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Lithium (Li)

Boiling point- 1615 K Melting point- 453.5 K  Density- .534 g/cm^(3) Electrons- 3 Protons-3 Neutrons-4 Atomic Mass- 6.941 Atomic Number- 3 Valence Electrons- 1  Electron Configuration- [He] 2s1 Lithium was discovered by Johan August Arfvedson in 1817 during an analysis of pegmatite from the Swedish island Utö. Arfvedson discovered Lithium in the mineral. C.G. Gmelin observed in 1818 that Lithium salts color flames a bright red. Both were unable to isolate the element itself from Lithium salts. The first isolation of elemental Lithium happened later by W.T. Brande and Sir Humphrey Davy by the electrolysis of Lithium oxide. In 1855, Bunsen and Mattiessen isolated larger quantities of Li by electrolysis of Lithium chloride. In 1923 the first production of lithium metal was by Metallgesellschaft AG in Germany using the electrolysis of a molten mixture of Lithium chloride and potassium chloride, using a suggestion made by Guntz in 1893. Because of its high reactivity, Lithium never occurs freely in nature, and instead, only appears in ionic compounds. Lithium occurs in pegmatite minerals, in ocean water, and is obtained from brines and clays. On a commercial scale, lithium is isolated by electrolysis from a mixture of lithium chloride and potassium chloride.

Specific Heat Capacity: 24.86J/mol · 1/K  Standard State (phase): Solid   Liquid Density (at melting point): 0.512g/cm^3   Heat of Fusion: 3kJ/mol   Heat of Vaporization: 147.1kJ/mol Found in petalite. Some common chemical reactions include binary compounds with halogens, oxygen, hydrogen, and other compounds of Lithium. Lithium hydroxide is used to absorb carbon dioxide in space vehicles. Lithium is alloyed with aluminum, copper, manganese, and cadmium to make high performance alloys for aircraft. Compounds such as LiAlH4 and organic-lithium reagents are very important as reagents in organic chemistry. Lithium is sometimes used as battery anode material (high electrochemical potential) and lithium compounds are used in dry cells and storage batteries. Lithium is used in the manufacture of special high strength glasses and ceramics. Sometimes, lithium-based compounds like lithium carbonate are used as drugs to treat manic-depressive disorders. The metal lithium is worth about $300/lb. however there are pharmaceuticals with many forms of lithium that run from about $5.99 - $40.70 for 90 - 120 capsules. How much lithium is worth depends on the form that you want or have. Some Interesting Facts:
 * The name for lithium comes from Greek lithos which means stone.
 * Lithium is believed to be one of only three elements – the others are hydrogen and helium – produced in significant quantities by the Big Bang. Synthesis of these elements took place within the first three minutes of the universe’s existence.
 * Lithium is the only alkali metal that reacts with nitrogen.
 * Humphrey Davy produced some of the world’s first lithium metal from lithium carbonate. Today lithium carbonate – or more precisely the lithium ions in lithium carbonate – are used to inhibit the manic phase of bipolar (manic-depressive) disorder.
 * Lithium based batteries have revolutionized consumer devices such as computers and cell phones. For a given battery weight, lithium batteries deliver more energy than batteries based on other metals; in other words, lithium batteries have high energy density.

SoftPedia http://news.softpedia.com/newsImage/Lithium-Sulfur-Battery-Research-Gets-a-Boost-2.jpg/ SoftNews NET SRL Updated one minute ago

Wikipedia http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lithium Creative Commons 29 November 2013 at 10:01

WebElements http://www.webelements.com/lithium/uses.html Mark Winter 1993-2012 Copyright