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This week's LabZone activity
April 9, 2008
Plop, Plop, Fizz Fast
Objective
The goal of this project is to measure the effect of temperature on the rate of a chemical reaction.
Introduction
You may have seen a television commercial for Alka-Seltzer tablets, or heard one of their advertising slogans: "Plop, plop, fizz, fizz, oh what a relief it is!®" When you drop the tablets in water, they make a lot of bubbles, like an extra-fizzy soda. And like a soda, the bubbles are carbon dioxide gas (CO2). However, with Alka-Seltzer®, the CO2 is produced by a chemical reaction that occurs when the tablets dissolve in water.
The main ingredients of Alka-Seltzer tablets are aspirin, citric acid, and sodium bicarbonate (NaHCO3). When sodium bicarbonate dissolves in water, it dissociates (splits apart) into sodium (Na+) and bicarbonate (HCO3—) ions. The bicarbonate reacts with hydrogen ions (H+) from the citric acid to form carbon dioxide and water. The reaction is described by the following chemical equation:
So how does temperature come into this? In order for the reaction shown above to occur, the bicarbonate ions have to come into contact with the hydrogen ions. Molecules in a solution are in constant motion, and are constantly colliding with one another. The hydrogen and bicarbonate ions must collide at the right angle and with enough energy for the reaction to occur. The temperature of a solution is a measure of the average motion (kinetic energy) of the molecules in the solution. The higher the temperature, the faster the molecules are moving. What effect do you think temperature will have on the speed of the bicarbonate reaction? You can find out for yourself by plopping Alka-Seltzer® tablets into water at different temperatures, and timing how long it takes for the chemical reaction to go to completion.
Experimental Procedure and Additional Information
Used with permission. Copyright © 2002-2008 Kenneth Lafferty Hess Family Charitable Foundation. All rights reserved.
For more science project ideas, go to www.sciencebuddies.org/mentoring/areas_of_science.shtml.
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