A report on Mercury (element)

A pound coin (density ~7.6 g/cm3) floats on mercury due to the combination of the buoyant force and surface tension.
Mercury-discharge spectral calibration lamp
The symbol for the planet Mercury (☿) has been used since ancient times to represent the element
Native mercury with cinnabar, Socrates mine, Sonoma County, California. Cinnabar sometimes alters to native mercury in the oxidized zone of mercury deposits.
The bulb of a mercury-in-glass thermometer
Amalgam filling
A single-pole, single-throw (SPST) mercury switch
Mercury manometer to measure pressure
Amount of atmospheric mercury deposited at Wyoming's Upper Fremont Glacier over the last 270 years
EPA workers clean up residential mercury spill in 2004
The deep violet glow of a mercury vapor discharge in a germicidal lamp, whose spectrum is rich in invisible ultraviolet radiation.
Skin tanner containing a low-pressure mercury vapor lamp and two infrared lamps, which act both as light source and electrical ballast
Assorted types of fluorescent lamps.
The miniaturized Deep Space Atomic Clock is a linear ion-trap-based mercury ion clock, designed for precise and real-time radio navigation in deep space.

Chemical element with the symbol Hg and atomic number 80.

- Mercury (element)
A pound coin (density ~7.6 g/cm3) floats on mercury due to the combination of the buoyant force and surface tension.

160 related topics with Alpha

Overall
The bulb of a mercury-in-glass thermometer

Mercury poisoning

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The bulb of a mercury-in-glass thermometer
EPA workers clean up residential mercury spill in 2004

Mercury poisoning is a type of metal poisoning due to exposure to mercury.

The chemical elements ordered in the periodic table

Chemical element

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Species of atoms that have a given number of protons in their nuclei, including the pure substance consisting only of that species.

Species of atoms that have a given number of protons in their nuclei, including the pure substance consisting only of that species.

The chemical elements ordered in the periodic table
Estimated distribution of dark matter and dark energy in the universe. Only the fraction of the mass and energy in the universe labeled "atoms" is composed of chemical elements.
Periodic table showing the cosmogenic origin of each element in the Big Bang, or in large or small stars. Small stars can produce certain elements up to sulfur, by the alpha process. Supernovae are needed to produce "heavy" elements (those beyond iron and nickel) rapidly by neutron buildup, in the r-process. Certain large stars slowly produce other elements heavier than iron, in the s-process; these may then be blown into space in the off-gassing of planetary nebulae
Abundances of the chemical elements in the Solar System. Hydrogen and helium are most common, from the Big Bang. The next three elements (Li, Be, B) are rare because they are poorly synthesized in the Big Bang and also in stars. The two general trends in the remaining stellar-produced elements are: (1) an alternation of abundance in elements as they have even or odd atomic numbers (the Oddo-Harkins rule), and (2) a general decrease in abundance as elements become heavier. Iron is especially common because it represents the minimum energy nuclide that can be made by fusion of helium in supernovae.
Mendeleev's 1869 periodic table: An experiment on a system of elements. Based on their atomic weights and chemical similarities.
Dmitri Mendeleev
Henry Moseley

Only bromine and mercury are liquids at 0 degrees Celsius (32 degrees Fahrenheit) and normal atmospheric pressure; caesium and gallium are solids at that temperature, but melt at 28.4 °C (83.2 °F) and 29.8 °C (85.6 °F), respectively.

Sphalerite (ZnS)

Zinc

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Chemical element with the symbol Zn and atomic number 30.

Chemical element with the symbol Zn and atomic number 30.

Sphalerite (ZnS)
Zinc acetate
Zinc chloride
Late Roman brass bucket – the Hemmoorer Eimer from Warstade, Germany, second to third century AD
Various alchemical symbols for the element zinc
Andreas Sigismund Marggraf is given credit for first isolating pure zinc
Galvanization was named after Luigi Galvani.
Percentage of zinc output in 2006 by countries
World production trend
Zinc Mine Rosh Pinah, Namibia
Zinc Mine Skorpion, Namibia
Hot-dip handrail galvanized crystalline surface
Cast brass microstructure at magnification 400x
Zinc oxide is used as a white pigment in paints.
Addition of diphenylzinc to an aldehyde
GNC zinc 50 mg tablets. The amount exceeds what is deemed the safe upper limit in the United States (40 mg) and European Union (25 mg)
Zinc gluconate is one compound used for the delivery of zinc as a dietary supplement.
Ribbon diagram of human carbonic anhydrase II, with zinc atom visible in the center
Zinc fingers help read DNA sequences.
Foods and spices containing zinc

The melting point is the lowest of all the d-block metals aside from mercury and cadmium; for this reason among others, zinc, cadmium, and mercury are often not considered to be transition metals like the rest of the d-block metals.

