Oxygen

Oxygen

Symbol	O
Atomic Number	8
Atomic Mass	15.999 g.mol-1
Discovered by	Joseph Priestly in 1774

Chemical Properties of Oxygen

Group	16	Melting point	-219 °c
Period	2	Boiling point	-183 °c
Block	p	Density (g cm−3)	0.001308
Atomic number	8	Relative atomic mass	15.999
State at 20°C	Gas	Key isotopes	16O
Electron configuration	[He]2s2 2p4	CAS number	7782-44-7
ChemSpider ID	140526	ChemSpider is a free chemical structure database

What is Oxygen?

• Oxygen is a member of the chalcogen group on the periodic table. It is an essential element in the most of the combustion processes.
• It is one of the most abundant elements in the Earth’s crust.

Uses of Oxygen

• It is used in the production and manufacturing of glass and stone products, and in mining.
• Special oxygen chambers are used in case of high pressure to increase the partial pressure of oxygen around the patient.
• The primary applications of oxygen include melting, refining, and manufacture of steel along with other metals.

Physical Properties of Oxygen

• The gas is colourless, odourless and insipid in a normal state. Liquid oxygen is slightly paramagnetic. It is reactive and forms oxides with every element except helium, neon, krypton, and argon. It is moderately soluble in water.
• Dioxygen is one of the common allotropes of oxygen.
• Trioxygen is the most reactive allotrope of oxygen that would cause damage to lung tissue. This allotrope is termed as ozone.

Other Important Information

• O-16, O-17, and O-18 are the three naturally occurring stable isotopes of Oxygen.
• Oxygen is characterized by a paramagnetic property.