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Natron

February 15, 2024

For the compositing software, see Natron (software). For the lake in Africa, see Lake Natron. For other, see Natron (disambiguation).

Natron is a naturally occurring mixture of sodium carbonate decahydrate (Na2CO3·10H2O, a kind of soda ash) and around 17% sodium bicarbonate (also called baking soda, NaHCO3) along with small quantities of sodium chloride and sodium sulfate. Natron is white to colourless when pure, varying to gray or yellow with impurities. Natron deposits are sometimes found in saline lake beds which arose in arid environments. Throughout history natron has had many practical applications that continue today in the wide range of modern uses of its constituent mineral components.

Natron
Natron deposits in the Era Kohor crater in the Tibesti Mountains, Chad
General
CategoryCarbonate mineral
Formula
(repeating unit)		Na2CO3·10H2O
IMA symbolNt[1]
Strunz classification5.CB.10
Dana classification15.01.02.01
Crystal systemMonoclinic
Crystal classPrismatic (2/m)
(same H-M symbol)
Space groupP2/m
Unit cella = 12.75 Å, b = 9 Å, c = 12.6 Å
β = 115.85°
Identification
ColourColourless to white, greyish, yellowish; colourless in transmitted light.
Crystal habitcrystalline, granular, and columnar crusts
Twinningon {001}
CleavageOn {001} distinct; on {010} imperfect; on {110} in traces.
FractureConchoidal
TenacityBrittle
Mohs scale hardness1 – 1.5
LustreVitreous
StreakWhite
DiaphaneityTransparent to translucent
Specific gravity1.478
Optical propertiesBiaxial (−)
Refractive indexnα = 1.405 nβ = 1.425 nγ = 1.440
Birefringenceδ = 0.035
2V angleMeasured: 71° , Calculated: 80°
SolubilitySoluble in water
References[2][3][4]

In modern mineralogy the term natron has come to mean only the sodium carbonate decahydrate (hydrated soda ash) that makes up most of the historical salt.

Natron deposits, Trou au Natron, Tibesti, Chad

Etymology edit

The English and German word natron is a French cognate derived from the Spanish natrón through Latin natrium and Greek nitron (νίτρον). This derives from the Ancient Egyptian word nṯrj. Natron refers to Wadi El Natrun or Natron Valley in Egypt, from which natron was mined by the ancient Egyptians for use in burial rites. The modern chemical symbol for sodium, Na, is an abbreviation of that element's Neo-Latin name natrium, which was derived from natron.

Importance in antiquity edit

 
A faience vase fabricated in part from natron, dating to the New Kingdom of Egypt (c. 1450–1350 BC)

Historical natron was harvested directly as a salt mixture from dry lake beds in ancient Egypt, and has been used for thousands of years as a cleaning product for both the home and body. Blended with oil, it was an early form of soap. It softens water while removing oil and grease. Undiluted, natron was a cleanser for the teeth and an early mouthwash. The mineral was mixed into early antiseptics for wounds and minor cuts. Natron can be used to dry and preserve fish and meat. It was also an ancient household insecticide, and was used for making leather as well as a bleach for clothing.

The mineral was used during mummification ceremonies in ancient Egypt because it absorbs water and behaves as a drying agent. Moreover, when exposed to moisture, the carbonate in natron increases pH (raises alkalinity), which creates a hostile environment for bacteria. In some cultures, natron was thought to enhance spiritual safety for both the living and the dead. Natron was added to castor oil to make a smokeless fuel, which allowed Egyptian artisans to paint elaborate artworks inside ancient tombs without staining them with soot.

The Pyramid Texts describe how natron pellets were used as funerary offerings in the rites for the deceased pharaoh, "N". The ceremony required two kinds of natron, one sourced from northern (Lower) and one from southern (Upper) Egypt.

