Strontium - Periodic Table of Videos

Summary

The video script explores the unique element strontium, named after a Scottish village. It discusses the element's soft metal properties and its sinister past due to radioactive strontium-90 produced by nuclear explosions. The script also highlights a vibrant red reaction when strontium nitrate is mixed with a combustion mixture. Strontium's potential in catalysts and synthetic chemistry is emphasized, alongside the historical significance of its discovery and the passion of a local history expert.

Takeaways

• 🌟 Strontium is unique in the periodic table as it is the only element named after a location in the United Kingdom, specifically a small village in Scotland.
• 🏞️ The narrator expresses a desire to visit Strontian, the Scottish village, and mentions a local history expert they plan to meet.
• 🔍 The first strontium salts were discovered and the element was identified in Strontian, which is also the first location where the narrator is seen without the professor.
• 🤖 The narrator has a sample of strontium metal, described as large granules, and plans to file some off to observe its properties.
• ☢️ Strontium has a historical association with nuclear weapons due to the production of radioactive strontium-90 during atomic bomb detonations.
• 🦴 Strontium-90 is particularly concerning because it can be absorbed by the body and incorporated into bones or teeth, potentially causing health issues.
• 🔬 The narrator demonstrates a chemical reaction with strontium nitrate, resulting in a vibrant red emission, indicative of strontium's chemical properties.
• 🚫 The safety program's goal was to predict and manage radioactive fallout, which became less of a concern as atmospheric testing ceased.
• 🌳 The narrator visits a mine, discussing the historical significance of strontium mining and the passion of those who preserve its history.
• 🛠️ Strontium's potential for creating reactive compounds is highlighted, suggesting its use in synthetic chemistry and as a catalyst.
• 📈 The narrator speculates that strontium may gain more importance in the future as other elements become harder to mine due to dwindling supplies.

Q & A

Why is strontium unique among the elements in the periodic table?

Strontium is unique because it is the only element named after a specific location in the United Kingdom, a small village in Scotland.

What is the significance of the rainbow mentioned in the script?

The rainbow is a visual element that adds to the setting of the village where the first strontium salts were identified.

What does the script suggest about the narrator's experience with strontium?

The narrator has never seen strontium before and is intrigued by its properties and history.

Why does strontium have a 'sinister feeling' according to the narrator?

Strontium has a sinister connotation due to its association with radioactive fallout from nuclear weapons testing during the 1950s and 1960s, specifically strontium-90.

What is the health risk associated with strontium-90 mentioned in the script?

Strontium-90, being radioactive, can cause damage to body cells if incorporated into bones or teeth, potentially leading to mutations and cancer.

What was the narrator's plan for the strontium nitrate in the script?

The narrator planned to mix strontium nitrate with a combustion mixture to observe a chemical reaction.

What color is produced in the reaction involving strontium in the script?

The reaction produces a lovely red color, which is indicative of strontium's emission spectrum.

How did the narrator describe the reaction involving strontium?

The narrator described the reaction as energetic, with lots of energy, hot steam, hot CO2, and a red color from the strontium emission.

What is the potential future importance of strontium mentioned in the script?

The narrator suggests that strontium may become more important as other elements become harder to mine and chemists discover new reactions and uses for strontium in catalysts.

What is the connection between the old mine and the discovery of strontium?

The old mine is significant because it is where the mineral from which strontium was first extracted was found, leading to the discovery and naming of the element.

What is the narrator's goal regarding the strontium granules?

The narrator aims to remove the tarnish from the strontium granules to reveal their metallic luster.

Outlines

00:00

🏴‍☠️ The Discovery and Properties of Strontium

This paragraph discusses the unique origin of the element strontium, named after the village of Strontian in Scotland. It delves into the element's softness and reactivity, especially when compared to other group 2 metals. The narrator's personal history with strontium is highlighted, noting the sinister connotations due to its radioactive isotope, strontium-90, a byproduct of nuclear explosions. The paragraph also describes an experiment involving strontium nitrate, which results in a vibrant red emission, indicative of strontium's potential uses in various applications, despite the narrator's concerns about its radioactive nature and its impact on health.

