{"id":268,"date":"2020-04-09T10:12:12","date_gmt":"2020-04-09T10:12:12","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/thechemicalelements.com\/?page_id=268"},"modified":"2023-08-15T13:40:58","modified_gmt":"2023-08-15T13:40:58","slug":"ytterbium","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/thechemicalelements.com\/ytterbium\/","title":{"rendered":"Ytterbium (Yb)"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

Ytterbium is a chemical element with the atomic number 70 in the periodic table. It\u2019s the 44th most plentiful metal found in Earth\u2019s crust. Being a member of the lanthanides family of elements, this rare-earth metal is a divalent substance with a high energy-level atomic structure that resembles the one of the element strontium<\/a>. Element 70 occurs in three structural forms and has few practical uses.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n\n\n\n

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Chemical and Physical Properties of Ytterbium<\/span><\/h3>\n\n\n\n
Property<\/strong><\/td>Value<\/strong><\/td><\/tr>
Symbol<\/td>Yb<\/td><\/tr>
Atomic number<\/td>70<\/td><\/tr>
Atomic weight (mass)<\/td>173.04 g.mol-1<\/td><\/tr>
Group (number)<\/td>Lanthanides<\/td><\/tr>
Period<\/td>6 (f-block)<\/td><\/tr>
Color<\/td>Bright silvery luster<\/td><\/tr>
Physical state<\/td>Solid at room temperature<\/td><\/tr>
Half-life<\/td>From 250 milliseconds to 32.026(5) days<\/td><\/tr>
Electronegativity according to Pauling<\/td>1.1<\/td><\/tr>
Density<\/td>7 (6.90) g.cm-3 at 20\u00b0C<\/td><\/tr>
Melting point<\/td>824\u00b0C, 1515\u00b0F, 1097 K<\/td><\/tr>
Boiling point<\/td>1196\u00b0C, 2185\u00b0F, 1469 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>172Yb, 173Yb, 174Yb<\/td><\/tr>
Electronic shell<\/td>[Xe] 4f146s2<\/td><\/tr>
The energy of the first ionization<\/td>602.4 kJ.mol-1<\/td><\/tr>
The energy of the second ionization<\/td>1172.3 kJ.mol-1<\/td><\/tr>
The energy of the third ionization<\/td>2472.3 kJ.mol-1<\/td><\/tr>
Discovery date<\/td>In 1878 by Jean C.G. de Marignac<\/td><\/tr><\/tbody><\/table><\/figure>\n\n\n\n

With the periodic table symbol Yb, atomic number 70, atomic mass of 173.04 g.mol<\/span>-1<\/span>, and electron configuration [Xe] 4f<\/span>14<\/span>6s<\/span>2<\/span>, ytterbium is a soft, ductile, and malleable metal with a bright, silvery-white appearance. It reaches its boiling point at 1196\u00b0C, 2185\u00b0F, 1469 K, while the melting point is achieved at 824\u00b0C, 1515\u00b0F, 1097 K. This member of the lanthanides family of elements has an electronegativity of 1.1 according to Pauling, whereas the atomic radius of ytterbium according to van der Waals is unknown. <\/span><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Classified as a rare-earth metal, ytterbium tarnishes upon exposure to air. The oxidation of this chemical element in a reaction with O2 gives ytterbium strong anticorrosive properties. Ytterbium also forms strong reactions with mineral acids.<\/span><\/p>\n\n\n\n

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

Jean Charles Galissard de Marignac (1817 \u2013 1894) was a Swiss chemist who dedicated his work to the study of rare-earth elements. By performing one of his experimental trials, he even discovered one of these elusive substances – the ytterbium.<\/span><\/p>\n\n\n\n

To begin with, the story on the discovery of all rare-earth elements begins when the Swedish scientist Carl Gustaf Mosander succeeded in separating the gadolinite mineral into three new substances. He conveniently named them: yttria, erbia, and terbia. As rare-earth elements always occur along each other, his fellow scientists dedicated their work to a more detailed analysis of the rare minerals in the quest of discovering a new element. <\/span><\/p>\n\n\n\n

The discovery of ytterbium happened in 1878 when de Marignac attempted heating of erbium<\/a> nitrate to the point it decomposed. In the residue left from this chemical reaction, Jean de Marignac observed two substances – erbia and a white powder that was previously undetected by any of his fellow scientists. The Swiss chemist named the newly discovered substance ytterbium oxide (ytterbia).<\/span><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Ytterbium metal was prepared by the scientists Klemm and Bonner in 1937. To achieve this scientific feat, these two scientists exposed ytterbium chloride and potassium<\/a> to heat and produced the metal form of element 70.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n\n\n\n

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

Just like the elements yttrium<\/a>, terbium<\/a>, and erbium, element 70 was named \u2018ytterbium\u2019 after the Swedish village Ytterby. This village in Sweden is famous in the world of chemistry as a location rich in mineral sources for rare-earth elements.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n\n\n\n

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

Ytterbium is a naturally occurring rare-earth metal. It\u2019s always found along other rare-earth elements in minerals, such as monazite, gadolinite, euxenite, and xenotime.<\/span><\/p>\n\n\n\n

For commercial purposes, ytterbium is mainly extracted from monazite sand by the ion exchange process, a reaction with lanthanum metal, or a chemical reaction triggered between potassium and ytterbium trichloride. The largest mines of ytterbium ores are located in Australia, the United States, Sri Lanka, India, Brazil, and China.<\/span><\/p>\n\n\n\n

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

Despite having limited practical use, ytterbium is considered as one of the most important chemicals applied in processes that are highly beneficial for humanity and our safety:<\/span><\/p>\n\n\n\n