Alkaline

Earth
Metals
SC I EN C E P RESEN TAT I O N 1 :

G R O U P 2 : Jasmine C, Teve'aho, Akinda,

Renalyn, Hadassha
 The Alkaline Earth Metals (or just Alkaline
Metals) are the elements that are found in
Group II of the periodic table. They all have 2

What are Alkaline electrons in the outer shell, which means

that all Alkaline Earth Metals have similar

Earth Metals, and properties. Some of their physical

properties are :

what are their

• LUSTRE (which means they are shiny)
with a silver-white colour)
• SOFTNESS (which means that they are

physical soft)
• DUCTILITY (which means that they can

properties? be drawn into wires), and

• MALLEABILITY (which means that they
can bend or be hammered into a different
shape without breaking)
 Alkaline Earth Metals share many different chemical
properties. Here are some of them:
• Density: Alkaline earth metals are denser than alkali

What are the •

metals and oxidize quickly.
Melting point: Alkaline earth metals have low
melting points and are relatively soft.

chemical • Reaction with water: Alkaline earth metals react

with water to produce metal hydroxides. The
reactivity of alkaline earth metals with water

properties of •
increases as you move down the group.
Flame colour: Alkaline earth metal salts give off
characteristic flame colours.

Alkaline Earth • Electronic configuration: Alkaline earth metals have

metallic character because they can donate
electrons.

Metals? •

•
Valency: Alkaline earth metals all have a valency of
2, since they have 2 electrons in the last shell.
Combining power: When they react, they lose 2
electrons, making it a cation. This shows that they
have a combining power of +2.
Now, we will go through all the
Alkaline Earth Metals in the
Periodic Table, one by one.
 1. Beryllium
Beryllium is the first Alkaline earth metal, and was discovered by Louis-Nicholas
Vauquelin back in 1798. It has the symbol Be, an atomic number of 4, a mass of 9.01,
an electron configuration of 2, 2, and is found in Group II, Period 2 on the Periodic table.
Beryllium has a steel-grey colour, a low-density, is strong, lightweight, relatively soft,
and has one of the highest melting points of light metals.

Beryllium, which is a divalent element, is found naturally in combination with other elements to form
minerals like beryl and chrysoberyl.
It has many uses in things such as :

• Aerospace, found in aircraft braking systems, engines, satellites and space telescopes.
• Automotive, found in anti- lock brake systems and ignitions.
• Ceramic manufacturing, found in rocket covers and semiconductor chips
• Defense, found in components for nuclear weapons, missile parts, guidance systems, optical
systems. Natural Beryllium
 2. Magnesium
The second Alkaline earth metal is Magnesium, discovered in 1754 by Joseph
Natural Magnesium

Black. This element has the symbol Mg, an atomic number of 12, and a mass of
24.31. It has an electron configuration of 2, 8, 2, is found in Group II, Period 3 on
the Periodic table, has a shiny gray colour, a low density, and is lightweight. It has
the lowest melting and the lowest boiling point of all the alkaline earth metals.

Magnesium is the eighth most abundant element in the Earth's crust and the fourth most common
element in the Earth, making up 13% of the planet's mass and a large fraction of the planet's mantle. It
is the third most abundant element dissolved in seawater, and the eleventh most abundant element
by mass in the human body and is essential to all cells and some 300 enzymes. Magnesium is used in
lots of things:

• Magnesium is used in products that mainly benefit from being lightweight, such as car seats,
luggage, laptops, cameras and power tools.
• It is also added to molten iron and steel to remove sulfur.
• Since magnesium ignites easily in air and burns with a bright light, it's used in flares, fireworks and
sparklers.
 3. Calcium
Calcium is the third Alkaline earth metal, and it was first discovered by Sir
Humphrey Davy in 1808. It has the symbol Ca, an atomic number of 20, a mass
of 40.07, an electron configuration of 2, 8, 8, 2. It is found in Group II, Period 4 on
the Periodic table, and is a very ductile silvery metal.

Calcium is the fifth most abundant element in Earth's crust, and the third most abundant metal,
after iron and aluminium. It can also be found in milk and other foods. The most common calcium
compound on Earth is calcium carbonate. Calcium has lots of uses:

• Pure calcium is used as a nutrient in the body, most often associated with healthy bones and teeth,
although it also plays an important role in blood clotting, helping muscles to contract, and
regulating normal heart rhythms and nerve functions.
•Calcium may be used as a reducing agent in the process of metal extraction
•Calcium is also used in the production of some metals, as an allying agent.
Natural
Calcium
 4. Strontium
Strontium is the 4th Alkaline earth metal, and it was first found in 1790 by
Adair Crawford and William Cruickshank. It has the symbol Sr, has an
atomic number of 38, a mass of 87.62, and an electron configuration of 2, 8,
18, 8, 2. It is found in Group II, Period 5 of the Periodic table. It has a lustrous
silver-grey appearance with a yellowish tint, and is relatively soft.

Strontium is an element that can be found naturally, mostly in rocks, soil, dust, coal, and oil.
Strontium has its set of uses:

• Strontium is best known for the brilliant reds its salts give to fireworks and flares.
• Strontium is also used as medicine. About 99% of the strontium in the human body is
concentrated in the bones.
• Strontium was once used in color televisions.
Natural Strontium
• Strontium is used to remove lead impurities during the electrolytic production of zinc.
 5. Barium Barium

Barium is the 5th Alkaline earth metal, and was discovered by 1774 by Carl
Scheele. It has the symbol Ba, has an atomic number of 56, a mass of
137.33, and an electron configuration of 2, 8, 18, 18, 8, 2. It is found in Group
II, Period 6 on the Periodic table. It is soft with a silvery-white colour, and is
highly reactive.

Barium cannot be found naturally as a free element. It has quite some uses:

• Barium is used in the oil and gas industries to make drilling muds.
• Barium is also used in paint and glassmaking, and as a drying agent and pigment.
• Barium is a good absorber of X-rays and can be used to produce X-ray images of the intestinal
tract.
 6. Radium
Radium is the 6th and last Alkaline earth metal on the periodic table, and it
was first discovered by Marie and Pierre Curie in 1898. It has the symbol Ra,
an atomic number of 88, a mass of [226], an electron configuration of
2, 8, 18, 32, 18, 8, 2, and is the only radioactive Alkaline earth metal. It is
found in Group II, Period 7 on the Periodic table. Pure Radium has a silver-grey
colour.
In nature, radium is found in uranium ores and (to a lesser extent) thorium ores in trace amounts as
small as a seventh of a gram per ton of uranium ore. Radium has many uses:

• Radium was used in the 20th century for cancer therapy.

• Radium was used in self-luminous paints for watches, aircraft switches, clocks, and instrument
dials until the early 1970s.
• Radium is still being used today in industrial radiography.
 In
Alkaline earth metals are all the elements in
Group II of the Periodic table. These
elements are Beryllium, Magnesium,
Calcium, Strontium, Barium and Radium.

Conclusion: These elements share similar physical

properties such as Lustre, Softness,
Ductility, Malleability etc. They also share
similar chemical properties like Valency,
Density, Melting point, Flame colour etc.
 THANKS FOR
LISTENING!!
Sources: byjus.com
www.Wikipedia.com
www.Livescience.com
www.rsc.org