Beryllium

Beryllium, Be, is an Alkaline Earth element, found in Group IIa of the periodic table.

Atomic Number : 4
Atomic Mass : 9.012

Beryllium and its compounds are highly toxic and must be handled with caution.

Discovery

Beryllium was discovered by L N Vauquelin in 1797AD.
Beryllium was isolated by Wohler and Bussy in 1828AD.

Occurrence

Beryllium is not very abundant but occurs in several minerals.
Its principal ore is Beryl, Be3Al2Si6O18.
Beryllium is also present in the precious stones : Aquamarine and Emerald.

Properties

Beryllium is

a hard silver-white metal of low density and high melting point,
is an excellent conductor of heat,
does not react with water even at dull red heat and
is resistant to attack by Nitric Acid, HNO3.

Uses

Beryllium is used

in the manufacture of Beryllium Bronze alloys, which have high electrical conductivity and are very hard with high tensile strength,
as the window in X-Ray tubes, and
as a source of neutrons when bombarded with alpha-particles.
```
	9 Be4   +   4He2   ==>   12 C6   +   1n0	
```

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