The centenary of a controversial discovery: actinium
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J. P. Adloff
André Debierne, collaborator of Pierre and Marie Curie, announced in 1900 the discovery of actinium, a third radioelement in pitchblende with properties resembling those of thorium. Four years later, Friedrich Giesel found a substance with a strong emanating power following lanthanum and which he called emanium. It become progressively clear that actinium and emanium were the same element. The arguments developed in the ensuing controversy are reviewed. Eventually Debierne was recognized as the discoverer of actinium, element 89 in the periodic table.
© 2015 Oldenbourg Wissenschaftsverlag GmbH, Rosenheimer Str. 145, 81671 München
André Debierne, collaborator of Pierre and Marie Curie, announced in 1900 the discovery of actinium, a third radioelement in pitchblende with properties resembling those of thorium. Four years later, Friedrich Giesel found a substance with a strong emanating power following lanthanum and which he called emanium. It become progressively clear that actinium and emanium were the same element. The arguments developed in the ensuing controversy are reviewed. Eventually Debierne was recognized as the discoverer of actinium, element 89 in the periodic table.
© 2015 Oldenbourg Wissenschaftsverlag GmbH, Rosenheimer Str. 145, 81671 München
Articles in the same Issue
- Preface: Alfred P. Wolf Memorial Issue
- Im Memoriam Alfred P. Wolf
- The centenary of a controversial discovery: actinium
- Proton-induced nuclear reactions in neptunium-237 targets. Production of plutonium tracers in the energy range 15-40 MeV
- Possibility of production of 81Rb via the 80Kr(d,n) reaction at a small cyclotron
- Positron emission intensity in the decay of 120gI
- Production of high specific activity 27Mg by fast neutron irradiation and recoil-aided leaching
- Production of strontium-82 for the Cardiogen® PET generator: a project of the Department of Energy Virtual Isotope Center
- Lutetium-177-EDTMP for bone pain palliation. Preparation, biodistribution and pre-clinical studies
- Thermochromatographic separation of no-carrier-added 186Re or 188Re from tungsten targets relevant to nuclear medical applications
- Low energy cyclotron production and chemical separation of "no carrier added" iodine-124 from a reusable, enriched tellurium-124 dioxide/aluminum oxide solid solution target
- Physicochemical and radiochemical aspects of separation of radioiodine from TeO2-targets
- Novel separation of thallium-201 using p-tert-butylcalix[4]arene derivative
- Recovery of 201Tl by ion exchange chromatography from proton bombarded thallium cyclotron targets
- Doppler broadening as a probe of the chemical environment following oxygen-14 decay
- In-target chemistry during the production of 15O and 11C using 3He reactions
- 11C-methane production in small volume, high pressure gas targets
- 11C-methylations using 11C-methyl iodide and tetrabutylammonium fluoride
- Specific activity of [11C]CO2 generated in a N2 gas target: effect of irradiation dose, irradiation history, oxygen content and beam energy
- Effect of dissolved gas on the specific activity of N-13 labeled ions generated in water by the 16O(p,α)13N reaction
- Direct n.c.a. radioiodination of weakly activated arenes using metal salts
- Synthesis of substituted [123I]imidazo[1,2-α]pyridines as potential probes for the study of the peripheral benzodiazepine receptors using SPECT
- Determination of trace impurities in iron-based alloy using neutron activation analysis
- EXAFS analyses of technetium(I) carbonyl complexes – stability studies in solutions
- Syntheses and structures of technetium(V) and rhenium(V) oxo complexes of peptide having KYC-sequence
Articles in the same Issue
- Preface: Alfred P. Wolf Memorial Issue
- Im Memoriam Alfred P. Wolf
- The centenary of a controversial discovery: actinium
- Proton-induced nuclear reactions in neptunium-237 targets. Production of plutonium tracers in the energy range 15-40 MeV
- Possibility of production of 81Rb via the 80Kr(d,n) reaction at a small cyclotron
- Positron emission intensity in the decay of 120gI
- Production of high specific activity 27Mg by fast neutron irradiation and recoil-aided leaching
- Production of strontium-82 for the Cardiogen® PET generator: a project of the Department of Energy Virtual Isotope Center
- Lutetium-177-EDTMP for bone pain palliation. Preparation, biodistribution and pre-clinical studies
- Thermochromatographic separation of no-carrier-added 186Re or 188Re from tungsten targets relevant to nuclear medical applications
- Low energy cyclotron production and chemical separation of "no carrier added" iodine-124 from a reusable, enriched tellurium-124 dioxide/aluminum oxide solid solution target
- Physicochemical and radiochemical aspects of separation of radioiodine from TeO2-targets
- Novel separation of thallium-201 using p-tert-butylcalix[4]arene derivative
- Recovery of 201Tl by ion exchange chromatography from proton bombarded thallium cyclotron targets
- Doppler broadening as a probe of the chemical environment following oxygen-14 decay
- In-target chemistry during the production of 15O and 11C using 3He reactions
- 11C-methane production in small volume, high pressure gas targets
- 11C-methylations using 11C-methyl iodide and tetrabutylammonium fluoride
- Specific activity of [11C]CO2 generated in a N2 gas target: effect of irradiation dose, irradiation history, oxygen content and beam energy
- Effect of dissolved gas on the specific activity of N-13 labeled ions generated in water by the 16O(p,α)13N reaction
- Direct n.c.a. radioiodination of weakly activated arenes using metal salts
- Synthesis of substituted [123I]imidazo[1,2-α]pyridines as potential probes for the study of the peripheral benzodiazepine receptors using SPECT
- Determination of trace impurities in iron-based alloy using neutron activation analysis
- EXAFS analyses of technetium(I) carbonyl complexes – stability studies in solutions
- Syntheses and structures of technetium(V) and rhenium(V) oxo complexes of peptide having KYC-sequence
