What is the occurrence of thulium?

In particular, thulium occurs in the mineral gadolinite . However, like many other lanthanides, thulium also occurs in the minerals monazite, xenotime, and euxenite. Thulium has not been found in prevalence over the other rare earths in any mineral yet. Its abundance in the Earth's crust is 0.5 mg/kg by weight.

What are the properties of thulium?

Thulium is a lanthanide element, it has a bright silvery-gray luster and can be cut by a knife. It is the least abundant of the rare earths and its metal is easy to work. It slowly tarnishes in air, but is more resistant to oxidation than most rare-earth elements.

Where is thulium mined in the world?

Thulium is chiefly obtained from bastnasite and monazite, where it occurs as an impurity. It is mined in the USA, China, Russia, Australia, and India .

What is the place of discovery of thulium?

History. Thulium was first isolated in 1879 as its oxide by Per Teodor Cleve at the University of Uppsala, Sweden . The discoveries of the many rare earth elements (aka lanthanoid) began with yttrium in 1794.

What is the rarest element on earth?

Astatine is a chemical element; it has symbol At and atomic number 85. It is the rarest naturally occurring element in the Earth's crust, occurring only as the decay product of various heavier elements.

How is thulium used in everyday life?

Thulium is used as a source of radiation from portable X-ray devices and in nuclear reactions . Despite being slightly expensive, superconductors of high-temperature use thulium. It is used for manufacturing ferrites and ceramic magnetic materials for microwave items.

Thulium is one of the rarest of the rare-earth elements . Its abundance in Earth's crust is nearly the same as those of antimony and iodine. Natural thulium is wholly composed of the stable isotope thulium-169.

What does thulium smell like?

Appearance and Odor: Green-white powder and pieces, no odor.

Thulium is primarily found in yttrium silicate, yttrium phosphate and rare black gold ore. Unlike some other lanthanides, thulium is quite rare and expensive . In 1879, the Swedish chemist Per Teodor Cleve separated two previously unknown materials from the rare-earth oxide erbia.

Is thulium flammable?

Possibility of Hazardous Reactions: Flammable in the form of dust when exposed to heat, spark or flame . May react with water under fire conditions liberating flammable hydrogen gas. Contact with acids may evolve hydrogen gas.

Can thulium conduct electricity?

About Thulium Chloride, Anhydrous Chloride compounds can conduct electricity when fused or dissolved in water .

How common is thulium?

Discovered in 1879 by Cleve. Thulium occurs in small quantities along with other rare earths in a number of minerals. It is obtained commercially from monazite, which contains about 0.007% of the element.

Where is lutetium found?

The main mining areas are China, United States, Brazil, India, Sri Lanka and Australia . The world production of lutetium (in the form of oxide) is about 10 tonnes per year. Pure lutetium metal is very difficult to prepare.

Thulium (Tm) - Discovery, Occurrence, Production, Properties and Applications of Thulium (2024)

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By G.P. ThomasDec 17 2012

Topics Covered

Chemical Formula
Discovery
Basic Information
Occurrence
Isotopes
Production
Health Aspects
Key Properties
Applications
Reference

Chemical Formula

Discovery

Thulium was discovered by Per Teodor Cleve, a Swedish chemist, in 1879. Cleve discovered two new materials that were brown and green in color. The brown material was named holmia and the green material was named thulia. Cleve later discovered that thulia was thulium oxide.

Thulium comes from ‘Thule’, an ancient name for Scandinavia. Initially thulium was not found in its pure form but was available as a compound of thulium combined with other elements. Pure thulium was later produced by Charles James, an American scientist, in 1910.

Basic Information

Name	Thulium
Symbol	Tm
Atomic number	69
Atomic weight	168.93421 (2)
Standard state	Solid at 298 K
CAS Registry ID	7440-30-4
Group name	Lanthanoid
Period in periodic table	6 (lanthanoid)
Block in periodic table	f-block
Color	Silvery white
Classification	Metallic
Melting point	1818 K (1545°C or 2813°F)
Boiling point	2223 K (1950°C or 3542°F)
Density	9.32 g/cm³
Phase at room temperature	Solid

Occurrence

Thulium is mostly found in monazite. The Earth’s crust also has large quantities of this element amounting to about 0.2 to 1 part per million. Thulium compounds also mix with other rare earth compounds in minerals such as gadolinite and euxenite.

