Sodium Carbonate (Na2CO3) or Washing soda or Soda ash , is a key
component to laundry soaps and many other household products. Sodium
carbonate is also used in the paper and wool industries, but the major
demand comes from the glass industry.
In fact, the world demand for sodium carbonate stands at over 50 million
tonnes per year. Most of it is now manufactured by an industrial process
known as the Solvay process.
The Solvay process, also known as the ammonia-soda process, was
developed in 1861 by the Belgian industrial chemist, Ernest Solvay.
The materials used in the Solvay process are easily available and
inexpensive. They include:
1. Brine or sodium chloride solution. It provides sodium ions in the making of the sodium
carbonate. Brine can be easily sourced from both inland and the ocean.
2. Limestone or calcium carbonate. It provides carbonate ions in the production of the sodium
carbonate. Limestone is readily available from mining.
3. Ammonia is made industrially by the Haber's process. Ammonia is expensive, but as you
will see, it is recycled in the process
Stage 1: Brine Purification
Brine purification involves removing impurities from sea water to leave water and sodium
chloride. First the brine is subjected to evaporation to increase the salt concentration.
Precipitation is also carried out in order to remove any impurities like magnesium, iron and
calcium salts that may be present. Calcium salts are precipitated out by adding sodium
carbonate, and magnesium salts by adding sodium hydroxide. The solution is then filtered and
passed through an ammonia tower. The ammonia gas is absorbed in the concentrated brine to
produce aqueous sodium chloride and aqueous ammonia. This ammoniation process is
exothermic, so energy is released as heat. The ammonia tower eventually needs to be cooled.
Stage 2: Formation of Sodium Hydrogen Carbonate
The carbon dioxide is produced in a lime kiln where limestone, CaCO 3 is calcinated or
thermally decomposed at 900°C according to the equation:
CaCO3 + heat ---> CO2 (g) + CaO(s)
Carbon dioxide is then bubbled through the ammoniated brine solution in a tower known as
the carbonating or Solvay tower.
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The carbon dioxide dissolves in water to produce a carbonic acid, H2 CO3, which is a weak
acid that dissociates to produce H+ ions.
CO2 (g) + H2 O(l) ---> H2 CO3 <------> HCO3 - (aq) + H+ (aq)
While the ammonia in the brine reacts with H+ to form ammonium ions (equation 1), the Na+ in
the brine reacts with the HCO3 - to form sodium hydrogen carbonate (equation 2), which
precipitates out as a solid in the lower part of the tower, which is cooled.
Equation 1 : NH3 (aq) + H+ (aq) ----> NH4 + (aq)
Equation 2: HCO3 - (aq) + Na+ (aq) ---> NaHCO 3 (s)
The overall reaction in the carbonating tower that leads to the formation of sodium hydrogen
carbonate is given by:
NH3 (aq) + CO2 (g) + NaCl(aq) + H2 O (l) ---> NaHCO3 (s) + NH4 Cl (aq)
Stage 3: Formation of Sodium Carbonate
Suspended sodium hydrogen carbonate is then removed from the carbonating tower and heated
at 300o C in rotating ovens to produce sodium carbonate.
2NaHCO3 (s) ---> Na2 CO3 (s) + CO2 (g) + H 2 O (g)
The carbon dioxide thus produced is recycled, reused and passed into the carbonating tower.
Stage 4: Ammonia Recovery
Calcium oxide (CaO) is formed as a by-product of the thermal decomposition of limestone in
the lime kiln. This calcium oxide enters a lime slaker to react with water to form calcium
hydroxide, or slaked lime.
CaO(s) + H2 O (l) ----> Ca(OH)2 (aq)
In a distiller, the calcium hydroxide is then reacted with the ammonium chloride that has been
separated out of the carbonating tower by filtration.
Ca(OH)2 (aq) + 2NH4 Cl (aq)-----> CaCl2 (s) + 2H2 O (l) + 2NH3 (g)
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