Element Facts
SYMBOL
No
ATOMIC NO.
102
ATOMIC WEIGHT
259
CATEGORY
Actinide
PERIOD
Period 7
GROUP
Group 3
Discovery & History
The discovery of nobelium was controversial. A 1957 claim by an international team at the Nobel Institute in Stockholm was retracted after it could not be replicated. Synthesis was confirmed by a Soviet team at JINR Dubna in 1966 (initially called joliotium). The name nobelium, after Alfred Nobel (founder of the Nobel Prizes), was used by the Berkeley team from 1958 and was ultimately confirmed by IUPAC in 1997, despite the Nobel Institute’s own scepticism.
Where It's Used
Nobelium has no practical applications. It is produced a few atoms at a time in particle accelerators and studied purely for its nuclear and chemical properties. Research on nobelium chemistry is challenging due to its short half-lives (nobelium-259 has a half-life of 58 minutes).
Can You Sell It?
Why QuickStop Metals doesn’t buy Nobelium:
Nobelium is a synthetic radioactive element that exists only as individual atoms created in particle accelerators, decaying in under an hour. No commercial use or scrap trade is possible.
Price Guide
No commercial market exists. Nobelium cannot be produced in weighable quantities. It is a purely academic research element.