Silver information, including Technical Data, Safety Data and its High Purity properties, research, applications and other useful facts are discussed below. Scientific facts such as the atomic structure, ionization energy, abundance on Earth, conductivity and thermal properties are included.
 Silver has a brilliant white metallic luster. It is a little harder than gold and is very ductile and malleable, being exceeded only by gold and perhaps palladium. Pure silver has the highest electrical and thermal conductivity of all metals, and possesses the lowest contact resistance. It is stable in pure air and water, but tarnishes when exposed to ozone, hydrogen sulfide, or air containing sulfur. Silver nitrate has wide application in painting, xerography, chemical electroplating, in components for electric batteries and in medicine as catalyst. Silver chloride is another important compound, due to its ductility and malleability. The organic compounds of the element are used in the coating of several metals and in dynamite or other explosive bars. Metallic silver is used as a catalyst of several oxidation reactions such as those of ethanol and other alcohols. Silver is available as metal and compounds with purities from 99% to 99.9999% (ACS grade to ultra-high purity); metals in the form of foil, sputtering target, and rod, and compounds as submicron and nanopowder.
Silver is also used in various metal alloys (See AE Alloys).
Silver facts, including appearance, CAS #, and molecular formula and safety data, research and properties are
available for many specific states, forms and shapes on the product pages listed to the left. Elemental or metallic forms include pellets, rod, wire and granules for evaporation source material purposes. Nanoparticles and nanopowders provide ultra high surface area which nanotechnology research and recent experiments demonstrate function to create new and unique properties and benefits.
Oxides are available in forms including powders and dense pellets for such uses as optical coating and thin film applications. Oxides tend to be insoluble. Fluorides are another insoluble form for uses in which oxygen is undesirable such as metallurgy, chemical and physical vapor deposition and in some optical coatings. Silver is available in soluble forms including chlorides, nitrates and acetates. These compounds are also manufactured as solutions at specified stoichiometries.
Silver is a Block D, Group 11, Period 5 element. The number of electrons in each of Silver's shells is 2, 8, 18, 18, 1 and its electronic configuration is [Kr]4d10 5s1. In its elemental form silver's CAS number is 7440-22-4. The silver atom has a radius of 144.5.pm and it's Van der Waals radius is 144.pm.
 All elemental metals, compounds and solutions may be synthesized in ultra high purity (e.g. 99.999%) for laboratory standards, advanced electronic, thin fillm deposition using sputtering targets and evaporation materials, metallurgy and optical materials and other high technology applications. Information is provided for stable (non-radioactive) isotopes. Organo-Metallic Silver compounds are soluble in organic or non-aqueous solvents. See Analytical Services for information on available certified chemical and physical analysis techniques including MS-ICP, X-Ray Diffraction, PSD and Surface Area (BET) analysis.
Silver was first discovered by Early Man.
Silver was named after the Anglo-Saxon word "seolfor" or "siolfur" meaning 'silver'.
 Argent |
 Silber |
 Argento |
 Prata |
 Plata |
 Silver |
Silver Abundance. The following table shows the abundance of silver and each of its naturally occurring isotopes on Earth along with the atomic mass for each isotope.
| Isotope |
Atomic Mass |
% Abundance on Earth |
| Ag-107 |
106.905 |
51.84 |
| Ag-109 |
108.905 |
48.16 |
The following table shows the abundance of Silver present in the human body and in the universe scaled to parts per billion (ppb) by weight and by atom:
| |
Typical Human Body |
Universe |
| by Weight |
no data |
0.6 ppb |
| by Atom |
no data |
0.007 ppb |
Silver Safety Data and Biological Role. The safety data for Silver metal, nanoparticles and its compounds can vary widely depending on the form. For potential hazard information, toxicity, and road, sea and air transportation limitations, such as DOT Hazard Class, DOT Number, EU Number, NFPA Health rating and RTECS Class, please see the specific material or compound referenced in the left margin. Silver compounds have no biological role.
Ionization Energy. The ionization energy for Silver (the least required energy to release a single electron from the atom in it's ground state in the gas phase) is stated in the following table:
| 1st Ionization Energy |
731.01 kJ mol-1 |
| 2nd Ionization Energy |
2073.48 kJ mol-1 |
| 3rd Ionization Energy |
3360.61 kJ mol-1 |
Conductivity. As to Silver's electrical and thermal conductivity, the electrical conductivity measured in terms of electrical resistivity @ 20 ºC is 1.59 µOcm and its electronegativities (or its ability to draw electrons relative to other elements) is 1.93. The thermal conductivity of Silver is 429 W m-1 K-1.
