Thorium dioxide
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Names | |
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IUPAC names
Thorium dioxide
Thorium(IV) oxide | |
Other names
Thoria
Thorium anhydride | |
Identifiers | |
3D model (
JSmol ) |
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ChEBI | |
ChemSpider | |
ECHA InfoCard
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100.013.842 |
EC Number |
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141638 | |
PubChem CID
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UNII | |
UN number | 2910 2909 |
CompTox Dashboard (EPA)
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Properties | |
ThO2 | |
Molar mass | 264.037 g/mol[1] |
Appearance | white solid[1] |
Odor | odorless |
Density | 10.0 g/cm3[1] |
Melting point | 3,350 °C (6,060 °F; 3,620 K)[1] |
Boiling point | 4,400 °C (7,950 °F; 4,670 K)[1] |
insoluble[1] | |
Solubility | insoluble in alkali slightly soluble in acid[1] |
−16.0·10−6 cm3/mol[2] | |
Refractive index (nD)
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2.200 (thorianite)[3] |
Structure | |
Fluorite (cubic), cF12 | |
Fm3m, No. 225 | |
a = 559.74(6) pm[4]
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Tetrahedral (O2−); cubic (ThIV) | |
Thermochemistry | |
Std molar
entropy (S⦵298) |
65.2(2) J K−1 mol−1 |
Std enthalpy of (ΔfH⦵298)formation |
−1226(4) kJ/mol |
Hazards | |
GHS labelling:[5] | |
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Danger | |
H301, H311, H331, H350, H373 | |
P203, P260, P261, P264, P270, P271, P280, P301+P316, P302+P352, P304+P340, P316, P318, P319, P321, P330, P361+P364, P403+P233, P405, P501 | |
NFPA 704 (fire diamond) | |
Flash point | Non-flammable |
Lethal dose or concentration (LD, LC): | |
LD50 (median dose)
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400 mg/kg |
Related compounds | |
Other anions
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Thorium(IV) sulfide |
Other cations
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Hafnium(IV) oxide Cerium(IV) oxide |
Related compounds
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Uranium(IV) oxide
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Except where otherwise noted, data are given for materials in their standard state (at 25 °C [77 °F], 100 kPa).
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Thorium dioxide (ThO2), also called thorium(IV) oxide, is a crystalline solid, often white or yellow in colour. Also known as thoria, it is mainly a by-product of lanthanide and uranium production.[4] Thorianite is the name of the mineralogical form of thorium dioxide. It is moderately rare and crystallizes in an isometric system. The melting point of thorium oxide is 3300 °C – the highest of all known oxides. Only a few elements (including tungsten and carbon) and a few compounds (including tantalum carbide) have higher melting points.[6] All thorium compounds, including the dioxide, are radioactive because there are no stable isotopes of thorium.
Structure and reactions
Thoria exists as two polymorphs. One has a
. A tetragonal form of thoria is also known.Thorium dioxide is more stable than
Applications
Nuclear fuels
Thorium dioxide (thoria) can be used in nuclear reactors as ceramic fuel pellets, typically contained in nuclear fuel rods clad with zirconium alloys. Thorium is not fissile (but is "fertile", breeding fissile uranium-233 under neutron bombardment); hence, it must be used as a nuclear reactor fuel in conjunction with fissile isotopes of either uranium or plutonium. This can be achieved by blending thorium with uranium or plutonium, or using it in its pure form in conjunction with separate fuel rods containing uranium or plutonium. Thorium dioxide offers advantages over conventional uranium dioxide fuel pellets, because of its higher thermal conductivity (lower operating temperature), considerably higher melting point, and chemical stability (does not oxidize in the presence of water/oxygen, unlike uranium dioxide).
Thorium dioxide can be turned into a nuclear fuel by breeding it into uranium-233 (see below and refer to the article on thorium for more information on this). The high thermal stability of thorium dioxide allows applications in flame spraying and high-temperature ceramics.
Alloys
Thorium dioxide is used as a stabilizer in
Thoria-dispersed nickel finds its applications in various high-temperature operations like combustion engines because it is a good creep-resistant material. It can also be used for hydrogen trapping.[9][10][11][12][13]
Catalysis
Thorium dioxide has almost no value as a commercial catalyst, but such applications have been well investigated. It is a catalyst in the
Radiocontrast agents
Thorium dioxide was the primary ingredient in Thorotrast, a once-common radiocontrast agent used for cerebral angiography, however, it causes a rare form of cancer (hepatic angiosarcoma) many years after administration.[15] This use was replaced with injectable iodine or ingestable barium sulfate suspension as standard X-ray contrast agents.
Lamp mantles
Another major use in the past was in
Glass manufacture
![Three lenses from yellowed to transparent left-to-right](http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/4/48/Yellowing_of_thorium_lenses.jpg/220px-Yellowing_of_thorium_lenses.jpg)
When added to
References
- ^ a b c d e f g Haynes, p. 4.95
- ^ Haynes, p. 4.136
- ^ Haynes, p. 4.144
- ^ .
- ^ "Thorium dioxide". pubchem.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov.
- ISBN 978-0-19-850340-8.
- .
- .
- ISBN 978-0-471-43623-2.
- S2CID 137105492.
- S2CID 95399863.
- S2CID 92103123.
- S2CID 96573790.
- ^ Thorotrast. radiopaedia.org
- ISBN 978-0-08-022057-4.
- ISBN 978-0-8493-0485-9.
- ^ Oak Ridge Associated Universities (1999). "Thoriated Camera Lens (ca. 1970s)". Retrieved 29 September 2017.
- ISBN 978-3-527-31097-5.
Cited sources
- Haynes, William M., ed. (2011). ISBN 978-1439855119.