Curium (Cm) – Periodic Table [Element Information & More]

Curium element (Cm) is in period 7 of a periodic table. Curium is in the f-block and it is classified as an actinide on the periodic table.

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

So let’s dive right into it!

Table of contents

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

Curium Element (Information Table)

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

Appearance of curium	Silvery white metallic appearance
Atomic number of curium	96
Symbol of curium	Cm
Atomic mass of curium (most stable isotope)	247 u
Protons, Neutrons & Electrons in curium	Protons: 96, Neutrons: 151, Electrons: 96
State of curium (at STP)	Solid
Period number of curium in periodic table	7
Block of curium in periodic table	f-block
Category of curium	Inner transition metals
Bohr model or Electrons per shell or Electrons arrangement in curium	2, 8, 18, 32, 25, 9, 2
Electron configuration of curium	[Rn] 5f7 6d1 7s2
Orbital diagram of curium
Electronegativity of curium (on pauling scale)	1.3
Atomic radius of curium (van der Waals radius)	245 picometers
Density of curium	13.51 g/cm3
1st ionization energy of curium	6.02 eV
Main isotopes of curium	243Cm and 248Cm
Melting point of curium	1613 K or 1340 °C or 2444 °F
Boiling point of curium	3383 K or 3110 °C or 5630 °F
Crystal structure of curium	Double Hexagonal Close Packed
Discovery of curium	By Glenn T. Seaborg, Albert Ghiorso and Ralph A. James (in 1944)

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).

Curium element in Periodic table

The Curium element (Cm) has the atomic number 96 and is located in period 7. Curium is a metal and it is classified as an actinide group element.

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

Facts about curium

Here are a few interesting facts about the curium element.

1. Glenn T. Seaborg, Albert Ghiorso and Ralph A. James discovered curium in the year 1944.
2. Curium was given its name after the names of chemists Marie Curie and Pierre Curie.
3. Curium is naturally found from uranium containing ores, but it is also artificially prepared in the lab.
4. There are around 19 isotopes of curium and all these isotopes are radioactive in nature.
5. ²⁴⁷Cm is the most stable isotope of curium and it has a half life of 15.6 million years.

Properties of curium

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

Physical properties of curium

• Curium has a silvery white metallic appearance.
• The density of curium is 13.51 g/cm³ and the predicted atomic mass of most stable isotope is 247 amu.
• Curium has a double hexagonal close packed crystal structure at room temperature. But this changes to FCC at higher temperatures.
• The melting point of curium is 1613 K and its boiling point is estimated to be 3383 K respectively.

Chemical properties of curium

• Curium forms an oxide layer on it when it is kept open in the air.
• Curium is a radioactive and harmful element.
• Curium has +4 oxidation state in its solid compounds, and it has +3 oxidation state when it is in solution.

Uses of curium

Here are some uses of the curium element.

• Curium is mostly used in research work due to its radioactive nature.
• The isotope ²⁴⁴Cm is used in X-ray spectrometers, which can be used to measure the quantity of elements present in the rocks of Mars.

External resources:

1. Curium – Element information, properties and uses | Periodic Table. (n.d.). Curium – Element Information, Properties and Uses | Periodic Table. https://www.rsc.org/periodic-table/element/96/curium
2. It’s Elemental – The Element Curium. (n.d.). It’s Elemental – the Element Curium. https://education.jlab.org/itselemental/ele096.html
3. P. (n.d.). Curium | Cm (Element) – PubChem. Curium | Cm (Element) – PubChem. https://pubchem.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/element/Curium
4. Curium – Wikipedia. (2008, December 7). Curium – Wikipedia. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Curium
5. Curium. (n.d.). Curium. https://www.cs.mcgill.ca/~rwest/wikispeedia/wpcd/wp/c/Curium.htm
6. C&EN: IT’S ELEMENTAL: THE PERIODIC TABLE – CURIUM. (n.d.). C&EN: IT’S ELEMENTAL: THE PERIODIC TABLE – CURIUM. https://pubsapp.acs.org/cen/80th/curium.html?
7. Periodic Table of Nottingham – University of Nottingham. (n.d.). Periodic Table of Nottingham – University of Nottingham. https://www.nottingham.ac.uk/periodicnottingham/curium
8. Possolo, et al. (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
9. Emsley, J. (2011). Nature’s Building Blocks: An A-Z Guide to the Elements. United Kingdom: OUP Oxford.
10. Haynes, W. M. (Ed.). (2014, June 4). CRC Handbook of Chemistry and Physics. https://doi.org/10.1201/b17118
11. Electronic structure of the elements. (2000, March). The European Physical Journal C, 15(1–4), 78–79. https://doi.org/10.1007/bf02683401
12. James A. M. & Lord M. P. (1992). Macmillan’s chemical and physical data. Macmillan.
13. Bedford, et al. (1996, April 1). Recommended values of temperature on the International Temperature Scale of 1990 for a selected set of secondary reference points. Metrologia, 33(2), 133–154. https://doi.org/10.1088/0026-1394/33/2/3
14. 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