Sodium nitrate Guide, Meaning , Facts, Information and Description
General
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| Name | Sodium nitrate |
| Chemical formula | NaNO3 |
| Appearance | White solid |
Physical
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| Formula weight | 85.0 amu |
| Melting point | 580 K (307 °C;) |
| Boiling point | decomposes at 653 K (380 °C;) |
| Density | 2.3 ×103 kg/m3 |
| Crystal structure | ? |
| Solubility | 92 g in 100mL water |
Thermochemistry
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| ΔfH0liquid; | -452 kJ/mol |
| ΔfH0solid; | -468 kJ/mol |
| S0solid | 117 J/mol·K |
Safety
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| Ingestion | Very dangerous, possibly fatal. |
| Inhalation | Similar to ingestion. |
| Skin | May cause irritation. |
| Eyes | May cause irritation. |
| More info | Hazardous Chemical Database |
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SI units were used where possible. Unless otherwise stated, standard conditions were used.
Disclaimer and references | |
Sodium nitrate has long been used as an ingredient in explosives, and has been mined extensively for that purpose. The world's largest deposits were in the Atacama desert of Chile, and these were mined for over a century, until the 1940s.
It has antimicrobial properties when used as a food preservative.