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- Name : Thorium
- Symbol : Th
- Atomic # : 90
- Atom weight: 232.038
- Melting P. : 1750
- Boiling P. : 3800
- Oxidation : +4
- Pronounced : THOR-i-em or THO-ri-em
- From : Named for Thor, the Norse god of thunder
- Identified : Jons Jacob Berzelius in 1828
- Appearance : Gray, soft, malleable, ductile, radioactive metal
- Note : Heavy metal
-
- [Properties]
-
- Thorium is a heavy gray metal that is soft, malleable, and ductile. It
- appears shiny when freshly cut, but gradually develops a dark gray or
- black oxide film. Other physical properties are not well established
- because tehy are so incredibly sensitive to minute amounts of impurities,
- including thorium oxide.
- Thorium reacts slowly in water at room temperature, yet the only acid
- that readily attacks it is hydrochloric acid.
-