COMPARISON OF THE CHEMICAL AND PHYSICAL-PROPERTIES OF F-ELEMENT METALS AND OXIDES - THEIR DEPENDENCE ON ELECTRONIC-PROPERTIES

The chemical and physical properties of an element, its alloys and its compounds are determined largely by the electronic nature (electronic configurations energy levels, etc.) of the materials. Therefore, comparing systematically selected properties of these materials can often provide insight into their electronic structures. The actinide series displays more complex electronic structures than does the lanthanide series; this is reflected in the more complex and variable properties exhibited by the actinides. A limited comparison of the two f-electron series of elements can be made by comparing the behaviors of their metals and oxides. The most notable differences in electronic and material behaviors are found with the metallic state, while with the oxides of these elements, perhaps the most studied compounds, the electronic structures and properties are more consistent. The objective here is to establish trends and differences in selected physicochemical properties of these two materials for each series, which may reflect differences in electronic structures. In this exercise, plutonium appears to occupy a pivotal position in the actinide series with reference to such properties; there does not seem to be a complete counterpart to it in the lanthanide series.