Hg 80

Mercury (Hg)

transition-metal

Period: 6 Group: 12 Block: s

Liquid

Standard Atomic Weight

Electron configuration

[Xe] 6s² 4f¹⁴ 5d¹⁰

Melting point

-38.83 °C (234.32 K)

Boiling point

356.73 °C (629.88 K)

Density

1.353360e+4 kg/m³

Oxidation states

−2, +1, +2

Electronegativity (Pauling)

Ionization energy (1st)

Discovery year

N/A

Atomic radius

150 pm

Details

Name origin From the Roman god Mercury; symbol from Latin: hydrargyrus (liquid silver).

Discoverers Known to the ancients.

Mercury is a heavy, silvery transition metal with the distinctive feature of being liquid near ordinary room temperature. It has a filled 5d shell and commonly forms +1 and +2 compounds, with covalent character more prominent than in many lighter metals. Mercury has been used in instruments, electrical devices, and gold extraction, but many uses have declined because its vapor and several compounds are highly toxic.

It is a heavy, silvery-white metal; a rather poor conductor of heat, as compared with other metals, and a fair conductor of electricity. It easily forms alloys with many metals, such as gold, silver, and tin, which are called amalgams. Its ease in amalgamating with gold is made use of in the recovery of gold from its ores. The most important salts are mercury chloride (corrosive sublimate - a violent poison), mercurous chloride (calomel, occasionally still used in medicine), mercury fulminate, a detonator widely used in explosives, and mercuric sulfide (vermilion, a high-grade paint pigment). Organic mercury compounds are important. It has been found that an electrical discharge causes mercury vapor to combine with neon, argon, krypton, and xenon. These products, held together with van der Waals' forces, correspond to HgNe, HgAr, HgKr, and HgXe. Mercury is a virulent poison and is readily absorbed through the respiratory tract, the gastrointestinal tract, or through unbroken skin. It acts as a cumulative poison and dangerous levels are readily attained in air. Air saturated with mercury vapor at 20°C contains a concentration that exceeds the toxicity limits. The danger increases at higher temperatures. It is important therefore that mercury be handled with care. Containers of mercury should be securely covered and spillage should be avoided. If it is necessary to heat mercury or mercury compounds, it should be done in a well-ventilated hood. Methyl mercury is a dangerous pollutant and is now widely found in water and streams. The triple point of mercury, -38.8344C, is a fixed point on the International Temperature Scale (ITS-90).

The name derives from the Roman god Mercury, the nimble messenger of the gods, because the ancients used that name for the element known from prehistoric times. The symbol Hg derives from the Greek hydrargyrum for "liquid silver" or "quick silver".

Mercury was known to the ancient Chinese and Hindus and has been found in 3500 year old Egyptian tombs. Mercury is not usually found free in nature and is primarily obtained from the mineral cinnabar (HgS). Spain and Italy produce about half of the world's supply of Mercury.

From Greek hydoor. Known to ancient Chinese and Hindus; found in Egyptian tombs of 1500 B.C. Mercury is the only common metal liquid at ordinary temperatures. It only rarely occurs free in nature. The chief ore is cinnabar; Spain and Italy produce about 50% of the world's supply of the metal. The commercial unit for handling mercury is the "flask," which weighs 76 lb. The metal is obtained by heating cinnabar in a current of air and by condensing the vapor.

Read about Mercury on Wikipedia

Images

Properties

Physical

Atomic radius (empirical) 150 pm

Covalent radius 132 pm

Van der Waals radius 209 pm

Metallic radius 139 pm

Density

Molar volume 0.0148 L/mol

Phase at STP liquid

Melting point -38.83 °C

Boiling point 356.73 °C

Thermal conductivity 8.3 W/(m·K)

Specific heat capacity 0.14 J/(g·K)

Molar heat capacity 27.983 J/(mol·K)

Crystal structure rhombohedral

Chemical

Electronegativity (Pauling) 2

Electronegativity (Allen) 1.76

Electron affinity

Ionization energy (1st)

Ionization energy (2nd)

Ionization energy (3rd)

Ionization energy (4th)

Ionization energy (5th)

