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TedEd: What triggers a chemical reaction?

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TedEd: What triggers a chemical reaction?

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What triggers a chemical reaction? - Kareem Jarrah

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Read this article to recognize the importance of chemical reactions in the world around you.

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Chemistry happens in the world around you, not just in a lab. Matter interacts to form new products through a process called a chemical reaction or chemical change. Every time you cook or clean, it's chemistry in action. Your body lives and grows thanks to chemical reactions. There are reactions when you take medications, light a match, and draw a breath. These examples of chemical reactions from everyday life are a small sampling of the hundreds of thousands of reactions you experience as you go about your day.

Key Takeaways: Chemical Reactions in Everyday Life

Photosynthesis

Plants apply a chemical reaction called photosynthesis to convert carbon dioxide and water into food (glucose) and oxygen. It's one of the most common everyday chemical reactions and also one of the most important because this is how plants produce food for themselves and animals and convert carbon dioxide into oxygen. The equation for the reaction is:

Aerobic Cellular Respiration

Aerobic cellular respiration is the opposite process of photosynthesis in that energy molecules are combined with the oxygen we breathe to release ​the energy needed by our cells plus carbon dioxide and water. Energy used by cells is chemical energy in the form of ATP, or adenosine triphosphate.

Here is the overall equation for aerobic cellular respiration:

Anaerobic Respiration

Anaerobic respiration is a set of chemical reactions that allows cells to gain energy from complex molecules without oxygen. Your muscle cells perform anaerobic respiration whenever you exhaust the oxygen being delivered to them, such as during intense or prolonged exercise. Anaerobic respiration by yeast and bacteria is harnessed for fermentation to produce ethanol, carbon dioxide, and other chemicals that make cheese, wine, beer, yogurt, bread, and many other common products.

The overall chemical equation for one form of anaerobic respiration is:

Combustion

Every time you strike a match, burn a candle, build a fire, or light a grill, you see the combustion reaction. Combustion combines energetic molecules with oxygen to produce carbon dioxide and water.

For example, the equation for the combustion reaction of propane, found in gas grills and some fireplaces, is:

Over time, iron develops a red, flaky coating called rust. This is an example of an oxidation reaction. Other everyday examples include formation of verdigris on copper and tarnishing of silver.

Here is the chemical equation for the rusting of iron:

Thousands of chemical reactions take place during digestion. As soon as you put food in your mouth, an enzyme in your saliva called amylase starts to break down sugars and other carbohydrates into simpler forms your body can absorb. Hydrochloric acid in your stomach reacts with food to further break it down, while enzymes cleave proteins and fats so they can be absorbed into your bloodstream through the walls of the intestines.

Acid-Base Reactions

Whenever you combine an acid (e.g., vinegar, lemon juice, sulfuric acid, or muriatic acid) with a base (e.g., baking soda, soap, ammonia, or acetone), you are performing an acid-base reaction. These reactions neutralize the acid and base to yield salt and water.

Sodium chloride isn't the only salt that can be formed. For example, here is the chemical equation for an acid-base reaction that produces potassium chloride, a common table salt substitute:

HCl + KOH → KCl + H ₂ O

Soap and Detergent Reactions

Soaps and detergents clean by way of chemical reactions. Soap emulsifies grime, which means oily stains bind to the soap so they can be lifted away with water. Detergents act as surfactants, lowering the surface tension of water so it can interact with oils, isolate them, and rinse them away.

Cooking uses heat to cause chemical changes in food. For example, when you hard boil an egg, the hydrogen sulfide produced by heating the egg white can react with iron from the egg yolk to form a grayish-green ring around the yolk. When you brown meat or baked goods, the Maillard reaction between amino acids and sugars produces a brown color and a desirable flavor.

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Examples of Chemical Reactions Taking Place Around You Every Day

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Here are a few of the hundreds of thousands of chemical reactions that take place around you every day.

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Experiment with the periodic table to create your own reactions!

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Legends of Learning: Chemical Reactions Game

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Legends of Learning: Chemical Reactions Game

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Test your knowledge of chemical reactions with this matching game.