Gold can be drawn into a monatomic wire, and then stretched more before it breaks.

Gold

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Chemical element with the symbol Au and atomic number 79, making it one of the higher atomic number elements that occur naturally.

Chemical element with the symbol Au and atomic number 79, making it one of the higher atomic number elements that occur naturally.

Gold can be drawn into a monatomic wire, and then stretched more before it breaks.
A gold nugget of 5 mm in size can be hammered into a gold foil of about 0.5 m2 in area.
Different colors of Ag–Au–Cu alloys
Gold(III) chloride solution in water
Schematic of a NE (left) to SW (right) cross-section through the 2.020-billion-year-old Vredefort impact crater in South Africa and how it distorted the contemporary geological structures. The present erosion level is shown. Johannesburg is located where the Witwatersrand Basin (the yellow layer) is exposed at the "present surface" line, just inside the crater rim, on the left. Not to scale.
Oldest golden artifacts in the world (4600 BC - 4200 BC) from Varna necropolis, Bulgaria - grave offerings on exposition in Varna Museum.
An Indian tribute-bearer at Apadana, from the Achaemenid satrapy of Hindush, carrying gold on a yoke, circa 500 BC.
The Muisca raft, between circa 600-1600 AD. The figure refers to the ceremony of the legend of El Dorado. The zipa used to cover his body in gold dust, and from his raft, he offered treasures to the Guatavita goddess in the middle of the sacred lake. This old Muisca tradition became the origin of the legend of El Dorado. This Muisca raft figure is on display in the Gold Museum, Bogotá, Colombia.
Ancient golden Kritonios Crown, funerary or marriage material, 370–360 BC. From a grave in Armento, Basilicata
Gold coin of Eucratides I (171–145 BC), one of the Hellenistic rulers of ancient Ai-Khanoum. This is the largest known gold coin minted in antiquity (169.2 g; 58 mm).
An early mention of gold in the Beowulf
Gold crafts from the Philippines prior to Western contact.
The Agusan image, depicting a deity from northeast Mindanao.
Time trend of gold production
A miner underground at Pumsaint gold mine, Wales; c. 1938.
Grasberg mine, Indonesia is the world's largest gold mine.
Relative sizes of an 860 kg block of gold ore and the 30 g of gold that can be extracted from it, Toi gold mine, Japan.
Gold prospecting at the Ivalo River in the Finnish Lapland in 1898
Gold Nuggets found in Arizona.
Two golden 20 kr coins from the Scandinavian Monetary Union, which was based on a gold standard. The coin to the left is Swedish and the right one is Danish.
Gold price history in 1960–2020.
Moche gold necklace depicting feline heads. Larco Museum Collection, Lima, Peru.
A 21.5k yellow gold pendant watch so-called "Boule de Genève" (Geneva ball), ca. 1890.
Cake with gold decoration served at the Amstel Hotel, Amsterdam
Mirror for the James Webb Space Telescope coated in gold to reflect infrared light
Kamakshi Amman Temple with golden roof, Kanchipuram.
Iron pyrite or "fool's gold"
Minoan jewellery; 2300–2100 BC; various sizes; Metropolitan Museum of Art (New York City)
Pair of Sumerian earrings with cuneiform inscriptions; 2093–2046 BC; Sulaymaniyah Museum (Sulaymaniyah, Iraq)
Ancient Egyptian statuette of Amun; 945–715 BC; gold; {{cvt|175x47|mm}}; Metropolitan Museum of Art
Ancient Egyptian signet ring; 664–525 BC; gold; diameter: {{cvt|30|x|34|mm}}; British Museum (London)
Ancient Greek stater; 323–315 BC; {{cvt|18|mm}}; Metropolitan Museum of Art
Etruscan funerary wreath; 4th–3rd century BC; length: {{cvt|333|mm}}; Metropolitan Museum of Art
Roman aureus of Hadrian; 134–138 AD; 7.4 g; Metropolitan Museum of Art
Quimbaya lime container; 5th–9th century; gold; height: {{cvt|230|mm}}; Metropolitan Museum of Art
Byzantine scyphate; 1059–1067; diameter: {{cvt|25|mm}}; Cleveland Museum of Art (Cleveland, Ohio, USA)
Pre-Columbian pendant with two bat-head warriors who carry spears; 11th–16th century; gold; overall: {{cvt|76.2|mm}}; from the Chiriqui Province (Panama); Metropolitan Museum of Art
English Neoclassical box; 1741; overall: {{cvt|44|x|116|x|92|mm}}; Metropolitan Museum of Art
French Rococo glass bottle mounted in gold; circa 1775; overall: {{cvt|70|x|29|mm}}; Cleveland Museum of Art

