State as to why sodium is found to be more useful than potassium.
Sodium ions which are present in blood plasma and in the interstitial fluid help:
(i) in the transmission of nerve signals.
(ii) in regulating the flow of water across cell membrane.
(iii) in the transport of sugars and amino acids. Thus sodium is found to be more useful than potassium (K+ ions are present in the cell fluids).
Industrial uses of sodium metal reflect its strong reducing power, about 60% of world production of sodium are used to male tetraethyl lead PbEt4 for the gasoline antiknocks.
i) It is also used in dye industry.
ii) It is also used for detecting the presence of nitrogen, Sulphur and halogen in organic compounds. It is widely used as sodium amalgam as a reductant.
