UNIT 3: QUANTITIES IN CHEMICAL REACTIONS

Double, Double, Toil and Trouble: A Recipe for Disaster

Sure, nobody likes cleaning. And if there's the option for a more efficient and quicker way to get out of it, who's going to pass up that offer? Here's how to get a quick and easy cleaning with all the fun of mixing dangerous chemicals! Go into your cabinet, grab your household cleaners and mix them all together. Every single one. The only side effect is potential death... but who cares, that toilet bowl will be cleaner than ever!

Your ingredients 

It may sound like a good idea at first, but let me tell you, you could easily end up concocting grandma's famous recipe for disaster. Ha.

This unit in chemistry is all about quantities in chemical reactions: how much of something will mix with something else to create a new something.  Here are two of many examples of those somethings mixing to create harmful chemicals:

CHLORINE (sodium hypochlorite) + VINEGAR (acetic acid):

NaClO + CH3COOH → HClO + CH3COONa : Hypochlorous acid = toxic (

BLEACH (sodium hypochlorite) + AMMONIA:

NH3 + NaClO → NH2Cl + NaOH : Sodium hydroxide = corrosive

http://www.mysafetylabels.com/sodium-hydroxide-labels

 I recently read an article on Popsugar entitled ¨Cleaners That Should Never Be Mixed", and it sparked some thought which eventually lead to me choosing to use it for the third unit. In short, the author basically lists a number of mixtures using everyday household products that you may not have realized could cause a dangerous reaction. I believe it provides the benefit to anybody like me who stumbles upon it as it informs the reader of possible dangers they may not have otherwise been aware of. I for one didn't know most of them! It also made me think that maybe, since the risk of accidental crossing of chemicals runs high, we should start reverting back to using green and natural alternatives. It's also better for the environment, so what is there to lose!

So, what do you think? Do you think it would be better if we maybe stayed away from harsh chemicals and instead, went green? Why or why not?

- Row