General Description
Water solution of the white crystalline powder. Corrosive to metals and tissue.
Reactivity Profile
SODIUM ALUMINATE generates a strong base in water; reacts violently with acids and corrosive to metals. Not compatible with copper, tin, zinc, aluminum, acids, phosphorus, or chlorocarbons.
Air & Water Reactions
Sodium aluminate will dissolve in water and produce a strong corrosive alkaline solution. May generate heat when water is added.
Hazard
(Solution) Strong irritant to tissue.
Health Hazard
Material is caustic. Irritates skin, eyes, and gastrointestinal tract, causing redness of skin and eyes, burning sensation of mucous membranes.
Potential Exposure
Used in water and waste treatment; papermaking industry; in printing on fabrics; in the manufacture of pigments, milk glass, and soap; hardening building stone; sizing paper; as a water softener.
Fire Hazard
Behavior in Fire: Containers may burst when exposed to heat.
First aid
Move victim to fresh air. Call 911 or emergency medical service. Give artificial respiration if victim is not breathing. Do not use mouth-to-mouth method if victim ingested or inhaled the substance; give artificial respiration with the aid of a pocket mask equipped with a one-way valve or other proper respiratory medical device. Administer oxygen if breathing is difficult. Remove and isolate contaminated clothing and shoes. In case of contact with substance, immediately flush skin or eyes with running water for at least 20 minutes. For minor skin contact, avoid spreading material on unaffected skin. Keep victim warm and quiet. Effects of exposure (inhalation, ingestion, or skin contact) to substance may be delayed. Ensure that medical personnel are aware of the material(s) involved and take precautions to protect themselves. Medical observation is recommended for 24 to 48 hours after breathing overexposure, as pulmonary edema may be delayed. As first aid for pulmonary edema, a doctor or authorized paramedic may consider administering a drug or other inhalation therapy.
Shipping
UN2812 Sodium aluminate, solid, Hazard class: 8; Labels: 8-Corrosive material. UN1819 Sodium aluminate, solution, Hazard class: 8; Labels: 8-Corrosive material.
Incompatibilities
The aqueous solution is a strong base. Reacts violently with acid. Incompatible with organic anhydrides; isocyanates, alkylene oxides; epichlorohydrin, aldehydes, alcohols, glycols, caprolactum, chlorocarbons. Corrosive to metals; attacks copper, tin, aluminum, and zinc.
Chemical Properties
Sodium aluminate is a white crystalline solid or solution.
Definition
sodium aluminate: white solid, NaAlO2 or Na2Al2O4, which is insolublein ethanol and soluble in water giving strongly alkaline solutions;m.p. 1800°C. It is manufactured by heating bauxite with sodium carbonate and extracting the residue with water, or it may be prepared in the laboratory by adding excess aluminium to hot concentrated sodium hydroxide. In solutionthe ion Al(OH)4- predominates.Sodium aluminate is used as amordant, in the production of zeolites,in effluent treatment, in glass manufacture, and in cleansing compounds.
Preparation
Small amounts of sodium aluminate are prepared in the lab by fusion of equimolar quantities of sodium carbonate and aluminum acetate, Al(C2H3O2)3, at 800°C. Other methods involve reaction of sodium hydroxide with amorphous alumina or aluminum metal.Commercial quantities of sodium aluminate are made from hydrated alumina, in the form of aluminum hydroxy oxide, AlO(OH), or aluminum hydroxide, Al(OH)3, a product of the Bayer process which is used to refine bauxite, the principal aluminum ore.
Commercial grades of sodium aluminate are obtained by digestion of aluminum trihydroxide in aqueous caustic at atmospheric pressure and near the boiling temperature.
Reactions
Sodium aluminate, NaAlO2, white solid, (1) by reaction of aluminum hydroxide and NaOH solution, (2) by fusion of aluminum oxide and sodium carbonate, the solution reacts with CO2 to form aluminum hydroxide.
Flammability and Explosibility
Nonflammable