Discovery Information
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Who: Pierre and Marie Curie |
When: 1898 |
Where: France |
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Name Origin
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From Poland, country of Pierre and Marie Curie. |
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Sources
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Occurs in pitchblende from decay of radium.
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Uses
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Used for nuclear batteries, neutron source, antistatic agents, film cleaner.
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Notes
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Polonium has more isotopes than any other element, all of which are radioactive. Polonium dissolves readily in dilute acids, but is only slightly soluble
in alkalis.
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Polonium is highly radioactive and extremely toxic. Even milligram or microgram amounts, handling polonium-210 is very dangerous
and requires special equipment used with strict procedures. Direct damage occurs from energy absorption into tissues from
alpha particles. Weight for weight it is about 2.5 x 1011 times as toxic as hydrocyanic acid (HCN). A milligram of polonium-210 emits as many alpha particles (helium nuclei) as 5
grams of radium. Polonium has been found in tobacco as a contaminant and in uranium ores.
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