______ is an important metal to form

Solution

Amalgam : • Alloy obtained after mixing mercury with another metal is called Amalgam. • All metals but Iron, Platinum, Tungsten and Tantalum form Amalgam with mercury. • Siver and gold amalgams are used to fill tooth cavities in dentistry. • Metallic bonds (arising out of electrostatic forces) hold the metals together in amalgam. Mercury : Mercury is a transition metal present in period 6 and group 12 of the periodic table with 80 as the atomic number. • Mercury is the only metal, which is liquid at room temperature. • When placed in a tube meniscus of mercury is convex, opposite to concave meniscus of water. • It is used in clinical thermometers because of the property of its proportional expansion with increasing temperature. • Elemental mercury is toxic to living beings and Minamata disease is associated with its consumption.