Berkelium

Berkelium (IPA: /bəˈkiːliəm/) is a synthetic, radioactive, chemical element in the periodic table that has the symbol Bk and atomic number 97. It is a metallic element and part of the actinide series. Berkelium can not be found in nature, but was first made by hitting americium with alpha particles or helium ions. It is named after Berkeley, California and the University of California, Berkeley.

Uses

Berkelium was used to created Tennessine, element 117. Other than that, it has no other uses.

Berkelium Media

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  Double-hexagonal close packing with the layer sequence ABAC in the crystal structure of α-berkelium (A: green, B: blue, C: red)

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  Physicist Glenn T. Seaborg, atomic pioneer and Commissioner of the Atomic Energy Commission., ca. 1964

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  The 60-inch cyclotron at the Lawrence Radiation Laboratory, University of California, Berkeley, in August 1939

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  Chromatographic elution curves revealing the similarity between the lanthanides terbium (Tb), gadolinium (Gd), and europium (Eu) (top graph) and their corresponding actinides berkelium (Bk), curium (Cm), and americium (Am) (bottom graph)

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  22 milligrams of berkelium (as nitrate) prepared at HFIR in 2009 at a cost of approximately one million dollars, used for the synthesis of tennessine in JINR

References

• Los Alamos National Laboratory - Berkelium Archived 2006-09-29 at the Wayback Machine
• It's Elemental - Berkelium Archived 2007-07-23 at the Wayback Machine

Other websites

• WebElements.com - Berkelium Archived 2006-11-10 at the Wayback Machine