Discovered | Name | Characteristics | Prepared | Reactions | Uses

Europium metal is in the lanthanide series of elements, which stretches from lanthanum (La) through lutetium (Lu). Like many of these elements, it has common oxidation numbers of +2 and +3.

The element was discovered by Demarçay in 1896. He was examining a sample of from which samarium had only recently been isolated and suspected the existence of a new element. Only after a long and difficult separation was he able to isolate an impure sample of a new element, which he decided to call europium.

Eu, with an odd atomic number, is one of the least abundant of the lanthanides in earth's crust. Nonetheless, it is 20 times more abundant than silver and gold combined.

Europium resembles lead in that it is soft and shiny, although its density (5.243 g/cc) is lower than that of lead (11.35 g/cc). In the solid state, the metal has a body-centered cubic structure.

Eu metal is obtained by reducing the oxide with powdered lanthanum in a tantalum crucible at high temperature.

Eu2O3(s) + 2 La(s) 2 Eu(s) + La2O3(s)

Eu is the most reactive of the lanthanides. Its reaction with water is similar to that of calcium.

3 Eu(s) + 6 H2O(liq) 2 Eu(OH)3(aq) + 3 H2(g)

and it forms an oxide, Eu2O3, on reaction with air.

It spite of its low abundance, europium oxide is widely used as a red phosphor in color television tubes.