Compounds | Reactions | Production
|
Reactions of Barium |
Reactions with water |
Barium reacts readily with water to form barium hydroxide and hydrogen gas. |
Ba(s) + 2H2O(g)Ba(OH)2(aq) + H2(g) |
Reactions with air |
Barium metal is covered with a thin layer of oxide that helps protect the metal from attack by air, but to a lesser extent than the corresponding layer in magnesium. Once ignited, barium metal burns in air to give a mixture of white barium oxide and barium nitride. |
2Ba(s) + O2(g)2BaO(s) |
Ba(s) + O2(g)BaO2(s) |
3Ba(s) + N2(g)Ba3N2(s) |
Reduction Potentials | |
Balanced half-reaction | E0 / V |
Ba2+ + 2e-Ba(s) | -2.906 |
BaO + 2H+ + 2e-Ba(s) + H2O | -2.166 |