Sodium carbonate and bicarbonate production
To produce sodium carbonate and sodium hydrogencarbonate (bicarbonate).
The science behind this experiment
Sodium carbonate and sodium hydrogencarbonate, or bicarbonate, are important compounds which were among the first to be produced industrially. Sodium bicarbonate can be used to neutralise acid solutions, in cooking, or as an antacid medicine.
Sodium bicarbonate can be conveniently produced by reacting sodium hydroxide and carbon dioxide: NaOH + CO2 → NaHCO3.
Sodium bicarbonate decomposes by heat into sodium carbonate, water and carbon dioxide: 2NaHCO3 → Na2CO3 + H2O + CO2.
Equipment used
- Iron stand — CHE-037
- Universal clamp — HEA-010
- Right angle clamp — PLA-016
- Conical flask 150 ml — CHE-005
- Rubber stopper, 2 holes — CHE-031
- Dropping funnel — CHE-008
- Right angle bent glass delivery tube — CHE-011
- Connection for glass delivery tubes — PLA-020
- Glass delivery tube — PLA-006
- Beaker 100 ml — HEA-001
- Beaker 250 ml — HEA-002
- Spatula — PLA-024
- Spirit burner — CHE-022
- Test tubes — PLA-007
- Test tube holder — PLA-017
- Parafilm — PLA-011
Chemicals and reagents
- Calcium carbonate
- Hydrochloric acid — R:34-37 S:26-45
- Sodium hydroxide — R:35 S:26-37/39-45
- Distilled water
Safety notes
- Take care when using the burner and hot glassware.
Questions for students
- What does the precipitate consist of?
- Are the two deposits different?
What to expect
The solid left in the beaker after the liquid evaporated is still sodium hydrogencarbonate (bicarbonate). The residue in the heated tube is sodium carbonate, formed according to the second reaction above.
Disposal
Dispose of the liquid into the acids and bases waste container. Dispose of the salts into the solid waste container.
Run this experiment in your classroom
This experiment is part of ATP Volta — a self-contained mobile science lab that turns an ordinary classroom into a working STEM laboratory, with over 200 experiments in physics, chemistry, biology, robotics and engineering. Gali, the AI tutor built into ATP Connect, guides students through each step and answers their questions at the bench.
See the ATP Volta mobile science labTalk to our team