Final answer:
The purpose of adding saturated sodium bicarbonate is to neutralize excess acid, which leads to the generation of sodium carbonate, carbon dioxide, and water.
Step-by-step explanation:
The addition of saturated sodium bicarbonate (NaHCO₃), commonly known as baking soda, to various chemical reactions often serves to neutralize excess acid. When it reacts with an acid, sodium bicarbonate acts as a weak base and undergoes a decomposition reaction, producing sodium carbonate, carbon dioxide (CO₂), and water (H₂O).
One example of such a reaction is when sodium bicarbonate is mixed with sulfuric acid in an aqueous solution, leading to the generation of carbon dioxide gas as a byproduct: This reaction plays a crucial role in baking, where the evolution of CO₂ gas helps create the fluffiness in baked goods without the use of yeast.
In this context, baking powder often contains sodium bicarbonate along with a solid acid such as potassium hydrogen tartrate, and the CO₂ release upon addition of water causes dough or batter to rise.