Barium Acetate: Properties, Formula, Uses, Solved Examples

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Barium acetate is the salt of acetic acid and barium which is a white powder that is highly soluble in water. When barium carbonate reacts with acetic acid, it produces barium acetate. When barium acetate is heated in the air, it reduces to carbonate. Barium acetate is a kind of salt also known as octan Barnaty which is used as a constituent in paints, pigments, and catalysts. Barium acetate affects human health when inhaled or consumed. 

Key terms: Barium acetate, formula, toxic, decomposes, preparation, production, soluble, salt, acid, white powder


Properties of Barium Acetate

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Barium acetate is toxic to humans, but has use in chemistry and manufacturing. Important properties of Barium Acetate are specified below:

  • The basic physical structure of barium acetate is White, crystal, odorless solid 
  • The Density of the compound is 2.46g/ml
  • Barium acetate decomposes at the melting point of 450?
  • Barium acetate have a high solubility in water
  • Slightly soluble in ethanol, methanol
  • Barium acetate is Insoluble in non-polar solvents
  • Results in the production of barium carbonate when barium acetate decomposes by heating
  • When reacted which acid, it results in the production of different salts
  • The molar mass of Barium acetate is 255.42 g/mol

Formula and Structure of Barium Acetate

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The formula of barium acetate is C4H6BaO4 . Ba(CH3COO–)2 is the condensed formula. Two acetate anions CH3COO– are combined with one barium cation to give rise to barium acetate. The pi bond between C=O is the reason behind the planar structure of the acetate ion. 

Structure of Barium Acetate

Structure of Barium Acetate


Uses of Barium Acetate

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  1. Production of other barium components
  2. Preparation of other acetates
  3. Preparation of drying paints, pigments, coats, and dyes
  4. Catalyst in organic synthesis
  5. The useful component in lubricating oil

Health Hazards

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Barium acetate can cause harm to the body when swallowed or inhaled. Its toxic nature can irritate the respiratory tract, eyes, and skin. In addition, it also affects organs such as nerves, the gastrointestinal system, heart, lungs, and muscles. 

Ions of barium act as a muscle poison which may lead to paralysis as a result of muscle stimulation. The symptoms of the effect are mainly vomiting, diarrhea, nausea, and colic as well as myocardial and general muscular stimulation. The lung damage due to consumption of barium acetate is chronic. 


Things to Remember

  • Barium diacetate is another name for barium acetate.
  • Barium acetate acts as a cationization agent for detecting sensitive reactions.
  • Ba(C2H3O2)2 is the molecular formula of barium acetate.
  • Barium acetate is not flammable.
  • The reaction of acetic acid and barium carbonate is the cheapest and easy process to prepare the salt. 
  • Barium acetate is harmful when consumed or inhaled. Acute barium poisoning happens due to the consumption of soluble barium compounds such as BaCl2
  • Barium acetate is a toxic compound that has a tetragonal crystal structure. 

Sample Questions

Ques. Name the elements that have the respective symbol: As, Sb, Pb, Sg, and Ag. (2 Marks)

Ans: Arsenic has the chemical symbol of As. Sb is the symbol for antimony. Pb is the chemical symbol for lead; Sg is the symbol for the element seaborgium. Ag is the chemical symbol for silver where A refers to Argentum and g refers to argunas. The first and third alphabet Is used to write the symbol.

Ques. Write the chemical formula of the combination of chloride and potassium ion. (2 Marks)

Ans: The element contains one potassium(K) atom and one chlorine (Cl) atom. Both the elements have an equal charge of 1. The combination of a metal element and a nonmetal element gives rise to an ionic compound.

Ques. Give the chemical formula for the combination of (i) lead and sulfur ions (ii) phosphate and hydrogen ions. (3 Marks)

Ans: (i). The formula for lead is Pb and that of sulfate is SO2-4. Lead has a charge of +4 and sulfur has a charge of -2. thus the molecular formula is Pb(SO4)2

(ii) The symbol for hydrogen is H and that of phosphate is PO3-4. Hydrogen has a positive charge of 3 and phosphate has a negative charge of 3. Thus the formula of the compound formed is H3PO4.

Ques. What is the molecular formula of magnesium acetate? (2 Marks)

Ans: The magnesium salt of acetic acid is known as magnesium acetate. The oxidation state of acetate ion (CH3COO)– is -1 whereas the oxidation state of magnesium (Mg) is +2. Magnesium is a divalent cation and the acetate is an anion with a negative charge of 1. Thus the molecular formula of magnesium acetate is Mg(CH3COO)2

Ques. How is barium acetate prepared? (3 Marks)

Ans: There are two methods for the production of barium acetate.

  1. When barium carbonate is reacted with acetic acid, it results in the production of barium acetate. As the reaction is performed in a solution, the barium acetate crystallizes out and barium sulfide is usable. 

BaCO3 + 2CH3COOH → (CH3COO)2Ba + CO2 + H2O

  1. When barium sulfide is reacted with acetic acid, it results in the production of barium acetate. 

BaS + 2CH3COOH → (CH3COO)2Ba + CO2 + H2S

Ques. What are the reactions of barium acetate? (2 Marks)

Ans: It decomposes to carbonate when it gets heated in the presence of oxygen. When barium acetate reacts with sulphuric acid, it results in sulfate. When it reacts with hydrochloric acid, it results in chloride. when it reacts with nitric acid, it results in nitrate. 

Ques. What is the formula for washing soda? (2 Marks)

Ans: It is a compound of the elements of an s-block that is in hydrated form. The chemical formula of washing soda is Na2CO3.10H2O.

Ques. What is the type of bond that barium acetate follows? (2 Marks)

Ans: barium acetate has a planer structure due to the pi bond between C=O. The bonding in ethane (C2H4) and the bonding in ethyne (C2H12) are examples of pi bonding. 

Ques. Can barium acetate be recognized as having a strong base? (3 Marks)

Ans: Barium acetate ionizes but is a weak electrolyte when dissolved in water which is why it does not dissolve fully in water. it also doesn’t undergo hydrolysis. Hydrogen ion when combined with acetate ion, can be recognized as a weak acid but Ba(OH)2 is a strong base. It hydrolyses and ionizes into H2S and NaOH as byproducts. 

Ques. Is the strength of acetate more than water? (1 Mark)

Ans: Acetic acid and HCN are stronger acids than water. acetate and cyanide have weaker bases than hydroxide. 

Also read:

CBSE CLASS XII Related Questions

  • 1.
    For decomposition of $H_2O_2$ by $I^-$: Step I: $H_2O_2 + I^- \rightarrow H_2O + IO^-$ (slow). Step II: $H_2O_2 + IO^- \rightarrow H_2O + I^- + O_2$ (fast). (a) Write rate law. (b) Determine order w.r.t. $H_2O_2$ and $I^-$ and overall order. (c) Molecularity of Step II.


      • 2.
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