Blow-outs can result in fire and explosion.\) formula unit on the right side.īy eliminating the spectator ions, we can focus on the chemistry that takes place in a solution. Barium sulfate helps reduce the risk of blow-out-an escape of oil and gas from the drill hole. It is added to “drilling mud,” a slurry added to drill holes to control the pressure on underground oil and gas reserves. In blocking the path of x-rays, barium outlines the tract, permitting doctors to identify problem areas.īarium sulfate’s high density also plays an important role in oil exploration. The patient drinks a “barium milkshake,” a slurry of barium sulfate which fills the digestive tract and provides an obstacle (by virtue of its many electrons) to x-rays. Barium sulfate, for example, is used in x-ray examinations to image the human digestive system. The same number of electrons balance the electrical charge.īarium’s compounds are heavy and dense. Taking Advantage of Barium’s Physical Propertiesīarium, the name for the element of atomic number 56 on the Periodic Table of the Elements, comes from the Greek word “barys,” meaning “heavy.” Barium is a relatively heavy element because it has 56 protons in its nucleus (compared to chlorine, for example, which has only 17). How many moles of sodium sulfate must be added to an aqueous solution that contains 2.0 moles of barium chloride in order to precipitate 0.50 moles of barium sulfate If 1.0 g of NaN 3 reacts with 25 mL of 0.20 M NaNO 3 according to the reaction shown below. It is also used in manufacturing aluminum alloys, in pigments and dyes and as a water softener. Other Roles for Barium Chlorideīesides being an important indicator chemical, barium chloride can be a starting chemical for barium and chlorine production. A chemical precipitate first turns a liquid cloudy and eventually, due to gravity, the cloudiness clears as the solid settles down to the bottom of the vessel. Because it is practically undissolvable in the liquid of the solution, the precipitate becomes visible. Presented with a water-based liquid of unknown chemistry, a chemist might add barium chloride to the solution and watch for the appearance of a thick, white “precipitate” of barium sulfate, indicating the presence of sulfate.Īlthough the term “precipitate” sounds as though it might be raining in a beaker, a precipitate is simply a solid that forms in a liquid solution as a result of a chemical reaction. The key to barium chloride’s role in tracking down sulfates is the simple fact that barium chloride dissolves in water while barium sulfate hardly dissolves in water at all. These negatively charged units are known as negatively charged ions, or anions. Barium Chloride: Sulfate Detectiveīarium chloride has several important functions, but one very familiar to chemists is the role of “sulfate detective.” Sulfate, SO4-2 is a negatively charged chemical unit consisting of a sulfur atom bonded to four oxygen atoms. This type of reaction is known as a double-replacement reaction. Notice that barium and hydrogen switch “chemical partners” between the reactants side and the products side of the equation. Barium chloride, another barium salt, can be manufactured by reacting barium sulfate with hydrochloric acid, HCl:
The most common form of barium in nature is the salt barium sulfate, BaSO4, also known as the mineral barite. Due to their reactivity, barium and chlorine form compounds naturally. The chemical element barium is a heavy, soft, silvery-white metal that, like the element chlorine, always occurs combined in nature.
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