"Hearst Magazines and Yahoo may earn commission or revenue on some items through these links." Although the Periodic Table of Elements is an impressive achievement of human understanding, scientists ...

Conceptual art shows the rare earth element promethium in a vial surrounded by an organic ligand. ORNL scientists have discovered hidden features of promethium, opening a pathway for research into ...

Bruce Ravel is shown at the Beamline for Materials Measurement. Despite its rarity, promethium has a few interesting applications, including manufacturing specialized glow-in-the-dark paint, radiation ...

Researchers wanted to find out if it was possible to make a molecule that could selectively bind to metal cations in the middle of the lanthanide series. The team provided a proof-of-principle in a ...

"Because it has no stable isotopes, promethium was the last lanthanide to be discovered and has been the most difficult to study," said ORNL's Ilja Popovs, who co-led the research. Most rare earth ...