Amount of Gas Produced When Vinegar and Baking Soda React
Clemson University
March 12, 1999
Aaron Lewis
Eric Brannen ()
Nick Gonzalez ()
Lisa Christopher ()
Colin McMillen ()
Abstract
Many people have seen in their kitchens the reaction between baking soda and vinegar, but few know exactly how much carbon dioxiode is given off when this reaction takes place. This experiment can be done with common household materials. The purpose of this experiment is to learn how to solve a problem without having an equation to use, or any direction in solving it. It did not take long to perform the experiment; the calculations took much longer to perform. This report covers the process and results of the experiments. Using our original apparatus, we were able to observe in which quantities the gas produced by combining soda and vinegar displaced water. This displacement allowed us to calculate the volume of gas, which led to the determination of the number of moles of gas produced. Using the trends from our experiments, as well as Raighly’s method, we were able to hypothesize that the combination of 5 pounds of soda and 2 gallons of vinegar would produce 74 Liters of gas. Also, we were able to determine that it would take 3.7 kg of soda and 101 Liters of vinegar to produce one cubic meter of gas. Overall the results yielded by our apparatus were well comparable to the theoretical results.
Introduction
When baking soda is mixed with vinegar, there is much frothing and bubbling. It makes sense that if you have more soda or more vinegar, more gas will be released. We were to develop an apparatus that would allow us to measure the amount of gas released in the reaction. We conducted a series of experiments for different amounts of soda and vinegar. We plotted our results. We then performed a dimensional analysis, and plotted the results. Using the results, we were to predict how much gas would be released by 5 pounds of soda, and 2 gallons of vinegar, and what quantity of reactants would produce 1m^3 of gas.
Significance
The significance of our work is more personal significance than anything else. It will help us gain experience in problem solving, because not only do we have to come up with the experiment, we have to apply the results. It can help us with our techniques, and methods for measurements and calculations. This project will also help us work on our group skills. Writing this report is also a learning experience. This experiment could also provide insights into the natural reactions of soda and vinegar based compounds, which could be useful when dealing with such situations as an industrial processing spill of either of these reactants.
Methods and Materials
As mentioned in the abstract, this experiment was performed using common household materials. The assembly of these materials into the complete apparatus in not difficult either. This assembly and the materials that comprise the apparatus are pictured below in figure 1.
Materials Used:
A Tupperware bowl, water bottle, plastic tube, 1 liter graduated water
bottle, surain wrap, baking soda, vinegar, and water.
Methods Used:
The graduated bottle was filled with water, and then inverted into the bowl, which had been filled half-way with water. The tube was connected to the first bottle, and then placed into the inverted graduated bottle as shown in the figure below. To collect the gas, we reacted the soda and vinegar in the first water bottle. The gas went through the tube, and forced water out of the inverted bottle. This gave us the volume of gas created by the reaction. This set up was chosen because there weren't any changes in pressure or temperature, which would change the volume of the gas.
Figure 1, complete apparatus setup
Inverted graduated bottle
tube
Water bottle (containing vinegar and soda reaction)
Tupperware Bowl
Results
Our group first experimented with different amounts of baking soda and vinegar to get an actual experimental yield of the volume of gas produced. The following table illustrates the results of these tests. As expected, by increasing the amount of soda or the amount of vinegar, the volume of gas yielded was also increased.
Volume of Gas Produced by Mixing Vinegar with Soda
V of gas / V of Vinegar(T) / V of Soda(t)0.12 / 2 / 0.25
0.14 / 2 / 0.25
0.14 / 2 / 0.25
0.32 / 4 / 0.25
0.35 / 2 / 0.5
0.41 / 6 / 0.5
1.8 / 20 / 2
Using Raighly's Method, a method for deriving equations, our group created a dimensionless plot of our data. All of the data points fall on the same line. This shows that the data is uniform for the experiment. The Raighly’s Method calculations are found in appendix A. To perform Raighly’s method, certain conversions are necessary. The volumes of the reactants were converted into liters, and the masses were found by multiplying the number of liters by the densities of the reactants.
