What is salt? What are the properties of salt?

We already know salt is the term used for the substances which are produced in an acid-base reaction. It means salts are produced in some neutralization reaction. Here hydrochloric acid reacts with the base sodium hydroxide in this reaction sodium chloride is formed which is a salt.

What is Salt?

Salt is a very common chemical. We are surrounded by it, for example, table salt, baking soda, washing soda, and choc alum also known as filigree minerals like magnetite, etc. all are salt. Even soap is made off of a salt made from fatty acid.

What is “Sodium” in Food?

Sodium is a salt. Salt melts at high temperatures and then it boils to table salt, which is NaCl is soluble in water. Many other salts are soluble too like sodium carbonate aluminum nitrate ammonium carbonate etc. but not all salts are soluble in water. For example, silver chloride copper carbonate, etc. are insoluble salts. You know few salts come from crystals after combining with water molecules. Like copper sulfate molecules form beautiful blue crystals combining with water molecules. Each molecule combines with five water molecules this water in the crystal is called water of crystallization and such salt is called hydrated salt on heating the hydrated salt loses its water molecule, as a result, it loses its shape and color, and turns into a powdery substance.

If we heat copper sulfate crystal it loses its shape and turns into a white powder this powdery salt is called anhydrous salt. It has no water molecule attached to the salt molecule. You know different salts are used for different purposes. As we know common salt is used for cooking we can get common salt from hydrochloric acid potassium commonly called filigree is used for water purification. It is found in crystal form it is sodium sulfate potassium sulfate with 24 molecules of water of crystallization and it can be obtained from sulfuric acid another salt ammonium nitrate is used in the production of fertilizer explosives etc.

It can be obtained from Nitric Acid. Silver Nitrate yet another salt is used in developing photography films. It can be obtained from Nitric Acid too.

A few other useful salts are washing soda, baking soda, calcium carbonate, etc. which is the main component of chalk marble stone limestone a salt. These salts can be obtained from carbonic acid which is H₂CO_3.

So, to summarize what we learned today what is salt?

Salts are substances that are formed when acid and base react with each other which is the neutralization reaction. For example, when potassium hydroxide which is Koh which is a base reacts with Nitric Acid then potassium nitrate which has water is formed in this neutralization reaction. So here Potassium Nitrate produced is a salt.

What are the properties of salt?

Salts are mostly solid. When heated and even boils at high temperatures the salt molecules combined with water molecules to form crystals such as salts are called Hydrated salt.

For example, a copper sulfate molecule combines with five water molecules to form beautiful blue crystals. On heating hydrated salt loses its water molecule and turns into a white powdery substance when hydrated salt loses its water of crystallization it turns into powdery and hydrous salt.

I Hope This Article Helped You a Lot

 

Other Articles:

https://himalayanglaxy.blogspot.com/2022/08/what-is-salt-what-are-properties-of-salt.html

https://himalayanglaxy.blogspot.com/2022/09/what-are-benefits-of-himalayan-salt-and.html

About the Author:

Mr. Naveed is a Researcher.  His research and consulting focus on Black Salt & Pink Himalayan Salt will help readers to get proper understanding on the topics.