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Lanthanum ( La )

Material Information

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General Description:  

Discovered in 1839 by C.G. Mosander in Stockholm, Sweden.

Lanthanum is a soft, ductile, white metal which oxidises rapidly in air. It is one of the most reactive of the lanthanide group of elements, reacting with water to produce hydrogen gas. It has an abundance in the earth's crust of 32 ppm.

At very low temperatures, lanthanum is super conducting (at 6K). It is used to manufacture special grades of optical glass which have specific refractive properties. Lanthanum can also be used in flints, and La3+ is used as a biological tracer for Ca2+. Radioactive isotopes of lanthanum have been tested for the treatment of cancer.

   

Atomic Properties

Atomic number 57
Atomic radius - Goldschmidt ( nm ) 0.187
Atomic weight ( amu ) 138.9055
Crystal structure Hexagonal close packed/Face centred cubic
Electronic structure Xe 5d1 6s2
Ionisation potential No. eV
1 5.58
2 11.06
3 19.18
Natural isotope distribution Mass No. %
138 0.09
139 99.91
Photo-electric work function ( eV ) 3.5
Thermal neutron absorption cross-section ( Barns ) 8.9
Valences shown 3

Electrical Properties

Electrical resistivity @20C ( µOhmcm ) 57
Temperature coefficient @0-100C ( K-1 ) 0.00218
Superconductivity critical temperature ( K ) 4.88

Mechanical Properties

Material condition Polycrystalline
Bulk modulus ( GPa ) 24.8
Hardness - Vickers 40
Poisson's ratio 0.28
Tensile modulus ( GPa ) 37.9
Tensile strength ( MPa ) 131
Yield strength ( MPa ) 124

Physical Properties

Boiling point ( C ) 3457
Density @20C ( g cm-3 ) 6.174
Melting point ( C ) 921

Thermal Properties

Coefficient of thermal expansion @0-100C ( x10-6 K-1 ) 4.9
Latent heat of evaporation ( J g-1 ) 2897
Latent heat of fusion ( J g-1 ) 60.2
Specific heat @25C ( J K-1 kg-1 ) 197
Thermal conductivity @0-100C ( W m-1 K-1 ) 13.4

Buy Lanthanum on-line

Standard products are available in these forms
Foil Lump Powder Rod Sputtering Target
Foil Lump Powder Rod Sputtering Target

Choose a form to search our on-line catalogue  

Index