beryllium

[buh-ril-ee-uh m] /bəˈrɪl i əm/

noun, Chemistry

a steel-gray, bivalent, hard, light, metallic element, the salts of which are sweet: used chiefly in copper alloys for better fatigue endurance, in springs, and in electrical contacts. Symbol: Be; atomic weight: 9.0122; atomic number: 4; specific gravity: 1.8 at 20° C.

Origin

1860-65; < Latin bēryll(us) beryl + -ium

Examples from the web for beryllium

beryllium causes acute or chronic beryllium disease, a deadly ailment affecting the lungs.
His strength was in theoretical physics, but he was being forced to sit in a laboratory making thin films of beryllium.
The proton beam enters a magnetic focusing horn where it strikes a beryllium target.
beryllium produces health effects ranging from sensitization without evidence of disease to clinically apparent pulmonary disease.
beryllium is a metal that is primarily used as a hardening agent in alloys.

British Dictionary definitions for beryllium

beryllium

/bɛˈrɪlɪəm/

noun

a corrosion-resistant toxic silvery-white metallic element that occurs chiefly in beryl and is used mainly in X-ray windows and in the manufacture of alloys. Symbol: Be; atomic no: 4; atomic wt: 9.012; valency: 2; relative density: 1.848; melting pt: 1289°C; boiling pt: 2472°C Former names glucinum, glucinium

Word Origin

C19: from Latin bēryllus, from Greek bērullos

Word Origin and History for beryllium

metallic element, 1863, so called because it figures in the composition of the pale green precious stone beryl and was identified in emerald (green beryl) in 1797 by French chemist Louis Nicolas Vauquelin (1763-1829) and first isolated in 1828. At first and through 19c. also sometimes called glucinum or glucinium.

beryllium in Medicine

beryllium be·ryl·li·um (bə-rĭl'ē-əm)
n.
Symbol Be
A lightweight, corrosion-resistant metallic element used as an aerospace structural material, as a moderator and reflector in nuclear reactors, and in a copper alloy for springs and electrical contacts. Atomic number 4; atomic weight 9.0122; melting point 1,278°C; boiling point 2,471°C; specific gravity 1.848; valence 2.

beryllium in Science

beryllium

(bə-rĭl'ē-əm)
Symbol Be
A hard, lightweight, steel-gray metallic element of the alkaline-earth group, found in various minerals, especially beryl. It has a high melting point and is corrosion-resistant. Beryllium is used to make sturdy, lightweight alloys and aerospace structural materials. It is also used as a neutron moderator in nuclear reactors. Atomic number 4; atomic weight 9.0122; melting point 1,278°C; boiling point 2,970°C; specific gravity 1.848; valence 2. See Periodic Table.