europium
Sign in to saveEuropium is a chemical element; it has symbol Eu and atomic number 63. It is a silvery-white metal of the lanthanide series that reacts readily with air to form a dark oxide coating. Europium is the most chemically reactive, least dense, and softest of the lanthanides. It is soft enough to be cut with a knife. Europium was discovered in 1896, provisionally designated as Σ; in 1901, it was named after the continent of Europe. Europium usually assumes the oxidation state +3, like other members of the lanthanide series, but compounds having oxidation state +2 are also common. All europium compoun
AI overview
Europium is a soft, silvery-white metal element that reacts easily with air and was named after Europe when it was discovered in the late 1800s. It's notable for being the most chemically reactive and softest of its family of metals (the lanthanides), and it can exist in two different chemical states, which makes it useful in various applications.
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Article
16 sectionsContents
- Etymology
- Physical properties
- Chemical properties
- Eu(II) vs. Eu(III)
- Compounds
- Halides
- Chalcogenides and pnictides
- Isotopes
- Europium as a nuclear fission product
- Occurrence
- Production
- History
- Applications
- Precautions
- References
- External links
Europium is a chemical element; it has symbol Eu and atomic number 63. It is a silvery-white metal of the lanthanide series that reacts readily with air to form a dark oxide coating. Europium is the most chemically reactive, least dense, and softest of the lanthanides. It is soft enough to be cut with a knife. Europium was discovered in 1896, provisionally designated as Σ; in 1901, it was named after the continent of Europe. Europium usually assumes the oxidation state +3, like other members of the lanthanide series, but compounds having oxidation state +2 are also common. All europium compounds with oxidation state +2 are slightly reducing. Europium has no significant biological role but is relatively non-toxic compared to other heavy metals. Most applications of europium exploit the phosphorescence of europium compounds. Europium is one of the rarest of the rare-earth elements on Earth.
==Etymology== Its discoverer, Eugène-Anatole Demarçay, named the element after the continent of Europe.