Since the reaction occurs slowly at room temperature, mixtures (cake batter, etc.) can be allowed to stand without rising until they are heated in the oven. Baking powder
Baking powder, also sold for cooking, contains around 30% of bicarbonate, and various acidic ingredients which are activated by the addition of water, without the need for additional acids in the cooking medium. Many forms of baking powder contain sodium bicarbonate combined with calcium acid phosphate, sodium aluminium phosphate, or cream of tartar. Baking soda is alkaline; the acid used in baking powder avoids a metallic taste when the chemical change during baking creates sodium carbonate. Pyrotechnics
Sodium bicarbonate is one of the main components of the common "black snake" firework. The effect is caused by the thermal decomposition, which produces carbon dioxide gas to produce a long snake-like ash as a combustion product of the other main component, sucrose. Sodium bicarbonate is also used to delay combustion reactions by releasing CO2 and H2O when heated, both of which are flame retardants. Mild disinfectant
It has weak disinfectant properties, and it may be an effective fungicide against some organisms. Because baking soda will absorb musty smells, it has become a reliable method for used book sellers when making books less malodorous. Fire extinguisher
Sodium bicarbonate can be used to extinguish small grease or electrical fires by being thrown over the fire, as heating of sodium bicarbonate releases carbon dioxide. However, it should not be applied to fires in deep fryers; the sudden release of gas may cause the grease to splatter.
the Lower Egyptian “Natrontal” Wadi El Natrun, where a mixture of sodium carbonate and sodium hydrogen carbonate for the dehydration of mummies was used ) from Greek nítron (νίτρον) (Herodotus; Attic lítron (λίτρον)), which can be traced back to ancient Egyptian ntr. The Greek nítron (soda, saltpeter) was also used in Latin (sal) nitrum and in German Salniter (the source of Nitrogen, Nitrat etc. ).In 1791, French chemist Nicolas Leblanc produced sodium carbonate, also known as soda ash. The pharmacist Valentin Rose the Younger is credited with the discovery of sodium bicarbonate in 1801 in Berlin. In 1846, two American bakers, John Dwight and Austin Church, established the first factory in the United States to produce baking soda from sodium carbonate and carbon dioxide.Saleratus, potassium or sodium bicarbonate, is mentioned in the novel Captains Courageous by Rudyard Kipling as being used extensively in the 1800s in commercial fishing to prevent freshly caught fish from spoiling.In 1919, US Senator Lee Overman declared that bicarbonate of soda could cure the Spanish flu. In the midst of the debate on 26 January 1919, he interrupted the discussion to announce the discovery of a cure. "I want to say, for the benefit of those who are making this investigation," he reported, "that I was told by a judge of a superior court in the mountain country of North Carolina they have discovered a remedy for this disease." The purported cure implied a critique of modern science and an appreciation for the simple wisdom of simple people.