Sources of Barium
Barium was a detergent additive metal found in natural gas engine oils but is no longer allowed in products manufactured in North America due to toxicity concerns
Greases, though, continue to use barium in the form of a thickener system. Machines with greased seals or those having undergone recent maintenance may exhibit small increases in barium, depending on the rate of leakage or overage in use.
Barium is often ignored since it appears too rarely, but this also serves as the justification to investigate the appearance of any level of barium, as it indicates an abnormal condition.
Watch for the next article in the Elemental Spectroscopy blog series: Molybdenum.
