# Elements of the first transition series > Ten metals from Sc to Zn: scarce, yet important ## Objectives - List the ten elements of the first transition series in order, with symbols and atomic numbers: Sc (21) to Zn (30). - Read the book's table of the percent of each element in the earth's crust. - Explain that these elements have high economic importance, though they form only nearly 7% of the weight of the earth's crust. ## 1. The transition elements and their series ## 2. Scarce but valuable? First, predict: which of the ten is the most abundant in the earth's crust? - Iron, Fe ✓ - Copper, Cu - Titanium, Ti - Zinc, Zn Iron is the most abundant of the ten: about 5% by weight of the earth's crust, far ahead of the rest. [ar-EG] الـ iron هو أكتر واحد موجود من العشرة: حوالي 5% من وزن القشرة الأرضية، وسابق الباقيين بمسافة كبيرة. ## 3. Ten elements, Z = 21 to 30 Remember: the first transition series is in period 4, after calcium. The 3d sublevel fills. The first transition series: Sc (21) to Zn (30) This series contains ten elements: scandium (Sc), titanium (Ti), vanadium (V), chromium (Cr), manganese (Mn), iron (Fe), cobalt (Co), nickel (Ni), copper (Cu) and zinc (Zn). Watch the order Two pairs get swapped a lot: **Cr (24) comes before Mn (25)**, and **Co (27) comes before Ni (28)**. The order follows the atomic number. ## 4. Walk along the series Slide along the series, one element at a time. Atomic number, Z Position in the series $\ce{_{21}Sc}$: **scandium**, group IIIB. % wt in the earth's crust: 0.0026 $\ce{_{22}Ti}$: **titanium**, group IVB. % wt in the earth's crust: 0.66 $\ce{_{23}V}$: **vanadium**, group VB. % wt in the earth's crust: 0.02 $\ce{_{24}Cr}$: **chromium**, group VIB. % wt in the earth's crust: 0.014 $\ce{_{25}Mn}$: **manganese**, group VIIB. % wt in the earth's crust: 0.11 $\ce{_{26}Fe}$: **iron**, group VIII. % wt in the earth's crust: 5 $\ce{_{27}Co}$: **cobalt**, group VIII. % wt in the earth's crust: 0.003 $\ce{_{28}Ni}$: **nickel**, group VIII. % wt in the earth's crust: 0.0089 $\ce{_{29}Cu}$: **copper**, group IB. % wt in the earth's crust: 0.0068 $\ce{_{30}Zn}$: **zinc**, group IIB. % wt in the earth's crust: 0.0078 ## 5. How much is in the earth's crust? The book's table: percent of each element in the earth's crust All of these elements form **nearly 7% of the weight of the earth's crust**. Iron towers over the rest. Most of the others are far below 1%. Zoom in on the rare ones Without Fe and Ti: Sc (0.0026%) and Co (0.003%) are the rarest ## 6. Scarce, yet important These elements form nearly 7% of the weight of the earth's crust, **but they have high economic importance**. A metal is important because there is a lot of it in the earth's crust. Contrast case: scandium (preview of the uses lessons) Scandium is the rarest of the ten (0.0026%). Yet adding a little scandium to aluminum gives a light and very hard alloy. ## 7. Order and symbols Put these elements in order of increasing atomic number. The element of the first transition series with Z = 28 is ___ (symbol). ## 8. Read the table Using the table, which element is the second most abundant of the ten? - Titanium, Ti ✓ - Zinc, Zn - Copper, Cu - Manganese, Mn In the table, Fe has the largest value (5%) and Ti the second largest (0.66%); Mn follows with 0.11%. [ar-EG] في الجدول، الـ Fe أكبر قيمة (5%) والـ Ti تاني أكبر قيمة (0.66%)، وبعدهم الـ Mn بـ 0.11%. ## 9. Summary Ten elements: Sc (21), Ti (22), V (23), Cr (24), Mn (25), Fe (26), Co (27), Ni (28), Cu (29), Zn (30). Iron is the most abundant of them (about 5% of the crust). They are scarce, yet they have high economic importance. The first transition series: atomic number and % by weight in the earth's crust (book, p.5) They form **nearly 7% of the weight of the earth's crust**, but they have **high economic importance**. Can you explain why scandium matters to industry, though it is the rarest of the ten? Chapter: Transition Elements (https://yaani.ai/en/learn/chemistry/chem-s3-en.ch1) Source: https://yaani.ai/en/lesson/chem-s3-en.lesson-te.first-series-elements