Tellurium was one of Mendeleev’s rare mistakes on the original periodic table as he put it in the wrong place.
Tellurium compounds are most famous for their nasty and persistent smell. Just fifteen milligrams of tellurium oxide taken orally will still be detectable as ‘tellurium breath’ eight months later. And the smell? Like bad garlic, owing to the production of dimethyltellurium.
It is a metalloid and finds uses in semiconductors, says Professor Allan Blackman from the Auckland University of Technology, in episode 82 of Elemental.
Photo: RNZ
You can subscribe to the Elemental podcast for free, at Apple Podcasts, Spotify, Stitcher, Google Podcasts, RadioPublic and iHeartRADIO.
The Elemental podcast is celebrating 150 years since the periodic table was first published by Russian chemist Dmitri Mendeleev.
Find out more about events during the United Nation’s International Year of the Periodic Table.
Professor Allan Blackman is at Auckland University of Technology.
