3. Osmium
•From osme, or odor
•Like Iridium, it is considered the
most dense elements
•It is a metal which has a pungent
smell, and is used in producing
alloys of extreme hardness
Harmful Effects:
•Some compounds of osmium are
extremely dangerous.
•They irritate the respiratory passage Uses:
(throat, lungs,
etc.), the skin, and the eyes.
•Fountain pen nibs
•Fingerprint detector
•Phonograph needle
4. Rhodium
•From Rhodon, or rose
•This metal is lustrous and silvery white
•It has a higher melting point and lower
density than platinum
•It has a high reflectance and is hard and
durable
•It is a very durable metal, insoluble in
ordinary acids and very difficult to fuse
Harmful Effects:
Uses:
•Compounds of rhodium stain the skin
very strongly
•Headlight reflectors
•It is very flammable
•Furnace windings
•The substance can be absorbed into the •Spark plugs
body by inhalation of its aerosol
5. Copper
•From Cuprum, Cyprus
•The metal used during the “bronze age”
•The only red colored metal which is
widely used in electrical products due to
its high electrical conductivity
Harmful Effects:
•Causes Copper Poisoning
Acute ingestion of excessive copper can
cause Diarrhea, Epigastric pain and
discomfort, Blood in the urine, Liver
damage, Low blood pressure, Nausea, Uses:
Vomiting, Kidney failure due to severe
intravascular haemolysis
•Cables
•Wires
•Gun metals
6. Cadmium
•From kadmia or earth
•It occurs in nature with Zinc
•When heated, it burns with air with a
bright light
•Its compounds are toxic, particularly in
soluble and respirable forms, being more
easily absorbed through inhaled dust or
fumes
Harmful Effects:
•Chronic dust or fume exposure can
irreversibly damage the lungs, producing
shortness of breath and emphysema. Uses:
•Cadmium mainly accumulates in the
kidneys and liver and can lead to serious •Rechargeable Batteries
kidney failure, nephrotoxicity, renal stone •Solder
formation, bone disease and persistent
•Electroplating
proteinuria at high exposures.
7. Mercury
•From Mercury, the planet, HG from
hydrargyrum, or liquid silver.
•Is the only common metal which is
liquid at room temperature
•Mercury and the other noble metals
were the first elements to be
discovered and utilized by humans
because they exist in nature either in
the free state or as easily decomposable
compounds.
Harmful Effects:
•Mercury is ubiquitous in the environment.
•Spewing from volcanoes, evaporating off Uses:
bodies of water, and rising as gas from the
Earth's crust, the poisonous, metallic •Thermometers
element floats in the air as vapor or binds to •Paints
particles. •Pesticides
•Eventually it falls to the Earth to settle in
sediment, oceans, and lakes, or reenters the
atmosphere by evaporation.
8. Lead
•Symbol Pb is from plumbum, the
origin of plumber
•A prehistoric metal which is durable
but toxic
•It has been the backbone of
plumbing industries
•Lead is a particularly dangerous
chemical, as it can accumulate in
individual organisms, but also in
entire food chains
Harmful Effects:
•Causes lead poisoning
•Potential effects in humans are abdominal
cramps, learning disabilities, attention Uses:
deficit disorder, constipation, anemia,
tiredness, nerve damage, vomiting, •Batteries
convulsions, anorexia, and brain damage. •Cable Covers
•Wildlife and waterfowl are also frequently •Drain Pipes
poisoned through the ingestion of lead and
lead shot.
9. Arsenic
•From Arsenikos or male
•It appears in three allotropic forms:
yellow, black and grey; the stable form is
a silver-gray, brittle crystalline solid
•When heated, it rapidly oxidizes to
arsenic trioxide, which has a garlic odor
•A semi-metallic element noted or being
poisonous although some of its
compounds are medicinal
Harmful Effects:
•Exposure to inorganic arsenic can cause
various health effects, such as irritation of the
stomach and intestines, decreased production Uses:
of red and white blood cells, skin changes and
lung irritation. •Poisons
•A very high exposure to inorganic arsenic can •Insecticides
cause infertility and miscarriages to women, •Doping Agents
and it can cause skin disturbances, declined
resistance to infections, heart disruptions and
brain damage with both men and women.
10. Fluorine
•From fluo, or flow.
•It is a poisonous pale yellow element
•Nearly all compounds are
decomposed by fluorine forming
fluorides that are among the most
stable of all chemical compounds
•It is the most reactive element known
Harmful Effects:
•Excessive exposure to sulfur
hexafluoride may affect the brain
•The main impact of sulfur
Uses:
hexafluoride on the environment is a
greenhouse gas, influencing climate •Toothpaste Additive
change •Refrigerant
•High-temperature Plastics
11. Bromine
•From bromos, stench
•It has similar chemical properties to
Chlorine
•At room temperature, bromine is
liquid, giving off poisonous, suffocating,
reddish vapor composed of diatomic
molecules
•It is used in industry to make
organobromo compounds
•A major one was dibromoethane an
agent for leaded gasoline, before they
were largely phased out due to
environmental considerations
Uses:
Harmful Effects:
•Photographic Film
•Bromine is poisonous •Gasoline Antiknock
•Causes skin burns. •Flame-proofing Agents
12. Tin
•Sn from stannum
•An ancient metal used in canning due
to its resistance to rust and other
corrosion
•Tins as single atoms or molecules are
not very toxic to any kind of organism,
the toxic form is the organic form
Harmful Effects:
•Some acute effects of tin are headaches,
stomachaches and urination problem
•Organic tin components can maintain in Uses:
the environment for long periods of time
•They are known to cause a great deal of •Cans
harm to aquatic ecosystems, as they are very
•Panel Lighting
toxic to fungi, algae and phytoplankton
•Super Conductive Magnets
•Organic tins are known to disturb growth,
reproduction, enzymatic systems and
feeding patterns of aquatic organisms