Amalgam (chemistry) inorganic chemistry. With water, it decomposes into concentrated sodium hydroxide solution, hydrogen and mercury, which can then return to the chloralkali process anew. If absolutely water-free alcohol is used instead of water, an alkoxide of sodium is produced instead of the alkali solution. Aluminium can form an amalgam through a reaction with mercury. Aluminium amalgam may be prepared by either grinding aluminium pellets or wire in mercury, or by allowing aluminium wire or foil to react with a solution of mercuric chloride. This amalgam is used as a reagent to reduce compounds, such as the reduction of imines to amines.
Dental amalgam controversy the use of dental amalgam, but allows phasing down amalgam use over a time period appropriate to domestic needs, an approach advocated by the World Health Organization (WHO). FDI World Dental Federation recognizes the safety and effectiveness of amalgam restorations. FDI is a federation of approximately 200 national dental associations and dental specialist groups representing over 1.5 million dentists. In collaboration with the WHO, they have produced an FDI position statement and WHO consensus statement on dental amalgam. Their position regarding the safety of dental amalgam is that, aside from rare allergic reactions and local side effects, "the small amount