Sodium sulfide

The Uses of Sodium sulfide

These yellow flakes were made by fusing sodium carbonate with sulfur. Soluble in water but less so in alcohol, sodium sulfide was lovingly called “stink” by those who used it for toning prints or intensifying negatives because of its sulfurous smell.

The Uses of Sodium sulfide

To a solution of the SM (1 g, 10.3 mmol) in 3:1 EtOH/H2O (26 mL) was added Na2S (1.2 g, 15.4 mmol). The reaction mixture was stirred at RT for 12 h. After completion of the reaction, solvent was removed in vacuo. The resulting residue was diluted with H2O and extracted with EtOAc. The org layer was dried (Na2SO4) and concentrated. The resulting material was purified by silica gel column chromatography to provide the product as a brown solid. [200 mg, 24%]

Background

Sodium sulfide is a chemical compound with a chemical formula Na2S. Sodium sulfide is used in the pulp and paper industry, water treatment, textile industry, and various chemical manufacturing processes including the production of rubber chemicals, sulfur dyes and oil recovery. Along with its hydrate form, sodium sulfide releases hydrogen sulfide (H2S) when in contact with moist air. H2S is an endogenous gaseous transmitter that exhibits anti-inflammatory and antiapoptotic properties. Along with other sulfides, the anti-inflammatory and tissue-protective effects of sodium sulfide have been investigated in models of inflammation and oxidative stress. Interestingly, sodium sulfide was shown to have some cardioprotective role against cardiac ischemia or reperfusion injury, as well as protect lungs against ventilator-induced lung injury . However the clinical significance and mechanism of action of sodium sulfide and replication of results across other studies are not yet fully determined.

Metabolism

Not Available