Pu
Plutonium
Atomic number: 94Mass: 244 uCategory: Actinide
About Plutonium
Plutonium is a radioactive actinide metal. It is fissile, like uranium-235, and was used in nuclear weapons. The bomb dropped on Nagasaki used plutonium. It is also used as fuel in nuclear reactors and in spacecraft via radioisotope thermoelectric generators.
Properties
Period
7
Group
N/A
Block
F
Category
Actinide
Electronegativity
1.28 (Pauling)
Ionization Energy
584.7 kJ/mol
Melting Point
913 K (639°C)
Boiling Point
3505 K (3232°C)
Density
19.816 g/cm³
Oxidation States
+3, +4, +5, +6
Electron Configuration
1s² 2s² 2p⁶ 3s² 3p⁶ 3d¹⁰ 4s² 4p⁶ 4d¹⁰ 4f¹⁴ 5s² 5p⁶ 5d¹⁰ 6s² 6p⁶ 5f⁶ 7s²
[Rn] 5f⁶ 7s²
Shell 1:2e⁻
Shell 2:8e⁻
Shell 3:18e⁻
Shell 4:32e⁻
Shell 5:24e⁻
Shell 6:8e⁻
Shell 7:2e⁻
Real-World Uses
Nuclear fuel
Nuclear weapons (historical)
Spacecraft power (RTG)
Research
Pacemakers (old, Pu-238)
Fun Fact
Plutonium-238 powers the Voyager probes — launched in 1977, they're still sending data from interstellar space 45+ years later, all powered by plutonium!