What properties does mercury have? What uses does it have?
what can it do? why is it poisionous?
Answer:
Well, Mercury is 13.6 times denser than water which is the reason why they use that instead of water's maximum level of 3 feet!
Mercury occurs in deposits throughout the world and it is harmless in an insoluble form, such as mercuric sulfide, but it is poisonous in soluble forms such as mercuric chloride or methylmercury.Mercury is still used in some cultures for folk medicine and ceremonial purposes which may involve ingestion, injection, or the sprinkling of elemental mercury around the home. It must be emphasized that the former two procedures, especially, are extremely hazardous and the latter is nearly as so because mercury spreads easily and is therefore ingested. Mercury should be handled with care. Containers of mercury should be securely sealed to avoid spills and evaporation as mercury can be inhaled and absorbed through the skin. Heating of mercury, or compounds of mercury that may decompose when heated, should always be carried out with adequate ventilation in order to avoid exposure to mercury vapor. Mercury should not be displayed in open containers. Most compounds of mercury are toxic, especially its organic compounds.The element MERCURY (Hg) is a metal which is liquid at room temperature! Mercury is a bit like LEAD but it's liquid. You can hold it in your hand. (Not recommended - it's toxic!) Heavy (density 13.6), in fact so heavy that objects such as bricks, cannonballs, and lumps of lead or iron will FLOAT in Mercury. Gold doesn't float in mercury - it behaves more like sugar in tea! Mercury does NOT stick to magnets, so if it gets into your carpets or under your floorboards it will be a long-term problem. Mercury vapour makes nice bright lights but is not for breathing. The reason Mercury is a liquid at room temperature has to do with the fact that Mercury is weakly bonded to itself. The valence electrons do not share easily. Also, Althouh Mercury is a liquid at room temperature, It is NOT WET. :)
Well yes, it's rather poisonous.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/mercury_(el...
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/mercury_%28...
Here's some reading.
Hope that helps some.
It's a metal that is liquid at room temperature.
It reacts with a variety of biological molecules, hence its toxicity.
It conducts electricity, and in the past was used to make switches that didn't make a sound when you switched them.
*...Mercury, also called 'Quicksilver', is metal and liquid at normal Atmospheric Pressure and Temperature.
*...Its Chemical Symbol is 'Hg' from the Latin "Hydrargyrum"..(Liquid Silver).
*...Mercury is a Heavy Liquid Metal having a Density 13.6 times that of water. (13,600kg/m³...Water is 1,000kg/m³).
*...It is still used today (but on a lesser scale), in thermometers and, as it is metal and is a good conductor of electricity, is used in electrical switches in thermostats, barometers ...etc.
*...Its Atomic Mass is 201, Atomic Number is 80 it has 121 Neutrons. It also has 80 Electrons in 6 Energy shells, as follows: -
*...K = 2; L = 8; M = 18; N = 32; O = 18 and P = 2.
*...Mercuric compounds include halides (salts) like Mercuric Chloride or Mercuric Flouride, normally a white crystalline salt soluble in water it is also called 'corrosive sublimate' and is extremely poisonous.
It can be used as a germicide.
It can destroy the kidneys.
If combined with Albumen, Mercuric ions form an insoluble white solid that has an effect like boiling an egg, turning the clear, liquid albumen into a solid egg-white.
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