The 23rd element is Vanadium. Scientists use the letter V for it. Vanadium is a metal, with 23 electrons. When it was first discovered scientists thought it was just another form of Chromium, the element we will be discussing next week.
According to jlab.org it was first discovered in South America and below is the interesting story about its discovery. It shows how difficult it was to get information and samples around the world in the 1800s.
Steve Gagnon writes - Vanadium was discovered by Andrés Manuel del Rio, a Mexican chemist, in 1801. Rio sent samples of vanadium ore and a letter describing his methods to the Institute de France in Paris, France, for analysis and confirmation. Unfortunately for Rio, his letter was lost in a shipwreck and the Institute only received his samples, which contained a brief note describing how much this new element, which Rio had named erythronium, resembled chromium. Rio withdrew his claim when he received a letter from Paris disputing his discovery. Vanadium was rediscovered by Nils Gabriel Sefstrôm, a Swedish chemist, in 1830 while analyzing samples of iron from a mine in Sweden. Check out http://education.jlab.org/itselemental/ele023.html for more information
Vanadium doesn't exist on its own in nature but is combined with other elements to form rocks and minerals.
It is a useful metal as it is corrosion resistant and strong. It is mixed with Iron to form an alloy which is used in axles, crankshafts and gears for cars, parts of jet engines, springs and tools
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