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97
Bk
247

Berkelium

Actinide Period 7 Block f

Berkelium is a chemical element of the periodic table with chemical symbol Bk and atomic number 97 with an atomic weight of 247 u and is classed as actinide. Berkelium is solid at room temperature.

Berkelium in the periodic table

SymbolBk
Atomic number97
Group-
Period7
Blockf
ClassificationActinide
AppearanceSilvery
Color-
Number of protons97 p+
Number of neutrons150 n0
Number of electrons97 e-
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopediaBerkelium is a transuranic radioactive chemical element with symbol Bk and atomic number 97. It is a member of the actinide and transuranium element series. It is named after the city of Berkeley, California, the location of the University of California Radiation Laboratory where it was discovered in December 1949.

Physical properties

Phase at STPSolid
Density14.78 g/cm3
Atomic weight247 u

Thermal properties

Melting point1259 K
985.85 °C
1806.53 °F
Boiling point2900 K
2626.85 °C
4760.33 °F
Heat of vaporization-

Atomic properties

Electronegativity (Pauling Scale)1.3
Electron affinity-165.24 kJ/mol
Oxidation states+2, +3, +4, +5
()
Ionization energies
  1. 601 kJ/mol
  2. 1186 kJ/mol
  3. 2152 kJ/mol
  4. 3434 kJ/mol

Electron configuration for berkelium

Electron configuration
Shorthand configuration
[Rn] 5f9 7s2
Full configuration1s2 2s2 2p6 3s2 3p6 3d10 4s2 4p6 4d10 4f14 5s2 5p6 5d10 5f9 6s2 6p6 7s2
Electron configuration chart
1s2
2s22p6
3s23p63d10
4s24p64d104f14
5s25p65d105f9
6s26p6
7s2
Electrons per shell2, 8, 18, 32, 27, 8, 2
Outer shell electrons 2
Valency electrons 3,4
Bohr model
BerkeliumElectron shell for Berkelium, created by Injosoft ABBk
Figure: Shell diagram of Berkelium (Bk) atom.
Orbital Diagram
1s
2s2p
3s3p3d
4s4p4d4f
5s5p5d5f
6s6p
7s

The history of Berkelium

DiscoveryLawrence Berkeley National Laboratory (1949)
Discovery of berkelium
Berkelium was first synthesized in December 1949 by Stanley Thompson, Albert Ghiorso and Glenn Seaborg at the University of California, Berkeley, by bombarding americium-241 with alpha particles. The name honours the city of Berkeley, where the discovery was made, paralleling the naming of terbium after the Swedish town Ytterby. Only milligram amounts have ever been produced.
Original wordBerkeley
Language of origin English
Name sourcePlace
Meaning“Berkeley”
CountryUnited States
Naming
The element is named after the city of Berkeley, California, home of the laboratory where it was first synthesised in 1949.

Identifiers

List of unique identifiers for Berkelium in various chemical registry databases
CAS Number7440-40-6
ChemSpider ID22409
EC number-
PubChem CID Number23971