Bismuth 83 Bi 208.98040(1)   Switch element to... actinium aluminium aluminum americium antimony argon arsenic astatine barium berkelium beryllium bismuth bohrium boron bromine cadmium caesium calcium californium carbon cerium cesium chlorine chromium cobalt copper curium darmstadtium dubnium dysprosium einsteinium erbium europium fermium fluorine francium gadolinium gallium germanium gold hafnium hassium helium holmium hydrogen indium iodine iridium iron krypton lanthanum lawrencium lead lithium lutetium magnesium manganese meitnerium mendelevium mercury molybdenum neodymium neon neptunium nickel niobium nitrogen nobelium osmium oxygen palladium phosphorus platinum plutonium polonium potassium praseodymium promethium protactinium radium radon rhenium rhodium roentgenium rubidium ruthenium rutherfordium samarium scandium seaborgium selenium silicon silver sodium strontium sulfur sulphur tantalum technetium tellurium terbium thallium thorium thulium tin titanium tungsten ununbium ununhexium ununoctium ununpentium ununquadium ununtrium uranium vanadium xenon ytterbium yttrium zinc zirconium Go adjacent... Sn Sb Te Pb Bi Po Uuq Uup Uuh

The essentials

Description 

Here is a brief description of bismuth.

• Standard state: solid at 298 K
• Colour: lustrous reddish white
• Classification: Metallic
• Availability:

  bismuth is available in several forms including ingots, powder, pieces, shot, and pellets. Small and large samples of bismuth pellets (and bismuth alloy in ingot form) can be purchased from Advent Research Materials via their web catalogue.

Bismuth is a white, crystalline, brittle metal with a pinkish tinge. Bismuth is the most diamagnetic of all metals, and the thermal conductivity is lower than any metal, except mercury. It has a high electrical resistance, and has the highest Hall effect of any metal (that is, the greatest increase in electrical resistance when placed in a magnetic field).

Nearing Zero cartoon included by kind permission of Nick Kim.

Isolation

It is not normally necessary to make bismuth in the laboratory as it is available commercially. Bismuth is found in nature largely as bismite (Bi₂O₃), bismuthinite (Bi₂S₃), and bismutite [(BiO)₂CO₃]. However it is generally made as a byproduct of copper, lead,tin, silver, gold, and zinc plants. The final step involves a reduction of the oxide by charcoal.

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