Chromium (Cr) – Periodic Table [Element Information & More]

Chromium element (Cr) is in group 6 and period 4 of a periodic table. Chromium is in the d-block and it is classified as a transition element on the periodic table.

There is a lot more information related to chromium which is mentioned in the Information Table given below.

So let’s dive right into it!

Table of contents

• Chromium element (Information Table)
• Chromium element in Periodic table
• Facts about Chromium
• Properties of Chromium
• Uses of Chromium

Chromium Element (Information Table)

The important data related to chromium element is given in the table below.

Appearance of chromium	Silvery gray metallic appearance
Atomic number of chromium	24
Symbol of chromium	Cr
Atomic mass of chromium	51.996 u
Protons, Neutrons & Electrons in chromium	Protons: 24, Neutrons: 28, Electrons: 24
State of chromium (at STP)	Solid
Group number of chromium in periodic table	6
Period number of chromium in periodic table	4
Block of chromium in periodic table	d-block
Category of chromium	Transition metals
Bohr model or Electrons per shell or Electrons arrangement in chromium	2, 8, 13, 1
Electron configuration of chromium	[Ar] 3d5 4s1
Orbital diagram of chromium
Electronegativity of chromium (on pauling scale)	1.66
Atomic radius of chromium (van der Waals radius)	189 picometers
Density of chromium	7.19 g/cm3
1st ionization energy of chromium	6.767 eV
Main isotope of chromium	52Cr
Melting point of chromium	2180 K or 1907 °C or 3465 °F
Boiling point of chromium	2944 K or 2671 °C or 4840 °F
Crystal structure of chromium	Body Centered Cubic (BCC)
Discovery of chromium	By Louis Nicolas Vauquelin in 1794

Also see: Interactive Periodic Table (It has rotating bohr models as well as many other details of all the 118 elements in a single periodic table).

Chromium element in Periodic table

The Chromium element (Cr) has the atomic number 24 and is located in group 6 and period 4. Chromium is a metal and it is classified as a transition element.

Click on above elements in the periodic table to see their information.

Facts about chromium

Here are a few interesting facts about chromium element.

1. The name “Chromium” came from the Greek word “chroma”, which means color.
2. Chromium is the 3^rd hardest element found on the entire periodic table (first is carbon (diamond) and second is boron).
3. Chromium is the 21^st most abundant element present in the earth’s crust.
4. Chromite is the ore from which the majority of chromium is obtained.
5. Earth’s crust has around 100 ppm concentration of chromium element.
6. The leading producer of chromium in the entire world is South Africa.
7. Chromium is mostly used in industries as an alloying element with other metals to increase its strength and other properties.

Properties of chromium

Here is a list of some physical properties and chemical properties of chromium.

Physical properties of chromium

• Chromium has a silvery-gray metallic appearance.
• Chromium has a density of 7.19 g/cm³ and its atomic mass is 51.996 u.
• Chromium has many isotopes, out of which the most abundant isotope is ⁵²Cr.
• The melting point and boiling point of chromium is 2180 K and 2944 K respectively.

Chemical properties of chromium

• Chromium is somewhat reactive metal and hence it is not found in its free state in nature. Chromium is always found as a compound with other elements.
• Chromium is resistant to corrosion and so it is used as a protective layer on the other metals.
• The electronic configuration of chromium is [Ar] 3d⁵ 4s¹ and it has incomplete d-orbitals.

Uses of chromium

Here are some uses of the chromium element.

• Chromium is used in manufacturing of stainless steel and the stainless steel contains around 11% chromium in it.
• Chromium plating gives a shiny appearance and hence it is used in coating of car parts, some home appliances, etc.
• The chromium salts are used in leather tanning.
• Chromium is also used in electroplating of other metals which prevents them from corrosion.
• Chromium is also used in heat resistant bricks, which can retain its strength at higher temperatures.
• The chromium is also used in making pigments.

External resources:

1. Chromium – Element information, properties and uses | Periodic Table. (n.d.). Chromium – Element Information, Properties and Uses | Periodic Table. https://www.rsc.org/periodic-table/element/24/chromium
2. Chromium – Wikipedia. (2018, October 11). Chromium – Wikipedia. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Chromium
3. P. (n.d.). Chromium | Cr (Element) – PubChem. Chromium | Cr (Element) – PubChem. https://pubchem.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/element/Chromium
4. It’s Elemental – The Element Chromium. (n.d.). It’s Elemental – the Element Chromium. https://education.jlab.org/itselemental/ele024.html
5. Chromium. (n.d.). Chromium. https://webbook.nist.gov/cgi/cbook.cgi?ID=7440-47-3&Units=SI
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9. Bondi, A. (1964, March). van der Waals Volumes and Radii. The Journal of Physical Chemistry, 68(3), 441–451. https://doi.org/10.1021/j100785a001
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11. Emsley, J. (2011). Nature’s Building Blocks: An A-Z Guide to the Elements. United Kingdom: OUP Oxford.
12. Allred, A. (1961, June). Electronegativity values from thermochemical data. Journal of Inorganic and Nuclear Chemistry, 17(3–4), 215–221. https://doi.org/10.1016/0022-1902(61)80142-5
13. James A. M. & Lord M. P. (1992). Macmillan’s chemical and physical data. Macmillan.
14. Zhang, Y., Evans, J. R. G., & Yang, S. (2011, January 11). Corrected Values for Boiling Points and Enthalpies of Vaporization of Elements in Handbooks. Journal of Chemical & Engineering Data, 56(2), 328–337. https://doi.org/10.1021/je1011086
15. Possolo, A., van der Veen, A. M. H., Meija, J., & Hibbert, D. B. (2018, January 4). Interpreting and propagating the uncertainty of the standard atomic weights (IUPAC Technical Report). Pure and Applied Chemistry, 90(2), 395–424. https://doi.org/10.1515/pac-2016-0402