Effervescence is the escape of gas from an

aqueous solution An aqueous solution is a solution in which the solvent is water. It is mostly shown in chemical equations by appending (aq) to the relevant chemical formula. For example, a solution of table salt, or sodium chloride (NaCl), in water would be re ...

and the foaming or fizzing that results from that release. The word effervescence is derived from the

Latin Latin (, or , ) is a classical language belonging to the Italic branch of the Indo-European languages. Latin was originally a dialect spoken in the lower Tiber area (then known as Latium) around present-day Rome, but through the power of the ...

verb ''fervere'' (to boil), preceded by the adverb ''ex''. It has the same linguistic root as the word

fermentation Fermentation is a metabolic process that produces chemical changes in organic substrates through the action of enzymes. In biochemistry, it is narrowly defined as the extraction of energy from carbohydrates in the absence of oxygen. In food ...

. Effervescence can also be observed when opening a bottle of champagne, beer or carbonated beverages such as some carbonated

soft drinks A soft drink (see § Terminology for other names) is a drink that usually contains water (often carbonated), a sweetener, and a natural and/or artificial flavoring. The sweetener may be a sugar, high-fructose corn syrup, fruit juice, a s ...

. The visible bubbles are produced by the escape from solution of the dissolved gas (which itself is not visible while dissolved in the liquid). Although CO₂ is most common for beverages, Nitrogen#Nitrogen gas, nitrogen gas is sometimes deliberately added to certain beers. The smaller bubble size creates a smoother beer head. Due to the poor solubility of nitrogen in beer, kegs or Widget (beer), widgets are used for this. In the laboratory, a common example of effervescence is seen if hydrochloric acid is added to a block of limestone. If a few pieces of marble or an antacid tablet are put in hydrochloric acid in a test tube fitted with a bung, effervescence of carbon dioxide can be witnessed. :CaCO3 + 2 HCl -> CaCl2 + H2O + CO2 (^) This process is generally represented by the following Chemical reaction, reaction, where a pressurized dilute solution of carbonic acid in water releases gaseous carbon dioxide at decompression (physics), decompression: :H2CO3 -> H2O + CO2 (^) In simple terms, it is the result of the chemical reaction occurring in the liquid which produces a gaseous product.G. Liger-Belair ''et al.'', "Study of Effervescence in a Glass of Champagne: Frequencies of Bubble Formation, Growth Rates, and Velocities of Rising Bubbles"
Am. J. Enol. Vitic.
50:3 (1999), 317–323. Effervescence is also a human characteristic of expression, in tandem with ecstasy or exhuberant joy (associated with The 'fountain of youth').

References

Chemical processes {{Chem-stub

See also

References