Magnesium oxide | chemical compound | Britannica (original) (raw)
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In alkaline-earth metal: History Magnesia (the name derives probably from Magnesia, a district of Thessaly in Greece), the oxide of magnesium, was shown to be an alkaline earth different from lime by the Scottish chemist Joseph Black in 1755; he observed that magnesia gave rise to a soluble sulfate,… Read More
alumina lamp envelopes
In advanced ceramics: Solid-state sintering With magnesia as a sintering aid, however, alumina sinters to translucency. Apparently, magnesia slows the migration of grain boundaries during sintering. Pores remain on these boundaries and are eliminated by grain boundary diffusion. Extremely low porosities can be achieved. Read More
nonclay refractories
In refractory: Basic Basic refractories include magnesia, dolomite, chrome, and combinations of these materials. Magnesia brick is made from periclase, the mineral form of magnesia (MgO). Periclase is produced from magnesite (a magnesium carbonate, MgCO3), or it is produced from magnesium hydroxide (Mg[OH]2), which in turn is derived from Read More
study by Black
In Joseph Black: Alkalinity research and fixed air …magnesia usta (now known as magnesium oxide), like quicklime (calcium oxide), did not effervesce with acids. Unlike quicklime, however, it was not caustic or soluble in water. Black hypothesized that the weight lost during heating was due to the gas generated. He then added a solution of potash (potassium carbonate)… Read More
structure and properties
In magnesium: Principal compounds …hydroxide produces the oxygen compound magnesium oxide, commonly called magnesia, MgO. It is a white solid used in the manufacture of high-temperature refractory bricks, electrical and thermal insulators, cements, fertilizer, rubber, and plastics. It is also used medically as a laxative and antacid. Read More
crystal structures
In ceramic composition and properties: Crystal structure …2A) the material shown is magnesia (MgO), though the structure itself is referred to as rock salt because common table salt (sodium chloride, NaCl) has the same structure. In the rock salt structure each ion is surrounded by six immediate neighbours of the opposite charge (e.g., the central Mg2+ cation,… Read More
nomenclature of binary compounds
In chemical compound: Binary ionic compounds In the formulas of ionic compounds, simple ions are represented by the chemical symbol for the element: Cl means Cl−, Na means Na+, and so on. When individual ions are shown, however, the charge is always included. Thus, the formula of potassium bromide… Read More
valence electrons
In chemical compound: The periodic table …the ionic compound MgO (magnesium oxide). (Although the compound magnesium oxide contains charged species, it has no net charge, because it contains equal numbers of Mg2+ and O2− ions.) Likewise, oxygen reacts with calcium (just below magnesium in Group 2) to form CaO (calcium oxide). Oxygen reacts in a… Read More
