Radium oxide is an
inorganic compound
An inorganic compound is typically a chemical compound that lacks carbon–hydrogen bondsthat is, a compound that is not an organic compound. The study of inorganic compounds is a subfield of chemistry known as ''inorganic chemistry''.
Inorgan ...
of
radium
Radium is a chemical element; it has chemical symbol, symbol Ra and atomic number 88. It is the sixth element in alkaline earth metal, group 2 of the periodic table, also known as the alkaline earth metals. Pure radium is silvery-white, ...
and
oxygen
Oxygen is a chemical element; it has chemical symbol, symbol O and atomic number 8. It is a member of the chalcogen group (periodic table), group in the periodic table, a highly reactivity (chemistry), reactive nonmetal (chemistry), non ...
with the chemical formula RaO.
Synthesis
The compound can be obtained by heating metallic radium in air:
::
This reaction also produces
radium nitride and possibly radium peroxide:
::
::
Chemical properties
Radium oxide can react with water to form
radium hydroxide:
::
Uses
It is often used as a precursor to create other radium compounds that are used in radiation therapy.
References
{{Radium compounds
Oxides
Radium compounds