Strontium
🎆 In Your World
Strontium is most famous for the brilliant, crimson-red color its salts produce when burned. This makes it an essential ingredient for creating red fireworks and road flares. Chemically, it is very similar to calcium, so it is sometimes used in medical research to study bone metabolism. The radioactive isotope Strontium-90 is a dangerous component of nuclear fallout.
📖 The Discovery Story
In 1790, chemists Adair Crawford and William Cruickshank analyzed a mineral from a lead mine in the Scottish village of Strontian. They concluded it contained a new element. The element was named "strontium" after the village. The pure metal was first isolated in 1808 by Sir Humphry Davy using electrolysis, the same method he used for many other reactive metals.
📊 Properties at a Glance
| Phase at STP | Solid |
| Melting Point | 777 °C / 1431 °F |
| Boiling Point | 1382 °C / 2520 °F |
| Electron Configuration | [Kr] 5s² |
| Abundance in Earth's Crust | 0.037% |
⚠️ Safety & Handling
Stable strontium is considered non-toxic and behaves similarly to calcium in the body. However, pure strontium metal is highly reactive. It reacts with water to produce hydrogen gas and will ignite spontaneously in air. The radioactive isotope Strontium-90 is a significant health concern as it can be absorbed into bones, replacing calcium and causing damage from radiation.