Cooking Leavening In cooking, baking soda is primarily used in baking as a leavening agent. When it reacts with acid, carbon dioxide is released, which causes expansion of the batter and forms the characteristic texture and grain in cakes, quick breads, soda bread, and other baked and fried foods. The acid–base reaction can be generically represented as follows:<unk>  + H+ → Na+ + CO2 + H2O Acidic materials that induce this reaction include hydrogen phosphates, cream of tartar, lemon juice, yogurt, buttermilk, cocoa, and vinegar. Baking soda may be used together with sourdough, which is acidic, making a lighter product with a less acidic taste. Heat can also by itself cause<unk>  to act as a raising agent in baking because of thermal decomposition, releasing carbon dioxide at temperatures above , as follows: : 2<unk>  →<unk>  + H2O + CO2 When used this way on its own, without the presence of an acidic component (whether in the batter or by the use of a baking powder containing acid), only half the available CO2 is released (one CO2 molecule is formed for every two equivalents of<unk> . Additionally, in the absence of acid, thermal decomposition of<unk>  also produces<unk>  carbonate, which is strongly alkaline and gives the baked product a bitter, "soapy" taste and a yellow color. 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<unk> arbonate, 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<unk>  combined with calcium acid phosphate,<unk>  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<unk>  carbonate. Pyrotechnics<unk>  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.<unk>  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<unk>  can be used to extinguish small grease or electrical fires by being thrown over the fire, as heating of<unk>  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.<unk>  is used in BC dry chemical fire extinguishers as an alternative to the more corrosive diammonium phosphate in ABC extinguishers. The alkaline nature of<unk>  makes it the only dry chemical agent, besides Purple-K, that was used in large-scale fire suppression systems installed in commercial kitchens. Because it can act as an alkali, the agent has a mild saponification effect on hot grease, which forms a smothering, soapy foam. Neutralization of acids<unk>  reacts spontaneously with acids, releasing CO2 gas as a reaction product. It is commonly used to neutralize unwanted acid solutions or acid spills in chemical laboratories. It is not appropriate to use<unk>  to neutralize base even though it is amphoteric, reacting with both acids and bases. Agriculture<unk>  when applied on leaves, can prevent the growth of fungi; however, it does not kill the fungus. Excessive amount of<unk>  can cause discolouration of fruits (two percent solution) and chlorosis (one percent solution). Medical uses and health<unk>  mixed with water can be used as an antacid to treat acid indigestion and heartburn. Its reaction with stomach acid produces salt, water, and carbon dioxide:<unk>  + HCl → NaCl + H2O + CO2(g) A mixture of<unk>  and polyethylene glycol such as PegLyte, dissolved in water and taken orally, is an effective gastrointestinal lavage preparation and laxative prior to gastrointestinal surgery, gastroscopy, etc. Intravenous<unk>  in an aqueous solution is sometimes used for cases of acidosis, or when insufficient<unk>  or<unk> arbonate ions are in the blood. In cases of respiratory acidosis, the infused<unk> arbonate ion drives the carbonic acid/bicarbonate buffer of plasma to the left, and thus raises the pH. For this reason,<unk>  is used in medically supervised cardiopulmonary resuscitation. Infusion of<unk> arbonate is indicated only when the blood pH is markedly low (3− is used for treatment of hyperkalemia, as it will drive K+ back into cells during periods of acidosis. Since<unk>  can cause alkalosis, it is sometimes used to treat aspirin overdoses. Aspirin requires an acidic environment for proper absorption, and a basic environment will diminish aspirin absorption in cases of overdose.<unk>  has also been used in the treatment of tricyclic antidepressant overdose. It can also be applied topically as a paste, with three parts baking soda to one part water, to relieve some kinds of insect bites and stings (as well as accompanying swelling). Some alternative practitioners, such as Tullio Simoncini, have promoted baking soda as a cancer cure, which the American Cancer Society has warned against due to both its unproven effectiveness and potential danger in use. Edzard Ernst has called the promotion of<unk>  as a cancer cure "one of the more sickening alternative cancer scams I have seen for a long time".<unk>  can be added to local anesthetics, to speed up the onset of their effects and make their injection less painful. It is also a component of Moffett's solution, used in nasal surgery. It has been proposed that acidic diets weaken bones. One systematic meta-analysis of the research shows no such effect. Another also finds that there is no evidence that alkaline diets improve bone health, but suggests that there "may be some value" to alkaline diets for other reasons. Antacid (such as baking soda) solutions have been prepared and used by protesters to alleviate the effects of exposure to tear gas during protests. Similarly to its use in baking,<unk>  is used together with a mild acid such as tartaric acid as the excipient in effervescent tablets: when such a tablet is dropped in a glass of water, the carbonate leaves the reaction medium as carbon dioxide gas (HCO3− + H+ → H2O + CO2↑ or, more precisely, HCO3− + H3O+ → 2 H2O + CO2↑). This makes the tablet disintegrate, leaving the medication suspended and/or dissolved in the water together with the resulting salt (in this example,<unk>  tartrate). Personal hygiene<unk>  is also used as an ingredient in some mouthwashes. It has anticaries and abrasive properties. It works as a mechanical cleanser on the teeth and gums, neutralizes the production of acid in the mouth, and also acts as an antiseptic to help prevent infections.<unk>  in combination with other ingredients can be used to make a dry or wet deodorant.<unk>  may be used as a buffering agent, combined with table salt, when creating a solution for nasal irrigation. It is used in eye hygiene to treat blepharitis. This is done by addition of a teaspoon of<unk>  to cool water that was recently boiled, followed by gentle scrubbing of the eyelash base with a cotton swab dipped in the solution. Veterinary uses<unk>  is used as a cattle feed supplement, in particular as a buffering agent for the rumen. Cleaning agent<unk>  is used in a process for removing paint and corrosion called sodablasting. As a blasting medium,<unk>  is used to remove surface contamination from softer and less resilient substrates such as aluminium, copper or timber which could be damaged by silica sand abrasive media. A manufacturer recommends a paste made from baking soda with minimal water as a gentle scouring powder, and is useful in removing surface rust, as the rust forms a water-soluble compound when in a concentrated alkaline solution; cold water should be used, as hot-water solutions can corrode steel.<unk>  attacks the thin protective oxide layer that forms on aluminium, making it unsuitable for cleaning this metal. A solution in warm water will remove the tarnish from silver when the silver is in contact with a piece of aluminium foil. Baking soda is commonly added to washing machines as a replacement for water softener and to remove odors from clothes. It is also almost as effective in removing heavy tea and coffee stains from cups as<unk>  hydroxide, when diluted with warm water. During the Manhattan Project to develop the nuclear bomb in the early 1940s, the chemical toxicity of uranium was an issue. Uranium oxides were found to stick
Sodium bicarbonate
Acetylcysteine
Glucagon
Glucagon 
Activated charcoal 
Calcium chloride
Flumazenil
Tolazamide