Fluorine
🦷 In Your World
Fluorine is best known for its role in dental health. As fluoride, it's added to toothpaste and public water supplies to strengthen tooth enamel and prevent cavities. It's also a key component of Teflon (polytetrafluoroethylene), the non-stick coating on pans. Additionally, fluorine compounds are used as refrigerants and in the process of enriching uranium for nuclear power.
📖 The Discovery Story
Fluorine was notoriously difficult to isolate due to its extreme reactivity. For 74 years, many prominent chemists were injured or killed trying to separate it from its compounds. It was finally isolated in 1886 by French chemist Henri Moissan, who used electrolysis on a solution of potassium hydrogen difluoride in liquid hydrogen fluoride. This achievement earned him the Nobel Prize in Chemistry in 1906.
📊 Properties at a Glance
| Phase at STP | Gas |
| Melting Point | -219.67 °C / -363.41 °F |
| Boiling Point | -188.11 °C / -306.60 °F |
| Electron Configuration | [He] 2s²2p⁵ |
| Abundance in Earth's Crust | 0.0625% |
⚠️ Safety & Handling
Elemental fluorine (F₂) is one of the most dangerous substances known. It is an extremely reactive, corrosive, and toxic pale yellow gas. It can ignite most organic and inorganic substances on contact, often explosively. Handling it requires specialized equipment and extreme precautions. Fluoride compounds, while beneficial in tiny doses, can be toxic in larger amounts.