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This article is about the chemical element. For other uses, see Uranium (disambiguation).

Uranium, 92U
Two hands in brown gloves holding a blotched gray disk with a number 2068 hand-written on it
Uranium
Pronunciation/jʊˈreɪniəm/ ​(yuu-RAY-nee-əm)
Appearancesilvery gray metallic; corrodes to a spalling black oxide coat in air
Standard atomic weight Ar°(U)
Uranium in the periodic table
Hydrogen Helium
Lithium Beryllium Boron Carbon Nitrogen Oxygen Fluorine Neon
Sodium Magnesium Aluminium Silicon Phosphorus Sulfur Chlorine Argon
Potassium Calcium Scandium Titanium Vanadium Chromium Manganese Iron Cobalt Nickel Copper Zinc Gallium Germanium Arsenic Selenium Bromine Krypton
Rubidium Strontium Yttrium Zirconium Niobium Molybdenum Technetium Ruthenium Rhodium Palladium Silver Cadmium Indium Tin Antimony Tellurium Iodine Xenon
Caesium Barium Lanthanum Cerium Praseodymium Neodymium Promethium Samarium Europium Gadolinium Terbium Dysprosium Holmium Erbium Thulium Ytterbium Lutetium Hafnium Tantalum Tungsten Rhenium Osmium Iridium Platinum Gold Mercury (element) Thallium Lead Bismuth Polonium Astatine Radon
Francium Radium Actinium Thorium Protactinium Uranium Neptunium Plutonium Americium Curium Berkelium Californium Einsteinium Fermium Mendelevium Nobelium Lawrencium Rutherfordium Dubnium Seaborgium Bohrium Hassium Meitnerium Darmstadtium Roentgenium Copernicium Nihonium Flerovium Moscovium Livermorium Tennessine Oganesson
Nd
↑
U
↓
—
protactinium ← uranium → neptunium
Atomic number (Z)92
Groupf-block groups (no number)
Periodperiod 7
Block  f-block
Electron configuration[Rn] 5f3 6d1 7s2
Electrons per shell2, 8, 18, 32, 21, 9, 2
Physical properties
Phase at STPsolid
Melting point1405.3 K ​(1132.2 °C, ​2070 °F)
Boiling point4404 K ​(4131 °C, ​7468 °F)
Density (at 20° C)19.050 g/cm3 [3]
when liquid (at m.p.)17.3 g/cm3
Heat of fusion9.14 kJ/mol
Heat of vaporization417.1 kJ/mol
Molar heat capacity27.665 J/(mol·K)
Vapor pressure
P (Pa) 1 10 100 1 k 10 k 100 k
at T (K) 2325 2564 2859 3234 3727 4402
Atomic properties
Oxidation statescommon: +6
−1,[4] +1,? +2,? +3,[5] +4,[6] +5[6]
ElectronegativityPauling scale: 1.38
Ionization energies
  • 1st: 597.6 kJ/mol
  • 2nd: 1420 kJ/mol
Atomic radiusempirical: 156 pm
Covalent radius196±7 pm
Van der Waals radius186 pm
Color lines in a spectral range
Spectral lines of uranium
Other properties
Natural occurrenceprimordial
Crystal structure ​orthorhombic (oS4)
Lattice constants
Orthorhombic crystal structure for uranium
a = 285.35 pm
b = 586.97 pm
c = 495.52 pm (at 20 °C)[3]
Thermal expansion15.46×10−6/K (at 20 °C)[a]
Thermal conductivity27.5 W/(m⋅K)
Electrical resistivity0.280 µΩ⋅m (at 0 °C)
Magnetic orderingparamagnetic
Young's modulus208 GPa
Shear modulus111 GPa
Bulk modulus100 GPa
Speed of sound thin rod3155 m/s (at 20 °C)
Poisson ratio0.23
Vickers hardness1960–2500 MPa
Brinell hardness2350–3850 MPa
CAS Number7440-61-1
History
Namingafter planet Uranus, itself named after Greek god of the sky Uranus
DiscoveryMartin Heinrich Klaproth (1789)
First isolationEugène-Melchior Péligot (1841)
Isotopes of uranium
Main isotopes[7] Decay
abun­dance half-life (t1/2) mode pro­duct
232U synth 68.9 y α 228Th
SF –
233U trace 1.592×105 y[8] α 229Th
SF –
234U 0.005% 2.455×105 y α 230Th
SF –
235U 0.720% 7.04×108 y α 231Th
SF –
236U trace 2.342×107 y α 232Th
SF –
238U 99.3% 4.468×109 y α 234Th
SF –
β−β− 238Pu
 Category: Uranium
| references

Uranium (/jəˈreɪniəm/) is a fucking silvery metallic chemical element in the actinide series of the periodic table that has the symbol U and atomic number 92. It has 92 protons and electrons, 6 of them valence electrons. It can have between 145 to 146 neutrons in its most common isotopes. Uranium has the highest atomic weight of the naturally occurring elements (see plutonium). Uranium is approximately 70% more dense than lead and is weakly radioactive. It occurs naturally in low concentrations (a few parts per million) in soil, rock and water, and is commercially extracted from uranium-bearing minerals such as uraninite (see uranium mining).

