Compare Mercury vs Cadmium
Comparing Mercury (Hg) and Cadmium (Cd). Atomic numbers 80 and 48 with atomic masses 200.592 u and 112.414 u, classified as transition metal and transition metal. Below: a side-by-side comparison of their physical, atomic, electron-configuration and historical properties, including density, melting and boiling points, ionization energies, oxidation states and discovery history.
Periodic properties of the elements
| Mercury | Cadmium | |
|---|---|---|
| Symbol | Hg | Cd |
| Atomic number | 80 | 48 |
| Group | 12 | 12 |
| Period | 6 | 5 |
| Block | d | d |
| Element category | Transition Metal | Transition Metal |
Physical properties
| Mercury | Cadmium | |
|---|---|---|
| Phase at STP | Liquid | Solid |
| Density | 13.534 g/cm3 | 8.65 g/cm3 |
| Atomic weight | 200.592 u | 112.414 u |
| Melting point | 234.321 K -38.829 °C -37.8922 °F | 594.22 K 321.07 °C 609.926 °F |
| Boiling point | 629.88 K 356.73 °C 674.114 °F | 1040 K 766.85 °C 1412.33 °F |
Atomic properties
| Mercury | Cadmium | |
|---|---|---|
| Electronegativity (Pauling Scale) | 2 | 1.69 |
| Electron affinity | -48 kJ/mol | -68 kJ/mol |
| Oxidation states | −2 , +1, +2 (a mildly basic oxide) | −2, +1, +2 (a mildly basic oxide) |
| Ionization energies |
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Electron configuration
| Mercury | Cadmium | |
|---|---|---|
| Shorthand configuration | [Xe] 4f14 5d10 6s2 | [Kr] 4d10 5s2 |
| Full configuration | 1s2 2s2 2p6 3s2 3p6 3d10 4s2 4p6 4d10 4f14 5s2 5p6 5d10 6s2 | 1s2 2s2 2p6 3s2 3p6 3d10 4s2 4p6 4d10 5s2 |
| Electrons per shell | 2, 8, 18, 32, 18, 2 | 2, 8, 18, 18, 2 |
History
| Mercury | Cadmium | |
|---|---|---|
| Discovery | Egyptians (1500 BC) | Friedrich Stromeyer; Karl Samuel Leberecht Hermann (independently) (1817) |
| First isolation | Friedrich Stromeyer; Karl Samuel Leberecht Hermann (independently) (1817) | |
| Named by | Friedrich Stromeyer (1817) |