Metallic antimony is an extremely brittle metal of a flaky, crystalline texture. It is bluish white and has a metallic lustre. It is not acted on by air at room temperature, but burns brilliantly when heated with the formation of white fumes. It is a poor conductor of heat and electricity.
Antimony and its compounds are toxic. It is found mostly with other minerals and in stibnite.
Image adapted with permission fromProf James Marshall's (U. North Texas, USA)Walking Tour of the elements CD.
Binary compounds with halogens (known as halides), oxygen (known as oxides), hydrogen (known as hydrides), and other compounds of antimony where known.
Antimony wasdiscovered by Known since ancient times in unknown at not known.Origin of name: from the Greek words "anti + monos" meaning "not alone" (the origin of the symbol Sb comes from the Latin word "stibium").
Isotope abundances of antimony with the most intense signal set to 100%.
The two Antimony isotopes are used for the production of medical radioisotopes. Sb-121 can be used for the production of I-124, although this medical radioisotope is usually produced via Te-124. Sb-121 and Sb-123 can both be used for the production of I-123, although the most common production route is via Xe-124 or Te-123.
Isolation: it is not usually necessary to make antimony in the laboratory as it is commercially available. Antimony is found in nature in a number of minerals including stibnite (Sb2S3) and ullmanite (NiSbS). Small amounts of native antimony have been found. Some ores are treatable under reducing conditions to form Sb2S3. The sulphide is removed to leave elemental antimony with scrap iron.
Sb2S3 + 3Fe → 2Sb + 3FeS
In antehr process, some ores can be heated to evolve the oxide Sb2O3 and this in turn can be reduced by charcoal in the presence of sodium sulphate, to ensure mixing, to form elemental antimony.
Density of solid: 6697 kg m-3
Molar volume: 18.19 cm3
Thermal conductivity: 24 W m‑1 K‑1
Melting point: 903.78 [630.63 °C (1167.13 °F)] K
Boiling point: 1860 [1587 °C (2889 °F)] K
Enthalpy of fusion: 20.5 kJ mol-1
Atomic radius (empirical): 145 pm
Molecular single bond covalent radius: 140 (coordination number 3) ppm
van der Waals radius: 247 ppm
Pauling electronegativity: 2.05 (Pauling units)
Allred Rochow electronegativity: 1.82 (Pauling units)
Mulliken-Jaffe electronegativity: 2.12 (20% s orbital)
First ionisation energy: 830.58 kJ mol‑1
Second ionisation energy: 1604.2 kJ mol‑1
Third ionisation energy: 2443.35 kJ mol‑1
Universe: 0.4 ppb by weight
Crustal rocks: 200 ppb by weight
Human: (no data) ppb by weight
