What is Barium Sulfate?
Barium sulfate is an important inorganic chemical compound having plenty of benefits and industrial applications too. The chemical formula for the compound could be written as the BaSO4 and its molecular weight would be 233.43 g/mol.
Barium Sulfate Structure
This is the ionic compound where barium cation and sulfate anions will combine together to form the final product. Sulfur is placed in the center and bonded with four other oxygen atoms around as shown below.
Barium Sulfate Chemical Formula
The natural occurrence of the chemical compound can be felt in minerals that are taken as the major source of barium and other similar compounds. The chemical compound can be prepared commercially from the mineral barite after continuous mining and the processing. The process involves heating the impure barium continuously to make it water soluble and filter the impurities later to obtain the barium sulfate product in the pure state.
BaSO4 + 4 C → BaS + 4 CO
BaS + H2SO4 → BaSO4 + H2S
Barium Sulfate Molecular
The product is white odorless powder and it is available in the form of small crystals with a density of 4.49 g/mL, the melting point of 1580 °C and a boiling point of 1600 °C. The product is not suitable because of its poor solubility nature in the water. It could not be dissolved in alcohols, or concentrated acids as well.
About Barium Sulfate
This is a radio-opaque agent or X-ray agent too that helps in identifying the medical conditions. The product has applications in paper coating, plastic fibers, brake linings, pigments, paints, rubber, catalyst support, and more.