Sodium acetylsalicylate
Sodium acetylsalicylate, also known as sodium aspirinate, is the sodium salt of acetylsalicylic acid. It is an easy-to-make compound used in the production of other acetylsalicylate salts.
Contents
Properties
Chemical
Sodium acetylsalicylate can be added to solutions of metal ions to precipitate insoluble acetylsalicylate salts, such as copper(II) acetylsalicylate.
Physical
Unlike aspirin itself, sodium acetylsalicylate is soluble in water.
Availability
Sodium acetylsalicylate is not a very common compound to be found outside of a lab. It is, however, easily synthesized from aspirin.
Preparation
Sodium aspirinate can be produced by adding an excess of pure acetylsalicylic acid to a solution of sodium carbonate. Sodium hydroxide cannot be used as the base as it will cause hydrolysis of the acetylsalicylic acid into other products. Because sodium acetylsalicylate is much more water-soluble than aspirin itself, excess aspirin can be crystallized out by cooling the solution.
