Beryllium

Beryllium is a light and lustrous metal which is obtained by the electrolysis of a fused halide (e.g. BeCl₂ ). It is resistant to attack by air or water, even at elevated temperatures. Beryllium is non-magnetic, a good thermal conductor and is used as an alloying addition to copper or nickel, the alloys having excellent thermal, mechanical and electrical properties. Applications for pure beryllium include its use as windows in X-ray tubes and as a source of neutrons when bombarded with alpha particles, a technique used by Chadwick in 1932 in their discovery. Beryllium and its compounds are highly toxic.

Symbol

Be

Discovered

Discovered by the French chemist and pharmacist Nicholas-Louis Vauquelin in beryl and emerald in 1797. The element was first separated in 1828 by the French chemist Antoine-Alexandre­Brutus Bussy and independently by the German chemist Friedrich Wohler.

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Atomic number	4		Clip
Mass number	9		Clip
Atomic / Molecular Weight	9.01218	gmol-1	Clip
Density	1846	kgm-3	Clip
Lattice constant	229	fm	Clip
Melting Point	1553	K	Clip
Boiling Point	2753	K	Clip
Linear expansivity	0.0000113	K-1	Clip
Specific heat capacity	1820	Jkg-1K-1	Clip
Thermal conductivity	218	Wm-1K-1	Clip
Acoustic wave velocity (longitudinal bulk waves)	12890	ms-1	Clip
Acoustic wave velocity (Shear waves)	8880	ms-1	Clip
Electromotive Series	1.7	V	Clip

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See also: Beryllium Bromide, Beryllium Chloride, Beryllium Copper, Beryllium Fluoride, Beryllium Hydroxide, Beryllium Iodide, Beryllium Nitride, Beryllium Oxide, Periodic Table.