beryllium (Be)

Definition

Toxic metal found in several alloys used in very specialized applications such as in aircraft, rockets and missiles, spacecrafts, and nuclear reactors. Acute beryllium poisoning can result from a less than 50 day exposure to its concentrations as low as 20 micrograms (millionth of a gram) per cubic meter of ambient air. It causes usually-fatal berylliosis by inhalation, and produces its subacute and chronic forms from skin contamination. Classified as a hazardous pollutant, beryllium's maximum concentration of discharge is set generally at 0.1 micrograms per cubic meter of ambient air.