Beryllium carbide, or Be₂C, is a

metal A metal (from Greek μέταλλον ''métallon'', "mine, quarry, metal") is a material that, when freshly prepared, polished, or fractured, shows a lustrous appearance, and conducts electricity and heat relatively well. Metals are typicall ...

carbide In chemistry, a carbide usually describes a compound composed of carbon and a metal. In metallurgy, carbiding or carburizing is the process for producing carbide coatings on a metal piece. Interstitial / Metallic carbides The carbides of the ...

. Similar to

diamond Diamond is a Allotropes of carbon, solid form of the element carbon with its atoms arranged in a crystal structure called diamond cubic. Another solid form of carbon known as graphite is the Chemical stability, chemically stable form of car ...

, it is a very hard compound.Beryllium Carbide Info

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Retrieved June 11, 2009. It is used in nuclear reactors as a core material.

Preparation

Beryllium carbide is prepared by heating the elements

beryllium Beryllium is a chemical element with the symbol Be and atomic number 4. It is a steel-gray, strong, lightweight and brittle alkaline earth metal. It is a divalent element that occurs naturally only in combination with other elements to form mi ...

and

carbon Carbon () is a chemical element with the symbol C and atomic number 6. It is nonmetallic and tetravalent In chemistry, the valence (US spelling) or valency (British spelling) of an element is the measure of its combining capacity with o ...

at elevated temperatures (above 950°C). It also may be prepared by reduction of

beryllium oxide Beryllium oxide (BeO), also known as beryllia, is an inorganic compound with the formula BeO. This colourless solid is a notable electrical insulator with a higher thermal conductivity than any other non-metal except diamond, and exceeds that of m ...

with carbon at a temperature above 1,500°C: :2BeO + 3C → Be₂C + 2CO Beryllium carbide decomposes very slowly in water and forms methane gas: :Be₂C + 2H₂O → 2BeO + CH₄ The rate of decomposition is faster in mineral acids with evolution of

methane Methane ( , ) is a chemical compound with the chemical formula (one carbon atom bonded to four hydrogen atoms). It is a group-14 hydride, the simplest alkane, and the main constituent of natural gas. The relative abundance of methane on Eart ...

. :Be₂C + 4 H⁺ → 2 Be²⁺ + CH₄ In hot concentrated alkali the reaction is very rapid, forming alkali metal

beryllate Beryllium compounds {{Short pages monitor