Thorium

   __Thorium__

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Basic Information Element Name: Thorium Element Symbol: Th Atomic Number: 90 Atomic Mass: 232.04 Period: 7 Group: Actinoids State at Room Temperature: Solid **__ The Discovery of Thorium __** The first announcement of the discovery of thorium came in 1815. Jöns Berzelius reported that he had found a new element in a mineral taken from the Falun district of Sweden. He named the element thorium after the Scandinavian god Thor. A decade later, however, he found out that the substance was not a new element at all, but the compound yttrium phosphate. Still later, in 1829, Berzelius once again reported the discovery of a new element. He found the element in a mineral sent to him for analysis by the Reverend Hans Esmark. This time Berzelius had made no error. The mineral did contain a new element for which he once more suggested the name Thorium.

From the word //Thor//, Scandinavian god of war. It was discovered from a Norwegian ore known as 'thorite' (ThSiO4) in 1828. It is commercially recovered from monazite sands which contain about 3-9% of the oxide. The metal can be produced by the reduction of its oxide with calcium. Its main use is in gas mantle that improves the low luminosity of the coal-gas flame. It is also used as an alloying agent with magnesium to give high strength and creep resistance. The oxide is used in making high quality lenses with high refractive index and low dispersion. The metal has potential use as a source of nuclear reactor and work has been done in developing thorium cycle convertor-reactor systems. **Physical Properties:** Boiling Point: 5123 K Melting Point: 2023.2 K Isotopes: 30 (3 natural) Abundance: Unknown State of Matter: Solid Color: Silver-Grey Texture: Smooth Abundance: 232
 * History and Interaction **

Throium's biological role is for thorium's energy to reduce the volume and toxicity of waste. Thorium fuel cycles reduces more than the conventional uranium fuel cycle. There are many hazards such as land disruption, chemical and radiological hazards, and chemical toxicity. Its abundance is 232.
 * Element Uses: **

Pictures of thorium (above)

**Other Information:** Compounds: halides, oxides, sulfides, hydrides, and complexes; lattice energies; and reduction potentials

Isotope Information: Abundance: 232
 * ~ Isotope ||~ Mass ||~ Half-life ||~ Mode of decay ||~ Nuclear spin ||~ Nuclear magnetic moment ||
 * 227Th || 227.027699 || 18.72 d || α to 223Ra || 3/2 ||  ||
 * 228Th || 228.028731 || 1.913 y || α to 224Ra; 20O || 0 ||  ||
 * 229Th || 229.031754 || 7900 y || α to 225Ra || 5/2 || 0.46 ||
 * 230Th || 230.033126 || 75400 y || α to 226Ra; SF || 0 ||  ||
 * 231Th || 231.036296 || 1.063 d || α to 227Ra; β- to 231Pa || 5/2 ||  ||
 * 232Th || 232.0380508 (23) || 1.4 x 1010 y || α to 228Ra; SF || 0 ||  ||
 * 233Th || 233.041576 || 22.3 m || β- to 233Pa || 1/2 ||  ||
 * 234Th || 234.036596 || 24.10 d || β- to 234Pa || 0 ||

We Found this information at: http://www.bookrags.com/research/thorium-wsd/ http://elements.etacude.com/Th.php

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 * The Bohr Model of Thorium: