Sodium and L'Abri: Difference between pages

Revision as of 23:18, 11 April 2007

Revision as of 20:03, 4 June 2007

Line 1:

[[Image:Labri1.jpg|right|Chalet Les Melezes at Swiss L'Abri]]'''L'Abri''' ([[French language|French]] for "the Shelter") is an [[Evangelicalism|evangelical Christian]] organization founded by [[Francis Schaeffer]] and his wife Edith in [[Ollon|Huemoz-sur-Ollon]], [[Switzerland]] on [[June 5]], [[1955]]. They opened their [[Alps|alpine]] home as a ministry to curious travelers and as a forum to discuss philosophical and religious beliefs. No records exist to accurately state the number of people that have visited the home, but it is at least in the thousands.

{{for|sodium in the diet|Edible salt}}

{{Infobox sodium}}

'''Sodium''' ([[International Phonetic Alphabet|IPA]]: {{IPA|/ˈsəʊdiəm/}}) is a [[chemical element]] which has the symbol '''Na''' (Latin: natrium), atomic number 11, atomic mass 22.9898 g/mol, [[oxidation number]] +1. Sodium is a soft, [[silver]]y white, highly reactive element and is a member of the [[alkali metals]] within "group 1" (formerly known as ‘group IA’). It has only one stable [[isotope]], ²³Na. Sodium was first isolated by Sir [[Humphry Davy]] in 1807 by passing an electric current through molten [[sodium hydroxide]]. Sodium quickly oxidizes in air so it must be stored in an inert environment such as [[kerosene]]. Sodium is present in great quantities in the earth's oceans as [[sodium chloride]]. It is also a component of many minerals, and it is an essential element for animal life.

Schaeffer became an evangelical Christian as a teenager, but he went through a period of spiritual doubt in [[1950]]-[[1951]] and was forced to question his beliefs. By [[1955]], he was newly confident of his beliefs and had stronger faith, so he and his wife moved to a small house in Huemoz and established L'Abri, without assurance that it would be successful. Initially, few people visited, but as tapes of Schaeffer's lectures spread to [[England]] and other countries, the place became more popular. By the [[1970s]], as many as several hundred would stay at or around the home for time periods ranging from a week to several months.

== Notable characteristics ==

Compared with the other alkali metals, sodium is generally less reactive than [[potassium]] and more so than [[lithium]], in accordance with "[[periodic law]]": for example, their reaction in water, chlorine gas, etc.; the reactivity of their [[nitrate]]s, [[chlorate]]s, [[perchlorate]]s, etc. An exception to the periodic law is regarding sodium's density. The density of the elements are expected to increase down the group. However, potassium is less dense than sodium.

Schaeffer died in [[1984]], but the ministry he founded has continued to grow. Now, L'Abri has operations in a number of different countries, each staffed by workers who encourage visitors to study and consider their religious and philosophical beliefs. As of January 2006, L'Abri has residential "Study Centres" in the USA (in Minnesota and Massachusetts), in Canada, South Korea and in Europe in England, The Netherlands and Sweden, as well as the original centre in Switzerland. It also has non-residential "Resource Centres", run by friends of the organisation, in Australia and Germany.

Owing to its high reactivity, sodium is found in nature only as a compound and never as the free element. Sodium reacts [[Exothermic reaction|exothermically]] with water: small pea-sized pieces will bounce around the surface of the water until they are consumed by it, whereas large pieces will explode. While sodium reacts with water at room temperature the sodium piece melts with the heat of the reaction to form a sphere, if the reacting sodium piece is large enough. The reaction with water produces very caustic [[sodium hydroxide]] and highly flammable hydrogen gas. In any case these are considered an extreme hazard and will cause severe skin and eye injury. When burned in air, sodium forms [[sodium peroxide]] Na₂O₂, or with limited [[oxygen]], the oxide Na₂O</sub> (unlike [[lithium]], the [[nitride]] is not formed). If burned in oxygen under pressure, [[sodium superoxide]] NaO₂ will be produced.

The "mode of operation" of L'Abri remains unusual amongst Christian organisations. A L'Abri centre is not a [[Retreat (religious/spiritual)|retreat]], a [[Commune (intentional community)|commune]], or a [[seminary]], although it incorporates elements of all of these. Visitors are referred to as students, and personal study remains central to L'Abri's work, but there are no fixed "classes" or courses. Rather students (who may spend any time from one day to a whole "term," usually 2-3 months, at L'Abri) meet regularly with a member of staff to discuss the issues they wish to study, and are recommended resources from L'Abri's library of books and of recorded lectures and talks by L'Abri staff and others. A student's day is divided into "study time" and "work time." During "work time," a student will help with the necessary activities of the community—-cooking meals, cleaning, maintenance etc. This division is based on Schaeffer's constant emphasis that Christianity, and the work of L'Abri, were not only intellectual but had to incorporate all of life, and that a demonstration of "Christian Community" was as central to L'Abri's work as the intellectual demonstration that he believed could be made of the reasonableness and truthfulness of Christian belief.

When sodium or its compounds are introduced into a flame it will contribute a bright yellow.

The importance of Schaeffer's belief in the relevance of Christianity to all of life can be seen in many aspects of L'Abri. The L'Abri day revolves around communal meals, often used as an opportunity for formal open discussion, and students are encouraged to pursue interests in Art, Music and Literature, and to display the results to the community if they wish.

In chemistry, most sodium compounds are considered soluble but nature provides examples of many insoluble sodium compounds such as the feldspars. There are other insoluble sodium salts such as [[sodium bismuthate]] NaBiO₃, [[sodium octamolybdate]] Na₂Mo₈O₂₅• 4H₂O, [[sodium thioplatinate]] Na₄Pt₃S₆, sodium uranate Na₂UO₄. [[Sodium meta-antimonate]]'s 2NaSbO₃•7H₂O solubility is 0.3g/L as is the [[pyro form]] Na₂H₂Sb₂O₇• H₂O of this salt. [[Sodium metaphosphate]] NaPO₃ has a soluble and an insoluble form.<ref>Lange's Handbook of Chemistry</ref>

L'Abri staff will also regularly give lectures to the students, and at many L'Abri's some or all of these are open to the public.

Sodium ions are necessary for regulation of blood and body fluids, transmission of nerve impulses, heart activity, and certain metabolic functions. Interestingly, sodium is needed by animals, which maintain high concentrations in their blood and extracellular fluids, but the ion is not needed by plants. A completely plant-based diet, therefore, will be very low in sodium. This requires some herbivores to obtain their sodium from [[salt licks]] and other mineral sources. The animal need for sodium is probably the reason for the highly-conserved ability to [[taste]] the sodium ion as "salty." Receptors for the pure salty taste respond best to sodium, and otherwise only to a few other small monovalent cations (Li⁺, NH₄⁺, and to some extent also K⁺). [[Calcium chloride]] also tastes somewhat salty, but also quite bitter.

L'Abri staff over the last 50 years have written a variety of books on different subjects, relating to their own areas of expertise. Published current and former L'Abri staff include (obviously) Francis and Edith Schaeffer but also [[Greg Laughery]], Jerram Barrs, Wade Bradshaw, Kevin Cook, Os Guinness, Dick and Mardi Keyes, Ranald Macaulay, [[Hans Rookmaaker]] and Richard Winter.

The most common sodium salt, sodium chloride ([[table salt]]), used for seasoning (for example the English word "salad" refers to salt) and warm-climate food preservation, such as [[pickling]] and making [[jerky]] (the high osmotic content of salt inhibits bacterial and fungal growth). As such, salt has been an important commodity in human activities (the English word ''salary'' refers to ''salarium'', the perquisite ("perk") given to Roman soldiers for the purpose of buying salt). The human requirement for sodium in the diet is less than 500 mg per day, which is typically less than a tenth as much as many diets "seasoned to taste." Most people consume far more sodium than is physiologically needed. For certain people with salt-sensitive blood pressure, this extra intake may cause a negative effect on health.

The L'Abri study centre in [[Rochester, Minnesota]] also organises bi-annual "L'Abri Conferences" in the USA and Canada at which L'Abri staff from across the world and other speakers supportive of the vision of L'Abri speak and lead seminars on a wide range of topics.

== Applications ==

[[Image:Na-lamp-3.jpg|thumb|left|200px|A low pressure sodium lamp, glowing with the light of sodium D spectral lines.]]

In [[2005]], a conference was held in [[St. Louis, Missouri]] to celebrate the 50th anniversary of the organization, and over 1,000 attendees were present to hear speakers such as Os Guinness, Harold O. J. Brown, and [[Chuck Colson]].

Sodium in its metallic form can be used to refine some reactive metals, such as [[zirconium]] and [[potassium]], from their compounds. This alkali metal as the Na⁺ ion is vital to animal life. Other uses:

*In certain [[alloy]]s to improve their structure.

*In [[soap]], in combination with [[fatty acid]]s. Sodium soaps are harder (higher melting) soaps than potassium soaps.

*To descale metal (make its surface smooth).

*To purify molten metals.

*In [[sodium vapor lamp]]s, an efficient means of producing light from electricity (see the picture), often used for street lighting in cities. Low-pressure sodium lamps give a distinctive yellow-orange light which consists primarily of the twin [[sodium D]] spectral lines. High-pressure sodium lamps give a more natural peach-colored light, composed of wavelengths spread much more widely across the spectrum.

*As a [[heat transfer fluid]] in some types of [[nuclear reactors]] and inside the hollow [[valve]]s of high-performance [[internal combustion engine]]s.

*[[NaCl]], a compound of sodium ions and [[chloride]] ions, is an important [[heat transfer]] material.

*In [[organic synthesis]], sodium is used as a [[Redox|reducing agent]], for example in the [[Birch reduction]].

*In [[chemistry]], sodium is often used either alone or with [[potassium]] in an alloy, [[NaK]] as a desiccant for drying solvents. Used with [[benzophenone]], it forms an intense blue coloration when the solvent is dry and [[oxygen]]-free.@#@##@#@#@#@#

== History References==

*Schaeffer, Edith, ''L'Abri'', Wheaton, IL: Tyndale House (1969); revised and expanded, Westchester, IL: Crossway Books (1992).

[[Image:Flametest--Na.swn.jpg|thumb|left|200px|The [[flame test]] for sodium displays a brilliantly bright yellow emission due to the so called "sodium D-lines" at 588.9950 and 589.5924 nanometers.]]

*Schaeffer, Edith, ''The Tapestry'', Waco, TX: Word Books (1981).

*Parkhurst, Louis Gifford, ''Francis and Edith Schaeffer'', Minneapolis, MN: Bethany House Publishers (1996) [http://www.cybershelter.net/fasbiog/contents.htm available online]

*Veith, Gene Edward. [http://www.worldmag.com/articles/10452 "Taking the roof off"]. [[World (magazine)|''World Magazine'']], [[March 26]], [[2005]]

==External links==

Sodium ([[English language|English]], soda) has long been recognized in compounds, but was not isolated until [[1807]] by Sir [[Humphry Davy]] through the [[electrolysis]] of [[caustic soda]]. In [[medieval]] [[Europe]] a compound of sodium with the [[Latin]] name of ''sodanum'' was used as a [[headache]] remedy. Sodium's symbol, Na, comes from the [[neo-Latin]] name for a common sodium compound named ''natrium'', which comes from the [[Greek language|Greek]] ''nítron'', a natural mineral salt whose primary ingredient is hydrated sodium carbonate. The difference between the English name ''soda'' and the abbreviation ''Na'' comes from [[Jöns Jakob Berzelius|Berzelius']] publication of his system of atomic symbols in Thomas Thomson's Annals of Philosophy<ref>[http://www.vanderkrogt.net/elements/elem/na.html Elementymology &amp; Elements Multidict by Peter van der Krogt]</ref>.

