can be found in elemental form or in the form of sulfide minerals, sulfate minerals, or sulfosalt minerals.[15] Stars of at least 12 times the mass of the sun produce sulfur in their cores via nuclear fusion.[27] Sulfur is the tenth most abundant element in the universe, making up 500 parts per million of the universe by weight.[36][37]
Selenium makes up 0.05 parts per million of the earth's crust by weight.[4] This makes it the 67th most abundant element in the earth's crust. Selenium makes up on average 5 parts per million of the soils. Seawater contains around 200 parts per trillion of selenium. The atmosphere contains 1 nanogram of selenium per cubic meter. There are mineral groups known as selenates and selenites, but there are not many of minerals in these groups.[38] Selenium is not produced directly by nuclear fusion.[27] Selenium makes up 30 parts per billion of the universe by weight.[37]
There are only 5 parts per billion of tellurium in the earth's crust and 15 parts per billion of tellurium in seawater.[1] Tellurium is one of the eight or nine least abundant elements in the earth's crust.[5] There are a few dozen tellurate minerals and telluride minerals, and tellurium occurs in some minerals with gold, such as sylvanite and calaverite.[39] Tellurium makes up 9 parts per billion of the universe by weight.[5][37][40]
Polonium only occurs in trace amounts on earth, via radioactive decay of uranium and thorium. It is present in uranium ores in concentrations of 100 micrograms per metric ton. Very minute amounts of polonium exist in the soil and thus in most food, and thus in the human body.[1] The earth's crust contains less that 1 part per billion of polonium, making it one of the ten rarest metals on earth.[1][4]
Livermorium is always produced artificially in particle accelerators. Even when it is produced, only a small number of atoms at a time are synthesized.
Production
Approximately 100 million metric tons of oxygen are produced yearly. Oxygen is most commonly produced by fractional distillation, in which air is cooled to a liquid, then warmed, allowing all the components of air except for oxygen to turn to gases and escape. Fractionally distilling air several times can produce 99.5% pure oxygen.[41] Another method with which oxygen is produced is to send a stream of dry, clean air through a bed of molecular sieves made of zeolite, which absorbs the nitrogen in the air, leaving 90 to 93% pure oxygen.[1]
![](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/f/fa/AlbertaSulfurAtVancouverBC.jpg/220px-AlbertaSulfurAtVancouverBC.jpg)
Sulfur can be mined in its elemental form, although this method is no longer as popular as it used to be. In 1865 a large deposit of elemental sulfur was discovered in the U.S. states of Louisiana and Texas, but it was difficult to extract at the time. In the 1890s, Herman Frasch came up with the solution of liquefying the sulfur with superheated steam and pumping the sulfur up to the surface. These days sulfur is instead more often extracted from oil, natural gas, and tar.[1]
The world production of selenium is around 1500 metric tons per year, out of which roughly 10% is recycled. Japan is the largest producer, producing 800 metric tons of selenium per year. Other large producers include Belgium (300 metric tons per year), the United States (over 200 metric tons per year), Sweeden (130 metric tons per year), and Russia (100 metric tons per year). Selenium can be extracted from the waste from the process of electrolytically refining copper. Another method of producing selenium is to farm selenium-gathering plants such as milk vetch. This method could produce three kilograms of selenium per acre, but is not commonly practiced.[1]
Tellurium is mostly produced as a by-product of the processing of copper.[42] Tellurium can also be refined by electrolytic reduction of sodium telluride. The world production of tellurium is between 150 and 200 metric tons per year. The United States is one of the largest producers of tellurium, producing around 50 metric tons per year. Peru, Japan, and Canada are also large producers of tellurium.[1]
Until the creation of nuclear reactors, all polonium had to be extracted from uranium ore. In modern times, most isotopes of polonium are produced by bombarding bismuth with neutrons.[5] Polonium can also be produced by high neutron fluxes in nuclear reactors. Approximately 100 grams of polonium are produced yearly.[43] All the polonium produced for commercial purposes is made in the Ozersk nuclear reactor in Russia. From there, it is taken to Samara, Russia for purification, and from there to St. Petersburg for distribution. The United States is the largest consumer of polonium.[1]
All livermorium is produced artificially in particle accelerators. The first successful production of livermorium was achieved by bombarding curium-248 atoms with calcium-48 atoms. As of 2011, roughly 25 atoms of livermorium had been synthesized.[1]
Applications
Steelmaking is the most important use of oxygen; 55% of all oxygen produced goes to this application. The chemical industry also uses large amounts of oxygen; 25% of all oxygen produced goes to this application. The remaining 20% of oxygen produced is mostly split between medical use, water treatment (as oxygen kills some types of bacteria), as rocket fuel (in liquid form), and for metal cutting.[1]
![Solar panels, angled at about 30 degrees, reflect the blue sky from above a grassy field.](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/5/5b/NREL_Array.jpg/220px-NREL_Array.jpg)
Most sulfur produced is transformed into sulfur dioxide, which is further transformed into sulfuric acid, a very common industrial chemical. Other common uses include being a key ingredient of gunpowder and Greek fire, and being used to change soil pH.[5] Sulfur is also mixed into rubber to vulcanize it. Sulfur is used in some types of concrete and fireworks. 60% of all sulfuric acid produced is used to generate phosphoric acid.[1][44]
