{"id":265,"date":"2020-04-09T10:11:52","date_gmt":"2020-04-09T10:11:52","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/thechemicalelements.com\/?page_id=265"},"modified":"2023-08-15T13:45:09","modified_gmt":"2023-08-15T13:45:09","slug":"lutetium","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/thechemicalelements.com\/lutetium\/","title":{"rendered":"Lutetium (Lu)"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

Lutetium is a chemical element with atomic number 71 in the periodic table. This rare-earth metal occurs in a concentration of 0.8 to 1.7 ppm in Earth\u2019s crust. As a member of the lanthanides family of periodic table elements, lutetium has three valence electrons. Its most significant practical applications include the dating of meteorites and nuclear medicine, as a part of cancer therapy protocols.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n\n\n\n

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Chemical and Physical Properties of Lutetium<\/span><\/h3>\n\n\n\n
Property<\/strong><\/td>Value<\/strong><\/td><\/tr>
Symbol<\/td>Lu<\/td><\/tr>
Atomic number<\/td>71<\/td><\/tr>
Atomic weight (mass)<\/td>174.97 g.mol-1<\/td><\/tr>
Group (number)<\/td>Lanthanides<\/td><\/tr>
Period<\/td>6<\/td><\/tr>
Color<\/td>Silvery-white rare earth metal<\/td><\/tr>
Physical state<\/td>Solid metal at room temperature<\/td><\/tr>
Half-life<\/td>From 43(5) milliseconds to 3.78 \u00d7 1010 years<\/td><\/tr>
Electronegativity according to Pauling<\/td>1.2<\/td><\/tr>
Density<\/td>9.7 g.cm-3 at 20\u00b0C<\/td><\/tr>
Melting point<\/td>1663\u00b0C, 3025\u00b0F, 1936 K<\/td><\/tr>
Boiling point<\/td>3402\u00b0C, 6156\u00b0F, 3675 K<\/td><\/tr>
Van der Waals radius<\/td>Unknown<\/td><\/tr>
Ionic radius<\/td>Unknown<\/td><\/tr>
Isotopes<\/td>34<\/td><\/tr>
Most characteristic isotope<\/td>175Lu<\/td><\/tr>
Electronic shell<\/td>[Xe] 4f145d16s2<\/td><\/tr>
The energy of the first ionization<\/td>522.7 kJ.mol-1<\/td><\/tr>
The energy of the second ionization<\/td>1339 kJ.mol-1<\/td><\/tr>
Discovery date<\/td>Independently discovered in 1907 by Georges Urbain in Paris, France; (also independently discovered in the same period by Charles James in New Hampshire, United States; and Carl Auer von Welsbach, in Austria).<\/td><\/tr><\/tbody><\/table><\/figure>\n\n\n\n

Lutetium is the chemical element with the periodic table symbol Lu. It has the atomic number 71, meaning that this element has 71 protons, 104 neutrons, and 71 electrons. Its atomic mass is 174.97 g.mol<\/span>-1<\/span>, while the electron configuration is expressed with the formula [Xe] 4f<\/span>14<\/span>5d<\/span>1<\/span>6s<\/span>2<\/span>. <\/span><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Element 71 is a solid metal ductile and reaches its boiling point at 3402\u00b0C (6156\u00b0F, 3675 K), while its melting point is at 1663\u00b0C (3025\u00b0F, 1936 K). This member of the lanthanides family in the periodic table has an electronegativity of 1.2 according to Pauling, whereas the atomic radius according to van der Waals is still unknown.   <\/span><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Lutetium resembles calcium<\/a> and magnesium<\/a> in its reactivity. This rare silvery-white rare earth metal is soft and ductile and adopts the +3 oxidation state in its compounds. It tarnishes slowly when exposed to air. At 150\u00b0C, lutetium forms its oxides. Lutetium is relatively stable in air, it dissolves rapidly in acids, and it undergoes a slow chemical reaction when it comes into contact with H2O molecules.\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n\n\n\n

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How Was Lutetium Discovered?<\/span><\/h2>\n\n\n\n

The chemical element 71 was discovered independently by three scientists who were conducting their chemical trials in different parts of the world, at almost the same time. The mineral <\/span>gadolinite<\/span><\/i> that had been obtained from a mine near Ytterby, Sweden, turned out to be rich with various rare earth elements. That\u2019s why many scientists were interested in the chemical analysis of the same mineral sample. <\/span><\/p>\n\n\n\n

