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The alkaline earth metals (Be, Mg, Ca, Sr, Ba, and Ra) are the second most reactive metals in the periodic table, and, like the Group 1 metals, have increasing reactivity with increasing numbers of energy levels. Beryllium (Be) is the only alkaline earth metal that does not react with water or steam, even if the metal is heated red hot. [9]
The metal reacts with the water first, breaking the hydrogen bonds in the water and producing hydrogen gas; this takes place faster for the more reactive heavier alkali metals. Second, the heat generated by the first part of the reaction often ignites the hydrogen gas, causing it to burn explosively into the surrounding air.
[114] [115] Sodium spontaneously explodes in the presence of water due to the formation of hydrogen (highly explosive) and sodium hydroxide (which dissolves in the water, liberating more surface). However, sodium exposed to air and ignited or reaching autoignition (reported to occur when a molten pool of sodium reaches about 290 °C, 554 °F ...
Addition of a small amount of caesium to cold water is explosive. Caesium metal is highly reactive and pyrophoric. It ignites spontaneously in air, and reacts explosively with water even at low temperatures, more so than the other alkali metals. [14] It reacts with ice at temperatures as low as −116 °C (−177 °F). [17]
The most reactive metals, such as sodium, will react with cold water to produce hydrogen and the metal hydroxide: 2 Na (s) + 2 H 2 O (l) →2 NaOH (aq) + H 2 (g) Metals in the middle of the reactivity series, such as iron , will react with acids such as sulfuric acid (but not water at normal temperatures) to give hydrogen and a metal salt ...
The eutectic mixture consists of 77% potassium and 23% sodium by mass (NaK-77), and it is a liquid from −12.6 to 785 °C (9.3 to 1,445.0 °F), and has a density of 0.866 g/cm 3 at 21 °C (70 °F) and 0.855 g/cm 3 at 100 °C (212 °F), making it less dense than water. [3] It is highly reactive with water and is stored usually under hexane or ...
Like all alkali metals, lithium is highly reactive and flammable, and must be stored in vacuum, inert atmosphere, or inert liquid such as purified kerosene [7] or mineral oil. It exhibits a metallic luster. It corrodes quickly in air to a dull silvery gray, then black tarnish.
Due to the magnesium ion's high solubility in water, it is the third most abundant element dissolved in seawater. [5] The free element (metal) is not found naturally on Earth, as it is highly reactive (though once produced, it is coated in a thin layer of oxide [see passivation], which partly masks this reactivity). The free metal burns with a ...