Skip to main content
Chemistry LibreTexts

Group 4: Transition Metals

  • Page ID
    638
  • \( \newcommand{\vecs}[1]{\overset { \scriptstyle \rightharpoonup} {\mathbf{#1}} } \) \( \newcommand{\vecd}[1]{\overset{-\!-\!\rightharpoonup}{\vphantom{a}\smash {#1}}} \)\(\newcommand{\id}{\mathrm{id}}\) \( \newcommand{\Span}{\mathrm{span}}\) \( \newcommand{\kernel}{\mathrm{null}\,}\) \( \newcommand{\range}{\mathrm{range}\,}\) \( \newcommand{\RealPart}{\mathrm{Re}}\) \( \newcommand{\ImaginaryPart}{\mathrm{Im}}\) \( \newcommand{\Argument}{\mathrm{Arg}}\) \( \newcommand{\norm}[1]{\| #1 \|}\) \( \newcommand{\inner}[2]{\langle #1, #2 \rangle}\) \( \newcommand{\Span}{\mathrm{span}}\) \(\newcommand{\id}{\mathrm{id}}\) \( \newcommand{\Span}{\mathrm{span}}\) \( \newcommand{\kernel}{\mathrm{null}\,}\) \( \newcommand{\range}{\mathrm{range}\,}\) \( \newcommand{\RealPart}{\mathrm{Re}}\) \( \newcommand{\ImaginaryPart}{\mathrm{Im}}\) \( \newcommand{\Argument}{\mathrm{Arg}}\) \( \newcommand{\norm}[1]{\| #1 \|}\) \( \newcommand{\inner}[2]{\langle #1, #2 \rangle}\) \( \newcommand{\Span}{\mathrm{span}}\)\(\newcommand{\AA}{\unicode[.8,0]{x212B}}\)

    Because the elements of group 4 have a high affinity for oxygen, all three metals occur naturally as oxide ores that contain the metal in the +4 oxidation state resulting from losing all four ns2(n − 1)d2 valence electrons.

    • Group 4 Elemental Properties
      Because the elements of group 4 have a high affinity for oxygen, all three metals occur naturally as oxide ores that contain the metal in the +4 oxidation state resulting from losing all four valence electrons.
    • Chemistry of Hafnium
      More abundant than better known metals such as silver and gold, hafnium (from the Latin Hafnia, a name for Copenhagen) was not discovered until 1923 by Coster and de Hevesy. The reason is the similarity of hafnium to zirconium. Mendeleev had predicted the existence of element 72 but had wrongly suggested it might be found along with titanium ores. Instead it lay hidden with "pure" samples of zirconium. Later Niels Bohr predicted the arrangement of outer electrons for element 72.
    • Chemistry of Rutherfordium
      In 1964 researchers in the Soviet Union at Dubna announced their discovery of element 104. A similar claim was made by researchers at the University of California at Berkeley. The Soviet scientists claimed to have bombarded a target of Pu-242 with Ne-22, resulting in a nucleus with 104 protons and a mass number of 260. The Berkeley team used a Cf-249 target and isotopes of carbon for projectiles, resulting in isotopes of 104 with mass numbers of 257 and 259. Several other isotopes were also prep
    • Chemistry of Titanium
      Discovered independently by William Gregor and Martin Klaproth in 1795, titanium (named for the mythological Greek Titans) was first isolated in 1910.  Gregor, a Cornish vicar and amateur chemist isolated an impure oxide from ilmenite. This page deals with the uses of titanium and its extraction from the ore, rutile.
    • Chemistry of Zirconium
      Named for the mineral zircon in which it can be found, zirconium was discovered in 1789 by Klaproth and eventually isolated in 1824 by Berzelius. The metal reacts with oxygen and nitrogen in the atmosphere to form a protective coating that inhibits further corrosion. It is resistant to weak acids and even forms a low-temperature superconductor when alloyed with niobium.


    Group 4: Transition Metals is shared under a CC BY-NC-SA 4.0 license and was authored, remixed, and/or curated by LibreTexts.

    • Was this article helpful?