Dysprosium


 * Dysprosium**
 * Atomic Number:** 66
 * Atomic Weight:** 162.500
 * Melting Point:** 1685 K (1412°C or 2574°F)
 * Boiling Point:** 2840 K (2567°C or 4653°F)
 * Density:** 8.55 grams per cubic centimeter
 * Phase at Room Temperature:** Solid
 * Element Classification:** Metal
 * Period Number:** 6 **Group Number:** none **Group Name:** Lanthanide
 * What's in a name?** From the Greek word **dysprositos**, which means "hard to get at."
 * Say what?** Dysprosium is pronounced as **dis-PRO-see-em** or as **dis-PRO-she-em**.
 * Number of Energy Levels:** 6
 * First Energy Level:**


 * Second Energy Level:**


 * Third Energy Level:**


 * Fourth Energy Level:**


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 * Sixth Energy Level:**

Isotopes

 * ** Isotope ** || ** Half Life ** ||
 * Dy-154 || 3000000.0 years ||
 * Dy-156 || Stable ||
 * Dy-157 || 8.1 hours ||
 * Dy-158 || Stable ||
 * Dy-159 || 144.4 days ||
 * Dy-160 || Stable ||
 * Dy-161 || Stable ||
 * Dy-162 || Stable ||
 * Dy-163 || Stable ||
 * Dy-164 || Stable ||
 * Dy-165 || 2.3 hours ||
 * Dy-166 || 3.4 days ||

Facts
Dysprosium was discovered by Paul-Émile Lecoq de Boisbaudran, a French chemist, in 1886 as an impurity in erbia, the oxide of erbium. The metal was isolated by Georges Urbain, another French chemist, in 1906. Pure samples of dysprosium were first produced in the 1950s. Today, dysprosium is primarily obtained through an ion exchange process from monazite sand ((Ce, La, Th, Nd, Y)PO4), a material rich in rare earth elements. There are no commercial applications for dysprosium. Since it easily absorbs neutrons and has a high melting point, dysprosium might be alloyed with steel for use in nuclear reactors. When combined with vanadium and other rare earth elements, dysprosium is used as a laser material. Dysprosium oxide (Dy2O3), also known as dysprosia, is combined with nickel and added to a special cement used to cool nuclear reactor rods. Other dysprosium compounds include: dysprosium fluoride (DyF3), dysprosium iodide (DyI3) and dysprosium sulfate (Dy2(SO4)3).
 * Date of Discovery:** 1886 **Discoverer:** Paul Emile Lecoq de Boisbaudran **Name Origin:** From the Greek word //dysprositos// (hard to get at) **Uses:** nuclear reactors **Obtained From:** erbium, holmium
 * History and Uses:**
 * Estimated Crustal Abundance:** 5.2 milligrams per kilogram
 * Estimated Oceanic Abundance:** 9.1×10-7 milligrams per liter
 * Number of Stable Isotopes:** 7 (View all isotope data)
 * Ionization Energy:** 5.939 eV
 * Oxidation State:** +3


 * Uses**
 * its thermal neutron absorption cross-section and high melting point suggest metallurgical uses in nuclear control applications for alloying with special stainless steels
 * in combination with vanadium and other earth, dysprosium is used for making laser materials
 * dysprosium-cadmium chalcogenides are sources of infrared radiation and are used for studying chemical reactions
 * CD disks

is a [|chemical element] with the symbol **Dy** and [|atomic number] 66. It is a [|rare earth element] with a metallic silver luster. Dysprosium is never found in nature as a free element, though it is found in various minerals, such as [|xenotime]. Naturally occurring dysprosium is composed of 7 [|isotopes], the most [|abundant] of which is 164Dy. Dysprosium was first identified in 1886 by [|Paul Émile Lecoq de Boisbaudran], but was not isolated in pure form until the development of [|ion exchange] techniques in the 1950s. Dysprosium is used for its high thermal neutron absorption cross-section in making control rods in [|nuclear reactors], for its high [|magnetic susceptibility] in data storage applications, and as a component of [|Terfenol-D]. Soluble dysprosium salts are mildly toxic, while the insoluble salts are considered non-toxic.