Otis Singleton
Lithium, potassium, and sodium are alkali metals with major biological roles as electrolytes. Electrolytes are essential for nerve and muscle function, fluid balance, and blood pressure control. They are also important for rehydration after exercise, heavy sweating, or illness. While lithium, potassium, and sodium are all electrically neutral in their pure form, they become electrolytes when they dissociate into ions in solution or melt, acquiring the capacity to conduct electricity. This process involves the movement of anions and cations in opposite directions within the solution, creating a current. In the human body, electrolytes are primarily ions of sodium (Na+), potassium (K+), and calcium (Ca2+). The balance of these electrolytes is critical for maintaining proper bodily functions.
| Characteristics | Values |
|---|---|
| Electric charge | Electrically neutral |
| Composition | Lithium, Potassium, Sodium, Calcium, Magnesium, Chloride, Hydrogen Phosphate, Hydrogen Carbonate |
| Sources | Mineral springs, brine pools, brine deposits, seawater, dried seabed, minerals |
| Uses | Electrolyte drinks, medication, batteries, lamps, nuclear reactors, commercial compounds |
| Properties | Shiny, soft, highly reactive, excellent conductors of heat and electricity, low melting points |
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What You'll Learn
Lithium, sodium and potassium are alkali metals
Lithium, sodium, and potassium are three of the six alkali metals, which also include rubidium, caesium, and francium. These elements are called alkali metals because they react with water to form alkalies, or hydroxide compounds, such as sodium hydroxide and potassium hydroxide. Alkali metals are highly reactive and soft, with low melting points. They are excellent conductors of electricity and heat.
Lithium, sodium, and potassium have major biological roles as electrolytes. Electrolytes are essential for maintaining fluid balance and blood pressure control in the body. They are also critical for nerve and muscle function. Sodium and potassium are the most abundant alkali metals in Earth's crust, while lithium is much less abundant due to its poor synthesis in the Big Bang and stellar nucleosynthesis.
Lithium is the lightest metallic element and has a variety of industrial applications, including heat-resistant glass and ceramics, lithium grease lubricants, and flux additives for iron, steel, and aluminium production. Lithium is also used in psychiatric medication and as an anode in lithium batteries. Sodium is commonly found in salt (sodium chloride) and is used in sodium-vapour lamps, which emit light very efficiently. Potassium was first isolated from plant ashes soaked in water and is vital for all living cells. It is primarily used in agricultural fertiliser.
The alkali metals have similar chemical properties due to their shared electron configuration. They all have their outermost electron in an s-orbital, which makes them shiny, soft, and highly reactive. This also means they can be cut easily with a knife, exposing a shiny surface that quickly tarnishes in the air.
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Lithium is the lightest metallic element
Although metals are typically characterised by their heaviness or density, some are lighter than water and even nearly as light as air. The lightest metal is a lattice of nickel-phosphorus tubes (Microlattice) developed by researchers at the University of California, Irvine. However, this is an alloy, not a pure element.
The lightest pure metal is lithium, which is less dense than water, allowing it to float. It has a density of 0.534 g/cm^3, which is nearly half that of water. Lithium is also the lightest metallic element, with an atomic number of 3 on the periodic table. Its density is comparable to that of pine wood.
Other metals that are lighter than water include potassium and sodium. These metals are also highly reactive with water. Potassium has a density of 0.862 g/cm^3, while sodium has a density of 0.971 g/cm^3.
Hydrogen is the lightest element, consisting of a single proton and sometimes a neutron (deuterium). Under certain conditions, it forms a solid metal, with a density of 0.0763 g/cm^3. However, it is not considered the lightest metal because it does not exist as a metal naturally on Earth.
Lithium is a key component in the development of clean energy and electric vehicles. It is also referred to as "white gold" due to its importance in powering a clean future.
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Potassium was first isolated in 1807
Potassium, a soft and waxy silvery-white metal, was first isolated in 1807 by Sir Humphry Davy. Davy used electrolysis to derive pure potassium from molten caustic potash (KOH), which is also known as potassium hydroxide. Potassium collected at the cathode. This process of electrolysis was the first of its kind to be used to isolate a metal. Later that same year, Davy used a similar technique to isolate sodium from a mineral derivative.
