Mendelevium Facts

The chances of you having come across the term 'mendelevium' are quite rare, especially if you have limited educational background of chemistry. Basically, mendelevium is one of the 15 chemical elements which form the actinide or actinoid series of the periodic table. Most of the information that is known to us is based on assumptions owing to its rare nature. For instance, it is virtually impossible to determine the appearance of this element, and therefore it is assumed that it is either silver of white in color.

Interesting Facts about Mendelevium

Mendelevium is not a naturally occurring chemical element and the process of synthesizing it is quite expensive and time-consuming. Only trace amounts of this element has been produced as of now, and that explains why we have such little information about this chemical element. While some researchers have shown that it is moderately stable in the oxidation state, the data available is limited and research is going on.

Mendelevium Properties
Mendelevium is a synthetic element - a chemical element which is too unstable to occur naturally on Earth, which is synthesized by bombarding einsteinium with alpha particles. It is a metallic radioactive transuranic element with the symbol 'Md' and atomic number '101'. Its atomic weight is (258)g·mol^-1 and melting point is 1521°F. As we mentioned earlier, quite a lot of mendelevium facts that are known to us are based on assumptions while other information like its boiling point of density is unknown as of now. Of the discovered isotopes of mendelevium, almost all range between 248 to 258 mass numbers and have half-lives ranging between a few seconds to approximately 51 days. All these isotopes are radioactive, with ²⁵⁸Md being the most stable of them all with a half-life of around 55 days. More importantly, it has no known compounds.

Who Discovered this Element?
Mendelevium was synthesized for the first time by a team of scientists at the University of California, Berkeley, in 1955. The team headed by Stanley G. Thompson, included stalwarts like Albert Ghiorso, Glenn T. Seaborg, Gregory R. Choppin and Bernard G. Harvey. Mendelevium was the 9th transuranic element which was synthesized in this process. That it has been named after Dmitri Ivanovich Mendeleev - a Russian chemist and inventor who developed a periodic table of the chemical elements, is perhaps the most interesting of all facts about this chemical element. Even though the International Union of Pure and Applied Chemistry (IUPAC) did give a positive nod for the name, the 'Mv' symbol proposed by the scientists who discovered mendelevium was not accepted. Instead, IUPAC went ahead with Md as the symbol for this element.

Uses of Mendelevium
As far as its uses are concerned, there are absolutely none except for its use in basic scientific research. The expenses incurred and time-consumed in synthesizing it and the short lifespan of this chemical element, restrict the amount of mendelevium which can be synthesized. The little amount of mendelevium that is produced is used in the field of research, owing to which the commercial uses of it have not yet been developed.

Other than the aforementioned facts, you also need to know that it is known for its radioactivity owing to which it is potentially harmful for human health. However, the fact that it is not a naturally occurring element and produced in limited amount, and when produced artificially reduces the chances of people coming in direct contact. Owing to this, it is not considered to be as harmful as other radioactive elements of the periodic table.