Basic chemicals of alkali metals Francisco Javier Cervigon Ruckauer

Basic chemicals of alkali metals

SODIUM HYDROXIDE


























SODIUM CHLORIDE

Sodium chloride, also known as table salt, is a vital commodity commonly used as flavoring agent in food although it is also the most important raw material for producing a large number of chemical products. Aqueous solutions of sodium chloride are used for the production of chlorine gas and sodium hydroxide, while melted sodium chloride is used to produce sodium metal. Sodium carbonate (washing soda) and sodium hydrogen carbonate (baking soda) are other important chemicals obtained employing sodium chloride as raw material.
The majority of the sodium chloride commercially produced today is extracted from underground deposits produced when large lakes evaporated to dryness hundreds of millions of years ago. A large amount of the salt is mined and brought to the surface in the form of rock salt in a similar way as is done with coal, and the remainder is extracted with water followed by evaporation in vacuum plants. In some countries located in warmer regions the salt is extracted from the oceans by pouring the seawater in big flat tanks and then the water is evaporated away using the Sun’s energy. Considering that sodium chloride is the most abundant compound of dissolved minerals in seawater as long as the water evaporates, the concentration of sodium chloride increases and it begins to crystallise .The salt obtained contains some impurities such as calcium and magnesium sulphate and magnesium chloride so a saturated solution of the crude salt is prepared and is filtered to remove suspended matter. The solution is then saturated with HCI gas which leads to the separation of pure crystals of NaCl due to the common ion effect, and chlorides of magnesium and calcium remain in solution.

SODIUM CARBONATE


























SYNTHESIS OF SODIUM CARBONATE IN THE LAB


























Francisco Javier Cervigon Ruckauer

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