The following sections of this BookRags Literature Study Guide is offprint from Gale's For Students Series: Presenting Analysis, Context, and Criticism on Commonly Studied Works: Introduction, Author Biography, Plot Summary, Characters, Themes, Style, Historical Context, Critical Overview, Criticism and Critical Essays, Media Adaptations, Topics for Further Study, Compare & Contrast, What Do I Read Next?, For Further Study, and Sources.
(c)1998-2002; (c)2002 by Gale. Gale is an imprint of The Gale Group, Inc., a division of Thomson Learning, Inc. Gale and Design and Thomson Learning are trademarks used herein under license.
The following sections, if they exist, are offprint from Beacham's Encyclopedia of Popular Fiction: "Social Concerns", "Thematic Overview", "Techniques", "Literary Precedents", "Key Questions", "Related Titles", "Adaptations", "Related Web Sites". (c)1994-2005, by Walton Beacham.
The following sections, if they exist, are offprint from Beacham's Guide to Literature for Young Adults: "About the Author", "Overview", "Setting", "Literary Qualities", "Social Sensitivity", "Topics for Discussion", "Ideas for Reports and Papers". (c)1994-2005, by Walton Beacham.
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Americium is a transuranium element, one of the elements that lies beyond uranium in the periodic table. Its atomic number is 92, and the mass of its most stable isotope is 243. Its chemical symbol is Am.
Americium does not occur in nature. It is produced artificially in nuclear reactors. The first step in the preparation of americium is the manufacture of plutonium by the bombardment of uranium-238 with neutrons. Plutonium then decays to produce americium.
Americium is a silvery white metal with a melting point of about 2,150°F (1,175°C) and a density of about 13.6 grams per cubic centimeter. All of its isotopes are radioactive. The half life of the most stable isotope, americium-243, is 7,380 years.
Americium was discovered as a byproduct of military research during World War II. At that time, the U.S. government maintained a major research center at the University of Chicago for the purpose of developing the materials and technology needed to build the first fusion ("atomic") bomb.
During this research, a team of scientists from the University of California discovered a new element. The team consisted of Glenn Seaborg, Albert Ghiorso, Ralph A. James, and Leon O. Morgan (1919-). The team decided to name the element americium. They chose the name for two reasons. First, it was intended to honor the United States of America, where it was discovered. Second, its location in the periodic table places it just below element 63, europium, which was named for the continent of Europe.
The only important commercial use of americum is in smoke detectors. In a smoke detector, americium gives off a weak form of radiation that travels across the smoke detector and connects with an electrical circuit. As long as the smoke detector is empty, there is no break in the connection. If smoke enters the detector, however, the radiation can no longer travel across the detector. The connection is broken and a signal is set off. The signal may be a flashing light, a buzzer, or some other sound.