KNO2
Potassium nitrite · Nitrous acid potassium salt
Potassium nitrite is a stable, semiconducting inorganic salt widely used as a chemical reagent and preservative.
About Potassium nitrite
Potassium nitrite is a stable inorganic compound that exists as a semiconducting material. Its position on the thermodynamic convex hull highlights its robust nature, making it a reliable chemical intermediate in various synthetic pathways.
Due to its chemical properties, this compound is frequently utilized in specialized industrial processes. Its electronic character and structural stability across multiple reported configurations underscore its importance as a consistent reagent in chemical manufacturing.
Key Properties
Cross-validated computational properties for Potassium nitrite, aggregated across 5 databases.
Band GapEnergy needed to move an electron from the valence band to the conduction band. Lower or zero values tend to behave more metallic; larger gaps are more insulating or semiconducting.
Energy Above HullThermodynamic distance from the most stable set of competing phases. 0 eV/atom is on the convex hull; small positive values may still be experimentally accessible.
StabilityA plain-language summary of the best reported energy-above-hull result. It reflects whether the lowest-energy structure is on, near, or far from the stability hull.
StructuresCount of reported calculated crystal structures for this formula, including alternate polymorphs, source databases, and observed space groups.
Cross-Source DFT Agreement
How well independent DFT databases agree on the thermodynamics of KNO2. Tight agreement means computed properties can be trusted without re-running calculations.
Agreement ScoreA normalized confidence score summarizing how closely independent DFT databases agree. Higher scores mean tighter cross-source agreement.
Hull SpreadDifference between the highest and lowest energy-above-hull values reported by comparable sources. Smaller spread means less thermodynamic disagreement.
Sources ComparedNumber and names of computational sources with comparable entries for this formula.
Space Group ConsensusWhether independent sources predict the same crystal symmetry for the lowest-energy structure.
Reported Structures
Lowest-energy structures reported for KNO2, ranked by energy above hull.
| Space GroupSymmetry classification of the crystal arrangement. The number is the international space-group index. | Crystal SystemBroad lattice family, such as cubic, tetragonal, monoclinic, or triclinic, derived from unit-cell symmetry. | Band Gap (eV)Electronic gap calculated for this specific reported structure, measured in electronvolts. | E above hull (eV/atom)Thermodynamic distance from the convex hull for this structure, normalized per atom. Lower is generally more stable. | E/atom (eV)Computed total energy normalized per atom. Use energy above hull, not this value alone, when comparing stability. | Density (g/cm³)Mass per relaxed crystal volume, reported in grams per cubic centimeter. |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| P21/c (No. 14) | monoclinic | 2.55 | 0.0000 | -6.129 | 2.01 |
| — | — | 2.42 | 0.0000 | -1.183 | — |
| P21/c (No. 14) | monoclinic | 2.32 | 0.0000 | -1.023 | — |
| Cm (No. 8) | monoclinic | 2.50 | 0.0004 | -6.128 | 1.96 |
| Imm2 (No. 44) | orthorhombic | 2.50 | 0.0006 | -6.128 | 1.92 |
| Cm (No. 8) | monoclinic | 2.48 | 0.0166 | -6.112 | 1.95 |
| Cm (No. 8) | monoclinic | 2.52 | 0.0172 | -1.006 | — |
| Cm (No. 8) | monoclinic | 2.52 | 0.0175 | -1.005 | — |
| Imm2 (No. 44) | orthorhombic | 2.45 | 0.0186 | -1.004 | — |
| — | — | 2.27 | 0.0240 | -1.159 | — |
| — | — | 0.00 | 0.0315 | -1.152 | — |
| — | — | 2.52 | 0.0423 | -1.141 | — |
Applications
Where Potassium nitrite is used.
Frequently Asked Questions
Common questions about Potassium nitrite, answered from cross-validated data.
What is KNO2?
Potassium nitrite is a stable, semiconducting inorganic salt widely used as a chemical reagent and preservative.
What is KNO2 used for?
What is the band gap of KNO2?
Is KNO2 a metal, semiconductor, or insulator?
Is KNO2 thermodynamically stable?
What is the crystal structure of KNO2?
What is the density of KNO2?
How many polymorphs of KNO2 are known?
What elements does KNO2 contain?
Where does the data for KNO2 come from?
How It Compares
As a primary inorganic nitrite, this compound serves as a fundamental reference point for understanding the stability and reactivity of alkali metal nitrogen-oxygen salts.
Data sources & attribution
- materials_project — Data from the Materials Project (materialsproject.org). Cite: Jain et al., APL Materials 1, 011002 (2013). (CC-BY-4.0)
- oqmd — Data from the OQMD (oqmd.org). Cite: Saal et al., JOM 65, 1501 (2013); Kirklin et al., npj Comp. Mater. 1, 15010 (2015). (CC-BY-4.0)
- jarvis — Data from JARVIS (jarvis.nist.gov), NIST. Cite: Choudhary et al., npj Comp. Mater. 6, 173 (2020). (LicenseRef-US-Gov-PD)
- mpaloe — Data from MP-ALOE. Cite: Kuner et al., npj Comput. Mater. (2025), doi:10.1038/s41524-025-01834-9.
- cod — Data from the Crystallography Open Database (crystallography.net/cod/). Cite: Grazulis et al., J. Appl. Cryst. 42, 726 (2009). (CC0-1.0)
Analyze KNO2 in the Lattice Graph platform
Polymorph comparison, confidence scoring, supply-chain risk, and patent monitoring — across 85 source databases.
Explore the Platform →