Interesting Facts About Sodium Carbonate

Sodium carbonate is an inorganic element-based chemical compound. Soda ash is sodium carbonate, sometimes known as sodium carbonate at times. Trona is a chemical that is used to eliminate soda ash. Trona is a double salt composed of sodium carbonate and sodium hydrogen carbonate that occurs as a result of lake evaporation.

Sodium carbonate, sometimes known as washing soda or soda ash, is the most important of the fundamental heavy chemicals. It has the advantage of being non-corrosive, making it safer to work with than sodium hydroxide.

Sodium Carbonate Formula

Sodium carbonate is a diazonium salt of carbonic acid with the chemical formula Na2CO3 .Other names for it include soda crystals, soda ash, and washing soda. When dissolved in water, this inorganic compound produces carbonic acid and sodium hydroxide. In its purest state, it is a white powder with no odour. It’s a strong base that also acts as an antacid.

There are four processes that can produce sodium carbonate: the “Solvay process,” the “Leblanc process,” the “Dual-process,” and the “Electrolytic process.” Because it is a weak acid, it is just slightly soluble in ethanol and completely insoluble in alcohol. Water softeners are one of the most prominent uses for Na2CO3. The pH level is roughly 11.

Synthesis of Sodium Carbonate

The Solvay method is currently the only means to produce sodium carbonate. In this technique, carbon dioxide and ammonia are pumped into a cold, saturated sodium chloride solution. In the processes that occur, sodium hydrogen carbonate, which is only very slightly soluble in the presence of sodium ions, is almost completely precipitated. It is removed by filtration and burned to produce sodium carbonate.

This procedure’s ingredients are inexpensive and widely available. The three substances are salt brine (NaCl), ammonia (NH3), and limestone (CaCO3). CaCl2 is an important byproduct of this technique.

The following equation can be used to represent the reactions.

2NH3 + H2O + CO2 =( NH4)2CO3

When common salt is added to a solution containing NH4+ and HCO3–, NaHCO3 is precipitated, which is the least soluble of the two. After that, it’s filtered out.

NH4CO3+ NaCl = NH4Cl+NaHCO3

After that, sodium bicarbonate is cooked to produce Na2CO3

 2NaHCO3=Na2CO3+ CO2+H2O

The CO2  gas produced can be recycled.

When anhydrous sodium carbonate is dissolved in water, it recrystallizes into washing soda crystals that include 10 molecules of water during the crystallisation process.

Chemical Properties

 1. Anhydrous sodium carbonate is heat stable. At 852oC, it melts without disintegration.

2. Hydrolysis releases OH–(aq) ions, making sodium carbonate aqueous solutions mildly alkaline.

Na2CO3(s) + 2H2O(l) = HCO3(aq) + 2Na+(aq) + 2OH–

3. Sodium carbonate aqueous solutions absorb carbon dioxide from the air and form sodium hydrogen carbonate.

Na2CO3(aq) + H2O + CO2(g) = 2NaHCO3

4. When sodium carbonate reacts with weak vegetable acids, such as lime juice, carbon dioxide is released.

Na2CO3(aq) + 2H+(aq) (g)=2Na+(aq) + H2O(l) + CO2

2NaCl(aq) + H2O(l) + CO2 = Na2CO3(aq) + 2HCl(aq) (g)

Structure of Sodium Carbonate –Na2CO3

The structure of sodium carbonate molecules is depicted in the diagram below. Sodium carbonate molecules are made up of two sodium atoms, three oxygen atoms, and one carbon atom. The sodium cations are all positively charged, whereas the polyatomic carbonate anion is negatively charged. As a result, sodium carbonate is a molecule with a neutral charge.

Structure of Sodium Carbonate

Sodium Carbonate’s Applications (Na2CO3)

Some of the uses for sodium carbonate are as follows:- 

1. It is used in the production of detergents, soaps, and paper.

2. It is used to make water glass (sodium silicate), borax, sodium phosphate, and a range of other salt compounds.

3. It is used as a wetting agent in the brick industry.

4. It is used as an abrasive and foaming agent in toothpaste.

It is used as a pH adjuster.

6. It is used as a water softener because carbonate precipitates hard water containing magnesium and calcium ions.

7. As a laboratory standardisation reagent and an analytical reagent.. 

Conclusion

We conclude that the disodium salt of carbonic acid with alkalizing properties is sodium carbonate. When sodium carbonate is dissolved in water, it produces carbonic acid and sodium hydroxide. Sodium hydroxide acts as an antacid because it is a strong base that neutralises stomach acid.