# Why is mecury unlike any other metal? **URL:** \ **Category:** Factual Questions\ **Created:** [August 8, 2001, 9:00am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-is-mecury-unlike-any-other-metal/75427 "2001-08-08T09:00:32Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 6\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![genecola](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/bc8723/32.png) [@genecola](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/genecola)\ **Post date:** [August 8, 2001, 9:00am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-is-mecury-unlike-any-other-metal/75427/1 "2001-08-08T09:00:32Z")
Why is mecury unlike any other metal? Why does it have a low melting point of -40 degrees (either fahrenheit or celsius)? ---
**Author:** ![Mangetout](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/mangetout/32/19_2.png) [@Mangetout](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Mangetout)\ **Post date:** [August 8, 2001, 9:59am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-is-mecury-unlike-any-other-metal/75427/2 "2001-08-08T09:59:57Z")
Maybe some chemists and physicists will be along later to talk about atomic weights and so on, but on the face of it, your question is a bit of an odd one; mercury is like that because that’s what mercury is like; it’s like asking “why is water wet”, metals have a variety of different melting points, mercury’s happens to be below room temperature; if we happened to be creatures that lived on a much hotter planet (if life is possible under such conditions), you’d be asking “Why are lead and tin unlike other metals?” ---
**Author:** ![tavalla](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/tavalla/32/89_2.png) [@tavalla](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/tavalla)\ **Post date:** [August 8, 2001, 10:12am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-is-mecury-unlike-any-other-metal/75427/3 "2001-08-08T10:12:58Z")
According to [http://www.webelements.com](http://www.webelements.com) “The melting point is the temperature at which the vapour pressure of the solid and the liquid are the same and the presssure totals one atmosphere.” So now all you need is someone to explain _that_ because I’m still kind of in the dark, even though I know that -40 C is the temperature at which the vapour pressure of the solid and the liquid are the same and the presssure totals one atmosphere, at least as far as mercury is concerned. I _knew_ I shoulda stayed awake in class… ---
**Author:** ![Popup](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/94ad74/32.png) [@Popup](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Popup)\ **Post date:** [August 8, 2001, 10:18am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-is-mecury-unlike-any-other-metal/75427/4 "2001-08-08T10:18:08Z")
First let’s get some things straight: It’s me **r** cury. And it’s melting point is -38.83 °C (-37.89 °F) (according to [WebElements](http://www.webelements.com/webelements/elements/text/Hg/heat.html)) I’ve always thought that it was because of the crystal structure. (SC - simple cubic, whereas most metals are fcc - face centered cubic). This means that the atoms are generally rather far from each other, so the electron cloud gets dispersed, and the average attraction decreases. However, according to the [World Chemistry](http://www.wbaileynet.com/wldchem/home/response/mercury.htm) website, there’s more to it: > [@](#): > > There is one trend, one electron configuration feature and one structural feature that together may explain the low metling point of mercury. Each trend, electron configuration or the structural feature alone may not be enough to account for the anamolous melting point of mercury, but taken together they could constitute a coherent explanation. > > [ul] > [li]Trend: Melting points decrease down metal groups in the s-block[/li][li]Electron Configurations: The Group 12 (IIb) elements Zn, Cd and Hg are not transition metals.[/li][li]Structural Feature: The anamolous packing of Hg atoms in the solid metal.[/li][/ul] See the link above for details And let’s face it. It’s not **that** far ahead of sodium. ---
**Author:** ![Mangetout](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/mangetout/32/19_2.png) [@Mangetout](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Mangetout)\ **Post date:** [August 8, 2001, 10:24am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-is-mecury-unlike-any-other-metal/75427/5 "2001-08-08T10:24:11Z")
Sodium doesn’t tend to stick around very long as a pure element though. ---
**Author:** ![Jman](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/jman/32/4416_2.png) [@Jman](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Jman)\ **Post date:** [August 8, 2001, 11:00am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-is-mecury-unlike-any-other-metal/75427/6 "2001-08-08T11:00:33Z")
Also, don’t forget about Gallium. The metal the melts in your hand, but not in the room. 🙂 (Melting point of 85.57 degrees F) Jman