How Does Baking Soda And Vinegar Create A Chemical Reaction?
Vinegar is acetic acid: CH3COOH Baking soda is sodium bicarbonate: NaHCO3 Mixing the two is simply and acid base reaction. When an acid and a base are placed together, they react to neutralize the acid and base properties, producing a salt. CH3COOH + NaHCO3 —> CH3COONa + H2CO3 That last product is carbonic acid which quickly decomposes into carbon dioxide and water: H2CO3 —> H2O + CO2 The CO2 is what you see foaming and bubbling in this reaction.
The experiment baking soda and vinegar is one of the most popular. However, it is deceptively simple: what appears to be one reaction is actually two, happening in quick succession. This reaction is an example of a multi-step reaction. What actually happens is this: the acetic acid (that’s what makes vinegar sour) reacts with sodium bicarbonate (a compound that’s in baking soda) to form carbonic acid. It’s really a double replacement reaction. Carbonic acid is unstable, and it immediately falls apart into carbon dioxide and water (it’s a decomposition reaction). The bubbles you see from the reaction come from the carbon dioxide escaping the solution that is left. Carbon dioxide is heavier than air, so, it flows almost like water when it overflows the container. It is a gas that you exhale (though in small amounts), because it is a product of the reactions that keep your body going. What’s left is a dilute solution of sodium acetate in water.
