Dysprosium (Dy)
Dysprosium is critical for high-performance magnets used in wind turbines and electric vehicles.
Properties of Dysprosium
- Atomic number
- 66
- Category
- Lanthanide
- Atomic mass
- 162.5 u
- Electron configuration
- [Xe] 4f¹⁰ 6s²
- Melting point
- 1680 K (1406.85 °C)
- Boiling point
- 2840 K (2566.85 °C)
- Density
- 8.55 g/cm³
- Electronegativity (Pauling)
- 1.22
- Appearance
- Silvery-white metal
- Discovered by
- Lecoq de Boisbaudran (1886)
Facts about Dysprosium
- Dysprosium means "hard to get" in Greek because it was so difficult to isolate!
- Dysprosium makes neodymium magnets work better at high temperatures!
- Wind turbines need dysprosium for their powerful magnets!
- Dysprosium is so magnetic it can be used in data storage devices!