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48Cd112.414
Cadmium
Transition MetalCadmium is a chemical element with symbol Cd and atomic number 48. This soft, bluish-white metal is chemically similar to the two other stable metals in group 12, zinc and mercury. Like zinc, it prefers oxidation state +2 in most of its compounds and like mercury it shows a low melting point compared to transition metals.
Phase: SolidAppearance: silvery bluish-gray metallic
2, 8, 18, 18, 2
Physical Properties
Atomic Mass112.4144 u
Density8.65 g/cm³
Melting Point594.22 K
Boiling Point1040 K
Molar Heat26.02 J/(mol·K)
Period5
PhaseSolid
Chemical Properties
Electron Configuration1s2 2s2 2p6 3s2 3p6 4s2 3d10 4p6 5s2 4d10
Semantic Config[Kr] 4d10 5s2
Shells2, 8, 18, 18, 2
Electron Affinity-68 kJ/mol
Electronegativity1.69
Ionization Energies
IE1: 867.8 kJ/molIE2: 1631.4 kJ/molIE3: 3616 kJ/mol
Discovery