Uses of metallic sodium in the chemical industry

Sodium metal is an important raw material for producing sodium butyl rubber. Butyl rubber, also known as styrene-butadiene rubber, is produced through the catalytic polymerization of butadiene and metallic sodium. Sodium metal is also a raw material for producing various reagents such as sodium peroxide, sodium cyanide, sodium hydride, and sodium amide. Sodium peroxide plays a unique role in addressing oxygen deficiency at high altitudes and underwater; it can absorb carbon dioxide exhaled by the human body while releasing oxygen, thereby helping deep-sea divers and those inside submarines to carry out activities underwater for extended periods of time. Sodium metal has an extremely high heat transfer coefficient, is highly stable, and does not polymerize, carbonize, or decompose; therefore, sodium and its alloys are commonly used as heat transfer media. In the sodium-cooled valves inside aircraft engines, sodium is used as the heat transfer medium. In addition to the aforementioned good properties, it has a high boiling point, is non-corrosive to common metals at high temperatures, and possesses a fairly high neutron absorption cross-section; for these reasons, it is also used as a heat transfer medium in nuclear power plants.