Question

Compare the chemistry of group 1 metals with that of group 2 metals with respect to the following:

Solubility of carbonates improves on going from group 1 to group 2.

Answer 1

Carbonates formed by alkali metals are very stable compared to those formed by alkaline earth metals. Carbonates of alkaline earth metals decompose easily upon heating.

The carbonates become less soluble down the group. All the Group 2 carbonates are very sparingly soluble. Magnesium carbonate, for example, has a solubility of about 0.02 g per 100 g of water at room temperature.

There is little data for beryllium carbonate, but as it reacts with water, the trend is obscured. The trend to lower solubility is, however, broken at the bottom of the group: barium carbonate is slightly more soluble than strontium carbonate.