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> Cue roof washing drone industry saw it here first, folks edit: depends on enviro toxicity of barium? Only use I know of it is gastro contrast studies. Pro

> Cue roof washing drone industry saw it here first, folks edit: depends on enviro toxicity of barium? Only use I know of it is gastro contrast studies. Probably other industrial uses I’m ignorant of.. edit2: You have now subscribed to barium facts: “ Surprisingly barium shows up in our oil production. When drilling for oil, a substance called drilling mud is used. There are various types of drilling mud that serve a multitude of purposes. Crude barite is used to create a specific type of drilling mud called thixotropic mud. Its purpose is to help remove rocks from the borehole and keep them from settling when the mud is not flowing. ” [1] “Barium is not an extensively used element. Most is used in drilling fluids for oil and gas wells. It is also used in paint and in glassmaking.” [2] [1] https://info.noahtech.com/blog/how-barium-is-used-in-everyday-life https://info.noahtech.com/blog/how-barium-is-used-in-everyda... [2] https://www.rsc.org/periodic-table/element/56/barium https://www.rsc.org/periodic-table/element/56/barium

echelon 5y ago
Before we get that far, we need to know how fragile and/or toxic the paint is. And a whole host of other properties. This may never leave the lab. It's hard to say at this point.
- senortumnus 5y ago
  for sure. It’s used in oil drilling, it must be safe right? :)
petre 5y ago
Barium is from the same group of elements with Calcium and Magnesium so I imagine it's not very toxic. But it has many radioisotopes and a long lived one that's naturally occuring, Ba-130.
- jcranmer 5y ago
  Your imagination is incorrect. Barium is indeed toxic, as is the case for pretty much every metal at the bottom of the periodic table even if they aren't radioactive. However, it is one of the more mild toxins, and its toxicity is heavily mitigated by the fact that it's one of the least soluble cations (i.e., barium-anything is pretty insoluble), so it would be relatively difficult to actually ingest.
- labster 5y ago
  Lead is in the same group of elements as carbon and silicon so I imagine it’s not very toxic. — Flint, Michigan City Manager, probably
- throwaway4220 5y ago
  We use barium sulfate for enemas and swallow studies. I don’t know if that means all barium is safe though. It’s certainly not like gadolinium.

echelon 5y ago

Before we get that far, we need to know how fragile and/or toxic the paint is. And a whole host of other properties. This may never leave the lab. It's hard to say at this point.

senortumnus 5y ago
for sure. It’s used in oil drilling, it must be safe right? :)

petre 5y ago

Barium is from the same group of elements with Calcium and Magnesium so I imagine it's not very toxic. But it has many radioisotopes and a long lived one that's naturally occuring, Ba-130.

jcranmer 5y ago
Your imagination is incorrect. Barium is indeed toxic, as is the case for pretty much every metal at the bottom of the periodic table even if they aren't radioactive. However, it is one of the more mild toxins, and its toxicity is heavily mitigated by the fact that it's one of the least soluble cations (i.e., barium-anything is pretty insoluble), so it would be relatively difficult to actually ingest.
labster 5y ago
Lead is in the same group of elements as carbon and silicon so I imagine it’s not very toxic. — Flint, Michigan City Manager, probably
throwaway4220 5y ago
We use barium sulfate for enemas and swallow studies. I don’t know if that means all barium is safe though. It’s certainly not like gadolinium.