Silicon-Element information, properties and uses

With the chemical symbol Si and the atomic number 14, silicon is one of the elements in the periodic table. It is a tetravalent metalloid and semiconductor that is a hard, brittle crystalline solid with a blue-grey metallic lustre and a blue-grey metallic lustre. It is classified as a member of group 14 in the periodic table; carbon is located above it, and germanium, tin, lead, and flerovium are located below it in the periodic table. 

It has a low level of reactivity. The fact that it has such a strong chemical affinity for oxygen meant that it took until 1823 for Jöns Jakob Berzelius to be able to prepare and characterise it in pure form. Its oxides are members of the anions known as silicates, which are a family of anions. Its melting and boiling points of 1414 degrees Celsius and 3265 degrees Celsius, respectively, are the second highest of all the metalloids and nonmetals, being only surpassed by boron in terms of melting and boiling points. 

Silicon is the eighth most abundant element in the universe in terms of mass, but it is only found in trace amounts as a pure element in the Earth’s crust. The most abundant forms of silicon dioxide (silica) or silicates are found in cosmic dust, planetoids, and planets, and they are the most widely distributed in space. More than 90 percent of the Earth’s crust is made up of silicate minerals, making silicon the second most abundant element in the Earth’s crust after oxygen (it accounts for approximately 28 percent of the Earth’s crust by mass). Silicon is a naturally occurring element that, when not previously present, has a residence time in the world’s oceans of approximately 400 years.

Applications:

The vast majority of silicon is used in industry without being purified, and in fact, it is often used with only a minimal amount of processing from its natural state. A silicate mineral is a compound of silicon and oxygen that is composed of more than 90 percent by volume of the Earth’s crust. Silicate minerals are frequently associated with metallic ions when negatively charged silicate anions require cations in order to maintain a balanced charge.

Silica is used in the production of fire brick, which is a type of ceramic. Silicate minerals can also be found in whiteware ceramics, which is a significant class of products that typically contains a variety of fired clay minerals (natural aluminium phyllosilicates).

A wide range of silicone products, including waterproofing treatments, moulding compounds, mold-release agents, mechanical seals, high-temperature greases and waxes, and caulking compounds, are commonly found in the marketplace. Silicone is also used in a variety of other products, including breast implants, contact lenses, explosives, and pyrotechnics.

In addition to iron alloys, the properties of silicon can be used to modify alloys containing other metals. “Metallurgical grade” silicon is silicon that has a purity of 95–99 percent. Approximately 55% of global consumption of metallurgical purity is accounted for by the United States. Silicon is used in the production of aluminum-silicon alloys (silumin alloys), which are used primarily in the automotive industry for the casting of aluminium parts.

Silicon information:

• Bond Enthalpy: The bond energy in the gaseous diatomic species SiSi is 326.8 ±10.0 kJ mol-1.
• The electron affinity of a silicon crystal surface is 4.05 eV, whereas the electron affinity of a single silicon atom is 1.39 eV when isolated.
• Silicon has a first ionisation energy of 8.1517 eV. The amount of energy required to remove an electron from a neutral atom is referred to as ionisation energy or ionisation potential.

Biological role:

Silicon is required for plant survival, but its role in animal cell biology is unclear at this time. Phytoliths are microscopic silica particles that form within the cells of some plants. Due to the fact that these particles do not decay, they remain in fossils and provide us with valuable evolutionary evidence in the process.

Despite the fact that silicon is non-toxic, some silicates – such as asbestos – are cancer causing agents. Workers who are exposed to siliceous dust, such as miners and stonecutters, are at risk of developing silicosis, a serious lung disease that can be fatal.

Conclusion:

Silicon is the electropositive element with the greatest abundance in the Earth’s crust. It’s a metalloid with a distinct metallic lustre that’s also extremely brittle.

It is a tetravalent metalloid and semiconductor that is a hard, brittle crystalline solid with a blue-grey metallic lustre and a blue-grey metallic lustre. It is classified as a member of group 14 in the periodic table. Silicon is the eighth most abundant element in the universe in terms of mass, but it is only found in trace amounts as a pure element in the Earth’s crust.

The vast majority of silicon is used in industry without being purified, and in fact, it is often used with only a minimal amount of processing from its natural state.Silica is used in the production of fire brick, which is a type of ceramic.

Silicone is also used in a variety of other products, including breast implants, contact lenses, explosives, and pyrotechnics.

Silicon is required for plant survival, but its role in animal cell biology is unclear at this time. Phytoliths are microscopic silica particles that form within the cells of some plants.