Lindsey Martinez

Lithium

Lithium, Na, is an Alkali Metal element, found in Group Ia of the periodic table.

• Atomic Number: 3
• Atomic Mass: 6.94

Lithium is a rare metallic element, but it is widely distributed. The principal ores are

• Lepidolite,
• Spodemene, Li2O.Al2O3.4SiO2, and
• Amblygonite, Li (ALF) PO4.

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Discovery

Arfvedson discovered lithium in 1817AD.

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Manufacture

Lithium metal is prepared by the electrolysis of fused lithium chloride.

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Properties

Lithium is

• a soft silvery-white lustrous metal, which can be easily cut with a knife,
• is highly reactive and tarnished readily in air due to the formation of a layer of lithium suboxide on the surface of the metal, and
• burns in air with the same brilliance of the magnesium flame.

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Reactions

The chemical properties of lithium resemble those of sodium, but its reactions are the least reactive for the alkali metals group. However, lithium is still highly reactive chemically, and must be stored under liquid paraffin, which contains no oxygen, to prevent oxidation.

Lithium burns readily in air forming a mixture of lithium suboxide.

 
 4 Li + O2 ==> 2 Li2O 

Lithium reacts readily with the halogens, forming the appropriate lithium salt.

2 Li + Cl2 ==> 2 LiCl

Lithium reacts violently with water, forming lithium hydroxide and liberating hydrogen.

2 Li + 2 H2O ==> 2 LiOH + H2(g)

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Uses

Lithium is used

• in medicine in the treatment of gout, as lithium urate is one of the few soluble salts of uric acid,
• in medicine in the treatment of some mental disorders,
• in the manufacture of lithium hydride batteries, which are used in portable computers and other electronic equipment, and
• as a reducing agent, usually in the form of lithium aluminum hydride, LiAlH4, in organic chemistry.

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Detection and Analysis

Lithium is detected in its compounds by the characteristic red coloration, which it imparts to flames when burned, and by spectroscopic methods.

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