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Beryllium is an alkali earth metal, reasonably stable in air, and extremely toxic in powdered form. It's used as an alloying element for copper, imparting great strength and springiness to the metal. Added to aluminum it makes light, strong, stiff alloys used in race cars and in aerospace applications. Solid lumps of beryllium left alone are not dangerous as such: It's not going to rub off and go through your skin, but because of its toxicity, care is needed when machining beryllium or its alloys.
Beryllium oxide is worthy of special note because it is a good electrical insulator, but at the same time a good conductor of heat, which is a somewhat unusual combination. Metals generally conduct both heat and electricity well, while things like wood, rubber, etc, conduct both poorly: There aren't that many materials that do one but not the other. Beryllium oxide is used as a high-voltage insulator because it is able to conduct heat away from components while keeping them isolated electrically (see sample below).
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  Crystalline lumps, 99.9%.
Ed Pegg got these little lumps of pure beryllium from Tom Salow.
I chose this sample to represent its element in my Photographic Periodic Table Poster. The sample photograph includes text exactly as it appears in the poster, which you are encouraged to buy a copy of.
Source: Tom Salow
Contributor: Ed Pegg Jr
Acquired: 18 July, 2002
Text Updated: 4 May, 2007
Price: $10/gram
Size: 0.4"
Purity: 99.9%
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X-ray window.
This is described as an x-ray tube window. It has a crude edge around it, which I thought might be just the way they are (since the x-ray beam may be exiting though just a small area in the middle). However reader Marten Kooistra from the Netherlands thinks it looks more like someone cut it out of the tube with a screw driver or something. He sent the following picture of a tube he had with a similar window, showing what a window like this looks like in place:
Source: eBay seller rubbleshop
Contributor: eBay seller rubbleshop
Acquired: 4 November, 2002
Price: Donated
Size: 0.5"
Purity: >99%
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Electrical insulator.
Beryllium oxide is used as an electrical insulator because while it doesn't conduct electricity, it does conduct heat very well, which allows it to cool the components it is isolating electrically. It's quite glassy, like a real ceramic, not powdery like many metal oxides. I don't know if that's a basic property of the material, or whether it's somehow vitrified in a matrix of some other ceramic material. The package warns that while this insulator is harmless as supplied, it should not be modified in any way, presumably because of the danger of releasing beryllium oxide powder (beryllium is very toxic in powdered form where it can get into the body).
Want to see one in action? Here's a picture of what looks like this exact insulator being used to make a fun little gadget, a tabletop fusion machine. I have it on good authority that this is not like cold fusion, that it really does work to produce fusion. (It's not a practical source of power because of the tiny amounts of fusion that actually occurs, but it is said to be the only low-cost source of neutrons if you need them for some reason.) It sure would be fun to tell our personnel manager we're building a fusion reactor in the unused cubicle: I wonder what the employee manual has to say about that....
Source: eBay seller billw87
Contributor: Theodore Gray
Acquired: 8 November, 2002
Text Updated: 11 August, 2007
Price: $20
Size: 9"
Purity: 36%
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Sample from the RGB Set.
The Red Green and Blue company in England sells a very nice element collection in several versions. Max Whitby, the director of the company, very kindly donated a complete set to the periodic table table.
To learn more about the set you can visit my page about element collecting for a general description or the company's website which includes many photographs and pricing details. I have two photographs of each sample from the set: One taken by me and one from the company. You can see photographs of all the samples displayed in a periodic table format: my pictures or their pictures. Or you can see both side-by-side with bigger pictures in numerical order.
The picture on the left was taken by me. Here is the company's version (there is some variation between sets, so the pictures sometimes show different variations of the samples):
Source: Max Whitby of RGB
Contributor: Max Whitby of RGB
Acquired: 25 January, 2003
Text Updated: 11 August, 2007
Price: Donated
Size: 0.2"
Purity: 99.9%
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Sample from the Everest Set.
Up until the early 1990's a company in Russia sold a periodic table collection with element samples. At some point their American distributor sold off the remaining stock to a man who is now selling them on eBay. The samples (except gases) weigh about 0.25 grams each, and the whole set comes in a very nice wooden box with a printed periodic table in the lid.
