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A chemical element, often simply called an element, is a type of atom which has a specific number of protons in its atomic nucleus (i.e., a specific atomic number, or Z). [ 1 ] The definitive visualisation of all 118 elements is the periodic table of the elements , whose history along the principles of the periodic law was one of the founding ...
Element Per. Gr. Role(s) in nature (non-living and living) Role(s) in technology (old and new) 1: H: Hydrogen 1 1: Astronomy: source of power by nuclear fusion (proton–proton chain reaction and CNO cycle) Biology: One of the most common elements in living organisms: Petrochemical industry: hydrodealkylation, hydrodesulfurization
1: Extremely rare on the Earth's surface (less than 1×10 −7 %, i.e. less than 1/10 as common as the least common essential element, selenium), thus has low potential for any kind of biological role. a: Toxic in some molecular forms. b: Radioactive. c: Has uses in medicine as a drug or implant.
32 of these have names tied to the Earth and the other 10 have names connected to bodies in the Solar System. The first tables below list the terrestrial locations (excluding the entire Earth itself, taken as a whole) and the last table lists astronomical objects which the chemical elements are named after. [1]
The stable elements plus bismuth, thorium, and uranium make up the 83 primordial elements that survived from the Earth's formation. [c] The remaining eleven natural elements decay quickly enough that their continued trace occurrence rests primarily on being constantly regenerated as intermediate products of the decay of thorium and uranium.
Chemical elements may also be categorized by their origin on Earth, with the first 94 considered naturally occurring, while those with atomic numbers beyond 94 have only been produced artificially via human-made nuclear reactions. Of the 94 naturally occurring elements, 83 are considered primordial and either stable or weakly radioactive.
The rarest elements in the crust are not the heaviest, but are rather the siderophile elements (iron-loving) in the Goldschmidt classification of elements. These have been depleted by being relocated deeper into the Earth's core; their abundance in meteoroids is higher.
A table listing the 17 rare-earth elements, their atomic number and symbol, the etymology of their names, and their main uses (see also Applications of lanthanides) is provided here. Some of the rare-earth elements are named after the scientists who discovered them, or elucidated their elemental properties, and some after the geographical ...