The europium is a type of chemical element integral of the group of rare or lanthanide earth, this is the most volatile metal from said group and has high levels of pressure when subjected to melt, its natural state is solid showing a color ranging from white to silver, thus being a ductile element with a lot of reactivity.
Europium is obtained from monazite sand, this is the product of the conjugation between three phosphates of cerium, calcium and thorium, its discovery was in 1896 by the French chemist Eugene-Antole Demarca and obviously the totally pure europium was not extracted until the year 1901. This rare earth metal has an atomic number equivalent to 63, and is represented by the symbol Eu, its name honors the European continent where the scientist who discovered this element as mentioned above resides.
Due to its high reactivity, this metal is widely used in the atomic area, being used for the manufacture of nuclear poison which is used to balance the excess of reactive energy in the nuclear reactor, in turn it can be used for the manufacture of screens for televisions, since they are made up of various phosphorescent substances that are patented, this is where the work of europium enters since it allows the activation of said substances and emits the desired color; another use of this compound is the production of laser rays. Its use is not marketed to the general public, due to its high toxicity, it is necessary to work with enough care, for this reason it is required to comply with several safety indexes before access to the product is allowed.
Like many rare earth elements, it becomes toxic at the moment in which there is a constant inhalation of its gases, thus presenting respiratory complications that can compromise the patient's life, such as atelectasis or pulmonary embolism, another effect What can produce the constant absorption of this chemical is damage to the liver, which would be acute or chronic damage depending on the exposure to which the patient is subjected.
