Knowra Thallium Thallium Thallium is a soft, highly toxic chemical element with atomic number 81 and symbol Tl. Its compounds are used in electronics, specialized glass, and certain medical imaging procedures.
Periodic table : A tabular arrangement of chemical elements ordered by atomic number and recurring chemical properties. Thallium’s group and period place it among the heavier p-block metals.
Thallium poisoning : Illness caused by exposure to thallium or its compounds, often involving neurological and gastrointestinal damage. It is the most direct consequence of thallium’s toxic chemistry.
Thallium-doped sodium iodide : A scintillation crystal that emits visible light when ionizing radiation deposits energy in it. Thallium activators make this crystal useful for detecting gamma rays.
William Crookes : An English chemist and physicist who discovered thallium in 1861 through spectroscopy. Crookes identified the element from its distinctive green spectral line.
Toxicology : The study of the harmful effects of chemicals and other agents on living organisms. Thallium’s severe effects make it a subject of clinical and environmental toxicology.
Group 13 element : A chemical element in periodic table group 13, whose members have three valence electrons. Thallium belongs to this group, alongside boron, aluminum, gallium, and indium.
Potassium channel : A membrane protein that selectively allows potassium ions to cross cell membranes. Thallium ions can pass through some potassium pathways, helping distribute the element in the body.
Scintillation detector : A radiation detector that converts ionizing radiation into flashes of light and then electrical signals. Thallium-containing crystals serve as the light-producing material in many detectors.
Claude-Auguste Lamy : A French chemist who independently isolated metallic thallium in 1862. Lamy established that the newly detected element could be obtained as a metal.
Thallium contamination : The presence of thallium in air, water, soil, or food at potentially harmful levels. Mining and industrial residues can release this toxic element into the environment.
Show all 28