Book excerpt: Scandium provides a comprehensive review of all aspects of scandium, including its occurrence in nature; its chemical, physical and technological properties; its biological significance and toxic effects; and its applications. The book covers the discovery and history of scandium, its abundance in rock-forming minerals and common type rocks, and its derivation, extraction, and preparation. It also deals with the physical metallurgy of scandium, its physical and chemical properties, its isotopes, its alloys and intermetallic compounds, and its economic and technological applications. The text is recommended for chemists, metallurgists, and experts who would like to know particularly more about scandium and its possible uses.