Berkelium chlorides

Named after Berkeley, California, berkelium was created in 1949 by the team of Stanley G. Thompson, Albert Ghiorso, and Glenn T. Seaborg at the Berkeley Laboratory of the University of California. They bombarded americium with helium ions to create the new element. Elemental berkelium has not been synthesized, and only microgram quantities of berkelium chloride have been made, but enough to characterize the element. Primarily of scientific interest, it has no commercial applications. 

The possible existence of divalent berkelium was studied by polarog-raphy in acetonitrile solution. Because of high background currents (caused by radiolysis products) obscuring the polarographic wave, evidence for Bk(II) was not obtained (182). Divalent berkelium has been reported to exist in mixed lanthanide chloride-strontium chloride melts. The claim is based on the results of the distribution of trace... 

Curium, berkelium, californium and einsteinium were separated from the americium samples irradiated by neutrons. For preliminary separation the anion exchange in hydrochloric acid and lithium chloride solutions was used as well as the HDEHP extraction. Mutual separation of the transamericium elements was made by using DIAION CK08Y cation exchange resin. Nuclides prepared and separation methods adopted are summarized in Table 1 (1-15). 

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