neptunium [Np]

Introduction

Named for the planet Neptune, Roman god of the sea. Discovered in 1940 by Edwin M McMillan & Phillip H Abelson at the University of California, Berkeley.

Occurrence

• trace amounts found in uranium ores
• obtained in nuclear reactors as a by-product in the production of plutonium

Characteristics

• silvery, solid radioactive metallic element
• chemically similar to uranium

Uses

• neptunium-237 is used in neutron-detection instruments

More general terms

• actinide
• radioactive element

Database

• PubChem: http://pubchem.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/summary/summary.cgi?cid=23933