In 1859, Bunsen and Kirchhoff were studying a sample of mineral water taken from a spring. Such was the case with the discovery of cesium. Using spectroscopy, a chemist can identify the elements by these distinctive lines. When the substance is heated, the hidden elements give off characteristic spectral lines. But the element is much easier to detect by spectroscopy. In many cases, the amount of an element present in a sample is too small to see. The invention of spectroscopy gave chemists a powerful new tool. One of its radioactive isotopes, cesium-137, is widely used in a variety of medical and industrial applications. The spectrum (plural: spectra) of an element consists of a series of colored lines.Ĭesium is not a common element, and it has few commercial uses. The light produced is different for every element. Spectroscopy is the process of analyzing light produced when an element is heated. They found the element using a method of analysis they had just invented: spectroscopy. Although in theory francium is more active than cesium, francium is too rare to have any commercial uses.Ĭesium was discovered in 1861 by German chemists Robert Bunsen (1811-99) and Gustav Kirchhoff (1824-87). Cesium is considered the most active metal. The alkalis include lithium, sodium, potassium, rubidium, and francium. The periodic table is a chart that shows how chemical elements are related to each other. OverviewĬesium is a member of the alkali family, which consists of elements in Group 1 (IA) of the periodic table. Note: This article, originally published in 1998, was updated in 2006 for the eBook edition. ↑ "WebElements Periodic Table » Caesium » reactions of elements"."IYPT 2019 Elements 055: Caesium: Atomic clocks and explosive reactions". Bunsen: Chemische Analyse durch Spectralbeobachtungen. "Mineral Commodity Profile: Cesium" (PDF). ↑ "NIST Radionuclide Half-Life Measurements".Handbook of Chemistry and Physics (PDF) (87th ed.). ↑ "Magnetic susceptibility of the elements and inorganic compounds".CRC Handbook of Chemistry and Physics (92nd ed.). You can find a video of the reaction here. The explosion is over 50 times the size of the element dropped in the water, and the explosion is enough to break a common Pyrex Beaker, Flask, or Test Tube. The Caesium sinks for about one second, then explodes. For this reason, it must be stored in kerosene or a mineral oil, like other group one elements ( Lithium, Natrium, Rubidium, and Francium.) In water, Caesium violently reacts to make Caesium Hydroxide (2CsOH). Caesium rapidly oxidizes in air and can spontaneously combust (randomly catch on fire) at any moment. Caesium formate is used in oil drilling because of its high density.Ĭaesium is extremely reactive in air and water. It is very radioactive and used as an industrial gamma ray source.Ĭaesium forms compounds with many other chemical elements. Another isotope, 137Cs is not made naturally but is made after nuclear fission has been done. 133Cs is used in atomic clocks, its vibration frequency used to define the length of the second. Therefore, the naturally-occurring isotope of caesium is 133Cs, which is not radioactive. Isotopes and compounds Ĭaesium has at least 39 known isotopes ranging in atomic mass from 112 to 151. They named this substance caesium, after the color blue. Because of these lines, they concluded that in addition to the elements already found, there must be another unknown substance in the mineral water. After they separated calcium, strontium, magnesium and lithium, they saw two lines in the "blue" range of the spectrum. They were testing mineral water, from Bad Dürkheim. In large amounts, its chemical compounds are mildly poisonous because it is close to potassium, which the body does need.Ĭaesium was first described in 1860, by Gustav Robert Kirchhoff and Robert Wilhelm Bunsen. Since there is little caesium on the Earth, it is rather expensive. Because of this, caesium is stored in mineral oil. It reacts more violently than the other alkali metals with water. It may set itself on fire (ignite) in air. Because of its high reactivity, it is a dangerous chemical. Its symbol is Cs.Ĭaesium is an alkali metal. Caesium (or cesium) is the chemical element with the atomic number 55 on the periodic table.
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