Samarski, Colonel

Samarium - the atomic number is 62 and the chemical symbol is Sm. The name derives from the mineral Samarskite, in which it was found and which had been named for Colonel von Samarski , a Russian mine official. It was originally discovered in 1878 by the Swiss chemist Marc Delafontaine, who called it decipium. It was also discovered by the French chemist Paul-Emile Lecoq de Boisbaudran in 1879. In 1881, Delafontaine determined that his decipium could be resolved into two elements, one of which was identical to Boisbaudran s samarium. In 1901, the French chemist Eugene-Anatole Demar9ay showed that this samarium earth also contained europium. 

Using a spectrometer in 1853, Jean Charles-GaUisard de Marignac (1817—1894) suspected that dydimia was a mixture of yet-to-be-discovered elements. However, it was not until 1879 that Paul-Emile Locoq de Boisbaudran (1838—1912), using a difficult chemical fractionation process, discovered samarium in a sample of samarskite, calling it samarium after the mineral, which was named for a Russian mine official. Colonel von Samarski. Samarskite ore is found where didymia is found. Didymia ( twins ) was the original name given to a combination of the two rare-earths (praseodymium and neodymium) before they were separated and identified. 

The name samarium was taken from a mineral in which it occurs, sa-marskite. The name of the mineral, in turn, comes from the last name of a Russian mine official. Colonel Samarski. 

By some reports gadolinium was the first element named for a person, but it was probably really named for the mineral that contained gadolinia, and the mineral was named for Johan Gadolin. By the same token samarium was named for the mineral samarskite, which had been named in honor of a Russian mine official. Colonel Samarski. It is difficult therefore to assert that the name gadolinium was meant to immortalize the chemist any more than the name samarium was meant to immortalize military personnel. What was unique about samarium however was its discovery using a new analytical technique spectroscopy. 

C neutron absorber named after Colonel Samarski, Russian mine official discovered 1879 used to make alloys for nuclear reactor parts oxide used in permanent magnets. 

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