| Physical Properties:
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- grey, soft metals that can be cut with a knife.
- low densities
- good conductors of heat and electricity
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| Chemical Properties:
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- alkali metals react with water, oxygen, and other chemicals
- alkali metals are never found as free elements in nature (i.e. - sodium metal does not exist as Na metal in nature, sodium exists in compounds such as NaCl, Na2CO3, etc...)
- alkali metal compounds are water soluble and are present in seawater and salt deposits.
- all alkali metals have one valence electron which form ions with a positive (1+) charge
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| Storage:
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- since alkali metals react quickly with oxygen, they are stored under mineral oil or kerosene.
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| Abundance:
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- sodium and potassium are the most common; they are the 6th and 7th most abundant elements in the Earth's crust.
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| Common
Compounds:
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- sodium chloride, NaCl; found in seawater
- potassium chloride, KCl; used in fertilizers
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