sodium hydroxide and carbonic acid net ionic equation

Since CO3 2- (aq) is on both sides of the equation, wouldn't they become spectator ions and cancel out?

The net ionic equation for the reaction between sodium hydroxide (NaOH) and carbonic acid (H₂CO₃) can be determined by writing out the balanced chemical equation and then identifying the ions that participate in the reaction.

First, let's write the balanced chemical equation for the reaction:

NaOH + H₂CO₃ → Na₂CO₃ + H₂O

In this equation, sodium hydroxide reacts with carbonic acid to form sodium carbonate and water.

Next, we can split the compounds into their respective ions:

Na⁺ + OH⁻ + H₂CO₃ → Na⁺ + CO₃²⁻ + H₂O

Now, we can eliminate the spectator ions (ions that do not actually participate in the reaction) from both sides of the equation. In this case, the sodium ions (Na⁺) are present on both sides, so they can be eliminated. We are left with:

OH⁻ + H₂CO₃ → CO₃²⁻ + H₂O

This is the net ionic equation for the reaction between sodium hydroxide and carbonic acid.

To write the net ionic equation for the reaction between sodium hydroxide (NaOH) and carbonic acid (H2CO3), we first need to write out the balanced chemical equation for the reaction.

Carbonic acid is a weak acid that can be considered a diprotic acid, meaning it can donate two hydrogen ions (H+). Therefore, the chemical equation for the reaction can be written as:

2NaOH + H2CO3 -> Na2CO3 + 2H2O

Now, to obtain the net ionic equation, we need to eliminate any spectator ions. Spectator ions are ions that do not undergo any change during the reaction and are present on both the reactant and product sides of the equation. In this case, the sodium ions (Na+) and hydroxide ions (OH-) are spectator ions.

The net ionic equation will only include the ions or molecules that undergo a change. In this reaction, the hydrogen ions (H+) from carbonic acid (H2CO3) react with the hydroxide ions (OH-) from sodium hydroxide (NaOH) to form water (H2O). Therefore, the net ionic equation for this reaction is:

H+ + OH- -> H2O

H2CO3 (aq) + 2OH- (aq)CO32- (aq) + 2H2O (l)