Oxidation states −2, +1, +2

Valence electrons 12

Electron configuration

Electron configuration (semantic)

Thermodynamic

Triple point (temperature) -38.8344 °C

Critical point (temperature) 1491 °C

Critical point (pressure) 1.670000e+8 Pa

Heat of fusion 0.02373426 eV

Heat of vaporization 0.61263409 eV

Heat of sublimation 0.63636835 eV

Heat of atomization 0.63636835 eV

Atomization enthalpy

Nuclear

Stable isotopes 7

Abundance

Abundance (Earth's crust) 0.085 mg/kg

Abundance (ocean)

Reactivity

N/A

Crystal Structure

Lattice constant a 299 pm

Electronic Structure

Electrons per shell 2, 8, 18, 32, 18, 2

Identifiers

CAS number 7439-97-6

Term symbol

InChI InChI=1S/Hg

InChI Key QSHDDOUJBYECFT-UHFFFAOYSA-N

Electron Configuration Measured

Ion charge

Protons 80

Electrons 80

Charge Neutral

Configuration Hg: 4f¹⁴ 5d¹⁰ 6s²

[Xe] 4f¹⁴ 5d¹⁰ 6s²

1s² 2s² 2p⁶ 3s² 3p⁶ 3d¹⁰ 4s² 4p⁶ 4d¹⁰ 5s² 5p⁶ 4f¹⁴ 5d¹⁰ 6s²

Orbital diagram

↑↓

2/2

↑↓

2/2

↑↓

6/6

↑↓

2/2

↑↓

6/6

↑↓

2/2

↑↓

10/10

↑↓

6/6

↑↓

2/2

↑↓

10/10

↑↓

6/6

↑↓

2/2

↑↓

14/14

↑↓

10/10

Total electrons: 80 Unpaired: 0

Atomic model

Protons 80

Neutrons 122

Electrons 80

Mass number 202

Stability Stable

Isotopes change neutron count, mass, and stability — not the electron configuration of a neutral atom.

Schematic atomic model, not to scale.

Atomic Fingerprint

Emission / Absorption Spectrum

Emission Visible: 380–750 nm

Isotope Distribution

Mass number	Atomic mass (u)	Natural abundance	Half-life
198 Stable	197.9667686 ± 0.00000052	9.9700%	Stable
199 Stable	198.96828064 ± 0.00000046	16.8700%	Stable
200 Stable	199.96832659 ± 0.00000047	23.1000%	Stable
201 Stable	200.97030284 ± 0.00000069	13.1800%	Stable
202 Stable	201.9706434 ± 0.00000069	29.8600%	Stable
204 Stable	203.97349398 ± 0.00000053	6.8700%	Stable

Measured

Phase / State

Liquid 25 °C (298.15 K)

Reason: between melting point (-38.83 °C) and boiling point (356.73 °C)

Melting point -38.83 °C

Boiling point 356.73 °C

Relative to transitions Between transitions

0 K Current temperature: 25 °C 6000 K

Phase timeline

Schematic, not to scale

Solid

Liquid

Gas

Melting

Boiling

25°C

Solid

Liquid

Gas

Current

Phase transition points

Melting point Literature

-38.83 °C

Boiling point Literature

356.73 °C

Current phase Calculated
Liquid

Transition energies

Heat of fusion Literature

0.02373426 eV

Energy required to melt 1 mol at melting point

Heat of vaporization Literature

0.61263409 eV

Energy required to vaporize 1 mol at boiling point

Heat of sublimation Literature

0.63636835 eV

Energy required to sublime 1 mol at sublimation point

Density

Reference density Literature

1.353360e+4 kg/m³

At standard conditions

Current density Calculated

N/A

Not available for liquid phase

Advanced

Triple point Literature

-38.8344 °C

Critical point Literature

1491 °C

Atomic Spectra

Showing 10 of 81 Atomic Spectra. Sorted by ion charge (ascending).

Lines Holdings ?

Ion	Charge	Total lines	Transition probabilities	Level designations
Hg I	0	754	53	708
198Hg I Isotope	0	210	0	210
Hg II	+1	554	446	463
Hg III	+2	52	0	0

NIST Lines Holdings →

Levels Holdings ?

