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| Alkaline | |
|---|---|
| Name | Alkaline |
| Formula | Variable |
| Molar mass | Variable |
| Appearance | Variable |
| Density | Variable |
| Melting point | Variable |
| Boiling point | Variable |
| Solubility | Variable |
Alkaline is a term used in chemistry to describe substances or conditions associated with bases and higher pH, encompassing a range of basic oxides, hydroxides, carbonates, and other anions. It appears across contexts from inorganic chemistry and industrial processes to aqueous geochemistry, soil science, physiology, and environmental regulation. The concept intersects with many historical figures, institutions, and technical developments that shaped modern understanding and applications.
Alkaline substances are characterized by their ability to accept protons or donate electron pairs, often producing hydroxide ions in aqueous solution; this property links to classical acid–base theories developed by Svante Arrhenius, Johannes Nicolaus Brønsted, Martin Lowry, Gilbert N. Lewis and practical frameworks used at Royal Society, American Chemical Society, Max Planck Society, Deutsches Elektronen-Synchrotron, and Royal Institution. Common alkaline reagents include metal hydroxides such as sodium hydroxide, potassium hydroxide, calcium hydroxide and magnesium hydroxide, associated with researchers at University of Cambridge, Massachusetts Institute of Technology, University of Oxford, Princeton University, and Harvard University. Alkalinity correlates with properties described in textbooks by authors affiliated with Cold Spring Harbor Laboratory, Johns Hopkins University, Stanford University, University of California, Berkeley, and Imperial College London. Behavior of alkaline solutions is modeled using thermodynamic data from National Institute of Standards and Technology, International Union of Pure and Applied Chemistry, European Chemical Society and computational methods pioneered at Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory, Argonne National Laboratory, and Los Alamos National Laboratory.
The word derives from Arabic roots transmitted through medieval scholars connected to House of Wisdom, Al-Andalus, Ibn Sina, and later European chemists in institutions such as University of Bologna, University of Padua, Sorbonne, University of Edinburgh, and University of Leiden. Early isolation and commercial production of caustic alkalis involved figures associated with Guilds of London, Hanoverian monarchy, Dutch East India Company, and operations in ports like Rothenburg ob der Tauber, Le Havre, Hamburg, Lisbon, and Amsterdam. Advances in alkali manufacturing link to industrialists and inventors associated with James Watt, Alessandro Volta, Humphry Davy, Michael Faraday, Carl Wilhelm Scheele, Joseph Priestley, Justus von Liebig, Friedrich Wöhler, and companies including Dow Chemical Company, BASF, Dupont, Solvay, Ineos, and AkzoNobel.
Alkaline minerals and waters occur in geological settings studied by teams at United States Geological Survey, Geological Survey of Canada, British Geological Survey, Max Planck Institute for Chemistry, Scripps Institution of Oceanography, Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution, and Lamont–Doherty Earth Observatory. Natural sources include alkali-rich minerals such as feldspars and evaporite deposits like trona and natron found near Great Salt Lake, Dead Sea, Lake Magadi, Lake Natron, and regions explored by Charles Darwin, Alexander von Humboldt, Alfred Wegener, and Richard Francis Burton. Hydrothermal vents documented by expeditions led from National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, NOAA Ship Okeanos Explorer, and institutions like Scripps produce alkaline fluids studied alongside work by Jacques Piccard, Don Walsh, Robert Ballard, Sylvia Earle, and James Cameron.
Industrial alkali production underpins processes in chemical companies and plants operated by Dow Chemical Company, BASF, Solvay, DuPont, Ineos, LyondellBasell, Evonik Industries, AkzoNobel, and state entities such as Saudi Aramco and CNPC. Major technologies include the chloralkali process, chlor-alkali electrolysis developed with input from researchers with ties to Siemens, Thyssenkrupp, General Electric, Westinghouse Electric Company, and catalysts from Johnson Matthey. Applications span paper and pulp industries associated with International Paper, Stora Enso, UPM-Kymmene; water treatment practiced by Veolia, Suez, Xylem; textile manufacturing connected to Arvind Limited and Toray Industries; and battery and energy sectors involving Panasonic, LG Chem, Tesla, Inc., and CATL. Alkali reagents are critical in pharmaceuticals produced by firms such as Pfizer, Roche, Novartis, GlaxoSmithKline, and in food processing regulated by Food and Agriculture Organization, World Health Organization, United States Food and Drug Administration, and European Food Safety Authority.
Alkaline conditions affect ecosystems studied by researchers at Smithsonian Institution, Conservation International, World Wildlife Fund, International Union for Conservation of Nature, The Nature Conservancy, and universities including Yale University, Columbia University, University of Chicago, University of Michigan, and University of Washington. High-alkalinity waters influence species distributions in lakes studied by Rachel Carson-inspired ecologists and contemporary teams following protocols from United Nations Environment Programme and Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change. Industrial alkaline effluents and spills have been the subject of legal cases involving firms like BP, ExxonMobil, Shell, Chevron and regulatory actions by Environmental Protection Agency, European Commission, DEFRA, and Ministry of Environment, Forest and Climate Change (India). Remediation methods draw on research by EPA, National Renewable Energy Laboratory, Oak Ridge National Laboratory, and NGOs including Greenpeace and Friends of the Earth.
Measurement of alkaline conditions employs pH meters and titrations standardized by International Organization for Standardization, American Public Health Association, United States Geological Survey, National Institute of Standards and Technology, and analytical labs at Eurofins Scientific, SGS S.A., Bureau Veritas. Indicators and buffers trace to protocols developed in laboratories at Harvard, MIT, ETH Zurich, University of California, Davis, and instruments manufactured by Hanna Instruments, Mettler-Toledo, Thermo Fisher Scientific, Agilent Technologies, and Metrohm. Alkalinity titration methods reference carbonate chemistry formalized by Henderson, Robert Hooke-era observational lineage, and modern carbonate system models used by Intergovernmental Oceanographic Commission and International Geosphere–Biosphere Programme.