*[http://www.labri.org/ The Official L'Abri Home Page]

*[http://www.labri-nw.org/ Pacific Northwest L'Abri Conference 2007]

[[Category:Evangelical parachurch organisations]]

Sodium imparts an intense yellow color to flames. As early as 1860, [[Gustav Kirchhoff|Kirchhoff]] and [[Robert Bunsen|Bunsen]] noted the high sensitivity that a flame test for sodium could give. They state in [[Annalen der Physik|Annalen der Physik und der Chemie]] in the paper "Chemical Analysis by Observation of Spectra":

''In a corner of our 60 cu.m. room farthest away from the apparatus, we exploded 3 mg. of sodium chlorate with milk sugar while observing the nonluminous flame before the slit. After a while, it glowed a bright yellow and showed a strong sodium line that disappeared only after 10 minutes. From the weight of the sodium salt and the volume of air in the room, we easily calculate that one part by weight of air could not contain more than 1/20 millionth weight of sodium.''

== Occurrence ==

[[Image:Starfield Optical Range - sodium laser.jpg|thumb|right|200px|A [[FASOR (laser physics)|FASOR]] used at the [[Starfire Optical Range]] used to excite sodium atoms [[sodium layer|in the upper atmosphere]].]]

:''See also [[:category:Sodium minerals|sodium minerals]].''

Sodium is relatively abundant in [[stars]] and the D [[spectral line]]s of this element are among the most prominent in star light. Sodium makes up about 2.6% by weight of the [[Earth]]'s crust making it the fourth most abundant element overall and the most abundant alkali metal.

At the end of the 19th century, sodium was chemically prepared by heating [[sodium carbonate]] with [[carbon]] to 1100 °C.

:Na₂CO₃ (liquid) + 2 C (solid, coke) → 2 Na (vapor) + 3 CO (gas).

It is now produced commercially through the [[electrolysis]] of liquid [[sodium chloride]].<ref name="pauling">Pauling, Linus, ''General Chemistry'', 1970 ed., Dover Publications</ref><ref name="losal">[http://periodic.lanl.gov/elements/11.html Los Alamos National Laboratory – Sodium]</ref> This is done in a [[Downs Cell]] in which the NaCl is mixed with [[calcium chloride]] to lower the [[melting point]] below 700 °C. As [[calcium]] is more electropositive than sodium, no calcium will be formed at the cathode. This method is less expensive than the previous [[Castner Process|Castner process]] of electrolyzing [[sodium hydroxide]].

Very pure sodium can be isolated by thermal decomposition [[sodium azide]].<ref>Merck Index, 9th ed., monograph 8325</ref>

Metallic sodium costs about 15 to 20 US cents per [[Pound (weight)|pound]] (US$0.30/kg to US$0.45/kg) in [[1997]] but reagent grade (ACS) sodium cost about US$35 per pound (US$75/kg) in [[1990]].

== Phase behavior under pressure ==

Under extreme pressure, sodium departs from common melting behavior. Most materials require higher temperatures to melt under pressure than they do at normal atmospheric pressure. This is because they expand on melting due to looser molecular packing in the liquid, and thus pressure forces equilibrium in the direction of the denser solid phase.

At a pressure of 30 [[gigapascal]]s (300,000 times sea level atmospheric pressure), the melting temperature of sodium begins to drop. At around 100 gigapascals, sodium will melt at near room temperature. A possible explanation for the aberrant behavior of sodium is that this element has one free [[electron]] that is pushed closer to the other 10 electrons when placed under pressure, forcing interactions that are not normally present. While under pressure, solid sodium assumes several odd [[crystal structure]]s suggesting that the liquid might have unusual properties such as [[Superconductivity|superconduction]] or [[Superfluid|superfluidity]].<ref name="gregoryanz">Gregoryanz, E., ''et al.'' (2005). "Melting of dense sodium". ''Physical Review Letters'' '''94''': 185502</ref>

== Compounds ==

:''See also [[:category:Sodium compounds|sodium compounds]].''

[[Sodium chloride]] or [[halite]], better known as common salt, is the most common compound of sodium, but sodium occurs in many other [[mineral]]s, such as [[amphibole]], [[cryolite]], [[soda niter]] and [[zeolite]]. Sodium compounds are important to the chemical, [[glass]], metal, [[paper]], [[petroleum]], [[soap]], and [[textile]] industries. Hard soaps are generally sodium salt of certain fatty acids (potassium produces softer or liquid soaps).

