Scandium - the scandal of the scandium cricket bat

Predicted by Mendeleev & useful for alloying with aluminium, scandium was involved in a famous cricket scandal, says AUT's Allan Blackman in ep 75 of Elemental.

Scandium is named after Scandinavia, and it was the second of Mendeleev's predicted elements to be discovered.

Scandium is the first transition metal on the periodic table. It is roughly the same density as aluminium but has a higher melting point, which means it can be welded.

The most famous story involving scandium concerns a cricket bat wielded by Dennis Lillee in a cricket test against England in 1979. The scandalised cricket authorities subsequently amended the Laws of Cricket to state that the blade of the bat must be made of wood, says Professor Allan Blackman from the Auckland University of Technology, in episode 75 of Elemental.

Go to this episode on rnz.co.nz for more details