This particular sample requires a special warning: Powdered beryllium is extremely toxic! Max Whitby has calculated that this sample contains enough beryllium to contaminate 100,000 cubic meters of air to the regulatory hazard level. Were it to break, special precautions would be necessary. Fortunately, it's a relatively coarse powder and would probably not spread very far or very fast, but it would definitely be necessary to clean it up carefully and completely (not using a vacuum cleaner).
To learn more about the set you can visit my page about element collecting for a general description and information about how to buy one, or you can see photographs of all the samples from the set displayed on my website in a periodic table layout or with bigger pictures in numerical order.
Source: Rob Accurso
Contributor: Rob Accurso
Acquired: 7 February, 2003
Text Updated: 20 November, 2008
Price: Donated
Size: 0.2"
Purity: >99%
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Blob.
This is a big blob of beryllium from China, part of a one-kilogram lot Max purchased for making element samples for his commercial sets and museum displays. It's very light for its size, so much so that it seems hollow, but he's broken some of these open and they are not. The white granular stuff hidden in the crevice is a bit alarming: If it's beryllium oxide then it's dangerously toxic: Until this has been determined I am keeping this sample in a sealed bag and handling it only gently and with gloves.
Source: Max Whitby of RGB
Contributor: Max Whitby of RGB
Acquired: 22 July, 2003
Text Updated: 13 August, 2006
Price: Donated
Size: 4"
Purity: 99.9%
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Gyroscope sphere.
These spheres appear from time to time on eBay and tend to go for pretty high prices. They are said to be from an air force gyroscope: The sphere would be spinning at very high speed, suspended electrostatically. The markings on the surface allowed the system to track the orientation of the sphere as it was spinning. It's commonly claimed that they are extremely accurate spheres, within millionths of an inch of perfect. Or at least, they were until they inevitably crashed into the wall, got scratched or bent, and thus ended up on eBay. Here's what the seller had to say about this particular one:This is a hollow beryllium Electrostatically Suspended Gyroscope (ESG) Sphere used in the Inertial Guidance System of the B52 and F117 bomber Aircraft.
This high tech unit was designed to rotate over 50,000 times a minute and electrostatically suspended in a near perfect vacuum.
While in flight use aboard the aircraft it had a catastrophic failure and crashed in its housing. This caused a distortion of this near geometrically perfect oblate sphere.
Note: This particular sphere has only minor scratches (less than one thousandth of an inch deep) and is in otherwise good condition.
It originally measured 1.50000 inches in diameter, weighs 10 grams and has a highly polished optical surface. There are a series of etched patterns used to read out the position and speed of this sphere with a set of photovoltaic sensors.
The guidance system it belonged to was known as the Standard Precision Navigator/Gimbaled Electrostatically Suspended Aircraft Navigator or SPN/Geans. The SPN/Geans was the prime inertial position and velocity sensing system for the aircraft.
This gyroscope originally cost the government over $17,000 and was so expensive to maintain that it was discontinued from service. This is very similar to what other sellers say about similar spheres, and having to reason to doubt it, I think it's probably all true. See the next sample for a fascinating variation on the theme: A broken gyroscope sphere.
Source: eBay seller spatial-one
Contributor: Theodore Gray
Acquired: 29 February, 2004
Price: $98
Size: 1.50000"
Purity: 99%
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Broken gyroscope sphere.
See the sample above for a detailed explanation of these spheres. What makes this one fascinating is that it's cracked in half, allowing you to see just how thick the walls are. From holding an intact sphere you would think it must be a paper-thin, very delicate ball, because it's just so light. But with a broken one you can see that it's actually quite substantial: Beryllium is used for these sorts of parts precisely because it's so incredibly light weight.
Source: eBay seller spatial-one
Contributor: Theodore Gray
Acquired: 12 May, 2004
Price: $50
Size: 1.50000"
Purity: 99%
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Missile part.