The sodium compounds that are the most important to industries are common salt (Na[[chlorine|Cl]]), [[soda ash]] (Na₂[[carbon|C]][[oxygen|O]]₃), [[baking soda]] (Na[[hydrogen|H]]CO₃), [[sodium hydroxide|caustic soda]] (NaOH), [[sodium nitrate|Chile saltpeter]] (Na[[nitrogen|N]]O₃), di- and tri-sodium phosphates, [[sodium thiosulfate]] (hypo, Na₂[[sulfur|S]]₂O₃ · 5H₂O), and [[borax]] (Na₂[[boron|B]]₄O₇ · 10H₂O).

== Isotopes ==

There are thirteen [[isotope]]s of sodium that have been recognized. The only stable isotope is ²³Na. Sodium has two [[radioactive]] [[cosmogenic]] isotopes (²²Na, [[half-life]] = 2.605 years; and ²⁴Na, half-life ≈ 15 hours).

Acute neutron radiation exposure (e.g., from a nuclear [[criticality accident]]) converts some of the stable ²³Na in human blood plasma to ²⁴Na. By measuring the concentration of this isotope, the neutron radiation dosage to the victim can be computed.

== Precautions ==

Extreme care is required in handling elemental/metallic sodium. Sodium is potentially explosive in water (depending on quantity) and is a caustic poison, since it is rapidly converted to sodium hydroxide on contact with moisture. The powdered form may combust spontaneously in air or oxygen. Sodium must be stored either in an inert (oxygen and moisture free) atmosphere (such as [[nitrogen]] or [[argon]]), or under a liquid hydrocarbon such as [[mineral oil]] or [[kerosene]].

The reaction of sodium and water is a familiar one in chemistry labs, and is reasonably safe if amounts of sodium smaller than a pencil eraser are used and the reaction is done behind a plastic shield by people wearing eye protection. However, the sodium-water reaction does not scale up well, and is treacherous when larger amounts of sodium are used. Larger pieces of sodium melt under the heat of the reaction, and the molten ball of metal is buoyed up by hydrogen and may appear to be stably reacting with water, until splashing covers more of the reaction mass, causing thermal runaway and an explosion which scatters molten sodium, lye solution, and sometimes flame. (18.5 g explosion [http://video.google.de/videoplay?docid=-2158222101210607510&q=sodium]) This behavior is unpredictable, and among the alkali metals it is usually sodium which invites this surprise phenomenon, because lithium is not reactive enough to do it, and potassium is so reactive that chemistry students are not tempted to try the reaction with larger potassium pieces.

Sodium is much more reactive than magnesium; a reactivity which can be further enhanced due to sodium's much lower melting point. When sodium catches fire in air (as opposed to just the hydrogen gas generated from water by means of its reaction with sodium) it more easily produces temperatures high enough to melt the sodium, exposing more of its surface to the air and spreading the fire.

Few common fire extinguishers work on sodium fires. Water, of course, exacerbates sodium fires, as do water-based foams. CO₂ and Halon are often ineffective on sodium fires, which reignite when the extinguisher dissipates. Among the very few materials effective on a sodium fire are Pyromet and Met-L-X. Pyromet is a NaCl/(NH₄)₂HPO₄ mix, with flow/anti-clump agents. It smothers the fire, drains away heat, and melts to form an impermeable crust. This is the standard dry-powder canister fire extinguisher for all classes of fires. Met-L-X is mostly sodium chloride, NaCl, with approximately 5% [[Saran (plastic)|Saran plastic]] as a crust-former, and flow/anti-clumping agents. It is most commonly hand-applied, with a scoop. Other extreme fire extinguishing materials include [[Lith-X]], a graphite based dry powder with an organophosphate flame retardant; and [[Na-X]], a Na₂CO₃-based material.

Because of the reaction scale problems discussed above, disposing of large quantities of sodium (more than 10 to 100 grams) must be done through a licensed hazardous materials disposer. Smaller quantities may be broken up and neutralized carefully with [[ethanol]] (which has a much slower reaction than water), or even [[methanol]] (where the reaction is more rapid than ethanol's but still less than in water), but care should nevertheless be taken, as the caustic products from the ethanol or methanol reaction are just as hazardous to eyes and skin as those from water. After the alcohol reaction appears complete, and all pieces of reaction debris have been broken up or dissolved, a mixture of alcohol and water, then pure water, may then be carefully used for a final cleaning. This should be allowed to stand a few minutes until the reaction products are diluted more thoroughly and flushed down the drain. The purpose of the final water soak and wash of any reaction mass which may contain sodium is to ensure that alcohol does not carry unreacted sodium into the sink trap, where a water reaction may generate hydrogen in the trap space which can then be potentially ignited, causing a confined sink trap explosion.

