{"id":50,"date":"2020-04-08T14:58:56","date_gmt":"2020-04-08T14:58:56","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/thechemicalelements.com\/?page_id=50"},"modified":"2023-08-16T10:28:07","modified_gmt":"2023-08-16T10:28:07","slug":"scandium","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/thechemicalelements.com\/scandium\/","title":{"rendered":"Scandium (Sc)"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

Scandium is a chemical element with the atomic number 21 in the periodic table. With 22 parts-per-million abundance by weight, it\u2019s the 31<\/span>st<\/span> most abundant element in Earth\u2019s crust. <\/span><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Being a member of the transition metals family of periodic table elements, this rare-earth chemical element has three valence electrons and can be found in plenty of minerals. But even so, scandium is classified as a relatively rare substance due to the difficult processing of the scandium-rich minerals. Having the strength of titanium<\/a>, the lightness of aluminum, and the hardness of ceramics, scandium is adopted in only a few commercial applications.<\/span><\/p>\n\n\n\n

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Chemical and Physical Properties of Scandium<\/span><\/h3>\n\n\n\n
Property<\/strong><\/td>Value<\/strong><\/td><\/tr>
The symbol in the periodic table of elements<\/td>Sc<\/td><\/tr>
Atomic number<\/td>21<\/td><\/tr>
Atomic weight (mass)<\/td>44.9559 g.mol-1<\/td><\/tr>
Group number<\/td>3<\/td><\/tr>
Period<\/td>4 (d-block)<\/td><\/tr>
Color<\/td>Silvery-white metal<\/td><\/tr>
Physical state<\/td>Solid at room temperature<\/td><\/tr>
Half-life<\/td>From less than 300 nanoseconds to 83.79(4) days<\/td><\/tr>
Electronegativity according to Pauling<\/td>Unknown<\/td><\/tr>
Density<\/td>3.0 g.cm-3 at 20\u00b0C<\/td><\/tr>
Melting point<\/td>1541\u00b0C, 2806\u00b0F, 1814 K<\/td><\/tr>
Boiling point<\/td>2836\u00b0C, 5137\u00b0F, 3109 K<\/td><\/tr>
Van der Waals radius<\/td>0.161 nm<\/td><\/tr>
Ionic radius<\/td>0.083 nm (+3)<\/td><\/tr>
Isotopes<\/td>23<\/td><\/tr>
Most characteristic isotope<\/td>45Sc<\/td><\/tr>
Electronic shell<\/td>[Ar] 3d14s2<\/td><\/tr>
The energy of the first ionization<\/td>640.5 kJ.mol-1<\/td><\/tr>
The energy of the second ionization<\/td>1233 kJ.mol-1<\/td><\/tr>
The energy of the third ionization<\/td>2389 kJ.mol-1<\/td><\/tr>
The energy of the fourth ionization<\/td>7089 kJ.mol-1<\/td><\/tr>
Discovery date<\/td>In 1879 by Lars Fredrik Nilson<\/td><\/tr><\/tbody><\/table><\/figure>\n\n\n\n

With the periodic table symbol Sc, atomic number 21, atomic mass of 44.9559 g.mol<\/span>-1<\/span>, and electron configuration [Ar] 3d<\/span>1<\/span>4s<\/span>2<\/span>, scandium is a soft and light silvery-white metal, classified as a rare-earth chemical element in the periodic table. <\/span><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Scandium reaches its boiling point at 2836\u00b0C, 5137\u00b0F, 3109 K, while the melting point is achieved at 1541\u00b0C, 2806\u00b0F, 1814 K. This member of the transition metals family of elements has an unknown electronegativity according to Pauling, whereas the atomic radius according to van der Waals is 0.161 nm.<\/span><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Element 21 has a hexagonal crystal structure and paramagnetic properties. When exposed to air, scandium is very reactive and tarnishes into a yellowish or pinkish color. In a reaction with H2O, this transition metal forms hydrogen<\/a> gas.<\/span><\/p>\n\n\n\n