Ion	Charge	Levels
Hg I	0	299
198Hg I Isotope	0	61
Hg II	+1	115
Hg III	+2	94
Hg IV	+3	61
Hg V	+4	2
Hg VI	+5	2
Hg VII	+6	2
Hg VIII	+7	2
Hg IX	+8	2

NIST Levels Holdings →

80 Hg 200.592

Mercury — Atomic Orbital Visualizer

[Xe]6s24f145d10

Energy levels 2 8 18 32 18 2

Oxidation states -2, +1, +2

HOMO 6s n=6 · l=0 · m=0

Mercury — Atomic Orbital Visualizer Preview

Three.js loads only on request

80 Hg 200.592

Mercury — Crystal Structure Visualizer

No crystal structure at standard conditions — liquid at 298 K, 1 atm

Crystal structure data not available for solid phase

Crystal structure: rhombohedral

Ionic Radii

Charge	Coordination	Spin	Radius
+1	3	N/A	97 pm
+1	6	N/A	119 pm
+2	2	N/A	69 pm
+2	4	N/A	96 pm
+2	6	N/A	102 pm
+2	8	N/A	113.99999999999999 pm

Compounds

200.590 u

Hg+2

200.590 u

Hg+

200.590 u

202.973 u

196.967 u

198.968 u

194.967 u

201.971 u

200.970 u

193.965 u

192.967 u

203.973 u

199.968 u

197.967 u

Hg+2

196.967 u

Isotopes (6)

Mass number	Atomic mass (u)	Natural abundance	Half-life	Decay mode
198 Stable	197.9667686 ± 0.00000052	9.9700% ± 0.2000%	Stable	stable
199 Stable	198.96828064 ± 0.00000046	16.8700% ± 0.2200%	Stable	stable
200 Stable	199.96832659 ± 0.00000047	23.1000% ± 0.1900%	Stable	stable
201 Stable	200.97030284 ± 0.00000069	13.1800% ± 0.0900%	Stable	stable
202 Stable	201.9706434 ± 0.00000069	29.8600% ± 0.2600%	Stable	stable
204 Stable	203.97349398 ± 0.00000053	6.8700% ± 0.1500%	Stable	stable

198 Stable

Atomic mass (u) 197.9667686 ± 0.00000052

Natural abundance 9.9700% ± 0.2000%

Half-life Stable

Decay mode

stable

199 Stable

Atomic mass (u) 198.96828064 ± 0.00000046

Natural abundance 16.8700% ± 0.2200%

Half-life Stable

Decay mode

stable

200 Stable

Atomic mass (u) 199.96832659 ± 0.00000047

Natural abundance 23.1000% ± 0.1900%

Half-life Stable

Decay mode

stable

201 Stable

Atomic mass (u) 200.97030284 ± 0.00000069

Natural abundance 13.1800% ± 0.0900%

Half-life Stable

Decay mode

stable

202 Stable

Atomic mass (u) 201.9706434 ± 0.00000069

Natural abundance 29.8600% ± 0.2600%

Half-life Stable

Decay mode

stable

204 Stable

Atomic mass (u) 203.97349398 ± 0.00000053

Natural abundance 6.8700% ± 0.1500%

Half-life Stable

Decay mode

stable

Spectral Lines

Showing 50 of 218 Spectral Lines. Only spectral lines with measured intensity are shown by default.

