Editing Caesium (section)

===Chemical and medical use===
[[File:Caesium chloride.jpg|thumb|alt=Some fine white powder on a laboratory watch glass|Caesium chloride powder]]
Relatively few chemical applications use caesium.<ref>{{cite book |last=Burt |first=R. O. |date=1993 |chapter=Cesium and cesium compounds |title=Kirk-Othmer encyclopedia of chemical technology |edition=4th |place=New York |publisher=John Wiley & Sons |volume=5 |page=759 |isbn=978-0-471-15158-6}}</ref> Doping with caesium compounds enhances the effectiveness of several metal-ion catalysts for chemical synthesis, such as [[acrylic acid]], [[anthraquinone]], [[ethylene oxide]], [[methanol]], [[phthalic anhydride]], [[styrene]], [[methyl methacrylate]] monomers, and various [[alkene|olefins]]. It is also used in the catalytic conversion of [[sulfur dioxide]] into [[sulfur trioxide]] in the production of [[sulfuric acid]].<ref name="USGS"/> <!--No way: Caesium metal is also used in ferrous and nonferrous [[metallurgy]] and in the purification of [[carbon dioxide]] as it absorbs gases and other impurities, while molten hydroxide (CsOH) has been used in the desulfurizing of heavy crude oil.<ref name="USGS"/> -->

[[Caesium fluoride]] enjoys a niche use in [[organic chemistry]] as a [[base (chemistry)|base]]<ref name="greenwood">{{cite book |last1=Greenwood |first1=N. N. |last2=Earnshaw |first2=A. |title=Chemistry of the Elements |publisher=Pergamon Press |place=Oxford, UK |date=1984 |isbn=978-0-08-022057-4}}</ref> and as an [[anhydrous]] source of [[fluoride]] ion.<ref>
Friestad, Gregory K.; Branchaud, Bruce P.; Navarrini, Walter and Sansotera, Maurizio (2007) "Cesium Fluoride" in ''Encyclopedia of Reagents for Organic Synthesis'', John Wiley & Sons. {{doi|10.1002/047084289X.rc050.pub2}}</ref> Caesium salts sometimes replace potassium or sodium salts in [[organic synthesis]], such as [[cyclic compound|cyclization]], [[esterification]], and [[polymerization]]. Caesium has also been used in thermoluminescent radiation [[dosimetry]] <small>(TLD)</small>: When exposed to radiation, it acquires crystal defects that, when heated, revert with emission of light proportionate to the received dose. Thus, measuring the light pulse with a [[photomultiplier tube]] can allow the accumulated radiation dose to be quantified.