Hydroxide
The solubility in water of the other hydroxides in this group increases with increasing atomic number. Magnesium hydroxide Mg(OH) is a strong base (up to the limit of its solubility, which is very low in pure water), as are the hydroxides of the heavier alkaline earths: calcium hydroxide, strontium hydroxide, and barium hydroxide. A solution or suspension of calcium hydroxide is known as limewater and can be used to test for the weak acid carbon dioxide. The reaction Ca(OH) + CO Ca + + OH illustrates the basicity of calcium hydroxide. Soda lime, which is a mixture of the strong bases NaOH and KOH with Ca(OH), is used as a CO absorbent.
Lithium hydroxide
Lithium hydroxide is used in breathing gas purification systems for spacecraft, submarines, and rebreathers to remove carbon dioxide from exhaled gas by producing lithium carbonate and water:
or
The latter, anhydrous hydroxide, is preferred for its lower mass and lesser water production for respirator systems in spacecraft. One gram of anhydrous lithium hydroxide can remove 450 cm of carbon dioxide gas. The monohydrate loses its water at 100–110 °C.