![]() Scandium is also used to make bright lights that come close to replicating sunlight. Scandium is used together with aluminum to make strong durable alloys that are used in aircraft components, golf clubs, firearms, and even high end baseball bats. Aluminum or titanium are often used instead because they are much less expensive. ![]() However, the cost of scandium has prevented it from becoming used in mainstream applications. Scandium is quite useful as a part of metal alloys. Some scandium is also produced as a byproduct of refining uranium. Scandium is generally a byproduct of mining minerals for other elements such as fluorine and tantalum. There are only a few minerals that have a reasonable concentration of scandium including gadolinite, thortveitite, and euxenite. It is generally only found in small amounts in minerals. Scandium is a fairly rare element on earth being around the 50th most common element. It has a very high melting point, which makes it a good substitute for aluminum in high temperature applications. However, it won't react with oxygen and is very resistant to corrosion. In its pure form, scandium will react with acids. When scandium is first exposed to the air it will tarnish to a slightly pink or yellow color. It is fairly soft and is nearly as light as aluminum. Under standard conditions scandium is a silvery-white metal. Scandium atoms have 21 electrons and 21 protons with 2 valence electrons in the outmost shell. It is classified as a transition metal or rare earth metal. Scandium is the first element in the third column of the periodic table. Discovered by: Lars Frederik Nilson in 1879.Classification: Transition metal or rare earth metal.
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