Wavelength (nm)	Intensity	Ion stage	Type	Transition	Accuracy	Source
542.5249 nm	8000000	Hg II	emission	5d10.6d 2D → 5d10.5f 2F*	Measured	NIST
587.12779 nm	1200000	Hg II	emission	5d10.7p 2P* → 5d10.7d 2D	Measured	NIST
559.526 nm	200000	Hg II	emission	5d10.6d 2D → 5d10.5f 2F*	Measured	NIST
520.4768 nm	150000	Hg II	emission	5d9.6s.6d [(2D<5/2>,1/2)<3>,5/2] → 5d9.6s.5f [(2D<5/2>,1/2)<3>,7/2]*	Measured	NIST
629.123 nm	65000	Hg II	emission	5d10.5f 2F* → 5d10.6g 2G	Measured	NIST
639.4888 nm	55000	Hg II	emission	5d10.5f 2F* → 5d10.6g 2G	Measured	NIST
380.63154 nm	50000	Hg II	emission	5d10.7p 2P* → 5d10.8d 2D	Measured	NIST
439.8623 nm	40000	Hg II	emission	5d10.7p 2P* → 5d10.8d 2D	Measured	NIST
521.6379 nm	40000	Hg II	emission	5d9.6s.6d [(2D<5/2>,1/2)<3>,5/2] → 5d9.6s.5f [(2D<5/2>,1/2)<3>,5/2]*	Measured	NIST
466.0216 nm	30000	Hg II	emission	5d9.6s.6p (2D<3/2>,3P<1>)* → 5d10.7d 2D	Measured	NIST
527.7593 nm	18000	Hg II	emission	5d9.6s.6d [(2D<5/2>,1/2)<3>,5/2] → 5d9.6s.5f [(2D<5/2>,1/2)<3>,5/2]*	Measured	NIST
482.5564 nm	17000	Hg II	emission	5d9.6s.6d [(2D<5/2>,1/2)<3>,3/2] → 5d9.6s.5f [(2D<5/2>,1/2)<3>,5/2]*	Measured	NIST
514.6293 nm	15000	Hg II	emission	5d9.6s.6d [(2D<5/2>,1/2)<3>,5/2] → 5d9.6s.5f [(2D<5/2>,1/2)<3>,5/2]*	Measured	NIST
404.65643 nm	12000	Hg I	emission	5d10.6s.6p 3P* → 5d10.6s.7s 3S	Measured	NIST
435.83363 nm	12000	Hg I	emission	5d10.6s.6p 3P* → 5d10.6s.7s 3S	Measured	NIST
383.9255 nm	10000	Hg II	emission	5d10.7s 2S → 5d9.6s.6p (2D<3/2>,1P<1>)*	Measured	NIST
546.07498 nm	6000	Hg I	emission	5d10.6s.6p 3P* → 5d10.6s.7s 3S	Measured	NIST
391.43142 nm	5000	Hg II	emission	5d9.6s.6p (2D<3/2>,3P<2>)* → 5d9.6s.7s [(2D<5/2>,1/2)<3>,1/2]	Measured	NIST
412.0447 nm	4000	Hg II	emission	5d10.7p 2P* → 5d10.9s 2S	Measured	NIST
449.28309 nm	2800	Hg II	emission	5d10.6d 2D → 5d10.8p 2P*	Measured	NIST
664.66839 nm	1300	Hg II	emission	5d9.6s2 2D → 5d9.6s2 2D	Measured	NIST
506.6497 nm	1200	Hg II	emission	5d9.6s.6d [(2D<5/2>,1/2)<3>,3/2] → 5d9.6s.5f [(2D<5/2>,1/2)<3>,7/2]*	Measured	NIST
382.89121 nm	1000	Hg II	emission	5d9.6s.6p (2D<3/2>,3P<2>)* → 5d9.6s.7s [(2D<5/2>,1/2)<3>,1/2]	Measured	NIST
407.7837 nm	1000	Hg I	emission	5d10.6s.6p 3P* → 5d10.6s.7s 1S	Measured	NIST
