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Purified Sodium Hydroxide: Caustic Soda Dissolved in Alcohol, Filtered and Dried in Silver
Walkerma (Wikimedia Commons) · Public domain
Charlie

Created by

Charlie

19. October 2026DE
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Purified Sodium Hydroxide: Caustic Soda Dissolved in Alcohol, Filtered and Dried in Silver

Commercial caustic soda carries alumina, carbonates, chlorides, phosphates, silicates and sulphates. For analysis, the British Pharmacopoeia of 1898 (quoted in the 1907 US Dispensatory) purified it with alcohol: sodium hydroxide dissolves in alcohol, most of those salts do not, so they are filtered off and the alcohol is evaporated in a silver dish. The result is free of phosphates and sulphates, nearly free of carbonate, but not quite free of alumina. The source gives no quantities, so none are given here. The picture: sodium hydroxide pellets (Walkerma, Wikimedia Commons, public domain).
Intermediate
A day

Instructions

1

Dissolve the caustic soda in alcohol

Put commercial caustic soda in a beaker and stir in alcohol until it has dissolved. Caustic soda burns skin and eyes: wear goggles and gloves.

Materials for this step:

Lye (Sodium Hydroxide)Lye (Sodium Hydroxide)1 as required

Tools needed:

Ethanol - Lab Grade, 95%Ethanol - Lab Grade, 95%
Borosilicate BeakerBorosilicate Beaker
Glass Stirring RodGlass Stirring Rod
Chemical Splash GogglesChemical Splash Goggles
Rubber GlovesRubber Gloves
2

Filter off what does not dissolve

Filter the solution. The salts that stay behind on the filter are the impurities.

Tools needed:

Glass Funnel - StemmedGlass Funnel - Stemmed
Filter PaperFilter Paper
Borosilicate BeakerBorosilicate Beaker
Chemical Splash GogglesChemical Splash Goggles
Rubber GlovesRubber Gloves
3

Evaporate to dryness in a silver dish

Evaporate the filtrate to dryness in a silver dish, adding a little distilled water from time to time as it goes. Caustic soda attacks glass and porcelain, hence the silver. Alcohol vapour catches fire: use an electric hot plate, no flame, in a well-aired place.

Tools needed:

Silver DishSilver Dish
Hot PlateHot Plate
Distilled WaterDistilled Water
Chemical Splash GogglesChemical Splash Goggles
Rubber GlovesRubber Gloves
4

Bottle the purified sodium hydroxide

The residue is purified sodium hydroxide. It draws water from the air (the source calls it deliquescent), so put it at once into well-stoppered bottles of hard glass. It should show no phosphate or sulphate, at most a trace of carbonate, and it is not quite free of alumina.

Tools needed:

Glass Bottles with StoppersGlass Bottles with Stoppers
Rubber GlovesRubber Gloves

Materials

1

Tools Required

11

This blueprint makes

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Sodium Hydroxide - Lab Grade

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