Potassium nitrate



Potassium nitrate
General
Other names Nitrate of potash, Vesta Powder, or
Saltpeter
Molecular formula KNO3
Molar mass 101.1032 g·mol−1
Appearance white solid
CAS number 7757-79-1
Properties
Density and phase 2,109 g·cm−3 (16 °C), solid[1]
water 35.7 g/100 ml (25 °C)
Melting point 334 °C[1]
Boiling point 400 °C decomp.[1]
Structure
Crystal structure Aragonite
Hazards
MSDS External MSDS
EU classification O[1]
NFPA 704
0
1
3
ox
R-phrases 8[1]
S-phrases 17, 24/25[1]
Supplementary data page
Structure and
properties 		εr, etc.
Thermodynamic
data 		Phase behaviour
Solid, liquid, gas
Spectral data MS
Related compounds
Other anions Potassium nitrite
Other cations Lithium nitrate
Sodium nitrate
Rubidium nitrate
Caesium nitrate
Except where noted otherwise, data are given for
materials in their standard state (at 25 °C, 100 kPa)
Infobox disclaimer and references

 

Potassium nitrate is a precipitates, urine was a significant source, through various malodorous means, from the Late Middle Ages and Early Modern era through the 19th century.[citation needed]

Its common names include saltpetre, from Medieval Latin sal petrae: "stone salt" or possibly "Salt of Petra" (saltpeter in US English), Nitrate of potash, and nitre. The name Chile saltpeter is applied to sodium nitrate, a different nitrogen compound that is also used in explosives and fertilizers.

Description

Potassium nitrate is the oxidizing component of black powder. Before the large-scale industrial fertilizers. When used by itself as a fertilizer, it has an NPK rating of 13-0-44 (indicating 13%, 0%, and 44% of nitrogen, phosphorus, and potassium, by mass, respectively). Potassium nitrate was once thought to induce impotence, and is still rumored to be in institutional food (such as military fare) as an anaphrodisiac; these uses would be ineffective, since potassium nitrate has no such properties.[2] However, potassium nitrate and other nitrates do successfully combat high blood pressure and are used medically to relieve angina.

Manufacture

Historically, nitre-beds were prepared by mixing gunpowder.

In more rural times, urine was collected and used in the manufacture of gunpowder.[citation needed] Stale urine was filtered through a barrel full of straw and allowed to continue to sour for a year or more.[citation needed] After this period of time, water was used to wash the resulting chemical salts from the straw. This slurry was filtered through wood ashes and allowed to dry in the sun. Saltpeter crystals were then collected and added to charcoal to create black powder.

Potassium nitrate could also be harvested from accumulations of bat guano in caves. This was the traditional method used in Laos for the manufacture of gunpowder for Bang Fai rockets.

During the 19th century and until around World War I, potassium nitrate was produced on an industrial scale produced nitrates, first by the Haber process. The latter process came online during World War I, and supplied Germany with nitrates critical for the warfare that it otherwise had no access to the deposits of natural nitrate in Chile. It is assumed that this prolonged World War I. Today practically all nitrates are produced by ammonia from the Haber process.

Applications

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Please help improve this article by adding reliable references. Unsourced material may be challenged and removed. (October 2007)

Saltpeter was used as an anaphrodisiac throughout history. The musical 1776 stipulates that Thomas Jefferson used it while he was away from his wife, writing the Declaration of Independence.

Potassium nitrate is also used as a sucrose (powdered sugar) and potassium nitrate is 40(C12H22O11):60(KNO3). It can be used as is,or consolidated into a lump by mixing with water to make a paste and allowing to dry overnight. [4]

In the process of food preservation, potassium nitrate has been a common ingredient of salted meat, but its use has been deprecated.[citation needed] In the European Union, it is referred to as E252.

It is commonly used in pre-rolled cigarettes to maintain an even burn of the tobacco[1]

Potassium nitrate is also the main component (usually about 98%) of tree stump remover; it accelerates the natural decomposition of the stump. [2]

It has also been used in the manufacture of ice cream and can be found in some toothpastes for sensitive teeth.[citation needed] Recently, the use of potassium nitrate in toothpastes for treating sensitive teeth has increased dramatically, despite the fact that it has not been conclusively shown to help dental hypersensitivity.[5]

Potassium nitrate is also one of the three parts of black powder, along with powdered charcoal (substantially carbon) and sulfur, where it acts as an oxidizer.

See also

References

  1. ^ a b c d e f Record of Potassium nitrate in the GESTIS Substance Database from the BGIA, accessed on 3.9.2007
  2. ^ The Straight Dope: Does saltpeter suppress male ardor? (16-Jun-1989). Retrieved on 2007-10-19.
  3. ^ Joseph Leconte, 1823-1901 - Instructions for the Manufacture of Saltpeter. Joseph LeConte (1862). Retrieved on 2007-10-19.
  4. ^ Smoke Mix recipe. Retrieved on 2007-10-19.
  5. ^ Potassium containing toothpastes for dentine hypersensitivity (May 23. 2006). Retrieved on 2007-10-19.

Literature

  • Alan Williams: The production of saltpeter in the middle ages, Ambix, 22 (1975), p. 125-33. Maney Publishing, ISSN 0002-6980.
 
This article is licensed under the GNU Free Documentation License. It uses material from the Wikipedia article "Potassium_nitrate". A list of authors is available in Wikipedia.