Cerium - ASCII Periodic Table of the Elements

ASCII PERIODIC TABLE OF THE ELEMENTS

  Ce

Relative atomic mass: 140.116 ± 0.001

English: Cerium
French: Cérium
Croatian: Cerij
German: Cer
Italian: Cerio
Spanish: Cerio

Atomic number: 58
Group numbers: 3
Period: 6
Standard state (20 °C): solid

Discovery: 1803 Jöns Jakob Berzelius, Wilhelm Hisinger (SE); Martin Heinrich Klaproth (DE)

Cerium was discovered by Jöns Jakob Berzelius and Wilhelm Hisinger (SE) in 1803 and independently by Martin Heinrich Klaproth (DE). Named after the asteroid 'Ceres' discovered two years before the element. It is a malleable, ductile, iron-grey metal that tarnishes in air and reacts easily with water. Cerium dissolves in acids and ignites when heated. Metal ignites and burns readily. Strong reductant. Cerium is most abundant rare earth metal. Found in many minerals like monazite sand [Ce(PO4)]. Its oxides are used in the optics and glass-making industries. Its salts are used in the photography and textile industry. Cerium is also used in high-intensity carbon lamps and as alloying agents in special metals.

Electronic configuration: [Xe] 4f² 6s²
Formal oxidation number: +3 +4
Atomic radius: 182.5 pm

Electronegativities: 1.12
Thermal conductivity: 11.4 W/(m K)
Electrical resistivity (20 °C): 75 μΩcm

Melting point: 798 °C
Boiling point: 3443 °C

Heat of fusion: 8.87 kJ/mol
Heat of vaporization: 398 kJ/mol
Heat of atomization: 423.4 kJ/mol