# What the hell is "Potash?"
**URL:** https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-the-hell-is-potash/1013436
**Category:** Factual Questions
**Created:** [January 26, 2025, 4:25pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-the-hell-is-potash/1013436 "2025-01-26T16:25:52Z")
**Posts on this page:** 20
**Page:** 4
### Author:  [@Orville\_mogul](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Orville_mogul)
#### Post date: [January 27, 2025, 6:50pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-the-hell-is-potash/1013436/61 "2025-01-27T18:50:29Z")
My peeve is that I regularly donate, and still get the reminders. Even after I click the box that says I already donated, I get nagged 6 hours later.
If you are interested in a well-written and interesting account of the history of industrial fertiliser, I suggest this:
> **[The Alchemy of Air: A Jewish Genius, a Doomed Tycoon, and the Scientific...](https://www.amazon.com/Alchemy-Air-Jewish-Scientific-Discovery/dp/0307351793)**
>
> The Alchemy of Air: A Jewish Genius, a Doomed Tycoon, and the Scientific Discovery That Fed the World but Fueled the Rise of Hitler \[Hager, Thomas\] on Amazon.com. \*FREE\* shipping on qualifying offers. The Alchemy of Air: A Jewish Genius, a Doomed...
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### Author:  [@RickJay](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/RickJay)
#### Post date: [January 27, 2025, 6:53pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-the-hell-is-potash/1013436/62 "2025-01-27T18:53:44Z")
> [@FrenchDunadan](#):
>
> Kalium is German, given by its discoverer, from the Arabic named alkali, from Arabic Al-Qayla which means “plant ashes”.
It’s an objectively better word than “potassium.” Oh well. We also have four elements named after the same stupid town. Chemists suck at naming things.
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### Author:  [@markn\_1](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/markn_1)
#### Post date: [January 27, 2025, 7:07pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-the-hell-is-potash/1013436/63 "2025-01-27T19:07:43Z")
Ytterby must have a good publicist.
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### Author:  [@LSLGuy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/LSLGuy)
#### Post date: [January 27, 2025, 7:18pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-the-hell-is-potash/1013436/64 "2025-01-27T19:18:18Z")
Or a lot of great, albeit unimaginative, chemists.
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### Author:  [@Measure\_for\_Measure](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Measure_for_Measure)
#### Post date: [January 27, 2025, 7:24pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-the-hell-is-potash/1013436/65 "2025-01-27T19:24:51Z")
> [@RickJay](#):
>
> The Great Depression wasn’t the end of the world either. Hope you’re ready for another one.
That was my underlying conceptual framework.
In practice, Trump will issue waivers for vital products, like he did last time. Which is why a trade war is attractive to him: he gets to award public friends, punish public enemies, and encourage the powerful to keep their heads down. Trump does what he does very openly.
Efficient economies organize production according to minimizing costs, not sucking up to whoever is in power in the moment. This sort of thing can do real damage to economic prospects, albeit under a fair amount of statistical noise.
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### Author:  [@LSLGuy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/LSLGuy)
#### Post date: [January 27, 2025, 7:31pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-the-hell-is-potash/1013436/66 "2025-01-27T19:31:00Z")
> [@Measure\_for\_Measure](#):
>
> Efficient economies organize production according to minimizing costs, not sucking up to whoever is in power in the moment. This sort of thing can do real damage to economic prospects, albeit under a fair amount of statistical noise.
Assuming his term of office ends in about 4 years via whatever mechanism, it’s a good bet much of the damage will not be fully manifested for another 5-10 years after then, but it will easily take 50 years after that to repair.
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### Author:  [@xtenkfarpl](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/xtenkfarpl)
#### Post date: [January 27, 2025, 7:38pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-the-hell-is-potash/1013436/67 "2025-01-27T19:38:09Z")
> [@Northern\_Piper](#):
>
> Potash is a mineral, potassium chloride (KCl), that is extremely important for artificial fertilisers.
It may also refer to potassium carbonate or bicarbonate?
Which were the original sources, extracted from wood ash long ago, as you say.
Don’t know if there is an ‘official’ definition?
