INORGANIC CHEMISTRY
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    mercury (Hg)

    mercury
    A silvery-white, poisonous, metallic element, which is liquid at room temperatures. (Only three other elements, cesium, gallium, and bromine are liquid at temperatures at or close to ordinary room temperatures.) Mercury is used in thermometers, barometers, and manometers (instruments for measuring the pressure of gases and liquids); in pumps and automatic electric switches; in vapor lamps; in batteries; and for extracting gold, silver, and platinum from their ores. Various compounds of mercury are used in medicine and also in agriculture to make fungicides.

    Even at ordinary room temperature, mercury evaporates and the fumes are poisonous. It dissolves many metals, including sodium, potassium, tin, copper, gold, and silver) forming alloys called amalgams. As it does not amalgamate with iron, mercury is often stored in iron containers.

    Mercury has been known since ancient times and is named after the planet Mercury and after Mercurius, the Roman messenger of the Gods. Its chemical symbol (Hg) comes from the Latin hydragyrum, "liquid silver", which has also given rise to the name "quicksilver".


    atomic number 80
    relative atomic mass 200.59
    relative density 13.546 (at 20°C)
    melting point -38.87 °C (-37.97 °F)
    boiling point 356.6 °C (673.8 °F)


    Source and production

    Most of the world's mercury is obtained from the bright red mineral cinnabar (mercury sulfide) and is chiefly found in rocks that are associated with volcanic action. In recent years, world production has fallen as reserves have become depleted. Italy, Slovenia, the United States and Mexico, which were formerly leading producers have been largely mined out. Most mercury production today takes place in Spain, Kyrgyzstan, China, and Tajikistan.

    Mercury is extracted from cinnabar by a fairly simple process. The mineral is heated to a high temperature in a furnace and a current of air is then let in. The oxygen of the air combines with the cinnabar (HgS), forming sulfur dioxide and releasing mercury as a vapor. Expressed in chemical symbols the reaction is:
    HgS + O2 Hg + SO2.

    The vapor is cooled and metallic mercury condenses out.


    Mercury poisoning

    If liquid mercury is swallowed, absorption via the intestines is only slight. Swallowing a small amount (e.g. from a broken thermometer) is therefore unlikely to lead to poisoning. However, liquid mercury is highly volatile and gives off a vapor that is readily absorbed into the body via the lungs. Inhalation of mercury vapor – usually as a result of industrial exposure – is the most common cause of poisoning.

    Mercury poisoning may be treated by chelating agents (such as penicillamine) to help the body excrete it at a faster rate. In some cases, purification of the blood by hemodialysis may also be performed, especially if the kidneys have been damaged.


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       • INORGANIC CHEMISTRY



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