576.96095 nm	1000	Hg I	emission	5d10.6s.6p 1P* → 5d10.6s.6d 3D	Measured	NIST
690.746 nm	1000	Hg I	emission	5d10.6s.7s 3S → 5d10.6s.8p 3P*	Measured	NIST
708.1901 nm	1000	Hg I	emission	5d10.6s.7s 3S → 5d10.6s.8p 3P*	Measured	NIST
579.06705 nm	900	Hg I	emission	5d10.6s.6p 1P* → 5d10.6s.6d 1D	Measured	NIST
709.186 nm	800	Hg I	emission	5d10.6s.7s 3S → 5d10.6s.8p 3P*	Measured	NIST
567.588 nm	600	Hg I	emission	5d10.6s.7s 3S → 5d10.6s.9p 1P*	Measured	NIST
671.636 nm	600	Hg I	emission	5d10.6s.7s 1S → 5d9.6s2.(2D<5/2>).6p 2[3/2]*	Measured	NIST
580.3783 nm	400	Hg I	emission	5d10.6s.7s 1S → 5d10.6s.10p 1P*	Measured	NIST
474.2296 nm	300	Hg II	emission	5d9.6s.6d [(2D<5/2>,1/2)<3>,3/2] → 5d9.6s.5f [(2D<5/2>,1/2)<3>,7/2]*	Measured	NIST
434.74951 nm	150	Hg I	emission	5d10.6s.6p 1P* → 5d10.6s.7d 1D	Measured	NIST
594.7682 nm	150	Hg II	emission	5d10.7d 2D → 5d10.8f 2F*	Measured	NIST
535.4036 nm	130	Hg I	emission	5d10.6s.7s 3S → 5d10.6s.10p 3P*	Measured	NIST
585.9254 nm	130	Hg I	emission	5d10.6s.7s 3S → 5d10.6s.9p 3P*	Measured	NIST
496.017 nm	100	Hg I	emission	5d9.6s2.(2D<5/2>).6p 2[7/2]* → 5d9.6s2.(2D<5/2>).7s 2[5/2]	Measured	NIST
510.0945 nm	100	Hg II	emission	5d9.6s.6d [(2D<5/2>,1/2)<3>,5/2] → 5d9.6s.5f [(2D<5/2>,1/2)<3>,7/2]*	Measured	NIST
410.8054 nm	70	Hg I	emission	5d10.6s.6p 1P* → 5d10.6s.9s 1S	Measured	NIST
512.0637 nm	70	Hg I	emission	5d10.6s.7s 3S → 5d10.6s.11p 3P*	Measured	NIST
509.8561 nm	60	Hg II	emission	5d9.6s.6d [(2D<5/2>,1/2)<3>,5/2] → 5d9.6s.5f [(2D<5/2>,1/2)<3>,5/2]*	Measured	NIST
380.16582 nm	50	Hg I	emission	5d10.6s.6p 1P* → 5d10.6s.10s 1S	Measured	NIST
382.037 nm	50	Hg I	emission	5d9.6s2.(2D<5/2>).6p 2[7/2]* → 5d9.6s2.(2D<5/2>).7s 2[5/2]	Measured	NIST
404.7742 nm	50	Hg II	emission	5d9.6s.6p (2D<3/2>,3P<2>)* → 5d9.6s.7s [(2D<5/2>,1/2)<3>,1/2]	Measured	NIST
433.92228 nm	50	Hg I	emission	5d10.6s.6p 1P* → 5d10.6s.7d 3D	Measured	NIST
538.4627 nm	50	Hg I	emission	5d10.6s.7s 3S → 5d10.6s.10p 3P*	Measured	NIST
554.9636 nm	50	Hg I	emission	5d10.6s.7s 1S → 5d10.6s.11p 1P*	Measured	NIST
623.435 nm	50	Hg I	emission	5d10.6s.7s 1S → 5d10.6s.9p 1P*	Measured	NIST
390.6383 nm	40	Hg I	emission	5d10.6s.6p 1P* → 5d10.6s.8d 1D	Measured	NIST

