Chemical characterization of bohrium (element 107)

Area of Science:

• Nuclear Chemistry
• Quantum Chemistry
• Periodic Trends

Background:

• Periodic table trends are generally dictated by electronic structure.
• Heavy elements exhibit relativistic effects due to high nuclear charges, altering electronic orbital energies and leading to deviations from expected chemical properties.
• These relativistic effects impact orbital contraction and screening, destabilizing outer d and f orbitals.

Purpose of the Study:

• To investigate the chemical properties of element 107 (bohrium, Bh) and assess the influence of relativistic effects.
• To determine if bohrium's chemical behavior aligns with periodic trends or exhibits deviations due to relativistic impacts.
• To provide experimental evidence for theoretical predictions regarding the chemistry of superheavy elements.

Main Methods:

• Synthesis and chemical separation of six atoms of element 107 (bohrium, Bh).
• Characterization of bohrium in the form of its oxychloride.
• Measurement of the volatility of bohrium oxychloride and comparison with lighter homologs.

Main Results:

• Bohrium oxychloride was successfully synthesized and characterized.
• The compound was found to be less volatile than the oxychlorides of lighter elements in Group VII.
• This experimental result aligns with relativistic calculations predicting bohrium's chemical behavior.

Conclusions:

• Bohrium (Bh) exhibits chemical properties consistent with its position in the periodic table, similar to element 106.
• Relativistic effects do not disrupt the expected periodicity for bohrium, contrary to observations for elements 104 and 105.
• The study confirms the predictive power of relativistic calculations for superheavy element chemistry.