Smin, smin opens thy mouth. One pellet of natron.
O N., thou shalt taste its taste in front of the sḥ-ntr-chapels. One pellet of natron.
That which Horus spits out is smin. One pellet of natron.
That which Set spits out is smin. One pellet of natron.
That which the two harmonious gods (spit out) is smin. One pellet of natron.
To say four times: Thou hast purified thyself with natron, together with Horus (and) the Followers of Horus. Five pellets of natron from Nekheb, Upper Egypt.
Thou purifiest (thyself); Horus purifies (himself). One pellet of natron. Thou purifiest (thyself); Set purifies (himself). One pellet of natron.
Thou purifiest (thyself); Thot purifies (himself). One pellet of natron. Thou purifiest (thyself); the god purifies (himself). One pellet of natron.
Thou also purifiest (thyself)—thou who art among them. One pellet of natron.
Thy mouth is the mouth of a sucking calf on the day of his birth.
Five pellets of natron of the North, Wadi Natrûn (št-p.t)[5]

Natron is an ingredient for making a distinct color called Egyptian blue, and also as the flux in Egyptian faience. It was used along with sand and lime in ceramic and glass-making by the Romans and others at least until AD 640. The mineral was also employed as a flux to solder precious metals together.

Decline in use edit

Most of natron's uses both in the home and by industry were gradually replaced with closely related sodium compounds and minerals. Natron's detergent properties are now commercially supplied by soda ash (pure sodium carbonate), the mixture's chief compound ingredient, along with other chemicals. Soda ash also replaced natron in glass-making. Some of its ancient household roles are also now filled by ordinary baking soda, which is sodium bicarbonate, natron's other key ingredient.

Chemistry of hydrated sodium carbonate edit

Natron is also the mineralogical name for the compound sodium carbonate decahydrate (Na2CO3·10H2O), which is the main component in historical natron.[4]Sodium carbonate decahydrate has a specific gravity of 1.42 to 1.47 and a Mohs hardness of 1. It crystallizes in the monoclinic-domatic crystal system, typically forming efflorescences and encrustations.

The term hydrated sodium carbonate is commonly used to encompass the monohydrate (Na2CO3·H2O), the decahydrate and the heptahydrate (Na2CO3·7H2O), but is often used in industry to refer to the decahydrate only. Both the hepta- and the decahydrate effloresce (lose water) in dry air and are partially transformed into the monohydrate thermonatrite Na2CO3·H2O.

As a source of soda ash edit

Sodium carbonate decahydrate is stable at room temperature but recrystallizes at only 32 °C (90 °F) to sodium carbonate heptahydrate, Na2CO3·7H2O, then above 37–38 °C (99–100 °F) to sodium carbonate monohydrate, Na2CO3·H2O. This recrystallization from decahydrate to monohydrate releases much crystal water in a mostly clear, colorless salt solution with little solid thermonatrite. The mineral natron is often found in association with thermonatrite, nahcolite, trona, halite, mirabilite, gaylussite, gypsum, and calcite. Most industrially produced sodium carbonate is soda ash (sodium carbonate anhydrate Na2CO3) which is obtained by calcination (dry heating at temperatures of 150 to 200 °C) of sodium bicarbonate, sodium carbonate monohydrate, or trona.

Geological occurrence edit

Geologically, the mineral natron as well as the historical natron are formed as transpiro-evaporite minerals, i.e. crystallizing during the drying up of salt lakes rich in sodium carbonate. The sodium carbonate is usually formed by absorption of carbon dioxide from the atmosphere by a highly alkaline, sodium-rich lake brine, according to the following reaction scheme:

NaOH(aq) + CO2 → NaHCO3(aq)
NaHCO3(aq) + NaOH(aq) → Na2CO3(aq) + H2O

Pure deposits of sodium carbonate decahydrate are rare, due to the limited temperature stability of this compound and due to the fact that the absorption of carbon dioxide usually produces mixtures of bicarbonate and carbonate in solution. From such mixtures, the mineral natron (and also the historical one) will be formed only if the brine temperature during evaporation is maximally about 20 °C (68 °F) – or the alkalinity of the lake is so high, that little bicarbonate is present in solution (see reaction scheme above) – in which case the maximum temperature is increased to about 30 °C (86 °F). In most cases the mineral natron will form together with some amount of nahcolite (sodium bicarbonate), resulting in salt mixtures like the historical natron. Otherwise, the minerals trona[6] or thermonatrite and nahcolite are commonly formed. As the evaporation of a salt lake will occur over geological time spans, during which also part or all of the salt beds might redissolve and recrystallize, deposits of sodium carbonate can be composed of layers of all these minerals.

