By Anthony J Raiano Na from Latin natrium. Heated sodium is spontaneously flammable in air. Sodium, reduced to fine state of subdivision, when mixed with lead oxide ignites spontaneously. Liquid sodium is sometimes used to cool nuclear reactors.
Sodium chloride is common table salt which is important in animal nutrition.
In nature sodium is fount in soda niter, cryolite, amphibole and zeolite. It is the most abundant of the alkali metals. It never exists in nature, but is prepared by electrolysis of absolutely dry fused sodium chloride.