Gold also dissolves in mercury, forming amalgam alloys, and as the gold acts simply as a solute, this is not a chemical reaction.

High-resolution STEM-HAADF micrograph of Al atoms viewed along the [001] zone axis.

Aluminium

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Chemical element with the symbol Al and atomic number 13.

Chemical element with the symbol Al and atomic number 13.

High-resolution STEM-HAADF micrograph of Al atoms viewed along the [001] zone axis.
Aluminium hydrolysis as a function of pH. Coordinated water molecules are omitted. (Data from Baes and Mesmer)
Structure of trimethylaluminium, a compound that features five-coordinate carbon.
Bauxite, a major aluminium ore. The red-brown color is due to the presence of iron oxide minerals.
The statue of Anteros in Piccadilly Circus, London, was made in 1893 and is one of the first statues cast in aluminium.
World production of aluminium since 1900
1897 American advertisement featuring the aluminum spelling
Extrusion billets of aluminium
Common bins for recyclable waste along with a bin for unrecyclable waste. The bin with a yellow top is labeled "aluminum". Rhodes, Greece.
Aluminium-bodied Austin A40 Sports (c. 1951)
Aluminium can
Laser deposition of alumina on a substrate
Schematic of aluminium absorption by human skin.
There are five major aluminium forms absorbed by human body: the free solvated trivalent cation (Al3+(aq)); low-molecular-weight, neutral, soluble complexes (LMW-Al0(aq)); high-molecular-weight, neutral, soluble complexes (HMW-Al0(aq)); low-molecular-weight, charged, soluble complexes (LMW-Al(L)n+/−(aq)); nano and micro-particulates (Al(L)n(s)). They are transported across cell membranes or cell epi-/endothelia through five major routes: (1) paracellular; (2) transcellular; (3) active transport; (4) channels; (5) adsorptive or receptor-mediated endocytosis.
"Bauxite tailings" storage facility in Stade, Germany. The aluminium industry generates about 70 million tons of this waste annually.

The oxide layer on aluminium is also destroyed by contact with mercury due to amalgamation or with salts of some electropositive metals.

Cinnabar

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Bright scarlet to brick-red form of mercury(II) sulfide (HgS).

Bright scarlet to brick-red form of mercury(II) sulfide (HgS).

Crystal structure of cinnabar: yellow = sulfur, grey = mercury, green = cell
Cinnabar mercury ore from Nevada, United States
Cinnabar crystals of an individual size of one centimeter, on quartz. Almadén (Ciudad Real) Spain. Coll. Museum of the School of Mining Engineers of Madrid.
Apparatus for the distillation of cinnabar, Alchimia, 1570
Chinese carved cinnabar lacquerware, late Qing dynasty. Adilnor Collection, Sweden.

It is the most common source ore for refining elemental mercury, and is the historic source for the brilliant red or scarlet pigment termed vermilion and associated red mercury pigments.

