Return
to the Main CHEMystery Page.
Return
to the Periodic Table of the Elements
Element 28 - Nickel (Ni)
From the German
kupfernickel
, or false copper, a reddish ore containing nickel but no copper; discovered 1751. Its hard, durable qualities have long made nickel popular for coins--the U.S. five-cent piece is 25 percent nickel, the rest copper.
Properties
Atomic Number
:
28
Atomic Weight
:
58.6934
Electron Configuration
(at ground state):
1s
2
2s
2
2p
6
3s
2
3p
6
3d
8
4s
2
Oxidation States
(Bold most stable):
+2
, +3
Boiling Point
(K):
3005
Melting Point (K):
1726
Density
(at 300K -- g/cm
3
):
8.90
Atomic Volume (at 300K -- cm
3
/mol)
6.60
Number of stable
isotopes
:
5
Mass Number
(Bold naturally occurring) --
Half-Life
--
Disintigration Type
:
57 -- 36.0 hours --
positron
emission, orbital
electron capture
59 -- 8 x 10
4
-- orbital
electron capture
63 -- 92 years --
beta particle
(
electron
) emission
Covalent Radius (Å):
1.15
Atomic Radius (Å):
1.24
First
Ionization Potential
(V):
7.635
Electronegativity
(Pauling's):
1.91
Specific Heat
Capacity (at 300K -- J g
-1
K
-1
):
0.444
Heat of Vaporization (kJ/mol):
377.5
Heat of Fusion (kJ/mol):
17.2
Electrical Conductivity (at 293K for polycrystalline material -- 10
6
-1
cm
-1
):
14.6
Thermal Conductivity (at 300K -- W m
-1
K
-1
):
90.7
Crystal Structure:
Cubic, face centered
Acid
-
Base
Properties:
Very basic