05:03

📚 The Historical and Environmental Impact of Strontium Mining

The second paragraph focuses on the historical aspect of strontium mining, particularly the now-defunct mine in Strontian where the element was first identified. It touches upon the environmental and health implications of mining, with a local history expert providing insights into the passion and concern for preserving the area's heritage. The paragraph also describes the process of refining strontium metal, highlighting the struggle to remove tarnish and reveal its metallic luster. The potential future value of strontium in catalysts and new chemical reactions is suggested, as other elements become scarcer. The historical significance of the mine and the discovery of strontium as a new element is emphasized, marking its place in the periodic table.

Keywords

💡Strontium

Strontium is a chemical element with the symbol Sr and atomic number 38. It is an alkaline earth metal and is soft, similar to calcium. In the video, strontium is highlighted as unique because it is the only element named after a location in the United Kingdom, specifically a village in Scotland. The script mentions the discovery of strontium salts and the element's granules, emphasizing its significance in the narrative.

💡Periodic Table

The periodic table is a tabular arrangement of the chemical elements, ordered by their atomic number, electron configuration, and recurring chemical properties. The video script refers to the periodic table to emphasize strontium's uniqueness among the elements, as it is the only one named after a UK location.

💡Strontium Salts

Strontium salts are compounds that contain the element strontium. The script mentions that the first strontium salts were discovered in the village of Strontian, Scotland, which is where the element got its name. The discovery of these salts led to the identification of the element strontium.

💡Strontium Metal

Strontium metal refers to the elemental form of strontium, which is soft and can be filed into granules. The script describes the process of filing strontium metal off of its granules, illustrating the physical properties of the element and its practical handling in the video.

💡Strontium-90

Strontium-90 is a radioactive isotope of strontium, which was a product of nuclear fallout from atmospheric testing of nuclear weapons during the 1950s and 1960s. The script discusses the sinister connotations associated with strontium due to its radioactive form, which can be incorporated into the human body and potentially cause health issues such as cancer.

💡Radioactive

Radioactive refers to the property of certain materials that emit radiation, such as alpha, beta, or gamma rays, as they decay. The script explains the dangers of radioactive strontium, particularly strontium-90, which can cause mutations and cancer due to its proximity to cells in the body.

💡Combustion Mixture

A combustion mixture in the context of the video is a substance used to create a reaction with strontium ions, resulting in a vivid red color due to the strontium emission. The script describes a reaction involving strontium nitrate and a combustion mixture, highlighting the element's chemical properties.

💡Cancer

Cancer is a group of diseases characterized by the uncontrolled growth and spread of abnormal cells. The script connects the radioactive properties of strontium-90 with the potential for causing cancer due to its ability to damage cells within the body.

💡Radioactive Fallout

Radioactive fallout refers to the residual radioactive material that falls to the Earth's surface following a nuclear explosion. The script discusses the decrease in strontium-90 fallout after the cessation of atmospheric nuclear testing, illustrating the environmental impact of such activities.

💡Chemical Reactions

Chemical reactions involve the transformation of substances into different materials with the formation or breaking of chemical bonds. The script mentions the potential for discovering new reactions involving strontium, particularly in the context of catalysts, suggesting its increasing importance in chemistry.

💡Catalysts

Catalysts are substances that increase the rate of a chemical reaction without being consumed in the process. The script suggests that strontium may become more important in the future due to its potential use in new catalysts, as supplies of other elements become scarce.

Highlights

Strontium is unique as the only element named after a location in the UK, specifically a small village in Scotland.

Many elements have been discovered in the UK, but strontium stands out for its unusual naming origin.

The first strontium salts were discovered in the village of Strontian, inspiring the element's name.

Strontium is a soft, silvery metal located in the middle of Group 2 in the periodic table.

Strontium has a dark history due to its radioactive isotope, Strontium-90, produced in nuclear explosions.

Strontium-90 is dangerous as it can be absorbed by the body and incorporated into bones and teeth, increasing cancer risk.

The speaker plans to visit a local history expert in Strontian to learn more about the element's origins.

A sample of strontium metal is shown, with plans to file off some of the metal for experimentation.

Strontium compounds can be highly reactive, with potential applications in synthetic chemistry.

Strontium may gain importance as other elements become harder to mine due to dwindling supplies.

Chemists are expected to discover new reactions and catalysts involving strontium in the future.

A visit to the old lead mine in Strontian is planned to see the site where strontium was first found.

