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<!doctype html> <html lang="en-US"> <head> <meta charset="utf-8"> <meta name="viewport" content="width=device-width, initial-scale=1.0"> <meta name="keywords" content="Beryllium,elements,the element Beryllium,element Beryllium,elemental Beryllium,uses of Beryllium,history of Beryllium,information about Beryllium,table of elements,periodic table of elements,periodical table of elements"> <meta name="description" content="The Element Beryllium - Basic Physical and Historical Information"> <meta name="robots" content="index,all"> <link rel="stylesheet" href="/css/main_2020.css"> <link rel="stylesheet" href="/css/font-awesome.min.css">  <link rel="stylesheet" href="/css/itselemental_2020.css"> <script async src="https://www.googletagmanager.com/gtag/js?id=G-3SJLGKR77H"></script><script>window.dataLayer = window.dataLayer || []; function gtag(){dataLayer.push(arguments);} gtag('js', new Date()); gtag('config', 'G-3SJLGKR77H');</script>    <title>It's Elemental - The Element Beryllium</title> </head> <body>  <div class="topnav" id="myTopnav"> <a href="/index.html" title="JLab Science Education Home"><img src="/g/scied_logo_sm.png" width="149" height="80" alt="Science Education Home"></a> <a href="/index.html" title="JLab Science Education Home">Home</a> <a href="/indexpages/teachers.html" title="Teacher Tools">Teachers</a> <a href="/indexpages/" title="Student Zone">Students</a> <a href="/indexpages/elementgames.html" title="Games and Puzzles">Games</a> <a href="/indexpages/science_videos.html" title="Science Videos">Videos</a> <a href="/solquiz/" title="Virginia Standards of Learning Practice Tests">VA SOL</a> <a href="/indexpages/program.html" title="Programs and Events">Programs</a> <div class="search-container"> <form action="/search/"> <input type="text" placeholder="Search..." name="q"> <button type="submit"><i class="fa fa-search"></i></button> </form> </div> <a href="javascript:void(0);" class="icon" title="Menu" onclick="navToggle();"> <i class="fa fa-bars"></i> </a> </div>   <main> <div class="content"> <h1 class="page-header">It's Elemental</h1>   <div class="row element-nav regular"> <p class="left"> <a href="ele003.html"><img src="larr.gif" alt="Lithium"></a> </p> <p class="left"> <a href="ele003.html">Previous Element<br><span class="nav-name">(Lithium)</span></a> </p> <p> <a href="/itselemental/">The Periodic Table of Elements</a> </p> <p class="right"> <a href="ele005.html"><img src="rarr.gif" alt="Boron"></a> </p> <p class="right"> <a href="ele005.html">Next Element<br><span class="nav-name">(Boron)</span></a> </p> </div>  <div class="element-nav smallest"> <a href="index.html">The Table of Elements</a> </div>    <div class="regular"> <h2 class="subtitle">The Element Beryllium</h2> <p class="other-data">[<a href="iso004.html">Click for Isotope Data</a>]</p> </div>  <div class="smallest"> <h2 class="subtitle">Beryllium</h2> <div class="extra-navigation">| <a href="ele003.html">Previous</a> | <a href="iso004.html">Isotopes</a> | <a href="ele005.html">Next</a> |</div> </div>   <div class="element-data"> <svg version="1.1" xmlns="http://www.w3.org/2000/svg" xmlns:xlink="http://www.w3.org/1999/xlink" viewBox="0 0 52 62" class="specific-element"> <rect x="1" y="1" width="50" height="60" class="element-specific-box solid" /> <text x="3.5" y="11" class="atomic-number-specific">4</text> <text x="26" y="36" class="chemical-symbol-specific">Be</text> <text x="26" y="50" class="chemical-name-specific">Beryllium</text> <text x="26" y="58.5" class="atomic-weight-specific">9.0121831</text> </svg> <p><span class="section-title">Atomic Number</span>: 4</p> <p><span class="section-title">Atomic Weight</span>: 9.0121831</p> <p><span class="section-title">Melting Point</span>: 1560 K (1287°C or 2349°F)</p> <p><span class="section-title">Boiling Point</span>: 2744 K (2471°C or 4480°F)</p> <p><span class="section-title">Density</span>: 1.85 grams per cubic centimeter</p> <p><span class="section-title">Phase at Room Temperature</span>: Solid</p> <p><span class="section-title">Element Classification</span>: Metal</p> <p><span class="section-title">Period Number</span>: 2</p> <p><span class="section-title">Group Number</span>: 2</p> <p><span class="section-title">Group Name</span>: Alkaline Earth Metal</p> <p><span class="section-title">What's in a name?