A safe way of performing dangerous experiments. III. The safety box. 2. Demonstrating the reactions of alkali metals with concentrated oxoacids
DOI:
https://doi.org/10.20450/mjcce.2021.2218Keywords:
dangerous experiments, safety box, alkali metals, oxoacidsAbstract
A way to conciliate one of the most dangerous reactions and at the same time, a way of a systematic approach towards studying the reaction of the alkali metals and acids, has been offered. Explanation of the observed phenomena considering the extent of how vigorous the reaction is and the circumstances contributing to the rate of reaction due to the precipitate formation or water presence, are discussed. In this paper, the reaction between some concentrated aqueous solutions of oxoacids (HNO3, H3PO4, H2SO4, HClO4) and alkali metals (Li, Na, K) are considered. Video clips of the experiments were prepared as an aid for those instructors that lack experience and/or the necessary materials. This publication is a continuation of the previously published article about the reaction of alkali metals with hydrohalic acids and is part of the series of publications under the general title “A Safe Way of Performing Dangerous Experiments”.References
S. Aleksova, M. Bukleski, V.M. Petruševski, A Safe Way of Performing Dangerous Experiments. III. The Safety Box. 1. Demonstrating the Reactions of Alkali Metals with Concentrated Acids of the Type HX(aq) (X = F, Cl, Br, I), Maced. J. Chem. Chem. Eng. 37 (1), 89–98 (2018), DOI: 10.20450/mjcce.2017.1424
V. M. Petruševski, M. Ž. Najdoski, A safe way of performing some dangerous experiments. I. Construction of a safety spoon, Chem. Educator, 7, 81–83 (2002), DOI: 10.1007/s00897020546a
V. M. Petruševski, M. Ž. Najdoski, A safe way of performing some dangerous experiments. II. Construction of a safety dropper, Chem. Educator, 7, 220–222 (2002). DOI: 10.1007/s00897020583a
Metals in concentrated acid and water, https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BAX8P36dV0g (last accessed 03.04.2020).
Sodium metal reacting with concentrated hydrochloric acid, https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CXDhdVMKKF4 (last accessed 03.04.2020).
Lithium metal reacting with concentrated hydrochloric acid, https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3bVVVCblPVY (last accessed 03.04.2019).
Potassium metal reacting with concentrated hydrochloric acid, https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=53T5WZHQ_Ck (accessed 03.04.2020).
Sodium reacts with four acids, https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qZxW1QKdLq8 (accessed 03.04.2020).
M. Dale Alexander, Reactions of the alkali metals with water: a novel demonstration, J. Chem. Educ. 69, 418–419 (1992), DOI: 10.1021/ed069p418
N. Stavrevska, V. M. Petruševski, V. Ivanovski, Reaction of sodium with water vapor – a short marathon experiment with somewhat unexpected result, Chem. Educator, 15, 321–324 (2010), DOI: 10.1333/s00897102294a
Alkali metals reacting with water, https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jI__JY7pqOM (last accessed 03.04.2020).
Sodium and water, http://www.pc.chemie.uni-siegen.de/ pci/versuche/english/ v44-1-1.html (last accessed 03.04.2020).
Sodium in water chemistry demonstration, https://www. thoughtco.com/sodium-in-water-chemistry-demonstration-604254 (last accessed 03.04.2018).
Potassium in water (reaction only), https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Jy1DC6Euqj4 (last accessed 03.04.2020).
Safe video demonstration sodium and potassium exploding in water, http://www.instructables.com/id/Sodium-and-Potassium-In-Water/ (last accessed 03.04.2020).
Mitch Jacoby, Why sodium and potassium really explode in Water, https://cen.acs.org/articles/93/web/2015/01/Sodium-Potassium-Really-Explode-Water.html (last accessed 03.04.2020).
M. Bukleski, V. Ivanovski, V. M. Petruševski, IR specular reflectance spectra of KHSO4 single crystal – Dispersion analysis, Vib. Spectrosc. 57, 15–22 (2011), DOI: 10.1016/j.vibspec.2011.04.003
Y. Noda, S. Uchiyama, K. Kafuku, H. Kasatani, H. Terauchi, Structure Analysis and Hydrogen Bond Character of K3H(SO4)2, J. Phys. Soc. Jpn. 59, 2804-2810 (1990), DOI: 10.1143/JPSJ.59.2804
CRC Handbook of Chemistry and Physics, 97th ed., W.M. Haynes, CRC Press Taylor and Francis Group, Boca Raton, FL, 2017.
Properties of lithium, and the reactions of water and certain acids with lithium, https://melscience.com/US-en/articles/properties-lithium-and-reactions-water-and-certain/ (last accessed 11.12.2020).
Lithium react with nitric acid, https://chemiday.com/en/reaction/3-1-0-7011 (last accessed 11.12.2020).
P. E. Mason, F. Uhlig, V. Vaněk, T. Buttersack, S. Bauerecker, P. Jungwirth, Coulomb explosion during the early stages of the reaction of alkali metals with water, Nat. Chem., 7, 250–254 (2015), DOI:10.1038/nchem.2161
V. M. Petruševski, M. Bukleski, On the Coulomb explosion during the reaction of alkali metals with water, in preparation.
N.N. Greenwood, A. Earnshaw, Chemistry of the elements, 2nd ed., Oxford, Butterworth-Heinemann, 1997, DOI: 10.1016/C2009-0-30414-6
G. Rayner-Canham, Isodiagonality in the periodic table, Found Chem. 13, 121–129 (2011), DOI: 10.1007/s10698-011-9108-y
Compound summary Nitric acid, https://pubchem.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/compound/nitric_acid (last accessed 11.12.2020).
O.T. Fasullo, Sulfuric Acid: Use and Handling, McGraw-Hill, St. Louis 1965, p. 304
Edwards, O.W.; Huffman, E.O. Viscosity of Aqueous Solutions of Phosphoric Acid at 25°C, J. Chem. Eng. Data, 3, 145-146 (1958), DOI: 10.1021/i460003a028
L.H. Brickwedde, Properties of Aqueous Solutions of Perchloric Acid, J. Res. Natl. Inst. Stan. 42 (1949) 309–329.
Steffen's Chemistry Pages, Density of phosphoric acid, https://wissen.science-and-fun.de/chemistry/chemistry/density-tables/density-of-phosphoric-acid/, (last accessed 11.12.2020).
T.G. Hiss, E.L. Cussler, Diffusion in high viscosity liquids, AIChE J. 19, 698–703 (1975), DOI: 10.1002/aic.690190404.
E. Kemnitz, C. Werner, H. Worzala, S. Trojanov, Y. T. Strutschkov, Ein neues Lithiumhydrogensulfat, Li2(HSO4)2(H2SO4) – Synthese und Kristallstruktur, Z. Anorg. Allg. Chem. 621, 675–678 (1995), DOI: 10.1002/zaac.19956210728
Downloads
Additional Files
Published
How to Cite
Issue
Section
License
The authors agree to the following licence: Attribution-NonCommercial 4.0 International (CC BY-NC 4.0)
- Share — copy and redistribute the material in any medium or format
- Adapt — remix, transform, and build upon the material
- for any purpose, even commercially.
Under the following terms:
Attribution — You must give appropriate credit, provide a link to the license, and indicate if changes were made. You may do so in any reasonable manner, but not in any way that suggests the licensor endorses you or your use.
- NonCommercial — You may not use the material for commercial purposes.