"The devil's element"; a closer look at phosphorus Quiz

Answer: It was the 13th element to be formally discovered

This was the first element to be formally discovered which was not previously known as a distinct substance.

Answer: P

K is potassium, Po is polonium, Pb is lead.

Answer: Phosphorus exists naturally in its elemental form

Phosphorus is never found standing alone in nature as it is highly reactive. Various allotropes (forms) of elemental phosphorus exist. They have varied properties and are often identified by their distinct coloring. These include white, red, violet, and black. (If you have ever heard of "yellow phosphorus" it is not really a separate form, but an impure sample of white phosphorus with a small amount of red phosphorus mixed in.) Though some of these are stable once produced, they do not occur spontaneously.
Phosphorus is a non-metal, though in some circumstances it is considered a metalloid (a hybrid with some properties of both metals and non-metals).
Pnictogen is a term for any element in group 15 on the periodic table, which also includes, Nitrogen, Arsenic, Antimony, Bismuth and the synthetic element Ununpentium.

Answer: chemiluminescence

Yes, that's right, phosphorus lost the rights to the word phosphorescence. Somehow that seems wrong since the word would not exist if not for phosphorus. Chemiluminescence is when light energy is released from a material as part of a chemical reaction. Bioluminescence is chemiluminesce specifically produced in living organisms such as lightning bugs, angler fish, etc. Fluorescence and (modern) phosphorescence involve re-emission of light energy which was absorbed from an outside source. Fluorescence happens almost instantaneously whereas phosphorescence is slower and will visibly persist after the charging source of light is removed. Evanescence is when something visible gradually fades from sight.

Answer: The Philosopher's Stone

The Philosopher's Stone is a mythical substance which alchemists believed would be capable of changing lead and other metals into gold, as well as serving as the "elixir of life", a cure-all which could possibly grant immortality. And why not? If you were about to produce an unlimited supply of gold, you would need to live forever to spend it all properly.

Phosphorous has since been used in fertilizer, explosives and numerous other applications. Brandt did not immediately know that, while his pipe dream was a bust, he had discovered something very useful in more realistic ways.

Answer: human urine

If the short answer didn't make you say "yuck!", it gets nastier. The process involved collecting a small village's worth of output and letting the urine sit for days until it started to rot. Then it was boiled down to a thick paste, separated, partially discarded, and the remainder was then heated again for over half a day to yield the end product. Something tells me his prospective assistants didn't get much detail about the inner workings of the "lab" until AFTER they had signed a contract. Brandt knew he was onto something the first time he went through this because the final product started burning on its own and, when capped, would glow in the dark for some time.

Mercifully for workers in the industry, the three wrong answers on this question replaced Brandt's pee soup as the major sources of phosphorus once demand took off.

Answer: phossy jaw

Those afflicted with phossy jaw developed an eerie glow in affected bones, which, in severe cases could be seen through the skin in darkness. Before you go on a phosphorus eating binge to try and start a new fad, you should know common symptoms included extreme pain, swollen gums, and a foul smelling discharge, not to mention facial disfigurement. As the initial symptoms intensified, brain damage set in and the jaw bone had to be removed, or a painful death followed via failure of multiple organs.

White phosphorus was banned from the matchmaking industry starting in the early 20th century. Much safer handling techniques have since been put into play for those working with elemental phosphorus.

Spinal necrosis is a real affliction, but it is not caused by exposure to phosphorus. As far as I know white shingles and Satan's bunion do not exist.

Answer: it will spontaneously ignite when exposed to oxygen

Pyrophoric substances complete two thirds of the combustion triangle just by existing and will burn in air with no external ignition source. Phosphorus will continuously re-ignite until either consumed or completely cut off from oxygen, making phosphorus fires difficult to extinguish and causing some spectacular flash burning.

Because of this behavior, phosphorus is a chief suspect in some strange deaths involving victims with torsos burnt to ash but with the surrounding room, and sometimes even a limb or two of the victim, left completely intact. In the absence of fully believable simpler explanations, the theoretical phenomenon called spontaneous human combustion is suspected, though it is not known exactly how the body would go about producing white phosphorus as the starter for involuntary immolation.

Phosphorus has been used to devastating effect in warfare but because of the ghastly nature of injuries inflicted by fire that won't go out, military use of white phosphorus has been restricted voluntarily by many nations, and has been condemned by international humanitarian law.

Answer: major element

Phosphorus makes up about 1% of the body, which may not sound like much but it is considered to be the last of the major elements of the body (with the next class, minor elements, each making up about 0.1-0.3%, and trace elements being even smaller).

Phosphorus is a crucial building block of DNA and the cell membrane which holds the cell together and regulates what comes and goes. Phosphorus is also a key player in metabolic energy transfers throughout the body in the form of ATP (adenosine triphosphate) and related compounds.

Answer: Producing fertilizer from human urine

Phosphorus was first discovered in urine so it seems fitting that with more abundant sources in danger of exhaustion, we've gone back to urine to maintain the supply. Urine as a fertilizer has complications to overcome such as a major public acceptance/taboo issue, potential long term soil damage from the presence of excess nutrients in urine, and a daunting startup cost to rebuild a sewer/waste management system.

But trial usage in some markets has been successful.