Astatine (/sttin/ AS-t-teen or /sttn/ AS-t-tin) is a radioactive chemical element with the symbol At and atomic number 85.

It is the heaviest known halogen. Astatine is produced by radioactive decay in nature, but due to its short half-life it is found only in minute amounts. Astatine was first produced by Dale R. Corson, Kenneth Ross MacKenzie, and Emilio Segr in 1940. Three years passed before traces of astatine were also found in natural minerals. Until recently most of the physical and chemical characteristics of astatine were inferred from comparison with other elements. Some astatine isotopes have been used as alpha-particle emitters in science, and medical applications for astatine-211 have been tested. Astatine is the rarest naturally occurring element, with less than 30 grams (1.058 ounces) estimated to be contained in the entire Earth's crust.

( ASTATINE ocures in vanishngly small quantities and is radioactive )

CHARECTERISTICS:
Astatine, a highly radioactive element, has been confirmed by mass spectrometry to behave chemically much like other halogens, especially iodine (it would probably accumulate in the thyroid gland like iodine), though astatine is thought to be more metallic than iodine. Researchers at the Brookhaven National Laboratory have performed experiments that have identified and measured elementary reactions that involve astatine;] however, chemical research into astatine is limited by its extreme rarity, which is a consequence of its extremely short half-life. Its most stable isotope has a half-life of around 8.3 hours. The final products of the decay of astatine are isotopes of lead. The halogens get darker in color with increasing
molecular weight and atomic number. Thus, following the trend, astatine is a nearly black solid, which, when heated, sublimes into a dark, purplish vapor (darker than iodine).

Appearance

black solid

General properties

Name, symbol,number

astatine, At, 85

Pronunciation

/sttin/ AS-t-teen or /sttn/ AS-tt-in

Element category

halogens

Group, period, block

17, 6, p

Standard atomic weight

(210)
14 10 2 5

Electron configuration

[Xe] 4f

5d

6s 6p

Electrons per shell

2, 8, 18, 32, 18, 7

ELECTRON CONFIGURATION:

[Xe] 4f14 5d10 6s2 6p5

PROPERTIES:
Physical properties

Phase

solid

Melting point

575 K, 302 C, 576 F

Boiling point

610 K, 337 C, 639 F

1

Heat of vaporization

40 kJmol

Atomic properties

Oxidation states

1, 3, 5, 7

Electronegativity

2.2 (Pauling scale)

1

Ionization energies

1st: 89040 kJmol

Covalent radius

150 pm

Van der Waals radius

202 pm

Miscellanea

Magnetic ordering

no data
1 1

Thermal conductivity

1.7 Wm K

CAS registry number

7440-68-8

Astatine has a melting point of 302C, an estimated boiling point of 337C, with probable valences of 1, 3, 5, or 7. Astatine possesses characteristics common to other halogens. It behaves most similarly to iodine, except that At exhibits more metallic properties. The interhalogen molecules AtI, AtBr, and AtCl are known, although it has not been determined whether or not astatine forms diatomic At2. HAt and CH3At have been detected. Astatine probably is capable of accumulating in the human thyroid gland. Sources: Astatine was first synthesized by Corson, MacKenzie, and Segre at the University of California in 1940 by bombarding bismuth with alpha particles. Astatine may be produced by bombarding bismuth with energetic alpha particles to produce At-209, At-210, and At-211. These isotopes can be distilled from the target upon heating it in air. Small quantities of At215, At-218, and At-219 occur naturally with uranium and thorium isotopes. Trace amounts of At-217 exist in equilibrium with U-233 and Np-239, resulting from the interaction between thorium and urainuam with neutrons. The total amount of astatine present in the Earth's crust is less than 1 ounce.

ISOTOPES OF ASTATINE:
iso NA half-life DM DE (MeV) DP

210

At

trace

8.1 h

3.981

210

Po

5.631

206

Bi

211

At

syn

7.2 h

HISTORY:
The existence of "eka-iodine" had been predicted by Dmitri Mendeleev. Astatine (after Greek astatos, meaning "unstable") was first synthesized in 1940 by Dale R. Corson, Kenneth Ross MacKenzie, and Emilio Segr at the University of California, Berkeley by bombarding bismuth with alpha particles.
[3]

As the periodic table of elements was long known, several scientists tried to find the element following iodine in the halogen group. The unknown substance was called Eka-iodine before its discovery because the name of the element was to be suggested by the discoverer. The claimed discovery in 1931 at the Alabama Polytechnic Institute (now Auburn University) by Fred Allison and associates, led to the spurious name for the element asalabamine (Ab) for a few years. This discovery was later shown to be an erroneous one. Other erroneous discoveries, and the names selected include the name dakin, proposed in 1937 by the chemist Rajendralal De working in Dhaka, Bangladesh (then British India); and the name helvetium by the Swiss chemist Walter Minder, when he announced the discovery of element 85 in 1940, with his suggested name being changed to anglohelvetium in 1942. It took three years before actual astatine was found as product of the natural decay processes. The short-lived element was found by the two scientistsBerta Karlik and Traude Bernert.

