vmelkon
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If you heat sodium and NaOH until melt
If you heat sodium and NaOH until they melt, does the sodium dissolve into the NaOH?
I ask because there is the problem of producing sodium by electrolyzing NaOH. Careful temperature control is required otherwise it is said that you
just end up with a metal fog in NaOH.
I want to do electrolysis of a small amount of NaOH.
I also want to try a small amount of CaCl2+NaCl.
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Zyklon-A
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Yes, if you heat it to much, sodium will dissolve in sodium hydroxide. At NaOH's melting point (318°C) sodium will not dissolve, but with more
heating, (>330°C) it does dissolve.
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BromicAcid
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The sodium at that point is not dissolving in the sodium hydroxide, but reacting with the sodium hydroxide. That is why there is a temperature range
instead of just trying to keep your NaOH molten. Read up on the Castner Cell, there is plenty of info out there. One of the reasons the current
efficiency is low is due to your sodium reacting back with your electrolyte to give sodium oxide and hydrogen gas. Too high of a temperature and you
basically get nothing.
[Edited on 2/15/2014 by BromicAcid]
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vmelkon
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Were you talking about the case of electrolysis or the case of adding sodium to molten NaOH?
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blogfast25
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It makes no difference. In the case of electrolysis its the sodium that's been generated that reacts with the electrolyte. Sodium is sodium though.
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