NaNO3
Sodium nitrate · Chile saltpeter, Soda niter
Sodium nitrate is a white, water-soluble solid that occurs naturally as mineral deposits. It is widely utilized as a chemical precursor in the production of fertilizers, glass, and various industrial explosives.
NNaO
Overview
Key Properties
Cross-validated computational properties for Sodium nitrate, aggregated across 3 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.
2.57–3.57 eV
Range across DFT structures
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.
0.000 eV/atom
Best (lowest) across sources
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.
On hull (stable)
2 DFT sources
StructuresCount of reported calculated crystal structures for this formula, including alternate polymorphs, source databases, and observed space groups.
17
3 databases, 3 space groups
Crystallography
Reported Structures
Lowest-energy structures reported for NaNO3, 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. |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| P1 (No. 1) | triclinic | 3.01 | 0.0000 | -7.117 | 2.35 |
| R-3c (No. 167) | trigonal | 2.95 | 0.0000 | -6.268 | 2.35 |
| R-3c (No. 167) | trigonal | 3.57 | 0.0012 | -7.115 | 2.35 |
| P1 (No. 1) | triclinic | 2.57 | 0.0094 | -6.259 | 2.12 |
| R32 (No. 155) | trigonal | 2.86 | 0.0111 | -6.257 | 2.27 |
| P1 (No. 1) | triclinic | 2.77 | 0.0129 | -6.255 | 2.10 |
| R-3c (No. 167) | Trigonal | — | — | — | 2.15 |
| R32 (No. 155) | — | — | — | — | — |
| R-3c (No. 167) | Trigonal | — | — | — | 2.12 |
| R32 (No. 155) | Trigonal | — | — | — | 2.21 |
| R-3c (No. 167) | Trigonal | — | — | — | 2.22 |
| R32 (No. 155) | Trigonal | — | — | — | 2.14 |
Uses
Applications
Where Sodium nitrate is used.
Fertilizer productionGlass manufacturingHeat transfer fluidsFood preservationPyrotechnics
Reference
Frequently Asked Questions
Common questions about Sodium nitrate, answered from cross-validated data.
What is NaNO3?
Sodium nitrate is a white, water-soluble solid that occurs naturally as mineral deposits. It is widely utilized as a chemical precursor in the production of fertilizers, glass, and various industrial explosives.
More questions
What is NaNO3 used for?
Sodium nitrate (NaNO3) is used in fertilizer production, glass manufacturing, heat transfer fluids, food preservation, and pyrotechnics.
What is the band gap of NaNO3?
Sodium nitrate (NaNO3) has a DFT-computed band gap of 2.57–3.57 eV across 17 reported structures.
Is NaNO3 a metal, semiconductor, or insulator?
With a wide band gap up to 3.57 eV it is an insulator / wide-band-gap material.
Is NaNO3 thermodynamically stable?
Yes — Sodium nitrate (NaNO3) sits on the convex hull (energy above hull 0 eV/atom), i.e. on hull (stable).
What is the crystal structure of NaNO3?
The lowest-energy reported polymorph of Sodium nitrate (NaNO3) is triclinic symmetry, space group P1 (No. 1).
What is the density of NaNO3?
The computed density of the ground-state structure of Sodium nitrate (NaNO3) is 2.35 g/cm³.
How many polymorphs of NaNO3 are known?
17 structures of NaNO3 are reported across 3 databases, spanning 3 distinct space groups.
What elements does NaNO3 contain?
Sodium nitrate (NaNO3) contains N, Na, and O (3 elements).
Where does the data for NaNO3 come from?
NaNO3 data is cross-referenced from materials_project, mpaloe, jarvis.
Data sources & attribution
- materials_project — Data from the Materials Project. Cite: Jain et al., APL Materials 1, 011002 (2013).
- mpaloe — Data from mpaloe.
- jarvis — Data from JARVIS (NIST). Cite: Choudhary et al., npj Comp. Mater. 6, 173 (2020).
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