To discover the elements, researchers at the three labs slammed lighter nuclei into one another and looked for signature radioactive decays that should come from the new elements. Ununtrium and ununpentium are thought to be metals, while ununseptium could be a metalloid – a material bearing some metallic properties. The fourth element, ununoctium, may be a noble gas, like other group-18 elements, helium, neon and argon. It is hard to know for sure because so few atoms of each element have ever been made. Paul Karol, chair of the IUPAC panel that verified the elements, said: “Practical applications of the new elements, if any, are a long way off because of the difficulty in synthesis.”
What does Paul Karol say about the new elements?
They will not be utilized for a while They will be used in practice before too long They do not have radioactive decays They reflect huge progress in the chemistry fiel