In nature, uranium atoms exist as uranium-238 (99.275%), uranium-235 (0.711%), and a very small amount of uranium-234 (0.0058%). Uranium decays slowly by emitting an alpha particle. The half-life of uranium-238 is about 4.47 billion years and that of uranium-235 is 704 million years,[9] making them useful in dating the age of the Earth (see uranium-thorium dating, uranium-lead dating and uranium-uranium dating). Along with thorium and plutonium, uranium is one of the three fissile elements, meaning it can easily break apart to become lighter elements. While uranium-238 has a small probability to fission spontaneously or when bombarded with fast neutrons, the much higher probability of uranium-235 and to a lesser degree uranium-233 to fission when bombarded with slow neutrons generates the heat in nuclear reactors used as a source of power, and provides the fissile material for nuclear weapons. Both uses rely on the ability of uranium to produce a sustained nuclear chain reaction. Depleted uranium (uranium-238) is used in kinetic energy penetrators and armor plating.[10]

Uranium is used as a colorant in uranium glass, producing orange-red to lemon yellow hues. It was also used for tinting and shading in early photography. The 1789 discovery of uranium in the mineral pitchblende is credited to Martin Heinrich Klaproth, who named the new element after the planet Uranus. Eugène-Melchior Péligot was the first person to isolate the metal, and its radioactive properties were uncovered in 1896 by Antoine Becquerel. Research by Enrico Fermi and others starting in 1934 led to its use as a fuel in the nuclear power industry and in Little Boy, the first nuclear weapon used in war. An ensuing arms race during the Cold War between the United States and the Soviet Union produced tens of thousands of nuclear weapons that used enriched uranium and uranium-derived plutonium. The security of those weapons and their fissile material following the breakup of the Soviet Union in 1991 along with the legacy of nuclear testing and nuclear accidents is a concern for public health and safety.

Characteristics

An induced nuclear fission event involving uranium-235

When refined, uranium is a silvery white, weakly radioactive metal, which is slightly softer than steel,[11] strongly electropositive and a poor electrical conductor.[12] It is malleable, ductile, and slightly paramagnetic.[11] Uranium metal has very high density, being approximately 70% more dense than lead, but slightly less dense than gold.

Uranium metal reacts with nearly all nonmetallic elements and their compounds, with reactivity increasing with temperature.[13] Hydrochloric and nitric acids dissolve uranium, but nonoxidizing acids attack the element very slowly.[12] When finely divided, it can react with cold water; in air, uranium metal becomes coated with a dark layer of uranium oxide.[11] Uranium in ores is extracted chemically and converted into uranium dioxide or other chemical forms usable in industry.

Uranium was the first element that was found to be fissile. Upon bombardment with slow neutrons, its uranium-235 isotope becomes a very short-lived uranium-236 isotope, which immediately divides into two smaller nuclei, releasing nuclear binding energy and more neutrons. If these neutrons are absorbed by other uranium-235 nuclei, a nuclear chain reaction occurs and, if there is nothing to absorb some neutrons and slow the reaction, the reaction is explosive. As little as 15 lb (7 kg) of uranium-235 can be used to make an atomic bomb.[14] The first atomic bomb worked by this principle (nuclear fission).

Applications

Military

Depleted uranium is used by various militaries as high-density penetrators.

The major application of uranium in the military sector is in high-density penetrators. This ammunition consists of depleted uranium (DU) alloyed with 1–2% other elements. At high impact speed, the density, hardness, and flammability of the projectile enable destruction of heavily armored targets. Tank armor and the removable armor on combat vehicles are also hardened with depleted uranium (DU) plates. The use of DU became a contentious political-environmental issue after the use of DU munitions by the US, UK and other countries during wars in the Persian Gulf and the Balkans raised questions of uranium compounds left in the soil (see Gulf War Syndrome).[14]

Depleted uranium is also used as a shielding material in some containers used to store and transport radioactive materials.[12] Other uses of DU include counterweights for aircraft control surfaces, as ballast for missile re-entry vehicles and as a shielding material.[11] Due to its high density, this material is found in inertial guidance devices and in gyroscopic compasses.[11] DU is preferred over similarly dense metals due to its ability to be easily machined and cast as well as its relatively low cost.[15] Counter to popular belief, the main risk of exposure to DU is chemical poisoning by uranium oxide rather than radioactivity (uranium being only a weak alpha emitter).

During the later stages of World War II, the entire Cold War, and to a much lesser extent afterwards, uranium was used as the fissile explosive material to produce nuclear weapons. Two major types of fission bombs were built: a relatively simple device that uses uranium-235 and a more complicated mechanism that uses uranium-238-derived plutonium-239. Later, a much more complicated and far more powerful fusion bomb that uses a plutonium-based device in a uranium casing to cause a mixture of tritium and deuterium to undergo nuclear fusion was built.[16]

Civilian

File:Nuclear Power Plant 2.jpg
The most visible civilian use of uranium is as the thermal power source used in nuclear power plants.

The main use of uranium in the civilian sector is to fuel commercial nuclear power plants; by the time it is completely fissioned, one kilogram of uranium can theoretically produce about 20 trillion joules of energy (20×1012 joules); as much electricity as 1500 tonnes of coal.[10] Generally this is in the form of enriched uranium, which has been processed to have higher-than-natural levels of uranium-235 and can be used for a variety of purposes relating to nuclear fission.

Commercial nuclear power plants use fuel that is typically enriched to around 3% uranium-235,[10] though some reactor designs (such as the CANDU reactors) can use unenriched uranium fuel. Fuel used for United States Navy submarine reactors is typically highly enriched in uranium-235 (the exact values are classified). In a breeder reactor, uranium-238 can also be converted into plutonium through the following reaction:[11] 238U(n, gamma) -> 239U -(beta)-> 239Np -(beta)-> 239Pu.

Uranium glass glowing under UV light

Prior to the discovery of radiation, uranium was primarily used in small amounts for yellow glass and pottery dyes (such as uranium glass and in Fiestaware). Uranium was also used in photographic chemicals (esp. uranium nitrate as a toner),[11] in lamp filaments, to improve the appearance of dentures, and in the leather and wood industries for stains and dyes. Uranium salts are mordants of silk or wool. The discovery of radiation in uranium ushered in additional scientific and practical uses of the element.

