fluorine

Turns out that the words “fluorine poem” top the list of search terms that lead to my blog.

Which is misleading, because, up till now, there hasn’t been any poem on fluorine anywhere on this blog.

Poems are aplenty, but the only mention of Fluorine in this whole site is in my blogroll, where I have a few links under the heading “Sulfur Trioxide Fluorine”.

Funny. No one seems to want poems about sulfur or trioxides. Only fluorine.

Anyway, since there seems to be a demand for poems about fluorine, I’ve churned out a short little elemental ditty, dedicated to all you fluorine-loving rhymesters out there…

My name is Fluorine, from fluorum, “to flow”,

My symbol is F, and 2 is my row,

I’m in group number 7, atomic number, 9,

And my weight is 3 more than a fifth of Bromine.

My brothers in crime are the halogen gang,

When we’re not making salt, we’re making a bang!

My bros are reactive, I’m even more so,

I can burn hydrocarbons at temperatures low!

Did I mention my race? I’m a yellowy-brown,

And when I react, my oxidation number goes down.

Alone as a gas, I’m a poison; but don’t worry:

My electrons are usually shared in a hurry

With hydrogen, carbon and plain water, too,

And metals and even the noble gas crew.

You can find me in acid, in toothpaste, in salts,

But mostly, I’m doing the CFC waltz.