Yttrium was discovered by a Finnish chemist Johan Gadolin in 1794. And it was first isolated by German chemist Friedrich Wöhler in 1838.
How many valence electrons does yttrium have?
Yttrium has 3 valence electrons. They are in 4d1 and 5s2 orbitals. The electronic configuration of the Yttrium is 1s2, 2s2, 2p6, 3s2, 3p6, 4s2, 3d10, 4p6, 4d1, 5s2.
What is yttrium used for?
Yttrium and its compounds have a wide range of uses. Some of the following are.
Yttrium oxide is used in colour television cathode-ray tubes for red colour.
Yttrium oxide is used in the production of porous silicon nitride as a sintering additive.
It is used in high-performance spark plugs electrodes.
As a catalyst, it is used in the polymerization of Ethylene.
It is a key ingredient in the yttrium barium copper oxide superconductor.
Yttrium is used in a small amount of Lithium iron phosphate battery (LFP) cathodes.
It is used in aluminium and magnesium alloys to enhance and increase its strength.
yttrium is used in the production of synthetic garnets.
yttrium-90 a radioactive isotope is used in various cancer drugs like Yttrium Y 90 ibritumomab tiuxetan and Yttrium Y 90-DOTA-tyr3-octreotide.
It is used in camera lenses and mobile phone screens.
