▷ Electron configuration of Fluorine 【Electron Configuration】 2022 (2024)

The electron configuration of fluorine is [He] 2s22p5. Fluorine is the chemical element whose atomic number is 9 and its symbol is F. It is found in group 17 of the periodic table of elements, consisting of the halogens.

It is a gas at room temperature, made up of F2 diatomic molecules. It is pale green and of all the elements it is the most reactive and the most electronegative. It has the ability to form compounds with the rest, including even radon and xenon.

Fluoride, in its pure form, is extremely dangerous, causing severe chemical burns to the skin when it comes in contact with it. At low temperature and in the absence of light, this element reacts explosively with hydrogen. Under normal conditions, diatonic fluorine F2 is yellow, almost white, and highly oxidizing. When metals, waters, glass come into contact with a jet of this element, they burn in a brilliant flame. In nature, fluorine is found in combination.

Fluorine is used in the synthesis of uranium hexafluoride, which is the heaviest gas known to date and which is used to enrich uranium 235U. There are different salts of this element with different applications. A use of exceptional importance is also that certain fluorides are added to dental floss for the purpose of preventing cavities. In some countries it is commonly added to drinking water for this purpose, warning people, as is the case in the United States and Australia, while in others such as Germany it is banned.

Obtaining and Abundance of Fluoride

This element is the most abundant among all the halogens that exist on earth. Its concentration is 950 ppm. It is found at around 1.3 ppm in sea water. It is present in minerals of great importance such as fluorapatite, cryolite, among others.

It is obtained by electrolysis by mixing HF with KF.

Toxicity

The toxicity of fluorine is produced due to its affinity after its union with zinc and iodine. It is possible that excess fluoride can cause bone malformations, as well as brittleness and hardening of the bones, which causes them to break more easily.

This chemical element has the ability to affect health, bones, the learning system, the hormonal system, as well as the productivity of people and their energy.

According to the records of history, during the first experiments in refining the uranium used to manufacture the atomic bomb, it was understood that the toxicity recorded during the process came from fluorine.

precautions

Fluoride and HF require careful handling as they pose a great hazard to skin and eyes if in contact. Anhydrous HF boils at 19°C, and its vapors are very irritating and poisonous, in fact, those who discovered it died from its action. It is important to know that it cannot be mixed with alkaline metals, let alone with ammonia.

It is also important to know that fluorine ions and fluorine are highly toxic. The latter has a very characteristic and unpleasant pungent odor, with concentrations reaching 0.02 ppm, which is below the recommended occupational exposure limits.

history of fluoride

Although fluorine is an element of high danger and reactivity, it has only been isolated in relatively recent times, since in its pure state it is very dangerous and requires extreme caution.

In the year 1500, in Germany, a fluorine compound was known for the first time, called fluorite, represented by the symbol CaF2, but at that time it was called fluores, then it became fluorine.

This mineral melts easily and is very rare. It was used to melt others more easily when mixed with fluorines. It was discovered in 1521 by a mineralogist named Georgius Agricola.