This is a machined beryllium missile part of some sort. Beryllium is extremely toxic in powdered form, but relatively harmless as long as it's fully intact. Making a part like this must be quite difficult to do safely considering the amount of very toxic beryllium dust and shavings that would be generated.
Source: eBay seller parker282828
Contributor: Theodore Gray
Acquired: 12 May, 2004
Text Updated: 18 October, 2009
Price: $67
Size: 1.25"
Purity: 99%
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Complete gyroscope module.
This is the complete unit that contains one of the beryllium spheres pictured above: It's a fabulous bit of machining, I just wish I could figure out how to take it apart without breaking something.
Source: eBay seller parker282828
Contributor: Theodore Gray
Acquired: 15 June, 2004
Text Updated: 18 October, 2009
Price: $70
Size: 2.5"
Purity: 90%
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Thimbles.
These are small thimble-like parts: No idea what they were used for but it's probably aerospace related since there are few other applications of beryllium.
Source: eBay seller allthedodaday
Contributor: Theodore Gray
Acquired: 2 November, 2004
Price: $38
Size: 0.5"
Purity: 99%
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X-Ray tube with window.
This is a complete x-ray tube with a chromium target and three beryllium windows (used because beryllium is largely transparent to x-rays). See a few samples back for an example of one of the windows removed from a similar tube.
Source: eBay seller allthedodaday
Contributor: Theodore Gray
Acquired: 2 November, 2004
Text Updated: 11 March, 2007
Price: $24
Size: 0.5"
Purity: 99%
Sample Group: Medical
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Sphere.
Described as a beryllium gyroscope sphere from a military aircraft. It's definitely not one of the classic light-weight gyroscope spheres: It appears to be solid, though of course still very light. No idea what it was really used for.
Source: eBay seller ohioidustrialsurplus
Contributor: Theodore Gray
Acquired: 10 January, 2006
Text Updated: 20 February, 2006
Price: $66
Size: 1.25"
Purity: 99%
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X-ray window sheet.
X-rays are generated by accelerating electrons in a vacuum tube: When they strike a target at the positive side of the tube, x-rays are emitted. The problem then is how to let the x-rays out of the tube without letting air in. The answer is a beryllium window. Beryllium is virtually transparent to x-rays, but impervious to air. This is a sheet of beryllium from which several round pieces have been punched to make x-ray windows.
Source: Juan Jimenez
Contributor: Juan Jimenez
Acquired: 6 April, 2007
Text Updated: 6 April, 2007
Price: Donated
Size: 3"
Purity: >99%
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Beryllium raw material.
Description supplied by the source:
This piece of beryllium was originally purchased about 25 years ago from Brush-Wellman, by far the largest and oldest company in the world that deals with the production, refining, and fabrication of beryllium. This sample certainly shows some of the difficulties in dealing with pure beryllium- from the internal surface texture, it is pretty clear that the stuff is ridiculously brittle. In addition, it is very difficult to melt, cast and work- the hole that is visible in this rough piece is actually a void passing all the way through that remains as an artifact from when it was originally melted! This sample is, like all beryllium, mind-bogglingly light to hold- our brains are not used to hefting a piece of beryllium and associating that kind of density (or lack thereof) with a piece of solid metal.
Source: Ethan Currens
Contributor: Ethan Currens
Acquired: 21 March, 2008
Text Updated: 21 March, 2008
Price: Anonymous
Size: 2"
Purity: 99.9%
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Metal salesmans sample.
From the eBay item description, which pretty much sums up what this item is:This auction is for a very unusual, what I think would be called a Salesman Sample, of 5 exotic metal disks. The brown plastic case that measures 2.50 in. by 6 in., was received by my Father when he visited the Kawecki Berylco Industries in the 1970's. The company was bought by Cabot Corp. in the late 70's. The disks measure 1.25 in. dia. by .1in. thick. According to the description in the case the 5 metals are Beryllium, Lockalloy, Beryllium Copper, Columbium [an older name for niobium], Tantalum. This is the pure beryllium sample from the set, the others are listed under their respective elements. Click the Source link to see the samples all together, and here's a picture of the whole set:
Source: eBay seller jacav111
Contributor: Theodore Gray
Acquired: 27 December, 2008
Text Updated: 28 December, 2008
Price: $134/set
Size: 1.25"
Purity: 99.9%
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Metal salesmans sample.
