Potassium lid of the container, and can detonate upon opening. Because of the highly reactive nature of potassium metal, it must be handled with great care, with full skin and eye protection and preferably an explosion-resistant barrier between the user and the metal. Ingestion of large amounts of potassium compounds can lead to hyperkalemia, strongly influencing the cardiovascular system. Potassium chloride is used in the United States for lethal injection executions. Potassium Potassium is a chemical element with symbol K (from Neo-Latin "kalium") and atomic number 19. It was first isolated from potash, the ashes of plants, from which its name
Potassium studies because potassium is a macronutrient required for life. Potassium is formed in supernovae by nucleosynthesis from lighter atoms. Potassium is principally created in Type II supernovae via an explosive oxygen-burning process. is also formed in s-process nucleosynthesis and the neon burning process. Potassium is the 20th most abundant element in the solar system and the 17th most abundant element by weight in the earth. It makes up about 2.6% of the weight of the earth's crust and is the seventh most abundant element in the crust. The potassium concentration in seawater is 0.39 g/L (0.039 wt/v%), about one twenty-seventh