Element 4 · Alkaline Earth Metal
Beryllium
A lightweight metal with exceptional stiffness — but its dust is acutely toxic, restricting it to specialist applications only.
Element Facts
SYMBOL
Be
ATOMIC NO.
4
ATOMIC WEIGHT
9.012
CATEGORY
Alkaline Earth Metal
PERIOD
Period 2
GROUP
Group 2
In Brief
Beryllium is element 4, a steel-grey alkaline earth metal that is remarkably light yet stiffer than steel. It is rare in the Earth's crust and most often extracted from the mineral beryl (the same mineral family as emerald and aquamarine gemstones).
History
Used in early 20th-century X-ray tube windows because of its low atomic number (high X-ray transmission). Beryllium-copper alloys have been used since the 1930s for non-sparking tools in oil refineries and explosives factories.
Uses Today
Beryllium oxide ceramics in high-power electronics. Beryllium-copper alloys for high-strength springs, electrical contacts, and aerospace components. The James Webb Space Telescope mirrors are beryllium because of its light weight and dimensional stability at cryogenic temperatures.
Why We Don't Buy It
Why QuickStop Metals doesn’t buy Beryllium:
Beryllium dust and fumes cause chronic beryllium disease — a serious, sometimes fatal lung condition. Handling beryllium scrap requires specialist HSE-authorised facilities with full respiratory protection and contained processing. There is no general scrap-yard market for beryllium because the safety controls required are incompatible with general operations. We do not buy beryllium or beryllium-copper alloys — these must go to specialist recyclers (typically Materion Brush in the US or selected European facilities).
Value & Pricing
Beryllium-copper alloy is highly valuable, but recycled only by licensed specialist processors.