Lanthanum Praseodymium

Cerium (Ce)

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopediaCerium is a chemical element with symbol Ce and atomic number 58. It is a soft, silvery, ductile metal which easily oxidizes in air. Cerium was named after the dwarf planet Ceres (itself named after the Roman goddess of agriculture).

Cerium in the periodic table

Symbol

Atomic number

Group

Period

Block

Element category

Lanthanide

Physical properties

Phase at STP

Solid

Density

6.77 g/cm³

Atomic weight

140.116 u

Melting point

1068 K
794.85 °C
1462.73 °F

Boiling point

3716 K
3442.85 °C
6229.13 °F

Atomic properties

Electronegativity (Pauling Scale)

1.12

Electron affinity

55 kJ/mol

Oxidation states

+1, +2, +3, +4
(a mildly basic oxide)

Ionization energies

1	534.4 kJ/mol
2	1050 kJ/mol
3	1949 kJ/mol
4	3547 kJ/mol
5	6325 kJ/mol
6	7490 kJ/mol

Electron configuration

Elektronkonfiguration (shorthand)

[Xe] 4f¹ 5d¹ 6s²

Electron configuration

1s² 2s² 2p⁶ 3s² 3p⁶ 3d¹⁰ 4s² 4p⁶ 4d¹⁰ 4f¹ 5s² 5p⁶ 5d¹ 6s²

Electrons per shell

2, 8, 18, 19, 9, 2

History

Discovered

1803

Discovered by

Martin Heinrich Klaproth
Wilhelm Hisinger
Jöns Jacob Berzelius