Around 40% of all selenium produced goes to glassmaking. 30% of all selenium produced goes to metallurgy, including manganese production. 15% of all selenium produced goes to agriculture. Electronics, such as photovoltaic materials claim 10% of all selenium produced. Pigments account for 5% of all selenium produced. Historically, machines such as photocopiers and light meters used one-third of all selenium produced, but this application has been in steady decline.[1]
Tellurium suboxide is used in the rewritable data layer of some CD-RW disks and DVD-RW disks. Bismuth telluride is also present in many microelectronic devices, such as photoreceptors. Tellurium is sometimes used as an alternative to sulfur in vulcanized rubber. Cadmium telluride is used as a high-efficiency material in solar panels.[1]
Many of polonium's applications relate to the element's radioactivity. Polonium is used as an alpha-particle generator for research. Polonium alloyed with beryllium provides an efficient neutron source. Polonium is also used in nuclear batteries. Most polonium is used in antistatic devices.[1][4]
Biological role
Oxygen is needed by almost all organisms for the purpose of generating ATP. It is also a key component of most other biological compounds, such as water, amino acids and DNA. Human blood contains a large amount of oxygen. Human bones contain 28% oxygen. Human tissue contains 16% oxygen. A typical 70-kliogram human contais 43 kilograms of oxygen, mostly in the form of water.[1]
All animals need significant amounts of sulfur. Some amino acids, such as cystine and methionine contain sulfur. Plant roots take up sulfate ions from the soil and reduce it to sulfide ions. Metalloproteins also use sulfur to attach to useful metal atoms in the body and sulfur similarly attaches itself to poisonous metal atoms like cadmium to haul them to the safety of the liver. On average, humans consume 900 milligrams of sulfur each day. Sulfur compounds, such as those found in skunk spray often have strong odors.[1]
All animals and some plants need trace amounts of selenium, but only for some specialized enzymes.[5][45] Humans consume on average between 6 and 200 micrograms of selenium per day. Mushrooms and brazil nuts are especially noted for their high selenium content. Selenium in foods is most commonly found in the form of amino acids such as selenocysteine and selenomethionine.[1] Selenium can protect against heavy metal poisoning.[45]
Tellurium is not known to be needed for animal life, although a few fungi can incorporate it in compounds in place of selenium. Microorganisms also absorb tellurium and emit dimethyl telluride. Most tellurium in the blood stream is excreted slowly in urine, but some is converted to dimethyl telluride and released through the lungs. On average, humans ingest about 600 micrograms of tellurium daily. Plants can take up some tellurium from the soil. Onions and garlic have been found to contain as much as 300 parts per million of tellurium in dry weight.[1]
Polonium has no biological role, and is highly toxic on account of being radioactive. Polonium is detrimental to cells. As little as 10 nanograms of polonium in a human can be lethal. Polonium is present in all foods because there are traces of polonium in the soil.[1][5] Tobacco plants do absorb polonium-210 from the atmosphere into their leaves.[43]
Toxicity
Oxygen is generally nontoxic, but oxygen toxicity has been reported when it is used in high concentrations. In both elemental gaseous form and as a component to water, it is vital to almost all life on earth. Liquid oxygen is highly dangerous.[5] Even gaseous oxygen is dangerous in excess. For instance, sports divers have occasionally drowned from convulsions caused by breathing pure oxygen at a depth of more than 10 meters (33 feet) underwater.[1] Oxygen is also toxic to some bacteria.[35] Ozone, an allotrope of oxygen, is toxic to most life. It can cause lesions in the respiratory tract.[46]
Sulfur is generally nontoxic; it is even a vital nutrient for humans. It can cause redness in the eyes and skin, a burning sensation and a cough if inhaled, and a burning sensation and diarrhea if ingested,[47] and can irritate the mucous membranes.[48] An excess of sulfur can be toxic for cows because microbes the cows' rumens produce toxic hydrogen sulfide.[49] Many sulfur compounds, such as hydrogen sulfide (H2S) and sulfur dioxide (SO2) are highly toxic.[1]
Selenium is a trace nutrient, required by humans on the order of tens or hundreds of micrograms per day. A dose of over 450 micrograms can be toxic, resulting in bad breath and body odor. Extended, low-level exposure, which can occur at some industries, results in weight loss, anemia, and dermatitis. In many cases of selenium poisoning, selenous acid is formed.[50] Hydrogen selenide (H2Se) is highly toxic.[1]
Tellurium is not generally highly toxic. As little as 10 micrograms of tellurium per cubic meter of air can cause notoriously unpleasant breath, described as smelling like rotten garlic.[5] Acute tellurium poisoning can cause vomiting, gut inflammation, internal bleeding, and respiratory failure. Extended, low-level exposure to tellurium causes tiredness and indigestion. Sodium tellurite (Na2TeO3) is lethal in amounts of around 2 grams.[1]
If ingested, polonium-210 is, by weight, a billion times as toxic as hydrogen cyanide. Polonium is dangerous both as an alpha particle emitter and because it is chemically toxic. It has been used as a murder weapon in the past.[1] Polonium poisoning can cause nausea, vomiting, anorexia, and lymphopenia. In general, it can damage hair follicles and white blood cells.[1][51] Polonium-210 is only dangerous if ingested or inhaled because its alpha particle emissions cannot penetrate human skin.[43]
See also
References
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