Salts are ionic compounds that result from the neutralization reaction of an acid and a base. They are composed of related numbers of cations (positively charged ions) and anions (negative ions) so that the product is electrically neutral (without a net charge).

There are several varieties of Salts.

Acidic salt: salts that hydrolyze to produce hydronium ions in water are acid salts.

Basic Salt: Salts that hydrolyze to produce hydroxide ions when dissolved in water are basic salts.

Neutral Salt: Salts that hydrolyze to produce hydronium ions in water are acid salts.

Examples of Salts:

• Sodium sulfate is a normal salt whereas Sodium bisulfate is an acid salt.
• Sodium sulfate is mainly used for the manufacture of detergents and in the Kraft process of paper pulping. Sodium sulfate is chemically very stable–it does not decompose, even if heated, and it does not react with oxidizing or reducing agents at normal temperatures. At high temperatures, it can be reduced to sodium sulfide.
• Sodium bisulfate is used for technical grade applications–in metal finishing, cleaning products and to lower the pH of water for effective chlorination, including swimming pools.
• Sodium sulfide is soluble in water whereas Copper carbonate, Lead chloride and Barium sulfate are insoluble in water.
• Sodium carbonate is used in the manufacture of detergents and glass.
• Zinc sulfide is insoluble in water whereas Potassium phosphate, Ammonium carbonate and Barium chloride are soluble in water.
• Ammonium nitrate is used in the manufacture of fertilizers. Ammonium nitrate is an important fertilizer with the NPK designation 34–0–0 (34% nitrogen). It is less concentrated than urea (45–0–0) giving ammonium nitrate a slight transportation disadvantage.

Ammonium nitrate's advantage over urea is that it is more stable and does not lose nitrogen to the atmosphere. During warm weather urea should only be applied before imminent rain in order to minimize nitrogen loss.

As early as three hundred years ago, the question "How are salts formed?" was recognized and Robert Boyle (discoverer of the famous Boyle's law about gases) suggested that salts are formed by the reaction of an acid with an alkali.

Edible salt, usually called just salt, is a flavour enhancer, comprising primarily of sodium chloride and is one of the few minerals commonly eaten by humans. There are different forms of edible salt: unrefined salt (such as sea salt), refined salt (table salt) and iodised salt. It is a crystalline solid, white, pale pink or light grey in color, normally obtained from sea water or rock deposits. Salt and other minerals are carried into the sea by rivers get retained and concentrated as a process of evaporation at the sea coast resulting in salt formation

Salts are generally far less corrosive than the acids and bases from which they are formed. A corrosive chemical has the power to disintegrate a material or wear away its surface. Hydrogen chloride is a remarkably corrosive acid, which makes it useful for cleaning toilet bowls and etching metal surfaces. Sodium hydroxide is a very corrosive base used for unclogging drains. Mixing hydrogen chloride and sodium hydroxide together in equal portions, however, produces an aqueous solution of sodium chloride–salt water, which is nowhere near as destructive as either starting material.

There are as many salts as there are acids and bases. Sodium cyanide, NaCN, is a deadly poison. "Salt peter", which is potassium nitrate, KNO₃, is useful as a fertilizer and in the formulation of gunpowder. Calcium chloride, CaCl₂, is commonly used to de–ice roads, and sodium fluoride, NaF, prevents tooth decay. Acids and bases react to form these salts. Simple salts such as sodium chloride consist of just two different elements. They generally consist of a metal and an element from the next to last group on the right side of the periodic table (fluorine through iodine). Sodium chloride exemplifies how atoms come together to form substances that have very different properties. Sodium is a very reactive metal that bursts into flame when it contacts water. Chlorine is a poisonous, green gas. In contrast, sodium chloride is a safe, white crystalline solid. Note that other salts can be quite poisonous, so safety is not a common property of salts.

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