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Ununoctium, now named “oganesson”, is a radioactive noble gas and transactinide element with atomic number 118. It is highly reactive and difficult to study due to its extreme instability and short lifespan. It was synthesized by Russian and American scientists in 2006 and is of interest to researchers studying transactinides and noble gases. Its commercial uses are unlikely due to the difficulty and cost of synthesizing it.
Editor’s note: Ununoctium was formally named “oganesson”, after synthetic element pioneer Yuri Oganessian, in November 2016.
Ununoctium is a
radioactive
chemical element classified in
noble gas
on the periodic table of elements. This element is considered a transactinide, meaning it shares the traits of radioactivity and extreme instability with a group of extremely heavy elements. It is also the last element in the seventh period at the bottom of the periodic table, which includes other transactinide elements.
Little is known about the chemical properties of ununoctium, which is assumed to be a colorless gas. This element must be produced synthetically to be studied and exists for only milliseconds at a time, making it difficult to identify distinct chemical properties. Ununoctium appears to be highly reactive, although only a few atoms of the element have ever been generated, detected, and observed, making determinations about the element somewhat difficult. Ununoctium has atomic number 118, and is identified with the symbol Uuo on the periodic table of elements.
The discovery of this element will probably go to researchers from the Russian Joint Institute for Nuclear Research and American scientists from the Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory. Russian and American scientists worked together in Dubna, Russia, to synthesize this element by colliding californium and calcium in a linear accelerator. They announced the discovery of element 118 in 2006; the International Union of Pure and Applied Chemistry (IUPAC) must confirm the discovery before it can be officially accredited.
“Ununoctium” is a temporary systematic element name. Systematic element names are derived from the atomic numbers of their elements, ensuring that scientists use uniform terms to refer to elements until their official names can be determined. Typically, the name of an element is proposed by the laboratory to which the discovery credit is given; “moskovium” was proposed as a name for ununoctium by the research team.
Given that only a few atoms of this element can be synthesized at a time, commercial uses for ununoctium are unlikely to be developed. Researchers use it to learn more about transactinides and noble gases; ununoctium may be the heaviest gas in the periodic table, making it a topic of intense interest. The cost and time required to synthesize ununoctium make research on this element quite difficult; fortunately scientists don’t have to worry immensely about the potential radiation hazard, as more than a few atoms are needed for serious radiation hazards.
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