Producing Pure Na with NaOH - Ideas & Tips

[starCr]

Hello,
I need to get around 100g of pure Na but this metal is not available, or I don't know where to find it. My idee is to take NaOH and using electrolyze process to get the Na.
Basically I what to put put NaOH in a jar filled with water and then to start the electrolyze.

What do you think about this method? Also I appreciate any other ideas.

Thanks

 

[Borek]

What do you mean it is not available? Every supplier of reagents sells it.

 

[starCr]

In my country you can't buy it, only if you are a chemist or a chemistry teacher. So the only way is to produce it. So the NaOH is cheap an available.

 

[alxm]

I'd point to the rules about dangerous/illegal activities but in this case I'll make an exception:

There's simply no way to produce metallic Na at home.

 

[starCr]

alxm i don't see where is the dangerous/illegal activity in what I'm saying. Na it is not a precursor and it is not used in creating drugs or explosive, so this means that you consider my method as being dangerous. Please tell me why?

Also guys, please tell me others ideas of getting Na.

Thanks

 

[Borek]

Not dangerous?

 

[starCr]

Yup that would be a problem(keeping the Na away from the water during the electrolysis process). But what I thought is to put the NaOH in a plastic bag and this bag in a jar with water, and after that to start the process(I want to put the cathode in the bag) and anode in the jar in water).

What you think?

 

[Borek]

What I think? I think you are wrong.

No, actually I know you are wrong.

System you have described doesn't allow flow of the current. First - foil is an insulator. Second - solid NaOH is an insulator, you need it to be melted to make it conduct electric current.

Many have tried, inlcuding trained chemists. Most of them failed. Believe us, making metallic sodium at home is too difficult and too dangerous.

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methods

 

[starCr]

Thanks Borek,
What about the following method:
"
Just take a lithium battery remove the 1 foot long strip of lithium metal from inside it...you have to open it and becareful not to let the strip of lithium and the strip of iron sulfide touch or eles you get a lot of heat and the lithium might ignite...just peal the outer casing off using needle nose pliers (sp?) after you get the lithium out just wrap some lithium around some sodium chloride and ignite it , it will flare up and strip the cl of the na and you will see this orange glow coming from underneath the now lithium oxide/chloride/nitride wrap once you see that, or when part of the wrap melts off ..just throw it or let it drip into the mineral oil... after it cools remove the black chared remains and you can then take the little bulbs of sodium and flatten them into strips and put them back into the oil...it obviously also works with k , mg ,ca, and any other metal...even cs...but i wouldn't try to get cs from cscl in this way as that would be a death wish... calcium from caocl powder makes very nice marble sized lumps of calcium and it can be used to make alloys such as NaK ..ive also made NaK this way "

this method is take from another forum, but I doubt that this gives pure Na.

 

[starCr]

What if I would use another liquid instead of water, let's say oil. Na and oil will not react but oil conduct electricity, this means I solve the dangerous part of reaction too. Am i right?

What I think? I think you are wrong.

No, actually I know you are wrong.

System you have described doesn't allow flow of the current. First - foil is an insulator. Second - solid NaOH is an insulator, you need it to be melted to make it conduct electric current.

Many have tried, inlcuding trained chemists. Most of them failed. Believe us, making metallic sodium at home is too difficult and too dangerous.

--
chemical calculators - buffer calculator, concentration calculator
www.titrations.info - all about titration methods

 

[Borek]

oil conduct electricity

No, it doesn't.

Repeating that it is dangerous and you won't be able - especially after seeing how little you know - to obtain metallic sodium, becomes boring.

--

 

[starCr]

No Borek, what you say is not quite exact. Oil is not a "good" conductor this is the exact meaning of what you say.In fact oil is a very weak conductor but it is.

 

[Vanadium 50]

Explicit "how to" discussions of illegal and/or dangerous activities, or posts advocating such activities, are prohibited.

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any discussion dealing with the isolation, purification and use of chemicals listed as List I by 21 CFR 1310.02 or controlled substances of any schedule (21 CFR 1308.11-15). Discussions dealing with the isolation, purification and use of uncontrolled chemicals listed as List II by 21 CFR 1310.02 or uncontrolled chemicals which have been associated with the illegal manufacture of controlled substances are allowed but will be closely scrutinized by PF staff. Examples of uncontrolled chemicals that meet these criteria include ammonia, acetone, potassium or sodium permanganate, lithium metal, sodium metal, potassium metal and sodium or potassium hydroxide.