yttrium

a silvery metallic element occurring in monazite and gadolinite and used in various alloys, in lasers, and as a catalyst. Symbol: Y; atomic no.: 39; atomic wt.: 88.90585; valency: 3; relative density: 4.469; melting pt.: 1522?C; boiling pt.: 3338?C

Collins Discovery Encyclopedia, 1st edition © HarperCollins Publishers 2005

yttrium

[′i·trē·əm]

(chemistry)

A rare-earth metal, symbol Y, atomic number 39, atomic weight 88.9059; dark-gray, flammable (as powder), soluble in dilute acids and potassium hydroxide solution, and decomposes in water; melts at 1500°C, boils at 2927°C; used in alloys and nuclear technology and as a metal deoxidizer.

The following article is from The Great Soviet Encyclopedia (1979). It might be outdated or ideologically biased.

Yttrium

a chemical element in Group III of the Mendeleev periodic system. Atomic number, 39; atomic weight, 88.9059. One stable isotope, ⁸⁹Y, exists in nature.

Yttrium, scandium, lanthanum, and lanthanides make up the rare earths, a group of elements that are very similar in chemical properties, occurrence in nature, and history of discovery.

Yttrium is a light metal, with a density of 4.472 g/cm³. Theisotope 89Y has a small capture cross section for thermal neu-trons (1.38 ×a 10^-28m², or 1.38 barns), so that the element can be used as a construction material in nuclear engineering. The high durability of relatively light yttrium-aluminum alloys makes them highly suitable for aircraft construction. Yttrium ferrites can be prepared from yttrium oxide, Y_₂00_₃ (of very highpurity); these ferrites are used in radio electronics, hearing aids, and computer memory cells.

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References in periodicals archive

Rare earth elements and Yttrium in carbonate reef deposits containing hydrocarbons of oil and gas.

Petroleum fluids and their role in lanthanide isomorphism

The XRD patterns of both undoped and yttrium doped ZnS showed three main diffraction peaks indexed at (111), (220), and (311) which correspond to the planes of cubic zinc blende structure, respectively.

Studies on characterization, optical absorption, and photoluminescence of yttrium doped ZnS nanoparticles

The experiments showed that yttrium in trace amounts - less than 1 microgram per milliliter of water - may disrupt normal calcium signalling in neurons and other electrically active cells, an amount far lower than what had been thought to be safe levels.

Metal catalysts in carbon nanotubes block critical signalling pathway in neurons

From chosen by us alloying elements [1], zirconium completely and yttrium partially met these requirements.

Composite materials on base of copper and molybdenum, condensed from vapor phase, for electric contacts. Structure, properties, technology: Part 2. Fundamentals of electron beam technology for producing materials for electric contacts

In the past, tunable band-stop filters have used dielectric ferromagnets such as Yttrium Iron Garnet (YIG).

Ferromagnetic resonance in metal films and its application in microwave devices

Bokan Mountain, Alaska's only known source of uranium, is rich in niobium, yttrium, thorium, zirconium and hafnium.

Alaska's Other Minerals

Argon lasers can also lower pressure inside the eye to treat open-angle glaucoma, while YAG (Yttrium Aluminum Garnet) lasers (photodisruptive lasers) can create a new drainage system in narrow-angle glaucoma or can remove membranes after cataract surgery.

The eyes have it

In the next few years, he isolated four other elements from the rare earth minerals: yttrium, erbium, terbium, and didymium.

Lanthanum