The name 'potassium' is derived from 'potash', an early method of extracting potassium salts. This process involves placing the ash of burnt wood or tree leaves in a pot, adding water, heating, and evaporating the solution. The German chemist Martin Klaproth discovered potash in the minerals leucite and lepidolite in 1797. He realised that potash was not a product of plant growth but actually contained a new element, which he proposed calling 'kali'. In 1809, Ludwig Wilhelm Gilbert suggested the name 'kalium' for Davy's 'potassium'.
Potassium is a highly reactive element and is never found in isolation in nature. It is one of the alkali metals in the periodic table. All alkali metals have a single valence electron in their outer electron shell, which can be easily removed to create an ion with a positive charge. This ion combines with anions to form salts. Potassium occurs only in ionic salts in nature. It is the eighth most abundant element on Earth and comprises about 2.1% of the Earth's crust. It is found in many minerals, such as orthoclase, which is a common constituent of granites and other igneous rocks. It is also found dissolved in seawater, which is 0.04% potassium by weight.
Potassium ions are vital for the functioning of all living cells. The transfer of potassium ions across nerve cell membranes is necessary for normal nerve transmission. Potassium deficiency or excess can result in abnormal heart rhythm and various electrocardiographic abnormalities.
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Lithium is used in psychiatric medication
Lithium is a mood-stabilizing medication used to treat psychiatric disorders. It was first used in the 19th century as a treatment for gout, as lithium can dissolve uric acid crystals in the kidneys. However, the levels of lithium required to dissolve urate in the body were toxic.
In the 1870s, Carl Lange in Denmark and William Alexander Hammond in New York City began using lithium to treat mania, based on theories linking excess uric acid to depressive and manic disorders. By the early 20th century, the use of lithium in psychiatry was largely abandoned as theories about mood disorders evolved.
In 1948, John Cade in Australia re-established the use of lithium for mental disorders on a different theoretical basis. Today, lithium is primarily used to treat bipolar disorder, and it is on the World Health Organization's List of Essential Medicines. It is also sometimes used to treat major depression, schizophrenia, disorders of impulse control, and some psychiatric disorders in children. Lithium may work by changing the levels of chemicals such as serotonin in the brain.
Lithium is typically prescribed in the form of lithium carbonate tablets, which may be slow-release. It can take several weeks or months for lithium to start working, and the dosage varies from person to person. It is important to have regular blood tests to ensure that the lithium levels in the body are within a safe range, as too much lithium can lead to serious side effects, including lithium toxicity, seizures, coma, or even death. Common side effects of lithium include nausea, diarrhea, tremor, and thirst, while long-term side effects may include weight gain and renal (kidney) toxicity.
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Sodium is the most important alkali metal industrially
Sodium (Na) is an alkali metal that is a part of Group 1 (Ia) of the periodic table. It is the most common alkali metal, constituting 2.8% of the Earth's crust. Sodium is the most important industrially out of all the alkali metals. It is inexpensive and widely available, and is used in the production of gasoline additives, polymers such as nylon and synthetic rubber, pharmaceuticals, and a number of metals such as tantalum, titanium, and silicon. It is also used as a heat exchanger in nuclear reactors and in sodium-vapour lamps.
Sodium is also used in the form of common salt (NaCl), baking soda (NaHCO3), sodium carbonate (Na2CO3), and caustic soda (NaOH). Caustic soda is the most widely used industrial alkali. It is used in petroleum refining to remove sulfuric and organic acids, and in soapmaking to react with fatty acids. It is also used in the treatment of cellulose and in the manufacture of many chemicals.
Sodium is also used in the form of sodium hypochlorite, a compound used in household chlorine bleach, as well as in industrial bleach for paper pulp and textiles, and in medicinal preparations as an antiseptic and a fungicide. Sodium compounds have been known since ancient times, with salt (sodium chloride) being an important commodity in human activities.
Sodium is also an electrolyte, and is the main electrolyte found in extracellular fluid. It is involved in fluid balance and blood pressure control, and is critical for nerve and muscle function.
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Frequently asked questions
An electrically neutral atom has a balanced number of protons and electrons, resulting in no overall charge.
A neutral lithium atom has three protons and three electrons, with the number of neutrons varying depending on the isotope. Therefore, a lithium atom with three electrons is electrically neutral.
In its natural state, a potassium atom is electrically neutral. It has a balanced number of positively charged protons and negatively charged electrons. However, when it undergoes a chemical reaction, it can gain or lose an electron, resulting in a positive or negative charge, respectively.