== Physiology and sodium ions ==

{{main|action potential}}

Sodium ions play a diverse and important role in many physiological processes. Excitable animal cells, for example, rely on the entry of Na⁺ to cause a [[depolarization]]. An example of this is [[signal transduction]] in the human [[central nervous system]], which depends on sodium ion motion across the nerve cell membrane, in all nerves.

Some potent [[neurotoxin]]s, such as [[batrachotoxin]], increase the sodium ion permeability of the [[cell membrane]]s in nerves and muscles, causing a massive and irreversible [[depolarization]] of the membranes, with potentially fatal consequences. However, drugs with smaller effects on sodium ion motion in nerves may have diverse pharmacological effects which range from anti-depressant to anti-seizure actions.

{{main|hyponatremia|hypernatremia|diuretic|vasopressin}}

Sodium is the primary [[cation]] (positive ion) in extracellular fluids in animals and humans. These fluids, such as blood plasma and extracellular fluids in other tissues, bathe cells and carry out transport functions for nutrients and wastes. Sodium is also the principal cation in seawater, although the concentration there is about 3.8 times what it is normally in extracellular body fluids. This suggests that animal life moved from the sea to dry land at a time when the seas were far less salty than they are now.

Although the system for maintaining optimal salt and water balance in the body is a complex one, one of the primary ways in which the human body keeps track of loss of body water is that [[osmoreceptor]]s in the [[hypothalamus]] sense a balance of sodium and water concentration in extracellular fluids. Relative loss of body water will cause sodium concentration to rise higher than normal, a condition known as [[hypernatremia]]. This ordinarily results in thirst. Conversely, an excess of body water caused by drinking will result in too little sodium in the blood ([[hyponatremia]]), a condition which is again sensed by the [[hypothalamus]], causing a decrease in [[vasopressin]] hormone secretion from the [[posterior pituitary]], and a consequent loss of water in the urine, which acts to restore blood sodium concentrations to normal.

Severely dehydrated persons, such as people rescued from ocean or desert survival situations, usually have very high blood sodium concentrations. These must be very carefully and slowly returned to normal, since too-rapid correction of hypernatremia may result in brain damage from cellular swelling, as water moves suddenly into cells with high [[osmolar]] content.

Because the [[hypothalamus]]/[[osmoreceptor]] system ordinarily works well to cause drinking or urination to restore the body's sodium concentrations to normal, this system can be used in medical treatment to regulate the body's total fluid content, by first controlling the body's sodium content. Thus, when a powerful [[diuretic]] drug is given which causes the kidneys to excrete sodium, the effect is accompanied by an excretion of body water (water loss accompanies sodium loss). This happens because the kidney is unable to efficiently retain water while excreting large amounts of sodium. In addition, after sodium excretion, the [[osmoreceptor]] system may sense lowered sodium concentration in the blood, and then directs compensatory urinary loss of water, in order to correct the [[hyponatremia]], or (low-blood-sodium) state.

