Marie Curie doubt, the Curies sought to isolate polonium and radium in pure form. Pitchblende is a complex mineral; the chemical separation of its constituents was an arduous task. The discovery of polonium had been relatively easy; chemically it resembles the element bismuth, and polonium was the only bismuth-like substance in the ore. Radium, however, was more elusive; it is closely related chemically to barium, and pitchblende contains both elements. By 1898 the Curies had obtained traces of radium, but appreciable quantities, uncontaminated with barium, were still beyond reach. The Curies undertook the arduous task of separating out radium salt by differential
Synthetic element short half-lives. The following elements do not occur naturally on Earth. All are transuranium elements and have atomic numbers of 95 and higher. All elements with atomic numbers 1 through 94 are naturally occurring at least in trace quantities, but the following elements are often produced through synthesis. Except for polonium, francium, actinium, and protactinium, they were all discovered through synthesis before being found in nature. Synthetic element In chemistry, a synthetic element is a chemical element that does not occur naturally on Earth, and can only be created artificially. So far, 24 synthetic elements have been created (those with