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

While classifying the predicted elements in his periodic table, the great Russian chemist Dmitri Mendeleev noticed a gap in the atomic weights between the elements calcium<\/a> (40) and titanium (48). According to his chemical calculations, the oxide of the predicted “eka-boron” element with an atomic mass fitting somewhere between calcium and titanium would be X2O3.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n\n\n\n

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The Discovery of Lars Frederik Nilson<\/span><\/h3>\n\n\n\n

Ten years later, professor Lars Fredrik Nilson (1840 \u2013 1899)  from the Uppsala University in Sweden started to extensively research rare-earth elements. In one of his chemical trials, Nilson extracted ytterbium<\/a> from the minerals euxenite and gadolinite. For this, he first isolated erbia (erbium<\/a> oxide) from the minerals. In the next step of the experiment, the Swedish chemist triggered a chemical reaction that resulted in erbium nitrate. <\/span><\/p>\n\n\n\n

When professor Nilson heated the nitrate, he observed small quantities of an unknown metallic element with a low atomic weight. The second oxide turned out to be Sc<\/span>2<\/span>O<\/span>3<\/span>, corresponding to Mendeleev\u2019s prediction about element 21. Also, the atomic weight of the new chemical was 44, which is exactly in the middle of the boundary elements that Mendeleev had suggested. <\/span><\/p>\n\n\n\n

By using the spectroscopy method on the sample, Nilson determined the existence of a new element whose atomic spectrum displayed over 30 unique spectral lines<\/span>.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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The Contribution of Per Theodor Cleve<\/span><\/h3>\n\n\n\n

The chemical analysis performed by the Swedish chemist and mineralogist Per Theodor Cleve (1840-1905) successfully proved that scandium had properties similar to those predicted by Mendeleev for the element labeled as <\/span>eka-boron<\/a><\/span><\/i>.<\/span><\/p>\n\n\n\n

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

The name of element 21, <\/span>scandium<\/span><\/i>, originates from the Latin word for Scandinavia, \u201cScanda\u201d. The Swedish scientist and discoverer Lars Fredrik Nilson chose this name for the new element as a way to relate it with the area where the scandium-rich minerals have initially been found. It\u2019s also a nod to Nilson’s country of origin.<\/span><\/p>\n\n\n\n

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

Despite being labeled as a rare-earth element, scandium is a relatively abundant chemical. It typically occurs in the same ores alongside other rare-earth elements. However, pure scandium metal rarely concentrates at higher grades alongside other metals. <\/span><\/p>\n\n\n\n

For this reason, commercially usable scandium deposits are very rare. Also, it\u2019s highly difficult to separate the rare-earth elements that occur in the same mineral ore because they share very similar chemical properties. <\/span><\/p>\n\n\n\n

The first metal sample of scandium was isolated from a mixture of scandium, lithium<\/a>, and potassium<\/a> chloride by the German chemists Werner Fischer, Karl Br\u00fcnger, and Hans Grienseisen. The process included molten zinc<\/a> in a graphite cubicle from which the metal form of element 21 was extracted by electrolysis. Metallic scandium can also be prepared by reducing the fluoride with calcium metal. The first pound of high purity scandium was obtained in 1960. <\/span><\/p>\n\n\n\n

For commercial purposes, scandium is mostly obtained as a byproduct of refining uranium<\/a>. Australia, especially New South Wales, is marked as a location richest in scandium mineral sources. Deposits of gadolinite and euxenite are also found in Scandinavia, South Africa, Madagascar, and India. At the mining sites open in Russia, China, and Ukraine, scandium is obtained as a byproduct of iron<\/a> and uranium mining.<\/span><\/p>\n\n\n\n

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List of Scandium Minerals<\/span><\/h3>\n\n\n\n

Element 21 has been thinly scattered in over 800 minerals. The mineral <\/span>thortveitite<\/span><\/i> is considered the main source of scandium. It\u2019s frequently found in granitic pegmatites. The other most commonly occurring scandium-rich minerals include:<\/span><\/p>\n\n\n\n