Germanium Research Paper

The element symbol for Germanium is Ge. It is located in row 4 column 4 on the periodic table and is in block p. It belongs in group 14. Germanium was first proposed by Dmitri Mendeleyev in 1871 based on the gaps found in the newly made periodic table. Germanium was first discovered by the German chemist Clemens Winkler ( Winkler ). Clemens Winkler was born in Freiburg, Germany in 1838 but he grew up Zschopenthal, Germany. His father Kurt Winkler was a well known chemist and metallurgist. Clemens as a child was very fond of nature. Germanium was discovered in 1886 when they found a sample from a silver mine. The sample contained 73-75% of pure silver, 17-18% sulfur, 0.2% mercury, and 6-7% of a new element. Kurt Winkler decided to name the
It is a metalloid, which means it contains both properties of metals and nonmetals. The element is a hard (solid), lustrous, gray/white, brittle metalloid. Germanium has a diamond like crystalline structure. It’s is very similar in chemical and physical properties to that of silicon ( The Element). The element does not chemically react when introduced to air or water( The Element). Germanium is also unaffected by alkalis and acids except for nitric acid. It has 9 isotopes. Germanium isotopes are more often used for the production of medical As and Se radioisotopes. Ge-74 is used in the production for As-74, Ge-76 is used for the production of As-77, Ge-74 for the production of As-73 and Ge-72 for As-72 (Germanium Element). The atomic number for germanium is 32. It’s atomic mass is 72.59 g. Mol -1. The electronegativity for germanium is 1.8. The density of germanium is 5.3 g.cm-3 at 20o Celsius. Germanium also has a melting point of 937o Celsius. Its boiling point is 2830o Celsius
Germanium does not react when exposed to water or air. The element does not react with any acids except for nitric acid. Germanium isn’t all 100% safe however.You should always be cautious when around the element. There are consequences for being exposed to the element. Germanium has many important uses like being used as a semiconductor for electricity and creating alloys for fluorescent lamps. Even though germanium maybe important, there are many other elements that can do the exact same job like germanium can therefore even if germanium didn’t exist, it wouldn't really effect us that