Francium (Fr) – Periodic Table [Element Information & More]

Francium element (Fr) is in group 1 and period 7 of a periodic table. Francium is in the s-block and it is classified as an alkali metal on the periodic table.

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

So let’s dive right into it!

Table of contents

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

Francium Element (Information Table)

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

Atomic number of francium	87
Symbol of francium	Fr
Atomic mass of francium (most stable isotope)	223 u
Protons, Neutrons & Electrons in francium	Protons: 87, Neutrons: 136, Electrons: 87
State of francium (at STP)	Solid
Group number of francium in periodic table	1
Period number of francium in periodic table	7
Block of francium in periodic table	s-block
Category of francium	Alkali metal
Bohr model or Electrons per shell or Electrons arrangement in francium	2, 8, 18, 32, 18, 8, 1
Electron configuration of francium	[Rn] 7s1
Orbital diagram of francium
Valence electron in francium	1
Electronegativity of francium (on pauling scale)	0.7
Atomic radius of francium (van der Waals radius)	348 picometers
Density of francium	2.48 g/cm3
1st ionization energy of francium	3.9 eV
Main isotope of francium	123Fr
Melting point of francium	300 K or 27 °C or 81 °F
Boiling point of francium	950 K or 677 °C or 1251 °F
Crystal structure of francium	Body Centered Cubic (BCC)
Discovery of francium	By Marguerite Perey in 1939

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).

Francium element in Periodic table

The Francium element (Fr) has the atomic number 87 and is located in group 1 and period 7. Francium is in solid state at STP and it is classified as an alkali metal on the periodic table.

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

Facts about francium

Here are a few interesting facts about francium.

1. Francium was discovered from France (Paris), hence it is named Francium.
2. Marguerite Perey discovered francium in the year 1939.
3. Francium is the 2^nd rarest element present in the earth’s crust (the rarest element in earth’s crust is astatine).
4. Francium is considered as the most reactive alkali metal.

Properties of francium

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

Physical properties of francium

• Francium has a very low melting point (27 °C). The francium metal melts down in the warm room.
• It has been predicted from extrapolation methods that francium has a BCC crystal structure.
• The estimated density of francium is 2.48 g/cm³ and its atomic mass is 223 amu.
• The half life of the most stable isotope of francium is 22 minutes only.

Chemical properties of francium

• Francium has the least electronegativity out of all the elements on the periodic table.
• Francium reacts with water and also gives out hydrogen gas during this reaction. And it also catches fire during this reaction. (As francium is very rare in availability, it is not possible to see this reaction practically).
• The most common oxidation state of francium is +1, as it has 1 valence electron.

Uses of francium

Francium is radioactive as well as it is available in very rare amounts. Hence it has no practical applications. Francium is generally used for research work.

External resources:

1. Francium – Wikipedia. (2023, February 28). Francium – Wikipedia. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Francium
2. Francium – Element information, properties and uses | Periodic Table. (n.d.). Francium – Element Information, Properties and Uses | Periodic Table. https://www.rsc.org/periodic-table/element/87/francium
3. P. (n.d.). Francium | Fr (Element) – PubChem. Francium | Fr (Element) – PubChem. https://pubchem.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/element/Francium
4. It’s Elemental – The Element Francium. (n.d.). It’s Elemental – the Element Francium. https://education.jlab.org/itselemental/ele087.html
5. Scerri, E. (2009, November). Finding francium. Nature Chemistry, 1(8), 670–670. https://doi.org/10.1038/nchem.430
6. Francium | CCDC. (n.d.). Francium | CCDC. https://www.ccdc.cam.ac.uk/elements/francium/
7. Atomic Data for Francium (Fr). (n.d.). Atomic Data for Francium (Fr). https://physics.nist.gov/PhysRefData/Handbook/Tables/franciumtable1.htm
8. Francium | Fr | ChemSpider. (n.d.). Francium | Fr | ChemSpider. http://www.chemspider.com/Chemical-Structure.4886484.html?rid=12c35af0-0794-408c-956f-983f9178ddf4&page_num=0
9. 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
10. Emsley, J. (2011). Nature’s Building Blocks: An A-Z Guide to the Elements. United Kingdom: OUP Oxford.
11. Haynes, W. M. (Ed.). (2014, June 4). CRC Handbook of Chemistry and Physics. https://doi.org/10.1201/b17118
12. Electronic structure of the elements. (2000, March). The European Physical Journal C, 15(1–4), 78–79. https://doi.org/10.1007/bf02683401
13. James A. M. & Lord M. P. (1992). Macmillan’s chemical and physical data. Macmillan.
14. 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
15. 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