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56Ba137.328
Alkaline Earth Metals-block

Barium

Element 56 on the periodic table, symbol Ba, group 2, period 6.

Barium is a chemical element with symbol Ba and atomic number 56. It is the fifth element in Group 2, a soft silvery metallic alkaline earth metal. Because of its high chemical reactivity barium is never found in nature as a free element.

Properties

Atomic Number
56
Atomic Mass
137.3277 u
Group
2
Period
6
Block
s-block
Category
Alkaline Earth Metal
State at 25 °C
Solid
Melting Point
1,000 K · 726.9 °C
Boiling Point
2,118 K · 1,844.9 °C
Density
3.51 g/cm³
Atomic Radius
215 pm
Electronegativity
0.89
Oxidation States
+2
Abundance in Crust
425 mg/kg
Discovered
1808
Discovered By
Carl Wilhelm Scheele

Electron Configuration

[Xe] 6s2

1s2 2s2 2p6 3s2 3p6 4s2 3d10 4p6 5s2 4d10 5p6 6s2

Ionisation Energies (kJ/mol)

  1. 1. 502.9
  2. 2. 965.2
  3. 3. 3,600

Elements near Barium

Elements in the same group share the number of outer electrons and behave in similar ways. Elements in the same period share a shell, so they change steadily from left to right.

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