Question

advantages and limitations of scandium

Answer 1

Answer:

Explanation:

Scandium is a silvery metal that is soft and has a density of about three times that of water. Scandium is a transition metal and is also considered a rare earth element due to similar chemical properties (such as difficulty in extracting and in separating from other elements) and existence in the same ores, according to Chemicool.

Scandium is the 31st most abundant element on Earth, according to Periodic Table, with about 22 parts per million abundance by weight in Earth's crust, according to Chemicool.  

Scandium is scattered thinly and has been found in over 800 minerals. Within these minerals, scandium is found in its oxide form (Sc2O3, also known as scandia or scandium oxide), according to Scandium Mining. There are many commercial uses for scandium even though the cost of scandium is typically high – several thousand dollars per kilogram for scandium oxide and up to a few hundred thousand dollars per kilogram for pure scandium, according to Chemistry Explained.

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Just the Facts

Atomic number (number of protons in the nucleus): 21

Atomic symbol (on the periodic table of elements): Sc

Atomic weight (average mass of the atom): 44.9559

Density: 1.734 ounces per cubic inch (3.0 grams per cubic cm)

Phase at room temperature: solid

Melting point: 2,804 degrees Fahrenheit (1,540 degrees Celsius)

Boiling point: 5,126 F (2,830 C)

Number of natural isotopes (atoms of the same element with a different number of neutrons): 1. There are also 13 artificial isotopes created in a lab.

Most common isotopes: Sc-45 (100 percent of natural abundance)