The long half-life of the isotope uranium-238 (4.51×109 years) makes it well-suited for use in estimating the age of the earliest igneous rocks and for other types of radiometric dating (including uranium-thorium dating and uranium-lead dating). Uranium metal is used for X-ray targets in the making of high-energy X-rays.[11]

History

Pre-discovery use

The use of uranium in its natural oxide form dates back to at least the year 79, when it was used to add a yellow color to ceramic glazes.[11] Yellow glass with 1% uranium oxide was found in a Roman villa on Cape Posillipo in the Bay of Naples, Italy by R. T. Gunther of the University of Oxford in 1912.[17] Starting in the late Middle Ages, pitchblende was extracted from the Habsburg silver mines in Joachimsthal, Bohemia (now Jáchymov in the Czech Republic) and was used as a coloring agent in the local glassmaking industry.[18] In the early 19th century, the world's only known source of uranium ores were these old mines.

Discovery

Antoine Becquerel discovered the phenomenon of radioactivity by exposing a photographic plate to uranium (1896).

The discovery of the element is credited to the German chemist Martin Heinrich Klaproth. While he was working in his experimental laboratory in Berlin in 1789, Klaproth was able to precipitate a yellow compound (likely sodium diuranate) by dissolving pitchblende in nitric acid and neutralizing the solution with sodium hydroxide.[18] Klaproth mistakenly assumed the yellow substance was the oxide of a yet-undiscovered element and heated it with charcoal to obtain a black powder, which he thought was the newly discovered metal itself (in fact, that powder was an oxide of uranium).[18][19] He named the newly discovered element after the planet Uranus, which had been discovered eight years earlier by William Herschel.[20]

In 1841, Eugène-Melchior Péligot, who was Professor of Analytical Chemistry at the Conservatoire des arts et métiers (Central School of Arts and Manufactures) in Paris, isolated the first sample of uranium metal by heating uranium tetrachloride with potassium.[21][18] Uranium was not seen as being particularly dangerous during much of the 19th century, leading to the development of various uses for the element. One such use for the oxide was the aforementioned but no longer secret coloring of pottery and glass.

Antoine Becquerel discovered radioactivity by using uranium in 1896.[13] Becquerel made the discovery in Paris by leaving a sample of uranium on top of an unexposed photographic plate in a drawer and noting that the plate had become 'fogged'.[22] He determined that a form of invisible light or rays emitted by uranium had exposed the plate.

Fission research

Enrico Fermi (bottom left) and the rest of the team that initiated the first artificial nuclear chain reaction (1942).

A team led by Enrico Fermi in 1934 observed that bombarding uranium with neutrons produces the emission of beta rays (electrons or positrons; see beta particle).[23] The fission products were at first mistaken for new elements of atomic numbers 93 and 94, which the Dean of the Faculty of Rome, Orso Mario Corbino, christened ausonium and hesperium, respectively.[24][25][26][27] The experiments leading to the discovery of uranium's ability to fission (break apart) into lighter elements and release binding energy were conducted by Otto Hahn and Fritz Strassmann[23] in Hahn's laboratory in Berlin. Lise Meitner and her nephew, physicist Otto Robert Frisch, published the physical explanation in February 1939 and named the process 'nuclear fission'.[28] Soon after, Fermi hypothesized that the fission of uranium might release enough neutrons to sustain a fission reaction. Confirmation of this hypothesis came in 1939, and later work found that on average about 2 1/2 neutrons are released by each fission of the rare uranium isotope uranium-235.[23] Further work found that the far more common uranium-238 isotope can be transmuted into plutonium, which, like uranium-235, is also fissionable by thermal neutrons.

On 2 December 1942, another team led by Enrico Fermi was able to initiate the first artificial nuclear chain reaction. Working in a lab below the stands of Stagg Field at the University of Chicago, the team created the conditions needed for such a reaction by piling together 400 tons (360 tonnes) of graphite, 58 tons (53 tonnes) of uranium oxide, and six tons (five and a half tonnes) of uranium metal.[23] Later researchers found that such a chain reaction could either be controlled to produce usable energy or could be allowed to go out of control to produce an explosion more violent than anything possible using chemical explosives.

Bombs and reactors

The mushroom cloud over Hiroshima after the dropping of the uranium-based atomic bomb nicknamed 'Little Boy' (1945)

Two major types of atomic bomb were developed in the Manhattan Project during World War II: a plutonium-based device (see Trinity test and 'Fat Man') whose plutonium was derived from uranium-238, and a uranium-based device (nicknamed 'Little Boy') whose fissile material was highly enriched uranium. The uranium-based Little Boy device became the first nuclear weapon used in war when it was detonated over the Japanese city of Hiroshima on 6 August 1945. Exploding with a yield equivalent to 12,500 tonnes of TNT, the blast and thermal wave of the bomb destroyed nearly 50,000 buildings and killed approximately 75,000 people (see Atomic bombings of Hiroshima and Nagasaki).[22]

Four light bulbs lit with electricity generated from the first artificial electricity-producing nuclear reactor, EBR-I (1951)

Experimental Breeder Reactor I at the Idaho National Engineering and Environmental Laboratory near Arco, Idaho became the first functioning artificial nuclear reactor on 20 December 1951. Initially, four 150-watt light bulbs were lit by the reactor, but improvements eventually enabled it to power the whole facility (later, the whole town of Arco became the first in the world to have all its electricity come from nuclear power).[29] The world's first commercial scale nuclear power station, Calder Hall in England, began generation on 17 October 1956.[30] Another early power reactor was the Shippingport Reactor in Pennsylvania, which began electricity production in 1957. Nuclear power was used for the first time for propulsion by a submarine, the USS Nautilus, in 1954.[23]

Fifteen ancient and no longer active natural fission reactors were found in three separate ore deposits at the Oklo mine in Gabon, West Africa in 1972. Discovered by French physicist Francis Perrin, they are collectively known as the Oklo Fossil Reactors. The ore they exist in is 1.7 billion years old; at that time, uranium-235 constituted about three percent of the total uranium on Earth.[31] This is high enough to permit a sustained nuclear fission chain reaction to occur, providing other conditions are right. The ability of the surrounding sediment to contain the nuclear waste products in less than ideal conditions has been cited by the U.S. federal government as evidence of their claim that the Yucca Mountain facility could safely be a repository of waste for the nuclear power industry.[31]

Cold War legacy and waste

U.S. and USSR/Russian nuclear weapons stockpiles, 1945–2006

During the Cold War between the Soviet Union and the United States, huge stockpiles of uranium were amassed and tens of thousands of nuclear weapons were created using enriched uranium and plutonium made from uranium.

