Discovery Information
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Who: Sir Humphrey Davy |
When: 1807 |
Where: England |
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Name Origin
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From soda; Na from Latin natrium. |
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Sources
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Obtained by electrolysis of melted sodium chloride (salt), borax and cryolite. Sodium makes up 2.6% by weight of the Earth's crust, making it the fourth most abundant element
overall and the most abundant alkali metal.
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Uses
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Used in medicine, agriculture and photography. Liquid sodium is sometimes used to cool nuclear reactors. Also used in street
lights, soap, batteries, table salt (NaCl) (a compound vital to life) , and glass.
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Notes
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Sodium comes from the English word "soda" and from medieval Latin sodanum which means headache remedy. Sodium is the sixth
most abundant element on earth comprising 2.6% of the earth's crust. It is the most abundant of the alkali metals. It never exists in nature, but is prepared by electrolysis of absolutely dry fused sodium chloride. Sodium chloride is common
table salt which is important in animal nutrition. Other important forms of sodium are soda ash (Na2CO3), baking soda (NaHCO3), Chili saltpeter (NaNO3) which is sodium nitrate. In nature sodium is found in soda niter, cryolite, amphibole and zeolite.
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Sodium is highly reactive (burns with a yellow flame), it reacts violently with water. Sodium floats on water. |
Sodium ions are necessary for regulation of blood and body fluids, transmission of nerve impulses, heart activity, and certain metabolic
functions. It is widely considered that most people in Western countries consume more than is needed, in the form of sodium
chloride, or table salt, and that this can have a negative effect on health.
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