Pu Plutonium     Atomic number : 94 
    Relative atomic mass (12C = 12.0000) :  244.0642 (Pu-244) 
    P H Y S I C A L     D A T A
Group 3 actinide
 
Density / kg m-3 :  19 840 () [298 K]; 16 623 [liquid at m.p.]
 
Melting point / K :  914 
 
Boiling point / K :  3505
 
    D I S C O V E R Y
Plutonium was discovered in 1940 by G.T. Seaborg, A.C. Wahl and J.W. Kennedy at Berkeley, California, USA.
 
    G E O L O G I C A L     D A T A
Abundances
 
Sun (relative to H = 1 × 1012) : n.a.
 
Earth's crust / p.p.m. : plutonium is present in minute quantities in uranium ores, and is formed when one of the emitted neutrons, from a uranium atom undergoing fission, is captured by another uranium nucleus which then undergoes beta-emission to give first neptunium, then plutonium.
 
  
 
Seawater / p.p.m. : nil
    B I O L O G I C A L     D A T A
Level in humans
 
Organs: n.a., but extremely low
 
  
 
Daily dietary intake : nil
 
Total mass of element
in average (70 kg) person :
n.a., but extremely low

 

NetElements II  

A portrait of plutonium is available on the Visual Elements site. Up to 200 individual items of information on this element are available in The Elements.


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NetElements II last modified October 27th, 1999