Sodium bicarbonate (NaHCO3), or sodium hydrogen carbonate, also known as baking soda and bicarbonate of soda, is a soluble white anhydrous or crystalline compound, with a slight alkaline taste resembling that of sodium carbonate. It is found in many mineral springs and also produced artificially.
It is also used as an antacid to treat acid indigestion and heartburn. The anhydrous form is also used to absorb moisture and odours; a box can be left in the refrigerator for this purpose. Additionally, a paste from baking soda can be very effective when used in cleaning and scrubbing. Used in toothpaste, baking soda helps to gently remove stains, whiten teeth, and freshen breath.
Sodium bicarbonate, when exposed to a moderately strong acid, releases carbon dioxide and water:
It is used in combination with acidic compounds as a leavening agent in baking: some forms of baking powder contain sodium bicarbonate. Formerly, it was used as a source of carbon dioxide for soda water.
Safety
Although sodium bicarbonate is used as an antacid, excess consumption can lower blood pH. Sodium bicarbonate should only be consumed in solution with water.
Because the bicarbonate is less soluble than the carbonate, carbon dioxide gas is bubbled into a saturated solution of pure carbonate, and the bicarbonate precipitates out to be collected and dried.
Carbicarb, sodium bicarbonate, and sodium chloride in hypoxic lactic acidosis: effect on atrial blood gases, lactate concentrations, hemodynamic variables, and myocardial intracellular pH.
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Sodium occurs widely in nature and is found in the oceans, in salt lakes, and as deposits of solid sodium chloride.
Sodium cannot be prepared in a laboratory setting due to the Sodium is commercially prepared by the electrolysis of molten sodium chloride, during which the sodium ion is reduced to sodium and the chloride ion oxidized to elemental chlorine gas.
Sodium chloride is obtained from the mining of solid sodium chloride and from the evaporation of sea brines.
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