Halogens: Uses of Halogens

The term halogen was termed by a Swedish chemist Baron Jons Jakob Berzelius. Halogens are found in the environment only in the form of ions or compounds because of their high reactivity. Let's have a look at some of the halogens uses.

Halogens Facts

• Chlorine, fluorine, bromine, iodine are all halogens
• All these halogens have seven electrons in their outer orbit, i.e. they are monovalent
• Halogens have lower melting and boiling points compared to other non metals
• All halogens are poor thermal conductors and also poor conductors of electricity
• Except fluorine, all other halogen elements can expand their shell to include valence electrons. They can hold around fourteen valence electrons in their outer shell

Halogens Uses

Above were some unique halogen(s) characteristics. Further we will see some halogen(s) uses according to the halogen elements; fluorine, chlorine, bromine, astatine and iodine.

Bromine Uses:
Bromine was discovered in 1826 by French and German scientist named Antoine J. Balard and Carl J. Lowig respectively. Bromine is a reddish colored liquid which has a strong odor. It is in liquid form at room temperature and it gives off vapor freely. Bromine has an affinity to hydrogen, which makes it a good decomposer. Bromine is also used to disinfect water as it can kill the bacteria present in the water. The inorganic form of bromine is used in photography film, bromine is also used in fumigants, flame proofing agents, dyes and medicines.

Astatine Uses:
The word astatine is derived from the Greek word 'astatos' which means unstable. Astatine was discovered by University of California in 1940. It is solid at room temperature. One of the special characteristics of astatine is that it is not found in nature at all! It is produced by bombarding bismuth with alpha particles. The uses of astatine are not yet discovered.

Fluorine Uses:
Fluorine was discovered by Karl Scheele in 1771 and the word fluorine was derived from the word flow. It is in gaseous form at room temperature, which is said to be highly poisonous. There are many uses of fluorine such as making refrigerants, detergents etc. Fluorine is used mainly for producing uranium form hexafluroide and it is also used for making other fluorine compounds.

Earlier, fluorine was used to produce CFC's and these CFC's were used in aerosol sprays, cleaning agents and polymers. However it was found that these compounds can cause ozone layer depletion and so were banned. Other fluorine uses are as: it is used in rocket fuels as it is combustible. The most common of fluoride is in toothpaste. They are used in toothpaste because they are said to avoid dental cavities. In some countries, fluorine is added to municipal water supplies to reduce teeth decay. Fluorinated compounds can be used to create plastic and also for glass etching. Fluorinated compounds are not only used for decorative etching but also for marking glass bulbs as they are too thin to be etched.

Chlorine Uses:
Chlorine was first found by a Swedish chemist named Wilhelm Scheele in 1774. Chlorine is found in gaseous form at room temperature, it has a pungent and irritating odor and is yellowish green in color. More on chlorine facts. The most important use of chlorine is as a bleach for manufacturing paper and cloth. Chlorine is one of the most commonly manufactured chemicals in the United States. The most common use of chlorine is in drinking water and swimming pool as it can kill harmful bacteria. Further uses of chlorine include production of everyday products such insecticides, solvents, food paints, plastic, dyes, textiles, petroleum products, paper products etc.

Iodine Uses:
Iodine is a very important element and has a lot of uses. The compounds are basically used in medicine, photography and dyes. Iodine forms starch which is an intense blue complex compound. Another very important use of iodine is as it is quite radioopaque, it can be used as X-ray radio contrast agent, for intravenous injection. Besides this iodine forms many compounds like potassium iodide which is of commercial use, and as sodium iodide which is useful in Finklestein reaction. Read more on Iodine: The Element.

These were the halogens uses. Do you still have this question flashing your mind 'What are halogens used for?'' Well, the answer is halogens are also used in lighting halogen bulbs!