Rutherfordium facts for kids
Rutherfordium (say: roo-ther-FOR-dee-um) is a chemical element. Its symbol is Rf and its atomic number is 104. It's a very radioactive element, which means it gives off energy. You won't find rutherfordium naturally on Earth. Scientists have to make it in special labs.
Rutherfordium is the first element in a group called transactinide elements. The most stable type of rutherfordium is called Rutherfordium-265. Even this type only lasts for about 13 hours before it changes into other elements.
Scientists haven't made much rutherfordium. Because of this, we don't know a lot about it. It doesn't have any uses right now. Experts think its chemical behavior is similar to hafnium, another element.
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How Rutherfordium Was Discovered
Rutherfordium is named after a famous scientist, Ernest Rutherford. Two different groups of scientists claimed they found it first. This led to a bit of a disagreement!
The Russian Discovery Claim
In 1964, scientists at the Joint Institute for Nuclear Research in Dubna, Russia, said they made a new element. They took a heavy element called Plutonium-242 (242Pu). Then, they shot tiny, fast-moving particles of Neon-22 (22Ne) at it. These neon particles hit the plutonium with a lot of energy. The scientists believed they saw signs of a new element being created. They thought it should be named dubnium or kurchatovium.
The American Discovery Claim
Later, in 1969, scientists at the University of California, Berkeley in the United States also made rutherfordium. They used a different method. They crashed Californium-249 (249Cf) into Carbon-12 (12C) at very high speeds. The American scientists tried the Russian method, but they couldn't make the new element that way. They thought the element should be named rutherfordium.
Naming the Element
Because two groups claimed the discovery, there was a debate about the name. The International Union of Pure and Applied Chemistry (IUPAC) is the group that decides the official names for elements. For a while, they used a temporary name: unnilquadium.
Finally, in 1997, IUPAC decided the official name would be rutherfordium. The element with atomic number 105 was later named dubnium, honoring the Russian research center.
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See also
In Spanish: Rutherfordio para niños
