Barium peroxide Barium peroxide Barium peroxide is the inorganic compound with the formula BaO. This white solid (gray when impure) is one of the most common inorganic peroxides, and it was the first peroxide compound discovered. Being an oxidizer and giving a vivid green colour upon ignition (as do all barium compounds), it finds some use in fireworks; historically, it was also used as a precursor for hydrogen peroxide. Barium peroxide is a peroxide, containing subunits. The solid is isomorphous to calcium carbide, CaC. Barium peroxide arises by the reversible reaction of O with barium oxide. The peroxide forms around 500 °C
Barium is then reduced by carbon to barium sulfide: The water-soluble barium sulfide is the starting point for other compounds: reacting BaS with oxygen produces the sulfate, with nitric acid the nitrate, with carbon dioxide the carbonate, and so on. The nitrate can be thermally decomposed to yield the oxide. Barium metal is produced by reduction with aluminium at . The intermetallic compound BaAl is produced first: BaAl is an intermediate reacted with barium oxide to produce the metal. Note that not all barium is reduced. The remaining barium oxide reacts with the formed aluminium oxide: and the overall reaction is