Protactinium

Protactinium, formerly protoactinium, symbol Pa, radioactive metallic element with an atomic number of 91. Protactinium is a member of the actinide series of the periodic table. It was discovered in 1918 by the Austrian-Swedish physicist Lise Meitner and the German physical chemist Otto Hahn. Protactinium is a member of the uranium-actinium radioactive-decay series and is found in uranium ores. Isotopes of protactinium ranging in mass number from 215 to 238 are known. Protactinium-233 has a half-life of 27 days. Protactinium-231, the most stable isotope, has a half-life of more than 32,000 years; by emission of an alpha particle it decays to actinium. Protactinium melts at about 1552° C (about 2826° F), boils at about 4227° C (about 7641° F), and has a relative density of about 15.37.

See also Radioactivity.