The following list may include geographical sources of either natron or other hydrated sodium carbonate minerals:

See also edit

References edit

  1. ^ Warr, L.N. (2021). "IMA–CNMNC approved mineral symbols". Mineralogical Magazine. 85 (3): 291–320. Bibcode:2021MinM...85..291W. doi:10.1180/mgm.2021.43. S2CID 235729616.
  2. ^ "Natron Mindat". mindat.org. Retrieved 2022-11-28.
  3. ^ "Natron Handbook" (PDF). Retrieved 2022-11-28.
  4. ^ a b "Natron Mineral Data". webmineral.com. Retrieved 2022-11-26.
  5. ^ www.sacred-texts.com/egy/pyt/pyt05.htm The Pyramid Texts, Utterance 35. Translated by Samuel A. B. Mercer, 1952. Accessed 9 April 2020.
  6. ^ "Trona Mineral Data".

External links edit

 
Look up natron, νίτρον, or natrium in Wiktionary, the free dictionary.
 
Wikimedia Commons has media related to Natron.
  • Etymology of "natron"

February 15, 2024
natron, compositing, software, software, lake, africa, lake, other, disambiguation, this, article, needs, additional, citations, verification, please, help, improve, this, article, adding, citations, reliable, sources, unsourced, material, challenged, removed,. For the compositing software see Natron software For the lake in Africa see Lake Natron For other see Natron disambiguation This article needs additional citations for verification Please help improve this article by adding citations to reliable sources Unsourced material may be challenged and removed Find sources Natron news newspapers books scholar JSTOR August 2022 Learn how and when to remove this template message Natron is a naturally occurring mixture of sodium carbonate decahydrate Na2CO3 10H2O a kind of soda ash and around 17 sodium bicarbonate also called baking soda NaHCO3 along with small quantities of sodium chloride and sodium sulfate Natron is white to colourless when pure varying to gray or yellow with impurities Natron deposits are sometimes found in saline lake beds which arose in arid environments Throughout history natron has had many practical applications that continue today in the wide range of modern uses of its constituent mineral components NatronNatron deposits in the Era Kohor crater in the Tibesti Mountains ChadGeneralCategoryCarbonate mineralFormula repeating unit Na2CO3 10H2OIMA symbolNt 1 Strunz classification5 CB 10Dana classification15 01 02 01Crystal systemMonoclinicCrystal classPrismatic 2 m same H M symbol Space groupP2 mUnit cella 12 75 A b 9 A c 12 6 Ab 115 85 IdentificationColourColourless to white greyish yellowish colourless in transmitted light Crystal habitcrystalline granular and columnar crustsTwinningon 001 CleavageOn 001 distinct on 010 imperfect on 110 in traces FractureConchoidalTenacityBrittleMohs scale hardness1 1 5LustreVitreousStreakWhiteDiaphaneityTransparent to translucentSpecific gravity1 478Optical propertiesBiaxial Refractive indexna 1 405 nb 1 425 ng 1 440Birefringenced 0 0352V angleMeasured 71 Calculated 80 SolubilitySoluble in waterReferences 2 3 4 In modern mineralogy the term natron has come to mean only the sodium carbonate decahydrate hydrated soda ash that makes up most of the historical salt Natron deposits Trou au Natron Tibesti ChadContents 1 Etymology 2 Importance in antiquity 2 1 Decline in use 3 Chemistry of hydrated sodium carbonate 3 1 As a source of soda ash 4 Geological occurrence 5 See also 6 References 7 External linksEtymology editThe English and German word natron is a French cognate derived from the Spanish natron through Latin natrium and Greek nitron nitron This derives from the Ancient Egyptian word nṯrj Natron refers to Wadi El Natrun or Natron Valley in Egypt from which natron was mined by the ancient Egyptians for use in burial rites The modern chemical symbol for sodium Na is an abbreviation of that element s Neo Latin name natrium which was derived from natron Importance in antiquity edit nbsp A faience vase fabricated in part from natron dating to the New Kingdom of Egypt c 