A SIMPLE SODIUM PRESS FOR THE SMALL LABORATORY WALTER C. BEARD, J R . Rollins College, Winter Park, Florida
THIS sodium press was designed for use in small laboratories where the demand for sodium metal in the wire form is not sufficient to warrant the purchase of a standard press. I t was made with the folloking thought in mind: simplicity of construction, in order that there might be as few parts as possible, requiring a minimum of machine work. The press consists essentially of a simple piston and cylinder arrangement with a small hole in the cylinder through which the sodium is forced in the form of a wire. Strictly speaking this is not a "press" itself but rather a device to be used in some convenient pressing mechanism such as a vise or similar machine. The metal used was scrap cold-rolled steel shafting. The original dimensions are given in the figure; however, any variation to suit material a t hand would serve as well. The piston should fit rather loosely to facilitate removal. The cylinder was bored with an ordinary machine bit and then dressed out with a boring bar; then the piston was made to fit. The size of the extrusion hole depends upon the size of wire desired. Too small a hole is not desirable. This press will contain four grams of sodium giving
223 centimeters of wire a t this particular bore. The press should be operated in such a manner that the extrusion hole is away from the operator to prevent the
danger of the sodium's being "shot" into the, face. As the wire emerges it should be caught in kerosene or paraffin oil.
