There are many names for it, including Baking Soda and Sodium Bicarbonate. I prefer my Bicarbonate of Soda because you can use more words to express your thoughts. It has become an integral part of society. It is used for everything, from cleaning up the worst messes to baking delicious cakes and cookies. National Bicarbonate Day reminds us how important this little salt is in our lives and urges us to look into its history.

Bicarbonate of soda is an interesting little ingredient. Nearly all of us first experienced making volcanoes in science class. You can make a volcano from a small amount of this white powder. All you need is some food coloring and some lemon juice. This is not the most popular use of the substance. It has also found its way into many other things. It is not clear where it came from.

Apart from the fact that sodium bicarbonate is a result of the chemical process called the “Solvay Process”, where sodium chloride and ammonia are mixed with water to create sodium carbonate, it also happens to be a byproduct of the same process. (Thank you Ernest Solvay, who discovered this process in 1861’s), Nicolas Leblanc, a French Chemist, first discovered sodium bicarbonate.

It was discovered around the same time as sodium carbonate, also known as soda ash. It has been used in surprising industries such as cooking, pest control and corrosion removal, disinfectants and personal hygiene. It has proven to be a very useful and simple substance.

You can celebrate it by creating the first baking soda volcano since High School. Okay, now you can have some fun with it. Put some in a cup, and add some vinegar. See if you have any bicarbonate soda in your daily life. National Bicarbonate of Soda Day aims to raise awareness about the effects of this tiny little ingredient. It’s almost certain that toothpaste contains it, but household cleaners also contain it, so we bet you already have some!