</span> From the Greek word <strong>beryl</strong>, a type of mineral.</p> <p><span class="section-title">Say what?</span> Beryllium is pronounced as <strong>beh-RIL-ee-em</strong>.</p> <p><span class="section-title">History and Uses</span>:</p> <div class="element-history"> <p>Although emeralds and beryl were known to ancient civilizations, they were first recognized as the same mineral (Be<sub>3</sub>Al<sub>2</sub>(SiO<sub>3</sub>)<sub>6</sub>) by Abbé Haüy in 1798. Later that year, Louis-Nicholas Vauquelin, a French chemist, discovered that an unknown element was present in emeralds and beryl. Attempts to isolate the new element finally succeeded in 1828 when two chemists, Friedrich Wölhler of Germany and A. Bussy of France, independently produced beryllium by reducing beryllium chloride (BeCl<sub>2</sub>) with <a href="ele019.html">potassium</a> in a <a href="ele078.html">platinum</a> crucible. Today, beryllium is primarily obtained from the minerals beryl (Be<sub>3</sub>Al<sub>2</sub>(SiO<sub>3</sub>)<sub>6</sub>) and bertrandite (4BeO·2SiO<sub>2</sub>·H<sub>2</sub>O) through a chemical process or through the electrolysis of a mixture of molten beryllium chloride (BeCl<sub>2</sub>) and sodium chloride (NaCl).</p><p>Beryllium is relatively transparent to X-rays and is used to make windows for X-ray tubes. When exposed to <a href="/glossary/alphaparticle.html">alpha particles</a>, such as those emitted by <a href="ele088.html">radium</a> or <a href="ele084.html">polonium</a>, beryllium emits <a href="/glossary/neutron.html">neutrons</a> and is used as a neutron source. Beryllium is also used as a moderator in nuclear reactors.</p><p>Beryllium is alloyed with <a href="ele029.html">copper</a> (2% beryllium, 98% copper) to form a wear resistant material, known as beryllium bronze, used in gyroscopes and other devices where wear resistance is important. Beryllium is alloyed with <a href="ele028.html">nickel</a> (2% beryllium, 98% nickel) to make springs, spot-welding electrodes and non-sparking tools. Other beryllium alloys are used in the windshield, brake disks and other structural components of the space shuttle.</p><p>Beryllium oxide (BeO), a compound of beryllium, is used in the nuclear industry and in ceramics.</p><p>Beryllium was once known as glucinum, which means sweet, since beryllium and many of its compounds have a sugary taste. Unfortunately for the chemists that discovered this particular property, beryllium and many of its compounds are poisonous and should never be tasted or ingested.</p> </div> <p><span class="section-title">Estimated Crustal Abundance</span>: 2.8 milligrams per kilogram</p> <p><span class="section-title">Estimated Oceanic Abundance</span>: 5.6×10<sup>-6</sup> milligrams per liter</p> <p><span class="section-title">Number of Stable Isotopes</span>: 1 <span class="other-data">(<a href="iso004.html">View all isotope data</a>)</span></p> <p><span class="section-title">Ionization Energy</span>: 9.323 eV</p> <p><span class="section-title">Oxidation States</span>: +2</p> <table class="electron-config"> <tr><td><p><span class="section-title"><a href="/qa/electron_config.html">Electron Shell Configuration</a></span>:</p></td><td><p>1s<sup>2</sup></p></td></tr><tr><td class="unconfirmed"></td><td><p>2s<sup>2</sup></p></td></tr> </table> </div>  <div class="row page-contact"> <div class="col-12"> 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