Great 👍 — next is **Potassium (K, atomic number 19).**
Potassium is highly reactive and **never occurs free in nature**. It’s abundant in **potash minerals** (like sylvite, KCl; carnallite, KMgCl₃·6H₂O) and in brines. Industrial extraction methods focus on **mining, chemical reduction, and electrolysis**.
Here are the **20 most common methods of extracting Potassium**:
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# **20 Most Common Methods of Extracting Potassium**
### **A. Industrial Mining of Potash Minerals**
1. **Mining of Sylvite (KCl) Deposits** – The most common source; mined via underground or solution mining.
2. **Mining of Carnallite (KMgCl₃·6H₂O) Deposits** – Extracted as a solid or via brine solution.
3. **Mining of Langbeinite (K₂Mg₂(SO₄)₃) Deposits** – Less common, extracted for K fertilizer use.
4. **Solution Mining of Potash Deposits** – Hot water dissolves salts, pumped to surface, then evaporated.
5. **Solar Evaporation of Brines** – Concentrates potassium salts from natural brine lakes.
6. **Underground Brine Pumping** – Extracts KCl-rich brines for industrial processing.
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### **B. Electrolytic and Thermal Reduction Methods**
7. **Electrolysis of Molten Potassium Chloride (KCl)** – Produces metallic potassium and chlorine gas; similar to Downs cell.
8. **Electrolysis of KCl–CaCl₂ Molten Mixtures** – Lowers melting point, reduces energy costs.
9. **Thermal Reduction of KCl with Sodium** – Laboratory method; sodium displaces potassium.
10. **Thermal Reduction of KCl with Magnesium** – Lab-scale displacement reaction.
11. **Thermal Reduction of K₂CO₃ with Carbon** – Produces potassium vapor at high temperature.
12. **Calciothermic Reduction of Potassium Salts** – Rare lab or research method.
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### **C. Chemical & Byproduct Extraction**
13. **Displacement of K from K₂O or KOH with Sodium** – Lab-scale method.
14. **Reaction of K₂CO₃ with Carbon + CaO (Historic)** – Early experimental method.
15. **Extraction from Potash Fertilizer Byproducts** – Recycling K from K-containing chemical streams.
16. **Recovery from Seawater Potassium (via Precipitation)** – Rare industrial method using chemical precipitation.
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### **D. Specialized / Experimental Methods**
17. **Electrolysis of KOH in Molten Form** – Lab-scale potassium production.
18. **High-Temperature Vapor Phase Reduction** – Research method using KCl vapor with reductants.
19. **Plasma-Assisted Reduction of Potassium Salts** – Experimental method.
20. **Electrochemical Reduction in Ionic Liquids** – Modern lab research for safer low-temperature potassium extraction.
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✅ **Summary:**
* **Main industrial sources today:** Sylvite and carnallite mining, solution mining, and solar evaporation of brines.
* **Metallic potassium production:** Molten KCl electrolysis (Downs-type cells).
* **Historic / lab methods:** Reduction of K salts with sodium, magnesium, or calcium.
* **Natural occurrence:** Always in compounds; never free due to extreme reactivity.
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Next in periodic order is **Calcium (Ca, atomic number 20).**
Do you want me to continue with **20 extraction methods for Calcium**?