Thermal Properties of Silver. The melting point and boiling point for Silver are stated below. The following chart sets forth the heat of fusion, heat of vaporization and heat of atomization.
| Heat of Fusion |
11.3 kJ mol-1 |
| Heat of Vaporization |
257.7 kJ mol-1 |
| Heat of Atomization |
284.09 kJ mol-1 |
Recent Research & Development for SilverContemporary management of lymph node metastases from an unknown primary to the neck: II. A review of therapeutic options.
Strojan P, Ferlito A, Langendijk JA, Corry J, Woolgar JA, Rinaldo A, Silver CE, Paleri V, Fagan JJ, Pellitteri PK, Haigentz M Jr, Suárez C, Robbins KT, Rodrigo JP, Olsen KD, Hinni ML, Werner JA, Mondin V, Kowalski LP, Devaney KO, de Bree R, Takes RP, Wolf GT, Shaha AR, Genden EM, Barnes L.
Head Neck. 2011 Oct 27. doi: 10.1002/hed.21899. [Epub ahead of print]
PMID:
22034062
[PubMed - as supplied by publisher]
Contemporary management of lymph node metastases from an unknown primary to the neck: I. A review of diagnostic approaches.
Strojan P, Ferlito A, Medina JE, Woolgar JA, Rinaldo A, Robbins KT, Fagan JJ, Mendenhall WM, Paleri V, Silver CE, Olsen KD, Corry J, Suárez C, Rodrigo JP, Langendijk JA, Devaney KO, Kowalski LP, Hartl DM, Haigentz M Jr, Werner JA, Pellitteri PK, de Bree R, Wolf GT, Takes RP, Genden EM, Hinni ML, Mondin V, Shaha AR, Barnes L.
Head Neck. 2011 Oct 27. doi: 10.1002/hed.21898. [Epub ahead of print]
PMID:
22034046
[PubMed - as supplied by publisher]
Feeding deterrent activity of synthesized silver nanoparticles using Manilkara zapota leaf extract against the house fly, Musca domestica (Diptera: Muscidae).
Kamaraj C, Rajakumar G, Rahuman AA, Velayutham K, Bagavan A, Zahir AA, Elango G.
Parasitol Res. 2011 Oct 27. [Epub ahead of print]
PMID:
22033735
[PubMed - as supplied by publisher]
The magnet® model: an infrastructure for excellence.
Luzinski C.
J Nurs Adm. 2011 Nov;41(11):441-2.
PMID:
22033310
[PubMed - in process]
Surface tunability of nanoparticles in modulating platelet functions.
Deb S, Raja SO, Dasgupta AK, Sarkar R, Chattopadhyay AP, Chaudhuri U, Guha P, Sardar P.
Blood Cells Mol Dis. 2011 Oct 25. [Epub ahead of print]
PMID:
22033068
[PubMed - as supplied by publisher]
Bio-based nanocomposite coating to preserve quality of Fior di latte cheese.
Gammariello D, Conte A, Buonocore GG, Del Nobile MA.
J Dairy Sci. 2011 Nov;94(11):5298-304.
PMID:
22032352
[PubMed - in process]
European ban on stem-cell patents has a silver lining.
Callaway E.
Nature. 2011 Oct 24;478(7370):441. doi: 10.1038/478441a. No abstract available.
PMID:
22031415
[PubMed - in process]
Use of atorvastatin in systemic lupus erythematosus in children and adolescents.
Schanberg LE, Sandborg C, Barnhart HX, Ardoin SP, Yow E, Evans GW, Mieszkalski KL, Ilowite NT, Eberhard A, Imundo LF, Kimura Y, von Scheven E, Silverman E, Bowyer SL, Punaro L, Singer NG, Sherry DD, McCurdy D, Klein-Gitelman M, Wallace C, Silver R, Wagner-Weiner L, Higgins GC, Brunner HI, Jung L, Soep JB, Reed AM, Provenzale J, Thompson SD; for the APPLE investigators..