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### Author:  [@gnoitall](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/gnoitall)
#### Post date: [January 27, 2025, 7:55pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-the-hell-is-potash/1013436/68 "2025-01-27T19:55:06Z")
Wikipedia lists a variety of potassium compounds as “potash”, depending on their composition. Other than the common names giving a hint to their usage (such as potassium hydroxide being “potash lye”), they’re apparently all “potash” and you know which compound you need according to usage.
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### Author:  [@wolfpup](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/wolfpup)
#### Post date: [January 27, 2025, 8:20pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-the-hell-is-potash/1013436/69 "2025-01-27T20:20:12Z")
> [@LSLGuy](#):
>
> I agree about the timing. “Potassium” the element is named in relation to, and sorta for, the older known substance potash.
>
> My point is that the chemical substance potassium and the chemical substance potash are different. The words are not synonyms, and the substances are not the same, despite their each having a parent-child relationship to the other.
Technically correct, although one might quibble that the common use of the word “potassium” in the N-P-K trilogy is not altogether wrong as it’s the potassium ion of the KCl salt that makes it an important component of fertilizer. It’s similar to how the health industry refers to table salt as “sodium” when they tell you not to eat too much of it – they don’t mean the silvery metal, which is so highly reactive that it’s downright dangerous. But they do mean the sodium ions from NaCl which are essential to life and support the function of cells, nerves, and muscles.
Speaking of table salt, one could say that potash also has dietary and medical applications, wherein it does business under the name “potassium chloride”. KCl has a salty taste and is used as a salt substitute in sodium-restricted diets, and also for the treatment of potassium deficiency (hypokalemia). Of course we’re talking about the pure salt here, whereas I imagine mined potash is pretty rough stuff in terms of impurities.
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### Author:  [@Machine\_Elf](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Machine_Elf)
#### Post date: [January 27, 2025, 8:24pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-the-hell-is-potash/1013436/70 "2025-01-27T20:24:18Z")
> [@RickJay](#):
>
> Chemists suck at naming things.
I happen to like tungsten (Swedish for “heavy stone”; tungsten is uncommonly dense).
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### Author:  [@RickJay](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/RickJay)
#### Post date: [January 27, 2025, 10:34pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-the-hell-is-potash/1013436/71 "2025-01-27T22:34:48Z")
> [@Machine\_Elf](#):
>
> I happen to like tungsten (Swedish for “heavy stone”; tungsten is uncommonly dense).
“Wolfram” was cool too though.
I have a client that makes things out of lead and tungsten. Man, you don’t know how dense until you try to pick it up.
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### Author:  [@JohnGalt](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/JohnGalt)
#### Post date: [January 27, 2025, 10:44pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-the-hell-is-potash/1013436/72 "2025-01-27T22:44:43Z")
> [@RickJay](#):
>
> I have a client that makes things out of lead and tungsten. Man, you don’t know how dense until you try to pick it up
I have a pattern coin made out of tungsten; it IS heavy. Looking up its density, tungsten is 19.3 g per cubic cm, while gold is 19.32 and silver is 10.49. Plus it’s really dark and hard to make an impression on.
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### Author:  [@Chronos](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Chronos)
#### Post date: [January 27, 2025, 10:52pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-the-hell-is-potash/1013436/73 "2025-01-27T22:52:50Z")
> [@wolfpup](#):
>
> Speaking of table salt, one could say that potash also has dietary and medical applications, wherein it does business under the name “potassium chloride”. KCl has a salty taste and is used as a salt substitute in sodium-restricted diets, and also for the treatment of potassium deficiency (hypokalemia).
Of course, it’s contraindicated for people with heart conditions, as it can be dangerous to them… that being, of course, the primary reason why one would be on a reduced sodium diet to begin with.
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### Author:  [@DesertDog](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/DesertDog)
#### Post date: [January 28, 2025, 1:34am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-the-hell-is-potash/1013436/74 "2025-01-28T01:34:13Z")
> [@wolfpup](#):
>
> It’s similar to how the health industry refers to table salt as “sodium” when they tell you not to eat too much of it – they don’t mean the silvery metal, which is so highly reactive that it’s downright dangerous.
Potassium is pretty reactive too.