OCCURANCE:
Astatine occurs naturally in three natural radioactive decay series, but because of its short half-life is found only in minute amounts. Astatine-218 ( as is
219 219 218

At) is found in the uranium series and

215

At as well

At are in the actinium series. The most long-lived of these naturally occurring astatine isotopes

At with a half-life of 56 seconds.

Astatine is the rarest naturally occurring element, with the total amount in Earth's crust estimated to be less than 1 oz (28 g) at any given time. This amounts to less than one teaspoon of the element. All of North and South America to a depth of ten miles contains only a trillion astatine-215 atoms at any time, according to Isaac Asimov.

PRODUCTION:
Astatine is produced by bombarding bismuth with energetic alpha particles to obtain the relatively long-lived isotopes 209At through 211At, which can then be distilled from the target by heating in the presence of air. The energy of the alpha particles determine which isotopes are produced:

Reaction

Energy of alpha particle

209 83Bi + 4 2 211 85At + 2 1 0n

26 MeV

209 83Bi + 4 2 210 85At + 3 1 0n

40 MeV

209 83Bi + 4 2 209 85At + 4 1 0n

60 MeV

COMPOUNDS:
Astatine is the least reactive of the halogens, being less reactive than iodine.; however, multiple compounds of astatine have been synthesized in microscopic amounts and studied as intensively as possible before their inevitable radioactive disintegration. The reactions are normally tested with dilute solutions of astatine mixed with larger amounts of iodine. The iodine acts as a carrier, ensuring that there is sufficient material for laboratory techniques such as filtration and precipitation to work. While these compounds are primarily of theoretical interest, they are being studied for potential use in nuclear medicine. Astatine is expected to form ionic bonds with metals such as sodium, like the other halogens, but it can be displaced from the salts by lighter, more reactive halogens. Astatine can also react with hydrogen to form hydrogen astatide (HAt), which, when dissolved in water, forms hydroastatic acid. Other examples of astatic compounds are

Sodium astatide (NaAt) Magnesium astatide (MgAt2) Carbon tetraastatide (CAt4)

CHEMICAL REACTION:
Reaction of astatine with the halogens
Astatine, At2, reacts with bromine, Br2, or iodine, I2, to form the "interhalogen" species AtBr and AtI respectively. Both of these dissolve in carbon tetrachloride, CCl4. At2 + Br2 2AtBr At2 + I2 2AtI

Reaction of astatine with acids

Astatine dissolves in dilute nitric acid, HNO3, or dilute hydrochloric acid, HCl.

APLICATION:
The least stable isotopes of astatine have no practical applications other than scientific study due to their extremely short life, but heavier isotopes have medical uses. Astatine-211 is an alpha emitter with a physical half-life of 7.2 h. These features have led to its use in radiation therapy. An investigation of the efficacy of astatine-211tellurium colloid for the treatment of experimental malignant ascites in mice reveals that this alpha-emitting radiocolloid can be curative without causing undue toxicity to normal tissue. By comparison, beta-emitting phosphorus-32 as colloidal chromic phosphate had no antineoplastic activity. The most compelling explanation for this striking difference is the dense ionization and short range of action associated with alpha-emission. These results have important implications for the development and use of alpha-emitters as radiocolloid therapy for the treatment of human tumors.

PRECAUTIONION:
Since astatine is extremely radioactive, it should be handled with extreme care. Because of its extreme rarity, it is not likely that the general public will be exposed. Astatine is a halogen, and standard precautions apply. It is reactive, sharing similar chemical characteristics with iodine. There are toxicologic studies of astatine-211 on mice indicating that radioactive poisoning is the major effect on living organisms.

HEALTH EFECTS:

The total amount of astatine in the earth's crust at any particular time is less than 30 grams and only a few micrograms have ever been artificially produced. This, together with its short lifetime, leaves no reason for considering the effects of astatine on human health. Astatine is studied in a few nuclear research laboratories where its high radioactivity requires special handling techniques and precautions. Astatine is a halogen and possibly accumulates in the thyroid like iodine. From a chemical point of view, one can speculate that its toxicity would mimic that of iodine.