Give a reason why Sodium and potassium are stored in kerosene.
Reason for Storing Sodium and Potassium in Kerosene
These elements are highly reactive in the atmosphere and can catch fire easily when coming into contact with air. To prevent this incident, we need to keep them in kerosene.
– Written By Rajnandini
Sodium and potassium are both highly reactive elements.
Kerosene protects the metals from coming into contact with moisture.
Hence, Sodium and Potassium are stored in kerosene because they react vigorously with oxygen and moisture due to their high reactivity, so keeping them in kerosene will prevent them from coming in contact with oxygen and moisture.
– Written By Tanya Jaiswal
Sodium and potassium are highly reactive elements because they belong to the first group in the periodic table, meaning they have only one valence electron in their outermost shell, and they need at least 2 electrons in their valence shell(outermost shell) to become stable. So, they react with most of their surroundings to take one electron and become stable. While kerosene is not reactive since it’s not a naturally occurring compound, potassium and sodium are stored in it.
– Written By Aanya Triv