The mine has historical significance as the birthplace of the element strontium.

The speaker meets a local historian passionate about educating people on the area's history.

The old mine has remnants of the past, including an old wooden structure used by miners.

Strontium's tarnished metal granules are cleaned to reveal their metallic luster.

The village of Strontian and its mine hold a special place in the history of chemistry.

Transcripts

strontium is unique in the periodic

table because it's the only element that

is named after somewhere in the United

Kingdom there are lots of elements that

have been discovered in the UK more than

10 it's not an obvious name like gallium

of the France or germanium after Germany

this one is named after a small village

in Scotland called strontium I've never

been there I hope we might make a field

trip there sometime so here I am in

strontium now you can see I'm on my own

I'm not with the professor or anyone

else but I have managed to find the

address of a local history expert so I'm

going to go and pay him a visit you know

I've come to the right place

because look over there as a rainbow in

this village the first strontium salts

were discovered at least the first ones

where the element was identified so I

have a sample of strontium metal so it's

kind of granules as they're very big

granules its large granules of strontium

metal it's kind of in the middle of the

group 2 metals it's relatively soft and

so what we're going to try and do is

file some strontium metal off of the

granules I've never seen the element

I've never seen any strontium and

because of my particular age I when I

grew up in the 1950s and 1960s when

atmospheric testing of nuclear weapons

took part place widely across the world

strontium has always had a certain

sinister feeling to it because when

nuclear explosions take place when the

uranium atom splits some of the

fragments are strontium and they're not

only strontium but they're a radioactive

form of strontium known as strontium 90

there it goes

the fourth atomic bomb has been

successfully detonated this radioactive

material because strontium is in the

same group as calcium when it is

floating around in the air could be

absorbed by people and that incorporated

into their bones or their teeth in place

of calcium which you normally find in

bone and tooth enamel people like me a

radioactive doesn't explain my hair but

on the other hand it was quite a serious

problem so we need to take some

strontium ions and in this case I've got

a small amount of strontium nitrate okay

now I'm going to take a small amount and

put it into a test tube so that I can

mix it with some of our combustion

mixture

Wow

what a fantastic reaction really really

energetic lots of energy given out lots

of hot steam lots of hot co2 and

importantly a lovely lovely red color

from the strontium emission fantastic

technically operationally and militarily

Redwing may be summarized in one word

success it's a radioactive element

when radioactive elements decay they can

damage the cells in the body that are

close by if it's in the air or something

like that

the particles don't go far enough to

cause any damage but if they're

incorporated in your body there are

cells very close by and these can cause

mutation which eventually could cause

cancer most important and the safety

program was the ability to predict and

hence predetermined radioactive fallout

when atmospheric testing stopped the

amount of strontium 90 that was

distributed across the world decreased

rapidly there's a bit of stron tonight

we got this from the main entrant in

well because albeit you can get

strontium a all over the world but this

is unique because this comes from

strength Ian strontium is you know is

useful as well it's you can make them

very reactive compounds with strontium

that's what people like me are

interested in doing and seeing how they

react and they might be as useful as

their magnesium counterparts which are

actually very useful in synthetic

chemistry strontium itself is an element

which I think may become more important

because as some of the other elements

become harder to mine because the

supplies are running out

I believe that chemists are going to

discover new reactions of strontium in

catalysts and things like that and will

realize that it has much more value than

we've thought up till now well we're

going to go up to the mine and what

we're going to do

is well have a look at it what's left of

it because unfortunately there's nine of

all left now you can see straight ahead

of you that a nurse garv there well

that's part of an old wood that was used

by the miners they were coming to - part

of the late main I've trying to improve

a educate people as to what happened in

the area and like most people who

collect historical data you become very

very passionate about this sort of thing

probably yeah I get so passionate that

I'm probably a boring old fast or

something you know so this is when the

granules of strontium metal is kind of

dark on the outside at the moment

hopefully we can get rid of kind of that

layer of tarnish by by foiling it is we

have our strontium so you can see where

we kind of sort of fighting off that

tarnish become a very metallic luster

it's quite pretty

so this is it this is where the old LED

mine was that they found a mineral that

was a little bit strange and they called

astron T and I T and then after more

work they were able to extract from a

new element and that of course became

known as strontium and we have it now on

the periodic table