Osmium

2007 Schools Wikipedia Selection. Related subjects: Chemical elements

76 rhenium ← osmium → iridium Ru ↑ Os ↓ Hs Periodic Table - Extended Periodic Table
General
Name, Symbol, Number	osmium, Os, 76
Chemical series	transition metals
Group, Period, Block	8, 6, d
Appearance	silvery, blue cast
Atomic mass	190.23 (3) g/mol
Electron configuration	[Xe] 4f14 5d6 6s2
Electrons per shell	2, 8, 18, 32, 14, 2
Physical properties
Phase	solid
Density (near r.t.)	22.61 g·cm−3
Liquid density at m.p.	20 g·cm−3
Melting point	3306  K (3033 ° C, 5491 ° F)
Boiling point	5285 K (5012 ° C, 9054 ° F)
Heat of fusion	57.85 kJ·mol−1
Heat of vaporization	738 kJ·mol−1
Heat capacity	(25 °C) 24.7 J·mol−1·K−1
Vapor pressure P/Pa 1 10 100 1 k 10 k 100 k at T/K 3160 3423 3751 4148 4638 5256
Atomic properties
Crystal structure	hexagonal
Oxidation states	8, 6, 4, 2, -2 (mildly acidic oxide)
Electronegativity	2.2 (Pauling scale)
Ionization energies	1st: 840 kJ/mol
	2nd: 1600 kJ/mol
Atomic radius	130 pm
Atomic radius (calc.)	185 pm
Covalent radius	128 pm
Miscellaneous
Magnetic ordering	?
Electrical resistivity	(0 °C) 81.2 nΩ·m
Thermal conductivity	(300 K) 87.6 W·m−1·K−1
Thermal expansion	(25 °C) 5.1 µm·m−1·K−1
Speed of sound (thin rod)	(20 °C) 4940 m/s
Shear modulus	222 GPa
Poisson ratio	0.25
Bulk modulus	462 GPa
Mohs hardness	7.0
Brinell hardness	3920 MPa
CAS registry number	7440-04-2
Selected isotopes
Main article: Isotopes of osmium iso NA half-life DM DE ( MeV) DP 184Os 0.02% >5.6×1013 y α 2.966 180W 185Os syn 93.6 d ε 1.013 185Re 186Os 1.58% 2.0×1015 y α 2.822 182W 187Os 1.6% Os is stable with 111 neutrons 188Os 13.3% Os is stable with 112 neutrons 189Os 16.1% Os is stable with 113 neutrons 190Os 24.6% Os is stable with 114 neutrons 191Os syn 15.4 d β- 0.314 191Ir 192Os 41.0% Os is stable with 116 neutrons 193Os syn 30.11 d β- 1.141 193Ir 194Os syn 6 y β- 0.097 194Ir
References

Osmium ( IPA: /ˈɒzmiəm/) is a chemical element in the periodic table that has the symbol Os and atomic number 76. A hard brittle blue-gray or blue-black transition metal in the platinum family, osmium is one of the densest natural elements and is used in some alloys with platinum and iridium. The extraordinary density of osmium is a consequence of the lanthanide contraction. Osmium is found native as an alloy in platinum ore and its tetroxide has been used to stain tissues and in fingerprinting. Alloys of osmium are employed in fountain pen tips, electrical contacts and in other applications where extreme durability and hardness are needed.

Notable characteristics

Osmium in a metallic form is extremely dense, blue white, brittle and lustrous even at high temperatures, but proves to be extremely difficult to make. Powdered osmium is easier to make, but powdered osmium exposed to air leads to the formation of osmium tetroxide (OsO₄), which is toxic. The oxide is also a powerful oxidizing agent, emits a strong smell and boils at 130° C.

Due to its very high density osmium is generally considered to be the densest known element, narrowly defeating iridium. However, calculations of density from the space lattice may produce more reliable data for these elements than actual measurements and give a density of 22650 kg/m³ for iridium versus 22610 kg/m³ for osmium. Definitive selection between the two is therefore not possible at this time. If one distinguishes different isotopes, then the heaviest ordinary substance would be ¹⁹²Os.

Osmium also has a very low compressibility. Correspondingly, its bulk modulus is extremely high -- commonly quoted as 462GPa, which is higher than that of diamond but lower than that of ADNR or aggregated diamond nanorods -- although there is some debate in the academic community about whether it is in fact this high. A paper by Cynn et al published in 2002 reported that osmium had this bulk modulus, based on an experimental result; but several subsequent authors have cast doubt upon this (for example Sahu et al in Sept 2005, who refer also to other such papers - see References section).

