yttrium
[ih-tree-uh m]
- a rare trivalent metallic element, found in gadolinite and other minerals. Symbol: Y; atomic weight: 88.905; atomic number: 39; specific gravity: 4.47.
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Compare rare-earth element.
Origin of yttrium
Dictionary.com Unabridged
Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2018
Examples from the Web for yttrium
Historical Examples
A rare metal found by Prof. Mosander, associated with erbium and yttrium in ordinary yttria.
Cooley's Practical Receipts, Volume IIArnold Cooley
Yttrium was obtained by Whler in 1828, as a brittle, dark-grey metal, made from the chloride by the action of sodium.
Cooley's Practical Receipts, Volume IIArnold Cooley
Erbium, a rare metal found along with yttrium, terbium, and other rare elements in some rare minerals.
The New Gresham EncyclopediaVarious
Its group members, scandium and yttrium, have the same form; we have not examined the fourth; the group is positive.
Occult ChemistryAnnie Besant and Charles W. Leadbeater
One funnel of yttrium contains exactly the same number of atoms as is contained in a gaseous atom of nitrogen.
Occult ChemistryAnnie Besant and Charles W. Leadbeater
yttrium
- a silvery metallic element occurring in monazite and gadolinite and used in various alloys, in lasers, and as a catalyst. Symbol: Y; atomic no: 39; atomic wt: 88.90585; valency: 3; relative density: 4.469; melting pt: 1522°C; boiling pt: 3338°C
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Word Origin
C19: New Latin; see ytterbia
Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 2012 Digital Edition
© William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins
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Word Origin and History for yttrium
metallic rare-earth element, 1866, coined in Modern Latin by Swedish chemist Carl Gustaf Mosander (1797-1858) from Ytterby, name of a town in Sweden where mineral containing it was found.
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Online Etymology Dictionary, © 2010 Douglas Harper
yttrium
(ĭt′rē-əm)- A silvery, ductile, rare-earth element used in various alloys. Atomic number 39.
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The American Heritage® Stedman's Medical Dictionary
Copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Company.
yttrium
[ĭt′rē-əm]
- A silvery metallic element found in the same ores as elements of the lanthanide series. Yttrium is used to strengthen magnesium and aluminum alloys, to provide the red color in color televisions, and as a component of various optical and electronic devices. Atomic number 39; atomic weight 88.906; melting point 1,522°C; boiling point 3,338°C; specific gravity 4.45 (25°C); valence 3. See Periodic Table.
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The American Heritage® Science Dictionary
Copyright © 2011. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. All rights reserved.