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Nahco3 Lab Report

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INTRODUCTION Turning to over-the-counter drugs has become a necessity for those seeking fast and easy pain relief. Several medications have been noted as beneficial and effective, and although Alka-Seltzer tablets, used for pain relief, as an antihistamine, and for nasal decongestion, has not reached the most commonly used, its effectiveness can be proven.2 Dissolved in water before ingestion, Alka-Seltzer tablets use the action of effervescence to produce the release of carbon dioxide gas.1 This release of gas allows for the fizz to occur, and for excess sodium bicarbonate to aid in the pain relief, in combination with aspirin in the tablets.1,2 But, this need for pain relief from over-the-counter drugs has been monitored due to the …show more content…

The mass of the small beaker/flask and solution for each trial was found and recorded by using 50 mL graduated cylinders to add increasing 5 mL increments of vinegar, from 0 to 35 mL, and decreasing 5 mL increments of water, from 35 to 0 mL to the eight small beakers or flasks and weighed on an analytical balance. Accordingly, the mass of each of the eight Alka-Seltzer Tablets was determined and recorded. Moreover, the tablets were each dropped in their respective beakers/flasks, and allowed to fizz, without spilling over. The loss of mass of CO2 was furthermore ascertained by finding change in mass of each of the solutions after the fizzing stopped from the value of the mass of the Alka-Seltzer tablet plus the mass of the solution and beaker/flask. Further, using the loss of mass of CO2 for each trial and the balanced equation, the amount of NaHCO3 reacted and percent by mass in the tablet were identified. After determining the class average and the standard deviation for each trial, and plugging it into a scatter plot, the change of slope showed the true percent by mass of NaHCO3 in Alka-Seltzer tablets. RESULTS AND DISCUSSION Two acid-base reactions were used to result in the percent by mass of NaHCO3 in Alka-Seltzer tablets: C6H8O8 (aq) + HCO3- (aq)  C7H7O8-(aq) + H2CO3(aq) (1) CH3COOH (aq) + NaHCO3 (aq)  H2O (l) + CO2 (g) +

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