[ ](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Jy1DC6Euqj4)
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### Author:  [@DSeid](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/DSeid)
#### Post date: [January 28, 2025, 3:21am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-the-hell-is-potash/1013436/75 "2025-01-28T03:21:28Z")
> [@Chronos](#):
>
> Of course, it’s contraindicated for people with heart conditions
Not for heart conditions as a general class. For some with congestive heart failure. And with the use of some specific medications.
Other heart conditions I do not think have any specific potassium restrictions and increased potassium with lowered NaCl intake, especially relative to the standard American diet, is a typical recommendation for hypertension. Which is often comorbid with many forms of heart disease. Lowers stroke risk. Best to get the increased potassium in vegetables and fruits of course!
About its use as a salt substitute to help with hypertension:
[https://www.ahajournals.org/doi/10.1161/HYPERTENSIONAHA.119.13241](https://www.ahajournals.org/doi/10.1161/HYPERTENSIONAHA.119.13241)
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### Author:  [@Napier](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Napier)
#### Post date: [January 28, 2025, 2:54pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-the-hell-is-potash/1013436/76 "2025-01-28T14:54:35Z")
> [@wolfpup](#):
>
> Technically correct, although one might quibble that the common use of the word “potassium” in the N-P-K trilogy is not altogether wrong as it’s the potassium ion of the KCl salt that makes it an important component of fertilizer.
Hear, hear! Potassium compounds are often significant because of the potassium in them. There are a few elements that are like this. In speech, the name of the important element and the name of the compound may be somewhat interchangeable, and little understanding is lost.
> [@RickJay](#):
>
> tungsten. Man, you don’t know how dense until you try to pick it up.
This can be pretty amazing. I had a part made once of tungsten, a half inch thick plate about 6 by 3 inches. When it’s laying there on the table, and you go to pick it up, you might interpret it as being glued or bolted down. You kind of have to pry hard to get it to stand up 3 inches tall, and then change your grip to get it up.
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### Author:  [@Machine\_Elf](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Machine_Elf)
#### Post date: [January 28, 2025, 3:46pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-the-hell-is-potash/1013436/77 "2025-01-28T15:46:06Z")
> [@Napier](#):
>
> This can be pretty amazing. I had a part made once of tungsten, a half inch thick plate about 6 by 3 inches. When it’s laying there on the table, and you go to pick it up, you might interpret it as being glued or bolted down. You kind of have to pry hard to get it to stand up 3 inches tall, and then change your grip to get it up.
You can buy tungsten cubes on Amazon, suitable for display. Available in various sizes, from 1" for about a hundred bucks up to 3" for a couple thousand bucks. The 1" cube weighs about 10 ounces, and the 3" cube weighs about 17 pounds.
[https://www.amazon.com/s?k=tungsten+cube&crid=3F4DEX6YDXFQV&sprefix=tungsten+cube%2Caps%2C1113&ref=nb\_sb\_noss\_1](https://www.amazon.com/s?k=tungsten+cube&crid=3F4DEX6YDXFQV&sprefix=tungsten+cube%2Caps%2C1113&ref=nb_sb_noss_1)
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### Author:  [@DSeid](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/DSeid)
#### Post date: [January 28, 2025, 4:08pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-the-hell-is-potash/1013436/78 "2025-01-28T16:08:43Z")
Helluva paperweight.
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### Author:  [@LSLGuy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/LSLGuy)
#### Post date: [January 28, 2025, 4:16pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-the-hell-is-potash/1013436/79 "2025-01-28T16:16:32Z")
Wow, that’s a fun cite.
I like the 1.5" cube weighing a kilogram for $200. I especially like the mixed units. Might need to have one of those.
The other fun item was that your search for “tungsten cube” that brings up an aluminum sphere sold by Midwest Tungsten Service. “For all your tungsten repair needs”. 🙂
So much confusion in a small package.
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### Author:  [@jnglmassiv](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/jnglmassiv)
#### Post date: [January 28, 2025, 4:21pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-the-hell-is-potash/1013436/80 "2025-01-28T16:21:11Z")
Potash was a word I encountered sometimes while reading as a kid but didn’t hear pronounced for many years. Therefore, I had it wrong in my head for a long time and I still catch myself on the long O: poe’-tash
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