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Samarium is a rare metallic element with limited consumer use. It was discovered in 1853 and isolated in 1879. It is used in lasers, glass, nuclear reactors, ceramics, magnets, and metal alloys. Samarium is assumed to be moderately toxic and should be handled with care.
Samarium is a metallic chemical element classified in the rare earth metals. The uses for the metal were limited until the 1950s, when a method was developed to isolate it, thus making pure samarium available for commercial use. This element is relatively rare in nature and is typically found in mineral compounds that must be treated to extract the minerals trapped within. Average people rarely interact with this substance, as it is not commonly used in consumer goods.
Pure samarium is light gray, with two allotropic forms, which means that the crystal structure of the pure element can change, depending on various circumstances. It also has a number of isotopes and several oxides of the element also have commercial value. The pure element oxidizes easily, even in media such as mineral oil, and can ignite spontaneously under the right temperature conditions. The atomic number of this substance is 62, and it is identified with the symbol Sm on the periodic table of elements.
The element’s existence was first discovered in 1853 by Jean Charles Galissard de Marignac, when it was found in the Ural Mountains, although it was not isolated in pure form until 1879, by Paul Emile Lecoq de Boisbaudran. A mine in South Carolina also produced samarium-containing ores and ores during this time. It is named after a former head of the Russian Mining Engineers Corps, Vasili Samarski-Bykhovets. This makes this item the first to be named for a living person, a trend that would be followed by other items in the future.
Industrially, samarium is used as a dopant in some lasers and also appears as an additive in glass designed to absorb infrared energy. It is also used in nuclear reactors, some ceramics and lighting. A radioactive isotope of samarium is used medicinally, and the element is also used in magnets and some metal alloys. It is often mixed with cobalt for a strong magnetic alloy.
Few studies have been done on the safety of samarium. It is assumed to be moderately toxic, like other substances of the family of elements to which it belongs. As a general rule when handling metallic substances, people should avoid breathing vapors generated by heating or fine dust from the metal if it is cut or ground. Some isotopes are also clearly toxic and should be handled with care.
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