| | Technetium (Site not responding. Last check: 2007-10-12) |
 | | The chemical properties of this silvery gray, radioactive, crystalline transition metal are intermediate between rhenium and manganese and it is rarely found in nature. |
 | | Its short-lived isotope Tc-99m is used in nuclear medicine to diagnose certain cancers, Tc-99 is used as a gamma ray-free source of beta rays, and its pertechnate ion could find use as a corrosion preventer for steel (this possible use is hindered by technetium's radioactivity). |
 | | In the form administered in these medical tests (usually pertechnate) both isotopes are quickly eliminated from the body (generally within a few days). |
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