Transformation of elements

Smithells, Arthur. [1913.] The researches on the transformation of elements at University College London. From a note by Professor A. Smithells. [Morris Travers writes Copy, original returned to Smithells ]. Sir William Ramsay Papers, University College London. Vol. XV, Part II, 274. 

We may now, with Duchamp s reluctant help, make an interpretive passage from alchemical powders and stones to Alchemical Matter itself. In Notes 100 and 101, we learn more about Duchamp s esoteric transformations of elemental Matter. As the artist explains. 

So how can we know that today s elements are not just extremely intimate compounds waiting to be split And for that matter, if elements are meant to be fundamental and irreducible substances, how is it that gold was made from mercury in 1941 (see page 54), or that The Times of 12 September 1933 was able to announce a startling new discovery Transformation of Elements ... 

The rate of the atmospheric chemical transformation of elemental mercury with a given oxidant is dependent on two factors. The first factor is the reactivity of mercury towards a given oxidant at environmentally relevant conditions, such as temperature, pressure, oxygen concentration, and relative humidity. The second factor is the concentration (or mixing ratio) of the oxidant. The existing laboratory studies of mercury kinetic reactions have been obtained using steady state reaction... 

P.A. Ariya, K. Peterson, in N. Pirrone (Ed.), Atmospheric Chemical Transformation of Elemental Mercury, Mercury in Environment, Kluwer, Dordrecht, 2005. 

The chemical composition of soils is diverse and governed by many different factors, of which parent materials and climatic factors usually predominate. Although trace elements (both cationic and anionic forms) are minor components of the soil, they play an important role in soil bioactivity and fertility. Behavior of trace elements in soils depends upon complex reactions between their ionic forms and various components of the various soil phases solid, aqueous, and gaseous. This relationship is closely related to the main features of the soil biogeochemical system, which are (i) seasonal and spatial alteration of major soil variables (ii) heterogeneous distribution of compounds and components (iii) transformation of element species (iv) complexa-... 

One of the uses of neutronic reactors is to irradiate materials with neutrons and other particles and radiations. In this manner, radioactive isotopes may be produced for all chemical elements with the exception of helium. The physical transformation of elements as a result of irradiation in a neutronic reactor may be ac- complisbed through any one of a number of reactions which are fully described in the published literature. Radioactive isotopes produced by neutronic reactors are receiving large commercial interest, particularly such isotopes as H, P32, 35, and 1 As a result, there is a... 

Improvements in the sample pretreatment procedures. Sample cleanup, preconcentration, and preservation procedures of natural species are urgently needed. There is no guarantee that transformation of elemental speciation along the whole analytical procedure does not take place. In this sense, the use of isotopically labeled compounds using an adequate separation technique coupled to ICP-MS is being established. It seems clear that the use of isotopically enriched species, synthesized for the purpose, will became an important tool for validation of speciation results. 

The idea of transmutation (transformation) of elements was born in distant times. The idea was upheld by alchemists for their specific aims. But all attempts to achieve transmutation proved futile. As chemistry was developing into an independent full-fledged science and accumulating knowledge of the structure and properties of matter the very feasibility of transformation of elements was questioned. By the end of the 19th century serious scientists ignored this problem though did not dare to refute it definitely. 

The chemical transformation of elemental mercury to methylmercury can be performed by bacteria in water and soil. Elemental mercury and methylmercury are both toxic to the central nervous system. Elemental mercury evaporates, aud the toxic vapor is inhaled. The saying mad as a hatter arose from the occupational exposure of hatters to vapors from liquid mercury, which was used for centuries in the manufacture of felt hats. While mercury vapor is very toxic, the liquid metal itself is less so. It does not dissolve well in water, and its poor solubility tends to limit its access to living systems. Methylmercury, on the other hand, dissolves in water and readily enters the body by all exposure routes from the intestinal tract following ingestion, through the skin, and through the lungs. Because exposure to methylmercury can happen quickly and easily, it is considered to be an extremely hazardous chemical. 

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