Question

Which of the following is produced from sodium acetate and soda lime?

Options

• methane

• ethane

• ethene

• ethyne

Answer 1

Methane

Explanation:

This is a decarboxylation reaction. Sodium acetate reacts with the sodium hydroxide in soda lime to release methane gas (\(\text{CH}_{4}\)):

\(\text{CH}_{3}\text{COONa}+\text{NaOH}\xrightarrow{\text{CaO,\ }\Delta }\text{CH}_{\mathbf{4}}\mathbf{\uparrow }+\text{Na}_{2}\text{CO}_{3}\)