Nickel

At a glance

Symbol

Ni

Atomic number

28

Average atomic mass

58.69

Group

10

Period

4

Family

transition metal

Electron configuration

[Ar] 3d⁸ 4s²

Electronegativity

1.91

Common ions

Ni²⁺, green in solution

On the table

Period 4, group 10. The other transition metals are tinted, and every cell opens its own article.

Electrons and bonding

Like other transition metals, nickel loses its outer s electrons, and often some d electrons as well, to form positive ions, and it can form more than one kind.

Properties

State at 25 °C

solid

What it looks like

silvery-white metal with a faint golden tint, hard and slow to corrode

Melting point

1455 °C

Boiling point

2913 °C

Density

8.91 g/cm³

Magnetic

yes, like iron and cobalt

Where it is found

Mined from sulfide ores such as pentlandite and from weathered laterite soils; Indonesia is now the largest producer. Earth's core is thought to be about 5% nickel, and iron meteorites contain it. The rich ore field at Sudbury, Canada, sits in an ancient impact crater.

Discovery and name

Axel Fredrik Cronstedt isolated it in 1751 from a reddish ore that German miners called kupfernickel, Old Nick's copper, because it looked like copper ore but yielded no copper. He shortened the name to nickel.