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Sodium Sulfate
Sodium sulfate (also known as sodium sulphate or sulfate of soda) is the inorganic compound with formula Na2SO4 as well as several related hydrates. All forms are white solids that are highly soluble in water. With an annual production of 6 million tonnes, the decahydrate is a major commodity chemical product. It is mainly used as a filler in the manufacture of powdered home laundry detergents and in the Kraft process of paper pulping for making highly alkaline sulfides. Forms *Anhydrous sodium sulfate, known as the rare mineral thenardite, used as a drying agent in organic synthesis. *Heptahydrate sodium sulfate, a very rare form. *Decahydrate sodium sulfate, known as the mineral mirabilite, widely used by chemical industry. It is also known as Glauber's salt. History The decahydrate of sodium sulfate is known as Glauber's salt after the Dutch/German chemist and apothecary Johann Rudolf Glauber (1604–1670), who discovered it in Austrian spring water in 1625. He name ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Sodium Sulfite
Sodium sulfite (sodium sulphite) is the inorganic compound with the chemical formula Na2 SO3. A white, water-soluble solid, it is used commercially as an antioxidant and preservative. A heptahydrate is also known but it is less useful because of its greater susceptibility toward oxidation by air. Preparation Sodium sulfite can be prepared by treating a solution of sodium hydroxide with sulfur dioxide. When conducted in warm water, Na2SO3 initially precipitates as a white solid. With more SO2, the solid dissolves to give the disulfite, which crystallizes upon cooling. :SO2 + 2 NaOH -> Na2SO3 + H2O Sodium sulfite is made industrially by treating sulfur dioxide with a solution of sodium carbonate. The overall reaction is: :SO2 + Na2CO3 -> Na2SO3 + CO2 Applications Sodium sulfite is primarily used in the pulp and paper industry. It has been also applied in the thermomechanical conversion of wood to fibres (''defibration'') for producing medium density fibreboard ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Chemical Industry
The chemical industry comprises the companies that produce industrial chemicals. Central to the modern world economy, it converts raw materials ( oil, natural gas, air, water, metals, and minerals) into more than 70,000 different products. The plastics industry contains some overlap, as some chemical companies produce plastics as well as chemicals. Various professionals are involved in the chemical industry including chemical engineers, chemists and lab technicians. History Although chemicals were made and used throughout history, the birth of the heavy chemical industry (production of chemicals in large quantities for a variety of uses) coincided with the beginnings of the Industrial Revolution. Industrial Revolution One of the first chemicals to be produced in large amounts through industrial processes was sulfuric acid. In 1736 pharmacist Joshua Ward developed a process for its production that involved heating saltpeter, allowing the sulfur to oxidize and combine with ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Mirabilite
Mirabilite, also known as Glauber's salt, is a hydrous sodium sulfate mineral with the chemical formula Na2SO4·10H2O. It is a vitreous, colorless to white monoclinic mineral that forms as an evaporite from sodium sulfate-bearing brines. It is found around saline springs and along saline playa lakes. Associated minerals include gypsum, halite, thenardite, trona, glauberite, and epsomite. Mirabilite is unstable and quickly dehydrates in dry air, the prismatic crystals turning into a white powder, thenardite (Na2SO4). In turn, thenardite can also absorb water and converts to mirabilite. Mirabilite is used as a purgative and anti-inflammatory remedy in the Traditional Chinese medicine; in Mandarin, it is called máng xiāo. The name 'mirabilite' is based on the phrase ''"Sal mirabilis"'' (Latin for "wonderful salt") used by Johann Rudolph Glauber when he inadvertently synthesized mirabilite. Mirabilite is found in several areas within the Mammoth Cave system, where it appears t ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Organic Synthesis
Organic synthesis is a special branch of chemical synthesis and is concerned with the intentional construction of organic compounds. Organic molecules are often more complex than inorganic compounds, and their synthesis has developed into one of the most important branches of organic chemistry. There are several main areas of research within the general area of organic synthesis: '' total synthesis'', ''semisynthesis'', and ''methodology''. Total synthesis A total synthesis is the complete chemical synthesis of complex organic molecules from simple, commercially available petrochemical or natural precursors. Total synthesis may be accomplished either via a linear or convergent approach. In a ''linear'' synthesis—often adequate for simple structures—several steps are performed one after another until the molecule is complete; the chemical compounds made in each step are called synthetic intermediates. Most often, each step in a synthesis refers to a separate rea ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Sulfide