This metal has the highest melting point and the lowest vapor pressure of the platinum family. Common oxidation states of osmium are +4 and +3, but oxidation states from +1 to +8 are observed.

Applications

Because of the extreme toxicity of its oxide, osmium is rarely used in its pure state, and is instead often alloyed with other metals that are used in high wear applications. Osmium alloys such as osmiridium are very hard and, along with other platinum group metals, is almost entirely used in alloys employed in the tips of fountain pens, phonograph needles, instrument pivots, and electrical contacts, as they can resist wear from frequent use.

Osmium tetroxide has been used in fingerprint detection and in staining fatty tissue for microscope slides. As a strong oxidant, it cross-links lipids by fixing biological membranes in place. Futhermore, osmium atoms are extremely electron dense, making OsO₄ an important stain for transmission electron microscopy (TEM) studies of a wide range of biological materials. An alloy of 90% platinum and 10% osmium (90/10) is used in surgical implants such as pacemakers and replacement pulmonary valves.

The tetroxide (and a related compound, potassium osmate) are important oxidants for chemical synthesis, despite being very poisonous.

In 1898 an Austrian chemist - Auer von Welsbach - developed the Oslamp with a filament made of osmium, which he introduced commercially in 1902. After only a few years, osmium was replaced by the more stable metal tungsten (originally known as Wolfram). Tungsten has the highest melting point of any metal, and using it in light bulbs increases the luminous efficacy and life of incandescent lamps.

The light bulb manufacturer OSRAM (founded in 1906 when three German companies; Auer-Gesellschaft, AEG and Siemens & Halske combined their lamp production facilities), derived its name from the elements of OSmium and wolfRAM.

History

Osmium ( Greek osme meaning "a smell") was discovered in 1803 by Smithson Tennant and William Hyde Wollaston in London, England.

Wollaston and Tennant were looking for a way to purify platinum by dissolution of native platinum ore in aqua regia. Large amounts of insoluble black powder remained as a byproduct of this operation.

Wollaston concentrated on the soluble portion and discovered Palladium (in 1802) and Rhodium (in 1804), while Tennant examined the insoluble residue. In the summer of 1803, Tennant identified two new elements; osmium and iridium. Discovery of the new elements was documented in a letter to the Royal Society on June 21, 1804.

Occurrence

Turkey with 127,000 tons has the world's largest known reserve of osmium. Bulgaria also has substantial reserves of about 2500 tons. This transition metal is also found in iridiosmium, a naturally occurring alloy of iridium and osmium, and in platinum-bearing river sands in the Ural Mountains, and North and South America. It also occurs in nickel-bearing ores found in the Sudbury, Ontario region with other platinum group metals. Even though the quantity of platinum metals found in these ores is small, the large volume of nickel ores processed makes commercial recovery possible.

Value

Osmium is quite valuable, costing about US $100 per gram (g). One of the stable isotopes, ¹⁸⁷Os is worth about $25000 per gram.

Compounds

See also osmium compounds. Osmium tetroxide OsO₄

Isotopes

Osmium has seven naturally-occurring isotopes, 5 of which are stable: ¹⁸⁷Os, ¹⁸⁸Os, ¹⁸⁹Os, ¹⁹⁰Os, and (most abundant) ¹⁹²Os. The other two, ¹⁸⁴Os and ¹⁸⁶Os, have enormously long half lifes and for practical purposes can be considered to be stable as well. ¹⁸⁷Os is the daughter of ¹⁸⁷Re ( half-life 4.56 x 10¹⁰ years) and is most often measured in an ¹⁸⁷Os/¹⁸⁸Os ratio. This ratio, as well as the ¹⁸⁷Re/¹⁸⁷Os ratio, have been used extensively in dating terrestrial as well as meteoric rocks. It has also been used to measure the intensity of continental weathering over geologic time. However, the most notable application of Os in dating has been in conjunction with iridium, to analyze the layer of shocked quartz along the K-T boundary that marks the extinction of the dinosaurs 65 million years ago.

Precautions

Osmium tetroxide is highly toxic. Airborne low concentrations of osmium can cause lung congestion, skin or eye damage.