Ytterbium Yb (Element 70) of Periodic Table

70 Yb (Ytterbium)

Ytterbium is soft, malleable and quite ductile element with an appearance of bright silvery luster.
It should be kept in closed containers to prevent it from air and moisture.  
It is easily attacked and dissolved by dilute and concentrated mineral acids and slowly reacts with water.

Identity
CAS Number:  7440-64-4
CID Number:  CID23992
RTECS Number:  RTECSZG1925000 

Basic Properties of Ytterbium

Appearance:  Silvery white; with a pale yellow tint
Mass Number:  173
Standard Atomic weight:  173.045 g/mol
Electrons:  70
Protons:  70
Neutrons:  103
Atomic number (Z):  70
Period:  6
Block:  f
Element category:  Lanthanide
Electrons per shell:  K2, L8, M18, N32, O8, P2
Electron configuration:  1s²2s²2p⁶3s²3p⁶3d¹⁰4s²4p⁶4d¹⁰5s²5p⁶4f¹⁴6s² 

Thermal Properties of Ytterbium

Phase:  Solid
Melting point:  1097 K (824 ^oC, 1515 ^oF)
Boiling point:  1469 K (1196 ^oC, 2185 ^oF)
Fusion heat:  7.66 kJ/mol
Vaporization heat:  129 kJ/mol
Molar heat capacity:  26.74 J/(mol.K)
Thermal expansion:  β, poly: 26.3 μm/(m∙K)
Thermal conductivity:  38.5 W/(m∙K)

Electrical properties of Ytterbium

Electrical conductivity:  3.6×10⁶
sElectrical resistivity:  β, poly: 0.250 μΩ∙m
sElectrical type:  Conductor

Magnetic Properties of Ytterbium

sMagnetic type:  Paramagnetic (At 1.0 K)
Magnetic susceptibility (x_mol):  +249×10^-6 cm³
Volume magnetic susceptibility:  0.0000388
Mass magnetic susceptibility:  5.9×10^-9 m³/kg
Molar magnetic susceptibility:  1.02×10^-9 m³/mol

Physical Properties of Ytterbium

Density:  6.90 g/cm³ (In solid)  6.21 g/cm³ (In Liquid)
Molar volume:  0.00002634 m³/mol
Young’s modulus:  β form: 24 GPa
Shear modulus:  β form: 9.9 GPa
Bulk modulus:  β form: 31 GPa
Poisson ratio:  β form: 0.207
Vicker hardness:  205-250 MPa
Brinell hardness:  340-440 MPa
Sound speed:  1590 m/s

Atomic Properties of Ytterbium

Oxidation states:  3,2,1
Valence Electrons:  4f¹⁴ 6s²
Ion charge:  Yb³⁺ Yb²⁺
Ionization energies:  1st: 603.4 kJ.mol 2nd: 1174.8 kJ/mol 3rd: 2417 kJ/mol 4th: 4202.9 kJ/mol
Ionic radius:  85.8 pm
Atomic radius:  242 pm (Van der Waals)
Covalent radius:  187±8 pm
Filling Orbital:  4f¹⁴
Crystal structure:  Face-centered cubic (β, At room temperature), Body centered cubic (γ, At 795 ^oC), Hexagonal close packed (α, At -13 ^oC)
Lattice angles:  π/2, π/2, π/2
Lattice constant:  548.47, 548.47, 548.47 pm
Grid parameters:  5.490 Å
Space Group Name:   Fm_3m
Space Group Number:  225

Reactivity of Ytterbium

Electronegativity:  pauling scale: 1.1
Valence:  3
Electron affinity:  50 kJ/mol

Nuclear Properties of Ytterbium

Half Life:  Stable (Infinity)
Lifetime:  Stable (Infinity)
Quantum Number:  ¹S₀
Neutron cross section (Brans):  35
Neutron Mass Absorption:  0.0076
Isotopes:  166_Yb 168_Yb 169_Yb 170_Yb 171_Yb 172_Yb 173_Yb 174_Yb 175_Yb 176_Yb 177_Yb

 

Isotope	Abundance (%)	Atomic Mass g/mol	Half Life (t1/2)
166Yb	Syn	–	56.7 h
168Yb	0.13	167.934	Stable
169Yb	Syn	–	32.026 d
170Yb	3.023	169.935	Stable
171Yb	14.22	170.936	Stable
172Yb	21.75	171.936	Stable
173Yb	16.10	172.938	Stable
174Yb	31.90	173.938	Stable
175Yb	Syn	–	4.185 d
176Yb	12.89	175.943	Stable
177yb	Syn	–	1.911 h

Chemical Reactions

The metal tarnishes slowly in air and burns readily to form ytterbium (lll) oxide:
4 Yb + 3 O₂ → 2 Yb₂O₃
Reacts slowly with cold water and rapidly with hot water (form Ytterbium (lll) hydroxide and hydrogen gas):
2 Yb (s) + 6 H₂O (l) → 2 Yb(OH)₃ (aq) + 3 H₂ (g)
The metal reacts with all Halogens to form Ytterbium (lll) halides:
2 Yb (s) + 3 F₂ (g) → 2 YbF₃ (s)  [white]  (Ytterbium (lll) fluoride)
2 Yb (s) + 3 Cl₂ (g) → 2 YbCl₃ (s)  [white]  (Ytterbium (lll) chloride)
2 Yb (s) + 3 Br₂ (g) → 2 YbBr₃ (s)  [white]  (Ytterbium (lll) bromide)
2 Yb (s) + 3 I₂ (g)  →  2 YbI₃ (s)     [white]  (Ytterbium (lll) iodide)
Dissolves readily in dilute sulfuric acid to form Solutions containing Ytterbium (lll) ions (colourless):
2 Yb (s) + 3 H₂SO₄ (aq) + 18 H₂O (l) → 2 [Yb(H₂O)₉]³⁺ (aq) + 3 SO₄²⁻ (aq) + 3 H₂ (g)

Ytterbium History

Naming:  After Ytterby (Village in Sweden), where it was mined
Discovery:  Jean Charles Galissard de Marignac (1878)
First isolation:  Carl Auer von Welsbach (1906)

Ytterbium Uses

Ytterbium metal could be possible use in improving the grain refinement, strength, and other mechanical properties of stainless steel.

One isotope is have been used as a radiation source substitute for a portable X-ray machine where electricity is unavailable.
Use in memory devices and tuneable lasers.

It can also used as an industrial catalyst and because of low toxicity it is increasingly used to replace other catalysts which considered to be too toxic and polluting.
Some ytterbium alloys have been used in dentistry.

Biological role: It has Low toxicity

Abundance of Ytterbium

Ytterbium is found with other rare elements in several rare minerals such as monazite, Yttria, gadolinite, and xenotime.
It is most often recovered commercially from monazite sand (~0.03% ytterbium).
It can be extracted by ion exchange and solvent extraction.

Annual world wide production is around 50 tons per year.
2×10^-7% (In Universe)
1×10^-7% (In Sun)
1.8×10^-5% (In Meteorites)
0.00028% (In Earth crust)
8×10^-11% (In Oceans)

World’s Top 3 producers

1) China
2) Russia
3) Malaysia

World’s Top 3 Reserve holders

1) China
2) CIS Countries (inc. Russia)
3) USA

#ytterbium

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