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Americium: Difference between revisions
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== Introduction == | == Introduction == | ||
Americium, the ninety-fifth element on the [[periodic table]] is a synthetic metal that only occurs in [[radioactive]] [[isotopes]]. Discovered in 1944 by scientists in the Manhattan project, americium was a bi-product of experiments with [[plutonium]]. The name americium comes from the element above it in the lanthinide series, [[europium]]. Just as europium takes its name from the continent Europe, americium is named after America. | Americium, the ninety-fifth element on the [[periodic table]], is a synthetic (man-made) metal that only occurs in [[radioactive]] [[isotopes]]. Discovered in 1944 by scientists in the Manhattan project, americium was a bi-product of experiments with [[plutonium]]. The name americium comes from the element above it in the lanthinide series, [[europium]]. Just as europium takes its name from the continent Europe, americium is named after America. | ||
Americium 241 (<sup>241</sup>Am) emits both alpha particles as well as gamma rays, giving it several uses. | Americium 241 (<sup>241</sup>Am) emits both alpha particles as well as gamma rays, giving it several uses. For example, traces of americium are used in household smoke detectors. Americium can also occasionally be used as a portable source of gamma radiation. | ||
== Properties == | == Properties == | ||
