The Beryllium Thread

[Simplex3]

I'm putting this in here so that it won't hang around the top of the lounge while I cut and paste information in to post after post.

This is part of my ongoing offseaon attempt to get us ranked on the first page of some search engine(s) when nerds search for "beryllium".

Before you PM me with "Why?", the answer is simply that I am sitting around reading log files at work and cutting and pasting into this thread requires absolutely NO mental stress.

[KurtCobain]

Electron binding energies

[KurtCobain]

This table contains electron binding energies for beryllium.
Label Orbital eV [literature reference]
K 1s 111.5 [2]

[KurtCobain]

Notes

All values of electron binding energies are given in eV. The binding energies are quoted relative to the vacuum level for rare gases and H2, N2, O2, F2, and Cl2 molecules; relative to the Fermi level for metals; and relative to the top of the valence band for semiconductors.

I am grateful to Gwyn Williams (Jefferson Laboratory, Virginia, USA) who provided the electron binding energy data. The data are adapted from references 1-3. They are tabulated elsewhere on the WWW (reference 4) and in paper form (reference 5).

[KurtCobain]

References

J. A. Bearden and A. F. Burr, "Reevaluation of X-Ray Atomic Energy Levels," Rev. Mod. Phys., 1967, 39, 125.

[KurtCobain]

J. C. Fuggle and N. Mårtensson, "Core-Level Binding Energies in Metals," J. Electron Spectrosc. Relat. Phenom., 1980, 21, 275.
Gwyn Williams WWW table of values

[KurtCobain]

D.R. Lide, (Ed.) in Chemical Rubber Company handbook of chemistry and physics, CRC Press, Boca Raton, Florida, USA, 81st edition, 2000.

[KurtCobain]

Table of Different types of electronegativity for beryllium. Use the links in the "Electronegativity" column for definitions, literature sources, and visual representations in many different styles (one of which is shown below). All values are quoted on the Pauling scale.
Electronegativity Value in Pauling units
Pauling electronegativity 1.57
Sanderson electronegativity 1.81
Allred Rochow electronegativity 1.47
Mulliken-Jaffe electronegativity 1.54 (s orbital)
Allen electronegativity 1.576

[KurtCobain]

Beryllium: biological information

[KurtCobain]

Biological role of beryllium:

[KurtCobain]

beryllium has no biological role. In fact, compounds containing beryllium are poisonous.

[KurtCobain]

Levels in humans

[KurtCobain]

Human abundance by weight 0.4 ppb by weight
Human abundance by atoms 0.3 atoms relative to C = 1000000

[KurtCobain]

Hazards and Risks

Hazards and risks associated with beryllium: beryllium metal dust can cause major lung damage and beryllium salts are very toxic. Compounds containing beryllium are very poisonous and only to be handled by a professional under controlled conditions. One route for beryllium into the biosphere is by way of industrial smoke. It seems that some types of camping gas mantle may cause problems as a consequence of their beryllium content.

[KurtCobain]

Beryllium is a highly toxic metal and if exposed to it, at or above the threshold values, it can lead to a chronic beryllium disease (CBD) (i.e. berylliosis) or an acute beryllium disease. Toxic exposure to beryllium is most often thru an inhalation pathway. Beryllium has a variety of effects.

[KurtCobain]

Some beryllium combines with a protein and is deposited in the liver, spleen and kidneys, but the beryllium when bound with a biological protein, a hapten, can result in the chronic form of the disease which is believed to be a delayed hypersensitivity immune response. The major toxicological effects of beryllium are on the respiratory tract,specifically the lungs and their alveoli.