Scandium Facts – What you need to know about Scandium

Lars Fredrik Nilson discovered Scandium way back in the year 1878. This was the time when he found the mentioned from the minerals gadolinite and euxenite. During those times, the said is not seen around any element except for Scandinavia alone. Prior to it, Dmitri Mendeleev initiated the theorizing of the undiscovered element. This is one referred to as ekaboron. Scandium facts are all over the place. When Nilson discovered it, scientists initiated in the acknowledgement that ekaboron description is the same with that of scandium. Meaning, it became the same with Mendeleev’s findings.

Scandium has always been a silver-white metal. This is responsible in developing a pinkish or slightly yellow cast whenever it is being exposed to that of the air. This is also perceived as a transition metal. This can form a white coat for it has nitride with it. This goes to show that it may react with water and even that with a yellow-red flame whenever it is burning.

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The soft element resembles that of yttrium. This may also share the same characteristics as that of other earth metals which are common on the earth. These may include titanium or aluminum. Scandium has always been light. This goes with a higher melting point as compared to that of aluminum. This is one of the reasons why it triggered the interest of designers of spacecraft.

Scandium is perceived to be the 23rd among the most abundant element seen in other stars and the sun. On the earth though, it is in the 50th. Needless to say, it has been distributed widely around the planet. It exists in minute quantities even in more than 800 kinds of minerals. Scandium is the reason why there is a blue color found in beryl’s aquamarine. It is basically the primary cause of it.

There is a really high concentration of scandium. This is seen in Malagasy and Scandinavian mineral which is called thortveitite. This is known to be the principal component of it. Scandium is also seen in residues which are the remain after the tungsten extraction. This may come from wiikite, Zinnwald wolframite and even that of bazzite.

The reduction of scandium fluoride from calcium metal is necessary to produce a pure amount of scandium. These days, a lot of scandium is normally recovered from the thortveitite, or there are times when they are obtained from uranium’s mill trailings only as a single byproduct.

The uses

Scandium is primarily used as a light source. It takes 20 kilograms of the mentioned yearly in the United States alone so that high-intensity of lights may be produced. This Scandium also comes with a radioactive isotope. This is utilized as a natural tracing agent which is intended for refinery crackers. This is meant for other materials and even that of crude oil. It can be a highly efficient light source as it is added to any mercury vapor lamps. This may also be seen in indoors and even in the night time color of most televisions.