Czech chemist Bohuslav Brauner first predicted the existence of an element between neodymium (No.60) and samarium (No. 62) in 1902. Later in 1926, American chemist B. Smith Hopkins at the University of Illinois claimed that the element was found in rare-earth residues of monazite and he named it illinium, a name derived from the name of his university and State.
Italian chemist Luigi Rolla at the Royal University in Florence also claimed to have discovered the element in 1924 and he named it florentium (his work was not published until 1926). Finally, in 1945, strong evidence that element 61 had been isolated was formulated by Jacob. A. Marinsky, Lawrence E. Glendenin, and Charles D. Coryell at Oak Ridge, Tennessee. They created it from fission products of uranium.
The element was named promethium, and it was accepted in 1949 by the International Union of Pure and Applied Chemistry. The name was derived from the Greek Titan Prometheus, who stole fire from Mount Olympus to give it to mankind according to mythology.
Promethium is mostly used for research purposes. Another commercial use for promethium is that it is a power source for medical devices. Promethium is also useful as a beta source for thickness gauges.
Promethium is often produced as a product of uranium fission.
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