POTASH AND EXTRACTION
Potash includes various salts that contain potassium, the element, in its water-soluble form. It’s named after “pot ash”, a nod to an old way of making it, which involved burning wood ashes in pots before adding water to form lye. Lye, when evaporated, gave potash.
HOW IS IT EXTRACTED NOWADAYS?
Nowadays we get potash from underground shaft mining, which involve underground tunnels, or from salt lakes (which were part of very old dried up oceans)
WHAT IS IT USED FOR?
While making glass, you require lots of silica dioxide (SiO2), which has a very high melting point. Adding potash reduces its melting point, which strengthens the glass.
Adding manure to a potash solution gives potassium nitrate, an integral component of fireworks. Potash can also be obtained from rocks, and is used in fertilizers as well.
