Why did francium take so long to discover?

Answer 1

Francium is a natural chemical element but the total quantity of francium in the earth crust is only approx. 30 g. Francium has ca. 40 isotopes and isomers but only two are natural: 221Fr (in the neptunium decay chain series) and 223Fr (in the actinium decay chain series). Artificially preparation of francium isotopes is also extremely difficult and expensive; and the chemistry and physics of isotopes was developed essentially after 1940. Supplementary, the most stable isotope of francium has a half life of only 21,8 minutes and is strongly radioactive; the half lives of the artificially prepared isotopes are more smaller.

This is sufficient reason to explain why francium was later discovered and why even today is only slightly studied.

Answer 2

Francium is a natural chemical element but the total quantity of francium in the earth crust is only approx. 30 g. Francium has ca. 40 isotopes and isomers but only two are natural: 221Fr (in the neptunium decay chain series) and 223Fr (in the actinium decay chain series). Artificially preparation of francium isotopes is also extremely difficult and expensive; and the chemistry and physics of isotopes was developed essentially after 1940. Supplementary, the most stable isotope of francium has a half life of only 21,8 minutes and is strongly radioactive; the half lives of the artificially prepared isotopes are more smaller.

This is sufficient reason to explain why francium was later discovered and why even today is only slightly studied.

Answer 3

Answered By Dan Sorensenbecause francium is one of the rarest natural elements

Marguerite Perey discovered francium in 1939. Francium was the last element discovered in nature, rather than synthesized. Outside the laboratory, francium is extremely rare, with trace amounts found in uranium and thorium ores, where the isotope francium-223 is continually formed and continually decays. Perhaps an ounce exists at any given time throughout the Earth's crust; the other isotopes are entirely synthetic. It is also one of the few elements with the ability to run away from scientests using electron legs. The largest amount ever collected of any isotope was a cluster of 10,000 atoms (of francium-210) created as an ultracold gas at Stony Brook in 1996Source(s): Wikipedia ;)

Answer 4

Francium is a natural chemical element but the total quantity of francium in the earth crust is only approx. 30 g. Francium has ca. 40 isotopes and isomers but only two are natural: 221Fr (in the neptunium decay chain series) and 223Fr (in the actinium decay chain series). Artificially preparation of francium isotopes is also extremely difficult and expensive; and the chemistry and physics of isotopes was developed essentially after 1940. Supplementary, the most stable isotope of francium has a half life of only 21,8 minutes and is strongly radioactive; the half lives of the artificially prepared isotopes are more smaller.

This is sufficient reason to explain why francium was later discovered and why even today is only slightly studied.

Answer 5

Francium is a natural chemical element but the total quantity of francium in the earth crust is only approx. 30 g. Francium has ca. 40 isotopes and isomers but only two are natural: 221Fr (in the neptunium decay chain series) and 223Fr (in the actinium decay chain series). Artificially preparation of francium isotopes is also extremely difficult and expensive; and the chemistry and physics of isotopes was developed essentially after 1940. Supplementary, the most stable isotope of francium has a half life of only 21,8 minutes and is strongly radioactive; the half lives of the artificially prepared isotopes are more smaller.

This is sufficient reason to explain why francium was later discovered and why even today is only slightly studied.

Answer 6

Francium is a natural chemical element but the total quantity of francium in the earth crust is only approx. 30 g. Francium has ca. 40 isotopes and isomers but only two are natural: 221Fr (in the neptunium decay chain series) and 223Fr (in the actinium decay chain series). Artificially preparation of francium isotopes is also extremely difficult and expensive; and the chemistry and physics of isotopes was developed essentially after 1940. Supplementary, the most stable isotope of francium has a half life of only 21,8 minutes and is strongly radioactive; the half lives of the artificially prepared isotopes are more smaller.

This is sufficient reason to explain why francium was later discovered and why even today is only slightly studied.

Answer 7

Francium is a natural chemical element but the total quantity of francium in the earth crust is only approx. 30 g. Francium has ca. 40 isotopes and isomers but only two are natural: 221Fr (in the neptunium decay chain series) and 223Fr (in the actinium decay chain series). Artificially preparation of francium isotopes is also extremely difficult and expensive; and the chemistry and physics of isotopes was developed essentially after 1940. Supplementary, the most stable isotope of francium has a half life of only 21,8 minutes and is strongly radioactive; the half lives of the artificially prepared isotopes are more smaller.

This is sufficient reason to explain why francium was later discovered and why even today is only slightly studied.

Answer 8

Francium is a natural chemical element but the total quantity of francium in the earth crust is only approx. 30 g. Francium has ca. 40 isotopes and isomers but only two are natural: 221Fr (in the neptunium decay chain series) and 223Fr (in the actinium decay chain series). Artificially preparation of francium isotopes is also extremely difficult and expensive; and the chemistry and physics of isotopes was developed essentially after 1940. Supplementary, the most stable isotope of francium has a half life of only 21,8 minutes and is strongly radioactive; the half lives of the artificially prepared isotopes are more smaller.

This is sufficient reason to explain why francium was later discovered and why even today is only slightly studied.

Answer 9

Francium exist only in very infinitesimal concentrations in uranium ores: it is extremely difficult to identify francium surely.