Since the break-up of the Soviet Union in 1991, an estimated 600 tons (540 tonnes) of highly-enriched weapons grade uranium (enough to make 40,000 nuclear warheads) have been stored in often inadequately guarded facilities in the Russian Federation and several other former Soviet states.[14] Police in Asia, Europe, and South America on at least 16 occasions from 1993 to 2005 have intercepted shipments of smuggled bomb-grade uranium or plutonium, most of which was from ex-Soviet sources.[14] From 1993 to 2005 the Material Protection, Control, and Accounting Program, operated by the federal government of the United States, spent approximately US$550 million to help safeguard uranium and plutonium stockpiles in Russia.[14]

Above-ground nuclear tests by the Soviet Union and the United States in the 1950s and early 1960s and by France into the 1970s and 1980s[15] spread a significant amount of fallout from uranium daughter isotopes around the world.[32] Additional fallout and pollution occurred from several nuclear accidents: the Windscale fire at the Sellafield nuclear plant in 1957 spread iodine-131 over much of Northern England, the Three Mile Island accident in 1979 released radon gas and some iodine-131, and the Chernobyl disaster in 1986 released radon, iodine-131 and strontium-90 that spread over much of Europe.[15]

Occurrence

Biotic and abiotic

Main article: Uranium in the environment
Uraninite, also known as Pitchblende, is the most common ore mined to extract uranium.

Uranium is a naturally occurring element that can be found in low levels within all rock, soil, and water. Uranium is also the highest-numbered element to be found naturally in significant quantities on earth and is always found combined with other elements.[11] Along with all elements having atomic weights higher than that of iron, it is only naturally formed in supernova explosions.[33] The decay of uranium, thorium and potassium-40 in the Earth's mantle is thought to be the main source of heat[34][35] that keeps the outer core liquid and drives mantle convection, which in turn drives plate tectonics.

Its average concentration in the Earth's crust is (depending on the reference) 2 to 4 parts per million,[12][15] or about 40 times as abundant as silver.[13] The Earth's crust from the surface to 25 km (15 mi) down is calculated to contain 1017 kg (2×1017 lb) of uranium while the oceans may contain 1013 kg (2×1013 lb).[12] The concentration of uranium in soil ranges from 0.7 to 11 parts per million (up to 15 parts per million in farmland soil due to use of phosphate fertilizers), and 3 parts per billion of sea water is composed of the element.[15]

It is more plentiful than antimony, tin, cadmium, mercury, or silver, and it is about as abundant as arsenic or molybdenum.[11][15] It is found in hundreds of minerals including uraninite (the most common uranium ore), autunite, uranophane, torbernite, and coffinite.[11] Significant concentrations of uranium occur in some substances such as phosphate rock deposits, and minerals such as lignite, and monazite sands in uranium-rich ores[11] (it is recovered commercially from these sources with as little as 0.1% uranium[13]).

Citrobacter species can have concentrations of uranium in their bodies 300 times higher than in the surrounding environment.

Some microorganisms, such as the lichen Trapelia involuta or the bacterium Citrobacter, can absorb concentrations of uranium that are up to 300 times higher than their environment.[36] Citrobactor species absorb uranyl ions when given glycerol phosphate (or other similar organic phosphates). After one day, one gram of bacteria will encrust themselves with nine grams of uranyl phosphate crystals; this creates the possibility that these organisms could be used to decontaminate uranium-polluted water.[18][37]

Plants absorb some uranium from the soil they are rooted in. Dry weight concentrations of uranium in plants range from 5 to 60 parts per billion, and ash from burnt wood can have concentrations up to 4 parts per million.[18] Dry weight concentrations of uranium in food plants are typically lower with one to two micrograms per day ingested through the food people eat.[18]

Production and Milling

Yellowcake is a concentrated mixture of uranium oxides that is further refined to extract pure uranium.

Uranium ore is mined in several ways: by open pit, underground, or by in-situ leaching (see uranium mining).[10] Low-grade uranium ore typically contains 0.1 to 0.25% of actual uranium oxides, so extensive measures must be employed to extract the metal from its ore.[38] High-grade ores found in Athabasca Basin deposits in Saskatchewan, Canada can contain up to 70% uranium oxides, and therefore must be diluted with waste rock prior to milling. Uranium ore is crushed and rendered into a fine powder and then leached with either an acid or alkali. The leachate is then subjected to one of several sequences of precipitation, solvent extraction, and ion exchange. The resulting mixture, called yellowcake, contains at least 75% uranium oxides. Yellowcake is then calcined to remove impurities from the milling process prior to refining and conversion.

