The barium chloride is a chemical compound of formula BaCl 2 exists in anhydrous form and dihydrate. It consists of colorless crystals that are soluble in water, it is used in heat treatment baths and in laboratories as a chemical reagent to precipitate soluble sulfates.
Barium chloride is one of the most water soluble barium salts. Like other barium salts, it is toxic and imparts a yellow-green coloration to a flame. It is also hygroscopic.
Figure 1: structure of barium chloride
There are several methods of producing barium chloride, one of them is through the action of hydrochloric acid on barium carbonate:
2HCl + BaCO 3 → BaCl 2 + CO 2 + H 2 O
Another method of producing barium chloride is by heating a mixture of barium sulfate, carbon, and barium chloride.
BaSO 4 (s) + 4C (s) → BaS (s) + 4CO (g)
BaS (s) + CaCl 2 → BaCl 2 + CaS
Physical and chemical properties
Barium chloride are crystals, orthorhombic in their anhydrous form and monoclinic in their dihydrate form, white in color without a characteristic aroma (National Center for Biotechnology Information., 2005). Its appearance is shown in figure 2.
Figure 2: appearance of barium chloride
The compound has a molecular weight of 208.23 g / mol for its anhydrous form and 244.26 for its dihydrate form.
It has a density of 3.856 g / ml for the anhydrous form and 3.098 g / ml for the dihydrate form. Its melting point and boiling point are 963 ° C and 1560 ° C respectively.
Barium chloride is very soluble in water, being able to dissolve 35.8 grams of compound in 100 ml of solvent. May react violently with BrF 3 and 2-Furan percarboxylic acid in its anhydrous form.
Reactivity and hazards
Barium Chloride is extremely poisonous and toxic. Its ingestion causes organ damage. Barium chloride blocks potassium channels since it is an agent that inhibits the glycoproteins of the cell membrane that are selectively permeable to potassium ions.
It also causes serious damage to the eyes. It is not flammable and does not react with other chemicals.
In case of contact with the eyes, check whether you are wearing contact lenses and remove them immediately. Eyes should be flushed with running water for at least 15 minutes, keeping the eyelids open. Cold water can be used. Eye ointment should not be used.
If the chemical comes into contact with clothing, remove it as quickly as possible, protecting your own hands and body.
Place the victim under a safety shower. If the chemical accumulates on the victim's exposed skin, such as hands, the contaminated skin is gently and carefully washed with running water and non-abrasive soap.
Cold water can be used. If irritation persists, seek medical attention. Wash the contaminated clothing before using it again.
If the contact with the skin is severe, it should be washed with a disinfectant soap and cover the contaminated skin with an antibacterial cream.
In case of inhalation, the victim should be allowed to rest in a well-ventilated area. If inhalation is severe, the victim should be evacuated to a safe area as soon as possible.
Loosen tight clothing such as a collar, belt, or tie. If it is difficult for the victim to breathe, oxygen should be administered. If the victim is not breathing, mouth-to-mouth resuscitation is performed.
Always keeping in mind that it can be dangerous for the person providing aid to give mouth-to-mouth resuscitation when the inhaled material is toxic, infectious or corrosive.
In case of ingestion, vomiting should only be induced if the victim is conscious. Tight clothing such as shirt collars, belts, or ties should be loosened. If the victim is not breathing, perform mouth-to-mouth resuscitation.
In all cases, immediate medical attention should be sought.
Barium chloride is a substance that is harmful to the environment, especially for aquatic species, so it must be handled and disposed of according to established rules and regulations.
Applications
Barium chloride dihydrate is used in wastewater treatment, the production of PVC stabilizers, oil lubricants, barium chromate, and barium fluoride.
As a cheap and soluble barium salt, barium chloride finds wide application in the laboratory. It is commonly used as a test for the sulfate ion.
In industry, barium chloride is mainly used in the purification of the brine solution in caustic chlorine plants and also in the manufacture of heat treatment salts, steel hardening, pigment manufacture and in the manufacture of other salts of barium.
It is also used in fireworks to give a bright green color. However, its toxicity limits its applicability.
Barium chloride was previously used in medicine to treat complete heart block. The usual dose was 30 mg three or four times a day or about 1.7 mg / kg / day.
Use of the drug was abandoned, largely due to its toxicity. Formerly it was used for the symptomatic therapy of Stokes-Adams attacks. Now this treatment is obsolete. The radioactive compound is used as an experimental bone scanning agent.
In veterinary medicine, barium chloride has been used in the treatment of impaction in horses. The 0.5 g intravenous injection produces a drastic purge. Its use is not recommended because of the great danger of fatal heart block.
References
- (2016). BARIUM CHLORIDE. Taken from cameochemicals: cameochemicals.noaa.gov.
- EMBL-EBI. (2015, June 24). barium chloride. Taken from ChEBI: ebi.ac.uk.
- Hanusa, TP (2017, February 22). Barium (Ba). Taken from britannica: britannica.com.
- Material Safety Data Sheet Barium chloride dihydrate. (2013, May 21). Taken from sciencelab: sciencelab.com.
- National Center for Biotechnology Information. (2005, March 26). PubChem Compound Database; CID = 25204. Taken from PubChem: pubchem.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov.
- Royal Society of Chemistry. (2015). Barium chloride. Taken from chemspider: chemspider.com.
- (SF). Barium Chloride. Taken from solvay: solvay.com.
- The National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health (NIOSH). (2015, July 22). BARIUM CHLORIDE. Taken from cdc.gov: cdc.gov.
- S. National Library of Medicine. (2012, May 3). BARIUM CHLORIDE. Taken from toxnet: toxnet.nlm.nih.gov.