Arquerite, a natural amalgam of silver and mercury

Amalgam (chemistry)

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Arquerite, a natural amalgam of silver and mercury
An amalgam dental filling
Interior of the Deadwood Terra Gold Stamp Mill. Crushed ore is washed over mercury-coated copper sheets, and fine gold particles form an amalgam with the mercury. The amalgam was scraped off and the gold then separated from the amalgam by heating and evaporating the mercury, which was then recovered by a condenser for reapplication to the plates.
The amalgam probe

An amalgam is an alloy of mercury with another metal.

Crystals of osmium, a heavy metal nearly twice as dense as lead

Heavy metals

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Heavy metals are generally defined as metals with relatively high densities, atomic weights, or atomic numbers.

Heavy metals are generally defined as metals with relatively high densities, atomic weights, or atomic numbers.

Crystals of osmium, a heavy metal nearly twice as dense as lead
In a cello (example shown above) or a viola the C-string sometimes incorporates tungsten; its high density permits a smaller diameter string and improves responsiveness.
The Statue of Liberty. A stainless steel alloy armature provides structural strength; a copper skin confers corrosion resistance.
Cerium(IV) oxide (sample shown above) is used as a catalyst in self-cleaning ovens.
Neodymium sulfate (Nd2(SO4)3), used to colour glassware
The Topaz Solar Farm, in southern California, features nine million cadmium-tellurium photovoltaic modules covering an area of 25.6 km2.
An X-ray tube with a rotating anode, typically a tungsten-rhenium alloy on a molybdenum core, backed with graphite
alt=A silvery finger of chromium irregularly encrusted with diamond-like chunks of chromium of varying size. There is also a one-third sized version of the finger and three roughly hewn gem-like chunks of chromium, as well as the cube. There is a partial reflection of one of the three gem-like chunks in one of the faces of the cube.| Chromium crystals and 1 cm{{sup|3}} cube
alt=Two dull silver clusters of crystalline shards| Arsenic, sealed in a container to stop tarnishing
alt=A more or less smooth silvery finger of cadmium with some slightly angled faces plus a dull cube| Cadmium bar and 1 cm{{sup|3}} cube
alt=A silvery molasses- like liquid being poured into a circular container with a height equivalent to a smaller coin on its edge| Mercury being poured into a petri dish
alt=Three, dark broccoli shaped clumps of oxidised lead with grossly distended buds, and a cube of lead which has a dull silvery appearance.| Oxidised lead nodules and 1 cm{{sup|3}} cube

The definitions surveyed in this article encompass up to 96 out of the 118 known chemical elements; only mercury, lead and bismuth meet all of them.

High-purity caesium-133 stored in argon.

Caesium

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Chemical element with the symbol Cs and atomic number 55.

Chemical element with the symbol Cs and atomic number 55.

High-purity caesium-133 stored in argon.
Caesium crystals (golden) compared to rubidium crystals (silvery)
Ball-and-stick model of the cubic coordination of Cs and Cl in CsCl
Monatomic caesium halide wires grown inside double-wall carbon nanotubes (TEM image).
cluster
Decay of caesium-137
Pollucite, a caesium mineral
Gustav Kirchhoff (left) and Robert Bunsen (centre) discovered caesium with their newly invented spectroscope.
Atomic clock ensemble at the U.S. Naval Observatory
FOCS-1, a continuous cold caesium fountain atomic clock in Switzerland, started operating in 2004 at an uncertainty of one second in 30 million years
Caesium chloride powder
Schematics of an electrostatic ion thruster developed for use with caesium or mercury fuel
The portion of the total radiation dose (in air) contributed by each isotope plotted against time after the Chernobyl disaster. Caesium-137 became the primary source of radiation about 200 days after the accident.

The element has 40 known isotopes, making it, along with barium and mercury, one of the elements with the most isotopes.

Crystallization of gallium from the melt

Gallium

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Chemical element with the symbol Ga and atomic number 31.

Chemical element with the symbol Ga and atomic number 31.

Crystallization of gallium from the melt
99.9999% (6N) gallium sealed in vacuum ampoule
Bauxite mine in Jamaica (1984)
Gallium-based blue LEDs
Galinstan easily wetting a piece of ordinary glass
Owing to their low melting points, gallium and its alloys can be shaped into various 3D forms using 3D printing and additive manufacturing

Gallium is one of the four non-radioactive metals (with caesium, rubidium, and mercury) that are known to be liquid at, or near, normal room temperature.