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Why is Mercury useful?

Updated: 12/18/2022
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7y ago

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Mercury, also known as quicksilver because it is a silver-colored liquid at room temperature, is an element that does not break down. It occurs naturally and is found in very small amounts in oceans, rocks and soils. It becomes airborne when rocks erode, volcanoes erupt and soil decomposes. It then circulates in the atmosphere and is redistributed throughout the environment. Large amounts of mercury also become airborne when coal, oil or natural gas is burned as fuel or mercury-containing garbage is incinerated. Once in the air, mercury can fall to the ground with rain and snow, landing on soils or water bodies, causing contamination.

Lakes and rivers are also contaminated when there is a direct discharge of mercury-laden industrial waste or municipal sewage. Once present in these water bodies, mercury accumulates in fish and may ultimately reach the dinner table.

Although mercury has been a very useful element, due to its unique properties, it poses a very real health risk-from direct exposure to mercury, as well as from eating contaminated fish. We can minimize this risk by reducing our use of mercury-containing products and properly disposing of mercury-containing waste.

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Would meteorology be useful science to Apply to the study of planets such as mercury and Mars?

Meteorology would be useful on Mars but not on Mercury. Mercury does not have a substantial atmosphere and therefore has no weather to speak of. Mars has enough of an atmosphere to produce weather such as dust storms.


Would meteorology be useful science to apply to the study of planets such as Mars and Mercury?

Meteorology would be useful on Mars but not on Mercury. Mercury does not have a substantial atmosphere and therefore has no weather to speak of. Mars has enough of an atmosphere to produce weather such as dust storms.


Why has a thermometre got Mercury in it?

The element mercury has several unique properties, including that it expands when heat is applied, making it useful for making thermometers.


Why was Mercury used for thermometers?

Mercury is a liquid at room temperature; this made it a useful substance in thermometers. As the mercury heated up, it expanded; this indicated the temperature of the surroundings. Similarly, the colder it got, the more the mercury 'shrunk' so it indicated the low temperature.


Do we need Mercury?

Do you mean as an industrial agent, or as some kind of nutrient? Mercury is very toxic and should not be ingested for any reason. The primary useful role for mercury is that it is the only metal that is a liquid at standard temperature and pressure.


What is some other useful information on mercury?

Other than what? Insufficient data to answer that question. Please rephrase. =)


What element is poisonous if ingested but is now replaced?

The element that is useful but poisonous when ingested is mercury. That is why there is concern over the safety of some fish consumption due to high mercury content.


Where do people use Mercury?

People use mercury because it has useful properties. It is a metal that is liquid at normal temperatures and conducts electricity It is dense (heavy) and so useful where added weight may be needed, as in clock pendulums It is a liquid and so will flow from one place to another


What property of mercury makes it different from other metals and also make it useful in thermometers and silent lights?

At room temperature, it is a liquid. Its chemical symbol, Hg, comes from the Latin word for mercury: hydrargyrum, which means "liquid silver."


What is Mercury used for?

Mercury is used for wobbler (fishing) lures, barometers, diffusion pumps, fluorescent lamps, street lights, advertising signs, and many other things. Mercury used to be common in thermometers but was replaced with any one of a number of liquids.


Why is mercury rarely used in thermometers that take body temperatures?

Mercury is a toxic heavy metal. The possibility of breakage and the subsequent release of mercury into the body, or into the environment, means that mercury usage has gradually been phased out in consumer thermometers. Laboratory thermometers often still contain mercury, since it's useful over a wide range of temperatures. This isn't so critical in medical thermometers, since the body temperature of someone who isn't actually dead is almost certainly going to be no more than 10 degrees from 37 Celcius.


Where could one find a local Lincoln Mercury supplier?

A local Lincoln Mercury supplied can be found on Yahoo personal ads, searching your local area. Yahoo personals are useful as many ordinary users advertise here and it increases the likeliness of finding something local that suits you.