Isotopes
There are 37 isotopes for ruthenium, ranging in atomic mass numbers from87 to 120. Seven of these are stable isotopes. The atomic masses and percentage ofcontribution to the natural occurrence of the element on Earth are as follows: Ru-96 =5.54%, Ru-98 = 1.87%, Ru-99 = 12.76%, Ru-100 = 12.60%, Ru-101 = 17.06%, Ru-102 = 31.55%, and Ru-104 = 18.62%.
Origin of Name
“Ruthenium” is derived from the Latin word Ruthenia meaning “Russia,”
where it is found in the Ural Mountains.
Occurrence
Ruthenium is a rare element that makes up about 0.01 ppm in the Earth’s crust. Even so, itis considered the 74th most abundant element found on Earth. It is usually found in amountsup to 2% in platinum ores and is recovered when the ore is refined. It is difficult to separatefrom the leftover residue of refined platinum ore.
Ruthenium is found in South America and the Ural Mountains of Russia. There are someminor platinum and ruthenium ores found in the western United States and Canada. All ofthe radioactive isotopes of ruthenium are produced in nuclear reactors.
Characteristics
Ruthenium also belongs to the platinum group, which includes six elements with similarchemical characteristics. They are located in the middle of the second and third series of thetransition elements. The platinum group consists of ruthenium, rhodium,palladium, osmium, iridium, and platinum.
Ruthenium is a hard brittle metal that resists corrosion from all acids but is vulnerable tostrong alkalis (bases). Small amounts, when alloyed with other metals, will prevent corrosionof that metal.
Uses
As substitute for platinum in jewelry; for pen nibs; as hardener in electrical contact alloys, electrical filaments; in ceramic colors; catalyst in synthesis of long chain hydrocarbons.
Uses
Since ruthenium is rare and difficult to isolate in pure form, there are few uses for it. Itsmain uses are as an alloy to produce noncorrosive steel and as an additive to jewelry metalssuch as platinum, palladium, and gold, making them more durable.
It is also used as an alloy to make electrical contacts harder and wear longer, for medicalinstruments, and more recently, as an experimental metal for direct conversion of solar cellmaterial to electrical energy.
Ruthenium is used as a catalyst to affect the speed of chemical reactions, but is not alteredby the chemical process. It is also used as a drug to treat eye diseases.
Production Methods
Elemental ruthenium occurs in native alloys of iridium and
osmium (irridosmine, siskerite) and in sulfide and other ores
(pentlandite, laurite, etc.) in very small quantities that are
commercially recovered.
The element is separated from the other platinum metals
by a sequence involving treatment with aqua regia (separation
of insoluble osmium, rhodium, ruthenium, and iridium),
fusion with sodium bisulfate (with which rhodium reacts),
and fusion with sodium peroxide (dissolution of osmium and
ruthenium). The resulting solution of ruthenate and osmate is
treated with ethanol to precipitate ruthenium dioxide. The
ruthenium dioxide is purified by treatment with hydrochloric
acid and chlorine and reduced with hydrogen gas to pure
metal.
Ruthenium is recovered from exhausted catalytic converters
or, in a similar manner, from the waste produced during
platinum and nickel ore processing.
General Description
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Hazard
The main hazard is the explosiveness of ruthenium fine power or dust. The metal willrapidly oxidize (explode) when exposed to oxidizer-type chemicals such as potassium chlorideat room temperature. Most of its few compounds are toxic and their fumes should beavoided.
Flammability and Explosibility
Notclassified
Pharmaceutical Applications
Ruthenium is the chemical element with the symbol Ru and atomic number 44. It occurs as a minor side
product in the mining of platinum. Ruthenium is relatively inert to most chemicals. Its main applications are
in the area of specialised electrical parts.
The success of cisplatin, together with the occurrence of dose-limiting resistances and severe side effects
such as nausea and nephrotoxicity, encouraged the research into other metal-based anticancer agents. Ruthenium
is one of those metals under intense research, and first results look very promising, with two candidates
– NAMI-A and KP1019 – having entered clinical trials.
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