Ruthenium

Ruthenium is a chemical element with symbol Ru and atomic number 44.

Contents

• Uses
• Benefits
• Cautions
• Interactions
• Other names
• References

Uses

• Most ruthenium produced is used in wear-resistant electrical contacts and thick-film resistors. A minor application for ruthenium is in platinum alloys and as a chemistry catalyst.

Benefits

• Small amounts of ruthenium are used to harden platinum and palladium and it can also be alloyed with these metals to make electrical contacts for severe wear resistance.
• The addition of 0.1% ruthenium improves the corrosion resistance of titanium a hundred times over.
• Ruthenium has catalytic properties; for example, hydrogen sulfide can be split by light in the presence of an aqueous suspension of cadmium sulfide particles loaded with ruthenium dioxide.
• Interestingly, ruthenium is used in some Parker pen nibs, such as the Parker 51 whose nib is marked ‘RU’, and consists of 96.2% ruthenium and 3.8% iridium⁽²⁾.

Cautions

• Ruthenium is a suspected carcinogen and its compounds strongly stain the skin. Ruthenium tetroxide (RuO₄) is highly toxic.

Interactions

Unknown, please consult with your doctor.

Other names

Ru44

References

Source: Wikipedia, https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ruthenium

Chemicool, http://www.chemicool.com/elements/ruthenium.html