a paste of sodium hydrogen carbonate (sodium bicarbonate) can be used to relieve the pain of an ant bite. The irritant in the ant bite is formic acid (HCOOH), a weak acid. Which is the net ionic equation for the reaction that occurs?
I know the reactants are NaHCO3 + HCOOH and I think the Products are CO2 + H2O + NaHCOO?
although I'm rather stuck, my professor had a sub today and we were given this problem and I have No idea how to start it right now...any help is greatly appreciated!
Well, you have an interesting post; however, there is no problem attached. You're right about the formic acid and you're right about the equation. The complete equation is
HCOOH + NaHCO3 ==> H2O + CO2 + HCOONa.
I assume it is a problem asking how much NaHCO3 is required for ?? moles HCOOH. If so, or something similar, here is a stoichiometry problem I posted earlier. Just follow the steps.
http://www.jiskha.com/science/chemistry/stoichiometry.html
actually I just need the net ionic equation....I'm not so good with those and just need some more info
To determine the net ionic equation for the reaction, we need to identify and separate the spectator ions from the equation. Spectator ions are the ions that do not participate in the chemical reaction and remain unchanged throughout the reaction.
Let's start by writing the balanced chemical equation for the reaction between sodium hydrogen carbonate (NaHCO3) and formic acid (HCOOH):
NaHCO3 + HCOOH -> CO2 + H2O + NaHCOO
To find the spectator ions, we need to determine the dissociation states of the reactants. Sodium hydrogen carbonate dissociates into sodium ions (Na+) and bicarbonate ions (HCO3-), while formic acid dissociates into hydrogen ions (H+) and formate ions (HCOO-).
NaHCO3(aq) + HCOOH(aq) -> CO2(g) + H2O(l) + NaHCOO(aq)
Now, let's write the ionic equation by representing the ions as individual entities:
Na+(aq) + HCO3-(aq) + H+(aq) + HCOO-(aq) -> CO2(g) + H2O(l) + Na+(aq) + HCOO-(aq)
Next, we can remove the spectator ions, which do not change during the reaction. In this case, the sodium ions (Na+) and formate ions (HCOO-) are the spectator ions:
HCO3-(aq) + H+(aq) -> CO2(g) + H2O(l)
Finally, we reduce the equation to its simplest form, which is the net ionic equation:
HCO3-(aq) + H+(aq) -> CO2(g) + H2O(l)
So, the net ionic equation for the reaction between sodium hydrogen carbonate and formic acid is HCO3-(aq) + H+(aq) -> CO2(g) + H2O(l).
Please note that this net ionic equation only represents the main reaction occurring between the bicarbonate ions and the hydrogen ions, while the other ions remain in the solution.