Element |
Atomic Number |
Use(s) |
Symbol |
Radioactive?
|
Beryllium |
4 |
strong but lightweight material, gyroscopes, accelerometers, missiles, emeralds |
Be |
No
|
Magnesium |
12 |
Most used metal after steel and aluminum, present in chlorophyll, alloys, cars, planes, electronics, batteries, asbestos |
Mg |
No
|
Calcium |
20 |
bones, cement, limestone, gypsum, antacids, plays an important role in the carbon cycle |
Ca |
No
|
Strontium |
38 |
red fireworks, glass in old-fashioned CRT televisions |
Sr |
No
|
Barium |
56 |
drilling fluid, rat poison, medical imaging |
Ba |
No
|
Radium |
88 |
Being dangerously radioactive, decays to even-deadlier radon, was a fad in the early 20th century |
Ra |
Yes
|
Element |
Atomic Number |
Use(s) |
Symbol |
Radioactive?
|
Scandium |
21 |
When you need tools, bicycles, baseball bats |
Sc |
No
|
Titanium |
22 |
strong but lightweight, artificial bones, aircraft parts, non-toxic white paint |
Ti |
No
|
Vanadium |
23 |
In tools; shock-, vibration-, and neutron-resistant alloys; catalyst for sulfuric acid |
V |
No
|
Chromium |
24 |
Chrome plating, stainless steel, rubies, tanning leather |
Cr |
No
|
Manganese |
25 |
Alloying with steel and aluminum, certain enzymes |
Mn |
No
|
Iron |
26 |
ferromagnetic, Earth's magnetic field, (electro)magnets, steel, ink, good conductor of heat and electricity, part of hemoglobin, end of the line in stellar nucleosynthesis |
Fe |
No
|
Cobalt |
27 |
ferromagnetic, coloring glass blue, jet turbines |
Co |
No
|
Nickel |
28 |
in currency, certain kinds of stainless steel, corrosion-resistant |
Ni |
No
|
Copper |
29 |
coins, good conductor of heat and electricity, industrial equipment; The first metal humans smelted |
Cu |
No
|
Zinc |
30 |
In currency, brass, luminous paint, plating (galvanizing steel) |
Zn |
No
|
Yttrium |
39 |
Forms YBCO, microwave filters in radars |
Y |
No
|
Zirconium |
40 |
Fake diamonds, tubing in nuclear reactors, ultra-strong ceramics |
Zr |
No
|
Niobium |
41 |
Piercings, NMR equipment, destroying Congo's economy (with tantalum) |
Nb |
No
|
Molybdenum |
42 |
Alloys, maglevs, generating technetium |
Mo |
No
|
Technetium |
43 |
Nuclear medicine |
Tc |
Yes
|
Ruthenium |
44 |
Being a metal no one's heard of, chip resistors |
Ru |
No
|
Rhodium |
45 |
Plating cheap jewelry, catalytic converters in cars, having a very unstable market value |
Rh |
No
|
Palladium |
46 |
Imitating silver[notes 1], catalytic converters, ceramic capacitors |
Pd |
No
|
Silver |
47 |
Mirrors, great conductor of heat and electricity, coins, anti-bacterial fabrics |
Ag |
No
|
Cadmium |
48 |
Yellow, carcinogenic pigment, fission-controlling rods |
Cd |
No
|
Hafnium |
72 |
Plasma torches, control rods in nuclear submarines |
Hf |
No
|
Tantalum |
73 |
Capacitors,[notes 2] surgical implants, turbine blades, destroying Congo's economy (with niobium) |
Ta |
No
|
Tungsten |
74 |
Incredibly high melting point, mining drills, lightbulbs/globes, armor-piecing shells |
W |
No
|
Rhenium |
75 |
Alloys, thin wires, rarest stable element |
Re |
No
|
Osmium |
76 |
Alloying with iridium, fountain pens; most dense metal |
Os |
No
|
Iridium |
77 |
Spark plug electrodes, common in meteorites; metal most resistant to corrosion |
Ir |
No
|
Platinum |
78 |
Jewelry, optical fibres, hard disks, being really expensive catalysis |
Pt |
No
|
Gold |
79 |
Jewelry, high performance electrical contacts, highly ductile and malleable, scamming elderly people, money!!! |
Au |
No
|
Mercury |
80 |
First planet from the sun Poison, thermometers, vermillion pigment, turning milliners insane, freaks anti-vaxxers out |
Hg |
No
|
Rutherfordium |
104 |
None |
Rf |
Yes
|
Dubnium |
105 |
None |
Db |
Yes
|
Seaborgium |
106 |
None |
Sg |
Yes
|
Bohrium |
107 |
None |
Bh |
Yes
|
Hassium |
108 |
None |
Hs |
Yes
|
Meitnerium |
109 |
None |
Mt |
Yes
|
Darmstadtium |
110 |
None |
Ds |
Yes
|
Roentgenium |
111 |
None |
Rg |
Yes
|
Copernicium |
112 |
None |
Cn |
Yes
|
Element |
Atomic Number |
Use(s) |
Symbol |
Radioactive?
