Editing Devarda's alloy (section)

==General mechanism==
When a solution of nitrate ions is mixed with [[water|aqueous]] [[sodium hydroxide]], adding Devarda's alloy and heating the mixture gently, liberates [[ammonia]] [[gas]]. After conversion under the form of ammonia, the total nitrogen is then determined by [[Kjeldahl method]].<ref>{{Cite journal
| doi = 10.2136/sssaj1981.03615995004500050005x
| last = Liao
| first = Christina F.H.
| year = 1981
| title = Devarda's alloy method for total nitrogen determination
| journal = [[Soil Science Society of America Journal]]
| volume = 45
| issue = 5
| pages = 852–855
| bibcode = 1981SSASJ..45..852L
}}</ref>

The [[chemical reaction|reduction]] of nitrate by the Devarda's alloy is given by the following [[ionic equation|equation]]:

:3 {{chem|NO|3|-}} + 8 Al + 5 {{chem|OH|-}} + 18 {{chem|H|2|O}} → 3 {{chem|NH|3}} + 8 {{chem|[Al(OH)|4|]|-}}