== Atomic Spectral Lines ==

One notable [[atomic spectral line]] of sodium vapor is the so-called [[D-line]]. The D-line is one of the classified [[Fraunhofer lines]] observed in the visible spectrum of the sun's [[electromagnetic radiation]]. Sodium vapor in the upper layers of the sun creates a dark line in the emitted spectrum of electromagnetic radiation by absorbing visible light in a band of wavelengths around 589.5 nm. This wavelength corresponds to transitions in atomic sodium in which the valence-electron transitions from a 3s to 3p [[electronic state]]. Closer examination of the visible spectrum of atomic sodium reveals that the D-line actually consists of two lines called the D₁ and D₂ lines at 589.8 nm and 589.2 nm, respectively. This [[fine structure]] results from a [[spin-orbit interaction]] of the valence electron in the 3p [[electronic state]]. The spin-orbit interaction couples the [[spin angular momentum]] and [[orbital angular momentum]] of a 3p electron to form two states that are respectively notated as <math>3p(^2P^o_{1/2})</math> and <math>3p(^2P^o_{3/2})</math> in the [[LS coupling]] scheme. The 3s state of the electron gives rise to a single state which is notated as <math>3s(^2S_{1/2})</math> in the LS coupling scheme. The D₁-line results from an electronic transition between <math>3s(^2S_{1/2})</math> lower state and <math>3p(^2P^o_{1/2})</math> upper state. The D₂-line results from an electronic transition between <math>3s(^2S_{1/2})</math> lower state and <math>3p(^2P^o_{3/2})</math> upper state. Even closer examination of the visible spectrum of atomic sodium would reveal that the D-line actually consists of alot more than two lines. These lines are associated with [[hyperfine structure]] of the 3p upper states and 3s lower states. Many different transitions involving visible light near 589.5 nm may occurr between the different upper and lower hyperfine levels.<ref name="Citron-PRL-1977">Citron, M. L., ''et al.'' (1977). "Experimental study of power broadening in a two level atom". ''Physical Review Letters'' '''16''' 1507</ref>

== See also ==

*[[:Category:Sodium compounds]]

*[[:Category:Alkali metals]]

== References ==

<references />

*Rebecca J. Donatelle. Health, The Basics. 6th ed. San Francisco: Pearson Education, Inc. 2005.

== External links ==

{{Commons|Sodium}}

{{wiktionary|sodium}}

*[http://www.webelements.com/webelements/elements/text/Na/index.html WebElements.com – Sodium]

*[http://www.theodoregray.com/PeriodicTable/Elements/011/index.html The Wooden Periodic Table Table's Entry on Sodium]

*[http://www.americanheart.org/presenter.jhtml?identifier=4708 Dietary Sodium]

{{ChemicalSources}}

[[Category:Desiccants]]

[[Category:Dietary minerals]]

[[Category:Sodium| ]]

[[af:Natrium]]

[[ar:صوديوم]]

[[ast:Sodiu]]

[[bn:সোডিয়াম]]

[[bs:Natrijum]]

[[bg:Натрий]]

[[ca:Sodi]]

[[cs:Sodík]]

[[co:Sodiu]]

[[cy:Sodiwm]]

[[da:Natrium]]

[[de:Natrium]]

[[et:Naatrium]]

[[el:Νάτριο]]

[[es:Sodio]]

[[eo:Natrio]]

[[fa:سدیم]]

[[fr:Sodium]]

[[ko:나트륨]]

[[hy:Նատրիում]]

[[hi:सोडियम]]

[[hr:Natrij]]

[[io:Natro]]

[[id:Natrium]]

[[is:Natrín]]

[[it:Sodio]]

[[he:נתרן]]

[[ku:Sodyûm]]

[[la:Natrium]]

[[lv:Nātrijs]]

[[lb:Natrium]]

[[lt:Natris]]

[[ln:Sodu]]

[[jbo:sodna]]

[[hu:Nátrium]]

[[mk:Натриум]]

[[ml:സോഡിയം]]

[[mi:Konutai]]

[[nl:Natrium]]

[[ja:ナトリウム]]

[[no:Natrium]]

[[nn:Natrium]]

[[nov:Natrium]]

[[oc:Sòdi]]

[[ug:Natriy]]

[[pl:Sód]]

[[pt:Sódio]]

[[ro:Sodiu]]

[[ru:Натрий]]

[[sq:Natriumi]]

[[simple:Sodium]]

[[sk:Sodík]]

[[sl:Natrij]]

[[sr:Натријум]]

[[sh:Natrij]]

[[fi:Natrium]]

[[sv:Natrium]]

[[th:โซเดียม]]

[[vi:Natri]]

[[tg:Натрий]]

[[tr:Sodyum]]

[[uk:Натрій]]

[[uz:Natriy]]

[[wa:Sodiom]]

[[zh-yue:鈉]]

[[zh:钠]]