1450 1350 BC Historical natron was harvested directly as a salt mixture from dry lake beds in ancient Egypt and has been used for thousands of years as a cleaning product for both the home and body Blended with oil it was an early form of soap It softens water while removing oil and grease Undiluted natron was a cleanser for the teeth and an early mouthwash The mineral was mixed into early antiseptics for wounds and minor cuts Natron can be used to dry and preserve fish and meat It was also an ancient household insecticide and was used for making leather as well as a bleach for clothing The mineral was used during mummification ceremonies in ancient Egypt because it absorbs water and behaves as a drying agent Moreover when exposed to moisture the carbonate in natron increases pH raises alkalinity which creates a hostile environment for bacteria In some cultures natron was thought to enhance spiritual safety for both the living and the dead Natron was added to castor oil to make a smokeless fuel which allowed Egyptian artisans to paint elaborate artworks inside ancient tombs without staining them with soot The Pyramid Texts describe how natron pellets were used as funerary offerings in the rites for the deceased pharaoh N The ceremony required two kinds of natron one sourced from northern Lower and one from southern Upper Egypt Smin smin opens thy mouth One pellet of natron O N thou shalt taste its taste in front of the sḥ ntr chapels One pellet of natron That which Horus spits out is smin One pellet of natron That which Set spits out is smin One pellet of natron That which the two harmonious gods spit out is smin One pellet of natron To say four times Thou hast purified thyself with natron together with Horus and the Followers of Horus Five pellets of natron from Nekheb Upper Egypt Thou purifiest thyself Horus purifies himself One pellet of natron Thou purifiest thyself Set purifies himself One pellet of natron Thou purifiest thyself Thot purifies himself One pellet of natron Thou purifiest thyself the god purifies himself One pellet of natron Thou also purifiest thyself thou who art among them One pellet of natron Thy mouth is the mouth of a sucking calf on the day of his birth Five pellets of natron of the North Wadi Natrun st p t 5 Natron is an ingredient for making a distinct color called Egyptian blue and also as the flux in Egyptian faience It was used along with sand and lime in ceramic and glass making by the Romans and others at least until AD 640 The mineral was also employed as a flux to solder precious metals together Decline in use edit Most of natron s uses both in the home and by industry were gradually replaced with closely related sodium compounds and minerals Natron s detergent properties are now commercially supplied by soda ash pure sodium carbonate the mixture s chief compound ingredient along with other chemicals Soda ash also replaced natron in glass making Some of its ancient household roles are also now filled by ordinary baking soda which is sodium bicarbonate natron s other key ingredient Chemistry of hydrated sodium carbonate editNatron is also the mineralogical name for the compound sodium carbonate decahydrate Na2CO3 10H2O which is the main component in historical natron 4 Sodium carbonate decahydrate has a specific gravity of 1 42 to 1 47 and a Mohs hardness of 1 It crystallizes in the monoclinic domatic crystal system typically forming efflorescences and encrustations The term hydrated sodium carbonate is commonly used to encompass the monohydrate Na2CO3 H2O the decahydrate and the heptahydrate Na2CO3 7H2O but is often used in industry to refer to the decahydrate only Both the hepta and the decahydrate effloresce lose water in dry air and are partially transformed into the monohydrate thermonatrite Na2CO3 H2O As a source of soda ash edit Sodium carbonate decahydrate is stable at room temperature but recrystallizes at only 32 C 90 F to sodium