A soft silvery metallic element belonging to the lanthanoids; a.n. 66; r.a.m. 162.50; r.d. 8.551 (20°C); m.p. 1412°C; b.p. 2562°C. It occurs in apatite, gadolinite, and xenotime, from which it is extracted by an ion-exchange process. There are seven natural isotopes and twelve artificial isotopes have been identified. It finds limited use in some alloys as a neutron absorber, particularly in nuclear technology. It was discovered by Paul Lecoq de Boisbaudran (1838–1912) in 1886.

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