Every year on December 30, the whole world celebrates an informal holiday – Soda day. Sodium bicarbonate is one of the most popular chemicals in human history. It is widely used in many areas of activity: cooking, cleaning, as a means of personal hygiene, for removing paint, corrosion and pest control, as a food additive for livestock.

It is not known how the idea of ​​celebrating the event arose, and the important role of soda is a reason to dedicate one day a year to the history of its discovery.

Even in ancient Egypt, natural sodium carbonate deposits were used as a soap and cleaning agent. In the 18th century, it was widely used to prevent spoilage of freshly caught fish.

Soda was first produced industrially in 1790 thanks to the invention of the French chemist Nicolas LeBlanc. 70 years later, the Belgian industrialist Ernest Solve invented a way to obtain sodium bicarbonate as a by-product in the gas production process. His invention turned out to be much more effective, which led to the expansion of soda production around the world.

In 1846, John Dwight and Austin Church, owners of a household goods company in New York, established the first factory for the production of baking soda, which expanded the limits of its application.