Commercial-grade uranium can be produced through the reduction of uranium halides with alkali or alkaline earth metals.[11] Uranium metal can also be made through electrolysis of KUF
5 or UF
4, dissolved in a molten calcium chloride (CaCl
2) and sodium chloride (NaCl) solution.[11] Very pure uranium can be produced through the thermal decomposition of uranium halides on a hot filament.[11]

Resources and reserves

It is estimated that there is 4.7 million tonnes of uranium ore reserves (economically mineable) known to exist, while 35 million tonnes are classed as mineral resources (reasonable prospects for eventual economic extraction).[39] An additional 4.6 billion tonnes of uranium are estimated to be in sea water (Japanese scientists in the 1980s proved that extraction of uranium from sea water using ion exchangers was feasible).[40][41]

Exploration for uranium is continuing to increase with US$200 million being spent world wide in 2005, a 54% increase on the previous year.[39]

Australia has 38% of the world's uranium ore resources - the most of any country.[42] In fact, the world's largest single uranium deposit is located at the Olympic Dam Mine in South Australia.[43] Almost all the uranium is exported, under strict International Atomic Energy Agency safeguards to satisfy the Australian people and government that none of the uranium is used in nuclear weapons. As of 2006, the Australian government was advocating an expansion of uranium mining, although issues with state governments and indigenous interests complicate the issue.[44]

The largest single source of uranium ore in the United States was the Colorado Plateau located in Colorado, Utah, New Mexico, and Arizona. The U.S. federal government paid discovery bonuses and guaranteed purchase prices to anyone who found and delivered uranium ore, and was the sole legal purchaser of the uranium. The economic incentives resulted in a frenzy of exploration and mining activity throughout the Colorado Plateau from 1947 through 1959 that left thousands of miles of crudely graded roads spider-webbing the remote deserts of the Colorado Plateau, and thousands of abandoned uranium mines, exploratory shafts, and tailings piles. The frenzy ended as suddenly as it had begun, when the U.S. government stopped purchasing the uranium.

Supply

File:Uranium (mined)2.PNG
Uranium output in 2005

In 2005, Canada was the top producer of uranium with at least one-fourth world share closely followed by Australia and Kazakhstan, reports the British Geological Survey.

The ultimate supply of uranium is believed to very large and sufficient for at least the next 85 years[39] although some studies indicate underinvestment in the late twentieth century may produce supply problems in the 21st century.[45] It is estimated that for a ten times increase in price, the supply of uranium that can be economically mined is increased 300 times.[46]

Compounds

Oxidation states/Oxides

Triuranium octaoxide (diagram pictured) and uranium dioxide are the two most common uranium oxides.

Ions that represent the four different oxidation states of uranium are soluble and therefore can be studied in aqueous solutions. They are: U3+ (red), U4+ (green), UO+
2 (unstable), and UO
22+ (yellow).[47] A few solid and semi-metallic compounds such as UO and US exist for the formal oxidation state uranium(II), but no simple ions are known to exist in solution for that state. Ions of U3+ liberate hydrogen from water and are therefore considered to be highly unstable. The UO2+
2 ion represents the uranium(VI) state and is known to form compounds such as the carbonate, chloride and sulfate. UO2+
2 also forms complexes with various organic chelating agents, the most commonly-encountered of which is uranyl acetate.[47]

Calcined uranium yellowcake as produced in many large mills contains a distribution of uranium oxidation species in various forms ranging from most oxidized to least oxidized. Particles with short residence times in a calciner will generally be less oxidized than particles that have long retention times or are recovered in the stack scrubber. While uranium content is referred to for U
3O
8 content, to do so is inaccurate and dates to the days of the Manhattan project when U
3O
8 was used as an analytical chemistry reporting standard.

Phase relationships in the uranium-oxygen system are highly complex. The most important oxidation states of uranium are uranium(IV) and uranium(VI), and their two corresponding oxides are, respectively, uranium dioxide (UO
2) and uranium trioxide (UO
3).[48] Other uranium oxides such as uranium monoxide (UO), diuranium pentoxide (U
2O
5), and uranium peroxide (UO
4•2H
2O) are also known to exist.

The most common forms of uranium oxide are triuranium octaoxide (U
3O
8) and the aforementioned UO
2.[49] Both oxide forms are solids that have low solubility in water and are relatively stable over a wide range of environmental conditions. Triuranium octaoxide is (depending on conditions) the most stable compound of uranium and is the form most commonly found in nature. Uranium dioxide is the form in which uranium is most commonly used as a nuclear reactor fuel.[49] At ambient temperatures, UO
2 will gradually convert to U
3O
8. Because of their stability, uranium oxides are generally considered the preferred chemical form for storage or disposal.[49]

Hydrides, carbides and nitrides

Uranium metal heated to 250 to 300°C (482 to 572°F) reacts with hydrogen to form uranium hydride. Even higher temperatures will reversibly remove the hydrogen. This property makes uranium hydrides convenient starting materials to create reactive uranium powder along with various uranium carbide, nitride, and halide compounds.[50] Two crystal modifications of uranium hydride exist: an α form that is obtained at low temperatures and a β form that is created when the formation temperature is above 250 °C.[50]

Uranium carbides and uranium nitrides are both relatively inert semimetallic compounds that are minimally soluble in acids, react with water, and can ignite in air to form U
3O
8.[50] Carbides of uranium include uranium monocarbide (UC), uranium dicarbide (UC
2), and diuranium tricarbide (U
2C
3). Both UC and UC
2 are formed by adding carbon to molten uranium or by exposing the metal to carbon monoxide at high temperatures. Stable below 1800 °C, U
2C
3 is prepared by subjecting a heated mixture of UC and UC
2 to mechanical stress.[51] Uranium nitrides obtained by direct exposure of the metal to nitrogen include uranium mononitride (UN), uranium dinitride (UN
2), and diuranium trinitride (U
2N
3).[51]

Halides

Uranium hexafluoride is the feedstock used to separate uranium-235 from natural uranium.

