Description
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Fermiumm is a synthetic element that is in the actinide family, and it is estimated to be a silver or grey color in its solid state. Not too much is known about the chemical characteristics of this element, and to this date it is still being examined, though it is predicted that it may be able to exist in aqueous solutions in an oxide form. Fermium has an atomic weight of 257, a melting point of 2781 °F, and the boiling point is not yet known.
Isolation
Fermium does not occur in nature, and it must be synthesized using specialized equipment. The isolation of fermium is complicated by its short half life.
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Fermium was first discovered in the debris from the first hydrogen bomb explosion in its isotopic, number 255, form. The isotope of fermium was created when the uranium isotope, number 238, reacted with 17 neutrons and increased temperatures and pressure during the explosion. Fermium has also been created by using the 238 uranium isotope and bombarding it with ions from oxygen; this procedure produces the isotope, number 250, of fermium. Today, fermium is synthesized by using plutonium; in this process the plutonium is bombarded with neutrons. Most of the isotopes of fermium have a half life of less than 5.4 hours; some of these isotopes have a half life of less than 3 minutes. The isolation procedures of this element have not yet been perfected due to the short half life of these isotopes. Fermium is also very radioactive, and so it must be synthesized and handled using extreme caution.