carbonate heptahydrate Na2CO3 7H2O then above 37 38 C 99 100 F to sodium carbonate monohydrate Na2CO3 H2O This recrystallization from decahydrate to monohydrate releases much crystal water in a mostly clear colorless salt solution with little solid thermonatrite The mineral natron is often found in association with thermonatrite nahcolite trona halite mirabilite gaylussite gypsum and calcite Most industrially produced sodium carbonate is soda ash sodium carbonate anhydrate Na2CO3 which is obtained by calcination dry heating at temperatures of 150 to 200 C of sodium bicarbonate sodium carbonate monohydrate or trona Geological occurrence editGeologically the mineral natron as well as the historical natron are formed as transpiro evaporite minerals i e crystallizing during the drying up of salt lakes rich in sodium carbonate The sodium carbonate is usually formed by absorption of carbon dioxide from the atmosphere by a highly alkaline sodium rich lake brine according to the following reaction scheme NaOH aq CO2 NaHCO3 aq NaHCO3 aq NaOH aq Na2CO3 aq H2O Pure deposits of sodium carbonate decahydrate are rare due to the limited temperature stability of this compound and due to the fact that the absorption of carbon dioxide usually produces mixtures of bicarbonate and carbonate in solution From such mixtures the mineral natron and also the historical one will be formed only if the brine temperature during evaporation is maximally about 20 C 68 F or the alkalinity of the lake is so high that little bicarbonate is present in solution see reaction scheme above in which case the maximum temperature is increased to about 30 C 86 F In most cases the mineral natron will form together with some amount of nahcolite sodium bicarbonate resulting in salt mixtures like the historical natron Otherwise the minerals trona 6 or thermonatrite and nahcolite are commonly formed As the evaporation of a salt lake will occur over geological time spans during which also part or all of the salt beds might redissolve and recrystallize deposits of sodium carbonate can be composed of layers of all these minerals The following list may include geographical sources of either natron or other hydrated sodium carbonate minerals Africa Chad shores of Lake Chad Trou au Natron Era Kohor crater on Emi Koussi Egypt Wadi El Natrun Natron Valley Ethiopia Showa Province Niger Bilma Tanzania Lake Natron Europe Hungary Bacs Kiskun County Great Hungarian Plain Szabolcs Szatmar Bereg County Great Hungarian Plain Italy Campania Province of Naples Somma Vesuvius Complex Kola Peninsula northern Russia Khibiny Massif Lovozero Massif Alluaiv Mountain Kedykverpakhk Mountain Umbozero Mine England UK St Just District Botallack Pendeen Area North America Canada Quebec Rouville County Mont Saint Hilaire Interior British Columbia United States California Inyo County Nevada Churchill County Soda Lake District Humboldt County Mineral County Oregon Lake County Pennsylvania Karns Natrona Washington Okanogan County Wyoming Natrona CountySee also editNahcolite Niter Potassium nitrate Shortite Soda disambiguation Sodium sesquicarbonate Thermonatrite TronaReferences edit Warr L N 2021 IMA CNMNC approved mineral symbols Mineralogical Magazine 85 3 291 320 Bibcode 2021MinM 85 291W doi 10 1180 mgm 2021 43 S2CID 235729616 Natron Mindat mindat org Retrieved 2022 11 28 Natron Handbook PDF Retrieved 2022 11 28 a b Natron Mineral Data webmineral com Retrieved 2022 11 26 www sacred texts com egy pyt pyt05 htm The Pyramid Texts Utterance 35 Translated by Samuel A B Mercer 1952 Accessed 9 April 2020 Trona Mineral Data External links edit nbsp Look up natron nitron or natrium in Wiktionary the free dictionary nbsp Wikimedia Commons has media related to Natron Etymology of natron Retrieved from https en wikipedia org w index php title Natron amp oldid 1196910827, wikipedia, wiki, book, books, library,

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