Nepedia
Back to Discover
Independent Reader
⚛️

Sodium permanganate

physical science Maturity 5-7 Next article →

Sodium permanganate is a special salt. It has the formula NaMnO4. It is related to potassium permanganate. Most people use the potassium kind instead. This is because sodium permanganate costs more to make.

This salt is very good at dissolving. It can dissolve 15 times better than the potassium salt. It dissolves in water to make deep purple liquids. When the water dries, it makes shiny purple-black crystals. These crystals are called a monohydrate. This means the salt holds onto water. It even soaks up water from the air. This is called being hygroscopic.

People use this salt for many jobs. It can clean water. It helps remove bad smells and tastes. It also helps control zebra mussels. It can clean soil and groundwater. It helps fix ground with bad chemicals. In the past, it helped a rocket move. The V-2 rocket used it with hydrogen peroxide. This helped drive a steam turbopump. It is also used to clean tiny parts in circuit boards.

166 words

Where will your curiosity go next?

Keep exploring at your chosen reading level.

More to explore

What is Nepedia?

A free, ad-free encyclopedia for children. Every article is written at five reading levels, so the same page works for a five-year-old and a fifteen-year-old — use the level switcher above to see this one change. No account needed to read.