From the eBay item description, which pretty much sums up what this item is:This auction is for a very unusual, what I think would be called a Salesman Sample, of 5 exotic metal disks. The brown plastic case that measures 2.50 in. by 6 in., was received by my Father when he visited the Kawecki Berylco Industries in the 1970's. The company was bought by Cabot Corp. in the late 70's. The disks measure 1.25 in. dia. by .1in. thick. According to the description in the case the 5 metals are Beryllium, Lockalloy, Beryllium Copper, Columbium [an older name for niobium], Tantalum. This is the lockalloy sample from the set, the others are listed under their respective elements. Lockalloy is said to be 62% beryllium and 38% aluminum, and used in exotic supersonic aircraft. Click the Source link to see the samples all together, and here's a picture of the whole set:
Source: eBay seller jacav111
Contributor: Theodore Gray
Acquired: 27 December, 2008
Text Updated: 28 December, 2008
Price: $134/set
Size: 1.25"
Purity: 62%
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Beryllium copper irons (golf clubs).
Golf clubs are categorized by what they are made of: There are "woods" and there are "irons". The woods are not often made of wood (titanium or aluminum are common) and the irons are often not made of iron, as you can see in the case of these beryllium copper irons. Maybe I'm the only one who thinks it's funny to use three different element names in a row to describe a golf club, but then I think most things to do with golf are silly.
Beryllium copper is an alloy of copper often used for tools that need to be reasonably strong and reasonably hard, but that more importantly need to not create sparks when used. This is important if you are, for example, working on an oil well and are drenched in flammable fluid while using the tool.
Source: eBay seller dp63
Contributor: Theodore Gray
Acquired: 24 March, 2009
Text Updated: 24 March, 2009
Price: $30
Size: 4"
Purity: <5%
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Thick disk of solid beryllium.
This is a slice of pure beryllium, probably x-ray grade meaning pure enough to allow x-rays through. Not cheap at all, no sir, not cheap.
Source: eBay seller chifizica
Contributor: Theodore Gray
Acquired: 15 April, 2009
Text Updated: 15 April, 2009
Price: $430
Size: 6"
Purity: >99%
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Beryllium-copper wrench.
Copper does not create sparks when you strike it against steel, an important fact if that steel is located on something like an oil well or other location where flammable gases are likely to be around. Unfortunately straight copper is not strong enough to make tools out of, so beryllium is added to greatly harden the alloy.
This is an ordinary crescent wrench made of such an alloy by the Berylco company.
Source: eBay seller cape-estate
Contributor: Theodore Gray
Acquired: 16 April, 2009
Text Updated: 17 April, 2009
Price: $20
Size: 8"
Purity: <5%
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Aquamarine Beryl. (External Sample)
The metal beryllium is named after this mineral. I used to say here that beryl was named after beryllium, but reader Jeffrey Shallit kindly pointed out the absurdity of that notion, since the mineral was known and named long before the metal. He writes:The word beryl comes from ancient Greek and according to the OED, first appeared in English in 1305. But beryllium was not discovered until 1797 and the word "beryllium" did not appear in English until 1863. Beryllium the metal is fairly plain looking and toxic, while beryl the mineral is quite beautiful and comes in a great variety of shapes and colors.
Location: John Gray's Collection
Photographed: 11 March, 2003
Size: 3"
Composition: Be3Al2Si6O18
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Hydroxilherderite.
Description from the source:
Hydroxilherderite (CaBe(PO4).(OH) mon.), Linopolis, Minas Gerais, Brazil. Geminated, good rare crystal. 3,2x2x1,5 cm; 10 g.
Source: Simone Citon
Contributor: John Gray
Acquired: 26 September, 2008
Text Updated: 28 September, 2008
Price: Trade
Size: 1.25"
Composition: CaBe(PO4).(OH)
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Beryl.
