The metal sodium was first isolated in 1807 by the English chemist Humphry Davy at the Royal Institution in London. A few days after he had obtained potassium by passing an electric current through molten potash, he applied the same method to caustic soda and produced small globules of a soft, silvery metal that burned vigorously in air. Compounds of sodium, notably common salt and soda, had been used since ancient times, but their nature had been unknown. The symbol Na comes from natrium, the Latin form of a word used for natural soda. Sodium is highly reactive and is never found free in nature. It is used in street lamps, in chemical manufacture and as a coolant in some nuclear reactors.
Before and after
- from 21 November 1806 to 11 April 1814Rise of Continental System
- 26 December 1806Battle of Pułtusk
- from 1807 to 1815Duchy of Warsaw
- from 1807 to 1814Adriatic campaign of 1807–1814
- 1807Discovery of sodium
- 1807Discovery of potassium
- 19 January 1807Birth of Robert E. Lee
- 25 March 1807Britain abolishes the slave trade
- 4 July 1807Birth of Giuseppe Garibaldi
More in Science & technology
- 1766Discovery of hydrogen
- 1789Discovery of carbon
- 18 August 1868Discovery of helium
- 1875Discovery of gallium
- 1898Discovery of radium
- 1898Discovery of krypton
The era
This moment belongs to the Industrial era (1760 CE to 1914 CE), steam, factories and revolutions. You can also browse everything in the 19th century.