Sulfide (British English also sulphide) is an inorganic anion of sulfur with the chemical formula S2− or a compound containing one or more S2− ions. Solutions of sulfide salts are corrosive. ''Sulfide'' also refers to chemical compounds large families of inorganic and organic compounds, e.g. lead sulfide and dimethyl sulfide. Hydrogen sulfide (H2S) and bisulfide (SH−) are the conjugate acids of sulfide. Chemical properties The sulfide ion, S2−, does not exist in aqueous alkaline solutions of Na2S. Instead sulfide converts to hydrosulfide: :S2− + H2O → SH− + OH− Upon treatment with an acid, sulfide salts convert to hydrogen sulfide: :S2− + H+ → SH− :SH− + H+ → H2S Oxidation of sulfide is a complicated process. Depending on the conditions, the oxidation can produce elemental sulfur, polysulfides, polythionates, sulfite, or sulfate. Metal sulfides react with halogens, forming sulfur and metal salts. :8 MgS + 8 I2 → S8 + 8 ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Pulping
Pulp is a Lignocellulosic biomass, lignocellulosic fibrous material prepared by chemically or mechanically separating cellulose fibers from wood, fiber crops, Paper recycling, waste paper, or cotton paper, rags. Mixed with water and other chemical or plant-based additives, pulp is the major raw material used in papermaking and the industrial production of other Pulp and paper industry, paper products. History Before the widely acknowledged invention of papermaking by Cai Lun in China around 105 AD, paper-like writing materials such as papyrus and amate were produced by ancient civilizations using plant materials which were largely unprocessed. Strips of Bark (botany), bark or Bast fibre, bast material were woven together, beaten into rough sheets, dried, and polished by hand. Pulp used in modern and traditional papermaking is distinguished by the process which produces a finer, more regular slurry of cellulose fibers which are pulled out of solution by a screen and dried to for ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Kraft Process
The kraft process (also known as kraft pulping or sulfate process) is a process for conversion of wood into wood pulp, which consists of almost pure cellulose fibres, the main component of paper. The kraft process involves treatment of wood chips with a hot mixture of water, sodium hydroxide (NaOH), and sodium sulfide (Na2S), known as white liquor, that breaks the bonds that link lignin, hemicellulose, and cellulose. The technology entails several steps, both mechanical and chemical. It is the dominant method for producing paper. In some situations, the process has been controversial because kraft plants can release odorous products and in some situations produce substantial liquid wastes. The process name is derived from German word ''Kraft'', meaning "strength" in this context, due to the strength of the kraft paper produced using this process. History A precursor of the Kraft process was used during the Napoleonic Wars in England. The kraft process (so called because o ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Detergent
A detergent is a surfactant or a mixture of surfactants with cleansing properties when in dilute solutions. There are a large variety of detergents, a common family being the alkylbenzene sulfonates, which are soap-like compounds that are more soluble in hard water, because the polar sulfonate (of detergents) is less likely than the polar carboxylate (of soap) to bind to calcium and other ions found in hard water. Definitions The word ''detergent'' is derived from the Latin adjective ''detergens'', from the verb ''detergere'', meaning to wipe or polish off. Detergent is a surfactant or a mixture of surfactants with cleansing properties when in dilute solutions. However, conventionally, detergent is used to mean synthetic cleaning compounds as opposed to ''soap'' (a salt of the natural fatty acid), even though soap is also a detergent in the true sense. In domestic contexts, the term ''detergent'' refers to household cleaning products such as '' laundry detergent'' o ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Commodity
In economics, a commodity is an economic good, usually a resource, that has full or substantial fungibility: that is, the market treats instances of the good as equivalent or nearly so with no regard to who produced them. The price of a commodity good is typically determined as a function of its market as a whole: well-established physical commodities have actively traded spot and derivative markets. The wide availability of commodities typically leads to smaller profit margins and diminishes the importance of factors (such as brand name) other than price. Most commodities are raw materials, basic resources, agricultural, or mining products, such as iron ore, sugar, or grains like rice and wheat. Commodities can also be mass-produced unspecialized products such as chemicals and computer memory. Popular commodities include crude oil, corn, and gold. Other definitions of commodity include something useful or valued and an alternative term for an economic good or serv ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Tonne
The tonne ( or ; symbol: t) is a unit of mass equal to 1000 kilograms. It is a non-SI unit accepted for use with SI. It is also referred to as a metric ton to distinguish it from the non-metric units of the short ton ( United States customary units), and the long ton ( British imperial units). It is equivalent to approximately 2204.6 pounds, 1.102 short tons, and 0.984 long tons. The official SI unit is the megagram (symbol: Mg), a less common way to express the same mass. Symbol and abbreviations The BIPM symbol for the tonne is t, adopted at the same time as the unit in 1879.Table 6 . BIPM. Retrieved on 2011-07-10. Its use is also official for the metric ton in the United States, having been adopted by the United States |