|
Aluminum |
13 |
Airplanes, foil, beverage cans, thermite, coins that aren't worth their weight in zinc |
Al |
No
|
Gallium |
31 |
LEDs, having a low melting point |
Ga |
No
|
Indium |
49 |
Thermometers, LCDs, quantum computers |
In |
No
|
Tin |
50 |
Many alloys, including bronze, pewter and solder |
Sn |
No
|
Thallium |
81 |
Poison, low temperature thermometers |
Tl |
No
|
Lead |
82 |
Pipes, paint, gasoline additive Poison, bullets, specialized glass, vehicle batteries, radiation shielding |
Pb |
No
|
Bismuth |
83 |
Pepto-Bismol, fire extinguishers, beautiful crystals |
Bi |
Yes(technically)[notes 4]The most common isotope is much less radioactive than... YOU!
|
Polonium |
84 |
Assassinating ex-FSB agents , antistatic devices |
Po |
Yes
|
Nihonium |
113 |
None |
Nh |
Yes
|
Flerovium |
114 |
None |
Fv |
Yes
|
Moscovium |
115 |
UFOs None |
Mc |
Yes
|
Livermorium |
116 |
None |
Lv |
Yes
|
Element |
Atomic Number |
Use(s) |
Symbol |
Radioactive?
|
Lanthanum |
57 |
Flints, studio lighting, anodes of batteries used in hybrid cars |
La |
No
|
Cerium |
58 |
Lighter flints, floodlights, non-toxic red pigment |
Ce |
No
|
Praseodymium |
59 |
Coloring glass yellow, aircraft engines |
Pr |
No
|
Neodymium |
60 |
Very strong magnets, laser pointers |
Nd |
No
|
Promethium |
61 |
Atomic batteries, source of x-rays |
Pm |
Yes
|
Samarium |
62 |
Powerful magnets used in electronics, infrared-absorbing glass |
Sm |
No
|
Europium |
63 |
Red and blue phosphors in CRT televisions, anti-counterfeit measure in Euro banknotes |
Eu |
No
|
Gadolinium |
64 |
Increasing contrast in MRI scans, heat- and oxidation-resistant alloys |
Gd |
No
|
Terbium |
65 |
Fluorescent lights, solid-state devices, loudspeakers |
Tb |
No
|
Dysprosium |
66 |
Nuclear control rods, halide discharge lamps |
Dy |
No
|
Holmium |
67 |
High strength magnets, nuclear reactors |
Ho |
No
|
Erbium |
68 |
Photographic filters, pink glass, broadband signals |
Er |
No
|
Thulium |
69 |
Lasers, x-ray machines |
Tm |
No
|
Ytterbium |
70 |
Strengthening stainless steel, memory devices |
Yb |
No
|
Lutetium |
71 |
Lights in LEDs, refining oil |
Lu |
No
|
Element |
Atomic Number |
Use(s) |
Symbol |
Radioactive?
|
Actinium |
89 |
Radio-immunotherapy |
Ac |
Yes
|
Thorium |
90 |
Lantern mantles, high-quality lenses, alloys with magnesium |
Th |
Yes
|
Protactinium |
91 |
None |
Pa |
Yes
|
Uranium |
92 |
Nuclear power, radiometric dating, yellow ceramic glaze |
U |
Yes
|
Neptunium |
93 |
Neutron detection equipment |
Np |
Yes
|
Plutonium |
94 |
Old pacemakers, some nuclear bombs |
Pu |
Yes
|
Americium |
95 |
Smoke detectors, source of gamma rays |
Am |
Yes
|
Curium |
96 |
Powering equipment used on space missions |
Cm |
Yes
|
Berkelium |
97 |
None |
Bk |
Yes
|
Californium |
98 |
Portable metal detectors, finding underground water and petroleum, strong neutron emitter |
Cf |
Yes
|
Einsteinium |
99 |
Found in debris created by hydrogen bombs |
Es |
Yes
|
Fermium |
100 |
Experimental radiotherapy, heaviest element that can be created in a nuclear reactor |
Fm |
Yes
|
Mendelevium |
101 |
None |
Md |
Yes
|
Nobelium |
102 |
None |
No |
Yes
|
Lawrencium |
103 |
None |
Lr |
Yes
|