TECHNETIUM

Atomic Number: 43, electrons=43, protons=43, neutrons (most abundant isotope)= 55

Atomic Weight: 98
Melting Point: 2430 K (2157C or 3915F)
Boiling Point: 4538 K (4265C or 7709F)
Density: 11 grams per cubic centimeter
Phase at Room Temperature: Solid
Element Classification: Metal
Period Number: 5

Group Number: 7

What's in a name? From the Greek word for artificial, technetos.

Technetium was the first artificially produced element. It is silver gray in colour. It was isolated by Carlo
Perrier and Emilio Segr in 1937. Technetium was created by bombarding molybdenum atoms
with deuterons that had been accelerated by a device called a cyclotron.
Today, technetium is produced by bombarding molybdenum-98 with neutrons. Molybdenum-98
becomes molybdenum-99 when it captures a neutron. Molybdenum-99, with a half-life of 65.94
hours, decays into technetium-99 through beta decay. While technetium has never been found to occur
naturally on earth, its spectral lines have been observed in S-, M- and N-type stars.
Technetium's most stable isotope, technetium-98, has a half-life of about 4,200,000 years. It decays
into ruthenium-98 through beta decay.
Small amounts of technetium can retard (hold back) the corrosion of steel, although this protection can
only be applied to closed systems due to technetium's radioactivity. Technetium can also be used as a
medical tracer, medical imaging agents and to calibrate particle detectors.
Number of Stable Isotopes: 0
Ionization Energy: 7.28 eV
Oxidation States: +7, +6, +4
Electron Shell Configuration: [Kr] 4d55s2

1s2
2s2 2p6

3s2 3p6 3d10

4s2 4p6 4d5
5s2

ALFRED NOBEL
Known for: The inventor of dynamite and holder of 355 patents.
Born: 21 October 1833.
Died: 10 December 1896.
Languages: Spoke five languages fluently at the age of 17.
Professions: Swedish chemist, inventor, engineer, entrepreneur, business man, author and
pacifist.
Fortune: In his will he left 31 million SEK (today about 265 million dollar) to fund the prizes.
Alfred shined under strict Russian tutelage, mastering several languages as well as chemistry,
physics, poetry and natural sciences.
Because the elder Nobel disapproved of Alfred's interest in poetry, he sent his son abroad to
further his training in chemistry and engineering. While studying in Paris, Nobel met Italian chemist
Ascanio Sobrero, who in 1847 invented nitroglycerin, the oily, liquid explosive made by combining
glycerin with nitric acid and sulfuric acid.
Though nitroglycerine was considered too unsafe to have any practical use, the Nobel family
which now had several profitable enterprises in Russia and Sweden continued to investigate its
potential for commercial and industrial uses.
But their inquiries had tragic results: In 1864, Alfred's younger brother Emil and several other
people were killed in an explosion at one of their factories in Sweden. The disaster encouraged
Alfred to try to find a way to make nitroglycerin safe. Success didn't come easily: Early
experiments included the creation of "blasting oil," a mixture of nitro and gunpowder, which
resulted in several deadly explosions and once killed 15 people when it exploded in a storeroom in
San Francisco.
Finally, in 1867, Alfred Nobel found that by mixing nitroglycerin with diatomaceous earth (known
as kieselguhr in German), the resulting compound was a stable paste that could be shaped into
short sticks that mining companies might use to blast through rock. Nobel patented this invention
as "dynamite," from the Greek word dunamis, or "power."
The invention of dynamite revolutionized the mining, construction and demolition industries.
Railroad companies could now safety blast through mountains, opening up vast stretches of the

Earth's surface to exploration and commerce. As a result, Nobel who eventually garnered
355 patents on his many inventions grew fantastically wealthy.
Dynamite, of course, had other uses, and it wasn't long before military authorities began using it in
warfare, including dynamite cannons used during the Spanish-American War. Though he's widely
credited with being a pacifist, it's not known whether Nobel approved of dynamite's military use or
not.
Nonetheless, he found out what others thought of his invention when, in 1888, his brother Ludvig
died. Though some journalistic error, Alfred's obituary was widely printed instead, and he was
scorned for being the man who made millions through the deaths of others. Once French
newspaper wrote "Le marchand de la mort est mort," or "the merchant of death is dead." The
obituary went on to describe Nobel as a man "who became rich by finding ways to kill more people
faster than ever before."
Nobel was reportedly stunned by what he read, and as a result became determined to do
something to improve his legacy. One year before he died in 1896, Nobel signed his last will and
testament, which set aside the majority of his vast estate to establish the five Nobel Prizes,
including one awarded for the pursuit of peace.