All uranium fluorides are created using uranium tetrafluoride (UF
4); UF
4 itself is prepared by hydrofluorination of uranium dioxide.[50] Reduction of UF
4 with hydrogen at 1000 °C produces uranium trifluoride (UF
3). Under the right conditions of temperature and pressure, the reaction of solid UF
4 with gaseous uranium hexafluoride (UF
6) can form the intermediate fluorides of U
2F
9, U
4F
17, and UF
5.[50]

At room temperatures, UF
6 has a high vapor pressure, making it useful in the gaseous diffusion process to separate highly valuable uranium-235 from the far more common uranium-238 isotope. This compound can be prepared from uranium dioxide and uranium hydride by the following process:[50]

UO
2 + 4HF + heat (500 °C) → UF
4 + 2H
2O
UF
4 + F
2 + heat (350 °C) → UF
6

The resulting UF
6 white solid is highly reactive (by fluorination), easily sublimes (emitting a nearly perfect gas vapor), and is the most volatile compound of uranium known to exist.[50]

One method of preparing uranium tetrachloride (UCl
4) is to directly combine chlorine with either uranium metal or uranium hydride. The reduction of UCl
4 by hydrogen produces uranium trichloride (UCl
3) while the higher chlorides of uranium are prepared by reaction with additional chlorine.[50] All uranium chlorides react with water and air.

Bromides and iodides of uranium are formed by direct reaction of, respectively, bromine and iodine with uranium or by adding UH
3 to those element's acids.[50] Known examples include: UBr
3, UBr
4, UI
3, and UI
4. Uranium oxyhalides are water-soluble and include UO
2F
2, UOCl
2, UO
2Cl
2, and UO
2Br
2. Stability of the oxyhalides decrease as the atomic weight of the component halide increases.[50]

Isotopes

Pie-graphs showing the relative proportions of uranium-238 (blue) and uranium-235 (red) at different levels of enrichment

Natural concentrations

Main article: Isotopes of uranium

Naturally occurring uranium is composed of three major isotopes, uranium-238 (99.28% natural abundance), uranium-235 (0.71%), and uranium-234 (0.0054%). All three isotopes are radioactive, creating radioisotopes, with the most abundant and stable being uranium-238 with a half-life of 4.51×109 years (close to the age of the Earth), uranium-235 with a half-life of 7.13×108 years, and uranium-234 with a half-life of 2.48×105 years.[52]

Uranium-238 is an α emitter, decaying through the 18-member uranium natural decay series into lead-206.[13] The decay series of uranium-235 (also called actino-uranium) has 15 members that ends in lead-207, protactinium-231 and actinium-227.[13] The constant rates of decay in these series makes comparison of the ratios of parent to daughter elements useful in radiometric dating. Uranium-233 is made from thorium-232 by neutron bombardment.[11]

The isotope uranium-235 is important for both nuclear reactors and nuclear weapons because it is the only isotope existing in nature to any appreciable extent that is fissile, that is, can be broken apart by thermal neutrons.[13] The isotope uranium-238 is also important because it absorbs neutrons to produce a radioactive isotope that subsequently decays to the isotope plutonium-239, which also is fissile.[23]

Enrichment

Main article: Enriched uranium
Cascades of gas centrifuges are used to enrich uranium ore to concentrate its fissionable isotopes.

Enrichment of uranium ore through isotope separation to concentrate the fissionable uranium-235 is needed for use in nuclear power plants and nuclear weapons. A majority of neutrons released by a fissioning atom of uranium-235 must impact other uranium-235 atoms to sustain the nuclear chain reaction needed for these applications. The concentration and amount of uranium-235 needed to achieve this is called a 'critical mass.'

To be considered 'enriched', the uranium-235 fraction has to be increased to significantly greater than its concentration in naturally-occurring uranium. Enriched uranium typically has a uranium-235 concentration of between 3 and 5%.[53] The process produces huge quantities of uranium that is depleted of uranium-235 and with a correspondingly increased fraction of uranium-238, called depleted uranium or 'DU'. To be considered 'depleted', the uranium-235 isotope concentration has to have been decreased to significantly less than its natural concentration.

The gas centrifuge process, where gaseous uranium hexafluoride (UF
6) is separated by weight using high-speed centrifuges, has become the cheapest and leading enrichment process (lighter UF
6 concentrates in the center of the centrifuge).[22] The gaseous diffusion process was the previous leading method for enrichment and the one used in the Manhattan Project. In this process, uranium hexafluoride is repeatedly diffused through a silver-zinc membrane, and the different isotopes of uranium are separated by diffusion rate (uranium 238 is heavier and thus diffuses slightly slower than uranium-235).[22] The laser excitation method employs a laser beam of precise energy to sever the bond between uranium-235 and fluorine. This leaves uranium-238 bonded to fluorine and allows uranium-235 metal to precipitate from the solution.[10] Another method is called liquid thermal diffusion.[12]

Precautions

Exposure

A person can be exposed to uranium (or its radioactive daughters such as radon) by inhaling dust in air or by ingesting contaminated water and food. The amount of uranium in air is usually very small; however, people who work in factories that process phosphate fertilizers, live near government facilities that made or tested nuclear weapons, live or work near a modern battlefield where depleted uranium weapons have been used, or live or work near a coal-fired power plant, facilities that mine or process uranium ore, or enrich uranium for reactor fuel, may have increased exposure to uranium.[54][55] Houses or structures that are over uranium deposits (either natural or man-made slag deposits) may have an increased incidence of exposure to radon gas.

Almost all uranium that is ingested is excreted during digestion, but up to 5% is absorbed by the body when the soluble uranyl ion is ingested while only 0.5% is absorbed when insoluble forms of uranium, such as its oxide, are ingested.[18] However, soluble uranium compounds tend to quickly pass through the body whereas insoluble uranium compounds, especially when ingested via dust into the lungs, pose a more serious exposure hazard. After entering the bloodstream, the absorbed uranium tends to bioaccumulate and stay for many years in bone tissue because of uranium's affinity for phosphates.[18] Uranium does not absorb through the skin, and alpha particles released by uranium cannot penetrate the skin.

