To show how mass is conserved in a simple experiment, we can mix baking soda and vinegar. This experiment helps us understand that the total weight of the things we start with (reactants) is the same as the total weight of what we end up with (products).

Materials You Will Need:

1. Baking soda (25 grams)
2. Vinegar (100 mL)
3. A balloon
4. A measuring scale
5. A container (like a bottle)

Steps for the Experiment:

1. Weigh the Ingredients:

   • First, weigh out 25 grams of baking soda and write it down.
   • Next, pour 100 mL of vinegar into the container and weigh it. Since vinegar is about 1 gram per mL, 100 mL weighs around 100 grams.
   • Add these two weights together: 25 grams (baking soda) + 100 grams (vinegar) = 125 grams in total.

2. Mix the Ingredients:

   • Slowly add the baking soda to the vinegar. Watch closely as they react. You will see bubbles forming. This is carbon dioxide gas being created, along with water and sodium acetate.
   • Quickly place the balloon over the top of the container to trap the gas inside.

3. Weigh Everything After Mixing:

   • Once the bubbling stops and the reaction is done, weigh the container with any leftover liquid (vinegar and dissolved sodium acetate) and the balloon (which holds the gas).
   • You should find that the total weight is still about 125 grams. This means no mass has escaped into the air during the experiment.

What We Learned:

• Throughout the experiment, the total weight before mixing and after mixing stays the same. This shows us the idea of conservation of mass.

• It shows that in a closed space, even when things change during a reaction, the weight doesn’t change. Matter is not made or lost:

  Weight of Ingredients = Weight of Final Products

• This easy experiment helps us see the basic ideas of chemical reactions and the law of conservation of mass.