Table of Contents
What is Astatine?
Astatine – Introduction: Astatine is a chemical element with the symbol At and atomic number 85. It is a rare, radioactive, and unstable halogen element. Astatine is the most unstable and rarest element in the periodic table. However it estimated that only about 30 grams of astatine exist on Earth at any given time.
Astatine is a very reactive element and it also quickly oxidizes in the air. It is not possible to isolate astatine in its pure form. It is most commonly found in the form of compounds. Therefore it has no known biological or commercial applications.
Astatine Structure
- Astatine is a rare, unstable, radioactive element that found in the environment only in trace amounts. It has a very short half-life, and therefore not found in nature in its elemental form. Astatine is a member of the halogen family, and has the chemical symbol At. Its atomic number is 85.
- Astatine has a relatively simple structure, with a single electron in its outermost shell. Therefore this electron easily lost, which makes astatine very reactive. It quickly combines with other elements to form compounds.
Astatine Uses
- Astatine is a radioactive, synthetic element with the symbol At and atomic number 85. However it is the rarest naturally occurring element on Earth, occurring only in trace amounts.
- The most stable isotope, astatine-210, has a half-life of 8.1 hours.
- Astatine has no known biological role and not considered to be a major health threat. However, it can be toxic if it enters the body in high doses. Astatine is mainly used in research and in the production of radioactive tracers.
Astatine Health Effects
- It is a highly radioactive element that not found in nature. It produced artificially in nuclear reactors and also produce particle accelerators.
- Astatine is very radioactive and emits high levels of radiation. It can also cause severe radiation poisoning, which can lead to death.
