name |
Plutonium |
symbol |
Pu |
atomic number |
94 |
atomic mass |
244 |
number of protons |
94 |
number or electrons |
94 |
number of neutrons |
150 |
melting point |
912.5k |
boiling point |
3505k |
normal phase |
solid |
family |
actinide |
period |
7 |
group |
no group |
Origin of name |
named after "the planet Pluto". Plutonium was synthesized by Seaborg, McMillan, Kennedy and Wahl in 1940 by deuteron bombardment of uranium in a cyclotron (a device used to accelerate atomic particles) at Berkeley, California, USA. |
Date & place of Discovery |
Plutonium was discovered in 1941 by Dr. Glenn T. Seaborg and Edwin McMillan, Kennedy, |
intersecting facts |
*it is named after the planet Pluto *It can form up to seven different allotropes *Famous scientist Enrico Fermi claimed he discovered element 94 in 1934, but it turned out to be a mixture of other elements |
common uses |
It is a heat source in radioisotope thermometric generators, which are used to power some spacecraft. Plutonium isotopes are expensive and inconvenient to separate, so particular isotopes are usually manufactured in specialized reactors. |