PTL:Neodymium
From ChemEd Collaborative
| Symbol: | Nd |
|---|---|
| Atomic Number: | 60 |
| Atomic Weight: | 144.24(3) |
| Electron Configuration: | [Xe] 4f4 6s2 |
| Atomic Radius: | 182.1pm |
| Melting Point: | 1012°C |
| Boiling Point: | 3074°C |
| Heat of Fusion: | 7.14kJ/mol |
| Heat of Vaporization: | 273kJ/mol |
| Specific Heat Capacity: | 0.19J/gK |
Neodymium is a metal in the lanthanide or rare earth series of elements, which stretches from lanthanum (La) through lutetium (Lu).
Contents |
Discovered
The isolation of the element was difficult, as was the case for most of the lanthanides. Their chemical similarity means that they are often found in the same mineral deposit and that they behave similarly when one tries to separate them. In 1841 Mosander separated a rare oxide that he called didymia from another mineral lanthana. In 1885 Auer separated didymia into two other oxides, praseodymia and neodymia, which in turn gave salts of different colors. Pure neodymium metal was not isolated until 1925.
Characteristics
Neodymium metal is one of the most reactive of the lanthanides, so the bright, silvery metal tarnishes rapidly in air forming Nd2O3.
Uses
Didymium, composed of Pr2O3 and Nd2O3, is used to make [welder's goggles], since this oxide filters out certain wavelengths of light. Glass colored with neodymium has sharp absorption bands, and can be used in lasers.
Neodymium oxide is also found in [photographic filters], as the coloring material in blue-violet glass, and in [ceramic capacitors].
Neodymium can be used to make magnets with very high energy densities with applications in headphones and computers.
Emission Spectra
This is the emission spectra for Neodymium.