Extended Properties

Covalent Radii (Extended)

Covalent radius (Pyykkö)

Covalent radius (Pyykkö, double)

Van der Waals Radii

Batsanov

Alvarez

UFF

MM3

Atomic & Metallic Radii

Atomic radius (Rahm)

Metallic radius (C12)

Numbering Scales

Mendeleev

Pettifor

Glawe

Electronegativity Scales

Ghosh

Miedema

Gunnarsson–Lundqvist

Robles–Bartolotti

Polarizability & Dispersion

Dipole polarizability

Dipole polarizability (unc.)

C₆ (Gould–Bučko)

Miedema Parameters

Miedema molar volume

Miedema electron density

Supply Risk & Economics

Production concentration

Relative supply risk

Reserve distribution

Political stability (top producer)

Political stability (top reserve)

Phase Transitions & Allotropes

Melting point	234.32 K
Boiling point	629.77 K
Critical point (temperature)	1764.15 K
Critical point (pressure)	167 MPa
Triple point (temperature)	234.32 K

Oxidation State Categories

+1 main

+2 main

−2 extended

Advanced Reference Data

Screening Constants (14)

n	Orbital	σ
1	s	1.5419
2	p	4.499
2	s	20.8906
3	d	13.4804
3	p	22.4798
3	s	23.4587
4	d	37.532
4	f	38.2392
4	p	35.594
4	s	34.7552

Crystal Radii Detail (6)

Charge	CN	r_crystal (pm)	Origin
1	III	111
1	VI	133
2	II	83
2	IV	110
2	VI	116
2	VIII	128	from r^3 vs V plots,

Isotope Decay Modes (76)

Isotope	Mode	Intensity
170	A	100%
171	A	100%
171	B+	—
172	A	100%
172	B+	—
173	A	100%
174	A	100%
174	B+	—
175	A	100%
175	B+	—

X‑ray Scattering Factors (516)

Energy (eV)	f₁	f₂
10	—	3.07253
10.1617	—	3.05926
10.3261	—	3.04605
10.4931	—	3.0329
10.6628	—	3.0198
10.8353	—	3.00676
11.0106	—	3.02448
11.1886	—	3.04517
11.3696	—	3.066
11.5535	—	3.08698

Additional Data

Estimated Crustal Abundance

The estimated element abundance in the earth's crust.

8.5×10-2 milligrams per kilogram

References (1)

[5] Mercury https://education.jlab.org/itselemental/ele080.html

Estimated Oceanic Abundance

The estimated element abundance in the earth's oceans.

3×10-5 milligrams per liter

References (1)

[5] Mercury https://education.jlab.org/itselemental/ele080.html

References

(9)

1 PubChem

Data deposited in or computed by PubChem

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2 Atomic Mass Data Center (AMDC), International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA)

The half-life and atomic mass data was provided by the Atomic Mass Data Center at the International Atomic Energy Agency.

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3 IUPAC Commission on Isotopic Abundances and Atomic Weights (CIAAW)

Mercury

Element data are cited from the Atomic weights of the elements (an IUPAC Technical Report). The IUPAC periodic table of elements can be found at https://iupac.org/what-we-do/periodic-table-of-elements/. Additional information can be found within IUPAC publication doi:10.1515/pac-2015-0703 Copyright © 2020 International Union of Pure and Applied Chemistry.

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4 IUPAC Periodic Table of the Elements and Isotopes (IPTEI)

The information are cited from Pure Appl. Chem. 2018; 90(12): 1833-2092, https://doi.org/10.1515/pac-2015-0703.

Visit source License

License note: Copyright (c) 2020 International Union of Pure and Applied Chemistry. The International Union of Pure and Applied Chemistry (IUPAC) contribution within Pubchem is provided under a CC-BY-NC-ND 4.0 license, unless otherwise stated.

5 Jefferson Lab, U.S. Department of Energy

Mercury

Thomas Jefferson National Accelerator Facility (Jefferson Lab) is one of 17 national laboratories funded by the U.S. Department of Energy. The lab's primary mission is to conduct basic research of the atom's nucleus using the lab's unique particle accelerator, known as the Continuous Electron Beam Accelerator Facility (CEBAF). For more information visit https://www.jlab.org/

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License note: Please see citation and linking information: https://education.jlab.org/faq/index.html

6 Los Alamos National Laboratory, U.S. Department of Energy

Mercury

The periodic table at the LANL (Los Alamos National Laboratory) contains basic element information together with the history, source, properties, use, handling and more. The provenance data may be found from the link under the source name.

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7 NIST Physical Measurement Laboratory

Mercury

The periodic table contains NIST's critically-evaluated data on atomic properties of the elements. The provenance data that include data for atomic spectroscopy, X-ray and gamma ray, radiation dosimetry, nuclear physics, and condensed matter physics may be found from the link under the source name. Ref: https://www.nist.gov/pml/atomic-spectra-database

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8 PubChem Elements

Mercury

This section provides all form of data related to element Mercury.

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9 PubChem Elements

Mercury

The element property data was retrieved from publications.

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Last updated: May 1, 2026

Data verified: May 12, 2026

Content is reviewed against latest scientific data.