In 1843, the Swedish chemist Carl Gustaf Mosander succeeded in isolating <\/span>yttria<\/span><\/i>, <\/span>erbia,<\/span><\/i> and <\/span>terbia<\/span><\/i> from the gadolinite sample. The similarities among these three substances stirred up curiosity amongst the scientists even more. So, by 1878, the Swiss chemist Jean Charles Galissard de Marignac became the first scientist who had managed to observe two different components in the erbia sample – one was labeled <\/span>ytterbia, <\/span><\/i>while the other substance kept the name erbia. <\/span><\/p>\n\n\n\n

As gadolinite proved to be a rich source of new rare earth elements that could be further separated into new chemicals, de Marignac held the belief that ytterbia is also a compound that contains a new element – the ytterbium<\/a>.<\/span><\/p>\n\n\n\n

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Georges Urbain\u2019s Discovery<\/span><\/h3>\n\n\n\n

Following the advancements of his colleagues, the French chemist Georges Urbain (1872 – 1938) also attempted individual experiments on an ytterbium sample. As the other chemists were unsuccessful in providing scientific evidence of the chemical properties of the new element, Urbain believed that their efforts were misdirected. <\/span><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Namely, this French chemist was convinced that even the new element was a compound that can be further separated into other elements. This could also explain why it was difficult for many scientists to determine any of the ytterbium properties as fixed. <\/span><\/p>\n\n\n\n

So, Georges Urbain decided to apply the fractional crystallization method on a ytterbium nitrate sample obtained from a nitric acid solution. He managed to produce two rare earth oxides. One of the oxides kept the name of ytterbium (neoytterbium),\u00a0 while the other was named \u2018<\/span>lutecium<\/span><\/i>\u2019 at first. Later, the name of the new element 71 was altered into <\/span>lutetium<\/span><\/i>.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n\n\n\n

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Charles James\u2019 Revolutionary Method <\/span><\/h3>\n\n\n\n

In 1906, an American chemist of British origin, Charles James (1880 – 1928), also managed to isolate the lutetium from a ytterbium sample, except that he went a step further by revolutionizing the <\/span>bromate fractional crystallization process<\/span><\/a>. This process proved to be quite valuable for the further discovery and isolation of new rare earth metals. <\/span><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Until the 1940s, when the ion exchange techniques were discovered, James\u2019 bromate fractional crystallization process eased the work of scientists who were going through the difficult process of distinguishing the rare earth elements from mineral samples.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n\n\n\n

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The Contribution of Carl Auer von Welsbach<\/span><\/h3>\n\n\n\n

Austrian scientist and inventor Baron Carl Auer von Welsbach (1858 – 1929) also had an interest in rare-earth elements. In 1907\u201308, Baron von Welsbach also succeeded in separating the lutetium element from the ytterbium. He chose the names <\/span>albebaranium<\/span><\/i> and <\/span>cassiopeium<\/span><\/i> for the two new substances.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n\n\n\n

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How Did Lutetium Get Its Name?<\/span><\/h2>\n\n\n\n

Since the French chemist Georges Urbain was the first scientist who succeeded in separating lutetium from the ytterbium as an individual substance, he was given the opportunity to name the new chemical element. <\/span><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Georges Urbain chose the Latin term \u2018<\/span>lutetia<\/span><\/i>\u2019 to name his newly discovered element, which is the ancient name for Paris – the capital city of Urbain\u2019s home country.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n\n\n\n

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Where Can You Find Lutetium?<\/span><\/h2>\n\n\n\n

Lutetium is a rare earth metal that can be found in nature in very small quantities as a part of all mineral formations that contain yttrium<\/a>. Most commonly, it occurs in the orthophosphate minerals xenotime and monazite, as well as in the fluoride carbonate mineral ore called bastnaesite. <\/span><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Apart from the lutetium, the other lanthanides that can be extracted from these mineral formations are cerium<\/a>, lanthanum<\/a>, neodymium<\/a>, and praseodymium<\/a>. The chemicals thorium<\/a> and yttrium can also be isolated from the monazite mineral. However, due to the high radioactive properties of thorium and the byproducts of its decay, the process of isolating the chemicals is quite difficult and dangerous.<\/span><\/p>\n\n\n\n

The pure, elemental form of the lutetium metal is produced by a reduction of anhydrous LuCl<\/span>3<\/span> or LuF<\/span>3<\/span> by an alkali or alkaline earth metal:<\/span><\/p>\n\n\n\n

         2LuF<\/span>3<\/span> + 3Ca \u2192 2Lu + 3CaF<\/span>2<\/span><\/p>\n\n\n\n

For commercial uses, this chemical substance is mainly obtained through the ion exchange process from monazite sand ((Ce, La, Th, Nd, Y)PO4).\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n\n\n\n

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Lutetium in Everyday Life<\/span><\/h2>\n\n\n\n

Although it\u2019s difficult to be isolated and produced, lutetium has several significant applications:<\/span><\/p>\n\n\n\n