History
The hydrate of sodium sulfate is known as Glauber's Salt after the Dutch/Gemist and apothecary Johann Rudolf Glauber (1604–1670), who discovered it in 1625 in Austrian spring water. He named it sal mirabilis (miraculous salt), because of its medicinal properties: the crystals were used as a general purpose laxative, until more sophisticated alternatives came about in the 1900s.
In the 18th century, Glauber's salt began to be used as a raw material for the industrial production of soda ash (sodium carbonate), by reaction with potash (potassium carbonate). Demand for soda ash increased and supply of sodium sulfate had to increase in line. Therefore, in the nineteenth century, the large scale Leblanc process, producing synthetic sodium sulfate as a key intermediate, became the principal method of soda ash production.
Read more about this topic: Sodium Sulfate
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