Transition metalElement 28 · d-block

Nickel (Ni)

Nickel (Ni) is a transition metal with atomic number 28 and a standard atomic weight of 58.693. At room temperature it is a solid that melts at 1,455 °C and boils at 2,913 °C.

28NiNickel58.693

Atomic number

protons

Atomic weight

58.693

CIAAW 2024

Melting point

1,455 °C

1,728.15 K

Boiling point

2,913 °C

3,186.15 K

Density

8.9 g/cm³

near room temperature

Electronegativity

1.91

Pauling scale

State at 25 °C

Solid

Discovered

1751

Sweden

Nickel at a glance

Identity

Symbol	Ni
Atomic number (Z)	28
Atomic weight	58.693 ± 0.001 (CIAAW 2024)
Category	Transition metal
Group	10
Period	4
Block	d-block
CAS number	7440-02-0

Atomic properties

Electron configuration	[Ar] 3d⁸ 4s² Full: 1s² 2s² 2p⁶ 3s² 3p⁶ 3d⁸ 4s²
Electrons per shell	2, 8, 16, 2
Oxidation states	+2 Less common: -2, -1, 0, +1, +3, +4
Electronegativity (Pauling)	1.91
First ionisation energy	7.64 eV (737.1 kJ/mol) 2nd: 18.169 eV · 3rd: 35.187 eV
Electron affinity	1.156 eV
Atomic radius (empirical)	135 pm
Covalent radius	110 pm
Van der Waals radius	197 pm

Physical properties

State at 25 °C	Solid
Melting point	1,455 °C · 2,651 °F · 1,728.15 K
Boiling point	2,913 °C · 5,275.4 °F · 3,186.15 K
Density	8.9 g/cm³
Specific heat capacity	0.444 J/(g·K)
Thermal conductivity	90.9 W/(m·K)
Crystal structure	Face-centred cubic

Isotopes & abundance

Natural occurrence	Primordial
Radioactive	No
Natural isotopes (abundance)	⁵⁸Ni 68.0769%, ⁶⁰Ni 26.2231%, ⁶²Ni 3.6345%, ⁶¹Ni 1.1399%, ⁶⁴Ni 0.9256%
Stable isotopes	5
Known isotopes	35
Abundance in Earth's crust	84 mg/kg
Abundance in seawater	0.00056 mg/L

Atomic weights: CIAAW Abridged Standard Atomic Weights 2024. Other properties: standard reference compilations, checked October 2026; predicted values are marked.

Nickel electron configuration

Nickel has 28 electrons. Written in short form, its ground-state configuration is [Ar] 3d⁸ 4s² — the electrons of the noble gas argon, plus 3d⁸ 4s².Written out in full: 1s² 2s² 2p⁶ 3s² 3p⁶ 3d⁸ 4s².

3d↑↓↑↓↑↓↑↑

4s↑↓

Discovery and name

Discovered

1751 — Axel Fredrik Cronstedt · Sweden.

Name

German Kupfernickel, 'Old Nick's copper' — an ore that looked like copper but yielded none.

Known for

Used mainly in stainless steel and increasingly in battery cathodes. Nickel resists corrosion and is used for plating and in coins.

Isotopes of nickel

Naturally occurring nickel is a mix of 5 isotopes. Each has 28 protons; they differ in the number of neutrons:

Isotope	Protons	Neutrons	Natural abundance	Stability
⁵⁸Ni	28	30	68.0769%	stable
⁶⁰Ni	28	32	26.2231%	stable
⁶²Ni	28	34	3.6345%	stable
⁶¹Ni	28	33	1.1399%	stable
⁶⁴Ni	28	36	0.9256%	stable

35 isotopes of nickel are known in our data set (half-lives as published in nuclear data tables).

Nickel compared with group 10

The other elements in group 10, from top to bottom of the table:

Element	Z	Atomic weight	Melting point	Boiling point	Density	Electronegativity
Nickel	28	58.693	1,455 °C	2,913 °C	8.9 g/cm³	1.91
Palladium	46	106.42	1,555 °C	2,963 °C	12 g/cm³	2.2
Platinum	78	195.08	1,768 °C	3,825 °C	21.5 g/cm³	2.28
Darmstadtium	110	[281]	—	—	34.8 g/cm³ (pred.)	—

Frequently asked questions

6 answers

What is the atomic mass of nickel?

The standard atomic weight of nickel is 58.693 ± 0.001 (CIAAW 2024), so one mole weighs about 58.693 grams.

How many protons, neutrons and electrons does nickel have?

A neutral nickel atom has 28 protons and 28 electrons. Its most common isotope, nickel-58, has 30 neutrons.

What is the electron configuration of nickel?

[Ar] 3d⁸ 4s² (in full: 1s² 2s² 2p⁶ 3s² 3p⁶ 3d⁸ 4s²).

What are the melting and boiling points of nickel?

Nickel melts at 1,455 °C (2,651 °F) and boils at 2,913 °C (5,275.4 °F).

Is nickel a metal?

Nickel is a metal. It is in group 10, period 4, and is a solid at room temperature.

Who discovered nickel?

1751 — Axel Fredrik Cronstedt (Sweden).