On the topic of acids and bases, how can you tell if there is calcium chloride or baking soda in your toothpaste without looking at the ingredients label?
2007-01-06 13:31:32 · 3 answers · asked by Anonymous in Science & Mathematics ➔ Chemistry
Because baking soda is a mild basic chemical composition it will react with an acidic chemical. Take your toothpaste and mix a small amount into a cup of lemon juice or vinegar. If it foams up ... there is a reaction and you know your toothpaste has baking soda in it. If there is little or no reaction you can be reasonable certain it has no baking soda. Good Luck.
2007-01-06 13:44:11 · answer #1 · answered by Informed1 4 · 0⤊ 0⤋
If you really wanted to try it chemically, you could mix your toothpaste with any strong acid. If a reaction occurs, then you could conclude that your toothpaste contains calcium chloride (which is a base) reacted with the acid to form carbon dioxide.
2007-01-06 21:44:04 · answer #2 · answered by mmonkeyccup 2 · 0⤊ 0⤋
You moosh the toothpaste around with some water and stick in a strip of litmus paper. If the paper turns red, there is CaCl2. If it turns blue, there is NaHCO3 (baking soda). This is because:
CaCl2 + H2O <===> Ca(OH)2 +2H+ + 2Cl-
NaHCO3 + H2O <===> Na+ + OH- +CO2*H2O
Also, add vinegar to the toothpaste. If it evolves gas, it has NaHCO3.
2007-01-06 21:42:39 · answer #3 · answered by steve_geo1 7 · 0⤊ 0⤋