Hydroxides of e group 2 metals

   Beryllium hydroxide is amphoteric and this sets it apart from the hydroxides of the other group 2 metals which are basic. In the presence of excess [OH]^-, Be(OH)₂ behaves as a Lewis acid  forming the tetrahedral complex ion but Be(OH)₂ also reacts with acids.

  The water solubilities of M(OH)₂ (M = Mg, Ca, Sr, Ba) increase down the group, as do their thermal stabilities with respect to decomposition into MO and H₂O. Magnesium hydroxide acts as a weak base, whereas Ca(OH)₂, Sr(OH)₂ and Ba(OH)₂ are strong bases. Soda lime is a mixture of NaOH and Ca(OH)2 and is manufactured from CaO and aqueous NaOH; it is easier to handle than NaOH and is commercially available, being used, for example, as an absorbent for CO₂, and in qualitative tests for [NH₄]‏⁺ salts, amides, imides and related compounds which evolve NH₃ when heated with soda lime.