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actinide series. The Columbia Encyclopedia, Sixth Edition. 2001-05 (323 words) |
 | It is known, however, that all members of the series resemble actinium and each other in their chemical properties and that they have a strong chemical resemblance to their homologs in the lanthanide series. |
| The actinides are reactive and assume a number of different valences in their compounds. |
| Elements with atomic numbers greater than 103 are not members of the actinide series; element 104 (rutherfordium) is the first of the transactinide elements. |
| Actinide Summary (779 words) |
| Other isotopes of the actinide elements that have found application are Pu-238 which is used to power heart pacemakers and space instrumentation, americium-241 which is used in smoke detectors, and californium-252 which is used in analytical techniques that involve production of isotopes of other elements by neutron-capture. |
| The actinide series encompasses the 15 chemical elements that lie between actinium and lawrencium on the periodic table with atomic numbers 89 - 103. |
| The actinides display less similarity in their chemical properties than the lanthanide series, for instance exhibiting a wider range of oxidation states, which initially led to confusion as to whether actinium, thorium and uranium should be considered d-block elements. |
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