Effects

The greatest health risk from large intakes of uranium is toxic damage to the kidneys, because, in addition to being weakly radioactive, uranium is a toxic metal.[56][57][18] Uranium is a reproductive toxicant.[58] Radiological effects are generally local because this is the nature of alpha radiation, the primary form from U-238 decay. No human cancer has been seen as a result of exposure to natural or depleted uranium,[59] but exposure to some of its decay products, especially radon, does pose a significant health threat.[15] Exposure to strontium-90, iodine-131, and other fission products is unrelated to uranium exposure, but may result from medical procedures or exposure to spent reactor fuel or fallout from nuclear weapons.[60] Although accidental inhalation exposure to a high concentration of uranium hexafluoride has resulted in human fatalities, those deaths were not associated with uranium itself.[61] Finely-divided uranium metal presents a fire hazard because uranium is pyrophoric, so small grains will ignite spontaneously in air at room temperature.[11]

See also

Notes

  1. ^ "Standard Atomic Weights: Uranium". CIAAW. 1999.
  2. ^ Prohaska, Thomas; Irrgeher, Johanna; Benefield, Jacqueline; Böhlke, John K.; Chesson, Lesley A.; Coplen, Tyler B.; Ding, Tiping; Dunn, Philip J. H.; Gröning, Manfred; Holden, Norman E.; Meijer, Harro A. J. (2022-05-04). "Standard atomic weights of the elements 2021 (IUPAC Technical Report)". Pure and Applied Chemistry. doi:10.1515/pac-2019-0603. ISSN 1365-3075.
  3. ^ a b Arblaster, John W. (2018). Selected Values of the Crystallographic Properties of Elements. Materials Park, Ohio: ASM International. ISBN 978-1-62708-155-9.
  4. ^ Th(-I) and U(-I) have been detected in the gas phase as octacarbonyl anions; see Chaoxian, Chi; Sudip, Pan; Jiaye, Jin; Luyan, Meng; Mingbiao, Luo; Lili, Zhao; Mingfei, Zhou; Gernot, Frenking (2019). "Octacarbonyl Ion Complexes of Actinides [An(CO)8]+/− (An=Th, U) and the Role of f Orbitals in Metal–Ligand Bonding". Chemistry (Weinheim an der Bergstrasse, Germany). 25 (50): 11772–11784. 25 (50): 11772–11784. doi:10.1002/chem.201902625. ISSN 0947-6539. PMC 6772027. PMID 31276242.
  5. ^ Morss, L.R.; Edelstein, N.M.; Fuger, J., eds. (2006). The Chemistry of the Actinide and Transactinide Elements (3rd ed.). Netherlands: Springer. ISBN 978-9048131464.
  6. ^ a b Greenwood, Norman N.; Earnshaw, Alan (1997). Chemistry of the Elements (2nd ed.). Butterworth-Heinemann. p. 28. ISBN 978-0-08-037941-8.
  7. ^ Kondev, F. G.; Wang, M.; Huang, W. J.; Naimi, S.; Audi, G. (2021). "The NUBASE2020 evaluation of nuclear properties" (PDF). Chinese Physics C. 45 (3): 030001. doi:10.1088/1674-1137/abddae.
  8. ^ Magurno, B.A.; Pearlstein, S, eds. (1981). Proceedings of the conference on nuclear data evaluation methods and procedures. BNL-NCS 51363, vol. II (PDF). Upton, NY (USA): Brookhaven National Lab. pp. 835 ff. Retrieved 2014-08-06.
  9. ^ "WWW Table of Radioactive Isotopes".
  10. ^ a b c d e Emsley, Nature's Building Blocks (2001), page 479
  11. ^ a b c d e f g h i j k l m n o p q r "Uranium". Los Alamos National Laboratory. Retrieved 2007-01-14.
  12. ^ a b c d e f "Uranium". The McGraw-Hill Science and Technology Encyclopedia (5th edition ed.). The McGraw-Hill Companies, Inc. {{cite encyclopedia}}: |edition= has extra text (help)
  13. ^ a b c d e f g "uranium". Columbia Electronic Encyclopedia (6th Edition ed.). Columbia University Press. {{cite encyclopedia}}: |edition= has extra text (help)
  14. ^ a b c d e "uranium". Encyclopedia of Espionage, Intelligence, and Security. The Gale Group, Inc.
  15. ^ a b c d e f g Emsley, Nature's Building Blocks (2001), page 480
  16. ^ "Nuclear Weapon Design". Federation of American Scientists. 1998. Retrieved 2007-02-19.
  17. ^ Emsley, Nature's Building Blocks (2001), page 482
  18. ^ a b c d e f g h i j Emsley, Nature's Building Blocks (2001), page 477
  19. ^ M. H. Klaproth (1789). "Chemische Untersuchung des Uranits, einer neuentdeckten metallischen Substanz". Chemische Annalen. 2: 387–403.
  20. ^ "Uranium". The American Heritage Dictionary of the English Language (4th edition ed.). Houghton Mifflin Company. {{cite encyclopedia}}: |edition= has extra text (help)
  21. ^ E.-M. Péligot (1842). "Recherches Sur L'Uranium". Annales de chimie et de physique. 5 (5): 5–47.
  22. ^ a b c d Emsley, Nature's Building Blocks (2001), page 478
  23. ^ a b c d e f Seaborg, Encyclopedia of the Chemical Elements (1968), page 773
  24. ^ Fermi, E.; Artifical radioactivity produced by neutron bombardment, Nobel prize address, 12 December 1938
  25. ^ De Gregorio, A. A Historical Note About How the Property was Discovered that Hydrogenated Substances Increase the Radioactivity Induced by Neutrons (2003)
  26. ^ Nigro, M,; Hahn, Meitner e la teoria della fissione (2004)
