Sodium permanganate is the

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 Na MnO₄. It is closely related to the more commonly encountered

potassium permanganate Potassium permanganate is an inorganic compound with the chemical formula KMnO4. It is a purplish-black crystalline salt, which dissolves in water as K+ and ions to give an intensely pink to purple solution. Potassium permanganate is widely us ...

, but it is generally less desirable, because it is more expensive to produce. It is mainly available as the monohydrate. This salt absorbs water from the atmosphere and has a low melting point. Being about 15 times more soluble than KMnO₄, sodium permanganate finds some applications where very high concentrations of MnO₄⁻ are sought.

Preparation and properties

Sodium permanganate cannot be prepared analogously to the route to KMnO₄ because the required intermediate

manganate In inorganic nomenclature, a manganate is any negatively charged molecular entity with manganese as the central atom.. However, the name is usually used to refer to the tetraoxidomanganate(2−) anion, MnO, also known as manganate(VI) because it c ...

salt, Na₂MnO₄, does not form. Thus less direct routes are used including conversion from KMnO₄.Arno H. Reidies "Manganese Compounds" in Ullmann's Encyclopedia of Industrial Chemistry, 2002, Wiley-VCH, Weinheim. Sodium permanganate behaves similarly to

. It dissolves readily in water to give deep purple solutions, evaporation of which gives prismatic purple-black glistening crystals of the monohydrate NaMnO₄·H₂O. The potassium salt does not form a

hydrate In chemistry, a hydrate is a substance that contains water or its constituent elements. The chemical state of the water varies widely between different classes of hydrates, some of which were so labeled before their chemical structure was understo ...

. Because of its

hygroscopic Hygroscopy is the phenomenon of attracting and holding water molecules via either absorption (chemistry), absorption or adsorption from the surrounding Natural environment, environment, which is usually at normal or room temperature. If water mol ...

nature, it is less useful in

analytical chemistry Analytical skill, Analytical chemistry studies and uses instruments and methods to Separation process, separate, identify, and Quantification (science), quantify matter. In practice, separation, identification or quantification may constitute t ...

than its potassium counterpart. It can be prepared by the reaction of manganese dioxide with sodium hypochlorite: : 2 MnO₂ + 3 NaClO + 2 NaOH → 2 NaMnO₄ + 3 NaCl + H₂O

Applications

Because of its high solubility, its aqueous solutions are used as a drilled hole debris remover and etchant in printed circuitry, with a limited utility though. It is gaining popularity in water treatment for taste, odor, and

zebra mussel The zebra mussel (''Dreissena polymorpha'') is a small freshwater mussel, an Aquatic animal, aquatic bivalve mollusk in the family Dreissenidae. The species originates from the lakes of southern Russia and Ukraine, but has been accidentally Intro ...

control. The

V-2 rocket The V2 (), with the technical name ''Aggregat (rocket family), Aggregat-4'' (A4), was the world's first long-range missile guidance, guided ballistic missile. The missile, powered by a liquid-propellant rocket engine, was developed during the S ...

used it in combination with

hydrogen peroxide Hydrogen peroxide is a chemical compound with the formula . In its pure form, it is a very pale blue liquid that is slightly more viscosity, viscous than Properties of water, water. It is used as an oxidizer, bleaching agent, and antiseptic, usua ...

to drive a steam

turbopump A turbopump is a fluid pump with two main components: a rotodynamic pump and a driving gas turbine, usually both mounted on the same shaft, or sometimes geared together. They were initially developed in Germany in the early 1940s. The most co ...

. As an oxidizer, sodium permanganate is used in

environmental remediation Environmental remediation is the cleanup of hazardous substances dealing with the removal, treatment and containment of pollution or contaminants from Natural environment, environmental media such as soil, groundwater, sediment. Remediation may be ...

of soil and groundwater contaminated with chlorinated solvents using the remediation technology in situ chemical oxidation, also referred to as ISCO.

References

{{Permanganates Sodium compounds Permanganates Oxidizing agents Disinfectants