Conversions of Amounts of Reactants
g of Vinegar / g of Soda / V of Vinegar / V of Soda0.3218637 / 0.451825 / 0.0004929 / 0.000411
0.3218637 / 0.451825 / 0.0004929 / 0.000411
0.3218637 / 0.451825 / 0.0004929 / 0.000411
0.6437274 / 0.451825 / 0.0009858 / 0.000411
0.3218637 / 0.90365 / 0.0004929 / 0.000822
0.9655911 / 0.90365 / 0.0014787 / 0.000822
3.218637 / 3.6146 / 0.004929 / 0.003286
These numbers were then plugged into the equation we received from Raighly’s Method. The figures given through Raighly’s method provided the necessary information to construct a dimensionless plot. The dimensionless plot shows that the results from Raighly’s Method should produce a graphically straight line.
Application of Raighly’s Method to the Data
TestNumber / Vg/Vs / (Vv/Vs)*(Ms/Mv)
1 / 1168.59 / 1.68
2 / 1363.36 / 1.68
3 / 1363.36 / 1.68
4 / 1704.2 / 1.68
5 / 1996.35 / 1.68
6 / 2556.3 / 1.68
7 / 3116.25 / 1.68
Note the straight line in the dimensionless plot below. This serves to show that the fig
The above figure is the dimensionless plot of the Raighly’s Method data. Note the straight line produced by graphing the data. This line confirms that the numbers produced by the method were accurate.
In addition to a dimensionless plot, we also plotted the raw data. There is an actual yield, and a theoretical yield curve. The theoretical curve was produced by mathematical calculations of the amounts of given reactants. The actual curve was produced by graphing the data that was observed from our experiment.
Theoretical and Actual Volumes of Gas Produced Through our Experiment
Exp. # / moles of gas / TV of gas / AV of gas1 / 0.00531 / 0.11915 / 0.12
2 / 0.00531 / 0.11915 / 0.14
3 / 0.00531 / 0.11915 / 0.14
4 / 0.00531 / 0.11915 / 0.32
5 / 0.00536 / 0.12022 / 0.35
6 / 0.01063 / 0.23828 / 0.41
7 / 0.04252 / 0.95315 / 1.8
The moles of gas were calculated by dividing the volume of gas created by the reaction by 22.414 moles/Liter. This is the number of liters that one mole of gas takes up at room temperature, at one atmosphere, the conditions under which we conducted the experiment.
Discussion
The major trend in our data is the more vinegar and soda we reacted, the further we were off in our measurement of the gas versus what we should have had. This is due in part to the bottle in which we collected the gas. Although it was graduated, the lines were very far apart. The measurements of the reactants were not exact. We may have put in more than we measured. We feel that our set up was a good one. With a better measuring container, our results would be more accurate. Overall, this experiment was a success. We worked as a group, and solved a rather open ended problem.
Appendix A
Raighly’s Method for the amount of gas produced when vinegar and baking soda are mixed:
Vg = volume gas, Vs = volume soda, Vv = volume vinegar,
Ms = mass soda, Mv = mass vinegar
Vg/Vs = (Vv/Vs)*(Ms/Mv)
Appendix B
How much gas would be produced if 5 pounds of soda were mixed with 2 gallons vinegar?
5.00 lbs of soda = 2270 g soda
2270 g / 84 g/mol = 27.0 moles of soda
2.00 gallons of vinegar = 7.57 L of vinegar
7.5 L * 653 g/L = 4940 g of vinegar
Vinegar was 5% acetic acid
.05 * 4940 g = 247 g of acetic acid
247 g / 75 g/mol = 3.30 moles this is the limiting reactant
3.30 mol * 22.414 L of gas/mol = 74.0 L of gas
How much of the reactants would be required to make 1m^3 of gas?
1 M3 = 1000L
1000L / 22.414 L of gas/mol = 44.61 mol of gas
44.61 mol of soda * 84 g/mol = 3.7 kg soda
44.61 mol of acetic acid * 75 g/mol = 3300 g of acetic acid
Vinegar is 5% acetic acid
3300 g / .05 = 66000g vinegar
66000 g / 653 g/L = 101 L of vinegar