Wikijunior:The Elements/Francium

Shows the position of Francium on the periodic chart.

Francium's symbol on the Periodic Table

What does it look, feel, taste or smell like?

Francium is a very unstable metal. Francium has a silvery, and gray color to it. No one has tasted francium because francium is very rare and it would kill you.

How was it discovered?

Francium was discovered in 1939 by Marguerite Perey of the Curie Institute, Paris(France)

Where did it name come from?

Because there is so little naturally occurring francium on earth, francium can be produced by bombarding thorium with protons or by bombarding radium with neutron

It is named after France. It was originally to be called "Catium" but it was decided against this as English speakers would possibly associate it with cats(the animal).

What are it uses?

Francium has a short half-life of about 22 minute and it is so unstable, it would decompose to other elements so quickly that there are no uses for francium based on the research of francium

Is it dangerous?

Francium is highly radioactive. Francium would react violently to water, air and halogens.

Did You Know?

• At first, francium has a symbol of Fa and later it became Fr
• Francium is the most unstable of the first 101 elements of the periodic system
• Francium is the second rarest element in the Earth’s crust, next to astatine