Description from the source:
Beryl ( Be3 Al2 Si6 O18 hex.), Governador Valadares, Minas Gerais, Brazil. Not terminated cristal on Quartz with decent color. 6x4,5x4 cm (crystal up to 22 mm); 126 g.
Source: Simone Citon
Contributor: John Gray
Acquired: 30 September, 2008
Text Updated: 1 October, 2008
Price: Trade
Size: 2.4"
Composition: Be3Al2Si6O18
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Chrysoberyl.
Description from the source:
Chrysoberyl (Be Al2 O4 orth.), Colatinha, Espirito Santo, Brazil. Geminated, purple-greenish color. 2,2x2x1,2 cm; 10 g.
Source: Simone Citon
Contributor: John Gray
Acquired: 30 September, 2008
Text Updated: 1 October, 2008
Price: Trade
Size: 1"
Composition: BeAl2O4
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Londonite-Rhodizite.
Description from the source:
Londonite-Rhodizite serie ( (Cs K Rb) Al4 Be4 (B Be)12 028 to Rb=0 for the pure Rhodizite cub.), Antandrokomby, Antsirabe`, Madagascar. Rich in rubidium example, with Tourmaline (probably Liddicoatite). 3,1x2,5x2 cm; 22 g.
Source: Simone Citon
Contributor: John Gray
Acquired: 30 September, 2008
Text Updated: 1 October, 2008
Price: Trade
Size: 1.25"
Composition: (CsKRb)Al4Be4(BBe)12028
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Londonite-Rhodizite.
Description from the source:
Londonite-Rhodizite serie ( (Cs K Rb) Al4 Be4 (B Be)12 028 to Rb=0 for the pure Rhodizite cub.), Antandrokomby, Antsirabe`, Madagascar. Yellow, partially translucent crystals on matrix with tourmaline. I repeat these species also for other elements, but are very interesting and rich in rare elements. 3,5x2,5x1,5 cm; 12 g.
Source: Simone Citon
Contributor: John Gray
Acquired: 19 November, 2008
Text Updated: 20 November, 2008
Price: Trade
Size: 1.4"
Composition: (CsKRb)Al4Be4(BBe)12
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Beryl.
Description from the source:
Beryl ( Be3 Al2 Si6 O18 hex.), Antsongombato, Antananarivo, Madagascar. Partial crystal with good blue-green color. 2,3x2,1x2 cm; 25 g.
Source: Simone Citon
Contributor: John Gray
Acquired: 27 December, 2008
Text Updated: 28 December, 2008
Price: Trade
Size: 1"
Composition: Be3Al2Si6O18
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Metal salesman's sample pouch.
From the eBay item description, which pretty much sums up what this item is:This auction is for a very unusual, what I think would be called a Salesman Sample, of 5 exotic metal disks. The brown plastic case that measures 2.50 in. by 6 in., was received by my Father when he visited the Kawecki Berylco Industries in the 1970's. The company was bought by Cabot Corp. in the late 70's. The disks measure 1.25 in. dia. by .1in. thick. According to the description in the case the 5 metals are Beryllium, Lockalloy, Beryllium Copper, Columbium [an older name for niobium], Tantalum. The individual disks are listed under their respective elements (beryllium for lockalloy, copper for beryllium copper).
Source: eBay seller jacav111
Contributor: Theodore Gray
Acquired: 27 December, 2008
Text Updated: 28 December, 2008
Price: $134
Size: 6"
Composition: BeAlCuNbTa
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Londonite-Rhodizite.
Description from the source:
Londonite-Rhodizite serie ( (Cs K Rb) Al4 Be4 (B Be)12 028 to Rb=0 for the pure Rhodizite cub.), Antandrokomby, Antsirabe`, Madagascar. Perfect isolated crystals. 1x0,8x0,7 cm the bigger; 2 g all.
Source: Simone Citon
Contributor: John Gray
Acquired: 28 January, 2009
Text Updated: 29 January, 2009
Price: Trade
Size: 0.4"
Composition: (CsKRb)Al4Be4(BBe)12028
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