BORON GROUP ELEMENT

Figure 1: Modern version of the periodic table of the elements. To see more information about an any of the five chemical elements constituting Group IIIa of the periodic table (see Figure). The elements are boron (B), aluminum (Al), gallium (Ga), indium (In), and thallium (Tl). They are characterized as a group by having three electrons in the outermost parts of their atomic structure. Boron, the lightest of these elements, is a nonmetal but the other members of the group are silvery-white metals. None of these elements was known in a pure state before modern chemistry isolated them. Very soon after a method had been found to produce it in commercial quantities, aluminum revolutionized industry. The other members of the group, including boron, still have little commercial value. Some of the compounds of boron and aluminum, however, are indispensable in modern technology and have been widely used in many parts of the world throughout recorded history. any of the five chemical elements constituting Group IIIa of the periodic table. The elements are boron (B), aluminum (Al), gallium (Ga), indium (In), and thallium (Tl). Boron group elements are relatively rare, except for aluminum, the third most common element in Earth's crust. None of these elements occurs uncombined in nature. Boron, the lightest of the family, is often considered a metalloid (having properties of both metals and nonmetals), whereas the others are silvery white metals. Every boron group element has three electrons in the outermost shell of its atomic structure. Thus they have maximum oxidation numbers of three and usually form ions with three positive charges. Additional reading Standard Methods of Chemical Analysis, 6th ed., vol. 1, The Elements, ed. by N.H. Furman (1962, reprinted 1975), is a comprehensive text on analysis with further information on the boron group. A booklet by A.G. Massey and J. Kane, Boron (1972), describes the modern uses of boron and its compounds. A.G. Massey, The Typical Elements (1972), is an undergraduate text on the nontransition elements. More recent information may be found in Joel F. Liebman, Arthur Greenberg, and Robert E. Williams (eds.), Advances in Boron and the Boranes (1988). Alan Gibbs Massey The Editors of the Encyclopdia Britannica