  27. ^ Peter van der Krogt, Elementymology & Elements Multidict
  28. ^ L. Meitner, O. Frisch (1939). "Disintegration of Uranium by Neutrons: a New Type of Nuclear Reaction". Nature. 143: 239–240. doi:10.1038/224466a0.
  29. ^ "History and Success of Argonne National Laboratory: Part 1". U.S. Department of Energy, Argonne National Laboratory. 1998. Retrieved 2007-01-28.
  30. ^ "1956:Queen switches on nuclear power". BBC news. Retrieved June 28. {{cite web}}: Check date values in: |accessdate= (help); Unknown parameter |accessyear= ignored (|access-date= suggested) (help)
  31. ^ a b "Oklo: Natural Nuclear Reactors". Office of Civilian Radioactive Waste Management. Retrieved June 28. {{cite web}}: Check date values in: |accessdate= (help); Unknown parameter |accessyear= ignored (|access-date= suggested) (help)
  32. ^ T. Warneke, I. W. Croudace, P. E. Warwick, R. N. Taylor (2002). "A new ground-level fallout record of uranium and plutonium isotopes for northern temperate latitudes". Earth and Planetary Science Letters. 203 (3–4): 1047–1057. doi:10.1016/S0012-821X(02)00930-5.{{cite journal}}: CS1 maint: multiple names: authors list (link)
  33. ^ "WorldBook@NASA: Supernova". NASA. Retrieved 2007-02-19.
  34. ^ Biever, Celeste (27 July 2005). "First measurements of Earth's core radioactivity". New Scientist. {{cite journal}}: Cite journal requires |journal= (help)
  35. ^ "Potassium-40 heats up Earth's core". physicsweb. 7 May 2003. Retrieved 2007-01-14.
  36. ^ Emsley, Nature's Building Blocks (2001), pages 476 and 482
  37. ^ L. E. Macaskie, R. M. Empson, A. K. Cheetham, C. P. Grey, A. J. Skarnulis (1992). "Uranium bioaccumulation by a Citrobacter sp. as a result of enzymically mediated growth of polycrystalline HUO
    2    PO
    4    ". Science. 257: 782–784. doi:10.1126/science.1496397.    {{cite journal}}: CS1 maint: multiple names: authors list (link)
  38. ^ Seaborg, Encyclopedia of the Chemical Elements (1968), page 774
  39. ^ a b c "Global Uranium Resources to Meet Projected Demand". International Atomic Energy Agency. 2006. Retrieved 2007-03-29.
  40. ^ "Uranium recovery from Seawater". Japan Atomic Energy Research Institute. 1999-08-23. Retrieved 2007-03-29.
  41. ^ "How long will nuclear energy last?". 1996-02-12. Retrieved 2007-03-29.
  42. ^ "Australia's Uranium and Who Buys It". Australian Uranium Association Ltd. 2007. Retrieved 2007-01-14.
  43. ^ "Uranium Mining and Processing in South Australia". South Australian Chamber of Mines and Energy. 2002. Retrieved 2007-01-14.
  44. ^ "Nuclear Balance of Power", BRW, 26 Oct. 2006, pp. 41–44
  45. ^ "Lack of fuel may limit U.S. nuclear power expansion". massachusetts institute of technology. Retrieved 2007-03-29. {{cite web}}: Unknown parameter |Date= ignored (|date= suggested) (help)
  46. ^ "World Uranium Resources", by Kenneth S. Deffeyes and Ian D. MacGregor, Scientific American, January, 1980, page 66, argues that the supply of uranium is very large.
  47. ^ a b Seaborg, Encyclopedia of the Chemical Elements (1968), page 778
  48. ^ Seaborg, Encyclopedia of the Chemical Elements (1968), page 779
  49. ^ a b c "Chemical Forms of Uranium". Argonne National Laboratory. Retrieved 2007-02-18.
  50. ^ a b c d e f g h i j Seaborg, Encyclopedia of the Chemical Elements (1968), page 782
  51. ^ a b Seaborg, Encyclopedia of the Chemical Elements (1968), page 780
  52. ^ Seaborg, Encyclopedia of the Chemical Elements (1968), page 777
  53. ^ "Uranium Enrichment". Argonne National Laboratory. Retrieved 2007-02-11.
  54. ^ "Radiation Information for Uranium". U.S. Environmental Protection Agency. Retrieved 2007-02-18.
  55. ^ "ToxFAQ for Uranium". Agency for Toxic Substances and Disease Registry. September 1999. Retrieved 2007-02-18.
  56. ^ E. S. Craft, A. W. Abu-Qare, M. M. Flaherty, M. C. Garofolo, H. L. Rincavage, M. B. Abou-Donia (2004). "Depleted and natural uranium: chemistry and toxicological effects". Journal of Toxicology and Environmental Health Part B: Critical Reviews. 7 (4): 297–317. doi:10.1080/10937400490452714.{{cite journal}}: CS1 maint: multiple names: authors list (link)
  57. ^ "Toxicological Profile for Uranium" (PDF). Atlanta, GA: Agency for Toxic Substances and Disease Registry (ATSDR). CAS# 7440-61-1 date=September 1999. {{cite web}}: Missing pipe in: |id= (help)
  58. ^ Arfsten, D.P.; K.R. Still; G.D. Ritchie (2001) "A review of the effects of uranium and depleted uranium exposure on reproduction and fetal development," Toxicology and Industrial Health, vol. 17, pp. 180–91
  59. ^ "Public Health Statement for Uranium". CDC. Retrieved 2007-02-15.
  60. ^ Chart of the Nuclides, US Atomic Energy Commission 1968
  61. ^ Kathren and Moore 1986; Moore and Kathren 1985; USNRC 1986

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