Cerium Research Paper

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One of the least spoken about elements, cerium, is important and rather abundant for being considered a rare metal. It is more abundant than most metals in Earth’s crust. Cerium (Ce) has an atomic number of 58 and an average atomic mass of 140.116. To find it on the Periodic Table, either find atomic number 58 or use the electron configuration of [Xe]6s24f15d1. When searching across The Periodic Table, cerium is not a definitive eye catcher, however, seeing pure cerium ignite when scratched will spark interest in most people. Usually, cerium is in a solid metal form as an conductor. cerium was named after an asteroid called Ceres. All in all, cerium is a usually silvery, sometimes dark gray, malleable metal, in the Lanthanide series in period six that is very reactive but has many uses. …show more content…

Cerium was found for the first time in both Sweden and Germany in the same year. Today, it is usually obtained by an ion exchange process from monazite sand, which is known to have many rare earth elements inside. Cerium is dangerous by itself but can be used to make carbon arc lights for studio lighting in the motion picture industry. Misch metal has many metals in it, including cerium, and is used to make flints for lighters. Cerium oxide (Ce2O3 and CeO2) is used in self-cleaning ovens, gas mantles and to polish glass surfaces. Cerium does not have any major medical uses but, can have minor ones, like in the polish used to polish glass after cleaning. In 2012, to buy a kilogram of cerium oxide it is about $26. The price fluctuates quite a lot, for example, in September of 2011 a kilogram of cerium oxide was $118. Cerium is a conductor with a low density of 6.689 grams per cubic centimeters. The melting point is 1071o K, which is about 1468.13o F and the boiling point is 3697o K, which is 6194.93o

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