Sodium bromide is an

inorganic compound An inorganic compound is typically a chemical compound that lacks carbon–hydrogen bonds⁠that is, a compound that is not an organic compound. The study of inorganic compounds is a subfield of chemistry known as ''inorganic chemistry''. Inorgan ...

with the formula . It is a high-melting white, crystalline solid that resembles

sodium chloride Sodium chloride , commonly known as Salt#Edible salt, edible salt, is an ionic compound with the chemical formula NaCl, representing a 1:1 ratio of sodium and chloride ions. It is transparent or translucent, brittle, hygroscopic, and occurs a ...

. It is a widely used source of the bromide ion and has many applications.Michael J. Dagani, Henry J. Barda, Theodore J. Benya, David C. Sanders "Bromine Compounds" in ''Ullmann's Encyclopedia of Industrial Chemistry'' Wiley-VCH, Weinheim, 2000.

Synthesis, structure, reactions

NaBr crystallizes in the same

cubic Cubic may refer to: Science and mathematics * Cube (algebra), "cubic" measurement * Cube, a three-dimensional solid object bounded by six square faces, facets or sides, with three meeting at each vertex ** Cubic crystal system, a crystal system w ...

motif as NaCl, NaF and NaI. The anhydrous salt crystallizes above 50.7 °C. Dihydrate salt () crystallize out of water solution below 50.7 °C. NaBr is produced by treating

sodium hydroxide Sodium hydroxide, also known as lye and caustic soda, is an inorganic compound with the formula . It is a white solid ionic compound consisting of sodium cations and hydroxide anions . Sodium hydroxide is a highly corrosive base (chemistry), ...

with hydrogen bromide. Sodium bromide can be used as a source of the

chemical element A chemical element is a chemical substance whose atoms all have the same number of protons. The number of protons is called the atomic number of that element. For example, oxygen has an atomic number of 8: each oxygen atom has 8 protons in its ...

bromine Bromine is a chemical element; it has chemical symbol, symbol Br and atomic number 35. It is a volatile red-brown liquid at room temperature that evaporates readily to form a similarly coloured vapour. Its properties are intermediate between th ...

. This can be accomplished by treating an

aqueous solution An aqueous solution is a solution in which the solvent is water. It is mostly shown in chemical equations by appending (aq) to the relevant chemical formula. For example, a solution of table salt, also known as sodium chloride (NaCl), in water ...

of NaBr with

chlorine Chlorine is a chemical element; it has Symbol (chemistry), symbol Cl and atomic number 17. The second-lightest of the halogens, it appears between fluorine and bromine in the periodic table and its properties are mostly intermediate between ...

gas: :

Applications

Sodium bromide is the most useful inorganic bromide in industry. It is also used as a catalyst in TEMPO-mediated oxidation reactions.

Medicine

Also known as Sedoneural, sodium bromide has been used as a

hypnotic A hypnotic (from Ancient Greek, Greek ''Hypnos'', sleep), also known as a somnifacient or soporific, and commonly known as sleeping pills, are a class of psychoactive drugs whose primary function is to sleep induction, induce sleep and to trea ...

anticonvulsant Anticonvulsants (also known as antiepileptic drugs, antiseizure drugs, or anti-seizure medications (ASM)) are a diverse group of pharmacological agents used in the treatment of epileptic seizures. Anticonvulsants are also used in the treatme ...

, and

sedative A sedative or tranquilliser is a substance that induces sedation by reducing irritability or Psychomotor agitation, excitement. They are central nervous system (CNS) Depressant, depressants and interact with brain activity, causing its decelera ...

medicine Medicine is the science and Praxis (process), practice of caring for patients, managing the Medical diagnosis, diagnosis, prognosis, Preventive medicine, prevention, therapy, treatment, Palliative care, palliation of their injury or disease, ...

, widely used as an

and a

in the late 19th and early 20th centuries. Its action is due to the bromide ion, and for this reason potassium bromide is equally effective. In 1975, bromides were removed from drugs in the U.S. such as Bromo-Seltzer due to toxicity.

Preparation of other bromine compounds

Sodium bromide is widely used for the preparation of other bromides in

organic synthesis Organic synthesis is a branch of chemical synthesis concerned with the construction of organic compounds. Organic compounds are molecules consisting of combinations of covalently-linked hydrogen, carbon, oxygen, and nitrogen atoms. Within the gen ...

and other areas. It is a source of the bromide

nucleophile In chemistry, a nucleophile is a chemical species that forms bonds by donating an electron pair. All molecules and ions with a free pair of electrons or at least one pi bond can act as nucleophiles. Because nucleophiles donate electrons, they are ...

to convert alkyl chlorides to more reactive alkyl bromides by the Finkelstein reaction: :NaBr + RCl → RBr + NaCl (R =

alkyl In organic chemistry, an alkyl group is an alkane missing one hydrogen. The term ''alkyl'' is intentionally unspecific to include many possible substitutions. An acyclic alkyl has the general formula of . A cycloalkyl group is derived from a cy ...

) Once a large need in

photography Photography is the visual arts, art, application, and practice of creating images by recording light, either electronically by means of an image sensor, or chemically by means of a light-sensitive material such as photographic film. It is empl ...

, but now shrinking, the photosensitive salt silver bromide is prepared using NaBr.

Disinfectant

Sodium bromide is used in conjunction with chlorine as a disinfectant for hot tubs and swimming pools.

Petroleum industry

Because of its high

solubility In chemistry, solubility is the ability of a chemical substance, substance, the solute, to form a solution (chemistry), solution with another substance, the solvent. Insolubility is the opposite property, the inability of the solute to form su ...

in water (943.2 g/L or 9.16 mol/L, at 25 °C) sodium bromide is used to prepare dense

drilling fluid In geotechnical engineering, drilling fluid, also known as drilling mud, is used to aid the drilling of boreholes into the earth. Used while drilling oil and natural gas wells and on exploration drilling rigs, drilling fluids are also use ...

s used in oil wells to compensate a possible overpressure arising in the fluid column and to counteract the associated trend to blow out. The presence of the sodium

cation An ion () is an atom or molecule with a net electrical charge. The charge of an electron is considered to be negative by convention and this charge is equal and opposite to the charge of a proton, which is considered to be positive by convent ...

also causes the

bentonite Bentonite ( ) is an Absorption (chemistry), absorbent swelling clay consisting mostly of montmorillonite (a type of smectite) which can either be Na-montmorillonite or Ca-montmorillonite. Na-montmorillonite has a considerably greater swelli ...

added to the drilling fluid to swell, while the high ionic strength induces bentonite

flocculation In colloidal chemistry, flocculation is a process by which colloidal particles come out of Suspension (chemistry), suspension to sediment in the form of floc or flake, either spontaneously or due to the addition of a clarifying agent. The actio ...

Safety

NaBr has a very low toxicity with an oral estimated at 3.5 g/kg for rats. However, this is a single-dose value. Bromide ions are a cumulative toxin with a relatively long

half-life Half-life is a mathematical and scientific description of exponential or gradual decay. Half-life, half life or halflife may also refer to: Film * Half-Life (film), ''Half-Life'' (film), a 2008 independent film by Jennifer Phang * ''Half Life: ...

(in excess of a week in humans): see potassium bromide.

References

External links

Information about NaBr

Bromide Poisoning in Angola
{{DEFAULTSORT:Sodium Bromide Sodium compounds Bromides GABAA receptor positive allosteric modulators Sedatives Alkali metal bromides Rock salt crystal structure