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Sodium sulfate - Wikipedia, the free encycloped <br />Sodium sulfate <br />From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia <br />Sodium sulfate is the sodium salt of sulfuric acid. When anhydrous, it is a <br />white crystalline solid of formula Na2SO4 known as the mineral <br />thenardite; the decahydrate Na2SO4• l OH2O has been known as <br />Glauber's salt or, historically, sal mirabilis since the 17th century. <br />Another solid is the heptahydrate, which transforms to mirabilite when <br />cooled. With an annual production of 6 million tonnes, it is a major <br />commodity chemical and one of the most damaging salts in structure <br />conservation: when it grows in the pores of stones it can achieve high <br />levels of pressure, causing structures to crack. <br />Sodium sulfate is mainly used for the manufacture of detergents and in the <br />Kraft process of paper pulping. About two-thirds of the world's production <br />is from mirabilite, the natural mineral form of the decahydrate, and the <br />remainder from by-products of chemical processes such as hydrochloric <br />acid production. <br />Contents <br />■ 1 History <br />■ 2 Physical and chemical properties <br />■ 3 Production <br />■ 3.1 Natural sources <br />■ 3.2 Chemical industry <br />■ 4 Applications <br />■ 4.1 Commodity industries <br />■ 4.2 Thermal storage <br />■ 4.3 Small-scale applications <br />■ 5 Safety <br />■ 6 References <br />■ 7 External links <br />History <br />The hydrate of sodium sulfate is known as Glauber's Salt after the <br />Dutch/German chemist and apothecary Johann Rudolf Glauber <br />(1604-1670), who discovered it in 1625 in Austrian spring water. He <br />named it sal mirabilis (miraculous salt), because of its medicinal <br />properties: the crystals were used as a general purpose laxative, until more <br />sophisticated alternatives came about in the 1900s.[ 1][21 <br />In the 18th century, Glauber's salt began to be used as a raw material for <br />the industrial production of soda ash (sodium carbonate), by reaction with <br />potash (potassium carbonate). Demand for soda ash increased and supply <br />of sodium sulfate had to increase in line. Therefore, in the nineteenth <br />century, the Leblanc process, producing synthetic sodium sulfate as a key <br />intermediate, became the principal method of soda ash production. (31 <br />http://en.wikipedia.orgtwiki/Sodium sulfate <br />Sodium sulfate <br />Na' Na' <br />0=S=0 <br />I <br />U_ <br />Other names <br />Thenardite (mineral) <br />Glaubees salt (decahydrate) <br />Sal mirabilis (decahydrate) <br />Mirabilite (decahydrate) <br />Identifiers <br />CAS number <br />7757-82-6 -, <br />7727-73-3 (decahydrate) <br />PubChem <br />24436 <br />ChemSpider <br />22844" <br />UNII <br />36KCSOR750 <br />RTECS number <br />WE1650000 <br />Jmol-3D images <br />Image I (http://chemapps.stolafedu <br />/jmol/jmol.php9model=%5 BNa <br />%2B%5D%5BNa <br />%2B%5D%5B0 %5DS <br />%28%5B0 %5D%29%28%3DO <br />%29%3DO) <br />SMULES <br />InChI <br />Properties <br />Molecular <br />Na2SO4 <br />formula <br />Molar mass <br />142.04 g/mol (anhydrous) <br />322.20 g/mol(decahydrate) <br />Appearance <br />white crystalline solid <br />hygroscopic <br />Density <br />2.664 g/cm3 (anhydrous) <br />1.464 g/cm3 (decahydrate) <br />Melting point <br />884 °C (anhydrous) <br />32.4 °C (decahydrate) <br />Boiling point <br />1429 °C (anhydrous) <br />Solubility in <br />47.6 g/L (0 °C) <br />water <br />427 g/L (100 °C) <br />Solubility <br />insoluble in ethanol <br />1 of 4/16/20119:24 PM <br />