Carbonic acid (H2CO3) is formed in small amounts when its anhydride, carbon dioxide (CO2), dissolves in water.
CO2 + H2O ⇌ H2CO3
The predominant species are simply loosely hydrated CO2 molecules. Carbonic acid can be considered to be a diprotic acid from which two series of salts can be formed—namely, hydrogen carbonates, containing HCO3−, and carbonates, containing CO32−.
H2CO3 + H2O ⇌ H3O+ + HCO3−
HCO3− + H2O ⇌ H3O+ + CO32−
However, the acid-base behaviour of carbonic acid depends on the different rates of some of the reactions involved, as well as their dependence on the pH of the system. For example, at a pH of less than 8, the principal reactions and their relative speed are as follows:
CO2 + H2O ⇌ H2CO3 (slow)
H2CO3 + OH− ⇌ HCO3− + H2O (fast)
Above pH 10 the following reactions are important:
CO2 + OH− ⇌ HCO3− (slow)
HCO3− + OH− ⇌ CO32− + H2O (fast)
Between pH values of 8 and 10, all the above equilibrium reactions are significant.
Carbonate and hydrogen carbonate salts
These salts can be prepared by the reaction of carbon dioxide with metal oxides and metal hydroxides, respectively.
CO2 + O2 → CO32−
CO2 + OH− → HCO3−
For example, when an aqueous solution of sodium hydroxide (NaOH) is saturated with carbon dioxide, sodium hydrogen carbonate, NaHCO3, is formed in solution.
Na+ + OH− + CO2 → Na+ + HCO3−
When the water is removed, the solid compound is also called sodium bicarbonate, or baking soda. When baking soda is used in cooking and, for example, causes bread or cake to rise, this effect is due to the reaction of the basic hydrogen carbonate anion (HCO3−) with an added acid, such as potassium hydrogen tartrate (cream of tartar), KHC4H4O6, or calcium dihydrogen phosphate, Ca(H2PO4)2. As long as the soda is dry, no reaction occurs. When water or milk is added, the acid-base neutralization takes place, producing gaseous carbon dioxide and water. The carbon dioxide becomes trapped in the batter, and when heated the gas expands to create the characteristic texture of biscuits and breads.
Carbonates are moderately strong bases. Aqueous solutions are basic because the carbonate anion can accept a hydrogen ion from water. CO32− + H2O ⇌ HCO3− + OH− Carbonates react with acids, forming salts of the metal, gaseous carbon dioxide, and water. This is the reaction that occurs when an antacid containing the active ingredient calcium carbonate (CaCO3) reacts with stomach acid (hydrochloric acid). CaCO3 + 2HCl → CaCl2 + CO2 + H2O The hydrogen carbonate anion is also a base. HCO3− + H3O+ → H2CO3 + H2O → CO2 + 2H2O It is actually stronger as a base than it is as an acid. Because of this, aqueous solutions of salts of hydrogen carbonates are weakly alkaline (basic) and are also active ingredients in many antacids. HCO3− + H2O ⇌ H2CO3 + OH− If equivalent amounts of sodium hydroxide and a solution of sodium hydrogen carbonate are combined and the solution is then evaporated, crystals of a hydrated form of sodium carbonate are formed. This compound, Na2CO3 · 10H2O, is sometimes called washing soda. It can be used as a water softener because it forms insoluble carbonates—for example, calcium carbonate—which can then be filtered from the water. Gently heating the hydrated sodium carbonate produces the anhydrous compound Na2CO3, which is called soda ash or, simply, soda in the chemical industry. This is an important industrial chemical that is used extensively in the manufacture of other chemicals, glass, soap, paper and pulp, cleansers, and water softeners and in the refining of petroleum.
An interesting use of lithium carbonate, Li2CO3, stems from the discovery that small doses of the salt, orally administered, are an effective treatment for manic-depressive psychoses. It is not entirely understood how this treatment works, but it is almost certainly related to the effect of the Li+ ion on the Na+:K+ or the Mg2+:Ca2+ balance in the brain.
The mineral calcium carbonate is better known as limestone, a mineral second in abundance only to the silicate-forming minerals in the Earth’s crust. Most limestone is composed of calcite, which is the low-temperature form of calcium carbonate. Calcite results when CaCO3 is precipitated below 30 °C (86 °F). The calcium carbonate that precipitates above 30 °C (the high-temperature form) is known as aragonite. Transparent calcite, sometimes called Iceland spar, has the unusual property of birefringence, or double refraction. That is to say, when a beam of light enters a single crystal of calcite, the beam is broken into two beams, and two images of any object viewed through the crystal are produced.
When water containing carbon dioxide comes in contact with limestone rocks, the rocks dissolve because Ca(HCO3)2, a water-soluble compound that forms aqueous Ca2+ and HCO3− ions, is formed. Thus, this reaction is responsible for the formation of the caves that are often found in limestone rock beds. On the other hand, if water containing Ca(HCO3)2 liberates carbon dioxide, calcium carbonate may again be deposited. Ca(HCO3)2 (aqueous) → CaCO3 + CO2 + H2O These depositions of calcium carbonate are what are known as stalactites and stalagmites, beautiful formations found in caves and caverns. When aqueous solutions of Ca(HCO3)2 (a form of hard water) are heated, precipitates of calcium carbonate in the form of scale (crust) are often observed in pots, boilers, and other vessels containing these solutions. Thus, one method for eliminating the hardness of water is to precipitate aqueous Ca2+ and HCO3− ions as solid CaCO3, which can then be removed.
Other carbonic acids
Two other carbon-containing acids are sometimes referred to as carbonic acids. Formic acid (HCOOH) is the acid that formally has carbon monoxide (CO) as its acid anhydride. This acid has a low solubility in water. As noted previously, carbon suboxide, C3O2, is the acid anhydride of malonic acid, CH2(COOH)2, which is considered by some to be a carbonic acid.
Steven S. Zumdahl