Arthritis Rheum. 2011 Oct 26. doi: 10.1002/art.30645. [Epub ahead of print]
PMID:
22031171
[PubMed - as supplied by publisher]
Biomimetic synthesis of chiral erbium-doped silver/peptide/silica core-shell nanoparticles (ESPN).
Mantion A, Graf P, Florea I, Haase A, Thünemann AF, Masic A, Ersen O, Rabu P, Meier W, Luch A, Taubert A.
Nanoscale. 2011 Oct 27. [Epub ahead of print]
PMID:
22031101
[PubMed - as supplied by publisher]
Effect of tetracycline on the bond performance of etch-and-rinse adhesives to dentin.
Stanislawczuk R, Costa JA, Polli LG, Reis A, Loguercio AD.
Braz Oral Res. 2011 Oct;25(5):459-65.
PMID:
22031061
[PubMed - in process]
Measuring quality of life in cleft lip and palate patients: currently available patient-reported outcomes measures.
Eckstein DA, Wu RL, Akinbiyi T, Silver L, Taub PJ.
Plast Reconstr Surg. 2011 Nov;128(5):518e-26e.
PMID:
22030513
[PubMed - in process]
A systematic review of silver-containing dressings and topical silver agents (used with dressings) for burn wounds.
Aziz Z, Abu SF, Chong NJ.
Burns. 2011 Oct 24. [Epub ahead of print]
PMID:
22030441
[PubMed - as supplied by publisher]
CTSA-IP: A Solution to Identifying and Aggregating Intellectual Property across the NIH Clinical Translational Science Award (CTSA) Consortium of Biomedical Research Institutes.
Hazard M, Steele S, Wang D, Pearson T, Scheideler M, Dewhurst S.
Clin Transl Sci. 2011 Oct;4(5):328-331. doi: 10.1111/j.1752-8062.2011.00308.x.
PMID:
22029803
[PubMed - as supplied by publisher]
Use of Fluorescent DNA-Templated Gold/Silver Nanoclusters for the Detection of Sulfide Ions.
Chen WY, Lan GY, Chang HT.
Anal Chem. 2011 Oct 27. [Epub ahead of print]
PMID:
22029551
[PubMed - as supplied by publisher]
What Point-of-Use Water Treatment Products Do Consumers Use? Evidence from a Randomized Controlled Trial among the Urban Poor in Bangladesh.
Luoto J, Najnin N, Mahmud M, Albert J, Islam MS, Luby S, Unicomb L, Levine DI.
PLoS One. 2011;6(10):e26132. Epub 2011 Oct 20.
PMID:
22028817
[PubMed - in process]
Correction: circulating soluble endoglin levels in pregnant women in cameroon and Malawi-associations with placental malaria and fetal growth restriction.
Silver KL, Conroy AL, Leke RG, Leke RJ, Gwanmesia P, Molyneux ME, Wallace Taylor D, Rogerson SJ, Kain KC.
PLoS One. 2011;6(10). doi: 10.1371/annotation/e9946f72-821d-45ea-bcd4-3fa3ff89a5fe. Epub 2011 Oct 7.
PMID:
22028764
[PubMed - in process]
Fc receptor-like 5 promotes B cell proliferation and drives the development of cells displaying switched isotypes.
Dement-Brown J, Newton CS, Ise T, Damdinsuren B, Nagata S, Tolnay M.
J Leukoc Biol. 2011 Oct 25. [Epub ahead of print]
PMID:
22028333
[PubMed - as supplied by publisher]
Colorimetric detection of copper ions in tap water during the synthesis of silver/dopamine nanoparticles.
Ma YR, Niu HY, Zhang XL, Cai YQ.
Chem Commun (Camb). 2011 Oct 26. [Epub ahead of print]
PMID:
22027901
[PubMed - as supplied by publisher]
Measuring and manipulating subjective organization after traumatic brain injury.
Parente R, Demott E, Johnson C, Jennings P, Silver R.
NeuroRehabilitation. 2011 Jan 1;29(2):117-24.
PMID:
22027072
[PubMed - in process]
Development of a Histidine-Targeted Spectrophotometric Sensor Using Ni(II)NTA Functionalized Au and Ag Nanoparticles.
Swartz JD, Gulka CP, Haselton FR, Wright DW.
Langmuir. 2011 Oct 25. [Epub ahead of print]
PMID:
22026818
[PubMed - as supplied by publisher] |
