The chemical name of salt is sodium chloride (NaCl). It is used as table salt, as a preservative mostly in foods, and is responsible for most of the salinity (salty-ness) of the oceans and seas. It has many other uses, and is often used in winter for gritting roads, because as it has a lower freezing point than water, it lowers water's freezing point slightly so that the snow doesn't solidify into ice overnight. However, it is usually calcium chloride (CaCl2) used for gritting roads rather than sodium chloride, due to the fact that calcium chloride can release energy when it comes into contact with water, snow, or ice, and heat it up, which is obviously more effective than just lowering the boiling point. Salt can also be used to disinfect wounds, usually by bathing the cut or scrape in salt water. It has a boiling point of about 1413 °C or 2575 °F, and a melting point of approximately 801 °C or 1474 °F.
