Lead , including Technical Data, Safety Data and its high purity properties, research, applications and other useful facts are discussed below. Scientific facts such as the atomic structure,ionization energy, abundance on Earth, conductivity and thermal properties are included. Lead is a bluish-white metal of bright luster, naturally occurring as a mixture of four stable isotopes: 204Pb (1.48%), 206Pb (23.6%), 207Pb (22.6%), and 208Pb (52.3%). It is highly resistant to corrosion and can be used to contain corrosive liquids such as sulfuric acid. Great quantities of Lead, both as the dioxide and the metal, are used in batteries, cable covering, plumbing, and ammunition. Alloys include solder, type metal, and various antifriction metals and compounds. Lead is extremely effective at absorbing sound and vibration. It is also used as radiation shielding for X-ray equipment and nuclear reactors. Oxides of Lead are used in producing fine "crystal glass" and "flint glass" of a high index of refraction for achromatic lenses. Lead ceramics and crystalline material have a wide range of industrial and optical applications, including infrared detection and imaging. Lead-based semiconductors, such as lead telluride, lead selenide and lead antimonide are finding application in photovoltaic (solar energy) cells and infra red detectors. White lead, the basic carbonate, sublimed white lead, chrome yellow, and other lead compounds are used in paints, although the use of lead in paints has been drastically curtailed in recent years to reduce health hazards. Lead is available asmetal and compounds with purities from 99% to 99.9999% (ACS grade to ultra-high purity). Lead is also used in various metal alloys (See AE Alloys). |
Abundance. The following table shows the abundance of lead and each of its naturally occurringisotopes on Earth along with the atomic mass for each isotope.
The following table shows the abundance of Lead present in the human body and in the universe scaled to parts per billion (ppb) by weight and by atom:
Safety Data and Biological Role. The safety data for lead metal, nanoparticles and its compounds can vary widely depending on the form. For potential hazard information, toxicity, and road, sea and air transportation limitations, such as DOT Hazard Class, DOT Number, EU Number, NFPA Health rating and RTECS Class, please see the specific material or compound referenced in the left margin. Leadcompounds have no biological role. Ionization Energy. The ionization energy for lead (the least required energy to release a single electron from the atom in it‘s ground state in the gas phase) is stated in the following table:
Conductivity. As to lead‘s electrical and thermal conductivity, the electrical conductivity measured as to electrical resistivity @ 20 ?C is 20.648 μΩcm and its electronegativities (or its ability to draw electrons relative to other elements) is 1.8. The thermal conductivity of lead is 35.3 W m-1 K-1. Thermal Properties. The melting point and boiling point for lead are stated below. The following chart sets forth the heat of fusion, heat of vaporization and heat of atomization.
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Formula | Atomic Number | Molecular Weight | Electronegativity (Pauling) | Density | Melting Point | Boiling Point | Vanderwaals radius | Ionic radius | Energy of first ionization |
Pb | 82 | 207.2 g.mol-1 | 1.8 | 11.4 g.cm-3 at 20 °C | 327 °C | 1755 °C | 202.pm | 0.112 nm (+2) ; 0.070 (+4) | 715.60 kJ.mol-1 |