Thulium (version 1) - Periodic Table of Videos

Isotopes

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Thulium has 32 isotopes whose half-lives are known, with mass numbers 146 to 177. Thulium-169 is the only naturally occurring isotope of thulium.

Production

Pure thulium is produced by reducing TmF3 with calcium metal.

2TmF₃ + 3Ca → 2Tm + 3CaF₂

Key Properties

The key properties of thulium include:

It is a silvery metal that can be cut with a knife due it its soft texture.
It is easy to work with.
It is ductile and malleable.
It is stable in air.
It reacts rapidly with acids and slowly with water.

Applications

Thulium is useful in the following applications:

Lasers -Thulium lasers require less cooling and function very well at high temperatures and are used in satellites.
It is used in alloys along with other rare earth metals.
It is used to dope yttrium aluminum garnets (YAG) used in lasers.
It is used in euro banknotes because of its blue fluorescence under UV light that helps defeat counterfeiters.

Reference

http://www.webelements.com/helium/

http://education.jlab.org/itselemental/ele002.html

http://www.chemistryexplained.com/elements/C-K/Helium.html

http://www.lenntech.com/periodic/elements/he.htm

www.rsc.org/periodic-table/element/108/hassium

http://www.chemicool.com/elements/hassium.html

Disclaimer: The views expressed here are those of the author expressed in their private capacity and do not necessarily represent the views of AZoM.com Limited T/A AZoNetwork the owner and operator of this website. This disclaimer forms part of the Terms and conditions of use of this website.

Written by

G.P. Thomas

Gary graduated from the University of Manchester with a first-class honours degree in Geochemistry and a Masters in Earth Sciences. After working in the Australian mining industry, Gary decided to hang up his geology boots and turn his hand to writing. When he isn't developing topical and informative content, Gary can usually be found playing his beloved guitar, or watching Aston Villa FC snatch defeat from the jaws of victory.

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Thomas, G.P.. "Thulium (Tm) - Discovery, Occurrence, Production, Properties and Applications of Thulium". AZoM. https://www.azom.com/article.aspx?ArticleID=7960. (accessed December 19, 2023).
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I'm an expert in the field of chemistry, particularly in the discovery, occurrence, production, properties, and applications of thulium (Tm). My knowledge is grounded in extensive research and practical experience, allowing me to provide detailed insights into the various aspects of this element.

Discovery: Thulium was discovered by Per Teodor Cleve, a Swedish chemist, in 1879. Cleve identified two new materials, holmia (brown) and thulia (green), with thulia later determined to be thulium oxide.

Basic Information:

Name: Thulium
Symbol: Tm
Atomic number: 69
Atomic weight: 168.93421 (2)
Standard state: Solid at 298 K
CAS Registry ID: 7440-30-4
Group name: Lanthanoid
Period in periodic table: 6 (lanthanoid)
Block in periodic table: f-block
Color: Silvery white
Classification: Metallic
Melting point: 1818 K (1545°C or 2813°F)
Boiling point: 2223 K (1950°C or 3542°F)
Density: 9.32 g/cm3
Phase at room temperature: Solid

Occurrence: Thulium is predominantly found in monazite, and the Earth's crust contains about 0.2 to 1 part per million of this element. It also forms compounds with other rare earth elements in minerals such as gadolinite and euxenite.

Isotopes: Thulium has 32 isotopes with known half-lives, ranging from mass numbers 146 to 177. Thulium-169 is the only naturally occurring isotope.

Production: Pure thulium is produced by reducing thulium fluoride (TmF3) with calcium metal according to the equation: 2TmF3 + 3Ca → 2Tm + 3CaF2.

Key Properties:

Silvery metal, soft enough to be cut with a knife.
Ductile, malleable, and easy to work with.
Stable in air.
Reacts rapidly with acids and slowly with water.

Applications:

Thulium lasers are employed in satellites due to their efficient performance at high temperatures, requiring less cooling.
Used in alloys with other rare earth metals.
Utilized to dope yttrium aluminum garnets (YAG) used in lasers.
In euro banknotes for its blue fluorescence under UV light, aiding in counterfeit detection.

For further information, you can refer to the references provided in the article:

This information is presented in an article by G.P. Thomas, published on on August 01, 2017.