radium oxide

Physical properties

Radium Oxide can be prepared by heating radium metal in air to give a mixture of white radium oxide, RaO, and radium nitride, Ra3N2. The superoxide RaO2 is also likely to form in this reaction.
2Ra(solid)＋ O2(gas) → 2RaO(solid)
Ra(solid)＋ O2(gas) → RaO2(solid)
3Ra(solid)＋N2(gas) → Ra3N2(solid)
Radium reacts very readily with water to form radium hydroxide, Ba(OH)2 and hydrogen gas (H2). The reaction is expected to be more violent than that of barium:
Ra(solid)＋ 2H2O(gas)→ Ra(OH)2(aq)＋H2(gas)

The Uses of radium oxide

Radium oxide is often used as a precursor to the formation of other radium compounds which are used in radiotherapy of humans.