Description
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Sodium is an alkali metal which is in the form of a silvery white solid in its natural state. Sodium is highly reactive and so it is only found in nature as a compound in other substances. Sodium has an atomic weight of 22.9897628, a melting point of 207.9 °F, and a boiling point of 1621 °F. Common uses of sodium include: in the form of sodium compounds as a table salt, baking soda, and sodium carbonate, as an ingredient in paper, soap, and paper, and as a metal used to prepare titanium.
Isolation
There are a few methods that can be used to isolate sodium. The type of isolation procedure used depends on which compounds the sodium is recovered from.
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Large amounts of pure sodium are available on a commercial basis, and so sodium is not usually isolated in a small laboratory setting. High concentrations of sodium are easily isolated from sodium chloride deposits through the simple process of evaporation; these deposits are found in large underground reserves in the form of salt mines, and in sea water.
Another sodium isolation process uses electrolysis. Electrolysis isolation of sodium is carried out using a 40% mixture of sodium chloride and a 60% mixture of calcium chloride. The mixture of sodium compounds lowers the melting point and reduces the energy needed to carry out the electrolysis step. The electrolysis of step in this process is carried out in a Downs Cell. The Downs Cell is an apparatus that was created specifically for the commercial production of metallic sodium; very small amounts of chlorine are produced as a by product of this reaction.