Author Question: Irrigation is one of the largest uses of water by volume. What will be an ideal ... (Read 63 times)

hubes95 · **on:** Jul 28, 2018

Irrigation is one of the largest uses of water by volume.

What will be an ideal response?

Question 2

Is the fact that sodium reacts rapidly with water a concern when building change-of phase devices with sodium?

What will be an ideal response?

shaikhs · **Reply #1 on:** Jul 28, 2018

Answer to Question 1

It is the second largest water user after electric energy generation, at about one
third of the total.

Answer to Question 2

Indeed so. Any facility built would need to assure that no sodium could come into
contact with water. Sodium mixes explosively with water and it is essential that any such
reaction proceed safely..
An amusing website, http://www.allatoms.com/SodiumWaterExpt/NaExp.htm, which is
entitled The Great Sodium Disaster of 1998 states Sodium will react with oxygen in
the atmosphere to make sodium oxide 4Na(s) + O2(g) --> 2Na2O(s). Sodium will also
react with water to make sodium hydroxide base and hydrogen gas Na(s) + H2O(l) -->
NaOH(aq) + H2(g) + heat. The reaction is exothermic enough to cause the flammable
hydrogen gas to ignite explosively with oxygen in the atmosphere to make new water
molecules 2H2(g) + O2(g) --> 2H2O(g). For these reasons, sodium is usually kept under
mineral oil to keep it from reacting with these common substances.