Barium Silicide, BaSi₂

Barium Silicide, BaSi₂, may be obtained similarly to the calcium and strontium silicides by reducing a mixture of barium oxide and silica by carbon in the electric furnace, by heating together barium oxide and silicon, or by combining barium and silicon directly. With dilute hydrochloric acid, silicon hydride is evolved and silica deposited. The physical and chemical properties of the compound are similar to those of strontium silicide, but the former is more readily attacked by reagents than the latter.