Article
Article
Alkali
Article By:
Othmer, Donald F. Department of Chemical Engineering, Polytechnic Institute of Brooklyn, Brooklyn, New York.
Last reviewed:2020
DOI:https://doi.org/10.1036/1097-8542.022700
Any compound having highly basic properties, strong acrid taste, and ability to neutralize acids. Aqueous solutions of alkalies are high in hydroxyl ions, have a pH above 7, and turn litmus paper from red to blue. Caustic alkalies include sodium hydroxide (caustic soda) and potassium hydroxide. They are extremely destructive to human tissue; external burns should be washed with large amounts of water. The milder alkalies are the carbonates of the alkali metals; these include the industrially important sodium carbonate (soda ash) and potassium carbonate (potash), as well as the carbonates of lithium, rubidium, and cesium, and the volatile ammonium hydroxide. Sodium bicarbonate is a still milder alkaline material. See also: Acid and base; pH
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