 Discovery Information |
| Who:
Henri Moissan
|
| When: 1886 |
| Where: France |
|
| Name Origin |
| Latin: fluo (flow). |
|
| Sources |
| Found in the minerals fluorite and cryolite. |
|
| Uses |
| Combines more readily than any other element. Used in refrigerants (refrigeration and air-conditioning) and other chloro fluorocarbons. Also in toothpaste as sodium fluoride (NaF) and stannous fluoride (SnF2); also in Teflon. |
|
| Notes |
| Pure fluorine is a corrosive gas, with a pungent odour. Both fluorine and HF must be handled with great care and any contact with skin and eyes should be strictly avoided. Contact with exposed skin may result in the HF molecule rapidly migrating through the skin and flesh into the bone where it reacts with calcium permanently damaging the bone, followed by cardiac arrest brought on by sudden chemical changes within the body. |
| The derivation of elemental fluorine from hydrofluoric acid is exceptionally dangerous, killing or blinding several scientists who attempted early experiments on this halogen. These men came to be referred to as "Fluorine Martyrs." |
