Actinides . Actinides are the 14 chemical elements that, after actinium, are arranged consecutively in the periodic table , with atomic numbers from 89 (actinium) to 103 (laurentium). Its discovery and study of its properties constitute one of the most exciting chapters of 20th century science .
Summary
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- 1 Group composition
- 2 Natural state
- 3 Properties
- 4 See also
- 5 External links
- 6 Sources
Group composition
The elements of the actinide family are: actinium (89) thorium (90), proctactinium (91), uranium (92) and the ten transuranic elements, neptunium (93), plutonium (94), americium (95), curium (96), berkelium (97), californium (98), einsteinium (99), fermium (100), mendelevium (101) and nobelium (103), studied with regard to their discovery and artificial production.
Natural state
As a group they are significantly important due to radioactivity . Although many elements can be found in nature , most of these in this group have been artificially obtained by man. Among the most important elements we name uranium and plutonium that have been used in the atomic bomb and that are currently used with increasing frequency in order to obtain electrical energy .
Properties
The properties of these elements are similar to each other, because they have an arrangement of electrons around the nucleus , which gives them this similarity. In any atom , the number of positive charges (protons) of the nucleus is equal to the number of negative charges (electrons) that surround it, thus determining the electrical neutrality of the atom. These elements are located on the periodic table one after the other as the number of protons increases. This means that the element that succeeds another must also have one more electron to balance the positive charge of the additional proton and thus keep the atom electrically neutral.
