mendelevium

fermium ← mendelevium → nobelium Tm ↑ Md ↓ (Upu) 101Md Periodic table
Appearance
unknown, probably silvery, white or metallic gray
General properties
Name, symbol, number	mendelevium, Md, 101
Element category	actinide
Group, period, block	n/a, 7, f
Standard atomic weight	(258) g·mol−1
Electron configuration	[Rn] 5f13 7s2
Electrons per shell	2, 8, 18, 32, 31, 8, 2 (Image)
Physical properties
Phase	solid
Melting point	1100 K, 827 °C, 1521 °F
Atomic properties
Oxidation states	2, 3
Electronegativity	1.3 (Pauling scale)
Ionization energies	1st: 635 kJ·mol−1
Miscellanea
Magnetic ordering	no data
CAS registry number	7440-11-1
Most stable isotopes
Main article: Isotopes of mendelevium
iso NA half-life DM DE (MeV) DP 257Md syn 5.52 h ε 0.406 257Fm α 7.558 253Es SF - - 258Md syn 51.5 d ε 1.230 258Fm 260Md syn 31.8 d SF - - α 7.000 256Es ε - 260Fm β− 1.000 260No
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Mendelevium (pronounced /ˌmɛndəˈlɛviəm/ or /ˌmɛndəˈliːviəm/) is a synthetic element with the symbol Md (formerly Mv) and the atomic number 101. A metallic radioactive transuranic element of the actinides, mendelevium is synthesized by bombarding einsteinium with alpha particles and was named after Dmitri Mendeleev, who was responsible for the Periodic Table.

Characteristics

Researchers have shown that mendelevium has a moderately stable dipositive (II) oxidation state in addition to the more characteristic (for actinide elements) tripositive (III) oxidation state, the latter being the more dominantly exhibited state in an aqueous solution (chromatography being the process used). Sometimes, mendelevium can even be shown to exhibit a monopositive (I) state. ^{[1] 256}Md has been used to find out some of the chemical properties of this element while in an aqueous solution. There are no other known uses of mendelevium and only trace amounts of the element have ever been produced. Other isotopes of mendelevium, all radioactive have been discovered, with ²⁵⁸Md being the most stable with a two-month half-life (about 55 days). ^[2] Other isotopes range from 248 to 258 mass numbers and half-lives from a few seconds to about 55 days. The original ²⁵⁶Md had a half-life of 76 minutes. ^[3] It is assumed that mendelevium's standard state is solid at 298K, and its classification is metallic. ^[4]

History

Mendelevium (for Dmitri Mendeleev, surname commonly transliterated into Latin script as Mendeleev, Mendeleyev, Mendeléef, or even Mendelejeff, and first name sometimes transliterated as Dmitry or Dmitriy) was first synthesized by Albert Ghiorso (team leader), Glenn T. Seaborg, Gregory R. Choppin, Bernard G. Harvey, and Stanley G. Thompson in early 1955 at the University of California, Berkeley. The team produced ²⁵⁶Md (half-life of 76 minutes) when they bombarded an ²⁵³Es target with alpha particles (helium nuclei) in the Berkeley Radiation Laboratory's 60-inch cyclotron (²⁵⁶Md was the first element to be synthesized one-atom-at-a-time). Element 101 was the ninth transuranic element synthesized. The first 17 atoms of this element were created and analyzed using the ion-exchange adsorption-elution method. During the process, mendelevium behaved very much like thulium, its naturally-occurring homologue. ^[5]

Isotopes

15 radioisotopes of mendelevium have been characterized, with the most stable being ²⁵⁸Md with a half-life of 51.5 days, ²⁶⁰Md with a half-life of 31.8 days, and ²⁵⁷Md with a half-life of 5.52 hours. All of the remaining radioactive isotopes have half-lives that are less than 97 minutes, and the majority of these have half-lives that are less than 5 minutes. This element also has 1 meta state, ^258mMd (t_½ 57 minutes). The isotopes of mendelevium range in atomic weight from 245.091 u (²⁴⁵Md) to 260.104 u (²⁶⁰Md).

References

• Los Alamos National Laboratory - Mendelevium
• Guide to the Elements - Revised Edition, Albert Stwertka, (Oxford University Press; 1998) ISBN 0-19-508083-1
• It's Elemental - Mendelevium

External links

Wikimedia Commons has media related to: Mendelevium

Look up mendelevium in Wiktionary, the free dictionary.

• WebElements.com - Mendelevium
• Environmental Chemistry- Md info