Mercury :: essays research papers

MercuryMercury is a metallic element that is a liquid at board temperature, itis one of the pitch contour elements. Mercurys atomic number is 80. It issuperconductive when cooled to within a few degrees of absolute zero. Mercurywas once known as liquid silver or quicksilver which was canvass by thealchemists. Mercury was first distinguished as an element by the French chemistAntoine Laurent Lavoisier in his experiment on the composition of air. At roomtemperature mercury is a shining, moving liquid that has a silvery-white color,and slightly volatile. Mercury remains a liquid over a wide temperature range.Mercury is a solid when given a pressure of 7640 atmospheres (5.8 million torrs).It dissolves in nitric or concentrated sulfuric acid but is resistant toalkalies. Mercury melts at -39C, boils at about 357C,and has a gravity of 13.5.The atomic weight of mercury is 200.59. Mercury comes in its pure form orcombined with silver in small amounts. It is mostly found in the form of the sulfide.Mercury has many uses and is a very important element. A major use ofmercury is in electrical equipment such as fluorescent lamps, and mercurybatteries. Mercury is used in thermometers because the change in volume foreach degree of rise or fall in temperature is the same. The use of mercury inthe thermometer quite of alcohol was done by Gabriel Daniel Fahrenheit in 1714.It was also used in vacuum-clean pumps, barometers, and electric rectifiers andswitches. Mercury is used in a mercury-vapor lamps which are used as a sourceof ultraviolet rays in homes and for sterilizing water. Mercury-vapor is alsoused instead of steam in the boilers of some turbine engines. Mercury issometimes used for amalgamation. Amalgamation is a metallurgical process thatutilizes mercury to dissolve silver or funds to form an amalgam. This processhas been largely supplanted by the cyanide process, in which gold or silver is