We use cookies and other tracking technologies to improve your browsing experience on our website, to show you personalized content and targeted ads, to analyze our website traffic, and to understand where our visitors are coming from. For more information, please review our cookie policy and privacy policy.
By choosing I Accept, you consent to our use of cookies and other tracking technologies.

Europium (Eu)

Europium is a chemical element of the periodic table with chemical symbol Eu and atomic number 63 with an atomic weight of 151.964 u and is classed as lanthanide. Europium is solid at room temperature.

Europium in the periodic table

SymbolEu
Atomic number63
Group-
Period6
Blockf
ClassificationLanthanide
Appearance-
Color Silver
Number of protons63 p+
Number of neutrons89 n0
Number of electrons63 e-
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopediaEuropium is a chemical element with symbol Eu and atomic number 63. It was isolated in 1901 and is named after the continent of Europe. It is a moderately hard, silvery metal which readily oxidizes in air and water.

Physical properties

Phase at STPSolid
Density5.264 g/cm3
Atomic weight151.964 u

Thermal properties

Melting point1099 K
825.85 °C
1518.53 °F
Boiling point1802 K
1528.85 °C
2783.93 °F
Heat of vaporization175.73 kJ/mol

Atomic properties

Electronegativity (Pauling Scale)1.2
Electron affinity11.2 kJ/mol
Oxidation states0, +2, +3
(a mildly basic oxide)
Ionization energies
  1. 547.1 kJ/mol
  2. 1085 kJ/mol
  3. 2404 kJ/mol
  4. 4120 kJ/mol

Electron configuration for europium

Electron configuration
Shorthand configuration
[Xe] 4f7 6s2
Electron configuration
Full configuration
1s2 2s2 2p6 3s2 3p6 3d10 4s2 4p6 4d10 4f7 5s2 5p6 6s2
Electron configuration chart
1s2
2s22p6
3s23p63d10
4s24p64d104f7
5s25p6
6s2
Electrons per shell2, 8, 18, 25, 8, 2
Valence electrons 2
Valency electrons 3
Bohr model
EuropiumElectron shell for Europium, created by Injosoft ABEu
Figure: Shell diagram of Europium (Eu) atom.
Orbital Diagram
1s
2s2p
3s3p3d
4s4p4d4f
5s5p
6s

The history of Europium

DiscoveryEugène-Anatole Demarçay (1896)
First isolationEugène-Anatole Demarçay (1901)
Discovery of europium
Although europium is present in most of the minerals containing the other rare elements, due to the difficulties in separating the elements it was not until the late 1800s that the element was isolated. William Crookes observed the phosphorescent spectra of the rare elements including those eventually assigned to europium. Europium was first found in 1892 by Paul Émile Lecoq de Boisbaudran, who obtained basic fractions from samarium-gadolinium concentrates which had spectral lines not accounted for by samarium or gadolinium. However, the discovery of europium is generally credited to French chemist Eugène-Anatole Demarçay, who suspected samples of the recently discovered element samarium were contaminated with an unknown element in 1896 and who was able to isolate it in 1901; he then named it europium.

Identifiers

List of unique identifiers for Europium in various chemical registry databases
CAS Number7440-53-1
ChemSpider ID22417
EC number231-161-7
PubChem CID Number23981