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21. ScandiumName: Scandium
Scandium is apparently a much more abundant element in the sun and certain stars than on earth. Scandium is a silvery-white metal which develops a slightly yellowish or pinkish cast upon exposure to air. It is relatively soft, and resembles yttrium and the rare-earth metals more than it resembles aluminium or titanium. Scandium reacts rapidly with many acids. Scandium (Latin Scandia meaning "Scandinavia") was discovered by Lars Fredrick Nilson in 1879 while he and his team were looking for rare earth metals. Nilson used spectrum analysis to find the new element within the minerals euxenite and gadolinite. To isolate the element he processed 10 kilograms of euxenite with other rare-earth residues to obtain about 2 grams of very pure scandium oxide (Sc2O3). Dmitri Mendeleev, in 1869, predicted the existence and some properties of this element, which he called ekaboron, using his periodic law. Per Teodor Cleve discovered scandium oxide at about the same time as Nilson but unlike Nilson, Cleve determined that scandium was identical to ekaboron. In 1937 metallic scandium was prepared for the first time by electrolysis of a eutectic melt of potassium, lithium, and scandium chlorides at 700 to 800° C. Tungsten wire in a pool of liquid zinc were the electrodes in a graphite crucible. The first pound of 99% pure scandium metal wasn't produced until 1960. Scandium metal powder is combustible and presents a fire hazard. Quick links
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