When passed with carbon dioxide through a red-hot tube it yields carbon oxysulphide, COS (C. Winkler), and when passed over sodamide it yields ammonium thiocyanate.
The hydrogen in ammonia is capable of replacement by metals, thus magnesium burns in the gas with the formation of magnesium nitride Mg3N2, and when the gas is passed over heated sodium or potassium, sodamide, NaNH 2, and potassamide, KNH 2, are formed.
Heated in a current of carbon dioxide sodamide yields caustic soda and cyanamide, and with nitrous oxide it gives sodium azoimide; it deflagrates with lead or silver nitrate and explodes with potassium chlorate.
Sodamide was introduced by Claisen (Ber., 1905, 3 8, p. 6 93) as a condensing agent in organic chemistry, and has since been applied in many directions.
Wislicenus (Berichte, 1892, 25, p. 2084) has prepared the sodium salt by passing nitrous oxide over sodamide at high temperatures.