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The Gmelin rare earths handbook lists 1522 °C and 1550 °C as two melting points given in the literature, the most recent reference [Handbook on the chemistry and physics of rare earths, vol.12 (1989)] is given with 1529 °C.
Thorium is a weakly radioactive light silver metal which tarnishes olive grey when it is exposed to air, forming thorium dioxide; it is moderately soft, malleable, and has a high melting point. Thorium is an electropositive actinide whose chemistry is dominated by the +4 oxidation state; it is quite reactive and can ignite in air when finely ...
The melting point (or, rarely, liquefaction point) of a substance is the temperature at which it changes state from solid to liquid. At the melting point the solid and liquid phase exist in equilibrium. The melting point of a substance depends on pressure and is usually specified at a standard pressure such as 1 atmosphere or 100 kPa.
The melting point of thorium oxide is 3300 °C – the highest of all known oxides. Only a few elements (including tungsten and carbon) and a few compounds (including tantalum carbide) have higher melting points. [6] All thorium compounds, including the dioxide, are radioactive because there are no stable isotopes of thorium.
For pure elements or compounds, e.g. pure copper, pure water, etc. the liquidus and solidus are at the same temperature, and the term melting point may be used. There are also some mixtures which melt at a particular temperature, known as congruent melting. One example is eutectic mixture. In a eutectic system, there is particular mixing ratio ...
Melting ice cubes illustrate the process of fusion. Melting, or fusion, is a physical process that results in the phase transition of a substance from a solid to a liquid. This occurs when the internal energy of the solid increases, typically by the application of heat or pressure, which increases the substance's temperature to the melting point.
Thorium reacts with hydrogen to form the thorium hydrides ThH 2 and Th 4 H 15, the latter of which is superconducting below the transition temperature of 7.5–8 K; at standard temperature and pressure, it conducts electricity like a metal. [12] Thorium is the only metallic element that readily forms a hydride higher than MH 3. [31]
Oxygen is absorbed from the atmosphere only at the melting point of rhodium but is released on solidification. Rhodium has both a higher melting point and lower density than platinum. It is not attacked by most acids as it is completely insoluble in nitric acid and dissolves slightly in aqua regia.