Question

Sodium hydrogen carbonate decomposes above 110°c to form sodium carbonate, water, and carbon dioxide. 2nahco3(s) na2co3(s) + h2o(g) + co2(g) one thousand grams of sodium hydrogen carbonate are added to a reaction vessel, the temperature is increased to 200°c, and the system comes to equilibrium. what happens in this system if another 50 g of sodium carbonate are now added?

Answer 1

The given chemical equation is,

$2NaHCO_{3}(aq) Na_{2}CO_{3}(aq)+CO_{2}(g) + H_{2}O(g)$

When sodium carbonate is added the system tries to minimize the effect of the additional product added, by shifting the equilibrium such that the extra product is converted back to the reactants. This takes place until the equilibrium is re-established. Therefore, the equilibrium shifts towards the reactants side. The concentrations of sodium carbonate, carbon dioxide and water vapor decrease while the concentration of sodium hydrogen carbonate increases.