Element 114 · Post-Transition Metal
Flerovium
Element Facts
SYMBOL
Fl
ATOMIC NO.
114
ATOMIC WEIGHT
289
CATEGORY
Post-Transition Metal
PERIOD
Period 7
GROUP
Group 14
Historical Uses
Flerovium was first synthesised in January 1999 at JINR Dubna by Yuri Oganessian, Vladimir Utyonkov, and colleagues, by bombarding plutonium-244 with calcium-48 ions. Named in 2012 after the Flerov Laboratory of Nuclear Reactions at JINR — which itself is named after Soviet physicist Georgy Flyorov, who pioneered superheavy element research. About 90 atoms have been produced in total, making it one of the more studied superheavy elements.
Current Uses
Flerovium has no practical applications. Theoretical studies suggest it may have unusual properties due to extreme relativistic effects — it may behave more like a noble gas than a metal at room temperature, despite being in group 14 below lead. This is an active area of superheavy element chemistry research.
Not Commercially Viable for Scrap
Why QuickStop Metals doesn’t buy Flerovium:
Flerovium’s most stable isotope has a half-life of approximately 2.1 seconds. It exists only momentarily as individual atoms created in particle accelerators. No commercial application or scrap trade is conceivable.
Price Context
No commercial market. Requires the JINR Dubna facility with its unique calcium-48 beams and specialised targets. Hundreds of millions of pounds of infrastructure are required to produce a few atoms.