Sodium formate, HCOONa, is the sodium salt of formic acid,
HCOOH. It usually appears as a white deliquescent powder.
Uses: Sodium formate is used in several fabric dyeing and
printing processes. It is also used as a buffering agent
for strong mineral acids to increase their pH.
Preparation: Sodium formate can be prepared in the
laboratory by neutralizing formic acid with sodium
carbonate. It can also be obtained by reacting chloroform
with an alcoholic solution of sodium hydroxide.
The latter method is generally preferred to the former
because the low aqueous solubility of CHCl3 makes it easier
to separate out from the sodium formate solution, by
fractional crystallization, than the soluble NaCl would be.
Commercially sodium formate is produced by absorbing carbon
monoxide under pressure in solid sodium hydroxide at 160° C
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